《My New Roommate is a Ghost!》 Chapter 1: Moving Out "Mom, I promise I will be just fine. I''m already 22 years old. You can''t keep treating me like I''m a baby," Yasmine said with a heavy sigh. Her mother loved to coddle her. Anytime Yasmine wanted to go out and do something on her own, the woman was always there to tell her just what could go wrong. She was busy trying to pack up the last of her things from the apartment she had shared with a friend for the last year. It hadn''t been the best experience as her friend was a bit of a slob and Yasmine was the type to insist everything needed to have a place. As much as she loved her friend, living together just never worked out. Since her grandfather passed a few months ago, away leaving his home to her in his will, she had been making preparations to move since she got the news. "Yeah, I had the mechanic look at my car last week. Now will you stop freaking out? It''s only three hours away. It''s not like I''m moving across the country. Look, I still need to pack some things up. I will call you when I get there. I gotta... mom.... Mom, I gotta go! I love you bye!" she said, yelling over her mother''s continued rant and hanging up the phone. She let out a long groan before letting herself flop down on her bed for a moment, the conversation leaving her drained. With a deep breath, she let herself dream for just a moment, trying to remember just what her grandfather''s home looked like. Fuzzy memories came back in waves; the image of seeing the house for the first time when her parents left her there for the summer. She¡¯d been eight. Yasmine had been incredibly shy when she was a kid, and staying at a new place for the first time had been so scary. She barely left her father''s side at first. The strange old man with a bright smile under his bushy beard patiently waited for her to come to him. Eventually, she managed to introduce herself, and once they started talking, things became much easier. As friendly as her grandfather was, it didn''t help her nerves when she had to sleep in a strange room by herself without a nightlight. She remembered getting up and turning on her light to play with her toys on the floor, trying to calm herself down. That was when she met him for the first time. Yasmine couldn''t quite remember what he looked like, but she did remember being scared and then excited as he started to ask about the toys and if she had a favorite. His voice was so soft and gentle that it put her at ease, as if he knew how shy she was and needed to be patient. They played together late into the night. She remembered waking up the next morning in her bed, though she was almost positive she passed out on the floor. Everything past this memory was far too fuzzy to remember properly, but she could recall that as long as she asked, her Imaginary friend Monty would always play with her. "Yaz!" A voice yelled suddenly, waking her up from her impromptu nap. "Huh wha!" Yasmine''s head shot up, looking around. Turning onto her back, she spotted her friend, Valerie, standing in the doorway to her room. "Hahaha, did you pass out while packing?" Her friend said with a cackle. Yasmine''s face flushed slightly as she pushed up her large framed glasses and swiped a few strands of her dark brunette hair from her face. "S-shut up, I was just taking a break." Quickly getting out of bed, she huffed slightly as she continued to pack up all of her personal belongings. There really wasn''t much left to get into boxes. She was a minimalist by nature and tried to keep everything as neat and tidy as possible. A little bit of clutter she could stand, but Valerie''s levels of clutter gave her anxiety. She would not miss living in this small apartment in this cramped city. Even though she had lived in this city for almost a decade now, first with her parents and then after college in the apartment, the desire to get out never faded for a second. Yasmine had insanely bad claustrophobia, and the streets lined with large skyscrapers where she could barely see the sky used to send her into a panic. Thankfully, over time, it lessened, but never even came close to going away. The spread out town of Tannehill was perfect for her. There was even an opening at their city hall where she could put her skills to use doing bookkeeping and accounting. All she had to do was get there and life would start anew for her. After packing up everything, she started to haul everything down to the street level. They lived on the sixth floor of an apartment complex, so it was a lot of taking the elevator up and down. Which, of course, was the thing she hated the absolute most about living in this apartment. She had to close her eyes and imagine wide open spaces each time she rode the devil''s contraption, and that barely got her through it. By the time she was down to her final box, her nerves were completely fried, and she was ready to find a field to lay down naked in. She saved the biggest box for last, dreading the final trip. With a heave, her small frame lifted the box that weighed about thirty pounds thanks to her mineral collection, but it also held most of the bulky stuff that wasn''t fragile. The height of the box made it so she had to look around it instead of over it. It was precarious at best, and of course, Valerie couldn''t be bothered to lend a hand. Some friend she was. She barely managed to push the button to call the elevator, and she continued to hold the box for some reason. As the elevator dinged and the doors opened, she quickly made her way inside. "Whoa!" a deep voice said as Yasmine ran right into a stranger, smacking into him. The box rebounded and smacked against her face and painfully compressed her breasts against her."Ah!" Yasmine let out a wail of surprise and pain as she dropped the box and stumbled back, falling onto her butt. She closed her eyes and winced as she expected the sound of her box to come crashing down with all the rocks and items in it, but it never came. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. "Crap, are you alright?" the same deep voice said as the box was gently set down on the elevator floor. In front of her was a dark haired man dressed like he was just getting off work from a security job. His blue button up was open to reveal a white tank top underneath, and his black slacks were pleated, held up by a dark black belt. "Y-yeah, I''m okay." She had yet to open her eyes as she reached up and rubbed her chest, which stung from getting squished so hard, not even realizing what she was doing till she heard the sound of the man clearing his throat. Her eyes shot open, and she saw the man towering above her, looking away but stealing glances at her. Yasmine had a rather impressive bust for her small stature, each one was much bigger than her tiny hand as it gingerly rubbed the injured boob. It took several moments before she finally came to her senses and removed her hand, her face becoming a mess of crimson and shame. She quickly stood up and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "I-I-I am so s-s-sorry,¡± she stuttered, refusing to make eye contact with the strange man. "Please, it''s my fault as well. I just got off a grave shift and I''m not all here." Even though the man was trying to make small talk in a way, the only thing Yasmine could hear were the heavy thuds of her pulse in her ear. She had to get out of there, but before she could even think of grabbing her stuff, the elevator dinged and the doors closed behind her. Her stomach suddenly twisted in a million knots, and her face went from beet red to pale as a ghost. "Are... you alright? " the man next to her said, seeing her expression shift into one of complete horror. The only thing worse than riding the elevator was riding the elevator with other people, much less a stranger. Her first instinct was to smash the door open button, but it seemed someone on the ground floor had already called the car to come down. "N-No!" she wailed, pushing the door open button rapidly. Her breathing picked up, and panic set in. This couldn''t be happening. "Let me out!" she cried out again, now banging on the door in desperation. "Hey, hey! It''ll be alright, just calm down, miss. You''ll be alright." His kind words did little to ease her panicked state. Looking up at the numbers descending, they seemed to go slower than ever before. Each floor felt like it took an eternity, tears started to well up in her eyes as she watched in horror, feeling the walls closing in around her. "Look, just breathe, take long, deep breaths. Everything is going to be perfectly fine. Close your eyes. Imagine you are in a wide open space or something." The man once again attempted to calm Yasmine down. When she looked over at him, she saw that he had pressed himself up against the back wall, trying to give her as much space as possible. His kindness did not go unnoticed as she finally closed her eyes and tried to slow her breathing. She was still trembling and looking like she was about to burst into tears, but before that could happen the ding of the elevator reaching its destination went off. As the doors slid open, Yasmine rushed out, dodging the lady waiting there, and into the entryway of the apartments, free at last. As she placed her hands on her knees, gasping for breath, she heard the sound of the elevator leaving once more. Remembering her box she quickly spun around, only to find the same man standing there holding the box for her. "Man, this thing is heavy. What''s in here? Rocks? Haha,¡± he said jokingly, but the look on Yasmine''s face was one of mild shame and embarrassment. "Umm, yeah, there kind of is..." Her eyes darted from him, then away. He just stared at her, slightly dumbfounded. "O-oh, haha!" Clearing his throat, he set the box on the