06

-9 Years ago-

« Pleaaaaase ? » The man asked, hands folded in front of him as he bowed his balding head.

Darren gripped his books a little more tightly, regretting ever looking at this man. This ghost had been following him around all day. Unfortunately Darren had mistaken the spirit for a new teacher since he was not quite able to tell the difference between the living and the dead yet.

« She’s gonna look at me weird. » He glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one could overhear.

« I just need you to tell her and then I’ll leave. That’s it. Just a few simple words and I’ll be gone, I swear ! » The ghost pleaded desperately.

Darren didn’t know who this man was, but he was somehow connected to the school librarian. There was something he claimed she needed to find and Darren was the only person who could relay the message for him.

It’s not that Darren didn’t want to help the spirit, it was just that he was often made fun of for his odd behavior, such as talking to himself or relaying cryptic messages. Unfortunately if he didn’t do as this guy asked, he was sure to haunt him for the rest of the school year.

Glancing up and down the hall, he gave a quick nod towards the man who ‘whooped’ in glee as the teen quickly scurried towards the library. Inside, he found Ms. Powers on a stepping stool, carefully organizing the books on the shelf above her. He approached her and stood silently, not quite able to work up the nerve to speak.

« What are you doing ? » The ghost asked, exasperated. « She’s right there ! Just say it ! »

Darren shook his head, his cheeks blushing furiously as he quickly lost his nerve to address the woman. He was about to forget the whole thing and leave when she stepped down and smiled at him.

« Yes ? » She asked, her mousy brown hair perfectly framing her face. « Is there something I can help you find ? »

« Do it. » The ghost urged.

Darren just stared at her, his mouth flapping open and closed as he failed to cough up the words. She waited patiently, but her smile soon began to falter as his ridiculous display carried on for far too long. Then, he finally blurted out what the spirit wanted him to say. « The papers are in the match box behind the unicorn ! »

The woman raised her eyebrows in surprise, but before she could even ask what the teen meant, he lost his nerve and bolted out of the library. The ghost followed close behind with a big grin on his face.

« Thank you ! » The man hollered after him.

« Go away ! You promised ! » Darrin spun on his heel, pure embarrassment painting his cheeks red. A normal person could probably have tapped on the woman’s shoulder and explained that they had a message for her. Unfortunately Darren had a terrible social phobia that made him unable to speak up properly around anyone but his parents.

Luckily that started to change after he began seeing ghosts. Thanks to his frequent run in’s with the dead, he found himself forced to face his fears and was slowly coming out of his shell. Had this ghost made such a request a year ago, Darren would never have even made it into the library.

« You screaming at the walls again, Schitzo Freak ? » Came an uncomfortably familiar voice.

Turning, Darren realized he had stomped his way towards the gymnasium and had failed to notice the pool of kids stepping into the hallway for break. Three of them began approaching him.

Quickly he tried to turn before they caught up, but found his escape already cut off by a fourth person.

Jasper’s gang.

« I was talking to you ! » Jasper snapped as he crossed his arms and stood before the pitiful twig of a teen. He was a full head taller than Darren was, and much more lean.

Darren kept his eyes averted like the counselor suggested.

« Hey, look at me when I’m talking to you ! » The larger teen grabbed his shirt and pulled him forward, forcing Darren to look into the jerks bright green eyes. « Or are you going to keep ignoring me like usual ? »

« I bet he was talking to the walls again. » A red head by the name of Jacob Dobbs chirped up from the gang.

« Nah. Just himself. » A second gang buddy joined in. He was behind Darren though so he wasn’t sure exactly who it was. « The guy’s got no friends so he was probably feeling lonely or some shit. »

« Is that it ? » Jasper asked curiously as he stared Darren down a little more closely, then dropped him back onto the ground where Darren’s legs buckled, sending him flat on his ass. « You know we can fix that right ? How about you be our friend ? » His smile widened. « Just be our little errand boy and do stuff for us. You’ll never have to talk to chairs again. »

« Nice ! » One of his goons grinned. « I always wondered what it’d be like to have a slave. »

The group began to cackle evilly as Jasper tilted his head down at the unfortunate teen. Then he kneeled until he was eye level with him. « What do you say ? » He reached out and began patting Darren’s head like a dog. Darren glanced at him for just a moment, then averted his eyes again and stared intently at the tiled floors. Jasper’s amused grin faltered and he genuinely frowned at the teens silent rejection.

« What are you guys doing ? » The gym teacher, a burly round man who had no business teaching fitness, emerged from the gymnasium and blew his whistle. « Break it up ! »

The group immediately dispersed, and Jasper gave one last strange look towards Darren before following them.

Darren waited until the footsteps faded before even attempting to stand. Once back on his feet, the man’s ghost hovered beside him. Having finished his business, the ghost began to slowly fade out of existence as his last words echoed in the teens ears. « What an asshole… »

-Present day-

« See any here ? » Sophie asked desperately as they circled the playground for the millionth time.

The sun was beginning to set and Darren was quickly growing exhausted by this monotonous routine. His aunt had insisted they visit all the last known places that the kids were seen in case there were any ghosts, but so far they’ve had no luck.

« Again, no. » He grumbled, leaning his head against the window, half asleep. He had made the mistake of explaining how ghosts could appear and disappear between moments, meaning that just because a ghost wasn’t visible now, didn’t mean they wouldn’t be there later.

His aunt kept glancing out the window like she would somehow obtain the ability to see the dead as well if she kept trying, and it was all Darren could do not to roll his eyes at her. Eventually she realized it was getting too dark out to continue and finally headed back home. Once they arrived, he grabbed his luggage and carried it to the upstairs guest room where he flopped face down on the bed.

The Rogue’s Collar pinched his neck as it stuck to his skin, so he tried digging a finger under the leather. It didn’t help make it any more comfortable though, so he unclasped it. Jasper was far away anyways, so it wasn’t like he had to SLEEP in the damn thing.

Setting it down on the bedside table, he laid back with his eyes closed only to be suddenly bombarded by a second presence.

This wasn’t like any presence he’d ever felt before. Somehow he could tell it wasn’t a spirit, but a living person. Someone who was all the way on the other side of town. But wait, how the hell was he able to tell that ?

Suddenly the presence seemed to take on a life of it’s own as it focused on him, honing in on his location.

Quickly he snatched up the collar and put it back on. As soon as he did, the presence disappeared.

Jasper.

Darren sat up and mulled over what just happened. Somehow, despite being so far away, they were still able to detect one another, which shouldn’t be possible ! The mating bond was nothing more than pheromones after all, so as long as they weren’t within sniffing distance, they shouldn’t be feeling any sort of pull.