Ghost In Red

---    

Did she just come out of the closet? No way!    

Gay. She's gay? She’s gay. Oh, my gay!    

Right now, I just don’t know what to say.    

Does this mean… I… We... Could be… Oh, Sydney. She can finally be my baby!    

“What the heck did you just say to your homies? Were you trying to say that you… you like girls? You’re gay?” I asked her to confirm it as we stepped into her room, and she sat on her bed. She didn't say a word and just went to lie on her back.    

“C'mon, Syd! Answer me! What the hell was that?” I asked her again when she acted like she didn't hear me.    

“What do you think?” She finally said something, and I went near her and sat cross-legged on her bed.    

“Well, I… I think you are fruity as hell. I knew it. I f*cking knew it! Damn! Sydney… You. Are. Gay! And… You like… me, don’t you?” I answered cheerily, and she snapped her head to look at me with her priceless shocked face.    

“What! No! No. No. No. It doesn't mean that I'm gay I like every girl I see, alright? You get it? I… I have a---” She retorted with a blushing face, and I cut her off, saying, “You mean, you don’t like me? Like… the like-like thing? Why not?”    

She seemed frozen and blinked her eyes while looking at me in surprise.    

“Well… why would I?” She asked with confidence, and I rubbed my chin and tried to think of the reason why she would like me. I mean, am I not likable? Hmm?    

“Because… you don’t hate me? You said it yourself. And you cared for me. And I am… your soulmate. And we belong together. And I am… I like you. Yeah, that’s it, Syd. And… Well, that’s a lot of ands already, but well, I'm not going to play coy. I want to be honest with you about what I feel for you, what I want to be, and what I want to do. And I’m serious about what I have been asking you. Can you finally give me an answer?” I replied with all my truth and asked, and she sat up and tried to read my face. She shouldn't dare ignore me again.    

“And what have you been asking me?” She asked me obliviously, and I just groaned in response. “You really love to make fun of me, don't you?”    

She showed me a smirk and stood up from the bed, and she headed to the closet.    

“Oh, come on, Sydney Roswell! You really love messing up with my feelings. Just say yes already. Are you forgetting that I haven’t forgiven you for treating me like sh*t back at the pawnshop?” I blurted out, making her look back at me, and I sat at the edge of her bed.    

She crossed her arms on her chest, and I crossed mine, too. If she’s trying to dominate, oh, she knows I don’t give a damn and let her win.    

Then she answered after taking a deep breath, “Why, Oj? Why do you want to be my girlfriend? Ghost girlfriend, to be exact, huh? Why?”    

“Ugh, I have already told you that, Syd. Do you want me to enumerate them again? I want you to know that I can do it all night and day. Mhmm.” I answered, and she pursed her lips together and nodded her head.    

“And what made you think that I want you to be my girlfriend?” She asked me another vexing question, and I stood up to get near her, making her step back a little. Yes, fear me, dear.    

“You don't want to be messing up with this ghost. And you absolutely know what I'm capable of doing, biatch. I could be so annoying. Well, why would I think you like me? Easy. I can feel it. Your friends could see that you like me, too. I know you believe that we are soulmates. And I know you like me. Very sure.” I asserted, and I pouted my lips when she went laughing out loud.    

What the hell? This girl… Ugh!    

“You are so funny, OJ Hunters. Keep doing that. I love the optimism you are showing me right now.” She uttered after she had composed herself, and I waited for anything else she would say about us, but there was none.    

“And…? Are you not answering me, still, Sydney? I am not joking around here. Why are you always this rude to me, huh? Tsk! F*ck! Why am I even pushing myself to you? I’m so pathetic. Well, you know what? Forget about it.” I dismissed and cursed myself. Oh, I know this is going nowhere. F*ck her!    

“Hey, it’s not like that. Listen, Oj. I just… I…” She paused and sighed, then she looked me in the eyes. “Live, and I’ll give you the answer.”    

“What difference would it make if you answer me now or later, Syd? If it’s a yes, then I’d be glad, and if it’s a no, then… I can’t do anything about it. But the sh*tty part is that you have let me wait and rejected me. And what if… What if I don’t have that chance to live?” I asked her, and she closed her eyes and combed her blonde hair with her left fingers. I could feel she’s frustrated, and well, so do I.    

“Here you are being pessimistic again.” She remarked, and I scoffed, hearing her reply.    

“I’m not being negative here. I'm just trying to state a possibility. I mean… I have less than ten days. What if I am really meant to die after those days, Syd? What would---” I exclaimed, and she didn’t let me finish.    

“You are not going to die! Let’s just… Ugh, let’s stop this already. We have better things to do than argue. I’ll pack my things." She belted and turned her back on me, and she opened her closet. Is she mad? Whatever!    

I let out a deep sigh, and I didn't know what to think anymore. I guess asking her as such is never a good idea.    