ground and walked up to her. "Are you alright? You kinda freaked out in there. Are you claustrophobic?" he asked, looking genuinely concerned for her. She wrapped her arms around herself, holding them tight. "Y-yeah, sorry for all that,¡± she said, unable to make eye contact with the man. Though he had been quite nice, she still felt quite humiliated for freaking out on him. "Please, it''s no problem. My sister has it pretty bad, too, so I am kind of used to it. My name is Bryant, by the way. Do you live in this building?" he asked, giving her a slightly crooked smile that was actually kind of charming. "Yes... I mean, no, I mean, I used to, but I am actually in the middle of moving out." Bryant''s smile quickly faded at this. "Oh... well," he paused to rub the back of his neck. He wasn''t the first guy to show interest in her and she knew some of the signs. His dark brown eyes looked tired and slightly bloodshot. His hair was such a deep brown It almost looked black. He had a semi square jaw and dimples that only grew when he smiled. Certainly not unattractive by any means. "I guess that serves me right for dragging my feet. I have seen you in passing from time to time but never had the guts to stop and say anything. Haha," Bryant laughed at his own self depreciation, looking a bit annoyed with himself. Yasmine blushed a little more, not really sure what to say back to him. "Well, I won''t keep you. Maybe I will see you again if you come back to visit, haha!" His laughter was obviously meant to try and hide his pain as he picked up the box and handed it off to her. She took it with a light groan and turned to look at him again. "I''m sorry, Bryant, but thank you again for helping me. It was very sweet of you." With that, she turned and started walking away. "Wait!" he called out. She stopped and looked back, a little concerned. "Could I at least know your name?" he asked sheepishly. A surprising smile came to her face. She owed him at least that much. "Yasmine." With that, she walked out of the apartment complex and headed a short distance to where she parked her car close by. After loading up the last box, she called Valerie to say goodbye, since there was no way she was getting back on that elevator ever again. So she started her car and headed for her new, small town life. There would be no elevators where she was going... she hoped. Chapter 2: Moving In The moment Yasmine escaped the city on the freeway, it felt like a weight had been lifted off her. With her entire life crammed into the back of her sedan, she was off to greener pastures. Unable to keep the smile off her face, she turned up the music she was playing and loudly sang along. It was a guilty pleasure of hers. She had no idea if she was any good, but enjoyed it, nonetheless. The drive was long and boring. Aside from stopping for gas and a bathroom break, there wasn¡¯t much else to do. So when she finally saw the sign for the Tannehill city limits, her excitement returned in force. ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± Yasmine squealed in giddy excitement as she looked around. There was not a building in sight that stood more than a few stories tall. Lots of pastures and fields of produce lined the highway on both sides. The original purpose of Tannehill was to be a housing community for the dozens of massive farms that surrounded it. But it had grown so much in the last few decades, blooming into a wonderful small town with tight knit communities. Being as shy as she was, she wasn¡¯t really looking to be so much a big part of that community, but she liked the small part. Turning off the highway and heading into town, she checked her phone and made sure she was heading in the right direction. Driving through the main street of the town, she gawked at all the small shops lining the streets. She was almost certain she didn¡¯t spot a single brand name among them. It seemed that the heart of the city was reserved for only locally owned businesses. The largest building on it was a farm supply shop that had a few new tractors and mowers out front. She could feel her heart beating hard in her chest, but this time, it was because she couldn¡¯t help but find everything so perfect. As she continued onwards, she did spot a few fast food and restaurant chains. All hanging signs proudly touting some form of locally owned and operated franchise. It seemed to be a really big deal around here to keep things local. She wondered how hard it would be to actually move here from the city if she didn¡¯t inherit her grandfather¡¯s home. She still held a lot of guilt about receiving it after not visiting him for so long. Her excitement died down a little as she let herself wallow in her momentary sadness. At long last, she took a turn down a short paved road and arrived at a rather quaint two bed, one bath modular home. It was nothing impressive, but it was still twice as big as the tiny apartment she lived in before. Everything looked surprisingly neat outside like someone made sure to keep the outside walkway free from fallen foliage. She wondered if Grandpa had someone who came by and cleaned up every so often. That was just fine with her, though, but she wondered how long that would last. She had no experience with yard maintenance. Growing up in the city most of her life she never even had a yard. She parked her car near the front door and stepped out, taking a deep breath. For the first time in what felt like forever, it felt like she could actually breathe. Her face flushed with overwhelming happiness as she took in what would be the launch pad of the rest of her life. ¡°Thank you, grandpa¡­ Thank you so much.¡± Yasmine whispered, sniffing a little, wiping away a tear of happiness. ¡°Right, let''s get to work!¡± She said excitedly, holding the key to the front door of the home tightly in her fist. She looked up at the front door, which was up a small ramp and past a neatly kept patio. Without further hesitation, she quickly walked up to the front door, unlocked it, and pushed it open. Inside, she found a very simple living room, a small couch, and a large comfy looking recliner facing an ancient looking TV that had all manner of cables and boxes attached to it to make it work with modern technology. It made her laugh softly as she started her walkthrough of the home. But as she took her first step inside, she felt a sudden shiver shoot up her spine. Her arms broke out in goose pimples, and her hair on the back of her neck stood on end. Her head shot from left to right, trying to seek out the source of the feeling, but there was nothing. When she dared to take another step inside, the feeling suddenly vanished, like it had never been there in the first place. ¡°What the hell was that?!¡± Yasmine complained to herself, trying to figure out just what had happened. After spending another minute or two looking around, he decided she couldn¡¯t justify standing there anymore. ¡°Get over yourself. It¡¯s just an empty house. Stop being a chicken,¡± admonishing herself aloud, she continued into the abandoned home. As she looked around, she noticed something very strange. Though the home had been empty for almost half a year, everything was spotless. No dust covered furniture, no musky odors or signs that pests had come in. Looking around, she found it was the same in every room, like someone had deep cleaned it before she showed up. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. The only answer was that someone had been hired to clean the place before she moved in. But the only people who knew she was coming today were her parents and her former roommate. And there was a better chance of getting struck by lightning than her former roommate hiring a cleaning company on her behalf. That''s when she remembered she needed to call her worrywart of a mother and let her know she was still alive and didn¡¯t get run off the road by some crazed drunk driver. Yasmine pulled out her phone and quickly tapped her mother¡¯s number. She put the phone to her ear, and her mother answered almost immediately. ¡°Yasmine, what took you so long to call!? You should have arrived at least half an hour ago. Did something happen, are you okay!?¡± Her mother¡¯s slight middle eastern accent coming through in the panic.'' ¡°I¡¯m fine, Mom. I just had to stop for gas, and there was a little traffic on the way. It¡¯s not a big deal,¡± Yasmine said with a soft sigh. ¡°Well, you should have told me you were running behind. Your father and I have been worried sick!¡± Her mother loved to lump her father in with her freakouts like it somehow made it more meaningful if both of them were worried. But Yasmine knew her father trusted her to make the right decisions and be safe. She¡¯d always been a daddy''s girl, and it drove her mother mad half the time. ¡°Yeah, well, you said not to use my phone while driving, soooo. But anyway, I wanted to ask you something, actually. Did you guys hire a company to come clean grandpa¡¯s house before I moved in?¡± There was a small moment of silence before her mother responded. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t, at least. I can check with your father, but I don¡¯t think he did either. You have the only spare key, so there wasn¡¯t really a possibility of getting cleaners in there, anyway. You should make a copy as soon as possible so you don''t get locked out as well. Is it pretty bad in there? Do you need us to get one for you, sweetie? ¡± She offered. Yasmine''s parents were quite well off. They supported her through college and paid her part of the rent for the apartment while she looked for a job. ¡°I will get one soon and no¡­ I mean, I will take care of it. I still have some money saved up from graduation that I can use to get set up. I will be fine.