Chapter 3

I finally escaped the prison bars of school. I avoided SeƱorita Marshina all day, I didn't want another episode of Spanish class. When I got home, mom was sitting at the kitchen table, reading a book. I finally decided to confront her. She looked up at me from her book, and started to speak. "Jaz." She said. "Before, I tell you anything, I need to know." She turned and looked out of the window. There I saw a ghost man, just floating, hovering in the air.

"You can see them too?" I asked her.

"Yes, I'm guessing you can too." I nodded.

"So can Sean."

"So can your father."

"But why did you have to know before you told me?"

"Well." She started. "You see..."

"I told her everything." I said into the phone.

"Everything?" Jesse asked.

"Everything."

"Why?"

"Because, she can see, them. Jesse she can see ghosts. She's a mediator. And so's Sean."

"Wow."

"Yes, I know. I'll talk to you more at home. When do you finish work?"

"I'm going in with my last patient now."

"Ok. See you soon. I love you."

"I love you to Suze. Bye." I hung up the phone. I turned to Jasmine.

"Mom." She said. "This is all, a little unbelievable."

"I know." I replied. "Here, follow me. Let me show you something." I brought her into mine and Jesse's room and opened the drawer on my bedside table. I ventured inside and stuck my hand right in the back, I grabbed on to a small wooden box. I took it out and showed it to Jasmine.

"Open it." I said. She opened the box and pulled out the contents, a small portrait of her father. From around 200 years ago. Her mouth shot open, like she was going to say something, but no words came out. I walked to the closet and opened the door, I reached to the top shelf and pulled out another box. I opened that and laid out Jesse's puffy, white shirt that he wore that night. She looked at the shirt and nodded.

"Wow." She said quietly.

"Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to Jaz and Seanie! Happy Birthday to you!" Sang our parents as Sean and I blew out the candles on our joint birthday cake. Mom picked up the cake and put it on the counter. My dad walked out of the kitchen and came back with a two wrapped presents. One was huge, in the shape of a surfboard.

"MY SURFBOARD!" Shouted Sean and he immediately grabbed it and started ripping the paper off. It was blue and green, a proper board. I waited for him to finish before I got to my present. My dad handed me a wrapped box. I opened it and looked inside. It it was a locket. A beautiful gold locket. It had a cursive J on it in silver and it had diamonds around the edges.

"It's beautiful." I said. I put it on. I looked inside it and saw... My family. All of us. A little miniature portrait of all of us. I loved it.

We all had a slice of cake and mom was cleaning up the plates and putting them in the dishwasher. Sean had gone to surf and dad went to the hospital to get some charts. So it was just mom and me.

"So." She said. "Seen any ghosts lately?"

"Um, yeah. In Spanish."

"Really?"

"Yeah, she had really old clothes on, like western clothes, you know? From like 200 years ago or something. She looked kind of familiar. But I couldn't place where I'd seen her before."

"Hmm. Well. If you want to know more, try staying after class or something, talk to her. Alone."

"Ok. Thanks mom."

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