"I was fifteen at the time. My grandpa had been going off his rocker lately, but my parents and I didn't pay any mind to it and sent him to the doctor to get pills. They always threatened to put him in a home, but I hated that idea. I was closer to him than my dad ever was.
"As a child, Abe would tell me these... these stories, all about his life before moving to America. I was awestruck at the time. He had pictures, too. Levitating girls and skinny boys who could lift entire boulders over their heads. A guy with bugs inside of him and invisible boys and one boy who made living dolls. It was all so amazing to a five-year-old.
"And then there was their headmistress, 'a wise old bird who smoked a pipe', he told me. And they lived on an island where the sun shone every day and it never rained and they all ate like kings at every meal. It seemed like paradise for a kid who'd never left Sarasota County.
"It wasn't until I was older that I realized that this place wasn't a paradise, but a nightmare. When I was seven or eight he told me how they were actually trapped on the island by terrifying monsters that smelled like rotten fish and had several black tentacles instead of a tongue. Every time he told me these things, he would add a horrifying new detail.
"Then he told me that after he left at the age of sixteen, he went to fight the monsters that kept them in captivity for so long. I thought he was a hero, but when I started boasting about my epic grandpa at school, I was called Fairy Boy. It was stupid, and that day after school I told Abe that I didn't believe in his stories anymore.
"The night of his death, I got a phone call at work. I worked at Smart Aid back then, too, by the way. He wanted the key to his gun cabinet, but I thought he was being delusional. He kept claiming that they were after him! They were after him! but I didn't believe him. After work, I went with Ricky to see him, make sure he was alright and all. Well, what I saw when we showed up fueled my nightmares for months."
"His entire house was a wreck. It was obvious that he had put up a fight against whatever it was. The long scratches in the back door's screen were the 'proof' that wild dogs got him, and the trail of blood lead in into the woods behind his house seemed to confirm it even more. But that wasn't the case at all.
"I found his body nearly torn apart in a clearing. I distinctly remember what he told me. It's stayed with me since then, in either dream or nightmare form. Usually, it's nightmares, though. 'Find the bird. In the loop. On the other side of the old man's grave. September third, 1940'. It was terrifying to hear it coming from him in such a shaken up state.
"After that, I had nightmares so bad I had depression and anxiety and insomnia. My mom made me see a counselor, Doctor Ainsley. She was nice enough, and after seeing her for a while I was almost back to normal. It's been four months since I've last seen her. But the nightmares still come sometimes. There's no way to stop them forever. But I've really been trying."It had been almost a week since I'd thought about Abe, but then you showed up at Smart Aid this morning and honestly, for a moment I hated you. But I just... I had to know what was up with you. I guess I'm just a curious person. And that's it, I guess."
All I could do was stare at Jacob. He had been so raw and open, tears were streaming down his cheeks, and yet he said the whole story as if it was nothing. I crouched down to his level before sitting down next to him and wrapping him in a warm, comforting hug. I was half expecting him to scoot away, but he stayed.
Finally, I was able to muster up something to say. "Wow."
"Man, Ghost Girl, I can't handle all these questions at once, slow down." His laugh was supposed to be happy, but instead, it came out strained. He tried a sarcastic smirk that only came off as a sad half smile.
"Well, I do have a question. And a comment."
"Comment first?" He asked, seeming to lighten up a bit. I smiled sympathetically at him before nodding.
"This entire time, Abe hasn't shown up once. I think he might be more connected to you than his grave. That happens, you know. And, question, I suppose this is what you were talking about when you mentioned 'what you saw that night'?"
"Y-yeah. I... what time is it? I left my phone in the car." I checked my watch since I'd left behind my phone to charge at the motel.
"Quarter-to-seven," I stated. "Time to go?"
"Yeah, I have to be back home by seven. And I'm a little tired." I nodded at his reasoning, but an idea came to mind.
"Well, hey, you just talked about some pretty deep shit. Maybe we can convince your parents to let you stay out until nine? It is summer, anyway, so it's not like it's a school night or whatever. We can get Ricky and Elaina and go to the beach or something." Jacob's smile in response told me that it was a welcome proposition. "Shall we get going, then?"
It wasn't until we'd been on the road for a good five minutes before another thought came to me. "Hey, Jake? Back at the cafe, Abe told me that we were like him... what word did he- peculiar. We're peculiar, like him. Maybe the other kids he talked about when you were little were peculiar as well? Their headmistress, too."
