"Just a little...bit...more..."
Erin Gilbert took a step back to admire her handiwork.
To be fair, it was not her best poster work. Her nose was slightly too far to the right, and her eyebrows were just a touch too close to her hairline. Nonetheless, this one was not graffitied... yet. Hopefully her choice of school cafeteria would prevent that from happening again.
Her nose scrunched slightly as she reread her slogan: Say yes to Gilbert for Junior Class Treasurer.
Also not her best work. Say yes to Gilbert? She was better than that.
Picking up her lunch bag and backpack from the floor beside her, Erin made her way back to her favorite table in the corner of her cafeteria. As she took her seat, she couldn't help but rub her eyes.
Making the poster had taken until at least eleven the previous night, but that wasn't the source of her drowsiness. It had instead been her own insistence to read the story of the Dudley Chatham murders knowning full well the address at which they had been committed was only a few streets from her own.
I'm not scared of them, she thought to herself as she pulled out a bedraggled copy of The Time Machine and her PB and J. I just want to see a ghost is all. Yeah. That's it.
"Question" a voice said somewhere above Erin's head. "Why is yours the only poster handing up?"
Before she could open her mouth, a girl with dark hair and glasses sat down beside her.
"Wha-"
"Why is yours the only poster hanging up?" the girl pressed.
"Um. Well... technically we haven't even chosen names for the ballot yet. That's on Friday. I just want people to know that I want to be on it..." Erin's voice faded off.
The other girl considered her for a moment and then nodded.
"Okay."
"That's it? Okay?" Erin's brow furrowed.
"Is there something else you want the people to know?" the girl said, raising an eyebrow. Erin shook her head. "Is there something you want me to know?"
Erin shook her head again.
"Is there something you want to know?"
"Yes. Who exactly are you?"
The girl stared for a second, and then let out a laugh.
"Abby. Abby Yates," the girl replied, extending her hand. "Sorry. I kind of got swept away for a second. Forgot to introduce myself."
"Are you new here? I've never seen you before," Erin said, adjusting the cover on her book.
"Yeah. My parents and I moved to the city from Akron," Abby said. At Erin's blank stare she added "Ohio. Where they make tires."
They sat in silence for a few more minutes. Erin pretended to read her book, but the presence of someone at her table made it less appealing. She could feel her face grow warm as she realized she should probably talk to this girl, to Abby. Reading the book might come off as rude.
Erin glanced over the top of the book. Abby seemed to be focused on analyzing a glob of grey goop on her lunch tray.
"Any idea what this is? It sort of looks like meat, but I think I see a leaf? I can't really tell. The leaf is definitely not green, which is disconcerting,: Abby looked up and smiled. "Hey. The Time Machine. I've read that. You like it?"
"Uh yeah. I've read it before. I'm just reading it again to brush up before I write my Lit essay. It's been a while," Erin took a deep breath. "It's not as interesting as the last thing I read, but it's certainly a good read."
"What was the last thing you read?" Abby asked, her head turning slightly.
Fuck.
"Just a murder...mystery. Yeah. I murder mystery, uh, novel that I picked up from the library," Erin's face burned. She took another breath. "No that's a lie. It was a true crime story. About the Dudley Chatham murders."
"Oh that's much cooler than The Time Machine," Abby said excitedly. She scooted her chair a few inches so she was closer to Erin. "What happened?"
"Well the guy, Dudley Chatham, thought his wife was cheating on him. So he got drunk one night, and ended up stabbing her sixteen times. One for every year of their marriage. Then he did the same with his four daughters, their wounded equalling the number of years they had been alive. Twelve, nine, five, and four."
"Ugh," Abby made a face.
Erin's heart plummeted.
Fuck. I've screwed it up already. God Erin what a idiotic move. You know you don't bring up ghost stories ten minutes in.
Erin turned slightly away from Abby. Tears were welling in her eyes, but she dared not show it. She'd already messed this much up. If Abby was going to turn on her, she couldn't give her ammunition to do so.
"So then what happened?"
Erin looked up, her heart picking up speed.
"What?"
"So? What happened after he killed them?" Abby looked right into Erin's eyes.
"Well, uh, he turned himself in. But supposely, uh," Erin's heart was now racing so fast, she felt a little light-headed. "Well, supposedly, there have been reports of...ghostly behavior around the site where the murder was committed. Sounds, footsteps. That sort of thing."
Erin watched Abby, sure Abby could see her heart pounding through her blouse.
To Erin's delight, Abby grinned widely.
"That is awesome. Where is it? Is it close by?"
"A few streets from my house actually," Erin said in a soft voice as her heart regained it's normal rhythm (surely to the pleasure of her doctor).
But before Abby could reply, a bell rang signaling the end of lunch.
"Oh darn," Abby said as she rose from the table. "I'd love to hear more but I've gotta run to biology, I think. What about you?"
Erin held up her book. Abby nodded.
"To bad. Well, I guess I'll see you around then, Ghost Girl," Abby said happily. She winked at Erin before turning on her heel and dissappearing into the crowd of students.
Erin waved, a smile breaking out over her face. Relief swept over her as she too grabbed up her things to leave for class. Well, it washed over most of her.
At the nickname Abby had said, there had been a pang in Erin's chest. Abby had said it so jovially, without any knowledge of what it meant to Erin or the other kids at the school. Of course, she had clearly meant nothing by it. Yet...
Just as the thought had begun to fade, an arm flew out and gripped Erin hard around the shoulders.
"Did I just hear the new girl call you Ghost Girl?" a tall boy with a Yankees cap in backwards said as he squeezed Erin against him. "Already? Well, well, well. This'll be fun won't it?"
"Derek, she doesn't kn-"
"Oh I'm sure she doesn't know, but we do, don't we guys?" the boy Derek said as a group of students came up behind the pair of them. "It's only a matter of time before she learns too, though."
He squeezed her hard again and then released her.
"See you around, Ghost Girl," Derek called. As his friends laughed loudly, he winked.
Erin turned to exit through the back door, willing with all her might not to start tearing up again. The presence of Derek and his goons had quashed the small glimmer of hope that Abby had renewed inside her. A hope (she felt stupid even thinking it) that maybe something about this year would be different.