I woke up the next morning still on the couch. I groggily looked around until I found my cell phone on the coffee table. I shut off the alarm as soon as possible. I sat up and put my feet on the floor then rubbed my hands over my face. I tried to remember what happened after I ate that awesome soup. I remembered everyone talking, and that was it. I must have passed back out. I vaguely recalled snuggling into someone's shoulder. I hope I didn’t drool on them. Those guys were incredible, and they really didn’t even know it. I wanted to do something to thank them.

I quickly made a group text asking them all for coffee orders before heading upstairs and taking a shower. I had just put on my usual black underwear and bra when my phone started vibrating. I picked it up to find the drink orders coming in. Then it occurred to me; I didn’t know where to meet them.

Alexis: Where do you guys want to meet this morning?

Miles: Where do you park? You'll need help to carry.

Alexis: I can manage, just where do you guys want to meet?

Zeke: At your locker?

Asher: How about our usual table?

Alexis: I vote table!

Isaac: Locker!

Ethan: I don’t care.

The conversation went on like that till I finally called it.

Alexis: I’m bringing coffee to the table! Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to put some pants on.

There was a long silence. I was about to put my phone down when it vibrated again.

Ethan: Beautiful wins, because she’s pantless.

Asher: Yeah, pantless girls always win.

Zeke: Agreed.

Isaac: You cheat, Red.

Miles: Ignore us and get dressed, please.

I smiled to myself and pulled on my dark boot-cut blue jeans, gray v-neck shirt, and a royal purple plaid that I left unbuttoned. I did my usual morning routine and put my hair back in a loose braid. I pulled on my jacket, making sure I had everything. I made my lunch, grabbed my bag, and was out the door early.

I picked up the coffees and was extremely grateful the coffee drive through had good holders. I was carrying in my bag and the coffee when I realized I could see my breath, it was so cold this morning. I was surprised to find Miles, Asher, and Zeke were already there at the table.

“Morning.” I put the coffees on the table and pointed out what was what.

“How are you feeling this morning?” Miles asked as he looked through the coffee’s finding his.

“I got eight hours of sleep, I’m the best ever,” I told them cheerfully. It was true; I usually never felt this good in the morning. Hell, my coffee was even decaf.

“Good, you look a lot better this morning,” Asher said as he picked up his coffee.

“Thanks for coming over to take care of me, guys.” I felt my face turn red as I kept my eyes on my coffee. “You didn’t have to, but I really appreciate it,” I forced myself to admit to them. I cleared my throat before changing the subject as fast as possible. “So, how annoying was Tara?”

Zeke and Miles chuckled. Asher groaned. I looked up to see his face pained.

“She kept trying to get Asher to talk to her,” Zeke answered me, a smirk on his face. “He answered her, but he kept his answers short.”

“Then one of us would change the subject or ask Asher something,” Miles admitted, smiling his small smile.

“I suffered for you, Ally,” Asher declared, pointing at me. I walked over and hugged him around the waist. He gave me a squeeze. Vanilla and cinnamon filled my nose.

“Hence the coffee.” I stepped back smiling. He was smiling back at me when a blur bashed into me.

“Red!” Isaac shouted as he practically tackled me. I would have fallen if it weren’t for Isaac lifting me up around the waist and swinging me in a circle. I barely managed to save my coffee. Isaac put me back down, his arms moving up to a hug. “Sorry, I wasn’t there last night. How are you feeling?”

I hugged his arm across my chest, smiling. Isaac was so sweet. Ethan strolled up at a normal pace.

“Much better, thanks.” I leaned my head back against his shoulder. “Asher was just telling me about Tara last night.” I felt Isaac laugh as he gave me a squeeze before letting go.

“Oh yeah, Tara wasn’t happy,” Ethan said as he stepped around me to grab his coffee.

“She probably thinks you're trying to steal him away, especially after you fell asleep last night,” Isaac said, smiling as he drank his coffee.

“What do you mean?” I asked, looking around the group, my heart racing. Did I say something weird in my sleep?

“After you fell asleep on the couch, you kind of ended up sleeping against Asher’s shoulder,” Miles informed me before taking a sip of his coffee. I let out the breath I had been holding. Snuggling Asher in my sleep, that I could deal with. I looked over at Asher who looked a bit uncomfortable.

“Did I drool?” I asked him seriously. A couple of them chuckled.

“No drool,” Asher assured me.

“Tara really didn’t look happy when we left,” Zeke informed me smirking.

I sighed. There was going to be backlash from this. Oh well, nothing to be done about it now.

