Cinderella's Ghost

Chapter 5: The Other Him

Chapter 5

The rest of the night passed by rather peacefully. My shouting fit had served its purpose, much to my satisfaction, and I could tell Jarell had done a great deal of thinking. Nobody made the move to speak. Instead, we both sat there in silence, and while I did break it when I had to revise out loud, Jarell ignored me easily. Since we weren't even considered acquaintances, keeping the silence fit me fine, so long as he did something and not stare off into space. Was I being too harsh on someone who had almost just died? Probably. But neither of us was happy with each other's company, so why not try to solve the mystery as soon as we could, right?

I waited, still, for his reply, but none came even as I finished showering (I made him promise he won't peep). I sat on my bed cross-legged, my thick, butterscotch brown hair hanging wet and heavy from my scalp, as I twirled the rose around, finally having the time to think...

The second petal had almost become entirely gold. Just what did this mean? I had a sudden inkling of some sort, but with no proper evidence, I thought I'd leave it until tomorrow when I got to see if another day meant another petal turned gold. But if this flower counted down the time, then...

"Hey."

Jarell's voice pulled me from my thoughts. He looked tons better than he did earlier, more determined and confident, but the conversation we had wasn't nearly enough. He still needed that one push to help him buck up. I leaned forward, curious to know what that was.

"I want to visit me."

~*

It was no longer as lonely walking to classes, along the school corridors and to the canteen for lunch, because I finally had a companion after so long – even though that companion was a ghost. The thing was, I didn't really know how to feel. I shouldn't feel lighter. What with the circumstances, it was like both of us were walking side by side because we were forced to do so. How could anyone feel happy about walking with someone not of their own free will? Yet, I did feel quite a rush. I must have yearned for this more than I'd thought. What was more, we could hardly dare to speak with one another – for me, at least, since I'd look like a complete lunatic speaking to myself all the time, so I didn't know where that feeling came from. It was strange. Jarell did try to annoy me, though, by moving in front of me, making me skid to a stop more often than not; sometimes even letting someone walk through him on purpose.

Adding on to that, I was more than happy to go through with my second day of peace. Lilla and friends were all still busy basking in the attention, looking as though they were at a funeral. Some teachers were even sympathetic enough to let them off the hook when they were caught gazing off into space, clearly not listening, but there were other stricter ones who berated them. When people from other classes asked if Jarell was doing okay in the hospital, they put up a sad smile, saying, "Yes." when I knew all too well that they hadn't been anywhere close to the hospital. They'd spoken nothing of it during breakfast this morning. Seeing them as how they were at home had made Jarell's eyebrows shoot all the way up, too, even though it was his second time seeing it. Besides that, I couldn't tell if he was affected by the twins' lack of interest towards his condition.

When school ended, I left quickly. If we were going to the hospital, it had to be fast. Although Fridays usually led to earlier dismissal times (fortunate for my class), I didn't want to have to rush through the tiring-enough house chores just so I could have time to revise tonight. I didn't think I'd have the energy to, by the time.

So off we went to Glenys Hospital. It was a forty-five minutes bus ride from school. We went straight to the ICU and asked for Jarell Anderson. Taking note of my uniform, the nurse at the counter understood who I was – a friend from school who was here to visit.