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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

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Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 23: And So It Went

Hey everyone, this is the last chapter of the first series! I do have plans for a sequel in the works, however! Thank you for anyone who has read it this far!

(Ally)

Surprisingly, I didn’t fail all my exams.

Actually, I did pretty well on most of them. I somehow passed Drama with a good mark. The sub who took over was pretty chill during the exam and let us bring all of our notes. My other exams weren’t too bad either. All and all, a pretty successful end to term.

I was just about finished with my packing when I got a text from Lyn. Sarah had already gone home, since her last exam had been two days ago. I took one last look around the room before heading out. I could finish packing later.

The weather outside actually wasn’t terrible today. It was a pleasant sunny day with barely any wind chill. I tucked my chin into the top of my coat as I walked across the campus to meet up with my girlfriend. A happy tingle went through my body as thought about that. It was a little silly to still get excited about the thought, but hey, why not be happy?

Lyn stood in the archway that connected Harper and the library together. She was leaning against the wall when I got there, scrolling through her phone. The bandage was off her face now, only faint lines to show where she had been cut. Her eyes lit up when she saw me and she gave me a quick kiss.

“Hey.”

“Hey to you,” I said back.

“Ready to go?”

I nodded. She held her arm out and I looped mine through it. Together we walked over to the big tree in the middle of campus, where Michael was waiting for us. His plane left tonight but he wanted to be here for it. He waved when he saw us, and he laughed when Lyn held her other arm out with a smirk. He wasted no time on grabbing a hold of it, Lyn laughing along with him as he did.

I knew Dahlia was intrigued by what we were doing as we walked together down the path to where the Swan Pond was. I waved to her with my free hand, and she ended up trailing after us, curiosity bright in her eyes.

When we got there, we all untangled from one another and got to work. Dahlia sat on the bridge nearby and watched as we cleaned away snow and ice from a spot under one of the trees that hung over the pond. After all the snow was gone, Lyn put down a bundle of flowers. Michael tucked a stone with a beautiful design cut into it in front of the roots, making sure it was secured. I hung one of our old amulets over the stone and gently nailed a wooden plaque onto the tree. We stepped away and admired our work.

Here Lies The Forgotten Students

We remember who you are, and what you did for us. We know that society failed you when they stopped asking questions. No one should have given up on any of you. To David, we know your story. To Amelia, we know your truth. To Jamieson, we know your tale. To Fiona, we know your reality. To Fredrik, we know your narrative. We’re sorry that it took this long before someone finally learned what happened to you all, but at least you can rest easy now, knowing that the person who did this to you has met his justice. All we can hope for you now is that your next chance at life is better than this one was.

With all our love,

Spook Searchers.

“We really need a better name,” muttered Lyn.

“Hey, we’ve been through too much for us to change it now,” said Michael with a waggle of his fingers. “That would be like, sacrilegious.”

“Besides, it’s a fun name. It hides away all the horrible truths and traumas that were inflicted on us,” I pointed out.

Lyn shrugged indifferently. “I just hope we never have to do something like this ever again. I need it scrubbed from my mind.” We both nodded in agreement.

Dahlia drifted over and knelt in front of our makeshift grave. I could see her mouthing the words as she read along. Her fingers ran over the names of the departed, her eyes sad. She dropped her hands and sat there quietly for several minutes without saying a word. When she looked back at me, she was smiling through her tears.

“This is quite lovely. I’m glad you all did something nice for them, they deserved it.”

I nodded at her. “Of course. And we intend to figure out who caused your death as well. We haven’t forgotten about you either.”

Dahlia’s eyes went wide before she looked away. I saw her brush away the tears from her face and nod slowly. “Thank you. It truly means a lot to me.”

We left her alone after that. I spared a look back as we left and saw her kneeling in front of the grave, her head down and hands clasped in prayer. We walked back to the library together and decided to get one last warm drink together. Lyn paid for all of us, even though we both argued against it. The lady behind the counter laughed as we both tried our best to push Lyn out of the way, which ended in absolutely failure.

“You can’t beat these gains,” Lyn said with a wink.

We sat down at the table in the back and looked out the window. I thought about what a crazy 3 months this has been. I couldn’t believe how so much had happened in such a short time. Not only solving all those murders but dealing with all the school crap on top of it all. I felt like I was the same person I was at the start, but more mature now. Someone who liked who she was, someone who liked that she wasn’t ordinary.

“You’re gonna have some crazy jetlag, you know,” Lyn said to Michael as she sipped her hot chocolate.

Michael sighed. “Yeah, probably for a day or so. It’s not like, a terrible flight but it’s bad enough. What are you doing for the holidays?”

I saw the twitch of Lyn’s eyes before she looked down at her drink. “I’m gonna stay with Olivia for the first bit of the break, but after Christmas I’m heading to Florida for training camp. I’ll be back like, 2 days before the new term. So, not the most relaxing break but it’ll be fun.”

Michael nodded as he looked at me. “What about you, Al?”

“Going home,” I said with a smile. “I’m going to sleep for the entire break. Maybe watch some movies and TV. But me and this brain deserve a big break.” I poked at my temple.

“Yes, it does!” Michael slapped his hand against the tabletop.

We chatted for a little while longer before Michael had to head back to grab his things. His buddy offered to drive him to the airport, but it was a bit before his flight. Still, better to wait in the airport than spend money on a taxi. Lyn gave him a hug and slap on the back. I gave him a big hug and kissed him on the cheek.

“Have a good flight, I’m going to miss you,” I said.

“It’s only for a few weeks,” he said with a smile. “Plus, you can always call me. You know where I am.”

I nodded as we embraced one last time. Michael waved to us as he walked backwards. I gasped when he tripped over his own feet and nearly landed on the casted arm. Luckily, he caught himself and shouted, “I’M OKAY!” before racing back to his room.

I chuckled to myself with a shake of my head. Michael was so chaotic at times. But that was something that I loved about him. He was authentic. I wasn’t lying when I said I would miss him. There was something calming about his presence. He was a good friend, and I was glad to have met him.

Lyn and I walked back to Lukas hand in hand. I noticed she was getting a bit of a far away look in her eyes again, so I squeezed her hand to bring her back. She blinked and looked down at me with a smile.

“Sorry,” she said with a shrug. “I was just thinking.”

“Thinking about what?”

Lyn worked her jaw as she chewed on her thoughts before answering. “Lots of stuff, I guess. Training camp, Christmas with Liv, shit in general. It’s gonna be nice to have a break from it all. Then we’ve got the big championship meet to worry about when I get back. Just tryna make sure I’m organized because there’s a lot to remember.”

“It’s going to be fine,” I said soothingly.

“I know, I just like to be on top of things, you know?”

I laughed. “Nope! I’m pretty sure I only passed some of my classes by sheer luck. I handed in something for Anthro a week late, but I think my prof forgot I was even in the class, so she didn’t take points off.”

“Jesus,” Lyn shook her head with a playful smirk. “I can’t imagine being that disorganized. How’d you get through this term, let alone solve a crazy case? You’re something else, honestly. Like Wonder Woman or Supergirl.”

I blushed deeply. Lyn was always saying these really nice things about me and well…I wasn’t really used to them. I pressed up against her and buried my face in her arm, causing my glasses to go askew. Oh well, it’s not like I could see all that well anyway. Cold weather plus warm breath equals foggy glasses. Also, being compared to one of my favourite superheroes? I’m slightly dying of happiness on the inside.

When we got back to Lukas, Lyn helped me pack the rest of my things. It probably took the same amount of time that it normally would have because we kept stopping to kiss, cuddle, and I even got Lyn to watch an episode of Stargirl with me. It was really peaceful. A much better date than nearly getting killed by an out-of-control spirit. Hours passed by like seconds, and the next thing I knew, we were in bed sleeping.

The room was nearly pitch black as I stared up at the ceiling. Lyn was sleeping beside me, her arm tossed over my waist, snoring softly. I had been sleeping, but it came in fits right now. After everything we’ve been through, especially with that horrible horror realm or whatever the hell that had been, I’ve been having more difficulty sleeping through the night. I mean, I was sort of used to it, but not to this extent. My therapist and I were going to have a field day when I saw her next.

I turned my head slightly to look into the face of my girlfriend. I just wondered how it was all going to turn out. By some strange twist of fate, we got together because of my moral compass and curiosity. Lyn stuck around because she wanted to figure out what happened to her friend. I sometimes wondered what would have happened if she didn’t believe me that day in the café. Would I have gone through with it anyway? Would Michael and I have done it alone? I lightly traced my fingers across the scars of her arm, the ones she got because she protected me. It probably would be a different story then, huh?

All I know is this is how it turned out, and I don’t think I would have done anything differently. We got hurt, we got physical and mental scars. But I really think it was worth it to help those people. They were crying out for so long, waiting for someone, anyone, to hear them. I feel lucky in a way that I was the one who answered.

Finally, I felt my drifting off again. I closed my eyes and let sleep take me away, hopefully to a dreamless land.

XXX

Lyn helped me shove my last bag into the trunk of my dad’s car. I told her she didn’t need to stick around and help, but she told me it was no big deal. My dad nodded his thanks at her, and she nodded back. I stood by the car, fidgeting with the bottom of my coat. Lyn glanced at my dad one last time before she gave me a massive bear hug.

“Have a great break, Ally. I’ll see you in a few weeks.”

I squeezed back as tightly as I could. “You too. I hope everything goes well with your sister.”

Lyn nodded, her cheek brushing against the side of my face. “Me too.” And even though my dad was still there, she cupped my face between her hands and kissed me. I blushed from the intensity of the kiss, feeling all the unsaid words. When she pulled away, I could see the emotion shining brightly in her eyes, her cheeks and ears bright red.

I kissed her cheek one last time before we untangled ourselves. I got into the passenger seat and waved to Lyn as we pulled away. She waved widely back the whole time, never stopping until I was out of view.

My dad instantly started to tease me the minute we were on the highway. I moaned and made a big show of telling him off, but I was really happy. It felt good, talking to my dad like this. As long as the topic of ghosts wasn’t brought up, we were good.

I didn’t know what next term had in store for us, but I was looking forward to it. We had to solve Dahlia’s murder, but at least we could take our time with it. There was no time limit, and hopefully no creepy murderer. There was a lot about this university, heck, even this town that was hidden beneath the surface. I wanted to learn so much more about it all. Sure, it was bad this time, but usually the ghosts are just lonely people who want to share their stories. I had this special gift, and it was about time I used it, instead of being ashamed of it.

After this winter break, I wanted to see what the future had planned for us.

#unnatural affairs #ua #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #dahlia cressman #paranormal #murder mysteries #romance #wlw romance #ghosts #sapphic lead #original story #orginal writing #writing #final chapter

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

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Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 20: What Do We Do Now?

(Ally + Lyn + Michael)

Ally.

It doesn’t make sense to me.

No matter how many times I’ve stared at the picture, it’s just not connecting. How could our professor be the one in the picture when he was alive and well, torturing us with his love for drama? It was like my brain had stopped working, because there were no theories or thoughts running through it for once. I was at a loss for words.

We ended up just going back to our rooms after that bomb was dropped, because what else could we do? We needed answers from someone who could actually give us something to work with. Our best option was to see if Dahlia would be able to tell us anything, or maybe even the lady that Michael’s been speaking to at the Dreaming Mythic.

As I unlocked the door to my room, Sarah was still up, working away at something on her laptop. She glanced my way when I walked in, looking away with an embarrassed flush. At this point, I was used to her just ignoring me, even though it still stung. Controlling the urge to sigh, I dropped my schoolbag and purse onto the floor, then kicked my boots off. I was ready to hit the bed right there and then when I heard Sarah clear her throat.

“Hey…” she said carefully, glancing my way.

“Hey,” I said just as cautiously.

“So, like…um,” Sarah rubbed her hands together awkwardly. “I thought about you told me… and like, well, it is a little hard to believe but I’ve decided something. I’m not going to like, ruin a friendship I have with you because of that.” She sat on the edge of the bed now, her eyes filled with tears. “I’ve been a bad friend, Ally. I hope you can like, forgive me for taking so long to realize that. I totally understand if you like, never want to talk to me again. I just wanted to let you know that I like, really miss you and know how badly I messed up.”

My own eyes had filled with tears and now they were spilling out. They left hot trails on my cheeks as I nodded. “I forgive you.”

Sarah sobbed as she got up. I got up too and we hugged each other tightly. I couldn’t believe that this was happening. I honestly thought that this was over, that we were never going to talk to each other again. I’ve lost so many people in my life to this, so the fact that I had so many friends I had who accepted me was so startling beautiful.

We pulled away and Sarah put her hands on my shoulders, looking into my eyes. “Ally, you have to, like, promise me that you’ll be more careful, though. Those bruises…they were horrible.”

“I’m trying to be,” I sniffled. “It’s not like I’m looking for danger, danger just comes looking for me.”

Sarah giggled wetly. “Danger usually follows trouble. So, if you’re like, looking for trouble, danger is sure to be there too.”

“Okay, I’ll try a little bit harder.” I smiled softly at her, placing my hands on hers. “Now, sorry, but I really need sleep. I’m about to pass out on my feet.”

“Please don’t.”

Tonight, as I slipped under the covers, my heart felt a little bit lighter, even if my head was full of uncontrolled thoughts.

XXX

Drama was the most awkward class the next time I was in it.

I sat in between Mags and Michael, as Professor Kinkly was wrapping up his lecture for the day. Exams were only a few short weeks away, so he wanted to make sure he was cramming all his last-minute crap in now. I wasn’t listening to a word he was saying as my eyes were focused solely on the clock, watching the seconds tick away. Class seemed like it was never going to end.

“…and I’m handing back those papers you all wrote for me,” said Kinkly as his final remarks before the end. I sat up a little straighter when I realized what was going on.

He started calling names so people would go up front and grab them. When my name was called, I stiffened for a second before scooting out of my seat, slipping past Michael as I did. When I walked up to him, all I could see was the face in the photograph. He barely looked any older now. How was that even possible?

“Good job, Alexandra,” he said as he handed back my paper. “It was a very interesting read.”

“Thank you,” I said stiffly. I’m not sure why, but suddenly I really didn’t like that he had my full name. There was a deep discomfort settling in my stomach at the thought. I quickly retreated back to where my bag was and stuffed the paper inside.

“Is everything okay?” Mags asked as they glanced at the grade scrawled on the back of their paper.

I nodded carefully, making sure to look more relaxed. “Just ready to get out of here, I’m starving.”

“Amen to that.”

Eventually Michael got up to get his paper. I’m pretty sure he was actually the last person in class to get his paper. Poor guy and his unfortunate placing in the alphabet. Together, we scampered out of there, the two of us sparing one last glance at our professor. I noticed with a jolt that he was watching us leave, the lens of his glasses reflecting funny, so we could barely make out his eyes. It was very creepy.

My head was in the clouds as we walked across campus, not really focusing on the conversation at hand. We passed by Dahlia’s tree, and I found myself looking for the ghost, only to see she wasn’t showing herself right now. I wondered where they went, if they couldn’t go back to the spirit world or whatever.

We sat down in the meal hall, and I could practically feel the tension in the air. Students were nervously catching up to last minute work that needed to be submitted. Others were discussing final papers or final exams. Some of the students even were discussing the big football game that our team was playing in this week. It was surprising, considering how bad they were last year. They really turned things around, I guess. Overall, there was just a sense of unease filling the room today.

Maybe it was just my over heighted senses, but I was feeling a lot more spiritual presence as well. I’ve suspected for a while now that there was something going on…oh. Oh. OH.

My eyes widen as the thought hit me like a wrecking ball. Oozing walls. Doors locking themselves. People had reported many times that something bizarre or unexplained happened each time there had been a murder. I was sensing stronger spiritual presence, even more so than usual. None of the students had said anything so far, but I wasn’t sure who would really be able to pick up on that. But suddenly, her skeptical face flashed in my mind, and I knew who I needed to talk to.

Janna Kawada.

I didn’t even think about it before, when she had mentioned it to me, because my mind had been collecting so much information at the time that I buried it. But she saw Fiona. She saw her in the mirror. No one else had ever said as much, but that meant that either Janna could see them too or the spiritual powers were growing, and I just never noticed because this is what I was used to.

I had to speak with her. I needed to know. But where would she be? A third year Biochem student on the soccer team. She probably didn’t live on campus anymore, and practice was no longer going on. Crap. I needed to think. How would I be able to get in touch with her?

“Michael,” I said suddenly, turning to him.

He was holding his fork halfway to his mouth, noodles dangling from them, dripping sauce onto the plate. “Uh, yea’?”

“Do you happen to know when the Biochem lab is for the third years?”

Slowly he put his fork down, his expression puzzled. “Kinda. Why?”

“I need to speak to someone. Janna Kawada.”

“The one from the newspaper article?”

I nodded quickly. “The very one and the same. It’s super important. I’ll explain it later.”

Michael frowned in thought. “Right. I think there’s actually one that happens at 4:30 today, so if you stalk outside the building, you might be able to catch her. But if you don’t, those labs are usually four hours long.”

I glanced at the time on my phone and saw that it was only 2:18. Crap.

“Why do you have to talk to her?” Mags asked, drawing my attention to them. Crap. I forgot we were sitting together still. My mind had jumped way too far ahead there for a second.

My brain worked furiously as I came up with an excuse. Finally, one popped into my head, and I said, “I’m thinking of taking Chem next term as my science credit, and I might need a tutor for it.”

Mags looked skeptical. “Why not take an easier class? Human Bio is supposed to be a bird course.”

“I want to challenge myself,” I lied.

Mags looked at me for a long minute before shaking their head. “Whatever, you do you. I don’t care. I personally would take the easy option though.”

I just nodded in response, not being to say much else. I had a plan now, I needed to focus on that. Maybe I could talk to Dahlia before then? I bit my lip, thinking it through. She was never willing to tell who had killed all these people before, but it still might be worth it. Deciding it was, I picked up my bag and said goodbye to my two friends.

Quickly I made my way back to her tree. I plopped myself down and knocked on the tree. After a few minutes passed, I was worried that she wasn’t going to come. But I felt the shift in pressure as all sounds stopped around me. Dahlia appeared beside me, but something about her posture was different. She had her legs pulled up, her chin resting on her knees with the smallest of frowns on her lips. Dahlia looked younger and more vulnerable than I’ve ever seen her before. She gave me a side-eyed glance. “Yes?”

I shifted so I was shoulder to shoulder with her. “What going on with you? You seem down or something.”

Conflict played out behind her sea-green eyes before she gave me a small shake of her head.

“Are you sure?” I frowned.

“Always,” she drawled. “What is it that you need, darling?”

“Well…I just noticed recently the increase of spiritual power on campus,” I said slowly, judging her reaction. But as usual, it was nearly impossible to read. “And I was wondering if you maybe knew something about that.”

Dahlia stayed quiet for several seconds as she gathered her thoughts. Finally, she did a jerky nod. “I can’t say too much. But yes, you are correct. He’s gathering power for his next…target. But that’s all I can say.” She shifted so she could look at me fully. “Ally, there isn’t much time left. If you don’t hurry, someone else will die.” Her image flickered briefly, as if she was disappearing.

A dash of fear spiked in my system for a flash. I was running out of time? I didn’t understand, and there was something that was not letting Dahlia tell me. I thought I saw a shadow of a hand creeping onto her face.

I wanted to reach out and touch her, to comfort her but I knew I couldn’t. I placed my hand next to hers and stared into her eyes. “Listen, I will stop him. I know you can’t help me but thank you for trying anyway.”

Her image flickered again as she smiled at me. “Archives, Ally. Check them, your answers are there. Trust me when I tell you that. It’s going to be extremely dangerous, but I do believe in you. I believe in Lyndsey and Michael as well. Just be smart.” She flickered even more intensely now, nearly disappearing from view. Her eyes lit up with mischief as she said, “Salty silver witches hurt those who cannot write missives, Ally.” She disappeared after that. Of her own volition, I wasn’t sure.

I sat there, puzzled. What did that even mean?

XXX

Michael.

It was later that night when Ally came stumbling into the basement of the library. After she had gone off to do whatever it was, I hadn’t seen her for the rest of the day. After Lyn got out of her practice, she texted me saying that she was able to help with any research, but for once I think we were all stumped on our next move. So, I ended up telling her not to bother. She still showed up and ended up just working on her paper. She looked up over her laptop, staring at Ally in silent confusion. I was just as confused by her sudden arrival.

Ally gripped her phone tightly in her hand, her whole body shaking. With what, I wasn’t sure. Slowly, she sat down at out table. Lyn pulled her headphones off and reached over to place a hand on Ally’s forearm.

“Ally, you okay?” she asked, the concern noticeable in her tone.

Ally nodded. “I think I figured something out.”

I scootched my chair closer. “Like what?”

“I…” she took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before slowly releasing it through her nose. The shaking stopped a little. “I spoke with Janna today, because I realized something. When I did my interview with her all those weeks ago, she told me she saw Fiona. It literally just came to me when I was thinking about the spiritual presences on campus feeling stronger. So, I did the stupid thing and asked her. I legit asked her if she could see the dead.” She stopped and took another deep breath.

“She said that she couldn’t. Not normally anyway. Michael, you said you could see her too, right?” I nodded and Ally continued. “Okay, so it is stronger. Stronger that other people can see it, which is why I think Dahlia was able to possess Lyn like she did, because she is already powerful as is, so it just increased her power. But it’s not all-around campus, it’s only at the Athletic Centre.”

“How come?” Lyn asked, her brow furrowed.

“Because…” Ally bit her lip, her face pale. “It was the last place someone was murdered.”

I tapped my hand against my knee, trying to keep my nerves in check. “What does that mean? Why does it matter it was the last place someone died?”

Ally pushed her glasses up her faces and pressed her hands to her eyes. “So, I spoke to the others before coming here. The others being the ghosts, that is. They all told me similar things.” She put her notebook on the table and pushed it forwards so we could read it. “Basically, each time someone had been murdered, the area where the last person had died some a sudden spike of energy. Jamieson said that he always hated having his class in Harper Hall because weird things happened all the time. Amelia was the last one to die, and she hated spending any time around the old art building, where it turns out there was another student who was killed there, but never reported on because it was considered an OD. Since Jamieson can’t leave the Student Centre, he didn’t notice the dark energy that surrounds the Athletic Centre, and he wasn’t aware that someone else had be killed.”

She sat back in her chair, the weariness on her face making her look older than 18. “So, the reason why you guys could see them when you normally couldn’t, is just that. But it gets worse, because Dahlia just went missing earlier. I can’t sense her at all. But, before she disappeared, she told me that the killer is gathering power for his next kill and that we’re running out of time. I’m not sure why he needs energy to kill, but if we think that he was the one who made Fredrik into the monster, he might be planning something similar.”

Lyn’s face looked like it was set in stone as she chewed on this information, while I continued to tap my hands against my knees. Ally sighed as she rubbed her face. “But I think if we can send Fredrik back, we can weaken the spiritual energy. That’s where Katherine comes in.”

“If she agrees,” I said quietly.

“If she does,” conceded Ally.

We stayed quiet for a minute, each of us thinking about different things. What if Katherine didn’t agree? I suppose we could always ask Talia, I’m sure she would help. But how much time did we have left? Not to joke in a serious situation, but I really hoped that he’d have the decency to kill before exams, so they were at least cancelled.