“I’ll deal with it later.” The morning bell rang. “See you guys at lunch,” I called over my shoulder as I headed toward class.

My day went on as usual, though there were more whispers and insults as I walked through the halls today. When Chemistry was finally over, I was more than ready to call it a day.

We were talking about the chemistry test as we reached our usual table. Asher was just getting there himself.

“So how did you guys do on your tests?” Asher asked as he sat down next to Ethan on the bench to my left. Isaac sat next to me, our backs towards Jason and his friends.

“I’m sure I did alright,” Miles mumbled. Isaac laughed.

“You were done with that test in ten minutes; you spent the rest of the time rechecking everything,” Isaac said. Miles' ears went pink as he shrugged.

“How about you, Ally girl?” Asher asked, pulling out his lunch bag.

“I think I passed, and with only two days to study, I’ll take it,” I told him emphatically as I pulled out my own lunch. “In fact, I did so well I’m thinking about ditching the rest of the day. Any takers?”

“If you ditch they call your house,” Zeke announced as he dropped onto the empty bench across from us.

“Every time?”

He nodded as he pulled out his own lunch.

I cursed, it would have been nice to avoid increasingly-bitchy ghost girl today.

“You don’t want to get grounded this weekend,” Ethan informed me. “My band’s playing at Vegabond on Saturday night.”

“Vegabond?”

Ethan nodded, then seemed to realize I didn’t know what he was talking about.

“It’s a club in Dulcet that lets the 16 to 20 crowd in on Saturday night,” Ethan explained, opening his water bottle. “There isn’t much to do around here for us, so they let us in on Saturdays so we have something to do besides party. They always have live music those days.”

“Sometimes the music is pretty good,” Isaac admitted before biting into his sandwich.

It did sound like fun. Ethan leaned forward and gave me serious eye contact.

“You have to come, you don’t get a choice,” he ordered. I held back a smile.

“Of course, I’m going. I want to see your band play,” I said. I really wanted to hear that smoky voice of his sing.

“What else are we doing this weekend?” Zeke asked before biting into his sandwich.

Miles raised a finger before he finished swallowing his food.

“There’s a small meteor shower coming in tonight that I wanted to see,” Miles announced.

“Care if I come with you? I’ve never seen a meteor shower.” I said, not wanting to bother Miles.

“That’s perfect,” he told me, a small smile on his face. “Because I was going to ask to use your dock to watch it tonight.”

I smiled at him and took a drink of water.

“I’m working tonight,” Zeke announced, everyone groaned. Zeke shrugged. “If I work tonight, I’ll get tomorrow night off, and I can go to see Ethan’s band.”

“Well, that’s okay then,” Ethan said, finishing his sandwich.

“I’m working Sunday and Saturday morning,” Asher said. No one seemed to groan at this; apparently, only working nights was groan worthy.

“Where do you work?” I asked, putting my trash in my bag.

“I work at the indoor rock climbing center here in town.” Asher pointed at me. “You should come by Sunday; I’ll give you a free lesson.”

“Sounds good to me.”

“Yeah, you’ll probably end up rock climbing with us this summer anyway,” Isaac told me matter-of-factly. “Might as well start learning.”

“I’ll give it a shot.”

The guys smiled, Zeke smirked.

“The meteor shower comes in around nine tonight, so what do you guys want to do until then?” Miles asked.

“I’ll be back from the game by nine,” Asher said before taking another drink of water.

“You guys can just come over. We can watch movies and have dinner,” I suggested, putting the lid on my water bottle.

“Sounds good to me.” Miles agreed.

“Me too,” Isaac said.

“Me three.” Ethan chimed in.

Asher rolled his eyes at them before meeting mine.

“I’ll be there latish, away-game tonight.” Asher said.

“I’ll save you a plate,” I offered.

He gave me that big, handsome smile.

We went on to debate what movies to watch tonight. I was insisting on Monty Python and the Holy Grail when my cell phone rang. Curious, I pulled it out and answered.

“Hello.”

“Alexis, this is Laura,” a girl’s soft voice said in my ear.

“Hey Laura, how are you?” I asked, completely surprised by the call. I just saw her in math a couple hours ago.

“Remember when you told me to call you if Jessica Westfell went after another girl?” Laura’s voice was anxious and getting louder.

“Yeah, what’s going on?” I asked, my voice hard. The boys stopped talking, all their attention switching to me.

“She’s got a freshmen girl cornered in the bathroom. She’s just tearing into her.” Laura’s voice was getting panicky. I got up and grabbed my bag.

