Mirror // Van McCann

25. The Letter

"The thing I want to show you is downstairs," Van explained, peeling himself off his desk and walking out of the room. I followed him silently wondering what it is he wants to show me. We were laughing earlier but when he brought up wanting to show me something, his demeanor changed to something serious which made me on edge. Now my mind was thinking of the worst case scenarios.

We walked into the kitchen where he opened a drawer to pull out a white envelope. He pulled the letter out and opened it up for me to read.

Hi,

I forgot your name but I saw you with Jess a few weeks back. I've been meaning to talk to you but can never seem to catch you. I've been asking around and someone told me you lived here, so that's how I found you. I hope you don't mind.

I was wondering if you know where Jess is? I've been looking for her for ages but can't seem to find her. I'd like to talk to her since we were friends in our previous life. I'm still new to this world and have so many questions to ask her. Any bit of info will help. I'm at 2741 Heron Drive. Thanks in advance!

Adam

I glanced up at Van nervously. What I was reading was still not sinking in. Why was he looking for me?

"I found it in our mailbox when I came back from Bondy's. I was actually surprised because we don't get mail that often," Van began, hoping to get me to talk. "I don't know if this letter is addressed to me or Amy."

"It's addressed to Amy," I said in a small voice. I could see that Van had so many questions to ask me.

"Is this the same Adam we attended the funeral for?" he asked. I nodded. "When did you see him?"

I opened my mouth to answer but stopped myself. The day I saw Adam was the day I came over here on my own, crying. My grandma didn't recognize me and cried out for help. I was told to go home so I crossed over hoping to find Van or Amy, but I found neither so I wandered to the park. I found Natalie but no signs of Van or Amy, so I walked back and that was when I saw Adam. Luckily Amy saw me and saved me from the awkward encounter. Amy knows what happened but I don't think Van does. Based on all the questions he's asking, I don't think Amy ever told him.

"Has Amy seen this yet?" I asked.

"No, I haven't had the chance to show her yet," Van answered. "When did you see Adam?" he repeated.

"I went to visit my grandma after I got my haircut and the visit didn't go well. She didn't recognize me and thought I was going to hurt her so she cried for help. A nurse came, assessed the situation, and told me to go home. I was a mess that day. I couldn't stop crying because it hurt so much that my grandma thought I was going to hurt her. I had to talk to someone about it and my first thought was to talk to you and Amy, so I crossed over early. Neither of you were home so I thought I'd go to the park thinking you'd be there but you weren't. I saw Natalie though," I said, looking at Van. "I figured finding the two of you was a lost cause so I decided to head back. On my way back, I came across Adam. We were surprised to see each other. That was the first time I realized he actually passed away. The last time I saw him, he was in a coma. The encounter was uncomfortable. Amy happened to see us and she got me out of there."

I could tell Van was upset. He opened and closed this mouth, wanting to say what was on his mind but thought against it. After a while, he finally spoke.

"You crossed over on your own and left the house to look for us?" he asked, eyes wide. Afraid to answer, I just nodded. "Do you know how dangerous that is? Amy and I weren't there to protect you. Something—anything could've happened to you and we wouldn't even know!"