Lyn got up suddenly, as if she was possessed. Oh, maybe that wasn’t the right choice of words. Oh well. She said nothing to us as she headed for the staircase that led to the second floor of the basement. Ally and I shared a look before I shrugged. I wasn’t going to make the effort to go and see what she was getting up to.

XXX

Lyn.

I don’t know what possessed me, but I knew I needed to look in here.

The archives.

I was spending so much time looking up things online that I forgot about one thing: a lot of these old newspapers haven’t been put on the internet yet because someone had to do it manually. People were a lot of things but being paid a lame wage plus no motivation equalled someone not doing their job.

I knew the person who died in the ‘60s was Dahlia Cressman, because we had her old things in our home. My great grandpa had mentioned it a few times too. There was no point in looking into that, now that I’ve made that connection. But the opening of the school, that’s what I needed to know about. Ally had mentioned it a few times, but it wasn’t until now that something occurred to me. Dahlia had told her someone had died before the campus had opened. These things happened, unfortunately. Accidents happen at construction sites.

But what if that death was more than that? I went all the way into the back of the room, going to the oldest shelf. I gently pulled out boxes full of old news articles, flipping through them until I found what I was looking for: the article written about that day.

I gingerly opened the paper, being careful of where I laid it on the table. My eyes scanned through the garble of the paper until I found what I was looking for. The headline was still legible, reading Tragedy at New University Location.

What should have been a wonderful day ended in tragedy. During the nearly finished construction of the new University campus built in Yokeville, a disaster struck. 27-year-old Jeremiah Kinkly was found dead this morning, Tuesday June 12th. It was suspected that Kinkly was trying to sneak into the property, into the Kramer Hall building. This building had not been finished yet, and many pieces of scaffolding had been hung in place, not locked up. According to RCMP officer Lawrence, it looked as if the man fell to his death.

“His body was somewheres near the building, all mangled like,” said the young officer. “I got a call about a trespasser, and when I got here, I seen the body right away. I knew there was nothing I could do for him. Poor soul.”

Mr. Kinkly is survived by his mother, father, and pet dog.

The picture they had used for him looked exactly like the Drama professor. But that wasn’t the only thing I was looking for. I went back into the archives and shuffled through more of the boxes, knowing what it was I needed. The lights flickered dangerously overhead, which told me I was looking in the right spot after all. My heart picked up its pace when I found it. Quickly I read it over, just to be sure. I grinned in confirmation and headed back to the table. I picked up the newspaper and went back upstairs, where the other two where still sitting, looking just as tired as I felt. I put the paper on the table and pushed it towards them.

“Do you see the issue I see?”

Michael looked up with a frown. “What do you mean?”

I tapped at the end of the article, when Ally gasped. “Mother, father. No other family is mentioned. How is that possible? They must be related. They literally look like the same person…”

I dropped my other find on the table. “Look at this.”

Ally picked it up, her eyes widening as she got to the end of the article. Michael took it next and read through it a few times, his brow furrowed as he muttered, “This doesn’t make sense.”

“They’re the same person,” I said, crossing my arms. “Robert Kinkly claimed that he was related to the dead man when asked about after his hiring, but there were no other children, and the family seemingly didn’t have another child. Even if they did, Kinkly wouldn’t look as young as he did. It’s the only thing that makes sense.”

“But how…?” Ally’s voice was practically a whisper. “How is it that he died but he’s here now?”

Then Ally’s face paled as realization bloomed in her eyes. “He’s like them. He’s like the Moore siblings.”

Michael asked, “What does that mean?” as I sat down.

“They’re tangible. They can touch us and we can touch them.” Ally pulled over her notebook and started writing furiously. “I suspected the reason why they could be because they had turned into something evil. Was it because they had no family? Kinkly would fall into that category if that was the case, because his family may no longer be alive. But does that make him the killer?”

“The killings started happening once he got a job here, in the ‘70s,” I pointed out. “You said that Amelia didn’t like going to the art building, probably because someone had died there. What did she say about that?”

“That she always felt like there was someone watching her there,” said Ally. “Would it be worth it to try and talk to the ghost there? Maybe we can learn something.”

Michael ran his hands over his face as he mumbled, “We might as well.”

“Yeah, it’s not like it can get any more insane than this,” I said with a slight smirk.

Ally looked between us before nodding. “Alright, we’ll go for it tomorrow. I’m too tired tonight.”

“Blessed,” said Michael as he started tossing his things into his bag. “I really didn’t want to go tonight, no offence.”

“None taken.”

I packed up quickly too and followed them out. I made sure to say bye to Eileen as we left. I loved the little old lady and she always helped me out in first year. We walked with Michael all the way back to his res before I walked with Ally back to hers.

I wasn’t the most observant person on the planet, but I thought she seemed a little happier recently. A smile flickered across my face unbidden, and I looked up at the stars. They were hard to see through the light, the pollution, and the clouds, but they were fighting through. I always liked going camping in the summer and staring up at them, losing myself in them. It was one of the few things I liked as a teenager. It was a way for me to get away from all the drama at home.

Ally’s hands slipped into mine as she pressed herself against my side. I looked down at her and she was smiling up at me, her face pink from the cold. It was amazing that she could still smile through all of this. Her strength never ceased to amaze me. We were standing in front of Lukas but Ally didn’t seem to be in a rush to get inside. She probably would have stayed there for as long as possible, but I could already see she was starting to shiver. So, I bent down and kissed her, whispering good night in her ear. She kissed me back before heading inside, and I waved to her as I left.

I wasn’t sure why I went this way instead of heading back to MacGavin, but I found myself standing in front of the big tree. The one where Dahlia resides. I placed my hand on the bark, not able to feel the roughness because of my gloves. It was a strange feeling, knowing that someone I was related to had died here on this very campus. I didn’t feel a sense of sadness or anything, since I didn’t know anything about the chick, but still. It was a little unsettling, you know?

“Hey, um,” I felt my ears heating up, “I have no idea if you can hear me but thanks. I know I gave ya grief the other day for possessing me and shit, but you save our asses. Um…great grandpa never stopped missing you. I wish we had the chance to meet, because honestly you sound like a super cool lady. And thanks for helping Ally out, even if you can’t give her all the answers. I’m sure you have your reasons.” I let my hand drop to my side as I looked up at the branches, noticing for the first time that all the water had froze, creating a crystal-like appearance. It was gorgeous to look at. “Uh, yeah. That’s about it, I guess. It’d be awesome if you could help us one last time, but I guess you’re missing. I hope you’re okay. Well…bye, Dahlia.”

Did it feel super fucking weird to talk to a tree? Yes. Did it make any sense to me? Nope. But for whatever reason, I felt a little bit lighter as I walked back to my res.

XXX

Ally.

Next time I decide to solve murders of long dead people and go on spooky missions during the night, I’m doing it in a warmer season because I’m so sick of the cold at this point. It was only 8:00 at night but I was freezing.

I pushed open the doors of the art building, welcoming the warmth that blasted my face. The building was still open because there was a play going on for Drama. I had already seen it on a previous night because it was part of our grade to do so. I was here for a different reason tonight. To speak to one last ghost. Hopefully.

The music for the show was muffled but could still be heard through the doors. The two students in charge of the tickets were talking to each other to pass the time, paying me no attention, which was perfect. I didn’t want them to ask me any questions.

I quietly walked by their table as I felt my skin prickling. I looked up to see him sitting there, a young man sketching. I used the stairs to get up to the third level of the building, a decision I regretted almost immediately. Look, I’m not the most fit person, I’ll admit that, but I don’t think anyone on this planet could take multiple flights of stairs without getting tired. If they could, they probably weren’t human.

He was waiting for me when I finally made it to him, trying very hard to not wheeze. He had slicked back black hair and curious blue eyes. He gave me a wave and a small smile that I returned as I leaned over the balcony, looking down to the ground floor.

“You’re the one making waves around here, huh?” he asked, floating off so he was standing next to me.

“That’s me.”

He nodded, looking down as well. “You know you’re making a name for yourself in the spirit world, right? I usually don’t haunt here anymore, since I gave up hope a long time ago that anyone was going to bring that killer to justice, so when Dahlia told me about you, it was hard to believe. Yet, here you are.”

“Here I am,” I said softly. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my notebook and pen. I smiled at him as I waved it. “Mind if I ask you a few questions?”

“Go right ahead, young lady.”

“What’s your name?”

“David Lancaster,” he answered simply.

“If you don’t mind telling me, I would like to know how you died.”

“I don’t. I was here, working on my art project when I heard something strange. I decided to go check it out, because the banging wouldn’t stop. I ended going into the auditorium, that one over there,” he pointed at where the play was currently taking place. “Once I was inside, the doors slammed shut behind me and they wouldn’t budge. I knew about the emergency exit, so I wasn’t too scared yet, but I’d just seen Halloween with my girlfriend Sally, and I thought maybe it was my buddy Joe playing a prank on me. But as I got closer to the door, I felt this terrible chill just seep into my bones. I thought it was from the door since it led outside, but I was very wrong.

“Next thing I knew, I was frozen to the spot. I couldn’t move, no matter how hard I tried. Then I felt someone come up from behind me and jab me in the arm. I tried to get a good look at who it was, but I never saw his face, only heard his voice. He jabbed me again, and my vision went black. When I woke up, my body was lying on the ground and I wasn’t in it. I believe the coroner said I had OD’d. That hurt the most, since I never did a bad drug in my life. Just some weed, but most people my age had.” He scratched his chin before running his hand through his hair in thoughtful silence.

I put the pen down, surprised at how easy that fell off his tongue. I suppose being dead for nearly 50 years stopped you from being sensitive about your own demise. But listening to him, I was certain now that Kinkly was behind this. I asked if he saw the killer’s general height and hair colour, and when I showed him a picture his eyes widened a little.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” he muttered to himself. “I remember taking classes with Professor Kinkly. He told me I was his brightest star.”

“I think…” I took a deep breath in and steeled myself. “I think he was the one who killed you, David.”

David looked at me, his jaw slack with surprise and his eyes watery. He closed them and his body started to shake. I was confused when I realized he was laughing, and I took a step away from him. The laughter became echoing, as if there was more than one voice laughing with him. When he turned to look at me again, his eyes were gone, and the skin was melting off his bones. Fear spiked in my system as I stumbled away from him. I spirted to the staircase, trying to get away from him.

“I told you he was coming! He’s coming for you!” His voice followed me all the way down, and when I turned around to see if he was gone, I saw nothing. However, when I got to the bottom of the stairs, he jumped out in front of me, reaching for my face. I screamed in shock as I fell back.

His face had warped into something monstrous, with bloody saliva and sharp teeth. I whimpered as I tried to scoot away, but the only thing behind me was the stairs and they stopped me from going anywhere.

“You shouldn’t have stuck your nose where it didn’t belong, you stupid girl,” said the voice of Kinkly’s from David’s mouth. “If you had minded your own business, then I would have left you alone. But now? Now, I have to KILL YOU!” He roared in my face, raising a clawed hand.

I lifted my arms up in protection when something strange happened. His body froze and began to twist in an inhumanly way. He looked like someone possessed in a scary movie. One clear blue eye found mine and he said in the calming voice from earlier, “You need to get away, young lady.”

I’m not sure how David took his spirit form back, but I quickly scrambled away. There must have been a distortion of space in place, because no one was around. I was all alone here, stuck with the murderer who killed so many before me. I wasn’t sure how long David was going to be able to hold out for, and I didn’t want to stick around to find out.

I hear him howling behind me and I made a mad dash to the door. I slammed against the glass and pulled on them violently, but they wouldn’t budge. My panic levels were starting to rise to a dangerous level as I looked around for an escape from this hell space. My eyes were drawn to the other exit, back from where I came from. My pulse was pounding in my ears and in my head as I ran like crazy past David, who took a vicious swipe at me as I did. I managed to dodge out of the way, with only a nick in my jacket to show for it.

The sounds of galloping followed behind me as Beast David charged at me. I jumped out of the way as he flew by, taking a chunk of the floor with him. I winced as I hit the floor but ignored it for now as I scrambled back to my feet. I raced towards the exit and smashed my shoulder into it, and the door popped open with a hiss like a pop tab. I slammed it shut behind me and backed away. David slammed into the door but couldn’t make past it.

Students were leaving from the other side, blissfully unaware of the monster that was on the other side. David’s form melted as he disappeared, his haunting empty sockets being the last thing I saw.

A few students glanced my way as I stood there, breathing heavily. I winced as I took a step back, pain flaring like heat in my ribs. I must have landed on them funny when I jumped. I raked my fingers through my hair, trying hard to bring my heart rate down.

David’s voice had sounded so familiar to me, and now I know why. He was the one who warned me, back in the library. He warned me that someone was coming for me. How he did that, I wasn’t sure. But it was him.

Slowly, I made my way back to my dorm room. I quickly fired off a message in the ‘Spook Searchers’ group chat as I did, wanting to let the others know what happened. I was just about to slip my phone back in my pocket when I noticed that I had a notification on Messenger still. It was from someone who wasn’t considered a friend. Curious, I hit it open and saw that it was from Katherine Howard. I was a little unsure of who that was until I read the message.

7:52

Katherine:

listen I thought about it

come meet me at the shop and we’ll talk

bring your friends if you want to idc

Shoot, that a while ago. It was nearly 9 now. I sent back a reply saying I was coming now if that was okay. The little green dot saying she was online appeared, and the little meatballs showed up saying she was writing back. All she said was “yes,” so I gritted my teeth and walked briskly towards the store.

My ribs felt like they were stabbing me as I approached the store. I wiped at the sweat that starting to form on my forehead despite the cold weather. I was really, really, really getting sick of being hurt from these ghosts. If this kept up, I was going to need more serious stuff than just some Tylenol and Ibuprofen.

There was a single light on in the store as I got closer. I peeked through the window and jumped when the door swung open. Katherine hurried me in and quickly closed the door behind us, making sure it was locked. She directed me to follow her into the back where she sat on the counter and offered me the stool. I sat on it gingerly, watching her carefully.

Katherine was tugging on her hair, a nervous gesture from what I saw last time we spoke. It was tied back in a messy ponytail with pink tips, and I could see a hearing aid resting in her left ear. She had long nose and stunning green eyes that were watching me carefully as well. Her eyes darted to the door and back to me before she hunched her shoulders.

“Did no one else want to come?” she asked, moving her hands at the same time.

I shook my head. “I didn’t ask them, actually. I just got back from business and come over here.”

“Business?”

“The supernatural kind.”

She exhaled through pursed lips as she nodded. “Right. Well…I thought about what you asked of me.”

I waited for her to continue, but she just sat there and said nothing. I frowned and with an indication of my hand, I motioned her to continue.

Katherine sighed, dropping her hands to rest on the countertop. “What you’re asking of me is very dangerous. Like, stupidly dangerous. I thought long and hard about it, because it’s not just some decision I’m gonna make on the fly…but… I’ll help.”

My eyebrows lifted in surprise. “Really? How come?”

“Because, when I talked to my mom about it, she said it was the right thing for me to do,” Katherine huffed. “Whatever the hell that means. When I asked her why she couldn’t just do it, she said that she couldn’t anymore.”

I nodded slowly. “Okay…” I tried to shift, which was a bad idea. Closing my eyes, I focused on taking a deep breath through my nose. It actually made it worse.

“Are you alright?”

“Just a little sore,” I said through gritted teeth. “So, not to come off as rude, but are you actually a witch? I know Michael was a little blunt in his approach last time.”

Katherine’s face went slightly pink as she nodded. “Magic is real. My mom taught me all that she knows. But if you guys need me to do a banishment or exorcism or whatever, that’s a really heavy spell. I’m gonna be wiped out after that.”

“Good to know.” I stood up, not being able to withstand the discomfort anymore. “I’m sorry that I’ve put you in this position, but I’m really grateful that you’re helping us out. It means a lot to me.”

Katherine looked away. “Whatever. It’s the right thing to do. Someone shouldn’t suffer like that because the acts of another did that to them.”

My eyes must be playing tricks on me, because I thought I saw something flicker around Katherine’s head when she said that. But there was nothing there. I did still have that strange sense like I did last time, however. I wasn’t sure what it was about her, but there was something that was calling to me. It was very puzzling.

“Is that all you wanted to talk about?” I asked. “Because if it was, I’m going to head back to my room. I’ve got some stuff to catch up on.”

Katherine nodded and slipped off the desk with grace. She walked over to the door and glanced through the window before unlocking it. She glanced at me with her hand resting on the handle. “We’ll have to do it before the full moon next week, otherwise I’m worried this guy will be too much for me to handle. I’ll get a boost too, but I’m not risking my head for this.”

I thought back to our last full moon encounter with Fredrik and shuddered. “No complaints from me. Thanks so much, Katherine. I really mean it.”

“You’re welcome, sheesh,” she pulled the door open for me. “Be safe walking home… Uh, Ally?”

“Ally,” I confirmed with a smile.

“Right. Okay, well, I’ll message you when we should do. Might be in the next couple of days.”

“Okay, just let me know. Bye, and have a goodnight.”

“You too,” she said quietly. She watched me leave and walk a little up the street before ducking back inside and most likely locking the door again.

At least one good thing happened before the night ended. Knowing that we had someone who was willing to help us with our Fredrik problem was a way better ending than me nearly getting killed by David’s monster form. The stabbing pain in my ribs was now a dull throbbing, which might not be the best sign in the world. I just needed to get back to my room and take some meds before heading to bed. God, this semester couldn’t end fast enough if it wanted to.

#unnatural affairs #ua #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #dahlia cressman #mags richard #ghosts #paranormal #romance #wlw romance #sapphic lead #murder mysteries #writing #orginal work #orginal writing #original story

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

Text

Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 16: Are You Crazy?

(Ally + Lyn + Michael)

Michael.

The text I received that morning was the most wonderful thing in the world.

The test results were in.

I got out of bed quickly, making sure to text the group chat before heading out the door. If I was being honest, I wasn’t actually that excited to know what the results were, but at least we might a confirmation of some sorts that will help us with the case! I threw on my heavy jacket and dashed out the door, not even caring about how early it was.

Making my way across campus towards the lab, I wondered what it was that we would find. Would the slime sample actually be human DNA? What if there was nothing at all? What if this had all been for nothing. I really hoped it wasn’t the last one. I still had really wicked headaches every now and then, and I’m pretty sure Lyn’s arm was going to scar from those nasty claw wounds. Not that I had the guts to tell her that.

I quickly unlocked the door to the lab and walked in, smiling when I saw Lamar already waiting for me. Lamar was the 3rd year who I had mentioned liked me who would probably help us out, and I was glad that I was right about that. I clapped him on the back and leaned against the counter, practically vibrating with energy.

“What’s the news, bud?” I asked.

“Like I texted you, the results came back,” he said as he reached for the tablet. “Something that I found interesting, however, was this.” He pointed to one of the results on the screen.

I looked at them with interest, instantly noticing that there was more than one DNA result. Now, that wouldn’t be totally unusual had this been a normal situation, because only God knows what could be on the wall of a locker room, but the fact that I had pulled the sample from a very small and specific site should have meant that there was very little to no contamination. However, I could see that there were at least 3 different results.

The first one wasn’t too surprising, belonging to one Jackie Park. That was the girl who got attacked by that freaky monster. The second one belonged to someone named Fredrik Moore, which wasn’t too surprising because Ally just told us about him the other day. It was the third result that was startling to me, because I didn’t recognize it at all. The DNA belong to someone named Jerimiah Kinkly. It was only after staring at the name for several minutes that it clicked. Kinkly. Like Professor Kinkly?!

“Thanks for this, Lamar,” I said, not taking my eyes off the screen. “Can you email this to me?”

“Absolutely,” he said, quickly doing just that.

I was just about to bolt to go tell Ally about this in person, when he reached over to grab my wrist. I looked over to him in question.

“What is this all about?” he asked, hand waving at the tablet. “I agreed to help, but this seems a lot deeper than a simple science project.”

“If I could tell you, I would,” I gently removed his hand from my wrist. “Unfortunately, there is nothing I could say that could make this make sense.”

Concern crossed over his face. “Is this dangerous, Michael? Is that how you ended up with that horrible concussion?”

I tried to go for an easy smile, but I think it came out more like a grimace. “Seriously, man, don’t worry about it. Everything is under control.” I hated lying to anyone, but especially my friends. The look of disbelief on Lamar’s face was almost enough to make me spill the beans, but I couldn’t do that to Ally.

“If you say so…” he looked extremely unsure as he stepped away, crossing his arms together. “Just be careful, Michael. No one here wants to see you get hurt again.”

“I’ll do my best,” I promised. I left after that, feeling like a weight just got added to my chest. I honestly couldn’t believe how deep this whole thing had gone. It started as wanting to help figure out who attacked an innocent student to evolving into solving the murders of several different people at this school.

The sad part was thinking of how no one looked into the mysterious circumstances of their deaths. Each time they agreed it was just suicide. Did no one think to ask why a student who just finished his exams would jump to his death? No one questioned the graphic nature of another student’s death? It was just another example of how terrible our policing system was. They were too willing to take the easy answer.

I looked over to the tree where Dahlia Cressman’s spirit resided. Why were there so many dead people on this campus? The thought of that alone was unsettling. It was almost as unsettling as knowing that the murderer was still on campus, with Ally dropping that bomb on us this morning. I would never tell my mom that she was right for saying that this wasn’t a safe school, but damn was she right. I would have to get her a really nice gift for her birthday to let her know.

I glanced at my phone, wondering if there was enough time for us to meet before class. I knew that my class started at 9:30, and Ally had a class at 9:30 as well. I didn’t know Lyn’s schedule but it was clearly busy so she usually couldn’t meet with us until the evening or on Fridays. At the very least, I could tell Ally before our respective classes.

I managed to catch her at meal hall, where she was working her way through some peanut butter toast. I slid in next to her, and she looked over in mild surprise.

“Hey, Michael,” she said through a mouth full of toast.

“Hey, did you see my text?”

She nodded, covering her mouth with a hand. “I did, yeah. Did you get to see them already?”

“Yes!” I pulled the email up, showing the results to her.

Ally’s brow furrowed in concern as she slowly read it over. Her lip curled inwardly as she looked away, clearly thinking deeply. I gave her a minute to work through her thoughts before asking her what she was thinking about.

“It’s just something…” she pulled open her bag as she muttered under her breath. Ally pulled out the notebook that she’s been writing all the case notes in, reading it over quickly. Finally, she let out a small gasp.

“What is it?” I asked, looking over her shoulder. Her handwriting was so messy in the book, and I wasn’t sure where to look for the shocking note that she jotted down that was causing her reaction.

“Dahlia told me something a while ago, but so much as happened since then,” she explained quickly, flipping through the book, “that I forgot about it. She told me that there was two people in the Athletic Centre, but that one of them had died when the campus had been first built or sometime before it. The other, who I bet money on is Fiona Moore, resided there since she died. Here where it doesn’t make sense, because your results suggest that her brother is one of the spirts there. So why is there another person? Kinkly? Is his related to our Drama prof? And why didn’t Dahlia tell me there were three people there?” She ran her hand through her hair, blowing her breath out in frustration through pursed lips.

“Maybe she didn’t know?” I suggested.

“Maybe…” she mumbled. “Still, I think I’d better check with her.”