“Which bathroom?” I asked, swinging my bag over my shoulder.

“The girls’ out by the quad at the 200 building.” I knew that bathroom.

“I’ll be there in a second.” I hung up the phone and pointed at Asher. “Your sister’s about to get her ass kicked,” I warned him, my voice hard.

I took off at a jog, the boys caught up quickly. They had longer legs.

“What’s going on, Ally?”

I turned a corner, and ran down the hall, the boys kept pace.

“Jessica has a freshman cornered in the bathroom,” I snapped over my shoulder as we passed the 100 building.

“Is she hitting her?” Isaac asked, not even breathing hard.

“If she is, she’s going to get hit back in a minute,” I warned Asher as we reached the hallway I wanted. Laura was standing outside the bathroom door pacing. When she saw me jogging towards her, her face relaxed with relief.

“Thank God, none of the other girls will do anything! They’re just watching,” Laura yelled to me, her hands shaking.

I didn’t bother to stop jogging; I dropped my bag as I headed for the door. The bathroom was almost packed. I shoved the door open and started elbowing my way through the crowd. I wasn’t gentle about it. I finally reached the edge of the girls. Jessica towered over a girl not much bigger than me. The girl stood cornered against the wall and the closed door of the handicap stall. She was sobbing, her face red.

“You’re a complete waste of space,” Jessica sneered. “You might as well just kill yourself and get it over with.”

Oh, hell no! Furious, I strode across the bathroom and grabbed Jessica by the back of the neck. I didn’t stop moving until I had her pretty face pinned against the pink tiled wall. She tried to push off the wall, but I pressed my weight against her back, keeping her there. I took a deep breath and managed to find my calm--barely. I looked over to the crying girl and gave her a friendly smile.

“Hi Sweetie, I’m Alexis.” I kept my voice cheerful and friendly. Like I wasn’t pinning a bitch to the wall. Jessica’s hands reached back to claw at my hands; I barely noticed. “I want you to walk outside,” I told the girl. “There is a girl named Laura waiting with my five friends. I need you to tell the tall blonde guy what happened today and what Jessica said to you. Okay, sweetie?”

The girl’s eyes were wide as she nodded. She quickly grabbed her bag and hurried through the crowd and out the door. That’s when my voice changed.

“What the fuck is the matter with you people?” I shouted, anger boiling through my veins. “You just fucking stand there as she’s terrorizing someone? That’s fucked up to a level I’ve never seen.” The girls in the crowd shifted, some of them blushed, and some looked ashamed. “Get the fuck out of here!” The girls started heading out the bathroom door.

When the bathroom was empty, I turned to Jessica. “I’m going to let you go, and I’ll step away,” I told her calmly. Then I did as I said. I took a couple steps back from Jessica, staying in a defensive stance. Jessica pushed herself off the wall and turned her face red.

“You fucking bitch-”

“No honey, you’re the fucking bitch in this scenario,” I snapped, my voice hard. “You had her cornered in a bathroom telling her to kill herself.” I spelled it out clearly for her so there would be no way she couldn’t understand. “I don’t know what your fucking damage is but you need to fucking deal with it and stop taking it out on other people.” She looked at me like I was a bug under her shoe.

“It’s none of your business what I do,” she snarled, stepping up to me.

Oh yeah, this was going to get ugly. I stepped up to her until I was in her face, too; I was aching to hit her. Her eyes went wide for a second.

“You're right, it’s not, until you start taking it out on other people.” I pointed to the corner where she had the younger girl cornered. “That was sick and fucked up.” I kept eye contact with her. My voice growing hot with my temper. “You pull that shit again, we’ll be back here again. Just you and me. Do you understand?”

I waited a couple heartbeats before I stepped back and away from her, not turning my back. I needed to get away from her or I would smash her face into the mirror. Jessica laughed.

“What are you going to do? Tell everyone to find you if I misbehave?” she taunted, her voice condescending.

I smiled coldly at her.

“If I have to, yeah.” I pointed to the corner. “To prevent this type of shit, I’ll be happy to.” I turned to walk away.

I was almost to the door when she spoke up again.

“Stay the fuck away from my brother,” Jessica warned me.

I stopped and bit my lower lip trying to keep my cool. I turned back to Jessica who was still glaring at me.

“Oh yeah, speaking of your brother.” I began, my voice going cold. “If you ever hit Asher across the face again, I’ll hit you.” Her eyebrows went up in surprise. “Just so we’re clear.” The sound of the bathroom door opened; big feet moved over the tile.