"Fine. Never mind the ridiculous question I asked you, Sydney Roswell. I'm just trying to mess up with you." I said a big damn lie with a heavy heart, and I walked away from her and went to the window to clear my mind.    

Damn, I didn't just get turned down by this b*tch. It hurts. Yes, it does. It's even more hurting than knowing that my exes cheated on me before.    

Now, I badly want to cry, but I can't. I hate this feeling. I hate her. I hate her for rejecting my affection towards her. She's the worst!    

I looked out the window and saw the starry sky smiling at me, but all I felt was crushed deep inside. And instead of bawling my eyes out, which I can't do, I began singing to express what I felt.    

"~It's a heartache. ~Nothing but a heartache. ~Hits you when it's too late. ~Hits you when you're down. ~It's a fool's game. ~Nothing but...." I stopped when I looked behind me to find the girl who had broken my heart, but I saw she was not there to hear my sadness.    

I wondered if she had gone inside the bathroom. And no, I will not dare check if she's really in there.    

---    

The night went on that we had not spoken even a word to each other, and she went to sleep after double-checking the things she would bring with her tomorrow for our trip to Chicago.    

Midnight had passed, and I didn't want to close my eyes for a long time. I am scared that I can't come back here if darkness consumes me.    

I am fine doing nothing but wandering inside Sydney's room and house. I have even gone to the Yorks and found one interesting thing there. It's just my dearest friend, Grace Thales, is having a sleepover at her girlfriend's place. Mhmm. No, I guess there are no steamy moments that happened between them as there are lots of open books and notebooks on Emma's bed and floor in her room. I'm pretty sure they studied together. Indeed, they are so cute.    

Oh, I wish Syd and I could be… no, that girl has a stone heart. She certainly is that Ice Queen that many boys and girls swoon over, yet no one has ever gotten her interest. But if it's true that she would give me a positive answer if I could live, then maybe it's worth the wait. I better live.    

I went back to my fussy, moody Sydney's room and found she was sleeping soundly, and I sat near her on the bed to observe her features closely. No, I'm not planning anything naughty against her right now, okay?    

It's dark, and I can barely see her face. So, I reached for the lamp switch on her nightstand to turn it on nonchalantly, and I smiled when I could finally see Sydney's face a bit clearer. But the shock came rushing in me when I realized the lamp was lit.    

How in the world did… that happen? I looked at my hands and the lamp and back to my hands.    

I never thought it would work!    

Out of curiosity, I touched the switch again and found it wasn't even switched on. But why did the light come on? Amazing!    

I tried to turn off the lamp, and surprisingly, it did turn off.    

This is a wonderful discovery! I could do what other ghosts could do, which is playing with the lights! Oh, this is another good news aside from being captured by cameras. We could have more chances that if we could find my mom, she would believe us and help. I know she won't let me die.    

Oh, should I tell Syd about this? No, she needs to rest. Maybe tomorrow when she wakes up.    

---    

A few hours have passed, and it's only a matter of two hours before morning comes. But I have grown so bored and anxious at the same time.    

What if Syd would continue ignoring me and would not talk to me? What would happen to us? What should I say to her? Ugh, this is so hard!    

As I kept contemplating what to say and how I should act if Syd would finally wake up, I kept walking, floating back and forth, and I sometimes sat and lay on the bed or the couch.    

I laid on my back beside Sydney, and I took a deep breath to keep calm and focused my gaze on the ceiling.    

I shouldn't overthink anything about us. There is no us yet. Haha, funny.    

Why would I worry about what would happen to us? It's just going to be just like the regular days—the usual.    

No, I better stop thinking about her. But no, she's so damn fine, and I am so... I like her.    

What I noticed lately when I heard from that fortune-teller that we are soulmates is that my feelings for her deepen. I could feel we really are a thing. Damn, right? I'm ridiculous. No, that woman was ridiculous for telling us as such! It's not true. Yes, it's not true. I just feel like this because… because I like Sydney the way she is, the way she would do so many risky things just to help me, the way she tells me something to lift the negativity I feel, and a lot more amazing things. She's amazing. And I am so… Nah, this is going way too out of point.    

As I kept staring at the ceiling, my eyes got glued to a particular spot where there was something like a square-shaped print near one corner here. And I presume that it is the door to get into the attic. Yeah, the attic, Sydney's attic.    

Why don't I go up there and find out what her loft looks like? Hmm, roaches? F*ck them! They can't hurt me nor scare the sh*t out of me. I'm a ghost! They should be the ones who should get scared of me!    

Instead of wondering what I could find in the attic, I finally went to check it out myself, and I levitated to get there. Then I tried to find a light switch to see things clearer.    

When I had finally turned on the light, I looked around and got no other word to explain what I saw up here.    

"Wow!"