“Good idea,” I said. “Why don’t we do that later?”

She nodded firmly. “Sounds like a plan. We can get Lyn, and all go together. Even if you guys can’t see her, I think it’s better if you’re there for this.”

“Okay,” I said. “But make sure this doesn’t consume you all day, yea’?”

“I’ll try my best but make no promises.”

“Good enough for me.”

We left shortly after that, heading to our classes. Though I told her not to overthink it, I ended up mulling it over all throughout Finite Math. There was so much going on, and it was starting to feel like there was no end to this rabbit hole. If this little bit was getting to me, I wondered how Ally was coping with this all?

XXX

Lyn.

I think I was starting to dissociate a bit.

I was sitting at my usual table before practice, my textbook open in front of me but I was staring off into space. My lack of proper sleep was catching up to me, and the weekend just made everything so much worse. I should have just asked Olivia if she wanted to do something alone with me instead, but the choice had been made, so I had to live with the consequences.

I had music playing, but even with my headphones on it sounded far away. I whacked my knee before sitting down, and while I was aware that it should hurt, it didn’t really feel like anything. I only felt like this a couple of times before, so I knew it was pretty bad. Maybe I should try talking to that woman again, the mental health lady. I couldn’t even remember her name.

I saw the texts from Michael and Ally, but I had no energy to answer them. I just had stared blankly at them before putting my phone face down, so I didn’t have to see them anymore. Now here I was, staring up at the ceiling, wondering how much longer it was until practice was. But my brain felt like it was in a fog, I had no real concentration. Finally, I gave up on pretending I was doing work. I packed it all away and headed for the pool.

When I got there, no one else was around just yet. That was okay with me. I changed into my swimsuit and pulled on my sweatpants. I walked to the pool slowly, hoping that the feeling would soon go away. The heat of the pool was there, but it didn’t do much for me. I couldn’t really feel it. I just starting do my warmup exercises when I heard the voices of the others starting to drift in.

Sit up. Hold. Down. Repeat. Going through the motions of the crunches wasn’t doing much for me. It didn’t even feel like I was doing anything. I was looking up at the ceiling of the pool when Loryn’s face appeared over mine, concern etched in her features.

“Hey,” I said dully.

“Hey,” she echoed softly. “Can I sit with you?”

I nodded, not making any effort to move from my spot. I was pretty sure the others were coming over to see what was going on, but Loryn shooed them away.

“Is it okay if I touch you?” Loryn asked gently, her hand hovering over mine. I nodded again and shuddered when the warmth of her hand covered mine. It was the first sensation I had since Ally grabbed my hand yesterday. “Is this okay?”

“Yeah,” my voice sounded so tired to my own ears.

“What’s going on, Lyn? Can you tell me?”

“You’re being very nice to me,” I noted dryly.

“You’re avoiding the question,” she said firmly.

I sighed heavily, feeling a little bit of tension leave my body. “I’m processing some shit.”

Loryn frowned. She ran her thumb over my hand, her eyes crinkled in thought. “Processing what? Does it have something to do with your weekend home?”

I’m not sure why, because it wasn’t funny at all, but I laughed. I laughed so hard that I couldn’t breathe, my hand covering my face. Loryn’s hand squeezed mine, but she waited until I stopped before saying anything.

“Lyn?” The concern was so obvious in her voice, it made me feel sick to my stomach.

“Yeah, something happened,” I said bitterly. “I fucking hate going home because everything is shit. Leigh and I got into it with one another and mum is a fucking sociopath who gets sick enjoyment watching us all squirm as she bullies us. I shouldn’t have gone but I had this insane notion that maybe, just maybe if I did, I could fix my stupid broken relationships with my sisters at least! But here I am, miserable because I was a bloody optimist, and I got burned for it. I can’t sleep a full night’s sleep and haven’t been able to since before what happened to Jackie and I just want it all to stop!”

My chest was heaving, and my eyes were prickly, but I felt a little bit better after getting it all out. I refused to remove my hand from my eyes, instead opting to lie there with my eyes closed tight.

“What…what do you mean?” Loryn’s voice sounded hesitant. “You want what to all stop?”

“I dunno…” I took a deep breath to stop myself from shaking. “I’m just so fucking exhausted, Loryn. I don’t think I can keep going like this.”

Loryn reached over, taking my hand off my face. I cracked open a single eye, only to shut it again when I saw the look of fear in her eyes. “No, Lyn, please look at me,” she said quietly.

So, I did. I opened my eyes and looked over at my friend, whose face was twisted up with conflicting emotions. Why did I always feel sick when someone looked at me that way? I didn’t need them to pity me more or anything. I know that’s not what Loryn was doing at all, but it felt that way.

“Lyn,” she started softly, “I need you listen to what I’m saying, okay? You have to relax. No more pushing yourself to the limits. I am your friend, and I’m saying this because I care about you so much, but it’s fucking ridiculous how much pressure you’re putting on yourself. You don’t need to prove anything to anyone, not anymore. You’ve shown how bright you are, how caring you are, and how much effort you put into everything. Forget them and focus on you.”

I stared into her eyes and a realization came to me slowly. Loryn cared about me, this I knew. But the reason why I always felt sick when I saw someone looking at me that way was because no one ever looked at me like that while growing up. Someone actually giving a shit about me was so alien to me that I reacted negatively each time I saw it.

“Focus on me…?” I repeated slowly, my own voice unsure. I sat up a little, blinking rapidly. “Loryn, I’m not sure how to do that.”

Loryn smiled at me, with a small shake of her head. “I know, you dumbass. That’s why we’re here for you. You just have to tell us what you need, okay?”

What I need? I looked around, taking in the sights around me for the first time. I saw Andrew standing nearby, twisting his cap in his hands in a fit of nervous energy. Kerry and Matt stood close enough that they could be there right away, both looking worried. Tammy and Emma sat on the blocks, talking to each other but clearly keeping an eye on me. Maddie was making sure that Will didn’t make his way over at all. I shifted to my knees, feeling overwhelmed with feelings. I…how could I be so blind? These idiots were here for me last year, yet I was so wrapped in my own drama that I never noticed it, but I could see it clearly now. We were family, like Coach Jacob said at the start of the season. These people, they were here for me, if I needed it. Just like we were for Gunner. Just like we were for Jackie.

“Loryn…I-” I choked. I was shaking as I reached over, pulling her into a crushing hug. “I need help,” I practically whispered the last part.

She reached up, running her hand through my hair. “I know, Lyn, I know. We’ve got you.”

Next thing I knew, they were all there. The whole thing was so overstimulating, and I felt myself dissociating again, but that was fine. I sat there under their smothering hugs, staring off into space again. Help, that’s what I needed. Someone who I could talk to about everything, all the abuse, all the impossible expectations. I knew deep down it wasn’t going to be easy for me, these kinds of things never were. We were always told that people who needed metal health help were weak, because they were unable to cope with ‘daily stressors’ but I knew this wasn’t true. I saw Ally, how she dealt with all the shit life threw at her, but it didn’t make her weak. If anything, Ally was stronger than I ever could be.

I closed my eyes, resting my head on Loryn’s shoulder. Right now, I felt weak. And that was okay.

XXX

Ally.

Now I promised Michael I wasn’t going to be obsessive all day about this, and I think for the most part I kept that promise. Key word being most.

It’s just that the whole thing was extremely concerning and interesting to me. I truly believed that Dahlia didn’t keep something from me intentionally, which led me to believe that she really wasn’t aware of Fredrik’s presence in the locker room. Which led me wondering how he managed to escape her notice. Like I’ve said before, somehow answers always ended up leading to more questions. It was a wonder how I haven’t torn my hair out yet in frustration.

I looked down at my notebook, filled with all the information that the others and I have gathered so far. The most shocking piece of the puzzle was this Jeremiah Kinkly fellow. There was a very slim chance that he wasn’t related to our dreadful Drama professor. How was Professor Kinkly connected in all of this? Was he even? Was it merely coincidence that this name showed up at all? I was starting to get a headache from all of thoughts buzzing around in my head.

I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I never even noticed when this guy approached my table. He rapped his knuckles against the hardwood, causing me to jump in surprise. I looked up at him, blinking in confusion.

“Yes?”

He smirked at me, making my stomach flipped uncomfortably. “Hey, babe, I was wondering if I could sit with you? There’s no available seats.”

Babe? Excuse me? I looked around and noticed there were several empty seats. I turned back to him, raising an eyebrow in question. “Actually, I’m pretty sure there are a bunch around. Maybe take a second look?”

“Well,” he drawled, leaning down into my space, “I just wanted to sit with a hot girl like you. Is that okay?”

I shook my head, really taking this guy in. He had dark hair that was combed back and hawkish features. He was good looking, but I couldn’t shake the predatory feeling I was getting off of him. It was making me uneasy.

“Sorry?” He looked shocked. “Are you actually saying no to me? You know there’s nothing stopping me from sitting here if I wanted to, right? Stop being a bitch.”

“Stop being a bitch?!” I stood up, glaring at him fiercely. “I’m not being a bitch because I don’t what some asshole sitting with me!”

Whatever he was going to say next was cut off when someone angrily said, “Derek, get the fuck away from her, you creep.”

I looked behind me to see Lyn and Loryn standing behind me, anger in their eyes. I have to admit, while I felt I had this under control, seeing Lyn glaring at this guy and protecting me had a certain sexiness to it.

“Lyn!” He went from annoyed to smarmy in a flash. “How have you been doing, sexy?”

“None of your business,” she snarled at him, fury in her eyes. “I’m pretty sure I made it clear I didn’t want to have anything to do with you anymore. Now, don’t you have someone else to bother? Where’s Poppy at?”

The guy, Derek, shrugged lazily. “Dumped her a while back. She was fun for awhile, but she was looking for something more committed. I wasn’t about to do that for her. Anyway, I’m not sure why you give a damn who I talk to, so I’m pretty sure this chick here is free game.”

“I’m not a piece of property!” I snapped.

When Derek didn’t step away, both Lyn and Loryn stepped closer so they were beside me. Derek sized us all up, and maybe after seeing how much more fit the two swimmers were, decided it wasn’t worth the fight. He shrugged away, running a hand through his hair.

“Whatever,” he grumbled. “Forgot what a cunt you could be, Lyn.”

Lyn’s face coloured with anger, but it was Loryn who shoved a hand into his chest. “I never fucking want to hear you speak to Lyn or any other girl like that again, you bastard,” she growled menacingly. “If I do, you’ll regret ever making an enemy of Loryn Frasier.”

He rolled his eyes and finally walked away, clearly making the right decision in not saying anything else. After he was fully out of our sights, Loryn looked over her shoulder at me.

“You okay?” she asked.

I nodded. “Thanks. I think I had it under control, but the help was appreciated.”

“Yeah, sorry,” said Lyn, looking bashful. “I figured you were okay, but Derek is awful. Even looking at him makes my skin crawl. We saw what was happening and just reacted.” She tugged at her ear, staring down at her shoes.

“Who was he anyway?”

“My ex,” sighed Lyn. “One of them, anyhow.”

“Seriously one of the worst decisions you’ve ever made in your entire life,” commented Loryn.

“Shut up, I know.”

That was Lyn’s ex? Ugh, he was a piece of work. I scowled in his direction one last time before moving on. It was one bad conversation, hopefully it wouldn’t happen again. Shaking my head, I looked over to the two of them. Loryn caught my eye and patted Lyn on the shoulder, pulling her close. She whispered something, which Lyn nodded to. Sparing her friend one last thoughtful look, Loryn waved goodbye to us as she left us alone.

We stood there silently for a few seconds as Lyn continued to look down at her shoes. She seemed a little less tense than she did yesterday, but she looked even more tired. I tapped my shoe against hers, knocking her out of her thoughts.

She looked up, our eyes meeting. I smiled at her, and eventually she smiled back. Not one of those fake smiles that she’s been using, but a real one. It was small, but it was there. And, there was a brightness to her eyes that hadn’t been there in a while.

“Sorry I didn’t answer your text,” she said almost shyly. “I was processing some stuff. I’m feeling a little better, so I wanted to see what you wanted in person.”

“Only if you’re feeling better,” I said.

“Honestly, I still feel like shit,” she snorted. “But I made a breakthrough. I’m not feeling fantastic, but I’m feeling well enough that I could come and be here for you tonight.”

“If you’re sure,” I nodded. “I just wanted you and Michael to be here when I spoke to Dahlia Cressman tonight. I’m hopeful we’ll get some answers.”

We started walking out of the library. Lyn had a thoughtful look on her face, but I was hesitant to push her for her thoughts, so I didn’t ask what was on her mind. We walked over to the tree where Michael was already waiting for us, shivering from the cold. He perked up when he recognized us in the dark.

“Thank God you’re here,” he said to me as we approached. “People kept staring at me.”

“Welcome to my world,” I laughed.

“Soooo, what’s the plan?” he asked, looking over at the tree. Lyn and I looked over as well.

“I’m hopefully going to get some answers,” I declared.

“Answers for what, Ally?”

The air pressure changed as Dahlia appeared in front of me, her arms crossed with a disinterested look. Instinctively, Michael stepped closer to me, hand going to my shoulder. For his comfort or mine, I wasn’t sure. If Lyn noticed the difference in the air, she didn’t show it. She was staring at the tree with curiosity, rocking on the balls of her feet.

“Hi, Dahlia,” I said cheerfully.

“I hope for both of our sake’s you’re not trying to press more answers out of me that I cannot give,” she said coolly.

Using my free arm that wasn’t currently being used as a crutch, I pulled out my notebook. I flipped to the page I was looking forward, with the information with Fiona and Fredrik Moore. I held it up so she could read it clearly. Her eyes skimmed the page, the curiosity lighting up in her eyes. She looked at me when she was finished, tilting her head.

“What’s this all about?”

“See, that’s where it gets interesting,” I said, flipping to the page with what she told me about the Athletic Centre. “See here? This is what you told me after we got back from the hospital. You told me that there were two spirits currently lingering there. However, these recent DNA results,” I pulled out the printed results, “suggest to us that there are three lingering attachments. I was hoping you would know anything about that.”

Dahlia stared at me for a couple of minutes, her face carefully controlled to show nothing. Then she broke out in a mischievous grin, amusement twinkling in her eyes.

“Doesn’t it feel better once the pieces start to fit together nicely?” Dahlia looked at all three of us, the grin still in place. “When I told you that there were two spirits haunting the Athletic Centre, I wasn’t being dishonest. Technically, there are only two lingering attachments. But see, there is where it gets a little tricky, Ally. Tell me, what are the names you have?”

“Uh, Fiona and Fredrik Moore, and Jeremiah Kinkly.”

Dahlia nodded. She stepped back, leaning against the tree. “Fiona is correct. I remember the day she died, very tragic. Jeremiah as well, though I wasn’t there for his death. He died during the construction of the campus. You can look into that, darling, but according to the others he fell from the building when the windows were being put in. Fredrik, on the other hand, is not a lingering spirit.”

“Huh?” I was confused. How did that make any sense? The other two looked over, and Michael squeezed my shoulder.

“What did she say? I can hear whispers on the wind but I’m not picking up any words,” he whispered, eyes darting around the area.

I quickly recapped what she told me. Michael rubbed his chin in thought, while Lyn glanced over to where Dahlia was. I looked over too, noticing for the first time Dahlia was staring at Lyn intently. That was strange. Dahlia must have realized I caught her staring, because she looked away, her face giving nothing away. I made a mental note of that.

“What does that mean?” Lyn asked, turning her attention to me.

“I’m not sure,” I replied honestly. “Can you tell me what that means, Dahlia?”

Dahlia’s eyes flickered to me as she nodded. “He was brought here against his will. He made peace with his death, but something brought him back. That monster was in fact him, transformed by the person who forced him back into the world of the living.”

I covered my mouth in horror. I read about that recently. Someone could try to bring a spirit back, but unless they had the proper training to do it safely, the results could be disastrous. Is that what happened? Who would do that? My stomach was churning with discomfort even at the thought of someone doing something so irresponsible. Taking a deep breath, I recalled what she just told me to the others.

“That’s…that’s so horrible!” Michael squeaked out, fear constricting his throat. Lyn pressed her hands to her ears, just shaking her head.

“We have to go back…” I whispered, staring at Dahlia, who nodded when I said that.

“Go back where?” Lyn asked, giving me a skeptical look.

I hesitated before swallowing my fear. “The locker room, we have to go back.”

“Are you crazy!” Lyn shook her head in disbelief. “Remember what happened last time we went there? I fucking do, that’s for sure.”

“Yea’, is that really the best idea, Ally?” Michael added, his face pale with fear.

I nodded slowly, “Yes, I’m sure. We need to talk to Fiona, for real this time. I understand if you guys don’t want to go with me, I really do. I can go alone.”

“Don’t be an idiot,” snapped Lyn, flicking my forehead. I rubbed the spot as she crossed her arms. “Of course, I’ll go with you. Just know I think this is incredibly idiotic.”

I smiled at her, and she smiled back. I looked over at Michael, who gave me a heaving sigh. “I’m going too, obviously. I just get to complain the whole time. Also, I’m calling dibs on being the one who doesn’t get concussed this time.”

“Deal,” I laughed, reaching over to give him a hug.

I have to admit, this is a great relief. I really didn’t want to go into this alone, and it meant the world to me that they were willing to come with me, even with what happened last time. It was nice, this feeling. The feeling of no longer being alone. It was enough to make me tear up, but I quickly swiped at my eyes so they didn’t notice. Obviously I wasn’t sneaky enough, because Lyn silently reached down and took my hand into hers, rubbing her thumbs against my knuckles in comfort.

“Is that everything, then?” Dahlia asked, boredom lacing her words.

“For now, it is,” I smiled at her. “Thanks, really. You’ve been a great help tonight.”

If a ghost could blush, I’m pretty sure she just did. She twirled her hair around her finger, looking away from me. “You’re welcome, glad to be of service. Stay safe out there, Ally. Tell your friends the same thing.”

I watched as she disappeared from view. The air pressure changed back to normal, and Michael gasped beside me, but Lyn didn’t, basically confirming to me that she can’t sense anything that went on. That must be a lovely feeling. She did, however, look over where Dahlia had last been standing.

“Did she leave?”

“Yeah, she did.”

“Good. I felt like I was being watched.”

Huh, interesting. I made a mental note of that too. Actually, since I was thinking about it, I decided to bite the bullet. “Lyn?”

“Hm?”

“I was wondering something. You looked like there was something on your mind earlier before we got here. What were you thinking about?”

Michael looked curious as Lyn mulled over her answer. Finally, she just shrugged. “My dad’s last name is Cressman.”

“Your dad? Michael and I said at the same time. He grinned at me, and I smiled back.

Lyn nodded, as she starting to walk away from the tree. I followed with no choice, since our hands were still together, and Michael followed not wanting to be left behind. “Yeah, my dad. Hart is my mum’s last name,” a dark look crossed over her face for a second before settling back to neutral. “It’s probably just a coincidence though. It’s a common surname from Ontario, you know?”

A coincidence, huh? I glanced over my shoulder as we walked away, only to see Dahlia sitting up in the branches, watching us as we left. I wonder if that’s all it was.

#unnatural affairs #ua #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #dahlia cressman #loryn frasier #orginal work #orginal writing #original fiction #writing #ghosts #paranormal #murder mysteries #romance #sapphic lead #wlw romance #c word tw

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

Text

Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 15: Back To Work.

(Ally)

Though the holiday weekend had been short, it was really lovely to have gone back home for those few precious days. I should try to make a little more effort to go home. I missed my parents and Wallaby, which mom caught me trying to sneak him into the back of the car. She wouldn’t let me take him after all the effort I put into getting him into a disguise. It was too bad. However, mom did pack me a ton of food in Tupperware that I could keep in my mini freezer.

After that conversation with grandma went so horribly, I stayed in my room for the rest of the night. Eventually mom came up to check on me, letting me know that it was okay for me to not return. Maybe dad meant nothing by his words, but my grandma most certainly did. I think mom felt bad that there wasn’t anything she could do to make the situation feel better, so her way of doing so was giving me a ton of food and offering to drive me back without dad. I took her up on that offer, but the evening of leaving I gave my concession that dad could come along if he wanted to. He had to work, though, so it ended up being mom and I alone.

She pulled into an empty parking space that was only a short walk away from my residence. Mom turned the engine off before she looked over at me with a look of pride. I blinked in mild surprise, unsure of where this was coming from. I cocked my head questioningly, which made her chuckle.

“I’m really proud of you,” she said sweetly, smiling at me. “Maybe you don’t see it, but I can see how much you’ve grown already. I know how hard it is to hear those words from your grandmother…and your dad, but the look in your eye was strong. It was hurt but I know you bounced back from it quickly. I’m not sure what you’ve been getting up to while you were here, but it must be something good because your confidence is brighter than I’ve ever seen it.”

Tears swam in my eyes as I reached over to hug her. I sniffled loudly, causing us both to laugh. When I pulled back, there were tears in mom’s eyes as well. She handed me a tissue and we both wiped at our eyes and blew our noses.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to make it so emotional,” mom said wetly. “I just wanted to know that I love you regardless. I never cared about you seeing spirits, as long as you don’t get hurt.”

Hearing those words lit a fire in my chest. Mom never outwardly said anything about my knack, except that she was very overly cautious with me at times. Her saying this to me meant more than anything in the entire world.

“Thank you,” I said softly, wishing I could say more. My inner turmoil was too much for me to comprehend at the moment. I squeezed her hand tightly, hoping the action would help get across my intense feelings.

She smiled at me again, her eyes shining with love. “Call me about anything, okay, Alexandra?”

“I will,” I promised.

I got out of the car after that, taking my bag of food alongside my travel bag. I waved to mom as she pulled away, and she waved back, sending me air kisses as she did. I caught them and held to my chest.

Just before she left, however, she rolled her window down. I walked over in confusion to see what she wanted, and she smiled cheekily at me. “Make sure you tell that girl how you feel soon, okay?”

I blushed as I stammered out my objections, but mom was already driving away laughing. Was there no one on this planet who wouldn’t tease me about it? Shaking my head in enjoyment, I walked back to my residence with a goofy smile on my face.

Sarah wasted no time giving me a huge hug and telling me about her weekend. Apparently, her family went skiing for Thanksgiving weekend. I listened with rapt attention, never been skiing myself. It sounded dangerously like something I would never enjoy as Sarah explained how her younger brother nearly careened off the edge of the mountain. I mentally made a note to myself never to go skiing with Sarah, who was cackling as she told me about her brother’s near-death experience. Actually, I decided to never do anything with her that could involve me dying.

After that, she made me tell her about my weekend. I did with some reluctance, but as I got more into it, I found myself enjoying it. I left out the bad stuff, and I was in tears with laughter as I explained how I dressed up the dog to sneak him over. Sarah demanded to see pictures, which I showed her immediately. We both laughed so hard that we couldn’t breathe over the pictures of Wallaby wearing sunglasses and a fedora.

We headed to bed sometime later in the night. But before I attempted to get some sleep tonight, I checked my phone for any notifications. I had a few from Michael, Mags, and even dad. For whatever reason, there was an unsettling feeling in my stomach as I noticed there was nothing from Lyn. Was I getting too overprotective? I just couldn’t get that look of anxiety she had on her face out of my mind. Was it even any of my business? Sure, we were friends, and I most definitely had a thing for her, but did that I mean I could pry into her private life?