“What the hell, Jess? How could you do that to someone?” Asher was yelling across the bathroom.

I turned and walked out the bathroom door, leaving Asher to deal with his sister. The boys were still waiting outside. Laura and the girl were still there. The girl had calmed down and was wiping her face with tissues. Asher’s no doubt.

“You okay?” I asked her, not quite knowing what to say. I deal with the dead not really the living.

She nodded, taking a deep breath. “Thank you.”

My face burned, and I knew the guys noticed.

“No problem.” I looked over to Laura, her arm around the girl. “Do you know who her usual targets are?”

“Yeah, she makes the rounds with the same people,” Laura informed me, adjusting her glasses.

“Can you get my number to them please?” I asked, taking the plunge. I wasn’t going to hurt Jessica unless she started hitting people. But I wasn’t going to sit idly by like those bitches in the bathroom. I fucking couldn’t.

A smile spread across Laura’s face turning her pretty again.

“Yeah, I can do that.” She looked down at the smaller girl. “Come on, I’ll take you home,” Laura said to the younger girl who just nodded, her eyes glazed over. I watched Laura walk her around the corner before going to pick up my bag.

“Lexie, you’re bleeding,” Zeke pointed out.

I looked down to see the backs of my hands covered in scratches from Jessica’s nails. I pulled out some tissues from my bag and wiped the blood away as my adrenaline rush disappeared. My hands were shaking as I tossed away the tissues. That’s when I looked up, my face still warm.

“Beautiful, we heard you yelling at those girls from out here,” Ethan began a huge smile spreading across his face. “That was awesome.”

I felt my face start to turn red.

“I really wish we had a camera in there; that would have been great to have on video.” Isaac sighed wistfully.

My face grew hotter.

“Talking to Jessica without a crowd was a great idea,” Miles said, his eyes running over me.

My face was burning as I looked around for anything else to talk about.

“You’re blushing,” Zeke stated, a grin spreading across his face. All four of them were smiling.

“Alexis blushes when someone compliments her about something she’s done,” Miles observed, his head tilting.

“Oh, a new game.” Isaac’s voice was entirely too happy about this.

“This is going to be fun,” Ethan added, his eyes sparkling.

I was saved by the bell for sixth period. I just turned and walked away, my face on fire.

The rest of school went as expected. For gym class, I didn’t bother changing in a stall again. No one really looks around in the locker anyway. It’s kind of an unspoken rule.

I was on my way to art class, grateful that without Asher or Tara here today I wouldn’t have to stop near the dead girl. Just a quick walk by; it should be a piece of cake.

I was just stepping out onto the pathway when it hit me. Pain shot through my body, sharp and stabbing in the middle of my chest. I gasped, almost stumbling. I had to stop for a minute just to get used to the feeling. My head was throbbing as I looked up. Ghost girl was standing in the middle of the path, feet apart, her head tilted. The grin on her face sent fear through me. Where the hell did she get this kind of power from? She couldn’t get this much power from pulling energy from the students at the school. So, where the fuck was she getting it from?

I started forward, her rage like a wall in front of me. I began to push through it; it was like wading through waist-deep mud. My head throbbed; I felt the blood on my lip. I pressed my tissues to my nose, my heart racing. The closer I got to her, the more she pressed in on me. Her memories started slipping through my mind threatening to push me out. Terror, raw and consuming, ripped through me. I stopped pushing; I stepped back. Then kept going. I turned away from the dead girl and got the hell out of there. I wasn’t going to make it to art class today. I couldn’t get past the dead girl without risking her jumping me.

I pulled out my cell phone and headed straight to my truck as fast as I could without drawing attention. My hand was shaking as I held the tissues to my nose.

“You should be in class,” Rory answered.

I looked behind me, checking to see if Bitch Ghost was following. She wasn’t. My heart was still racing.

“We have a fucking problem,” I snapped, my voice shaking.

“What’s wrong? What happened?” Rory demanded, his voice hard.

“Somehow ghost bitch got a whole lot of fucking juice.” I spotted my Blazer as I passed the library. “I can’t get past her to get to art class without her jumping me.”

“Get your ass home now,” Rory ordered. I reached my truck and opened the door.

“Already headed there.” I climbed in, my hands still shaking, my stomach in a knot of fear. I didn’t want to get jumped; I didn’t want to die. “I don’t know how to deal with her, Rory,” I admitted, shutting my door. I sat in my truck and was terrified for my life.

“Go home, do some research. Look for a way to...deal with the problem.”

