ꜱᴡᴇᴇᴛ ʜᴏᴍᴇ ⇴ ᴛᴠᴅ ² ✓

thirteen

Billie's intuition led to the pair walking leisurely down a deserted country road, stars twinkling down from the cloudless sky to light their way where streetlights had faded out. Billie found herself having to stir into reality quite often, realising that Mickey was indeed a ghost, and always would be.

Perhaps it wasn't so smart of her to get so closely acquainted, when she knew the woman was dead. From what she had found, Mickey was only at the fresh age of twenty three when she died horrifically. She'd been pulled out of college in her senior year, mere weeks away from becoming the first African American woman to graduate with a degree in law from Stanford. 

"In my time, I was mocked by my professors for even attempting the bar exam. I'd only been accepted in the first place because of pressure on universities for their 'lack of diversity'. No one expected me to get far." She'd said, pride in her strong voice, confidence in her graceful strides. 

Billie found herself looking up to the woman walking beside her, respect instilled in her tired bones for Mickey as she filled her in on her life. Her head fell in sadness as she was hit with a realisation. "I'll never get to college... will I?" 

Mickey pursed her lips softly, clasping her hands behind her back, unaccustomed to providing comfort, or receiving any. "Not likely..." 

"But you will receive an education... just not the one you thought you would." Billie looked to her with a frowned brow, silently asking for elaboration. Mickey met her eyes for a moment, clearing her throat before continuing.

"You'll learn about what really matters. About how to make difficult choices. Things you could never learn in a lecture hall." Billie tugged her sleeves over her cold fingers. 

"Which is better... is entirely up to you." 

Billie soaked in her wise words, contemplating the haggard nature of her future. She wished Mickey could stay with her longer. She wished she could pick up the phone and call Bonnie, plead with her not to send the ghosts away. But how selfish was that? 

Harper sniffed as quietly as she could, tilting her head up to the dark sky to prevent her tears from falling. She wished for so many things these days. That Mickey could stay behind and finally live her dream in a modern world. That her parents could finally love her and let her back into their home, and that Alex could have lived, even if it was to be with somebody else. She wanted Georgie to be able to live her life happily, without having to worry about a reckless teenager who showed up unexpectedly on her front doorstep one Thursday afternoon.

Billie wanted her friends to finally find some peace, that they could exist comfortably without this crazy world trying to kill them at every turn of the road. "I don't want you to go Mickey." She let slip her words quietly, not even realising they had left her lips.

The dark woman sighed with a soft look in her old eyes, observing the sombre expression of her successor with regret. "To be honest, I'm not so sure I want to go either, but we don't always get to choose our fates."

She smiled earnestly and Billie looked up to her with red brimmed eyes. "You'll find your way, Billie." Mickey spoke with such sure conviction because she did in fact speak from experience. "We all do."

The ghost suddenly halted in her stride and the clairvoyant turned to look at her in confusion. Mickey looked longingly to the sky for a long moment, a whisper of sadness lacing her once merry smile. Billie frowned, waiting for her to explain before she realised all too suddenly.

"Mickey-" 

"It's alright, Billie." She interrupted her curtly, holding out a hand to calm her down, the small gesture chipping away at her resolve that the woman was so resigned to her lonely fate. "I'm glad we got a chance to meet..."