Unfortunately, there were no answers to these questions. I sent a good night text to her before putting my phone face down for the night. Hopefully I would see her tomorrow.

XXX

“…which is why Medea is such an interesting tale,” finished Professor Kinkly. I found myself being elbowed awake by Michael, who was wearing a look of amusement on his face. I didn’t even realize that I had dozed off.

“Someone’s sleepy,” he joked as he put his notebooks back in his bag.

“I shouldn’t have slept in so much this weekend,” I amended. “It threw off my whole schedule.”

Michael laughed with a shake of his head. We waved to the prof as we left the classroom, who barely gave as a glance as we did. I was glad this class was easy, because I was mostly over it at this point. The material, which should be interesting, was made incredibly droll by this man. I couldn’t wait until this course was over with.

We walked out the classroom. The air was biting today, as it cut through our jackets. I pulled my jacket as close as possible, while Michael snorted in disbelief.

“You’re cold, yet you refuse to wear pants,” he said solemnly. “I admire the dedication to your style.”

“I hate wearing them,” I said. “I don’t mind pajama pants, but regular ones? Yuck.”

We both laughed as walked into the library. I bought myself a tea while Michael got a coffee. We sat down at one of the tables, letting the drinks warm us.

“I’m going to speak with her tonight,” I said quietly, making sure no one overheard us.

Michael nodded slowly, his eyes taking in the surrounding crowd. “I figured.”

“Has she spoken to you since the other night?”

“Nah, nothing,” Michael looked thoughtful. “I don’t think she will again, if I’m being honest. I think she talked to me so you would go talk to her. Which, thinking about it now, is extremely concerning. Why are they so aware of you?”

I pursed my lips. “I’m not really sure. Jamieson didn’t know anything about me. Dahlia didn’t know me either, but she could tell right away that I could sense her. Maybe she told Amelia about me? Dahlia told me she could leave the area, but she had to return. I have a sneaking suspicion that she’s been around, spreading my name.”

“Huh, I don’t know anything about her, but do you think she would do something like that?”

“It’s possible,” I hummed. “She knows so much but refuses to tell me everything. I suspect that she might even know who is behind the string of murders.”

Michael’s jaw fell open in shock. “Are you for real? And she won’t tell you who did it? Jeez, what a huge jerk.” He rubbed his face anxiously.

“Yeah, it’s very frustrating,” I grumbled, crossing my arms. “It’s like she’s testing me, but I don’t actually know what the test is. Doesn’t she want me to find the person who killed her and the others?”

“I guess being dead for a long time creates a lot of boredom,” said Michael. He slumped against the table, staring at nothing. We stayed quiet for a bit longer, until he had to head to his next class. I bade him a goodbye as I pulled out my notes from the case.

It was frustrating having so many pieces, but I couldn’t see the full picture quite yet. Maybe once I spoke to Amelia Turner something else would click, but right now it felt like I only had the frame of this puzzle.

Plus, I hadn’t mentioned it yet, but this occurred to me the other night after our chat we needed to go back to the locker room. Or at least, I had to. I needed to talk to Fiona, like have an actual conversation with her. Maybe even try and break through to who I assumed to be her brother. I saw the humanity in those eyes last time. Perhaps if I went again, I could get to him. I need to broach the topic with Lyn and Michael first, because I was scared to go alone, but I would if I had to. It felt like if I was going to be missing something important if I didn’t.

Oh, and I needed to talk to Jackie, the woman who got attacked. Maybe she knew nothing, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask. I saw her around on campus, I just haven’t had the opportunity to speak with her yet. I groaned as I wrote that down as well. There was so much to do, and I had a really bad gut feeling that I was slowly running out of time.

Annoyed with myself mostly, I gathered all my things up and tossed them back into my backpack. I was leaving the café when I happened to notice a familiar strawberry blonde standing at the water fountain, filling her water bottle. I glanced at my phone to check the time, and I had enough time to go over for a quick chat before I needed to head to my Sociology class.

“Hey, Lyn!” I chirped.

Lyn looked over her shoulder, her eyes lighting up in recognition. “Hey,” she said softly, turning back to the fountain for a minute. After her water bottle was filled, she screwed the lid on tightly before turning around fully.

“How are you?” I asked tentatively.

Her eyes searched my face before she settled with a shrug. I could see how worn out she looked, with dark circles under her eyes. While I was getting used to seeing her looking emotionally exhausted, I wasn’t used to this style of dress. I would say Lyn dresses for comfort most days, but today she was wearing skinny jeans with no distress, a button up boyfriend shirt that actually had the buttons done up, and even her ponytail seemed tighter. It was her normal look but…more put together?

“…Did you want to talk about it…?”

Lyn’s lip quirked slightly before she shook her head. “Nope, not really. How was your weekend?” she asked as she started walking. I followed after her.

“It was good, except for my grandma giving me grief again,” I said mildly.

“Grief?” Lyn questioned, eyes flickering to me for a fraction of a second before looking forward again. “What for?”

“Oh, the usual reasons. That I’m some unnatural freak of nature because of my special ability. She used to spray me with water.”

“That’s fucking stupid,” Lyn muttered darkly.

“Yeah, kinda,” I shrugged. “Okay, I shared. Now you have to.”

Lyn snorted, shaking her head. “I never agreed to that. Besides, it’s nothing.”

“Ah, I see,” I nodded. “Nothing. So, the exhausted look and new look have nothing to do with your weekend home?”

Something akin to anger flashed across Lyn’s face before she mechanically put on a smile. “Maybe it does. Let’s just say that my weekend roughly went as well as I thought it would. At least Olivia and I managed to get through it without killing each other.”

“You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” I offered.

Lyn said nothing for a few minutes as she looked far off. We walked towards her class building and once we got there, she kicked her foot against the concrete. God, she wasn’t even wearing those tattered Converse of hers.

“I’m fine. I’m just tired and processing some things,” she said quietly, her voice tight with emotion. “Honestly, even if I wanted to talk about things, I don’t even know where to start. Let’s just drop it for now, please?”

I nodded and a look of great relief crossed over her face. “Thanks, Ally,” she said, sounding a little more like herself.

“Just take care of yourself, okay?” I asked, reaching for her hand. “For me, please?”

Our hands curled around each other loosely. Lyn looked down at our hands, her face not showing anything, but there was a war playing out in her eyes. Something that I finally began to understand about Lyn was this: she was normally happy, but she didn’t let the negative emotions show often, instead opting to mask her feelings behind fake smiles and a bubbly tone. But there was only so much one person could take before they finally exploded. This next part was assumption, but I suspected that Lyn was nearing her breaking point, that her façade was cracking under the immense pressure she puts on herself. Whatever happened at home was pushing her to the limits of how much pain she was willing to take. I think I only understood the surface of how bad her home life was.

Finally, she nodded. Her face was still devoid of emotion, but there was a little twinkle in her eye. “I’ll try my best, you know?” she said, finally looking at me properly.

I could lose myself in those electric blue eyes, full of so much life and emotion normally. While it broke my heart to see her like this, I had a feeling that pushing her wasn’t the best move. I recalled how tightly she grasped my hand at the hospital when Olivia started pushing, how angry she got.

“As long as you try,” I whispered, my heart thudding rapidly against my ribs. Whether from my infatuation or the intensity of her stare, I was unsure. My eyes flickered to her lips.

Lyn’s eyes never once left mine before she finally let go of my hand. “I have to get to class,” she said quietly. I could see her mentally putting up her wall again, the light in her eye getting dimmer.

“Me too,” I replied. She looked like she was going to reach up but stopped herself. She settled for awkwardly waving before heading inside. I stood there for a couple of minutes before turning on my heel, heading to my class.

XXX

The wind was harsh tonight. I was wearing a sweater underneath my coat, and it was barely helping. I even had the hat Lyn gave me on, but my ears felt the biting cold. I walked across campus, heading towards Harper.

The amount of parties had died down some. There was barely anyone on campus right now, most of them either in their rooms or the library. Honestly, that was good for me. The less people around the better.

Suddenly I felt an intense pressure coming over me. The wind had stopped but the cold was still there. I looked around in confusion before sighing.

“Dahlia, is that you?”

Said ghost appeared beside me, looking rather interested in what I was doing. I was surprised to see her this far away from the tree.

“It’s been some time since we last spoke, Ally. I was curious as to what you were up to,” said Dahlia, clasping her hands behind her back as she walked beside me.

“I’m going over to talk to Amelia Turner,” I explained.

“Ah, intriguing. I do wonder what you are going to learn from her that you don’t already know,” Dahlia mused.

I said nothing in return, instead focusing on my mission. She wasn’t necessarily wrong in her judgement, but I didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing that. I walked up to the doors, not surprised that they were locked. I chewed my upper lip as I attempted to work on the lock with a broken hair pin. They always made this look so easy on TV!

When I heard it click open, I suppressed an excited squeal. Good thing I did, because Dahlia drifted through the open door, where it was obvious that she was the one who unlocked it from the inside. I gave her a thankful nod, which she responded with a smirk. Together, we headed in.

The lights didn’t turn on automatically here like they do at the Athletic Centre. I pulled out an old school flashlight and turned it on. I could have easily used my phone, but I wanted it to available if I needed to take photos or make a call for help. It wasn’t that late, so Michael or Lyn hopefully would still be up.

I headed for classroom 223, the one Michael told me about. There she was, sitting at one of the desks looking forlorn. I slowly walked down to where she was, tapping the desk to get her attention.

“Hey, can I sit with you?” I asked, indicating the desk next to her.

Amelia looked a little surprised, tilting her head to the side. “Why are you even asking? I can’t stop you, even if I wanted to.”

“It’s only polite,” I said with a shrug.

Looking skeptical, she nodded. I sat down next to her, while Dahlia made herself at home in the seat behind us. She had a familiar look of determination in her eye, but I couldn’t quite place where I knew it from. Brushing that aside for now, I focused on Amelia. She was eyeing with me with suspicion, which I thought was curious. She was the one who wanted to talk to me, wasn’t she?

“I’m Ally,” I started with. “You’ve been talking to my friend, Mike, quite a bit, haven’t you?” I was careful to not use his full name.

“Only twice,” she clarified.

“Only twice,” I confirmed with a nod. “I wanted to ask you some questions, if that’s okay with you. I’m trying to solve all these murders on campus, and I have a feeling that you’re one of the victims from this unfortunate tragedy.”

Tears welled up in Amelia’s eyes as she nodded. “I am. I was in this very room when he came and killed me. I should have known something up when he invited me to speak with him so often.”

I reached over to her desk, placing my hand next to hers. “Amelia don’t blame yourself for the actions of the person who killed you. They’re a sick individual who hurt so many others. How could you have known?”

“He always was nice to me, making me feel special,” she said in quiet horror.

I took out my notebook, so I could quickly jot down the use of the male pronoun. The killer was male. It was a small thing, but in a case with very few leads, it was a big help.

“Would you mind showing me how it happened, Amelia?” I asked gently. I didn’t want to push her to tell me what happened if she didn’t want to. But I wanted to see it for myself, to see if I could pick up on anything. Unfortunately for me, seeing the death meant experiencing it through the lens of those who died, just like with Jamieson in the bookstore. I was fully prepared for it this time, however.

Amelia wrapped her arms around herself protectively. “It’s very gruesome, Ally. I’m not sure you should see it.”

I smiled encouragingly at her, despite my own nervousness pounding through my veins. “I’ll be okay. I want to help, honestly. Nothing you do will actually hurt me, okay?”

Finally, Amelia nodded. She reached over, placing her hand on my forehead. Although I was prepared for it, it was still shocking. I felt her confusion change into fear, fear into absolute panic. I felt the impact of my head smashing into the desk, momentarily dazing me. I felt the terror grip at my heart and lungs as I tried to get away from my attacker. I sobbed in terror as the knife slashed my wrists wide open. I hit the floor, blood pooling all around me. No one ever heard my screams. He stood over my, watching as the life drained out of my body without a single drop of emotion on his face. He looked familiar to me, but I couldn’t quite place the face right now. He bent down, cupping my face with his face, filling me with dread one last time before I died.

“Thank you for keeping me alive, darling.”

Those sickening words were the last thing I heard as everything turned to black.

Amelia withdrew her hand, and I gasped loudly as I slumped against my desk for support. My whole body was shaking, and I felt sick to my stomach. I pressed my hands against my eyes, not caring how wet they were. I needed to focus on my breathing. My wrists throbbed in agony, as if they were responding to how viciously they were cut. What a horrible way to go.

“Are you okay? I told you it was awful,” said Amelia sorrowfully.

I nodded, even though I felt far from okay. I took several huge gulps of air, sitting up straight. I adjusted my glasses, trying to focus on the fact that I was alive and not currently lying on the floor of the back room.

“She’s a lot stronger than she looks,” said Dahlia from behind. “She just needs a minute to gather herself.”

“T-t-that was so horrible,” I said through chattering teeth. “I-I-I’m so sorry y-you went through th-that, Amelia.”

Amelia nodded, her eyes mournful. “Do you really think you’ll be able to stop him from killing again?”

I grabbed a hold of Lyn’s hat, drawing a small sense of comfort from it. “I-I’m trying my best to make s-s-sure that it doesn’t happen again. I can’t m-make that promise, but I’ll be damned if I d-d-don’t give it m-my best shot.”

Amelia looked at me with a strange mix of wonderment and disbelief. Slowly, she nodded, looking towards the whiteboard again. She said nothing more, staring at something that the rest of us couldn’t see. I got up from my seat and thanked her for showing me what she did. On shaky legs, I walked towards the back door that led to the room where she was murdered. The door wasn’t locked when I tested the handle, and I numbly walked into the room.

It was just a storage room. There was nothing special in here that would ever suggest that someone was brutally murdered in here just over 15 years ago. I took it all in, snapping some photos in the process. There was nothing left for me to see here, so I closed the door behind with a firm tug.

I managed to make it outside before I threw up in the bush. I hacked and coughed, trying to get the disgusting taste of bile out of my mouth. Dahlia watched this all with mild curiosity, saying nothing as she twirled her hair around her finger.

“If you have something to say, say it,” I spat out, rubbing the back of my hand against my mouth.

Dahlia stopped mid-twirl, raising an eyebrow. “Someone is feeling a little testy.”

I whirled on her, my temper flaring. “Maybe because you seemingly know who did all these horrible things but won’t fucking tell me who it is! That was such a horrible way to die, and for the fact of the matter, so was Jamieson’s! Yet here you are, not telling me a damn thing!”

Mild irritation crossed over her delicate features. “Ally, I already told there was a reason why I couldn’t tell you everything. If you continue to behave this way, I won’t help you anymore. If you must know, the man who took all these poor lives is still on campus,” she snapped at me. “But that’s all I can speak on. Otherwise, something terrible will happen to me.”

Something terrible? I felt myself calming down a little. The look she had was annoyed, but I could see a tiny amount of fear in her eyes. Maybe she was telling the truth, there was something that was keeping her from telling me everything.

“Okay,” I dropped my shoulders. I was tired and feeling vulnerable. I didn’t want to fight, so I let it go.

Dahlia took me in for a second before she huffed out, “Good.”

I don’t know what it was about her tonight, but she was really reminding me of someone I knew. It was a strange feeling. Deciding that was a puzzle for another day, I shook my head and ran my hands through my hair, hating how sticky it felt despite the biting cold of the night.

I said goodnight to Dahlia, before heading to my room for the night. My phone told me it was after 11, which meant I was there for a few hours. I guess time flies by when you’re being murdered.

At least I learned two things tonight. First, the murderer was a man. Second, he was still here on campus. That second one really filled me with dread and fear. I didn’t know the identity of the killer yet, but I was more determined than ever to figure it out. Not for my own safety, but the safety of everyone at this school.

#unnatural affairs #ua #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #dahlia cressman #amelia turner #ghosts #murder mysteries #paranormal #romance #wlw romance #sapphic lead #tw blood mention #original story #original fiction #writing

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

Text

Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 22: I’ve Got You

(Ally + Lyn + Michael)

Michael.

Ally always said that if a ghost ever knew what your true name was, it was a really bad thing. That’s why she insisted if we have to call each other during the banishment, that she was going to call me ‘Mike,’ a name I hated. However, I respected her caution when it came to these things and agreed to the horrible nickname.

Just now, when Kinkly bellowed our names, I felt my body seize up. My knees hit the floor with a painful thump. But before I laid down, my whole body started to convulse. I didn’t understand what was going on and it freaked me out. This whole experience has been one freaky thing after another, but I think this takes the cake.

Then, I noticed it. The amulets were glowing. Although it seemed like forever ago that she did it for us, but it must have been Katherine’s protection. With great effort, I turned my head to look over at her. The vein in her head was bulging out as I saw her mouth moving. Her nose was bleeding and when she caught me looking, she gave me a weak smirk.

“I told you it would protect you,” she said. “He’s a lot stronger than I thought though, so I need to stay focused.” She immediately when back to saying the spell words again.

I looked over at the other two to see how they were faring. Lyn’s whole body shook with effort as she forced herself to her feet. I’m not gonna lie, she looked absolutely terrifying right now. She was covered in grime and blood and the silver sword was equally as filthy. She reminded me of Kill Bill, but even bloodier. Ally looked exhausted but determined to finish this through. The daggers she was glaring at Kinkly were fierce. She also stood up, much to the killer’s surprise.

“How are you…ah.” His eyes narrowed when he noticed our protective necklaces. “So, you must be the cause of all this, then. I best get rid of you first, you stupid whore.”

My eyes widened as I shouted at Katherine to get away. Kinkly raised a lazy hand and the ground tore open beneath her. Katherine shrieked as she tried to get away from the skeletal hands that were grabbing at her. Ally tried to take a step forward, but her own leg got wrapped up in a rope of intestines. She screamed and stabbed at them with her knife, but it wasn’t making much of a difference as the tissues continued to regrow.

Lyn and I struggled against the gory restraints that held us in place. Lyn wildly hacked away with the sword, pieces of flesh and bones flying around. Finally, she got one of her legs free and tore the other one out with sheer power. Kinkly was laughing as he watched our struggle, which angered me. When Lyn grabbed me by the armpit, I cut away from my own prison as she pulled me out. But Kinkly had no intention of making this easy for us, as he made the ground open up like a mouth under our feet as well. I yelled as I felt something bite down on my legs.

“As much as I’m enjoying myself,” he said bored, “it’s time for you all to die.”

I wasn’t ready to die. I struggled and cried as I tried to get away from the floor that was eating me. I could hear the others crying and shouting as well. I felt guilty suddenly. My parents wouldn’t ever know what happened to their son. That was such a horrible thought. And Katherine, it’s my fault she’s even here. It’s my fault that she’s going to die. I shouldn’t have dragged her into this mess.

The floor shook violently suddenly. I was confused when I was shot out of the floor like a cannon. I screamed as I flew through the air and landed on one of the bone trees. My sudden weight and force caused the tree to collapse. I crashed to the floor with a sickening crunch. I cried out when I sat up, my arm broken. Lyn crashed beside me, the air leaving her lungs with an oomph! I didn’t see where the other two ended up.

“Michael,” Lyn gasped when she sat up. “Are you okay?”

I shook my head. “My arm…” I felt sick even thinking about, let alone look at it.

“Shit.” She crawled over to me. I had to try very hard to not recoil at the sight or stench of her. “Let me see it.”

She gently touched my arm, sending shockwaves of pain through my body. I winced with a moan as she grimly nodded. “It’s broken, but it doesn’t feel like a bad break. I’m not an expert though. Though,” she giggled a little hysterically, “we might not even be alive for much longer for it to even matter.”

The situation was not funny at all, but I felt my own laughter bubble to the surface. I giggled madly as I nodded, the tears rolling down my face. Lyn giggled one more time before she sobered up. She pulled me into a tight hug, her body shaking. I gave her a one arm hug back.

“You should stay here,” she mumbled into my ear. “Look for a way out of here.”

“I won’t leave you guys alone,” I said back. “I’m seeing this through to the end.”

Lyn pulled back with a lobsided smirk, only her eyes betraying her true fear. “Fine. Just be careful.”

I nodded determinedly.

She got to her feet with difficulty, her face pinched with pain. She helped me up and when we looked over to where the others were, something in my chest soared.

They had help.

XXX

Ally.

When the floor had spat us out like a food it didn’t like, I was really confused. Grateful, but confused. When we hit the floor several feet away, I heard Kinkly growl in frustration. I sat up, blinking out my stunned state.

“Oh my God…” I heard Katherine gasp beside me.

I reached around until I found my glasses. I shoved them back on my face quickly and an involuntary gasp burst through my lips. Standing in front of us was Dahlia, but she wasn’t alone.

I could see the slicked back greaser hair of David. Jamieson’s floppy hair was recognizable from behind. Amelia stood next to Dahlia, her twisted braid tossed over her shoulder. Fiona and Fredrik stood side by side. Dahlia looked over her shoulder and smiled at me.

“Hello, darling. Sorry that we didn’t get here earlier.”

Tears sprung to my eyes. “I- you’re okay! I thought something happened to you!”

Dahlia nodded. “Something did. Kinkly figured out I had been helping you out and he dragged me here. But these two lovely people,” she waved her hand at the Moore siblings, “found me and freed me from the prison I was trapped in. I gathered the rest of them because I felt like it was time for them to get their payback.”

She bent down and cupped my face in her hands. “I’m not going to let him hurt you anymore, Ally. You’ve done a great job, let us handle the rest.”

I nodded and sat back. My whole body was exhausted. All I wanted to do was lie down, close my eyes, and not wake up for a very long time. I watched as all the ghosts approached Kinkly, different levels of hatred radiating off them.

Kinkly looked furious as they came into his view. He growled at them, “Why are you all here? I wouldn’t be here if I were all of you. You know what I can do to you all!”

“We’re very aware, Robert,” said Amelia quietly. “You’ve had too much power over us for years now. But one brave young woman showed us differently. She showed us that you can do amazing things, even if you are afraid.”

“She came back to talk to me even after how I treated her, and she made an emotional connection with me,” Jamieson sneered at Kinkly. “Ally’s courage is stronger than your manipulation.”

Fiona grasped Fredrik’s hand tightly. “Ally came back to see me even after you made Freddy attack her. She came back after you forced me to attack her. Ally is the reason why we’re able to come back here now and tell you to fuck off.”

Kinkly laughed. “You are all so dramatic! I should have figured out a way to kill your souls so I wouldn’t have to listen to this dribble.”

Dahlia stepped forward, her mouth twisted into a vicious grin. “Robert, you may have destroyed their bodies, but you never going to be able to break their spirits. These people…they are so amazing. I’m lucky to have known them this long. My life may have become boring since my death, but the past 3 months has been pretty interesting.”

Tears were running hot down my face. I didn’t realize the impact I had on all these people, these departed souls. The ground rumbled as the walls shifted around us. Kinkly was transforming into his monstrous form. His teeth grew into these massive fangs. His fingernails grew into giant claws. I realized with dread that the monster that Fredrik was is what Kinkly was turning into, only much larger and more dangerous.

Lyn and Michael ran over to us. I felt a tingling in my body when I saw the angle of Michael’s arm. I shifted to my knees and hugged the two of them. Lyn’s eyes flickered over before she reached over, dragging Katherine into the hug. She made a strange noise in the back of her throat when she did, but she didn’t pull away from the embrace.