The way he phrased it told me he wasn’t alone. I was nodding emphatically as I answered.

“Yeah, sounds good. Research. I’ll look for a way to get rid of her.” I hung up the phone, my chest tight. I knew Bitch Ghost wasn’t around, so it was all me. FUCK!

I took a deep calming breath as I buckled my seat belt. I can figure this out. Yeah, I can figure this out. I swallowed hard as I started the truck. Just because every other woman in my family died from getting jumped didn’t mean I was going to.

I pulled out onto the street and headed home. I kept taking deep meditative breaths, reminding myself to slow down and brea... stop sign! Shit, I missed it. I checked my mirrors and saw no one else on the road. Thank God. I focused completely on driving home. I made sure to stop at every stop sign; I obeyed every law.

When I pulled up to the house, I hurried. I shut off the truck, grabbed my bag, and ran to the door. When I got there, I realized I had left my keys in the truck. I growled at myself and ran back. When I finally got inside, I ran straight into the kitchen and grabbed the salt shaker. I opened it, poured it onto the counter and began to rub it onto my skin. I don’t know why I did this. I wasn’t being possessed or jumped. But I wanted the salt on me anyway. I slipped some into all my jean pockets. I sprinkled some in my hair, even went so far as to slip a little in the cups of my bra.

Once I knew I was covered, I finally started to calm down. Taking deep calming breaths, I just pushed the rest of the salt from the counter into the trash and then put the lid back on the shaker. I walked back to the door, my mind a bit clearer now that I was calming down. I grabbed my bags and headed up to my room. I dropped my stuff and started my computer. Still taking deep calming breaths. As soon as I could, I started looking for ways to get rid of a ghost in a public space.

It was a couple of hours later when I heard someone knocking on the door. Curious, I went downstairs and answered. Miles, Isaac, and Ethan were all standing there, their arms full of stuff. Shit, I had totally forgotten that the guys were coming over.

“Hey Beautiful, will you please tell my brother he's a tool?” Ethan asked as he walked into the house with a guitar case across his back. Isaac was a step behind him with plastic grocery bags and video games in his hands.

“Red wouldn’t do that would you, Red?” Isaac asked, heading towards the couch.

“You’re a tool,” I announced, smirking. Ethan and Miles burst out laughing.

I looked at Ethan. “Why is he a tool?”

Miles stepped into the house, a brown cardboard box in his arms

“Because he still listens to country music,” Ethan replied, looking at his brother like Isaac had disappointed him. I laughed as I closed the door. When I turned around, Miles’ gaze ran over my face.

“Are you alright, Alexis?" he asked. “You look paler than usual.”

“Oh, yeah, I just had to kill a spider upstairs.” I lied, hoping they’d buy the girly thing.

“You're afraid of spiders?” Isaac asked, his face stunned. “I thought you didn’t scare easy, Red.”

I ignored Isaac and tried to look into the box Miles was holding.

“What did you bring?” I asked.

Miles tilted the box, so I could see inside. I saw wires and controllers.

“A PS4, we’re gaming tonight.” Miles smiled at me before heading to the TV to set it up.

Video games? I never really played them before. But if that was what the guys wanted to do, I’d give it a shot.

An hour later… Oh my, God, this is so fucking awesome! How the hell didn’t I know how fun video games were? I was so focused on making my character beat Isaac’s to a pulp that I didn’t notice when Rory came home.

“Lexie!” Rory’s shout finally got my attention.

I looked up at him, cringing. My character promptly died on screen. Isaac raised his arms in victory.

“Hell yeah!” Isaac shouted.

“You technically didn’t win, Rory got her attention. So, no win,” Miles informed us.

I looked at Isaac and taunted him. “Ha Ha.”

I turned back to Rory who had an odd look on his face; it was half angry and half ‘what am I going to do with you?’ look. It was an odd look.

I got to my feet and handed my controller to Ethan. “I’ve got something for you upstairs, Rory.”

He nodded, his eyes on the boy's playing their game.

I stepped around Miles and headed upstairs. I went to my desk and tapped my computer to get it to wake up. Rory closed the door behind me. I tucked one leg under me and sat down in my desk chair. “Okay, I’ve found a couple things that might get rid of Bitch Ghost.” I showed him the store I found online. “Something called tar water. It’s supposed to pretty much keep malevolent spirits or things away.” I turned back to Rory who sat on my bed. “But it’s back ordered for two months, at least. Apparently, the tar this person uses isn’t that easy to get anymore.”

Rory pulled out his wallet and handed me a credit card.

