Being Human

Prologue

Everybody dies.

Actually, can I start that again?

Everyone deserves a death…

Annie looks out of the bedroom window to the street below. Two men and a woman carry their belongings into her home, and she can do nothing to stop them. Nobody can see her, nobody can hear her, and she doesn't even really exist anymore. One of the men looks up. His glasses reflecting the sunlight. She could have sworn he looked right at her, as if he could see her. But that was impossible, wasn't it? Nobody could see her. She was dead. Dead, as in, "no longer of this world," or "no longer living," or even her personal favourite "Unable to feel or move." Of course, that last one wasn't true. She could feel, and she could move. She wasn't just some mindless zombie that was unable to think, she was a ghost, the very soul that once made her human. And that's what life is all about, isn't it? Being human?

Chapter One

A pizza delivery man, around the age of 17, hops off his moped and slowly makes his way to the front door. Almost the instant after he rings the doorbell, the door flies open. The woman standing in the doorway is rather unsettling with her wide, beaming grin.

"Hello!" She greets excitedly, as if answering the door was the best part of her day.

"12 inch 'Mess of Meats'?" he asks.

From behind the woman appears a man with black, curly hair. He proceeds to scoop the pizza out of the boy's hand. He stuffs some money into his hand before retreating back behind the woman.

He goes to leave, but the curly haired woman stops him. Not used to having customers attempt small-talk, the boy attempts to answer quickly and politely so he can get back to work. Somehow the topic jumps from his job to his living arrangement. When she finally stops jabbering and shut the door, the boy can only stand there and think 'What the hell was that about?'

Annie turns triumphantly to George, Mitchell, and Marybeth in the den. They sit eating their pizza and watching the telly. Mitchell and Marybeth are snuggled on the far end with their feet propped up on the table. George would put his feet up, if there weren't dozens of tea mugs on every flat surface.

"He could see me," she brags to her flatmates.

"He could see you," respond Mitchell and Marybeth in tandem. George looks to Annie and rolls his eyes at their behaviour.

"Could you please not do that?" he asks. "You know it creeps me out when you do that." They ignore him and listen as Annie continues to go on about her encounter with the pizza man.

"Right. Who wants tea?" Annie asks.

George makes a huffing noise and looks down at his feet.

"What?" Annie asks.

"What?" George replies innocently.

"You made a huffy sound."

As soon as the words leave Annie's mouth, George is raging.

"You keep making tea! Every surface is covered with mugs of tea! I can't put my feet on the table when I watch telly! I can't go and make myself some tea! There are no mugs, there's no tea! It's all been made! And you can't even drink it! You can't drink the tea but you keep making it! It's driving me INSANE!" By the time George reaches the end of his rant, his voice is so high-pitched, Marybeth and Annie have to turn away.

"Stop it George! It makes Annie feel normal! Let her have this one thing." Marybeth chimes in.

"SHE'S A GHOST!" He shrieks.

"And you're a werewolf, Mitchell's a vampire, and I'm a witch. Does that mean we all can't be normal?" She questions.

George looks at a loss for an answer as Annie gathers up the mugs, and heads into the kitchen. Mitchell quickly looks at his watch before he stands and begins gathering his stuff for work. He gently pecks Marybeth on the lips before turning back to George.

"Come on."

The werewolf stands, pulling a sports bag off of the floor.

"You both off?" Annie asks.

"Yeah, we've got work. And it's his time of the month." Mitchell responds.

Annie steps forward in an attempt to delay their leaving a little. She starts in on a very personal rant about what it was like when it was 'her time of the month.' George looks at her awkwardly while Mitchell looks to Marybeth and giggles. After they depart, Annie gives Marybeth a questioning look.