“Are you okay?” Lyn asked, her grimy hand hovering over my face.

I took it anyway, my own hands pretty gross themselves. “I think so. Are you two okay?”

“Michael’s arm is broken,” Lyn’s eyes flickered around as she took everything in, looking panicked. “I’m pretty sure I’m okay. How about you?” she asked, her gaze falling on Katherine.

Katherine looked even more exhausted than me. There were dark circles under her eyes and there was a trail of blood from her nose all the way down to her chin. Sweaty hair was plastered on her forehead. At some point, her hearing aid was lost. She nodded slowly. “Just magical backlash,” she said, her voice a bit louder than usual.

Lyn nodded as she looked over at the ghosts who were fighting Kinkly. Her brows were furrowed as a flurry of emotions rushed over her face. “Are they going to be okay?”

“I hope so,” I said softly. “They’re doing this because of me.”

“How do we get out of here?” Michael asked, his voice strained with pain.

“I-I don’t know.”

We all jumped when we heard Kinkly bellow out in rage. The giant shadow monster smashed his hand into David’s chest, tossing the ghost across the world. Amelia shrieked as she was being crushed by his other hand. It looked like they were losing, and panic shot through me like an electric shock. I went to stand but my legs refused to listen to me.

“They need help!” I cried. Why wouldn’t my body listen to me?

“What can we do?” Michael asked, looking around.

Lyn looked between us. I could tell she was thinking of something because her expression turned stony. I squeezed her hand to draw her attention, and when she looked at me, I saw the determination in her eyes.

“What are you thinking?” I asked.

“Something really fucking stupid,” she smirked at me. “You guys are really wearing off on me, sheesh.”

“Lyn-”

She kissed my forehead before pushing herself to her feet. I didn’t notice that she had grabbed the sword again. I reached for her arm when I realized what she was about to do. She stepped back, her eyes shining wetly. She shook her head at me and pulled the amulet off. She ran over to where the ghosts were and said something to Dahlia. Kinkly smashed his arm into Fredrik, causing the young boy to fall to the ground. Dahlia glanced at me before nodding at Lyn. She disappeared and I saw Lyn curl into herself briefly before standing tall.

XXX

Lyn.

It was a weird feeling.

I was aware of what was happening, but the actions weren’t my own. It was like I was watching a movie or something.

Kinkly was standing in front of me. I could feel my own fear and Dahlia’s as we faced the beast. The sword was held high as I felt energy coursing off my arms onto the blade. I raced over and ducked under his swinging arm, slicing a huge gash into his leg. Kinkly howled in pain as he kicked out. I danced out of the way and swung upwards, cutting his hand open. Blood sprayed out, covering me and the floor.

“You stupid child. You didn’t need to get involved,” he said to me, his eyes glowing like lamp lights.

My lips quirked upwards. “I didn’t, you’re right. But I couldn’t stand by and let you do this any longer, Robert.” The voice was mine, but the words weren’t.

I scrambled to the left when Kinkly launched himself forward, trying to take a chunk out of me with his teeth. I could hear Ally and Michael screaming at me, and I knew I needed to get into the zone. I focused on the fight, on keeping myself alive. The sounds disappeared all around me as I ducked under Kinkly’s legs and slashed his belly downwards. Blood splashed all over me, making my grip on the sword slippery.

I stumbled back when a pair of hands steadied me. I glanced back and Dahlia recognized this one as David. I nodded in thanks as he smiled at me. Half his face was missing, and his brains were exposed. I felt sick looking at him, but I had to focus.

Kinkly pressed a hand against the wound on his stomach. I don’t know what the weird glowing energy was that Dahlia was exuding on the sword, but it seemed to be hurting him badly. Her voice whispered in my head, “Lyn, darling. He’s starting to weaken. As soon as he is weak enough, his hold on this place will go away and you’ll be able to escape. Make sure you take the chance as soon as it presents itself, okay?”

Okay.

The other ghosts came to stand next to me. They put their hands on my back and I felt the energy filling me up. The exhaustion I felt before is now gone, my muscles twitching. I ran forward and yelled loudly as Kinkly’s claws brushed by my face. I ignored the pain and slashed the sword through his leg. He collapsed on his right side as his bottom leg fell to the floor with a wet plop. Kinkly roared as he tried to catch himself. I jabbed the sword into his gut and tore it upwards. Dahlia was viciously attacking him while he was weakened.

Suddenly the floor opened up again, but this time the hands grabbed at Kinkly. He screamed as he realized what was happening. “NO, NO! I CAN’T GO BACK THERE. STOP!!”

I stepped away, my jaw opened in horror from what I was seeing. Dahlia’s confusion was mixing in with my fear. Then the other ghosts slowly approached him, helping the hands drag him down into the floor. His screaming became more frantic and panicked as he got dragged down. Dahlia separated from my body, causing me to stumble forward in sudden exhaustion.

“You need to get away from here, now!” I was taken aback by how similar she looked to my dad. She shook me to get my attention and then shoved me towards the others. “Quickly, Lyndsey!”

I felt my legs moving on their own as I ran over to where they were. I wasn’t sure if it was fear or adrenaline that was driving me, but whatever it was, I felt like I needed more of it. My legs felt like concreate blocks were glued to my feet.

“Dahlia says we need to get out of here!” I explained as I hoisted Ally to her feet.

“Lyn, Jesus, are you okay?!” She gripped my arms tightly.

The whole place shook ferociously, causing us all to stumble around. “We don’t have time to talk!” I grabbed her hand, looking for an exit. There was another big shake, pieces of bones falling to the ground. Michael pointed with his good arm and shouted.

“It’s over there!”

Katherine led the charge as we raced to the opening. It looked like a tear in reality or something. It reminded me of something you would see superhero movie or something like that. I spared a backwards look to see that Kinkly’s head was the only thing remaining. He was screaming loudly as blood gurgled out of his mouth. There was a horrible sound of bones cracking in multiple places.

Quickly we all ran through the strange opening. A light blinded me as we passed through. I could hear the sounds of screaming all around us, could hear the sounds of people dying. Hands were grabbing at us, trying to drag us back. Katherine stabbed a hand that had grabbed a hold of Michael’s non-broken arm, making it very hard for him to get away. But just as quickly as the torture started, it ended.

The blistering cold air hit my face, and I fell to my knees in blissful relief.

XXX

Ally.

I fell face first in the snow.

My chest was heaving from everything. We were out, and we were alive. I looked up at Lyn, who was covered in so much blood that it was hard to tell what was her blood and what wasn’t. I looked over at Michael, who was kneeling in the snow, babying his arm. He caught my eye and give me a tiny thumbs up. Katherine looked tired but mostly unharmed. She pushed her hair out of her face and fell back into a pile of snow.

“I told you it was going to be dangerous,” she muttered darkly.

I laughed, though it sounded a little manic to my ears. “Yeah, I guess you did.”

Lyn fell back to lay beside me. She ran a bloody hand through her bloody hair. “And good fucking thing I told you to wear pants, eh?”

“Whatever,” I chuckled. There was pieces of flesh and bone shard on my pants, and blood splatters.

Michael sat down and dropped his head into his knees. “I can’t believe that happened. I can’t believe we survived.”

“Don’t fucking mess with the Spook Searchers!” Lyn lifted her hand in the air.

I nodded weakly. My whole body felt like I got ran over by a truck or something worse. I just wanted to curl up and die. All that was supposed to happen tonight was getting rid of Fredrik, but instead we got rid of Kinkly. It was just unthinkable, but it happened.

“You guys need to see a doctor,” said Katherine tiredly.

“No kidding,” said Lyn sarcastically.

Katherine rolled her eyes. “Let me finish, asshole. But there’s no way you can explain all this. We’ll have to get cleaned up first.”

I turned so I was facing her. “Where do you suggest we do that?” Katherine shrugged.

There was a sucking sound that drew my attention. I tilted my head back and saw all the others walking though the same tear that we came from. They smiled when they saw me. I used Lyn to pull myself up so I could face them.

Dahlia knelt in front of her, her eyes shining with pride. She wrapped her arms around me, even though she was no longer physical. “You figured it out, Ally. You did such a wonderful job.”

I nodded, feeling a little numb. “Thank you,” I mumbled out, my words feeling clunky off my lips.

Jamieson ran a hand through my hair. Amelia gave me a hug as well. Fiona and Fredrik both kissed my cheeks. David tipped his head at me.

“What happens to you guys?” I asked, my face warm from all the attention.

“We can finally rest,” said Amelia, her eyes shining with unshed tears.

“That’s good,” I bowed my head into my chest. “I’m so happy for you guys.”

I lifted it slightly to watch them all pass through a different opening. It looked lighter, happier. I waved to them as they all walked into it, finally able to leave this place that had anchored them here for so long. I felt my eyes sting as tears welled up in them, but they never fell. I felt Lyn take my hand into hers, and Michael squeezed my shoulder.

Dahlia watched them leave, her expression hard to read. Once the opening had closed, she turned back to me and smiled. I smiled back, even though I could feel my heartbeat stuttering a little. An anxiety attack was building as things started flashing through my mind.

“Good job, darling. You deserve a rest.”

“I know,” I croaked. “What happened to him? To Kinkly?”

Dahlia’s expression got dark as she glanced away. When she looked back at me, she looked thoughtful. “Robert is gone, forever. What he said to you, about killing the others so he could live. That is something dark, something that no one should ever work with. The deal he struck was that he would feed the demon that he sold his soul too, otherwise his soul would be taken. He was going to kill just before exams, but you caught him in time.”

I raked my free hand through my hair. It was a lot to take in but at least it was over. I took a shuddering breath and nodded. “Okay. Thank you, Dahlia. I-I just need to rest now.”

“Take all the rest you need,” she smiled at me. “I’m sure we’ll talk again.”

She disappeared from view, but I knew she wasn’t too far. I took in my friends and felt grateful that we were all mostly okay. Now, to find a shower.

XXX

I was getting really used to the smell of the hospital.

We sat in the waiting room as Michael got his arm casted. Turns out I sprained both my ankles when I was trying to get away from the gore trap, so I had ACE wraps on them both. Lyn was mostly fine, just needed her hands wrapped and a bandage for her face. The nurse ensured it was shallow enough that it wasn’t going to scar, which made her sag in relief. Katherine sat with us too, even though we said she could go home if she wanted to. She had a bandage wrapped around her fingers and hands, but otherwise she was fine.

Lyn had brought me down before my anxiety got out of control. I was glad she did because I didn’t want to spend a night here. When they asked us what happened, Lyn said that we got into a car accident. Except there was no car we could use as proof. They didn’t ask to see the vehicle though.

I leaned my head on Lyn’s arm, and she trailed her fingers down my arm comfortably. The hum of the overhead lights was making me feel drowsy.

“If you told me this was how this term was gonna end, I would have thought you were pulling my chain,” said Lyn suddenly, her voice cutting through the silence. I glanced up at her, curious.

“But, in some super fucked way, I…it was good for me.” She paused, her look far away. “It really made me realize some stuff about myself. I’m glad that I met you and Michael. It was something that helped me grow as a person.”

I nodded, putting my hand on top of hers. “I’m glad I met you two too. I was so worried that it was going to be like high school all over again, and that you guys would just think I was the freaky girl. You really got me to open up and I’m glad that I’m learning to be okay with myself.”

Lyn gave me a lopsided smile, avoided the injured side. She bent down and kissed me deeply. I kissed back and cupped her cheek. I ran my thumb over her cheek as I pulled away. I was about to kiss her again when I heard Katherine snort beside us. My cheeks turned red as I sunk back down in my chair and Lyn’s ears turned bright red as she looked away embarrassedly.

“Sorry,” she said sheepishly, her face flushed as well. “I just…never mind.”

The three of us sat in awkward silence.

After a few agonizing minutes, I cleared my throat and turned in my chair slightly, so I was facing Katherine. She glanced up from her phone to show me she was listening.

“So, I guess you’re kinda like an honourary member of the team now,” I said with a grin. “Unless you want to be a full-time member. But there’s a bunch of paperwork to fill out.” I shot Lyn a look when she snorted loudly.

Katherine stared at me with wide eyes before she shook her in disbelief. “No offence, Ally, but tonight sucked,” she laughed. She stopped and looked thoughtful, tucking a strand a hair behind her ear. “Though…you guys are kind of fun to hang around. I’ll think about it,” she said with a small smile.

“Here I am!” said Michael cheerfully as the nurse walked out with him. He grinned as he held up his casted arm, the plaster a cheerful blue colour. “They said the colours were for the kids, but I ain’t basic.”

The nurse glanced at all of us with concern. “I really do think you should all stay overnight for observation if you got into a car accident.”

I looked down at my busted ankles, looked at Lyn’s and Katherine’s hands, and Michael’s arm. I smiled up at the nurse with the slightest shake of my head. “I know we look rough, but I think we’ll be okay. Thank you, though.”

The nurse looked like she didn’t agree with that, but she didn’t argue. Lyn pushed my wheelchair out to the front door and helped me get into the back of Talia’s car, who graciously drove us here. I squeezed in the back with Lyn and Michael. Katherine slipped into the front seat next to her mom and she drove us back to our dorms.

It was so dark when we got back onto campus. Katherine got out of the car and gave us all quick hugs to say bye. When we hugged, I felt that weird feeling that I couldn’t place again. I looked at her quizzically and she stared back flatly. Maybe it was just my imagination. She wished us luck on our exams and hopped back into the car. We waved to her and Talia as they disappeared into the night. Michael and Lyn both helped me walk as we headed to Michael’s residence.

Once we got there, Michael told us to wait a second before he ran inside. He came back a minute later with a big grin and a black permanent marker. I signed his cast with ‘Nancy Mars: Ghost Whisperer’ and my actual name. Lyn rolled her eyes when she saw but I could see the amusement in her eyes as she signed both her names as well.

We wished Michael goodnight and Lyn helped me hobble all the way back to my res. I wondered if Sarah would question my outfit change and wrapped ankles. I sighed when the building came into focus. I was ready for my bed.

“Therapy is going to be really fun for all of us,” said Lyn as she helped me inside.

“I’ve been going for awhile now,” I remarked, “but never in a group format.”

Lyn’s lip quirked upwards. “Well, I’ve gone like, twice, and it’s not fun. But yeah, going with you two crazy people? I’m sure it will be a riot.”

“Maybe they’ll give us a discount when we tell them we stopped a murderer.”

Lyn shook her head. “Not sure how we’re going to sell that one, since he died on us, you know?”

The memory flashed through my head, and I shuddered. “I’m not going to forget that anytime soon.”

Lyn nodded silently as we approached my door. I craned my head up to kiss her, but Lyn lifted me up instead. I wrapped my legs around her waist as she kissed me. It was only after a few minutes I noticed that her face was wet. I broke the kiss off with concern and saw that she was crying.

“What’s wrong?” I asked softly.

She pressed her forehead against mine. “I was so scared. I was so, so, scared that we were going to die,” she choked out. “I kept it together while we were there because I had to, Ally. I-I just felt like that was going to be where I d-d-died and no one was going to know.” She openly sobbed now as she fell to her knees, her grip tight on me. I cried with her, understanding the emotions she was feeling. We just held on to each other and cried.

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

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Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 6: Decision.

(Ally)

Monday, 5:30pm.

I sat at the library table, sitting with Michael and Mags. We had to work on a group project for our Drama/English class, and we were lucky enough to choose our own partners. Michael was an obvious pick since we became fast friends, and Mags and I got along really well.

Mags reached into the chip bag and pulled a decent handful. “Does anyone else hate this project?” they asked as they shoved chips in their mouth.

I nodded as Michael tilted his head back with a groan. “It’s like Kinkly just wants everyone to love drama as much as he does, but we don’t,” said Michael.

The project we were working on is out of three options, and we decided to go for option #2, which was take a scene and adapt it. After that, we had to do an analyse as to why we picked the scene we did and what it meant. We hadn’t even picked a scene yet as all the drama books sat opened around us as we read through them. Some of them were just so boring.

I reached over and grabbed a few fries out of the McDonald’s bag. We just bought a bunch of food and forced ourselves to work through this until we at least had something we could work with.

“I just don’t get why he couldn’t at least pick something more interesting,” said Mags as they picked up our copy of Miss Julie, “or at least recent.”

“Now, Mags, don’t be ridiculous,” tsked Michael. “It’s not good if it was written before 1990, and even that’s pushing it.”

We laughed at that as I reached for Medea. “Maybe we could do something different with it, though. Like, what if we genderbend a character or something? I know it might change how the scene is portrayed, but at least it won’t be incredibly cishet and male.” I gave Michael an apologetic smile, who just shrugged.

“Don’t forget white,” he added mildly, batting his eyelashes at me. I snorted, he got me there.

“Not a terrible idea, Holland,” said Mags appreciatively. “I mean, it is one of the only ideas we’ve had so far, though.”

The misery that just blew through the group was nearly palpable. It was clear that we weren’t getting anywhere. And to top it off, we all hated this class and the project. Motivation was at an all time low.

“Maybe we should take a break,” I suggested. When the others agreed, I got up to use the washroom. As I was walking towards it, I could hear the sounds of sirens. Yokeville was a small town, so the sounds of sirens were a little uncommon. Still, sirens were just a part of daily living. It wasn’t until I was walking back that I could see the flashing lights.

Confused yet intrigued, I headed to the little café in the library, where there were massive windows that you could see a good portion of the campus from. The lights were flashing through, and a few students had wandered over to see what was going on like I did.

There was an ambulance and a couple of police cars parked in front of the Athletic Centre. Huh, I wondered why that was. Obviously, someone must have called 9-1-1, but the question was why?

That question was answered quickly as all of our phones went off with an alarm all at once. My heart raced a little as I read that they may be a dangerous individual on campus and that we were to remain where we were. The library staff raced to lock the door and told us to get away from the windows.

I went back to our table. Michael looked over at me and gently took my hand when he saw it trembling. “Hey, we’re okay.”

“But someone else might not be,” I whispered.

He had nothing to say then. We sat in a tense quiet. Students around us where texting and calling their parents to let them know what was going on. I thought about doing the same but thought I should maybe wait until we had more information. I didn’t want my mom to worry.

I could feel my chest constricting a little as the tension settled in. My stomach twisted into a knot as I settled against Michael, taking comfort in his presence. Mags reached over and squeezed my hands, and I gave them a grateful smile.

I wasn’t sure how long it had been since we locked the doors, as we decided to watch Pitch Perfect on Netflix to pass the time, but all of sudden there was a thumping that caused a panicked whisper to spread throughout the library. The elderly lady who worked behind the desk cautiously approached, holding up the fire axe as her weapon of choice. It turned out one of the officers was knocking, and she let him in.

She told us all after that we were going to be escorted back to our residences, and that situation had been dealt with. What gave me the most anxiety about this whole thing was that they didn’t tell us what happened. We saw EMS, and the police had been looking for a dangerous individual. Was someone hurt? Who was this person? I couldn’t help but look towards the Athletic Centre as I walked back to my residence.

I wondered if Lyn was okay…

XXX

Classes were cancelled for the week.

An email was sent out explaining that some deranged sociopath had broken into the Athletic Centre and attacked one of the swimmers, but they had been apprehended by the RCMP. I had sent a panicked text to Lyn, and felt my chest loosen when she responded back saying she was okay, but only a little.

Someone had still been attacked. My stomach wouldn’t settle, however. I’m not sure what it was, but I felt like something wasn’t sitting right with this whole thing.

Going against my better judgement, I left my dorm in the afternoon. Sarah had gone home for the week, seeing as we had no classes, and her parents were very worried. Mine were too, but I told them I was okay to stay here. Something in my gut told me I needed to stay. I walked down the concrete path that led to the Athletic Centre and stared at it from afar.

There was something off. The whole energy surrounding the place seemed…dark. I took my glasses off and played with the arm between my fingers. Why would anyone attack someone in a locker room? It seemed so random. Not that a madman with a knife ever made sense, but this was especially strange. You could have gone anywhere on campus or in town, so why there?

Then my mind went back to the blood shower incident and I felt my heart drop in my stomach. If something bizarre already happened there once, who was to say it couldn’t happen again? Maybe it wasn’t a person attacking a student, but a spirit? But wait, they claimed that they arrested someone. But was that the truth?

Without realizing, I found myself standing in front of the building. It was locked down for the day as the RCMP continued with their investigation. I felt the urge to go inside and see the locker room myself spike, but I fought it. If I couldn’t get answers here, maybe I could somewhere else.

I took a photo with my phone before I left. I wanted to make sure I had a picture of it now and later to see if there was a difference in the energy. Maybe I was just tired, but it looked different today than it had previously.

Before I headed to my next destination, I fired off a text to Michael asking him to meet me. I know he wasn’t going to be happy about it, but I felt like I needed the support. Ignoring the voice in my head that sounded suspiciously like my dad, I headed towards the tree and looked up at the branches.

Sure enough, she was there. She was still fuzzy and hard to make out. Her attention seemed to be focused somewhere else, as it took me a few times to get her attention.

“Ah, look who decided to return,” she cooed as she floated down. The usual crushing sensation filled my body as she got closer.

“I did,” I said trying to sound more confidant that I felt. “I have questions.”

She cocked her head and raised a lazy eyebrow. “Oh, do you now? Whatever could you want?”

Before I said anything, Michael nervously approached me. “Uh, you said you wanted to meet here?” he asked, eyeing the tree.

I swallowed hard. “Yeah, I need the support. I’m talking to a ghost and I don’t like doing it alone.”

Michael paled as he looked between me and the tree. I know he can sense something was there, but he couldn’t see it. I held my breath, ready for him to think of me as a freak and leave. But, he just nodded slowly, his eyes slightly wide in fear. “Okay, okay, yea. We’re totally talking about you not telling me about the whole ‘talking to ghosts’ thing after this though.”

“Deal.” I turn my attention back to the ghost, who was watching with boredom.

“Remembered I was here, did you?”

I winced. “Sorry. I won’t let it happen again. I just wanted to start off with your name. I don’t think I should be calling you tree ghost forever.”

I think that might have caught her by surprise. She twirled her hair around her fingers and stared at me in thoughtful silence. I could feel the sweat beading on my forehead as I waited for her to answer. Sometimes they got offended if you asked, as it served as a reminder of a time when they were alive.

Finally, she graced me with a small smile. “Dahlia Cressman. I believe you are the first person to ask me that in a long while, human.”

I smiled back. “Most people don’t talk to dead people, Dahlia.”

She clasped her hands behind her back and gave a small nod of her head. “I suppose not. Well, ask your questions then…after you introduce yourself, that is.”

This is where it gets a little sticky. A ghost knowing your name was something that could be very dangerous. My dad always told me that if a ghost knew your name, they could steal your soul. I wasn’t sure how true it was, but I respected that rule for a long time. However, if I wanted the answers I was looking for, I knew I was going to have to take some risks.

Sucking in a tense breath, I nodded and said, “Ally.”

It was a bit of cheat. I didn’t give her my full name, nor did I give her my maiden name. I still didn’t know if I could trust her fully yet.

However, it seemed to satisfy her. “Ally,” she rolled it around her tongue. “I like it.”