“Order it anyway. That will come in handy.”

I quickly ordered the tar-water and handed the credit card back. “The second thing is really just information.” I turned towards him again. “I came across a website about natural barriers, which everyone has. It basically says the more energy thrown at you, the more these barriers degrade.” I shook my head, I wasn't even sure I was getting accurate information. “From that, I had a thought. What if Bitch Ghost isn’t getting more juice? But it just seems like it because my barriers are degrading?” It made sense to me, but I really needed a second opinion.

Rory thought about it for a few moments.

“That sounds possible,” he agreed as he narrowed his eyes at me. “What can you do to get your barriers back up?”

I shrugged; he wasn’t going to like it.

“Pretty much stay away from anything that can throw energy at me.” I sighed. “I have to stay away from her for a while. Which shouldn’t be hard since it’s the weekend. If I can stay away from the dead for a couple days, it should help bring up my barriers.” I hope. I wasn’t a hundred percent on it. But it’s the only thing I’ve found so far. Rory looked me in the eye, his face stern. “No dead this weekend. You hear me? I don’t care if they are in the house,” he ordered. “No dead. Understand?”

I nodded. “I understand.” Then pushed my luck a bit. “Can I still hang out with the guys? Ethan’s band is playing in Dulcet tomorrow night. And Asher wanted to give me a rock climbing lesson at that indoor center on 5th.” I gave him my sweetest, please let me do this face.

Rory snorted.

“Yes, but you see a ghost, you go the other way,” he declared.

I saluted him.

“Aye, aye, Captain.”

He shook his, head laughing. “You’re such a smart-ass.”

A couple hours later, Rory was out picking up dinner from the local Italian restaurant when I gave up trying to beat Miles at the racing game. I went to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water and noticed Ethan out back on the patio. He had his guitar out and looked to be writing down notes. Curious, I grabbed a couple water bottles and slipped out back. Oh, it was chilly out here. Ethan didn’t seem to notice it as he frowned down at his notebook, bobbing his head to notes only he could hear. I smiled, watching his mouth moving, singing silently. I stepped into his view, and his head snapped up. His chocolate eyes found me as he gave me a half grin.

“Caught me, huh?” Ethan sighed, putting his guitar on the seat next to him. I walked over and handed him a bottle of water.

“Do you ever stop working?” I asked, sitting down across the patio coffee table from him. He shook his head.

“On music? Never. You can always do better.” He leaned forward one elbow on his knee as he reached for his notebook.

“What are you working on?” I asked, leaning forward, trying to take a peek. He snatched his notebook up fast.

“Just some song,” he mumbled, his cheeks tinting pink.

I smiled; it was so cute when the guys blushed.

“It’s not really that good,” he said.

I settled into the corner of the patio sofa, making myself comfy.

“How long have you been working on it?”

Ethan opened his bottle of water and took a drink before answering.

“Six months,” he told me, looking everywhere but at me. Some of his hair came out from behind his ear, hiding one eye from me.

I raised an eyebrow at him. Six months and he was still working on it?

“Can I hear it?”

He looked up at me with a deer-in--headlights look on his face. He swallowed hard. I had never seen Ethan look insecure about something, but I was sure I was seeing it now.

“I still don’t think it’s very good,” he said, shaking his head. It was strange seeing him like this, he always seemed so confident. Then again, everyone had something that meant a lot to them. I had my art, and Ethan apparently had his music.

“Are you nervous about tomorrow night?” I asked before taking a drink of my water.

He nodded, his gaze on the patio cement. “Yeah, it’s our first ‘bigger than what we’ve been playing’ venue,” Ethan admitted as he began to twirl one of his silver rings. “There’s a lot riding on tomorrow.” He licked his lips as he looked out at the water again. He was really anxious.

“Are you playing your band's songs or covers?” I asked, hoping that if I got him talking, he’d relax enough to tell me about his music.

He looked back over at me that half smile on his face.

“We’re still doing covers, some Breaking Benjamin, some Seether, some other hard rock.” His eyes started to sparkle a little. “It depends on where we are playing, really. Eventually, we’ll figure out our own music, but for now...” he said with a shrug. As he kept talking he got more animated, his eyes lit up, and his face relaxed. It made me want to hear more.

“Tell me about your band.”

That was all it took.

He told me about his band mates, what they each had a talent for. Ethan’s was guitar and singing. I could see that with just his speaking voice. He was worried about writing songs, even though they were still playing covers. We talked about all of it. And through every word and gesture, I saw how much he truly loved music. How passionate he was about the right tone for a song, the right notes.

