It's Different When You Are Dead

By: Wee-hoo

Summary: Thomas is in the shadows.

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or anything about the show.

We see a lonely woman sitting by a desk sorting through some files. Every once in awhile she puts down the files and stretches out the knots in her back, which makes her hair flow over her graceful shoulders and thanks to a lot of hair products it falls back to it's original position. She glances to a photo on her desk and her eyes almost fills with tears but she shakes her head and goes back to the files with a tired sigh. She looks at one of the files especially and looks disturbed. Finally she walks up clearly annoyed and storms out of her office and we can clearly hear her heels click against the cold hard floor.

The woman is called Miss Parker; she works in this cold dark place known as the Centre. The picture on her desk is of her mother who died when Miss Parker was very young. In some ways the little girl who lost her mother never disappeared even though the woman never admits it still hurts to not know why her mother had to die. She is desperately trying to find what could have happened but it's not easy when you have a job in the one place that is filled with secrets. When as a girl Miss Parker met a young boy named Jarod she had no idea that several years later she would chase him all around the world.

The sweet young girl that is still mourning her mother is also the beautiful lethal lady you just saw leave her office. But don't believe everything you hear because this lady is the most loving, caring person there is you just have to earn her trust. And trust me that isn't easy. I know because it took me forever. Oh maybe I should introduce myself. I am Thomas Gates and I love Miss Parker more than anything and she eventually loved me. And she works hard to find my killer.

Miss Parker has a twin brother. He is a scary character but I know now that I am dead that it is all a façade. Just like my loves. As dead I have the luxury of being near the one I love, I share this space with her mother. At one time when Catherine would check on her son I followed her. What I saw made me change the way I felt about him.

The infamous Mr. Lyle was having a nightmare and Catherine let me see what he saw. Lyle was thrown into a small dark shed with all kind of tools in it and I heard the lock being clasped on so that there was no escape. He tried to throw himself on the door and he hit it with his fists but he knew better than to scream. His fists started to bleed and he gave up and cleared a small spot on the dirty floor to sit on. He placed himself there and lit a little candle stump to see what time it was when he had he blew out the candle knowing he'll need it later. He cried himself to sleep on the cold hard floor. But the dream didn't stop there. Next thing I know there was another young boy screaming and young Lyle wakes up with a start. He utters a name I think it was Jimmy but I'm not sure. Anyway he gets up and starts to pound the door again Jimmy comes running towards him and manage to get the door open. Lyle thanks him and they starts to run to school when they hear a man screaming to young Lyle that he will pay.

Lyle wakes up with a start and I am abruptly thrown out of his dream. I look at Catherine who has tears in her eyes. We can hear Lyle mumble angry words and than he gets up and takes out a bottle of scotch and a glass. He places the two items on a table and sits down with a heavy sigh. He fills the glass to the edge and down it goes. He soon forgets about the glass and drinks straight from the bottle. When the bottle is empty he manages to get up on shaky feet and gets another one and starts all over again.

I sadly shake my head at the sight and Catherine touches his head with a soft hand. He looks towards her and asks why she keeps coming back. She answers that she needs to take care of her children and watch over them. He laughs and says he doesn't deserve it, that he is useless and a piece of trash. Catherine watches him carefully and asks if he has done was she asked of him even though she knows he didn't. He doesn't even try to lie he just shakes his head. He says he tried, she knows that to. He asks who else saw his dream and I am surprised that he knew. He answers his own question and asks if it was me. Catherine asks me to come forward with a wave of her hand and I join her.

Lyle asks me who killed me so he can fix some reliable facts to hide in a file in the Centre computer for Miss Parker to find. I give him nothing. I say I don't know and truth be told I don't. He gives a nod and mumbles something about it being to easy. Catherine tells him she has to leave and says she'll be back tomorrow and he answers that he'll be there. Catherine and I leave to check on Miss Parker again before we go back to heaven.

I look at her still form and as she wakes up and sees me she gasps. I tell her that I never wanted to leave her but that I had to in order to set her life straight. She looks confused and I say that I understand her confusion. I even tell her that I can't help her with finding my murderer but I can give her a clue about her mothers. I say that she is on the wrong path and to look into her family tree and that all isn't as she thinks. She wants to ask me more, I can see that so I give her a blow kiss and say that I love her and I leave. Sadly enough I leave forever. I know I can't let her see me anymore because she has to forget me to restore the order it was supposed to have been. But I can still watch in the shadows and dream that it could have been me.

The End