I fought the urge to shudder, only the twitch of my hand gave away my discomfort. Michael slipped his hand over mine, giving me a nervous smile. He looked back in the general direction where Dahlia was, trying his best to look serious.

“Okay, so… you mentioned last time we talked that you might know what was going on with the showers?”

Dahlia sat midair and crossed her legs. “I do, yes. I also recall telling you to research the archives. Did you?”

I blushed in embarrassment. “Not yet, no.”

“It’s been a week, Ally.”

“I’m very aware, yes.”

She smiled amusedly at me. “Yet you didn’t go. Well, I suppose I can tell a little. You met Jamieson, correct?”

“Jamieson?” I inquired, tilting my head in confusion.

“The bastard in the bookstore?”

The image of the smarmy ghost with the mean smirk popped in my head. I frowned and nodded, “Right, him.”

“He and I are not the only spirits left on this God forsaken campus,” said Dahlia. She twirled her hair around her finger, looking thoughtful. “I am not sure about the exact amount, unfortunately. I do know, however, that there is a spirit roaming around that sports building. The one where all the ruckus was last night.”

Oh. Shit. That explains the blood showers…and maybe the attack last night. Vengeful ghosts were a thing, right? This time, I couldn’t supress the shudder as my blood ran cold. Nothing good ever came from an angry spirit. Or at least that’s what the movies taught me.

“Does this news surprise you, Ally?” asked Dahlia.

I swallowed thickly and gave a small nod. “Most places don’t have a ton of restless souls unless there’s a reason. Jamieson…I’m not sure whether he died from suicide or murder. You look as if you were murdered. And if there is at least one other ghost lingering around, does that mean they were murdered too?”

The smile Dahlia gave me was not pleasant at all. “Possibly. Some do stick around if they have lingering regrets. Suicide could potentially lead to that. Or an accidental death, such as overdosing or whatever. Who’s to say we all haven’t been murdered?”

Michael was shaking beside me, from the stress of her presence or something else, I wasn’t sure. I slipped my hand out of his and pulled out my notebook, quickly jotting some things down. I didn’t want to forget anything important here.

I chewed the end of my pen in thought. “Dahlia,” I looked up at her, “are you able to leave this area?”

She tilted her head to the side. “I believe so,” she said slowly, “but I would have to return here eventually. This is where I died, so my attachment is here.”

I paused to take in this information. That means that Jamieson died somewhere around that bookstore, maybe the roof of the Student Centre. If that’s the case… if there is a ghost in the women’s locker room, that means they died there. I would have to investigate the area if I wanted to be sure, though.

“Anything else?”

“I’m guessing you won’t just tell me who is haunting the locker room?” I smiled weakly.

Dahlia looked down at me in puzzled silence before breaking out in a devilish grin. “Where’s the fun in that, Ally? Besides, it is not my story to tell. If you want to know what is going on, you need to research it. I could only push you in the right direction.”

“It was worth a shot,” I said with a shrug.

Her laughter echoed in my head. “I suppose it was. Goodbye, Ally. This time, check the archives.”

“Bye, Dahlia.” I watched her disappear, the overwhelming sensation of being crushed leaving my body. I heard Michael take a deep breath as I did.

We sat there silently for a couple of minutes before I grabbed my stuff. I didn’t want to be here much longer, and Michael was happy to follow. We managed to make it halfway to meal hall before he stopped and dry heaved into a bush.

I rubbed his back as he heaved. There wasn’t a lot I could do for him except give him some water and wait for his recovery. I’m used to it now, but the presence of a ghost like that can be a lot to take in. To be honest, Dahlia’s power surprised me. She must have a large lingering resentment to remain as strong as she was.

He sat down and dropped his head between his knees as he regained some composure. I sat down next him and handed over my water. He took it gratefully and sipped slowly. I pulled my knees to my chest and rested my chin on top of them, waiting for him to be ready.

“Ally,” he croaked. He cleared his throat and took another sip of water before trying again. “Ally, what was that?”

“My life,” I said quietly. “I’ve been dealing with stuff like that my whole life.”

He stared at me blankly before shaking his head. “I can’t even imagine. I mean, I can sense the energy…but actually talking to them? I felt like I couldn’t breathe!”

“I guess you get used to it,” I chuckled weakly.

“How did you do it alone?”

Those words hurt. I did it alone because I had no other choice. I had to because my dad refused to help me. My mom thought it would just be better if I ignored it. I just ignored the feelings I had because they refused to acknowledge what made me who I was. I felt my eyes stinging but I held my tears back, looking up at the cloudy sky.

“I didn’t have a choice. Either I let them take over my life or I just…” I shrugged, not really sure what to say.

Michael reached over and placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. “Okay, well…fuck that. I’m not letting you do that alone ever again! I couldn’t hear the whole conversation, but you mentioned murder way too many times for my liking. So…what happened?”

I couldn’t tell Michael how much his words meant to me, but I gave him a hug, hoping it gave the same message. I pulled away, wiping at my eyes before grabbing my notebook out of my bag and showing him what I wrote down.

It didn’t occur to me until later that Dahlia seemed more visible by the end of our conversation.

XXX

“Are you sure this is a good idea?”

I frowned, mulling over my feelings. “I feel like it’s the right thing to do.”

“Okay, just making sure,” said Michael as he rubbed the back of his head.

“She wanted answers the first time,” I explained. “It makes sense she would this time.”

“Only if she believes in the supernatural,” Michael countered.

“Only if she believes,” I agreed nervously.

I told Michael that I wanted to bring Lyn in on this, since it concerned her most of all. Both times something happened it affected the swim team. Maybe she would just laugh in my face and not listen to what I had to say, but I had to try. Otherwise, I’ll do it without her. I made my decision. No more ignoring this…whatever this is. I wanted to help after the first incident but chickened out. I’m not doing that again.

We sat nervously at café in the library, waiting for Lyn to show up. I wanted to tell her everything in a more public place, less chance of being overheard but I wasn’t sure where to meet. Michael suggested that we meet here first and pick a place after.

I was tapping my fingers against the table as Michael was staring off as he chewed on his thumbnail. Suddenly he chuckled and shook his head. “Why are we so nervous?”

I gave a small laugh. “Sometimes life is a mystery. I think it probably has something to do with the fact that we have a bunch of restless spirits on this campus and we’re the only two who know anything about it.”

“Makes midterms seem silly now.”

“To be fair, I thought the Psych midterm was challenging,” I huffed, crossing my arms.

Michael laughed again. “Yeah, it was. You should have seen my Finite Math midterm though. I’m pretty sure like everyone left the room crying, the teacher included.”

I cringed. “Me and math do not get along. I’m surprised I even passed math in high school.”

“I was home schooled in high school,” said Michael leaning on the table. “Otousan tutored me through math, which is probably why I understand it pretty well.”

The earlier nerves just disappeared as we chatted. Michael was in the middle of explaining something about his bio lab when Lyn approached our table. She looked exhausted, and the usual brightness of her eyes seemed dimmer. She still smiled when she saw me, but it looked mechanical, like she was going through the motions. She even looked more pale than usual, which was challenging since she was already so pale as it was. Overall, she just looked unwell.

She shoved her hands into the pocket of her hoodie. “Hey, Ally.” She nodded at Michael.

“I’m Michael,” he said, sticking his hand out.

She extracted one hand, shook quickly and said, “Lyn,” before sticking her hand back into the safety of the pocket.

“How are you doing?” I asked tentatively.

Lyn shrugged with a miserable frown on her face. “Fine, I guess. Just got back from the hospital this morning, guess I went into a bit of shock yesterday. Too much shit going on for my brain to process it all, you know?”

“I get that,” I said empathetically. Overwhelming thoughts and emotions causing you to completely spiral out of control? That was so in my ballpark.

“So…” she shifted foot to foot, “what is it you wanted to talk about?”

“Oh, right!” I grabbed my bag and Michael grabbed his stuff. “Let’s go somewhere and sit!”

“Why can’t we sit here?” Lyn questioned.

“Uh, I meant somewhere more public.”

If this confused her further, she didn’t show. Lyn trudged behind us as we walked to the door. Michael asked a good place that would be busyish, and Lyn gave us a couple of suggestions. In the end, we went all the way to the coffee shop downtown. It was called the Main Street Coffee Shop, and there was a good amount of people inside already, most of them students catching up on work. Lyn pointed out a table near the window that was free, and we sat down. I waited until after we ordered before saying anything.

“Lyn, do you remember when the whole shower thing happened, and you asked me if it was a prank?” I asked, trying to keep my tone neutral.

Lyn was staring out the window, chin and mouth cupped her in her hand. Slowly she turned to look at me and nodded.

I swallowed thickly. “Okay…I don’t think it was a prank at all.”

“What do you think it was?” she asked, voice muffled.

Michael gave me an encouraging nod. I took a deep breath and said, “Ghosts. I think an angry spirit did it.”

Lyn gave me the same look she did when I told her the tree gave me bad vibes. It was carefully controlled, as to not give away what she was thinking. The waiter dropped off our drinks and left quickly, maybe sensing the tension and not wanting to be caught up in it.

Finally, there was the tiniest tug at her lip, and she gave one small nod. “Right, explain.”

I released the breath I didn’t realize I was holding. I took out my notebook and explained everything I could. I told her about Jamieson and Dahlia, and what Dahlia had told me the other day. Michael jumped in a couple of times, explaining how he could feel weird energy from certain places on the campus, the Athletic Centre being one of them. Lyn seemingly took this all-in stride, taking small sips from her hot chocolate as she listened patiently. Maybe I was just hopeful, but it looked as if her eyes lit up as she did. Finally, I finished and sat back a little, suddenly feeling self-conscious. I just told someone I really liked my secret, and I was afraid of how she actually felt about it. What if she was just humouring me? What if she thought I was crazy? My heart picked up pace and my guts squirmed in discomfort.

Lyn sat back, her eyes going between the two of us. “Okay, you aren’t messing with me, yeah?”

“I would never,” I said, my voice cracking slightly.

“Me either,” added Michael.

Lyn nodded, her eyes settling on me. “I swear I saw writing on the wall when I was in there. I couldn’t go back to confirm it though. If some dude with a knife wanted to attack a young woman, why bother writing something on the wall? Plus, the wound on-” Lyn’s face’s twisted in pain and she clamped her mouth shut, clearly trying to keep it together.

I reached over and squeezed her hand. “It’s fine, you don’t need to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

There was a conflict playing out on Lyn’s face before it finally settled on a flat affect. I haven’t known her long, but I knew that this wasn’t a typical Lyn face. It just didn’t look right on her. I wondered if maybe this was her coping mechanism for negative feelings, but something wriggled in my brain that suggested that there was more to this.

“So, what we know so far is that there are multiple ghosts on the campus,” said Michael as he ticked his fingers off, drawing our attention to him. “One in the big tree, one in the bookstore, and one in the women’s locker room. We have an active scene, so maybe if we go there, I can get a sample to look at in the lab?”

Lyn frowned. “Are you even able to do that?”

Michael shrugged. “I know one of the third year’s personally, he can get us access if I ask nicely.”

“I guess I can look into the archives,” Lyn offered. “I’m used to reading dusty old books anyway. It will be another typical Wednesday night for me.”

“And I can ask around, see what I can learn!” I added, feeling an excited buzz course through my veins.

Lyn gave a small grin. “Do we need some corny team name or something? Ghostbusters? Spirit Fighters?”

“I’m a fan of Super Cool Ghost Hunting Nerd Squad,” said Michael lightly, grinning widely.

“I’m not going by that, Michael.”

“I’m not hearing any better suggestions. Ally?”

I tapped my chin in thought. “I think Spook Searchers has a nice ring to it.”

Lyn chuckled, pushing herself to her feet. I didn’t even notice I was still holding her hand until she did that. I missed the warmth already. “Okay, no name. These all suck way too much. I’m going to head out, got things I need to do. I’ll talk to you later?”

Those last words were directed to me, and I nodded quickly. “Yes, of course.”

She smiled slightly before waving at Michael and walking out, leaving us behind. I sat back in my chair and chewed the end of my pen. Poor thing, it was probably not going to last the week at this rate.

“Whatcha thinking about, Ally?” asked Michael.

I sighed and shook my head. “Honestly, way too much at the moment.”

He poked me in the temple, giving me a lopsided smile. “Take the rest of the day off, Al. Maybe focus on some you time, yeah?”

“I don’t really need a day off,” I said.

“Girl, I feel like your brain is running on 110% all the time,” Michael snorted. “I feel like when you look at someone, you take in every detail and squirrel it away somewhere, in case you need it later. I know you want to solve this thing quickly, but we won’t be able to do it if you’re burnt out.”

I stared at him silently for a couple of seconds. It was funny in a not funny way that someone I’ve only known for a couple of weeks knows me better than most of my friends at high school did. I smiled softly and kissed him on the cheek.

“Michael, you’re a very sweet guy, thank you.”

Michael looked a little embarrassed as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I try my best. Otousan always told me to treat my friends with the utmost respect.”

“Does that mean dad?” I asked, remembering that he said it earlier too. He nodded as we both slid out of the booth as I said, “Sounds like your dad is a smart and kind man.”

Michael’s eyes shined with admiration. “I hope to be the same kind of man once I become a dad.”

“I think you’re pretty close.”

“Okay, okay! I’m ditching you before you make me all teary eyed, dammit!” Michael waved me a goodbye before dashing off.

I decided I was going to take his advice and take the rest of the day off. I had no classes, so I might as well do something fun. Maybe Mags would be up to hanging out if they weren’t with their other friends.

I pulled my coat close, feeling a sudden chill. I looked around and saw nothing, so it must have just been a gust of wind or something. Maybe Michael was right, my brain was constantly thinking of something. I decided to just be on my way and think nothing of it for once. I was going to be thinking about a ton of things soon enough, it was okay for me to take one night off.

#unnatural affairs #ua #original story #original fiction #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #mags richard #dahlia cressman #original content #paranormal #mystery #murder mysteries #romance #sapphic lead #wlw romance #the plot is rolling #ghosts #writing

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korra-the-red-lion · 2 years

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Unnatural Affairs: Welcome to the Shadow Land.

Hello everyone! I’m back with UA! I’ll be posting the links to the Ao3 this time. I hope you enjoy it, it’s been fun to get back into it!

Chapter 1 below!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34850353/chapters/86778478

#unnatural affairs #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #katherine howard #dahlia cressman #ghosts #anxiety #paranormal #violence #murder mysteries #mystery #romance #sapphic lead #wlw romance #original content #original story

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

Text

Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 18: Interview with Jackie Park.

(Ally)

I sat up with a jolt, my breathing hitching in my chest as I oriented myself. I felt like I couldn’t breathe properly, like there was water in my lungs. A pair of strong hands gripped my shoulders. I blinked a few times, trying to focus.

“Take a deep breath, Ally.”

I did as instructed. My breathing slowed down, air filling my lungs. My throat was burning with pain, and it was hard to swallow. Lyn’s face swam into focus as my vision returned. I reached up and touched her face, just to make sure it was real. Her skin felt warm and soft to my touch, grounding me back to reality.

“Hey,” I croaked.

“Hey,” she smiled, putting her hand on top of mine. “Are you okay?”

“I just felt like I was drowning…” I shuddered, the sensation taking over again.

Lyn nodded sympathetically. “Hold on a minute,” she slipped off the bed. She walked over to her bag and pulled out a pharmacy bag. She walked back over, opening a bottle a liquid Ibuprofen. “Here, have some of this. It will help with the swelling.”

I took it and sipped it slowly. I couldn’t remember the last time I took liquid medicine, probably when I was a kid. Also, when did she get this? I looked outside and realized with a shock that it must be some time later in the day. I rubbed my throat, feeling the bruises.

“How long was I out?” I asked. I wish I had my phone and glasses.

“I mean, not sure? It’s nearly 12 now, if that helps,” Lyn frowned. “I didn’t know if you had classes or not, but I figured you needed the sleep. I just went to work and grabbed some meds on the way home, something easy for you to swallow.”

“Thanks,” I smiled. “I appreciate it.”

She smiled at me again before tugging at her ear awkwardly. “Sooo, um, last night…do you remember anything?”

Last night? Of course, I did. I knew what she was talking about specifically, however. I nodded, shifting forward on the bed. Lyn was watching me carefully, nothing showing on her face. Slowly I reached up, cupping her face in my hands. Her eyes were shining brightly, her mouth quirking upwards. Lyn closed the gap between us, kissing me fully.

I melted into the kiss. I felt her smile against my lips as she gently put one her of arms around me. I went to deepen the kiss when I winced from the sudden movement. Lyn pulled away, concern written on her face.

“Sorry, did I hurt you?” she asked, running a finger down my face.

“No, not you,” I tapped my throat lightly, “it just hurts.”

Relief filled her eyes. “Okay. Maybe some ice and heat will help with the swelling. I have to head to my next class in a little bit, but I can help you back to your res first. I also washed your clothes from last night so you could at least wear your stuff.”

I smiled gratefully at her. Not that I minded these clothes she lent me, but they were way too big for me to walk around. Lyn gave me some privacy as I changed back into my clothes. After I was done, I asked if it was possible to see if my stuff turned up, which Lyn was in agreement to check. So, we left her residence, hand in hand. I had a doofy grin on my face as we walked across campus towards the Student Centre. It was such a nice feeling to be holding hands with someone I had been crushing on since the beginning of the school year. I had a feeling Lyn was feeling something similar, based on her genuine smile and bright eyes. Despite all the fear of yesterday, I felt amazing.

Surprisingly, when we got there, my purse was in the Lost & Found. When the guy behind the desk handed it to me, I saw that there was a note tucked into the front pocket. It was written in beautiful cursive that read, “You’re welcome.” I stared at it for several seconds, not recognizing the handwriting. I had a feeling it came from Dahlia. Too bad my glasses were not so lucky. They were broken. At least I had my back up pair back in my dorm. I thanked the guy and we left.

As we approached my res, the events of last night played through my mind. I was trying to understand why Fiona lashed out the way she did. It wasn’t like that last time we spoke. Or even at the start of our conversation. She was mournful last time and started off looking sad. What changed? I furrowed my brow in concentration, trying to figure out where I went wrong. I didn’t even realize that I was inside the building until Lyn asked which room was mine. Concentration broken, I looked around with a blush.

“Oh, oops,” I laughed sheepishly. “I guess I got lost in thought. It’s just this way.”

Lyn followed behind me, looking around curiously. I unlocked my door and was surprised to hear a gasp.

Sarah was staring at us with her jaw hanging open, eyes wide with shock. I felt my face light up as I realized what this looked like. I didn’t come home last night, now here I was, hand in hand with the girl I told Sarah all about.

“Oh. My. God.”

“N-n-no, this isn’t what it looks like,” I stammered, waving my free hand wildly.

Sarah laughed, falling back on her bed holding her stomach. “Damn, Ally, I like, didn’t think you’d go through with it. You get it, girl!”

Maybe I had nearly died last night, but I was pretty sure I was about to die from embarrassment on the spot. I shot Lyn a look for help, but she was silently laughing, her eyes lit up with amusement. The tips of her ears were red, but otherwise I couldn’t tell if she was just as embarrassed as I was.

“Are you two, like, official? Sarah asked, clasping her hands together.

I looked at Lyn again, who thankfully came to the rescue this time. “Yeah, I think so,” she answered with a grin. “As long as Ally is okay with calling it that.”

My face was burning as I nodded, refusing to look at Sarah in the eye. There was nothing I could say to prove my absence last night, so I guess I was just going to have to live with it. Sarah squealed in happiness.

Lyn chuckled. “I gotta head to class. We’ll talk later, okay? Bye, luv.” She kissed the top of my head before letting go of my hand. I stood in the doorway feeling extremely warm and tingly all over. Then cold reality set in as I realized I needed to escape quickly before Sarah teased me without mercy.

I spun on my foot, quickly going to my desk to grab my spares. I took comfort in being able to see properly. Only that comfort was shattered a second later when I saw the look on Sarah’s face. Her jaw hung open, her skin pale. I was confused until I realized that my throat was exposed. I pulled my hood up a little, trying to cover it, but the damage was already done.

“Ally, like, what the hell happened?” Shock wearing off, Sarah sprung to her feet. “Did something happen? Omg, did like, Lyn do something?!”

“No, never!” I cried, holding my hands up to stop her from coming closer. “I uh…it happened because…” I was at a loss for words, not sure what I could say to fix this situation.

Sarah looked so concern for me that it broke my heart. I stood there dumbly, unable to come up with a good excuse for the extreme bruising all over my throat. I sat down on my bed and Sarah sat next to me. I went through so many options in my head, but nothing good was coming up. Sighing deeply, I mentally prepared to tell Sarah. I had to, right? Even though it could destroy my relationship with her, I knew it was the right thing to do.

So, against all better judgement, I opened my mouth to speak the truth.

XXX

I just…I need some time.

Those words rung hallow in my head over and over again. It’s been a week since we’ve last talked, and I find myself falling into a deeper and deeper slump.

I was always worried that this was going to happen, but so far, the people I’ve told here have taken it well. Seeing the look on Sarah’s face just wrecked me. I knew it had been the right thing to do, but that didn’t make me feel any better. I lost too many friends back in middle school because of this ability of mine, and it seems like I lost another.

Although all I wanted to do was lay here in misery, I knew that I had things to do. Today was the day that I got to talk to the victim that started this whole thing: Jackie Park.

Lyn told me that Jackie was willing to talk to me, and it took little convincing. She did warn me that Jackie was still sensitive about the whole situation, so I needed to tread carefully. I appreciated that Lyn set this up for me, it was just the timing that sucked. Sighing, I sat up, raking my hands through my hair. Sarah was thankfully out, so I didn’t have the awkward tension stopping me from getting up.

I slipped my boots on before grabbing my jacket and heading out the door. November was speeding by like a freight train. Or at least, that’s what it felt like. Exams were only less than a month away and then the term was over. I couldn’t believe how quickly the term had been going by. It sometimes felt like it was only yesterday when I stepped foot on campus for the first time. Here I was now, neck deep in a case of a serial killer and so many assignments that I think I might just half ass.

I didn’t really even notice the cold as I wandered across campus. I’ve been feeling pretty numb since Sarah and I stopped talking. It felt a little unfair. I finally got together with the girl I’ve crushed on since the start and now I’ve been unable to enjoy it because of the falling out. It was times like these that made me think of grandma telling me I was cursed. I knew deep down I wasn’t, but it sure felt that way right now.

“…ly? Ally? Helloooo, earth to Ally!”

I was startled out of my thoughts when Michael waved a hand in front of my face. His brow was furrowed in concern as he grabbed my arm to stop me from falling on my butt.

“Hey,” he said. “Everything okay? I haven’t heard from you in a while.”

I shrugged, not really sure how to explain how I felt. Michael stood there, rubbing the back of his head. His eyes lit up when an idea must have struck him. He grinned at me.

“Come on, I know what you need.”

“No, I don’t really need an-” I was cut off by Michael tsking me with a wag of his finger.

“Nope, you don’t get to decide that, Ally,” said Michael, grabbing my hand gently. “You look super down and I’m gonna help you get back up.”

“Michael, I’m okay, really.”

“I seriously don’t believe you. Come on, this way!”

Against my will, I followed Michael. He led me away until we were off campus. Eventually I stopped fighting against him and chose to follow willingly. He led me all the way to a little Asian restaurant. I was confused as to why he brought me here.