When he finally relaxed enough, I asked him, “Can you play something for me? A cover you guys play?” I didn’t really want to wait until tomorrow to hear him sing.

“Beautiful…” he began, groaning.

“I’m going to hear you tomorrow anyway.” I shrugged and looked out at the water, acting like I wasn’t as interested as I was. He thought about it for a few heartbeats then sighed. He reached over and picked up his guitar.

“One song.” He told me firmly, his cheeks turning pink.

He settled and took a deep breath, his eyes on the table between us. He started playing. I recognized this song; Breaking Benjamin’s Give Me a Sign. I was smiling as he played. Then he sang, and my mouth dropped. I barely managed to cover it by playing with my lower lip. His voice was amazing. That smooth, smoky voice went a little low, rolling over my ears and making my toes actually curl. He slowed the tempo down by just half a beat so he could use his voice in the best way.

I won’t lie; his singing mesmerized me. All I could do was sit and listen. When he was done he put his guitar back in the case, his face was red as he avoided looking at me. I closed my mouth and dropped my hand.

“Ethan.” My voice was soft simply because I was still trying to think after hearing him sing.

Ethan finally looked over to me. His body tense again.

“You could sing the worst songs ever written.” I said, “and they will line up around the block to hear you sing it.” I met those warm eyes and told him the truth. “Ethan, your voice is fucking toe-curling. You’re going to make it in music with a band or without. It doesn’t matter.”

Ethan smiled at me a little uncertainly. “You really think so?”

I nodded emphatically. “Oh yeah. You’re going to be phenomenal.” I took a deep drink to cover how much that voice had affected me. Seriously, I wanted to roll around in silk sheets with that voice.

“Thanks, Beautiful.” Ethan’s voice was steady again, sounding more like himself. “I really needed to hear that today.”

“I will listen to you sing anytime,” I assured. I let him get back to work, then headed inside to try again at beating Miles.

When Rory came back, everyone came to the table to eat. I got tense when Isaac went to use the saltshaker and found it empty. Rory shot me a knowing look. I played it off as one of those things that just happens. Everyone bought it, and the conversation went on as usual.

Miles told Rory about the meteor shower tonight. How he hoped Rory wouldn’t mind if we used the dock out back to watch it. Rory smiled and told him to come over anytime. Tara called Rory asking to spend the night at a friend’s house. Rory said yes. Soon after, I got a text from Asher. He was going to take a shower before coming over because he, and I quote, ‘stinks to high heaven.’

We were playing video games again, this time with Rory taking a turn, when Zeke texted Isaac to bring him food at work. I made Zeke up a plate, and the twins headed off to deliver.

It was getting close to nine when Miles and I headed out to the back and sat on the dock. Asher had finally made it over. Apparently, they won the game. Rory was asking Asher about it as he ate the dinner I kept for him. So, it was just Miles and me out on the dock looking up at the sky. It was freezing; I could see my breath. I really needed to start wearing hoodies under my leather jacket. I was sitting with my head tilted up, looking at the stars when Miles broke the silence.

“Do you know anything about astronomy?” he asked. His fingers started tapping in that staccato rhythm against the dock. Poor Miles, he always seemed so uncomfortable around me.

“I know our solar system, and that our galaxy is called the Milky Way. I know what a light year is,” I began, searching my brain for any information. “And that there are other galaxies out there. That’s about it.”

“It’s pretty cool if you think about it,” he began, his voice warming from polite to friendly. “Our galaxy is one million light years across, and we have photos that prove there are other galaxies out there.” I saw him adjust his glasses out of the corner of my eye. “The closest galaxy is Andromeda, and that is 2.5 million light years away.”

I whistled.

“That’s big.” I said.

He chuckled. “It’s enormous; the space out there could be infinite,” he said. I looked over at him to see him smiling; he kept looking up as he lifted his hand. He held his forefinger and thumb barely apart. “And we’re just this little dot in all of that.”

I looked back up at the sky trying to imagine all that distance out there.

“That sounds really lonely when you think about it,” I admitted quietly. Getting a crick in my neck, I laid down on the dock. I crossed my arms under my head.

“Well, statistically, there has to be other life out there somewhere.” Miles shrugged. “It’s probably really, really far away, but it’s probable.”

We were quiet for a while as I thought about that. More life out there, a different species of thinking beings. And probably more dead to see. I smiled at myself, imagining trying to move on an alien's soul.

Miles gave up and lay down next to me on the dock, tucking one arm behind his head.