¡± Though learning that she had the only key to the place filled her with a bit of anxiety, she didn¡¯t want to get her mom all riled up and insist she come back. There was no way she could go back now. ¡°Well, just let us know if we can help Yazzie, having my little girl so far away worries me. And you living alone is just-¡± ¡°Mom, again, I am not a kid anymore. I promise I will be fine, I gotta start getting my stuff unloaded so I will call you again tonight, okay? I love you.¡± Yasmine interrupted her, letting her mother say her goodbyes before hanging up. If no one had come to clean up the place, then just how was everything so immaculate? She didn¡¯t feel the same worrying sensation when she walked in, so she continued to check out the rooms. Finding the master bedroom, all the blankets and sheets had been stripped off the bed. All the photos and knickknacks that had been in a display cabinet had been packed up and put into storage long before she arrived. The room was bare bones, to say the least, which was fine for her, since it meant she could decorate herself. Yasmine decided that she would take the home''s cleanliness as a blessing, as she wouldn¡¯t have to spend hours dusting and cleaning everything up. However, the neat freak side of her lamented at the loss of that wonderful feeling of seeing everything sparkle after she was done. So, she walked back outside and started to haul boxes in from the car, setting everything down in the living room to sort out. It took a good half hour to get everything out of her car and into the house. She wiped the sweat from her brow after setting down the last box that held her mineral collection in it. As she looked at all the boxes on the floor, she noticed something strange, a few of the boxes had been opened. She was certain that she hadn¡¯t been the one to open them, either. ¡°Did they accidentally pop open by themselves? How could that be, though? I had them taped shut?¡± Her thoughts tried to process just how they could have been opened, but there was no logical explanation she could come up with. Yasmine looked around the living room again. There was something very, very wrong going on here, and her gut instinct was screaming at her to do¡­ something. ¡°H-hello?¡± She called out tentatively, praying that no one would answer. If someone had been hiding in the home somewhere, she just knew that she would never be able to live in this house. Her dream life would be ruined and she would have to go back to the city. So she begged that no one was there, no one had already broken the sanctity of her new home. After waiting a few long minutes, there had been no response. Yasmine let out a breath she hadn¡¯t realized she had been holding. She shook her head and closed her eyes, trying to calm down. ¡°Of course no one is there, get ahold of yourself, Yasmine.¡± She once again admonished herself for being paranoid. ¡°Yasmine?¡± A voice that was not her own suddenly spoke out, and the same feeling she got when she first stepped into the home shot through her once more. The short statured girl slowly turned her head towards where she had heard the voice coming from. Her eyes widened in abject horror. But there was nothing there¡­ that she could see. ¡°Are you really Yasmine Roberts?¡± The disembodied voice spoke once more, and Yasmine screamed louder than even she thought possible. Chapter 3: The First Encounter As Yasmine let out a blood curdling scream of terror, stumbling back from the voice that came from seemingly nowhere, she tripped back over a large box. ¡°AH!¡± She let out a yelp of surprise as she fell back, landing on her back and getting the wind knocked out of her. Feeling the inability to breathe, she winced, trying to suck in another breath. Momentarily distracted from what made her trip in the first place. That was until the voice spoke up again, this time sounding right above her. ¡°Oh shoot, are you alright!?¡± They said, sounding concerned. The horrible chill that wracked her body somehow forced her body to finally suck in another gasp of breath, just so she could scream it out again. ¡°Ghost!¡± Yasmine shrieked, scrambling on all fours, knocking over more boxes around her. In a desperate attempt to get away from the ghost. She knew that there had to be a catch, nothing every worked out perfectly for her, there was always something that ruined her plans. But even she couldn¡¯t have ever expected a friggin¡¯ undead to be haunting her grandfather¡¯s old home. ¡°H-hey, hey now, calm down. I¡¯m not gonna hurt ya!¡± The voice said as it followed the small girl who was moving like a wild animal twoards the door. ¡°Get away from me!¡± screaming again, she desperately rushed to get out the still open door. Finally, she managed to push herself up to her feet, making a mad dash for the door. She was only a few feet from freedom, where she could leave and escape this haunted house. She would find a priest, or an exorcist, hell, one of those cheesy paranormal investigators. Just someone to get rid of this thing. But yet, it was not to be. The door suddenly slammed shut right in front of her face. Yasmine¡¯s eyes bulged as the way out was closed before her. A bigger problem was that she was running at full speed, and there was no feasible way to stop so suddenly. The last thing she remembered was her body slamming into the solid oak door her grandfather had made himself out of a large tree that used to be on the property. Her head hit the door with a loud THWACK, sending her glasses flying off and her vision went black. ¡°Oh shi-!¡± the ghost said as he watched the petite woman slam into the door as he shut it. He watched as Yasmine¡¯s body started to fall backward, out cold. With supernatural speed, he swooped behind her and caught her body as it fell. It took a lot of focus and effort to interact with the living, but this came naturally to him as his instinct to protect her ran strong. He slowly lowered her to the carpeted floor till she was lying flat. As he looked down at Yasmine, he couldn¡¯t help but freeze for a moment. His ghostly eyes stared down at her, her soft round face, the slightly pouty lips, and the smattering of freckles that ran like a strip across the bridge of her nose. Her dark chocolate hair was tied into twin braids, with several strands shooting out in all directions as they escaped the loose braids. ¡°Focus Matt, she has a dang head injury.¡± He chided himself as he looked around and spotted a throw pillow on the couch. As Matt reach out a ghostly arm towards the pillow, it was surrounded by a ghostly energy. A moment later, it shot towards him, catching it, he gently lifted Yasmine¡¯s head and then rested her head on it. The spot where her forehead smacked into the door was already starting to swell, and a large red mark was surrounding a small cut. Matt felt completely awful for shutting the door on her like that. But he couldn¡¯t let her leave, not without explaining his situation and speaking with her. He hadn¡¯t gotten an answer before she started freaking out, but he was almost certain that this was Yasmine Roberts. Jebidiah Robert¡¯s granddaughter. It had been so many years that he hadn¡¯t really recognized her at first. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry Yazzie.¡± He whispered to her and let out a heavy sigh. Of course she was going to freak out, he was a ghost. Even if she couldn¡¯t see him, that didn¡¯t mean she wouldn¡¯t be scared. He floated up from where he had been sitting next to Yasmine and made his way into the kitchen. Matt grabbed a baggie and a paper towel and then opened the freezer. Taking several cubes from an ice tray, he filled up the baggie and wrapped it in the paper towel. He floated back to where the girl he scared half to death lay and lowered himself down again. Gently pressing the makeshift icepack to the bump on her head. As he watched her lay there, chest slowly rising and falling, he couldn¡¯t help but notice just how much she had grown. She was no longer the tiny little girl who would come visit every summer. She was an adult now, and even though she may have forgotten him, he did not forget her. Easily remembering the last time she came to visit. It had been at least ten years at this point, at least the last time she talked to him. Really, it felt more like she was talking to herself at that time. It was not a memory he enjoyed thinking about. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. A twelve year old Yasmine stood in the middle of the spare room she always stayed in when she stayed for the summer. She looked around the room like she was searching for something that might tell her what she wanted. Monty had promised to only show up if she asked him to. To make sure he never startled her and give her the comfort of control. If she wanted to be alone, he would leave her be. If she wanted to play a game or just talk, he was happy to keep her company. She frowned deeply now, though. He had been her best friend every summer up until this point. But things were changing, and she was growing up. ¡°Umm, Monty, I don¡¯t know if you are there, but¡­¡± Yasmine said quietly. ¡°I¡¯m¡­ we¡­ my family, is moving far away. Mom says I won¡¯t be spending summer here anymore either. I told her that I didn¡¯t want to stop. That I wanted to keep coming back to see you and Grandpa¡­¡± The preteen shook slightly like she was struggling to get everything out. With a sniff, she continued. ¡°She told me I need to stop acting like¡­like you are real, how you are just imaginary, and I need to start growing up. I tried telling her that you are real, that you aren¡¯t just imaginary. You may be a ghost, but you are also my best friend, Monty¡­ I don¡¯t want to lose you¡­ I don¡¯t wanna move away.