“Because, good food always makes things better,” he said wisely.

I was too tired to argue against him right now, so I went along with it. He ordered a noodle dish for himself, and I ordered some sushi. He didn’t say anything for the first little bit, more content to make a swan out of the napkin. I watched with mild interest, wondering why I was even here. I had things to do.

Our food arrived, and Michael thanked the waiter for the two of us. He smiled at me before taking a big slurp of noodles. It was only when he did that I happened to noticed something different about him.

“Michael…are you growing out a moustache?”

Michael grinned at me with a big nod. “Heck yea’ I am. It’s Movember, remember? ‘Course, not sure how well it’s gonna go. It’s only been a week and some and all that’s there is some shadowing.”

“It’s a strange look for you,” I said with a small chuckle.

“I think so too.” Michael paused the conversation for a minute so he could take a few more slurps. I took the time to eat a few of my sushi, which turned out to be pretty tasty. Wait…when was the last time I properly ate something? Suddenly I felt starving.

“So,” Michael leaned back in his chair, “wanna tell me what’s been going on?”

I pointedly didn’t answer for several minute, instead focusing on chewing my food. Eventually I put my chop sticks down with a heavy sigh. “I told Sarah…about me. About how I could see ghosts.” I put my head in my hands miserably. “She took it as well as I figured she would. We haven’t talked in like, a week. I miss her.”

“Aw, Ally, I’m sorry,” said Michael sympathetically. He reached over to rub my shoulder. “How come you told her?”

“She saw the bruises, and there was no good excuse I could come up with to explain where they came from. At first, she thought I was messing with her, but once she saw how serious I was, she realized I was telling the truth,” I sighed. “I mean, I get it. I probably wouldn’t believe it either. It just sucks because we were really good friends and now I’ve gone and ruined it.”

Michael shook his head. “You haven’t ruined anything, Al. Being honest was the right thing to do. It’s on Sarah now to make her decision. But give her time, it can be a lot to take in. Plus, imagine seeing nasty ass bruises on your friend’s neck like that. It probably freaked her out.”

“Maybe…” I was hesitant to say Michael was right. He probably was. He was great at emotional stuff like this. Probably helped that he was better at managing his emotions than I was. But it still hurt. Being rejected was never easy, especially when it came from someone you cared about.

We finished our meals shortly after. Michael refused to let me pay, insisting that since he forced me out here, he could at least pay. We walked back to campus, and I had to admit, I was feeling a little better. Moving around and getting some proper food in my belly had me feeling a little more human than I had been the last few days.

Together we met up with Lyn, who was waiting for me under Dahlia’s tree. She had that far off look in her eyes again, which I was noticing more recently. It’s been happening a lot since she got back from her parents’ place. I looked up at the tree branches, where Dahlia was sitting, staring down at us.

“Hey, Lyn,” said Michael chipperly as I continued to make eye contact with Dahlia.

Lyn blinked before raising her hand in a greeting. “Hey. How’s it going?”

“Pretty good! We actually just had a really delicious lunch. I got the japchae, you know, potato noodles. It was pretty good, I probably would have added more beef though…”

I blocked out Michael’s ramblings, instead focusing on Dahlia’s amused smile. I kind of forgot about since I had some stuff going on, but it came back to me now. She possessed Lyn, but how? I had a sinking feeling in my stomach that the spiritual presence on campus was getting stronger, but I couldn’t confirm it. However, Dahlia was a lot more solid now, as if she was actually here with us. The only thing that really gave it away was her outfit, which looked like a vintage piece.

“How did you do it?” I asked, startling the other two.

“It wasn’t hard, if that’s what you are wondering about,” said Dahlia, mischief glinting in her eyes.

“Ghosts are only able to possess people if they’re on the verge of death, a willing participant, by giving you their true name, or if someone else forces it to happen,” I said, listing my fingers off. “Lyn doesn’t fit any of those categories.” Lyn shifted uneasily beside me.

“Well, let’s just say the circumstances were in my favour.” Dahlia twirled her hair around, shaking her in head. “I still cannot believe you will not say thank you for saving you and retrieving your purse. Goodness, manners have been lost in this time.”

“She’s related to you, isn’t she?”

Dahlia stopped mid motion. Lyn stiffened, looking at me with confusion. Michael frowned. I stood firm, looking up at the ghost sitting in the tree. She carefully masked her emotions, something I’ve seen Lyn do many times.

“Why do you think that, Ally?” Dahlia’s tone was even, not giving anything away.

I crossed my arms, puffing my cheeks out. “I’m not stupid. She mentioned last time we were here that her dad was a Cressman. I couldn’t tell at first, because your image was so fuzzy, but now that you’re getting more visible, I can see it. The ears, the splash of freckles. You could possess her because there was a familial connection, but it doesn’t explain it entirely. There had to be something else, something that let you take control of her body.”

“Ally, what are you talking about?” Lyn asked me, tugging at my arm nervously.

“The possession, from the night in the locker room,” I answered, covering her hand with mine. “Dahlia is going to give me answers.”

Dahlia chuckled humorously. “You’ve gotten so bold recently, I like it. It suits you. Alright, yes. I had an inkling that she was related to George somehow, but I wasn’t certain. She confirmed it for me when she mentioned…well, her father. When she got tossed against the wall, she briefly lost consciousness, so I slipped in to help. Like I said, it was quite exhausting. I won’t be doing that willy nilly, darling.”

I quickly relayed the entire conversation to Michael and Lyn, the former looking thoughtful while the latter looked mostly confused. I could understand Lyn’s confusion, but Michael’s reaction was interesting. I raised my brows in question.

“Well, not that what she did was a great thing,” said Michael, rubbing his chin, “but it was helpful. I mean, she saved us from getting killed. As long as it doesn’t become a habit, I’d say everything is cool now.”

Lyn frowned at him. “It wasn’t your body she took over, dork. Even if I don’t really remember it, it’s totally a violation of my person. I didn’t consent to it, you know.” She crossed her arms irritability and glared at the tree.

“You know what? Good point, I didn’t think about it that way. I’m sorry.” He stood beside her and glared at the tree also, but at least he was looking more in Dahlia’s direction than Lyn was.

A few students walked by, looking confused at their behaviour and started to whisper under their breath. I wanted to glare at them for being rude, but I found myself staring at the ground, with cheek burning with shame. It was familiar feeling when people looked at me that way.

Dahlia rolled her eyes, waving her hand dramatically. The wind around the tree turned bitterly cold, causing the other two to step back. “I get the point. I promise that I’ll ask permission next time. Do you people never have anything better to do aside from bothering me? Don’t you have an interview of some sort to get it?”

I looked up from my feet, the blush fading away. “How do you always know what’s going on? It’s kinda freaky.”

“Not as freaky as talking to a dead person, Ally,” Dahlia fired back with a vicious smile.

She had me there. I settled for a displeased frown before walking away from the tree. Dahlia’s laughter followed me as we walked down the path leading to the meal hall. I pulled off my hat before smoothing my hair out. I just wanted to feel a little calmer before talking to Jackie. I needed the focus, to make sure I wasn’t missing anything.

The smell of stale fries and wet burgers hit my nose as we walked downstairs to where the tables were located. Yeah, I was really getting sick of the food here. It’s been even worse since I went home for the holiday weekend. Good thing I still had some of those meals mom made me in my freezer.

Jackie was sitting at a table with a few of her friends. She waved to Lyn when she saw her, who waved back. Jackie said something to her friends before getting up from the table and walking over to us. She had dark brown eyes that were full of life that sat above a broad nose with a little stud in the left nostril. Her raven-coloured hair was pulled back into a French braid, showing that she had hair growing back from an undercut. She gave Lyn a toothy smile, revealing a gap between her two front teeth.

“Is this her? The first year?” she asked teasingly.

Lyn’s ears turned red as she nodded, a grin taking place on her own face. “Yeah. I told you she was pretty cute, didn’t I?”

Jackie’s eyes gave me a playful once over before shrugging at Lyn. “I mean, I gueeeessss so. I still think Gabe is cuter though.”

“You literally can’t compare the two,” scoffed Lyn. “Besides, Gabe looks like he crawled out of a dump truck. And that’s on a good day.”

“That’s so rude!” Jackie laughed, giving Lyn a playful punch. She pulled out her phone and showed us a picture of a guy I recognized from some of our classes. I shrugged my indifference while Michael mumbled, “I guess he’s cute enough. I think you’re cuter though.”

Jackie pouted as she pocketed her phone. “You guys are totally teaming against me. This isn’t fair.”

“Life ain’t fair, Jackles,” Lyn said with a laugh. “Maybe next time get Loryn here, and you’ll have someone in your corner. Today, victory goes to me!”

“Whatever,” Jackie said, rolling her eyes, but she still had a good-natured smile on her face. “So, did you wanna talk here, or somewhere else?” she asked me, her voice lifting in question.

“Oh, wherever you feel comfortable, I’m not picky,” I said.

Jackie shrugged and motioned for us to follow her. We ended up going back upstairs and heading back outdoors. She led us all the way to Student Centre, where we sat at the café. Man, I never noticed how many places you could get a coffee from on campus until know. Was it for our benefit or the professors? Jackie ordered herself a vanilla latte, while Michael got himself a black coffee. Lyn ordered a hot chocolate for me and a decaf tea for herself. Once we all had our drinks, we sat down at a free table.

Jackie took the lid off her cup and gently blew at it. I didn’t want to rush her, so I waited until she looked comfortable to talk. I couldn’t help but notice the dark circles under her eyes. They looked like the ones Lyn had been sporting. I was familiar with them myself.

“I guess you want to hear about the locker room thing, huh?” Jackie looked up from her drink, her eyes knowing.

“How’d you know?”

“People talk,” she said simply. She took a small sip before making a face. “It’s still too hot, ugh.”

I shifted in my seat, adjusting my position so I was less in her space. “If you’re okay to talk about it, I’d like to hear about what happened.”

Jackie stared off for a minute, her face thoughtful. Finally, she nodded slowly, looking back at me. “Yeah, I suppose I can tell you about it. Lucky for you that I like Lyn,” she said, giving her a warm smile, “otherwise I probably would have said no. But whatever you’re doing, I trust her.”

“Just take your time, Jackie,” said Lyn calmly. “If you get too upset, we’ll stop.” I nodded my confirmation.

“Okay.” She took another slow sip, her free hand tapping anxiously against the tabletop. Once she put her cup down, she locked her hands together, squeezing them tightly. “Okay, right. It was at practice, just after our swim meet. We were starting a new set when I had to change my tampon, you know how it is. I went into the locker room, when I noticed it was really cold? Like, really unnaturally cold. I didn’t think too much about it, cuz the heating system is always shit. Right?” She turned to Lyn for validation.

Lyn nodded, taking a sip from her own drink.

Jackie nodded too, working her jaw anxiously. “Yeah, okay. Um…where was I? Oh! Right, I went into the little area where our door is. The handle was ice cold, which was really freaking me out, but I really needed a damned tampon, so I put in the password and opened the door. There was nothing strange going on inside, so I didn’t think much about it after that. I opened my locker when the door slammed shut, and the lights blew out over head. When the locker doors all flew open, I wanted to scream for help, but it was like there was something holding my throat close. Um…” she paused, her discomfort evident. She took another sip, her hand slightly shaking.

“You can stop if you want,” I offered. “I can’t imagine how hard this is for you.” My throat tingled, suggesting otherwise. The bruises were fading but were still visible, unless covered by make-up or a scarf.

“No, it’s fine…” Jackie’s voice got really quiet as she looked around. Satisfied with her search, she hunched her shoulders protectively. “There was a man. Well, I thought it was a man. But the next thing I knew, it looked like he was transforming in something… I-” she choked back a sob, her face determined to go on. “I tried to get away, but it was like he was taking up the whole room. He- it attacked me. Next thing I knew, Lyn was in there, stopping the bleeding. Then I woke up in the hospital, full of stiches.”

There were silent tears trailing down her face. Lyn reached over, squeezing Jackie’s hand in comfort. Her own face was pale, the look in her eye suggesting that she was remembering the day as well. Michael sat next to me, his hand curled tightly, his knuckles popping out. I closed my eyes, breathing deeply through my nose. The man turning into a monster…that was just like Amelia’s attack. It had to be the same person.

“Thank you,” I said quietly, opening my eyes.

Jackie nodded, wiping her eyes with her sleeves. “I-I don’t know what you’re doing with this information, but I hope it works out for you.” She sniffed, wiping her eyes again.

I really hope so too.

XXX

I stared at my notes all laid out before me. I could see the puzzle was nearly completed, but there were still some pieces missing. The killer. Who was the killer? This was probably the most important piece that was not yet in. The other one was why? Why kill all these people? The method of how varied. There was something else that was causing me stress. The years of murder.

1995. 2007. 2015. Those were the ones we knew. There was also the death in the ‘60s that Lyn had mentioned previously but I haven’t looked into yet. I needed to, that was one of the few things left on my list. The other was to look into Professor Kinkly. The last name wasn’t a common one, not that I was aware of anyway. So, most likely, the Jeremiah Kinkly was related to our professor.

I pressed my palms into my eyes, trying to relieve some of the pressure I could feel building up behind them. I felt like I was so close to figuring this all out, but the final pieces were just dangling out of my reach.

God, and I have been so distracted by literally everything else, I let all my schoolwork pile out into an insane amount. I really just wanted this semester and mystery to both be over so I could have some alone time to myself again. Maybe go on an actual date with Lyn. That would be so lovely.

Instead, I was here, obsessing over something I shouldn’t even care about. I know it felt like I had a duty to fulfil with this, because I was the only one who could do this, but it was mentally exhausting me to the brink of collapse. It felt like each time I got around a roadblock, a new one was put in its place, just to slow me down more.

I pulled over my laptop with a sigh, deciding I needed to focus on some of my assignments. I had another stupid Anthropology assignment to do. But as soon as I opened it, I felt a pang of sadness in my heart, remembering my conversations with Sarah about it. Shaking my head, I instead decided to work on my Psych schoolwork. I had to make some sort of Venn diagram and place the theories in it or something, I wasn’t really sure.

I’m not sure how long I had been working on it, but my eyelids were getting heavy. I could feel my body starting to get that heavy feeling it got when it started to shut down for sleep. I probably should pack up and head back to my dorm, so I could awkwardly try and sleep in the same room as someone who is not currently speaking to me. That sounds so nice, I definitely want to do that. Oh wait, no I don’t!

My dreamlike mind state was weird. It usually was. I saw Jamieson falling to his death, and when I reached out to grab him, his hand just phased right through mine. But just as he hits the ground, I heard the sound of blood splattering. I turned to see Amelia falling to the ground, sobbing as the life left her eyes, reaching for me to help her. I tried to get to her, but I found myself knee deep in water. I looked around frantically, only to see a large shadow looming over me as it pushed me under the water. I slapped my hands against the arms holding me down, but it was no use. I could feel myself blacking out, but not before looking over and seeing the lifeless eyes of Fredrik staring at me, his face frozen in fear. I tried to scream, but nothing came out because my oxygen was cut off.

“You can’t win, just give up.”

I sat up in a panic, nearly knocking my chair over in the process. My chest was heaving as if I was back in the locker room, trying to catch my breath again. My whole body was trembling as sweat dripped down my face. I pushed back sweaty hair from my face, ignoring the pounding in my head. My throat was pounding in tangent with my heartbeat, and it was a very uncomfortable feeling. Slowly, my focus returned, and I could feel the hardwood of the table beneath my palms. I took another deep and slow breath, feeling the air fill my lungs up. I held it for a few seconds before releasing it. My heartbeat was slowing down, the trembling subsiding.

“Are you okay, Ally?”

I looked over my shoulder to see Mags standing there, their bag slung over their shoulder. Sometime this week they must have dyed their hair, because it was a shade of vibrant blue that it wasn’t before. They were watching me with concern.

I nodded slowly, turning back in my seat. I rested my head in my hands and muttered, “Just tired.”

Mags walked over and glanced at all the notes spewed across the table with curiosity. Shit, I didn’t want them to think I was crazy. I reached over and started putting them back into piles, working methodically.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Mags asked, leaning against the table. “You look exhausted.”

I closed my eyes to stop myself from crying in front of them. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just feeling a little stressed.” My voice cracked just at the end there, but otherwise I thought the delivery had been pretty even.

Mags raised an eyebrow before sighing. They helped gathered the rest of my notes without looking at them and handed them back to me. Once everything was back in its proper folder and in my bag, I felt a little lighter. I clutched my bag to my chest tightly.

“Thank you,” I said quietly, closing my eyes again.

“Anytime.” A pause, then, “I really think you should head back to your dorm, Ally.”

I ducked my head into my chest and nodded. When I made no effort to move, Mags tapped my shoulder. I steadied myself before looking up at them, trying hard to keep my true feelings locked beneath the surface.

“Is there someone you can call?” they asked, worry etching into their face.

“Um…yeah,” I whispered. I felt too raw right now for this. I wanted to be under my covers, tucked away safely from my feelings.

“Okay. Can I call them for you, or do you want to do it?”

I considered my options here. Do I call my mom because I just really needed to talk to her right now, or do I call Lyn because I really needed the physical comfort? Apparently, it was too much for my brain because my eyes watered up and I buried myself back into my bag.

I heard Mags shuffling beside me as they slipped my phone off the table. I couldn’t really make out who they were calling for me. Maybe Michael? Mags at least knew him. I couldn’t stop the tears from falling now. My bag was getting soaked and I felt disgusting. Mags put an arm around me, and I began to sob harder. I don’t know was had taken over me, but it felt like a dam had just broken open.

After several minutes of sobbing later, I found that there was nothing left in me to cry. I just felt numb. Mags hadn’t really said much, but I was grateful for that. I think I just needed to cry. Their presence alone was calming enough for me. I sat there in the chair, unmoving. Suddenly, Mags pulled their arm off, and I instantly felt like crying again. Were they going to abandon me too? Like Sarah had?

No, that wasn’t what was happening. A familiar pair of hands slowly reached for me, as not to startle me. I recognized the short, chipped nails and the small scar on the thumb. My brain was hyperaware that someone was speaking, but it couldn’t make out the words. I blinked and looked over. Lyn was crouched beside me, her expression calm. She gave me a small smile when we made eye contact.

“There you are,” she said softly. “Your friend called me. You looked pretty wiped out, you know. Is it okay if I touch your hand?”

I nodded slowly.

Lyn slowly pressed her hand against mine. It was warm and firm. I stared at it for a few seconds before I turned mine over, so I could curl my fingers against her hand.

“Is she alright?” Mags asked, the concern heavy in their tone.

Before Lyn could say anything, I took a shuddering breath and nodded at Mags. “I-I-I’m just f-f-feeling overwhelmed. Th-thank you for st-staying with m-me.”

Mags looked unsure but nodded all the same. “Just let me know if you need anything, okay?”

“She will,” said Lyn. She smiled at Mags. “Thanks for helping out. I think I’m okay from here. I’ll uh…I’ll send a text from Ally’s phone once she’s feeling better. That way you don’t have to worry.”

A small amount of relief flashed in Mags’ eyes as they nodded again. “Alright then, thanks.” They looked at me with a quick smile and said, “I hope you feel better, Ally.”

I attempted to smile back, but I’m pretty sure it didn’t come out that way. I watched Mags head for the door before tucking my head back into my back. Lyn hummed in my ear, her free hand lightly touching my face.

“What’s going on, Ally? Can you tell me right now?”

I shook my head, forcing myself to turn it just enough to look at her again.

“Okay, that’s fine. I think we should go somewhere else though. Maybe somewhere more comfortable?”

I thought about that for a minute before nodding. She smiled at me and helped me get to my feet. She took my bag gently from my grip and threw it over her own shoulder as if it didn’t weigh 15 pounds. I held on to her shirt for a few minutes unmoving. The ground didn’t feel steady under my feet. She kept her hand in mine, while moving the other to under my shoulder, to help keep my stable.

“Do you want to go back to your room?” asked Lyn.

I shook my head viciously, thinking of Sarah. I felt nauseous all of sudden, my vision getting blurry again.

“Okay, we don’t have to. Um…do you have any medication you need to take? Anything that can help you?”

I nodded. “My emergency meds…they’re in my purse.”

Lyn’s eyes flickered to the purse that was on the table. “Okay. Is there somewhere you can stay that’s safe so you can take them?”

“I don’t know,” I closed my eyes, the overwhelming feeling returning. “I-I can’t go back, Lyn. She h-hates me now.”

“I don’t think she does,” said Lyn soothingly. She ran her fingers through my hair, gently combing it. “Tomorrow is Saturday. You can stay in my room again if you want?”

Relief flooded my system. I nodded as I pressed into her, taking comfort in her warmth. After several minutes, Lyn gently nudged me to get me walking. It was slow going, but somehow, I managed to get my legs moving. We walked all the way back to her campus, where she pressed her key card against the scanner once we got to Lukas.

She said something to the RA, who questioned why she was bringing back a student who didn’t live here. I faded in and out of the conversation, not able to keep my focus. Once Lyn successfully argued her case, she led me to her room.

I was too numb to feel embarrassed when I saw her roommate sitting on her phone in bed. She sat up a little when she saw me, giving Lyn a strange look. Lyn quickly explained that I just needed a place to stay because I was having an anxiety attack. When asked why I couldn’t go back to my own room, Lyn said something along the lines of, “Remember Stephanie” which caused her roommate to nod solemnly.

Lyn handed me the same t-shirt I wore last time I was here, and the same pair of pants. I stood there, unsure of what to do next. I wanted to change into them, but there were too many people in the room, and I didn’t know where the bathroom was. I felt the tears returning, feeling utterly ridiculous.

“Hey, it’s alright,” Lyn handed me a tissue, and I wiped my face. “We’ll step out for a minute, okay? Take your time.”

The two of them left, leaving me alone. I sat down and stared at the shirt for a minute, wondering who the band was. I think it was a band. Blinking away the tears, I pulled off my stuff and put on the too big clothes. I laid down in the bed too, staring up at the ceiling. I wondered how pathetic I looked right now. I pressed my hands into my eyes again. I just wanted to stop feeling so icky.

The door opened and I heard them come back into the room. Suddenly there was a pressure placed on the bed and Lyn’s hand was on top of my own. I held my breath for a second, to see if she would go away, but she didn’t, I slowly removed them from my eyes. She was watching me with the same calm from earlier. The only crack I could see in her mask was in her eyes, which shined with…something. I couldn’t tell right now.

“Do you want your meds?”

I nodded numbly. She opened the bottle and took one blue pill out, putting it in my hands. I stared at it, wondering how I was supposed to take it. My brain just didn’t want to cooperate with me today. Finally, it clicked that I was supposed to put it under my tongue. I slipped it in and held it in place until it dissolved.

“Can y-you call my m-m-om for me?” I asked. I scooted over until I was right up against the wall. “Just tell her I had a really b-b-bad attack and that I’ll call her in the m-morning.”

“Yeah, sure,” Lyn pulled the blankets up so they were covering me. I squeezed them tightly, wanting to hold on to something. Maybe she wouldn’t mind if I took her pillow.

As she hit call to let my mom know what was going on, she reached under her bed and pulled out a box. Lyn opened it and pulled out a stuffed frog, handing it to me. I reached for it sluggishly, slightly confused at the toy.