“Did you know,” he said, “that since the stars are so far away, that by the time the light reaches us the star has been dead for years?” Mile’s soft voice turned silky, I’d never heard his voice like this before. It was soothing, and at the same time made me want to bite my lip. Yeah, a good voice does something for me, so sue me.

I was thinking about what he said, though, all those stars out there were dead?

“Well, when you say it like that, it’s not so pretty anymore,” I said, my voice quiet.

“Why’s that?”

“It kind of takes something away from it. Knowing that they’re dead.” I kept my voice soft, not really knowing why.

“Nothing lasts forever, Alexis,” he told me softly.

“Don’t I know it,” I whispered under my breath, looking at a big clump of stars across the sky.

“What do you mean?”

There was something about Miles and that voice; he soothed something ragged inside me. I felt calm, peaceful, laying here next to him on the dock. It’s the only reason I answered at all.

“People.” I licked my lips. “People don’t last forever. They either die or just leave.”

We were quiet for a while.

“Does that take away from the time you had with them?” he asked, his voice still a silky timber.

“Doesn’t it? You know it’s going to end, so what's the point if it’s not going to last?” I had to bite my tongue to keep control of the emotions this conversation was bringing to the surface.

“Just because something will end, doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it while it lasts, Alexis.” Miles gestured toward the stars. “Most, if not all, of those stars are already dead. Does that mean I shouldn't look at them? That I shouldn’t enjoy the fact they existed?”

I don’t think we were talking about the stars anymore. I was fighting back tears, so I bit down on my bottom lip hard. It didn’t work.

He continued. “If I did that, then those stars would have lived and died without anyone appreciating them.” He sighed. “And that would be a travesty.”

We laid there quietly as I thought about what he said. I was expecting the guys to leave me if--or when--they found out about the Sight. I worried about it every night before I went to sleep. It was in the back of my mind when I was with them. It shadowed everything we did together, all the fun we had together. It was always there. Maybe Miles was right. Yeah, the guys might bail on me in the end. But that didn’t mean I couldn’t enjoy their friendships while I had them, I just couldn’t let them in too far.

I gave Miles a small nudge in the arm with my elbow.

“You’re pretty smart, you know that?” I kept my voice light and soft. I saw him smile out of the corner of my eye.

“Book smart, yes, but people smart? Not always.” He scratched his nose. “That perspective just sounded very familiar to me.”

“Who did you get your answer from?” I asked, looking over at him.

He smiled a bit. “Several Psychology textbooks,” he admitted, his ears getting pink. I chuckled quietly as I looked back up at the sky. I felt him shrug next to me. “A friend was having a hard time, and I needed some way to help.”

“You went and found one.”

“Yes.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “There is usually an answer out there to any question you could have. You just have to know how to find them, or where to find them.”

I smiled to myself.

“So you memorized the textbooks?”

He snorted. “Not intentionally,” he said, his voice still silky soft as it slid through my ear. “If I read something or see something, I can just remember it perfectly.”

“A photographic memory?”

“For places and things, yes. For books, if I read them, I remember every word and can access that information at any time.” His voice lowered to a whisper, “It’s kind of weird.”

I felt a large chunk of the wall around my heart crumble as I smiled to myself. Miles didn’t know what weird was.

“Not weird, Miles. Unique,” I whispered back to him. “You are unique, and that’s not a bad thing in a world full of carbon copies.”

We were quiet for a while.

“Thank you, Lexie.”

“Thank you, Miles.”

We were still laying there in comfortable silence when the back door opened. I didn’t bother sitting up to see who it was. Big feet walking on the dock made the planks move underneath me. I knew it was the guys.

“Did we miss it?” Isaac asked, sitting down behind us.

“Not yet, it’s not an exact science with meteor showers,” Miles said as he lifted his arm and checked his watch. “They should be getting close, though.”

Someone sat behind me. I tilted my head to see Asher upside down. I gave him a smile then looked back up at the sky. It wasn’t long before his fingers began playing with my hair. I smiled, knowing it was Asher. A streak of light ran across the sky.

“Here we go,” Miles announced.

I kept my eyes on the sky as I blew into my hands.

“Where are your gloves, Beautiful?” Ethan asked from behind Asher.

“I didn’t know I needed to have any,” I answered honestly. I was from California--this was winter weather to me, not fall.

“I’m buying you some gloves.” Ethan sighed.

I smiled to myself as I watched more lights streak across the sky. I knew hanging out with the guys would end, but I decided to enjoy it while it lasted. We sat there in silence watching the meteor shower late into the night.