¡± Yasmine let out a hiccup as she wiped away a tear from her eye, sniffling again. He had only ever been kind and gentle with her. Happy to spend his afterlife entertaining her, even if she was just a kid. ¡°I told them that I would prove that you were real. That you would come out and show them. T-then m-maybe you can come with us? I am sure that you would be happy living with us. Then we can keep playing together forever.¡± It was a childish dream that would never come true, no matter what she did or said, in more ways than just the obvious. As Yasmine stood there, waiting for a response, more tears started to fall. ¡°Monty? A-are you there? Please¡­ say something, anything.¡± She sobbed out, looking around the room even more. Monty was there, but he could not respond to her. He could see the writing on the wall. It was time for Yasmine to grow up and live without him. He had probably done too much already. There was only one option left, and it was one he never wanted to use but knew it was inevitable. If he wanted a chance at a peaceful existence and for her to be happy, she would have to forget him, forget everything she knew about what he really was. A ghostly hand was suddenly placed on the small child¡¯s head. She spun around to look up at her friend''s ghostly figure. She smiled for a moment as she saw his familiar button-up shirt, neat slacks, and hair styled to the side with a messy flair. His entire being was easily visible, especially in the light. Her smile quickly vanished when she saw the deep frown on his face. ¡°Monty?¡± She questioned, wondering what he was doing as he kept his hand on his head. He gave the small girl a flash of a smile. ¡°Thank you for calling me a friend, Yazzie. I¡¯ll miss you.¡± With his words, Yasmine''s eyes suddenly glassed over, and she fell into a trance. Her arms, which were wrapped around herself, fell limp to her side. Monty grit his teeth as he used every ounce of energy he had to alter her memories. His ghostly visage started to flicker and waver as he began to disappear from the feet up. All the energy he had saved up for over thirty years was being used in a few short moments. He let out a groan as she felt himself weakening. Slowly but surely, Monty started to fade into the ether. Nothing but a floating head now, the same small, somber smile on his face, knowing he was doing the right thing. As a final moment passed, Monty vanished into nothing. ¡°Goodbye Yazz¡­ie-.¡± His final words were nothing more than a quiet whisper that was carried away by an ethereal wind. Yasmine stood there motionless for several more seconds before snapping out of her trance. She looked around, blinking several times, confusion spread across her face. ¡°W-what am I doing in here?¡± She recognized the room she had spent all those lonely summers in. It had just been her and her grandpa for the last four summers. But for some reason, she always looked forward to coming here even though she had all these memories of playing by herself in the room. ¡°Yasmine, how are things going in there, sweetheart?¡± The voice of her father called out. ¡°Umm, fine¡­ I think,¡± she said, rushing to the door. She opened it to reveal her father waiting there for her. She quickly wrapped her arms around his large waist, squeezing him tight. The overwhelming desire to be held filled her. "Everything alright?" He asked, wrapping his arms around her and rubbing her back softly. She nodded against him, still squeezing tight. ¡°Were you able to say your goodbyes?¡± He asked, much more accepting of this imaginary friend of hers than her mother. Yasmine looked up at him in confusion. ¡°To grandpa? No, he¡¯s still in the living room, right? I¡¯ll do it now!¡± She said, quickly releasing him and then running off to give her grandpa a big hug goodbye. Her father watched with a raised but shrugged as it seemed his daughter was just fine now, even though she had been completely distraught earlier, ranting about how she would miss her ghost friend and she would get him to prove he was real. Though he agreed she was a bit old to have an imaginary friend, especially one that was a ghost. It was a little creepy, to be honest. He figured that she must have gotten her closure and was ready to move on. Her father looked into the empty room for a moment or two and smiled before walking back into the living room to rejoin his family, where his wife and daughter were saying their goodbyes to his dad. Yasmine¡¯s Imaginary friend wasn¡¯t gone, only reduced to nothing but a sliver of ghostly energy. Nothing more than a wisp of light, waiting and biding its time till it could once again take human shape. Chapter 4: Keep Calm and Dont Scream Matt, or as he was known to Yasmine, Monty wasn¡¯t sure why he chose to reveal himself to her as she was moving in. He basically spent all his life essence to get her to forget everything about him. But he couldn¡¯t help himself as he watched her carrying things in. It had taken him a while to even realize just who she was. She had changed so much than what even he remembered. What once was a plain, small girl with glasses had become this petite, natural beauty lying before him. When she came into the house, his first thought was that some strange woman had bought the place and was moving in. What was worse, she sensed him almost immediately, forcing him to hide, even though he was already invisible. ¡°Mmmnngh.¡± Matt¡¯s thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of Yasmine groaning on the floor, slowly stirring. He was still sitting there with her, keeping the icepack to the bump on her head. With his time short, he set the pack to the side and sped off into the bathroom to grab a large bandage and some antibiotic ointment. Once he was back, he quickly treated the small cut and bandaged it, much to her discomfort. He then placed the pack of ice back against the bump. ¡°Nngh, my head¡¯s¡­.cold.¡± She complained, lifting a hand slightly, but it fell back to the floor with a lack of energy. Matt debated for several moments whether or not to speak to her again, the last thing he wanted was for her to freak out on him again, especially while injured. ¡°It¡¯s an icepack, you hit your head pretty good. Just rest for now. I will take care of you.¡± He said in his calmest tone possible. Still, he readied himself for another freakout, but it never came, thankfully. ¡°Oh¡­okay,¡± Yasmine mumbled before taking a deep breath and seemingly relaxing. Matt let out the breath he had been holding, even though he didn¡¯t actually need to breathe. He liked to try and keep his more human habits intact. They helped him stay grounded to this plane. Once again, he found himself staring down at her face, amazed at how much the little girl had grown. Time had little meaning to Matt, especially when he had no one to share it with. Unable to help himself, he reached out hesitantly. How long had it been since he actually touched someone, much less a woman? In the end his desires won out the digits of his ghostly hand lightly brushed against her face. His senses were dull and, well, dead, but he could still tell just how soft and supple her cheek was as he cupped it, stroking his thumb along the yielding flesh. Yasmine¡¯s body shivered in reaction. ¡°Nnngh, s-so cold,¡± she complained. With a sigh, Matt pulled his hand back from her face. Of course, he was cold, he was dead, a ghost occupying a world meant for the living. Still, he couldn¡¯t bring himself to let go. ¡°Sorry.¡± He whispered to her as she continued to lay there. After a few more moments, he lifted the icepack to see how her head wound was doing. The swelling had gone down thanks to the ice, which he was grateful for. Though he still felt horrible for making her hurt herself in the first place. Inside Yasmine¡¯s head, her thoughts swirled uncoordinated. She was trying to place the voice that was talking to her. She remembered hitting her head, but she had been running from something. Her brain struggled to remember just what it was. It had been scary, scary enough for her to run away. Hell, it could have been a spider or a mouse, and she would have run, but that didn¡¯t sound right. Even though she was scared, there was something eerily familiar about it. ¡°Who¡­ who is talking to me?¡± She asked herself, trying to remember who it could be that was taking care of her right now. She could feel the icepack on her head, and then there was what felt like a cold breeze hitting her cheek that made her entire body feel like it was freezing. But even that had felt somewhat familiar. With tremendous effort, Yasmine forced her eyes to open slowly. She needed to see who it was that was there with her. As her eyes finally opened enough to see, all she could see was the blurry ceiling of her grandfather¡¯s home. With her hands, she padded around and quickly found her glasses and put them on. Her world sharpened in an instant as the large lenses corrected her vision. She blinked slowly and reached up, placing a hand on the icepack that somehow had been balancing on her head. She grabbed it and lifted it to look at it. A simple homemade icepack that basically anyone would make to treat swelling. Slowly pushing herself up, she immediately felt dizzy. She had to stop for a moment as she got her bearings. Instinctively lifting her hand to her head, she winced as she touched the bump. She was surprised to find that there was a bandage on it as well. Someone had treated her injury while she was passed out. That was right. She needed to find out who it was. She turned to look around the room, but there was nothing. The only thing out of place was the couch pillow on the floor her head had been resting on. ¡°H-hello?¡± Yasmine called out, a feeling of unease slipping in. Matt wanted to answer her, but now he suddenly had cold feet, both literally and figuratively. Stuck between wanting to talk to her and not wanting to scare her again. He debated for long moments on what he should do. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Umm, if anyone is here¡­ thanks for taking care of me.¡± Matt¡¯s eyes widened at this, and he almost felt the sensation of his heart beating rapidly. Though grown up she was still the sweet and polite little girl that he remembered. He could have just said nothing and let her continue to forget that he existed. But he just couldn''t stay quiet anymore. Couldn¡¯t let her go unanswered, but if he spoke right in front of her, she would certainly get scared again. With some quick thinking, Matt flew around the corner, back into the hallway, out of sight of her. With a faux deep breath for courage, he tried this whole reintroduction thing again. Yasmine wasn¡¯t sure if she would get a response, but she wanted to say it just in case someone was nearby. After all, someone had to have put this bandage and ice pack on her. As she was about to get up, a voice came from around the corner and down the hall. ¡°Umm h-hey there, how are you feeling? I hope your head doesn¡¯t hurt too much.¡± Matt called out from down the hall. Yasmine¡¯s head snapped to where the voice came out from. It was male and full of concern. As much as she wanted to be worried about a stranger being in her new home, it didn¡¯t sound like they wanted to do her any harm. If they did, they had ample opportunity to do so while she was knocked out. Though she wasn¡¯t sure how long she had been out. ¡°Oh, umm, well, it does hurt still, but are you the one who gave me this bandage and icepack?¡± she asked, turning to sit facing the hallway. ¡°Yeah, that was me. You had a small cut and a pretty good lump on your head. I would keep the ice pack on for a bit longer to keep the swelling down. I have some Tylenol in the wash closet if you need it.¡± Matt called back. Yasmine¡¯s eyebrow rose, which actually made the bump hurt more. ¡°Wash closet?¡± She was a little confused but then remembered that¡¯s what her grandfather always called the bathroom. The flash of nostalgia forced a small giggle out of her. However, she still wondered why he was hiding in the hallway. ¡°Haha, you talk like my grandpa. Yes, I think I would like some, please.¡± Matt felt himself smile, but he also felt a little embarrassed. Her laugh was so sweet he couldn¡¯t help it. He didn¡¯t even care if she said he talked like an old man, after all he kinda was. ¡°Right, I will get you some. Just sit right there.¡± He swooped into the bathroom and grabbed an ancient bottle of medicine. As he got back out into the hallway, he stopped just in time to see Yasmine up and coming around the corner. With a panic, he darted back into the bathroom and slammed the door. ¡°W-what are you doing? You shouldn¡¯t be standing, you have a head wound!¡± He called out. Yasmine had gotten up on unsteady legs and used the wall for support to make her way to see who her mysterious benefactor was. But as she turned the corner, he shut himself in the bathroom and yelled at her. She frowned at this, growing even more suspicious as to why he was hiding from her. It filled her with unease but also determination to figure out just what was going on. ¡°I¡¯m fine, but why are you hiding? Do you not want me to see your face or something? I¡¯m not going to call the cops on you or something.¡± Yasmine said as she walked up to the bathroom door and knocked on it. ¡°That¡¯s not what I am worried about¡­¡± ¡°Then what is it? Why are you in my grandpa¡¯s old house anyway? Have you been squatting here or something? If you don¡¯t tell me what is going on, I just might have to call them.¡± Not sure if it was the headwound that rearranged her brain to make her braver, but she didn¡¯t feel any real tension talking to this mysterious man. ¡°I¡­.I¡­¡± He stuttered out, trying to think of what to say before eventually deciding that the truth was the only option at this point. ¡°The truth is, I have been here for many, many years. And I am the one that caused you to hurt yourself. That''s why I don¡¯t want you to see me.¡± Matt¡¯s voice was somber, worried about how she would react. Yasmine was mostly confused as she stared at the doorway. ¡°You¡­what? You aren¡¯t making any sense. Just open the door!¡± She was getting a little frustrated now, trying the handle and finding it locked and banging on the door again. ¡°Okay, okay, I will open the door, but please, promise me you won¡¯t scream or run away. I don¡¯t want you to hurt yourself again.¡± At this point, that was the only thing that he was worried about. If she hurt herself trying to flee again, he wouldn¡¯t be able to forgive himself. Yasmine was again confused by his strange choice of words, wondering if he was wearing a Halloween mask or something. This was all getting far too weird for her tastes. ¡°Fine, I won¡¯t, now open!¡± She demanded. ¡°Alright, alright, I¡¯m opening the door.¡± With a heavy sigh, Matt unlocked the door and slowly opened the bathroom door. Yasmine watched it as it continued to open, and what she saw was more than a little surprising. She saw¡­nothing. ¡°Where are you hiding now?¡± She grumbled and was about to step into the bathroom when he spoke once more. ¡°I¡¯m right in front of you¡­¡± Her eyes bulged as the voice sounded right in front of her face, like someone standing right there speaking to her. ¡°A-are you a¡­.a¡­.¡± She could feel her blood start to run cold as the memory from earlier came back to her. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you again, Yasmine.¡± The voice said meekly, fingers crossed she wasn¡¯t about to scream bloody murder. Chapter 5: Forgotten Friend. Yasmine and Matt stood there facing one another, though one couldn¡¯t really see the other. He had just revealed himself to her as from her perspective, a disembodied voice that somehow knew her name. The moment they shared standing there stretched a few seconds into what felt like a lifetime. Matt almost thought things were gonna work out, but as he watched the blood drain from her face he knew that the inevitable was about to happen. ¡°R-remember, you promised not to scream Yazzie.¡± Matt said, holding up invisible hands out of forced habit. The bottle of tylenol he was holding shot out with his hands as well. It took him forever to relearn how to act human, and now he couldn¡¯t help himself even if he wasn¡¯t corporeal anymore. Yasmine was indeed about to scream, even if she promised she wouldn¡¯t. He was a friggin¡¯ ghost, after all, some evil specter haunting her grandfather¡¯s home. As it was about to escape her throat, she heard a nickname that almost no one called her anymore. It gave her a sudden pause and kept her from screaming for just a split second. Only her mother dared to slip in that nickname anymore. She honestly hated it, as if people needed more of a reason to treat her like a child past her height and baby face. The nickname did help her not scream as it turned that fear into anger, though fear was still dominant. Swallowing her scream, she subconsciously backed up until she was against the wall. ¡°H-h-how do you know m-my n-name.¡± Yasmine stuttered out, her eyes darting around, searching for something to attach the voice to. But all she could see was a glass bottle of old pills floating around in front of her. It looked ancient honestly, she couldn''t remember the last time she saw pills that came in glass bottles. Her question was greeted by silence, the bottle slowly lowering down and away from her as Matt put his hands down to his side. ¡°W-well!?¡± she shouted, afraid that this ghost was doing something in the silence that she obviously couldn¡¯t see. ¡°Because we¡¯ve met before!¡± he suddenly blurted out in surprise. She winced slightly, but as the words registered, she furrowed her brow. ¡°W-what? I am pretty sure I would remember meeting a ghost.¡± She said with a scoff, ignoring the feeling of familiarity that still plagued her as she listened to his voice. ¡°Yeah¡­ thats, kinda a long story. Which I would happily tell you of course, but please, you don¡¯t have to be afraid. I am not going to hurt you. I would never do anything¡­ well nothing on purpose to hurt you.¡± Matt spoke, slowly moving closer. The radiating heat of a living person was hard to resist. ¡°S-stay back!¡± Yasmine shouted, seeing the bottle of pills floating closer to her. He did as she asked, and the pills rattled as he quickly floated back. ¡°Sorry, sorry!¡± he quickly apologized. ¡°It¡­It¡¯s fine, j-just tell me who you are and what do you want?¡­ Also why did you call me Yazzie, I hate that stupid nickname.¡± She grumbled slightly, feeling her tension lower just slightly. Seeing him retreat right when she said to helped her relax. And it didn¡¯t seem like he was lying to her either. ¡°Oh right, sorry, well, my name is Matthew James Montague. You are right that I am indeed a ghost. The only thing I want is to live in peace. I don¡¯t require or want anything from you. And the reason I called you that¡­ well, that¡¯s what I always used to call you when you were a little kid.¡± Matt paused for a moment, not sure if he should really break the seal on her memories. But if there was any chance of her allowing him to continue living here with her, he had to be upfront and honest. ¡°Back when you used to call me¡­ Monty.¡± Yasmine¡¯s eyes bulged wide at the name. Like a bolt of lightning, the memory she just had a dream of earlier shot back to her. She felt her heart start to beat faster and faster. The image of a ghostly figure coming around to keep her company the first night she stayed here when she couldn¡¯t sleep. But she thought that was just a figment of her imagination¡­ ¡°Y-y-y-ou, you, you, you.