“His name is Pickles,” she explained gently. “Sometimes when I’m feeling like crap, I like to hold on to him. He got me through a lot of shit growing up. I’m pretty sure you could use him tonight.”

The explanation was as good as any. I hugged him to my chest as my eyelids started feeling heavy. I could hear Lyn talking to my mom on the phone, but it was hard to focus on what they were saying. I closed my eyes fully, allowing my brain to finally shut off for the night.

#unnatural affairs #ua #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #mags richard #jackie park #dahlia cressman #original story #orginal writing #wlw romance #sapphic lead #ghosts #anxiety #paranormal #murder mysteries #romance #writing

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

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Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 10: Who’s That Girl?

(Ally + Lyn).

Ally.

The blue Honda pulled right up to where we were. Michael was awake now, but unable to get up on his own. I helped get him into the back seat and got in with him. Lyn sat up front with her sister, although she didn’t look too happy about it. Her arm stopped bleeding at this point, or at least was only slowly oozing. I wasn’t completely sure.

Lyn and her sister Olivia looked quite a bit a like for me to tell right away they were related. She had the same square jaw shape that Lyn had, and the same strawberry blonde hair. She wasn’t as tall or broad across the shoulders as Lyn, and while they had the same eye shape, hers were a dark brown. I couldn’t tell in the dark of the vehicle, but I didn’t think she had the same freckles as her sister did either. Or the ears.

Olivia glanced at me in the rear-view mirror. I held her gaze, refusing to be the first one to break it. Finally, she smirked and shook her head. She smoothly pulled out and we were on the way to the hospital.

It was silent in the car, except for the quiet tune coming from the radio. I could feel the tension emanating from up front. Judging from Michael’s fidgeting, he could too.

If I was being honest, it was a little surprising that Lyn seemingly had a complicated relationship with her sister, maybe even her whole family based on that phone call. Obviously, you don’t judge a book by its cover, but she just seemed so happy all the time. I mean granted, that hasn’t been the case recently. But even then, it seemed like she had been bouncing back quite quickly. This just seemed so out of the ordinary for her.

“So,” Olivia spoke up, her voice breaking through the silence, “these are your friends, huh?”

Lyn’s jaw tightened as she nodded silently.

She glanced back at us before looking at the road again. “I’m not allowed to ask what happened to you all?”

“I’d prefer if you didn’t,” Lyn said tersely.

Olivia clicked her tongue. “Right. So, you call me in the middle of the night asking for a drive to the hospital, yet I’m not allowed to ask why?”

“Sounds about right to me, yeah.”

Olivia gave an annoyed huff as we waited at a red light. She tapped her finger against the wheel, clearly trying to figure out a way to ask without asking. I shuddered violently suddenly, my teeth chattering. My mind was starting to go against me again.

Lyn turned in her seat to look at me. “You okay?”

I nodded slowly, trying to breathe through my nose. “Just c-catching up to me.”

Lyn’s eyes flashed with concern as she awkwardly reached behind her, taking my hand in hers. “We’ll be there in a bit, so just hold on a bit longer,” she said quietly.

I nodded again, staring into her eyes. We didn’t break eye contact until we pulled into the hospital parking lot. Lyn let go of my hand so she could slip out of the front seat, opening the door for me. I pulled Michael out with me, who stood unsteadily on his feet. Lyn wrapped her good arm around his waist to help him walk into the hospital, Olivia trailing behind us.

The man at the desk looked up when we walked in, shock colouring his features when he saw the state we were in. Lyn insisted that they took a look at Michael first, who looked to be on the verge of being sick again. When asked what happened, Lyn explained it was a camping trip gone wrong. A bear attacked us, and Michael hit his head when we tried to get away. I spared a glance at Olivia, who was stoically listening to every lie Lyn gave.

Someone, a nurse I think, put him in a wheelchair and pushed him away, saying that someone would be out for us shortly. Lyn sighed in minor relief that her lie was bought, her shoulders slumping forward. She shot me a small smile with a wink, and I smiled back.

“A bear attack?” Lyn and I looked over at Olivia, who was staring at us with crossed arm disapproval.

“That’s what happened,” Lyn said mildly. I felt her tense beside me, and I unconsciously slipped my hand back into hers.

“Cut that shit, Lyndsey,” hissed Olivia. “You owe me the truth!”

Lyn scowled, her fingers curling around my hand in anger. “I don’t owe you anything, Olivia. And I’ve told you a thousand times, call me Lyn.”

“I’ll respect you once you respect me,” she snapped.

Lyn stared her down with a steady glare before turning away. “Come on, Ally,” she huffed. “Let’s go wait over there.”

I followed behind Lyn until she picked a seat far enough from her sister. She sat down heavily, wincing as she did. I sat in the seat next to her, watching her carefully. I had a feeling that Olivia was going to stick around for a bit and that Lyn wasn’t going to relax until then.

Finally, her scowl fell away, replaced by a look of guilt. She stared down at her shoes and mumbled, “Sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for?”

“I just- she’s just- ugh,” she sighed heavily. “We don’t always see eye to eye.”

“You don’t have to apologize for that, Lyn,” I said softly. She looked up from her shoes, her eyes searching for something on my face.

She settled for sighing again, this one a little less loaded. “Sorry,” she apologized again. “You don’t need this right now. Are you feeling okay? Are they going to be able to help?”

I gave a nonchalant shrug. Truth be told, I wasn’t feeling amazing or anything. My mind was filled to the brim of that horrible thing we saw, and how close it came to seriously injuring us. I stared down at her hand, tracing my finger along the veins.

Lyn didn’t say anything. She just sat there and let me distract myself until someone finally called her name, telling her she could go in. She asked if I would be okay on my own. I said yes, which wasn’t necessarily the truth, but I really wanted her to get checked on. The look on her face suggested that she didn’t exactly believe me, but she wasn’t going to fight it either. She got up and sluggishly followed the directions towards wherever she was supposed to go, leaving me alone for now.

I leaned back in the chair, trying to continue to breathe slowly through my nose. My heart was beating rapidly in my chest, and it did feel like there was a vice around my lungs, but so far, I was away from the edge. My brain was buzzing with everything, however.

The ghost in the mirror had told us that we shouldn’t have been there. Was she trying to warn us about that monster? Why did the monster look so sad? Did it have human feelings? I couldn’t help but think there was something I was missing about the encounter. It didn’t show itself immediately. It wasn’t until we were leaving that it attacked us. Was there something in the locker room that it thought we saw?

I pressed the heels of my hands into my hands, groaning quietly. This was so much at one time. Why couldn’t an answer just fall into my lap? My eyes were stinging, and I tried my hardest to not cry. Was it my fault that my friends got hurt? Was this all because I couldn’t listen to my dad? Should I just have ignored it all?

I was openly crying now, my body wracked with sobs. It just hit me how scared I was. People almost died tonight. I almost died tonight. I shuddered violently as I dug my nails into my face. I started hyperventilating as I curled into a ball.

Aloneallmyfaultwealmostdieditwasallmyfaulticantbelievehowselfishiamimsosorrymyfaultdiediesalmostdied DIE DIE DIE

Vaguely, I was aware that people were talking to me as my vision blacked out.

XXX

I opened my eyes slowly, blinking a few times. My mouth had that dry texture it got when I took my meds. I must have been given something. I let my eyes focus as I slowly breathed in and out, finding peace in the slow rhythm. I ran my tongue over my lips, trying to wet it. I glanced down and saw that they hooked me up to an IV. I pushed myself up gently, careful not to cause the IV to beep annoyingly at me.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw Lyn sitting in the chair next to my bed, sleeping. Her head was lolled to the side of her uninjured arm as she snored softly. Her ruined jacket was draped over her legs, and I could see that they covered her arm with bandages. Has she been here the whole time? I felt myself flush when I thought that, mostly in embarrassment. Surely, she didn’t?

Still, it was sweet of her to do that. I wasn’t wearing my glasses, but she was sitting close enough that she wasn’t too fuzzy. I just sat there in silence, watching her sleep. I ended up matching my breathing based on the rise and fall of hers without realizing it. Her hair was down, a sight I’ve never seen before. I never noticed how long it was, but it made sense. It usually went past her shoulders even when it was tied up high. It looked really pretty in the sunlight. Lyn was really pretty. My face burned now, my brain short-circuiting. It sort of just got stuck on that thought and didn’t move from there for a while.

Eventually, she blinked awake. I looked away awkwardly, pretending that I hadn’t been watching her sleep for the last few minutes. She yawned loudly, popping her jaw and stretching her arm, being careful of her left one.

“Morning,” she said sleepily. “How ya f-f-feeling?” she yawned again as she asked.

“I’ve been better,” I said jokingly.

She smiled in response. “That’s good to hear.” Her expression went thoughtful as she said, “I think they wanted to check on you and Michael one last time before we could go.”

“Is he okay?” I felt a pang of guilt hit me in the stomach.

“Yeah. Well, I mean, he’s totally concussed, not much they can do there,” she said with a frown. “But otherwise, he’s fine. I checked in with him before coming in here.”

“How long were you in here?”

Lyn glanced at the clock on the wall. “Dunno, probably a couple of hours. I told the nurse to let you sleep. I don’t think she was too pleased with that,” she snickered.

I giggled too, just getting caught up in her good mood. I’m not sure why she was feeling chipper this morning, all things considered. Maybe she was high on painkillers. I wondered if Olivia had left at some point, but I was hesitant to ask. Lyn must have been able to tell I was thinking though (maybe I did have a thinking face), because she titled her in head in bemusement.

“What’s on your mind, Ally?”

I frowned and shook my head. Lyn frowned too, this time getting out of her chair. She sat on the end of my bed and tapped my knee. “Come on, share.”

My hands curled the blankets up as I looked anywhere but at her. “I was just…just, um… I was just wondering if your sister was still here…?” My voice trailed off to a whisper by the time I got it all out.

“Ally, can you look at me, please?”

I looked up, my face burning with embarrassment. Lyn was watching me with a smile tugging at the corner of her lip. “I’m not angry, if that’s what you were worried about.”

“You’re not?”

“Why would I be angry with a simple question?” Lyn shook her head a little. “Ye of little faith. Sure, maybe Olivia and I don’t always get along a lot, but I think my emotions were running a little high yesterday, you know? She stayed the whole night, sleeping in her car. She’s probably waiting for us to get our asses out of here.”

Lyn looked contemplative for a minute. “I guess I do owe her some explanation though. She did drive out here and drive us here.” She ran her hand through her hair, pulling it away from her face.

I stared at the sheets. My mind was racing through some thoughts, mostly of this conversation but also what took place last night. I wasn’t sure I was ready to talk about that just yet, so I settled for this awkward conversation instead.

“Is there a reason you two don’t get along?” I asked timidly. “I mean…only if you don’t mind talking about it.”

Lyn stayed quiet for a few minutes, her jaw working soundlessly. Her hands tapped her knees before moving on to her hair, where they habitually worked it into a braid. “It’s complicated.” She said quietly, staring off.

“You don’t have to talk about it,” I said quickly. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have even asked-” Lyn reached over and put a finger against my lips.

“It’s okay,” she said. She returned back to doing the braid, though it was going slow since her was moving her arm delicately. “It’s mostly because of my parents. Olivia and Leigh, my older siblings, are kinda successful. My mum just always wanted us to be hard working and successful like she was, so we always competed to gain her good favour.” Lyn paused as she pulled her hair elastic off her wrist and tied off the end of her messy braid. “It just caused a divide between us. And I’m the youngest, so I had to pass her expectations even more because I had more to work for. Leigh always got the best grades easily and went on to get her MD, and Liv was captain of the cheerleading squad and head of the student council when she was in school. I was lot more hotheaded and got in a lot of trouble with my parents and the schools too. Mum doesn’t understand why I’m majoring in History, because according to her that’s going to take me nowhere in life. Anyway, long story short I guess, it caused a riff between us and sometimes I pick fights with them. Like, Olivia knows that how we were treated growing up wasn’t great, but she’s more willing to forgive them than I am. I was kinda worried she wasn’t even going to come and get us, honestly. But I promised that I’d go home for Thanksgiving, so I guess she stuck to her end of the deal.”

My heart just ached hearing that but seeing the defeated look of acceptance on Lyn’s face hurt even more. It was a vulnerable, open look. “Lyn…I’m so sorry, that’s awful,” I said solemnly.

She shrugged. “I mean, it is what it is, you know? Nothing can be done now, damage is done.”

“It shouldn’t be like that, though.”

Lyn gave me a knowing look. “Well, sometimes parents do things that they shouldn’t do to their children. Sometimes they push too far, sometimes they’re too protective. We just have to grow from that.”

I nodded sadly, thinking of my dad. Still, that didn’t make it okay. I wanted to say something, anything at all, but for once, I was lost for words. Lyn gave me a tight smile as she patted my knee. “Seriously, don’t worry about me. I’m okay.” She got off the bed. “I’m going to go check on Michael.”

The nurse happened to walk into the room as Lyn was leaving. I was barely listening as the nurse asked her questions, too focused on those words. Sometimes parents do things that they shouldn’t do. It was so…broken, sad.

XXX

Lyn.

Michael was mildly concussed. Ally was okay, she had been in shock last night and had a panic attack. I had to get some stiches in my arm. Overall, the damage wasn’t as bad as I thought it was. I seriously thought that crazy monster was going to kill us last night. The way Michael was lying there, the way Ally’s face was screwed up in pain from being crushed; those were haunting images. Mix it in with my already pre-existing sleeping problems and you have one pretty sleepless Lyn. Yay for trauma, eh!

I helped Michael into the backseat of my sister’s car. Like I guessed, Olivia stuck around. She even got us breakfast. We took it gratefully, and quietly ate it as we drove back to the campus. I glanced back a couple of times, but the two of them seemed okay. Pale, a little jittery, but okay.

I looked out the window as we drove. Thankfully, Olivia didn’t push me so far. That didn’t mean she wouldn’t later, but at least for now it was quiet. I could hear Ally writing behind me. She was always writing something down. I wonder if it was a coping thing for her, like exercise was for me.

Olivia drove right up to campus, as close as they would let a driver get. She pulled to a stop and looked over at me. I didn’t say anything as I got out. Ally and Michael slipped out of their doors. Michael squinted his eyes as he stood up, covering them with his hand.

“Oh my God, it’s so bright out,” he moaned.

“I wish I had sunglasses to let you borrow,” said Ally.

“I’m probably going to go vampire in my room for awhile, I think,” he said miserably.

“Vampire?” I asked confused.

“Lie in the dark and hope that someone ends my misery with a sharp piece of wood,” explained Michael. He hugged Ally goodbye and I hugged him too. He walked off as we watched him go. I felt like someone should walk him back, but he was looking a little steadier on his feet today. Hooray for modern medicine.

Once he was out of sight, I looked down at Ally. She was looking a little anxious but otherwise seemed fine. I bumped my hip against her, causing her to look up at me.

“I’m not sure what you’re worried about,” I said, “but we’re here. We’re okay. And we’re all still good looking,” I finished with a wink.

Ally snorted lightly. “God, you’re a goof.”

“Yeah, but I’m your goof.”

Ally’s face lit up as the meaning of the words hit her. “Y-y-you’re such a flirt!” she stammered in embarrassment. I laughed loudly as I ruffled her hair. It was a tension releasing laugh. I didn’t even notice how wound up I was until then.

“Yeah, I am. Sorry,” I was still grinning, not really feeling sorry at all. Ally was trying hard to look annoyed, but the corners of her mouth kept turning upwards. She ran her fingers through her hair in an attempt to comb it.

“Jeez,” she huffed. “I better go. I feel like a need a year long shower.”

“I guess you should,” my face softened. “Take care, Ally. I’ll call you later.”

“Okay.” She hesitated before going on her tiptoes and kissing my cheek. “Thanks for everything, Lyn.”

My fingers drift over the spot as my face heated up and my heart raced. “Yeah, always.”

Ally smiled at me again before turning to leave. I kept my fingers on the spot, watching her as she slowly disappeared from my sights. Damn, that was smooth. Maybe I should…?

“Adorable.”

I resisted the urge to tell Olivia to shut the fuck up, instead settling for an eyeroll. I turned around and gave her a controlled smile.

“Thanks for everything,” I said as politely as possible. “I’ll see you in a couple of days, I guess.”

Olivia raised an eyebrow at me, looking exactly like mum when she did. “I still think you owe me an explanation for what the hell actually happened to you.”

I sighed deeply through my nose as I clenched my jaw. Olivia crossed her arms, leaning against her car. It was clear that she wasn’t going anywhere. If we were similar in any way, it was that we were both stubborn as an ox.

I should just walk away; I know I should. But I also did feel a sense of guilt of keeping her out of the loop. There was just no way to explain this without sounding like a psycho. After several minutes of painfully awkward silence, I groaned as I walked over, leaning against the car too.

“I can’t really explain,” I said sullenly.

“Try me, Lynd-” Olivia caught herself, “-Lyn.”

“God, you’re so pushy,” I muttered under my breath. I ran my finger around the tip of my ear. “My friend, Jackie Park, got attacked. We were looking into it.”

Olivia looked unimpressed. “Okay? So, how did you get those nasty gashes?”

I shrugged noncommittedly. “I can’t tell you that, you wouldn’t believe me anyway. Besides, it doesn’t matter. I’m fine now.”

“You had to get stitches, for fuck’s sake,” snarked Olivia. I shrugged again, only annoying her more. “Stop being petulant!”

“I’m not being petulant!”

“You are totally being petulant!”

“You’re being petulant!”

Olivia scoffed indignantly. “Really, Lyn? That was so childish.”

I was going to snap back but I bit my tongue. There was no point in arguing further. I dropped my head and huffed. “Liv, I don’t want to fight, okay? I’m fucking tired.”

Olivia clicked her tongue but did drop it. Instead, she gestured towards the direction where Ally had gone. “Who’s she?”

I stiffened. “A friend,” I said curtly.

The way she hummed suggested that she didn’t believe me. I rolled my eyes and pushed off the car. I was ready to get out of here.

“Lyn,” Olivia said behind me. I glanced over my shoulder to see that she was looking thoughtful.

“What?”

“She seems nice,” she said tentatively, pushing her hair behind her ear.

That made me pause for a minute. I searched her face for any signs of deceit but saw none. I stuck my hands in my pocket and scuffed my shoes against the concrete. “She is,” I finally said, my voice nervous. “I like her a lot.”

Her face softened. “She’s so tiny compared to you,” she said jokingly. This wasn’t Olivia I was talking to; this was Liv. My big sister who I first came out to. Liv, who helped me get ready for my prom. The Liv who helped me move into my res because mum didn’t take time off work to help.

“Yeah, she is,” I rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly. “She’s super smart, definitely smarter than me.”

Olivia smiled, the corners of her eyes crinkling. “Well, try not to be too lame when you finally work up the courage to ask her out. Also, you’re plenty smart. Text me if you changed your mind about Thanksgiving, or if you want a ride.” She opened the driver’s door and slipped in smoothly. We waved to each other as she reversed out, and she drove off, leaving me alone.

Maybe I would go, even if I really didn’t want to. After last night, maybe it was time to mend a few of those broken bridges, just in case.

XXX

Ally.

I should have gone straight back to my room. I should have, but I didn’t.

Unconsciously, I found myself under Dahlia’s tree. I don’t know how long I was standing there for, but it must have been quite awhile. Eventually, I timidly knocked on the tree as if I was knocking on her front door.

Dahlia materialized in front of me, causing me to step back startled. She was totally more solid than last time we spoke. I could make out the features of her face. Slender face, high cheek bones with freckles splashed across them, mischievous eyes that were the green colour of the sea, hair done up in that old movie star style. Dahlia was beautiful.

“Ally,” she said brightly. “To what do I owe the honour of your visit today?”

I held my notebook up with a lopsided smile. “Questions, if you don’t mind answering.”

“Seeing as you are my only visitor, I should not be too picky about the nature of our conversations.”

I sat down, making myself comfortable. Dahlia floated down as she watched me curiously, sitting down as well. I took note of her as she did. I could see the dried blood that was splattered all over her dress, the cuts on her arms. Dahlia noticed me eying her and flicked her wrist, all of it disappearing in a blink of an eye.

“No need for that,” said Dahlia innocently. “I’m not the focus, am I? You have questions about that horrible creature, do you not?”

How did you know that? I was about to ask but stopped myself. Dahlia always knew these things, which honestly was highly suspect. I side-eyed her in suspicion before mentally shaking my head. If Dahlia wanted to kill me, she’s had plenty of chances.

I explained to her how Lyn and I (mostly Lyn) had discovered the death of Amelia Turner, but how I didn’t believe that her death matched up with what I assumed about the ghost in the locker room. Then I saw a ghost in the mirrors whose image most definitely didn’t match the one from Amelia’s obituary. I had to stop for a minute before explaining that terrifying beast that chased us down and attacked at us. I also mentioned how human its eyes looked, which Dahlia’s eyes flashed with interest as I explained it, but she never interrupted.

Pulling my knees up to my chest, I rested my chin on top of them after I was finished explaining. Dahlia hummed in consideration as she twirled her hair around her finger. Finally, she flashed a knowing smile at me.

“That wasn’t Amelia, you are right about that. Amelia died over there,” she said, pointing towards Harper Hall. I realized with a jolt that was where Michael saw the dead woman in his dream.

“Anyhow,” she continued, “I suppose I could tell you something that will help. There are two lingering attachments located in that building. However, one of them was murdered here on campus as a student, while the other one was killed just before the grand opening of this atrocious place.”

I narrowed my eyes at her. “Why can you just tell me everything?” I asked in frustration.

Dahlia gave me a lazy smirk, amusement dancing her in eyes. “Because if I did, you would stop talking to me. I’ve been quite lonely these past few decades, and it’s been lovely to speak with someone who holds a modicum of wit. Besides, if I told you everything,” her smirk grew larger as she drawled out, “you’d never learn a thing.”

“But I’m not here to learn, Dahlia!” I slammed my hands on the ground exasperated. “I’m trying to solve these murders while making sure it doesn’t happen to someone else!”

Her eyes narrowed just a fraction before she stood up. “Ally, there is no need to take that tone with me,” she said as she tilted her chin upwards. The look she had as she looked down on me was…disappointed? Maybe disapproval?

I was going to retort, but a group of students happened to walk by, so I pretended to be writing in my notebook as they passed. After they were well out of ear shot, I hissed quietly, “I’m sorry, but this is more serious than a learning experience.”

Dahlia tsked, “I understand that. However, there is a reason why I cannot tell you. You need to discover the truth yourself. You can speak with me again once you are done sulking like a child.” She was gone after that, leaving no indication that she was here at all.

I groaned, raking my hands through my hair. That didn’t go as I hoped. I should have suspected as much, since Dahlia basically has told me next to nothing this whole time. Well, that wasn’t fair, actually. She did tell me that Amelia wasn’t the one haunting the locker room. But why couldn’t she just tell me who it was? Annoyed at her and myself, I shoved all my things back in my bag and stormed back to my room. All I wanted was a hot shower and very long nap.

#unnatural affairs #ua #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #orginal work #original story #original fiction #paranormal #murder mysteries #ghosts #romance #olivia hart #dahlia cressman #tw panic attack

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