The Medium Kid

Chapter 76

The next day at college, Koda's eyes followed his art teacher, who he now had to try and remember was his grandmother. Alfie had laughed his question off about who the Grim Reaper dressed up as for Halloween. Koda was tempted to ask, but he thought he might get the same reaction.

"Don't," Alfie murmured. He was leaning so close to his drawing his nose almost touched the paper. "She'll embarrass you."

"I want to know," Koda said, tapping the table with his pencil. "It's a logical thing to ask."

Alfie stopped and looked him up and down. "Sure."

Koda nudged him with a grin. "It is!"

"What is?" a voice asked and Koda jumped. Miss Pecan startled him often. Koda tried to avoid her but catch her attention at the same time. Now, he often wanted to speak to her, though he was too nervous.

"I have a question," Koda said, and Alfie shook his head, but had sat up to catch their teacher's response. "Do you dress up for Halloween?"

Miss Pecan peered at him from over her glasses. For a moment, Koda thought she would laugh at him, but she merely crossed her arms with a smile. "I don't dress up, because my Death face is scarier than any nightmare. You'll see it if you don't get on with your work. Chop chop."

Alfie watched her glide away, trying to imagine what the face of the Reaper looked like. He wanted to see it while Koda shuddering at the thought.

"Something tells me that she'll be a strict grandma," Alfie said chuckling at Koda's disturbed expression. He leaned back over his work, continuing his portrait of Mister Dorinto.

"I should talk to my dad tonight about meeting with her and trying to sort it out as a family," Koda said, still tapping his pencil against the table. "Also, I think I'll wait until dad has sorted out his medium stuff before giving anyone my mums soul," Koda remembered to keep his voice down. "I bet it'll do my dad good to help her cross over. Maybe he'll be able to see her again."

"I think it'll take your dad a while to find his mediumship again. Are you okay with carrying Enya's soul until he's ready?"

Koda nodded. "I would keep her soul forever if I could."

Alfie squeezed Koda's forearm and shifted his seat closer. He rested against Koda, feeling the hint of Enya's soul within him. "I'm so glad you're the one holding her now. She's happy."

"I know." Koda coiled his arm around Alfie's waist and kissed his temple. He could always feel the glares from his ex-friends group. It was comical to him that they were still so caught up on his time with Alfie. Koda realised how boring their lives must be to spend all their time obsessed with hurting others.

After a while of drawing, Alfie kept drifting back into his natural state of mind where he hated college, thought about ghosts, his clients, and Koda. It was as if there weren't secret tunnels underneath the college that experimented on those who had close connections with the Grim Reaper. It was as if he hadn't seen Enya's body lying on a metal slab, connected to machines that controlled the whereabouts of her soul.

Alfie's life was returning to normal, though this time, he wasn't so alone.

* * * * *

After college, Koda went home to pack a new sleepover bag. When he entered his house, for the first time in a long time, Koda didn't feel like the happiness was sucked out of him. Koda didn't want to leave so that he could avoid his father's hateful attitude. Koda was glad that he could hear his dad's voice, and he looked forward to talking with him.

Koda entered the living room and stopped before he made himself visible. Morlen and Connor were sitting next to each other on the couch with a row of crystals on the table and a bunch of other items relating to mediumship. Koda had seen some of them in Alfie's office, but he couldn't name any of them.