¡± She stammered out repeatedly. Her heavy chest rasing and falling with deep breaths. Was her imaginary friend from all those years ago actually a ghost? Had he been watching her this whole time? How long had this been going on? ¡°H-have you been creeping on me since I was a kid or something?¡± A look of mild disgust on her face. ¡°What!? No, of course not. I would never violate your privacy. When you were a kid, I wouldn¡¯t even show up unless you wanted me to. You should¡­¡± No, she shouldn¡¯t remember. He made sure of that. ¡°I did my best not to scare you.¡± He finished in a quite somber voice, sounding slightly hurt at the accusation. It kind of caught Yasmine off guard, making her pause for several long moments. Her heart finally slowed to a somewhat normal pace. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. ¡°You¡­ said I called you Monty, right¡­¡± She asked hesitantly. ¡°Mmhmm, I thought that name would be easier for a kid to accept than Matthew or Matt¡­ It''s actually what my friends would call me when I was still alive.¡± Yasmine had so many questions that she wanted to ask. She was standing before a real life ghost, talking to it, and he was speaking back like a regular person. It was an intensely surreal experience to say the least. ¡°I remember when I was a kid, when I stayed here with my grandpa¡­ My imaginary friend Monty would come visit me. Was that you?¡± she said, finally asking the most pertinent question on her mind. ¡°It was. I heard you crying that first night because you were scared and alone¡­ so you got up and turned on the light.¡± He said with a nostalgic smile coming through his voice. Yasmine bit her thumbnail, remembering that night. How she wished her mom or dad were there, or someone, anyone, so she wasn¡¯t alone in the all but empty room. She let this Monty continue. ¡°When you pulled out your toys, I saw you were still crying, pretending they were friends visiting. I know I said that I never peeked at you, but you were so sad that I couldn¡¯t help it. So, I slowly introduced myself. Honestly, I couldn¡¯t tell you who was more afraid at that time, you or me, haha.¡± His melodic and soft laugh made Yasmine relax just a little more. ¡°You¡­ You did the voice for my stuffed bear¡­ I remember you asked¡­ you made the bear ask me if you could come out and play. I was scared, but I didn''t want to be alone anymore¡­ We played for a long time after that. You even came up with a story to tell me.¡± The memory became sharper in her mind than every before, like it just happened yesterday. Matt smiled an invisible smile, seeing that she at least remembered how they first met. ¡°That''s right, one of a frog singing about being stuck in a well. Do you remember?¡± His voice was cheery and bright now. Yasmine bit her lower lips, trying to think about it, but most of it was fuzzy for some reason. ¡°Umm kinda?¡± She said shamefully. But Matt just laughed again. ¡°Haha, I don¡¯t blame you. You fell asleep halfway through, so I tucked you into bed and turned off the lights.¡± As he talked, the pill bottle he was holding floated around and shook like he was talking with his hands as well. Yasmine tried to remember more about Monty, but each time she did, all he got was vague moments that didn¡¯t tell her much. Why couldn¡¯t she remember anything past that first night? She closed her eyes for a moment, clamping her head between her hands and squeezing, trying to force herself to remember. That was when she remembered that she still had a rather large bump on her head. ¡°Ouch!¡± She grumbled, wincing in pain. ¡°Are you okay!?¡± Matt spoke up again, this time much closer. He had forgotten himself again and had closed the distance between them. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m all-Eep!¡± She let out a panicked yelp as she opened her eyes and saw the floating pill bottle was almost touching her. ¡°Oh shoot, sorry. I keep forgetting. Here, take these; they should help with the pain, " he said, offering the bottle to her. Yasmine watched as it swished back and forth as he moved back and then held it out to her. Hesitantly, she reached out and grabbed the bottle, feeling a very slight resistance as she did, just like someone was holding it. As she pulled the bottle back to her, she looked at the label. ¡°Wow, holy crap.¡± She exclaimed, eyes wide as she turned it in her hands. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± Matt asked, forcing himself to keep his distance. ¡°Umm, kinda, this bottle of tylenol expired in 1972, haha.¡± She laughed genuinely, a smile crossing her face. There was no way she was taking this stuff. ¡°Thanks, but no thanks.¡± She said, holding the bottle of expired meds back to Matt. But he didn¡¯t take it. ¡°Umm, Monty? Are you still there?¡± She swished the bottle from side to side, trying to figure out just where he was. A small bit of panic filled her for a moment, wondering if he had vanished or was right next to her again. In truth, he had been frozen, frozen by her smile. He hadn¡¯t seen her smile in so, so long, it was like he was struck dumb. When she said something, he snapped out of his trance. ¡°I¡¯m here, I¡¯m here, sorry, just kind of lost there for a second. Is that old? Honestly, I don¡¯t know a whole lot about dates and such. Time kind of loses all meaning when you¡¯re dead, haha.¡± They shared a small laugh at the grim humor as he took the bottle. ¡°Haha, yeah, it''s really freakin¡¯ old, It''s 2024, so that¡¯s like over fifty years old.¡± Yasmine said, still giggling slightly. Matt¡¯s eyes went wide in shock, though. ¡°Wow, we are in the twenty-first century already. From the TV Jeb always watched, I could have sworn it''s only been a few decades¡­¡± This was the first time that he realized that he had been dead for a long, long time. ¡°You¡­ lived here with my grandpa? Did he know about you?¡± Yasmine suddenly asked at the mention of her grandfather¡¯s name. He had never mentioned anything about a ghost or anything of the sort. Then again, he was also a very independent person. He always refused any help offered to him, even as he slowly lost his battle with Alzheimers in his 90¡¯s. There was a slight pause before Matt answered. ¡°I did¡­Umm, if you want, I can tell you everything I know later, but you should probably rest a bit first. You still have a nasty bump on your head.¡± Matt¡¯s cheerful voice was gone, replaced by a slightly worried one. ¡°Come on, then the recliner is nice and comfortable.¡± It was clear he was desperately trying to change the subject. He floated down the hall and back into the living room with all the boxes. She followed the floating bottle of pills that had become her lifeline to know where the ghost was. Though she didn¡¯t feel like she was in danger anymore, it did feel like she was trying to get pulled away from her question. ¡°Don¡¯t try and gaslight me Monty, why are you avoiding my question?¡± She asked, folding her arms under her chest, where she thought his face might be, a hard stare. Matt turned to look at her again and in a very confused tone, asked, ¡°Gaslight?¡± Chapter 6: Reconnected. ¡°I mean, don¡¯t try to lead me in a different direction from what we are talking about.¡± Yasmine didn¡¯t really understand a lot of the slang that people from her generation liked to say these days. In a world full of outgoing and outspoken people, she was in the back, catching snippets of conversation while focusing on her own world. ¡°Oh¡­ why didn¡¯t you just say that, then?¡± Matt asked curiously. Yasmine let out a small scoff and looked insulted for a few moments, but didn¡¯t say anything past the small noises of mock offense. ¡°B-because I¡¯m twenty-two, and it''s weird if I don¡¯t.¡± At least, that was what some of Valerie¡¯s friends would say about the way she usually talked. The way some of them had just spit out one new age slang term after another would be impressive¡­ If it wasn¡¯t so stupid. She had little to no desire to lose herself in that kind of world ¡°I see, well I still think you should sit down and rest for a bit. I will get you some water.¡± Setting the pills down, Matt swooped into the kitchen. The sound of cupboards opening and closing as he searched for a glass. "Ugh, these are filthy!" she heard him say to himself. Without him holding the bottle, Yasmine quickly lost track of the ghost. With a huff, she walked over, sat down in the recliner, and leaned back. It was comfortable, and her head was still throbbing a bit. As the back of her head sunk into the plush fabric of the seat, she felt her eyes start to flutter closed. Not sure if it was the head injury or the exhaustion of moving that made her drift off to sleep. Was she really going to fall asleep with a ghost in the house? What if he stole her soul or something. ¡°No¡­Monty wouldn¡¯t do that.¡± Were her last thoughts before she drifted off in just seconds. Images swirled in her head as she fell into a deep sleep. With everything that had happened today, it was no wonder that her mind was a jumbled mess. It wasn''t until her brain finally decided to focus on one moment in her memories. It felt like a veil was being lifted as it did. The sound of cleaning in the background while she slept triggered something in her brain. The dream was vivid and strange. In them, she was a kid again, probably around ten or so. She wasn¡¯t completely sure. But in it, she was in her room, sitting on her bed, talking with a smile, seemingly to herself. ¡°How does grandpa keep everything so clean, Monty? All he ever does is sleep in his chair.¡± Young Yasmine said with a slight giggle. ¡°Haha, well, old people get tired really easily, and your grandpa is pretty darn old,¡± Monty said, sitting on the other side of the bed, keeping her company. "The truth is, I actually help him clean most of the time. I really hate dust and dirt in general, and he lets me stay here, so I figured it''s the least I can do.