So here I was, on my own and trying to find my calling in life. "Go to college," my mother had drilled through my head as a teenager. "You'll be able to raise a good family and have a much better life that way." But college was never for me. I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life, but going to college where drinking nights always took place, parting in-between exams, and rolling my eyes at all the idiotic and desperate guys who wanted to flirt with me wasn't something I wanted to do. Besides, I wouldn't know where to start in college. Of course they had the option of being undeclared until I figured it out, but I had a feeling I would never figure it out.

I was reaching my late twenties, still single and having no plans to change that. I had met a few guys, but it never went anywhere. Maybe I just wasn't willing to trust, but it didn't matter. Guys weren't worth it.

But last week I heard some news that changed my whole perception of my life. Not because it changed my life or gave me insight I never had before, but it gave me new hope.

My mother came to visit me, and she seemed distressed. "What's wrong?" I asked her.

She seemed lost for words. I was thinking she was going to have another talk with me about how my life was going nowhere and I was nearly thirty with no children or even a boyfriend for that matter. I heard that often enough. But today she seemed upset for a different reason.

I pushed my long, dark hair behind my ear. My hair was about the only part of me I liked, because my skin was fair from fair and it was very pale. If I didn't know any better I would say I was related to a clan of vampires somewhere down the line. But I had hazel eyes, and I supposed vampires had red. When I motioned this to my mother she just shook her head at me. She never was good with getting jokes and hated it when I "disgraced the family line."

"Your grandmother has been ill for a very long time," she sighed.

I nodded, not understanding why she was upset. This wasn't news. She had been ill for many years. I thought we were over this now. She even told us she knew she would die soon and we shouldn't mourn for her because she would be in a better place. Why was this suddenly getting to her so hard?

"It's alright, mother," I told her as I put my hand on top of hers. "Remember what she said about her being in a better place. Soon she'll be out of her suffering. And she's lived a long, good life. It's a miracle she's lived this long."

"I know she said that, and she is out of her suffering."

I stared at her for a while, trying to comprehend what she was saying. "You mean… she's gone?"

"I'm afraid so," she said as she wiped away a tear. "She died last week. I suppose she's in a better place."

"How come I wasn't informed of this?"

"I didn't want to worry you, dear. It's been hard for all of us, and since I've heard I've been really busy and trying to do what I can. I haven't had the time or thought about it for that matter."

"Well, when's the funeral?"

She sighed. "That's the thing. Your grandmother was a very interesting person." Yeah, interesting was a good word to use to describe my grandmother. "She didn't want a funeral. She stated in her will that she wanted no funeral because she didn't want people to join together to mourn for her when she was in a better place. She also said she wanted to be cremated and then she wanted the ashes buried in the backyard behind her house so she could remain with the memories of the house forever. You knew she was always fond of that old house."

I nodded, finding that a little weird. I felt bad for whoever had to live there. Knowing you were walking on a dead person, even if it wasn't their actual body, was just weird.

"Well, that's interesting. Why do I care? I'll miss grams terribly, but we all need to move on with our lives. That's what she would have wanted. Why do you think she didn't want the funeral?"

She sighed. "Your heart has turned cold, Taylor," she told me with a look. Well, she told me that often enough. I blew it off like it was nothing. "If anyone could learn a lesson from grams, it's you. You still dwell on your father."

"I didn't even know the guy," I mumbled.

"Well, don't end up like him. He had major commitment issues which is why you grew up without a father. You're going down his same road."

"I don't sleep with every person I meet," I said in defense.

She shook her head at me, looking annoyed I had even brought that up. "I came here to talk about your grandma's will. But if you're not interested I can leave."

"What did it say?" I asked, not really caring since I was sure I wasn't getting much, if anything. She didn't really like me. She was just like my mother; complaining I was going nowhere with my life and I would never change at this rate.

"She left you a little something that surprised us all."

"Really?" I asked as I nearly spilled the coffee I was holding. "What did she leave me?"

She seemed to be thinking about how to reply, like it upset her. Then she finally replied, "The house."

I stared at her for a while. Now I understood why she seemed upset. My mother kind of had a history. She lived on the street for the longest time because my grandmother didn't care enough to help her. Once she did get back on her feet she lived with my aunt for a while, but they never got along. She then fell for my father only to discover he loved her sister and was engaged to yet another woman, loving her for her father's money. But she ended up with me, and my father never cared enough to be a part of my life. I supposed she was bitter my grandmother left the house to me when she felt she should have got it, being everything that she went through.

"I don't want it," I told her quickly. "I know you want it, and you can have it. It's not mine and it never was. I don't want it anyway. I bet her spirit still haunts the place."

She sighed. "This isn't about me, Taylor. Your grandmother had her reasons for giving it to you, and I have a house now. You need it more than I do. I would needed her help then, not now."

"What's her reasoning?" I asked, a bit afraid.

"She wants you to marry and have a family. I suppose she thinks moving back to Pleasantview with a nice house with accomplish that."

I shook my head. I should have known. "Well, that's never going to happen. You can have the house. I'm perfectly happy right here."

She shook her head. "Then sell the place, because it's yours. I'm not going to go against your grandmother's wishes. And to be honest I hope you don't sell it, because I'm hoping maybe her intentions were right. I lived there for many years, and I loved the place. There are so many good people who live there. You need to find something to do with your life, Taylor, and staying here is accomplishing nothing. It's time for a change in scenery."

She got up, leaving me to chew on that. "I have to go. I love you and I'll see you later."

I watched her walk out the door and then I looked down at my old table. I lived in a small and run-down apartment. I could really use a change of scenery. My landlord was very mean and my neighbors weren't much better. But then there was this little voice at the back of my head that said, "But HE lives there."

I knew exactly who HE was. My mother hadn't spoken to him in many years, and I hadn't seen him since I was a teenager. He came to wish me a happy sixteenth birthday. He stayed for a total of two hours and then was gone again. I hadn't seen him since. I didn't want to see him at that. But I spent my early childhood in Pleasantview. Maybe moving there wouldn't be so bad.