¡± Yasmine¡¯s eyes went wide at this. ¡°You clean everything? By yourself?¡± The ghostly figure just smiled and nodded to the child. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have to do everything yourself, Monty. In school, we learned that doing things together makes things go faster. Let me help!¡± She said excitedly, hopping off the bed. ¡°Haha, Yazzie, it''s fine. I don¡¯t mind it, really, " he said with a soft chuckle. But this small child wasn¡¯t having it. ¡°No!¡± She shouted, stomping her foot. ¡°I wanna help! I¡¯m gonna help no matter what!¡± With a determined look, she reached out and tried to grab Monty¡¯s hand, but it phased right through. Yasmine looked shocked for a moment but then looked up at the ghost with a red faced pout. ¡°Monty!¡± She complained loudly, letting out growls of frustration. ¡°Okay, okay, sorry, haha,¡± floating off the bed, he held his hand out to the young girl once more, and she grasped the now semi solid hand. The two proceeded to clean the house until it veritably shined. Yasmine didn¡¯t realize it at the time, but this was one of her core memories. The joy of cleaning with her best friend, seeing everything clean, and the satisfaction of a job well done would stick with her for the rest of her life. Yasmine¡¯s eyes slowly opened as the sound of a chair being moved in the kitchen groaned against the linoleum. It was soon followed by the scrape of a broom sweeping. They almost lulled her back to sleep, but she forced herself awake, lifting her head from the recliner. Looking into the kitchen, she saw a boom moving on its own and the sound of someone humming a song she didn¡¯t recognize. A sleepy smile crossed her face as if the sight was comforting to her. It should have been terrifying, having a specter that could physically interact with the world. Wasn¡¯t that like a poltergeist thing, where they would fling objects around to attack the living? But this ghost wasn¡¯t attacking her; he was cleaning. Suddenly, he started to sing softly instead of just humming. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡°Well, that''ll be the day when you say goodbye. Yes, that''ll be the day when you make me cry. You say you''re gonna leave, you know it''s a lie, ''Cause that''ll be the day, when I di- Yazzie, you¡¯re awake!¡± Matt said with a start, the broom suddenly phasing through his hands and clattering to the floor as he lost focus. Yasmine couldn¡¯t help but start giggling madly, having caught the ghost in such a vulnerable moment, lost in his own little world. ¡°You have a nice singing voice, Monty.¡± She teased him gently, almost imagining his flustered expression. ¡°Very funny.¡± He said with a soft grumble, picking up the broom and setting it in a small cabinet where all of his cleaning supplies were neatly organized and sorted. ¡°I was being serious. You shouldn¡¯t be ashamed.¡± If someone had caught her singing like that, she probably would have died from embarrassment. But she liked hearing him sing, at least. She got up out of the recliner and walked into the kitchen. She wasn¡¯t exactly sure what he was cleaning, though. The place was basically spotless. ¡°So uhh¡­ you still like cleaning?¡± Yasmine said, looking over to where she last knew where the spirit was. ¡°Umm.¡± Matt¡¯s voice started, making her head snap a bit to the right of where she was looking. Not being able to tell where he was, was getting old and fast. Maybe she could put a bell on him or something. The thought making her smile slightly. ¡°I kind of do it just out of habit at this point. It keeps my mind occupied and helps me stay grounded¡­ Wait... still?¡± He stared at her in shock at this. ¡°Yeah, I remembered when we were talking about how grandpa keeps his house clean. And you told me that you take care of most of it. Then we went around the house hunting down every speck of dust and dirt there was.¡± The smile on Yasmine¡¯s face right now was nearly blinding. It felt like he had to shield his eyes from it. She rarely had a reason to smile while living in the city, but this memory felt precious to her, and she couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°Y-you remember?¡± Matt said, stunned at the revelation. Just how did she remember? He was almost certain that he blocked just about every instance of himself from her mind. It was not an ability he had used before but one he somehow innately knew he had. It wasn¡¯t something he learned, just something he already knew when he became a ghost. ¡°I do,¡± she said, nodding her head in response. ¡°I think you are the reason that I love keeping things nice and neat in my own life. Also¡­ Thank you, Monty.¡± She said, still smiling at him. ¡°H-huh, what for?¡± He could feel his dulled senses buzz with surprising life at the kindness directed in front of him. ¡°For taking care of my grandpa all these years, I¡¯m sure he would have been lonely without you.¡± A slight flush came to Yasmine¡¯s cheeks, she wasn¡¯t good at this kind of stuff, but she knew that Monty deserved this. Even though she barely remembered him, she could feel it. ¡°Yazzie¡­¡± Matt said softly, staring at her in admiration. The two stood there for a long moment in silence, neither knowing what to say next. It was then that Yasmine¡¯s phone went off, startling both of them. ¡°Sorry, that''s me.¡± She said, apologizing as she pulled her phone out of her pocket. For some reason, it was Valerie calling. Confused, she answered it, placing the phone to her ear. ¡°Hey Val, what''s up, I didn¡¯t expect you to call so soon.¡± ¡°Yeah, hey, so as I was leaving for my shift, this guy stopped me to ask about you. Said that he had helped you this morning or something?¡± She said, sounding tired and not that interested. ¡°Do you mean Bryant?¡± ¡°Yeah, that''s the one. Well, anyway, he was telling me that he was feeling like he messed up just letting you leave without asking for your number and wanted to ask if it was alright if I gave it to him. He¡¯s cute an all, but this is all kind of weird, ya know?¡± Yasmine¡¯s face flushed as the thought of being asked for her number sunk in. ¡°Oh, umm, well, I.¡± She stammered, not sure how to answer at this moment. She certainly couldn¡¯t make a decision right now. ¡°Tell him I will think about it. He¡¯s nice and all, but I just don¡¯t feel comfortable giving out my number right now¡­Sorry.¡± She whispered her apology. ¡°Yeah, sure, I will pass that along. I¡¯ll let you know if I get any bad vibes when I do.¡± Unlike Yasmine, Valerie had plenty of experience with men, so she looked out for her when it came to guys who were bad news. If Valerie had felt anything off with Bryant, she would have just lied for her. The fact she called to ask was a sign that he wasn¡¯t a bad guy, probably. ¡°Thanks, Val. I''m a little busy right now, but I''ll talk to you later.¡± With that, she hung up the phone and stuffed it back in the tight pocket of her stretch jeans. ¡°Sorry about that, what were we talking about?¡± Yasmine asked sweetly as she looked around for any sign of the ghost. But she got no response to her words. ¡°Monty?¡± She called out again, walking further into the kitchen, trying to see where he was. But there was nothing, nothing mysteriously floating, no brooms sweeping on their own, or dusters dusting. Just quiet. ¡°M-monty?¡± she said, unable to keep the fear from her voice. Being alone like this suddenly made her feel very vulnerable and scared. She wrapped her arms around herself and slowly started to look around, calling out again. ¡°Monty!?¡± she cried out, a sudden and desperate need for his presence weighing down on her. Just where could he have gone? Chapter 7: Lost then found. Yasmine continued to look around to try and find Monty. But trying to find someone who was invisible was not really an easy task, especially if they didn¡¯t want to be found. She didn¡¯t even know why he left in the first place. All she did was answer the phone. ¡°Is there some kind of ghost rule about talking on the phone?¡± She thought, finding the idea rather dumb in her head, so she shook it away and decided to look around to see if he was in one of the rooms. ¡°Monty!?¡± Yasmine called out, trying to find him, walking into one room after another. ¡°Monty, this isn¡¯t funny. Where are you?¡± she said, sounding a little frustrated now. As she continued to look around, she saw no sign of him, nor did she get a response. When she got back into the living room, she frowned deeply and searched the room. Her boxes of things were still a disordered mess. the one she had tripped over had items spilled out all over the floor. ¡°Why did you leave?¡± asking herself the only question on her mind. Yeah, she had planned on living alone here, and she hadn¡¯t expected there to be anyone to talk to, but after talking with her former imaginary friend¡­She felt so alone without him. She still wished she knew how or why she had forgotten him for all these years. Why was it that only the first night stuck with her all these years? Without any answers to any of her questions, Yasmine let out a heavy sigh and started to clean up the living room and get to unpacking. Unable to handle the silence, she put in a pair of earbuds and turned on some music from her phone. It helped, but wasn¡¯t a perfect solution, but it was all she could do right now. ¡°What are you doing, you idiot.¡± Matt chided himself as he sat on the railing outside of the small home, staring out into the sparse surrounding meadow and down the paved road that led to the town. He wasn¡¯t sure why he exactly fled when she started talking on the phone. Something inside told him that she didn¡¯t need his help anymore and he would simply be an unwelcome guest. The fact that she remembered him was a shock already. He just hoped that she wasn¡¯t too upset at getting scared by him earlier. ¡°She isn¡¯t a little girl anymore¡­let her live her life. It was a mistake to show myself again.¡± He whispered, trying not to let his own attachments ruin her life. He could still hear her in the house shouting his name. It took every ounce of willpower he had to not react. To simply let her go. When he listened to the conversation Yasmine had over the phone, it turned out to be a bit of a wake up call for him. When he heard that someone was obviously interested in her, he knew he would only be in the way. With a faux heavy sigh, Matt sat there, doing his best to ignore the calls for him. Thankfully, they came to a stop eventually, and the sound of boxes being moved and unpacking continued. More sure than ever that she would be able to move on without him. His eyes closed slowly, and he let the rest of the world fade away as the hours began to pass. Though Monty was never far from her mind, Yasmine managed to get just about everything unpacked and put in a place that wouldn¡¯t be in the way. Feeling her forehead slick with sweat, she fanned herself a bit. It took a good few hours to get everything done. ¡°I need a shower.¡± She complained as she walked into her bedroom and grabbed some PJ¡¯s from where she put them in the antique dresser in the master bedroom. Taking them into the bathroom, she closed the door behind her. As she went to undress, Monty crossed her mind once more. What if he was actually here and just watching her? The thought really only existed for a few moments before she couldn¡¯t help but let out a soft laugh. Her instincts told her that not only would he never do something like that. He probably still saw her as a kid. After all, from how he spoke, she had to assume the ghost was around her grandpa¡¯s age. Yasmine shook her head with a smile, but she felt a sadness that welled up within her. For a being so cold, Monty always seemed to bring out a warmth in her when she thought of him. Yasmine proceeded to strip down and take her shower without worry, letting the warm water wash away the day¡¯s stresses. After she was finished, she got into her pajama¡¯s and got ready for bed. It was still early in the evening at this point, but she had to be up early for her new job¡¯s orientation. Crawling into the large bed that creaked and squeeked from the old box spring it was set upon, she pulled out her phone to play on a bit before trying to sleep. An hour later, Yasmine was simply lying there in bed, staring at the ceiling. No matter what she did, sleep would not come. She almost never had trouble sleeping in the past, aside from when she was a kid. Her mind simply would not shut off. The events of the day kept repeating in her head, from running into Byrant to finding out that Monty was actually a ghost who watched over and played with her as a kid. It was just so much, and not that things were quiet. She felt¡­alone. She sat up in bed and brought her knees up to squish her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs. It was dark and unfamiliar, the only light from the moon peeking through the curtains. The feeling of unease was unbearable. It felt like she was about to cry, but she refused to let herself. She was twenty two now, damn it, she was way too old to be afraid of the dark. With a deep breath, she steeled herself and quickly wiped away the small amount of moisture that gathered at the corner of her eyes. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Yasmine was about to try and get some sleep again when the glint of something caught her eye. It looked almost like a thread hanging down in front of her. Confused at first, she looked up, not really seeing anything till the rays of light from the moon hit the thread. She followed it down until she found the creator of the thread. Slowly descending was a tiny spider that was slowly heading for Yasmine¡¯s bed. With a breath of hesitation, she suddenly let out an ear splitting scream and scrambled out of bed. ¡°Ahhhhhhhhh!¡± she screeched as she moved out of bed so fast she tumbled out and fell on the floor but popped up quickly, placing her hand on her rapidly beating heart. Matt''s trance like state was abruptly broken as the sound of Yasmine''s scream echoed through the house and outside. Without a second thought, his protective nature kicked in and he barreled through the house. He flew through the walls to end up in the room, she stayed in as a kid, but quickly realized his mistake and phased through the wall and into the master bedroom where Yasmine was up against the wall, cowering in fear. ¡°Yasmine! Are you alright? What¡¯s wrong!?¡± The sound of Monty¡¯s voice suddenly shouted in concern. Yasmine¡¯s heart was beating so fast she didn¡¯t even stop to think about how he was suddenly back. She pointed in abject horror to the bed, shaking badly. ¡°S-s-spider!¡± She shouted again, letting out a sound of being completely creeped out. ¡°A¡­ spider?¡± Matt said, followed by a stunned silence before he flicked the light on. ¡°Yes, a spider, now kill it!¡± Just the thought of it possibly crawling on her while she was asleep made her skin crawl. ¡°¡­Pffft hahaha.¡± The sound of laughter filling the room came from the disembodied voice by the door, but Yasmine did not find it very funny at all. ¡°It''s not funny, Monty. Please!¡± she begged him as he continued to laugh to himself, trying to calm down. ¡°Haha, I know, I know, just¡­ just give me a second.¡± Slowly, the laughter died down, and soon after, a tiny spider, no bigger than Yasmine¡¯s pinky nail, was lifted from the bed on Matt¡¯s invisible finger. ¡°What are you doing? Kill it!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to kill it. Spiders are good. They eat harmful pests and keep to themselves.¡± ¡°Dropping down in front of my face is not keeping to itself!¡± She growled as she watched the tiny spider slowly float through the air and over to the window, where it was opened and flicked outside. ¡°There, now it''s far away and you can-¡± He was interrupted by a fast approaching Yasmine stomping up to him with a scowl on her face. Almost like she knew exactly where he was, she started swinging her arms through his intangable body. ¡°Hey, what are you doing?¡± ¡°You stupid idiot, disappearing like that suddenly and not even telling me where you were going. Do you know how worried I was, you friggin¡¯ jerk!¡± She growled as she flailed through him. He was a bit stunned by what he was hearing. ¡°I¡­¡± He tried to say something, but he was stunned as he watched as a few tears of either frustration or worry fell from her eyes. ¡°L-let me hit you!¡± she complained, pulling her arm back for another swing, fully expecting her hand to go right through him again. But instead, the sound of a loud clap filled the room, and her eyes went wide. Looking up at where she made contact, she blinked in confusion. He had let her smack him across the cheek, the dulled sense of pain quickly vanished as he let his physical manifestation fade. To Yasmine it felt like she had just hit something that was cold and clammy, it was a hard sensation to describe. She wasn¡¯t sure if she had ever really hit anyone seriously before. Her next words came out shaky and confused. ¡°Monty¡­ W-why did you let me hit you?¡± She asked, knowing the answer deep down, but she had to ask. Quickly wiping the few tear drops from her face. ¡°Because¡­ you asked me, " he said with an invisible smile, but she didn¡¯t need to see it, she could feel it. Yasmine felt her heart thump in her chest for a beat, but she quickly remembered that she was still angry at him. ¡°But why did you leave earlier when I was on the phone? Did you hear me calling for you? Where did you go?¡± She said, rattling off questions, desperately wanting answers. ¡°Are you going to disappear again?¡± Matt sadly looked down at the petite woman. The way she looked genuinely distraught tugged at his dead heartstrings. Letting out a sigh, Matt knew he just needed to tell her the truth and get it over with already and stop keeping things a secret from her. If she ended up being the reason he was forced to move on, then he would leave with no regrets. ¡°The truth is, Yasmine, that I don¡¯t want to be the reason you can¡¯t live a normal life. I had my time, I lived¡­ well, I think I lived a good, long life. I bet it was my selfish nature that turned me into a ghost. I refused to let go or something.¡± Truthfully, Matt didn¡¯t remember how he died at all or how he ended up a ghost. He had bits and pieces of memories from when he was alive, but nothing was solid. Yasmine just stared at the blank space where she was sure Monty was. The look she was trying to give him was one of absolute disbelief. ¡°You think¡­ I can¡¯t live a normal life?¡± She was confused, but the last part of what he said was just so outrageous and backward. ¡°Not with me around. I¡¯m a gosh darn ghost, Yazzie. Do you really think anything can be normal while I¡¯m around?¡­ I would be better if I just stayed out of your way,¡± He said somberly, knowing it was true, but it had to be said. ¡°I never should have revealed myself to you again.¡± They both grew silent at this. Yasmine¡¯s head lowered to look down at the floor, her hands balled into fists. He was being so self sacrificial, trying to give up his own happiness for hers. But him leaving wouldn¡¯t make her happy, the opposite really. She still had so much to ask him, so much to catch up on. Her hands shook slightly in an emotion she didn¡¯t even know was. The only thing she knew was she refused to abandon her friend. ¡°I don¡¯t want normal¡­ I want you, Monty.¡± She said, looking up at him, knowing somehow that she was gazing into his eyes this time.