"That's a good thought, but I already know they are." I looked at him, confusion written across my face. He definitely left something out of his story.
"What do you mean?" I asked, and without hesitation, he replied - it was like he was waiting for me to ask.
"My birthday after he died, my Aunt Susie gave me a book she found at his house addressed to me when she and my dad were clearing it out. There was a letter inside for him from the headmistress of the island orphanage he was at. I put it away som-"
"Island orphanage? Come on, Jacob, how much of this story did you forget to tell me?" I cut off, not trying to hide the fact that I was annoyed.
"Well, sorry I was trying to keep it short. But, yeah. It was mentioned in the letter, although I had a hunch. And until you confirmed that the monsters were probably real, I'd always thought they were using another name for the Nazis." He responded so casually I wanted to punch him. Why didn't he say so in the first place?
I opened my mouth to sass him - what else was he hiding from the story? - but instead, a different question came out. "Why do you trust me?" Jake looked at me with confusion. "Yeah, I mean, you didn't believe your grandpa when he talked about this, so why me?"
"I don't know," he shrugged before turning onto a road with huge yet identical houses. Was one of these his? "There's just something about you, I guess. It's been two years, and suddenly this is a big, flashing, neon sign in my life again. Maybe it's fate or something, I don't know. But it could be important. I think it's also the way you haven't once questioned me why I still live with my parents."
I laughed at his comment - though it made sense that I forgot about such a minor detail - and was about to respond when we pulled into a driveway. His house must have had three floors and a basement; it was huge.
As we stepped out of his Saturn I continued to stare at it with awe. "Surprised a normal guy like me lives in a house like this?" he asked, taking me by the wrist and tugging me up the driveway to the front door.
"I can see why you'd want to stay with your parents. How...?" I couldn't even muster up the rest of my question, the interior of his house was just as gorgeous, and I was only looking at the entry.
"My uncles own Smart Aid. I've been trying to get fired for years." We both chuckled at his remark before his mom entered the foyer. She smelled peachy, just like Jacob's car, so I assumed she'd just been in the kitchen.
"So, kids, how was your date? Did you like the pie?" She asked, wiping her hands on her apron. She was about the same height as me and quite pretty, for a mom. I could tell baking must be different for her - the look of disgust on her face as she wiped off her hands showed that she would be much less 'house-wifey' under different circumstances.
"Well, Mrs. Portman, I wouldn't know. Jacob ate it all before showing up. It smells delicious, though." I responded with a warm smile, outstretching a hand for her to shake. "I'm Kallie Sanders, nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you, Kallie, I'm Maryann. There's more pie in the kitchen, just behind me. Oh, and, we don't wear shoes in the house, dear." She smiled, and I kicked off my flip flops.
"Thank you, Maryann." I smiled before entering the kitchen, passing the stairwell as I went. Behind me, I could hear Jake whining.
"It wasn't a date, Mom, God. Stop being so weird. She's just a friend." I smirked a bit as I found a seat at their breakfast bar where a pie and a half sat next to a stack of plates. A pie slicer was sitting in the empty space of the half-pie tin, so I served myself. A stack of forks was placed atop the plates. The whole setup was incredibly convenient.
I wasn't offended by what either of them said. Sure, Jacob was very nice, but even if I was looking for a relationship, it would not be with him. I could tell that it wouldn't work out between us. I'm not sure how, but we just didn't seem to 'match up' like that. Already he felt more like a brother to me than anything. I took my first bite of pie and had to keep from moaning. I wasn't the biggest fan of peach pie, but this one was to die for.
Jacob and Maryann both entered the kitchen and he took the seat next to me. "Listen, mom. I was wondering if I could go with Kallie, Ricky, and Lainie to the beach tonight?"
"Until when, hon?" She asked in return. If my suspicions were correct about this woman, a battle of negotiations was about to take place. I was correct.
"I was hoping until nine, nine-thirtyish?"
"Eight thirty."
"Nine?"
"Quarter to."
"I leave at quarter to nine?"
"Deal." Maryann extended a hand and Jacob shook it, and I couldn't help but giggle at the exchange. This was the sort of relationship I had with my dad. James was always the more fun, carefree one, even though both my dads were amazing. But my dad was always a little harder on me. He was the one who expected straight As, the one who was super protective whenever I liked a boy. But James balanced that. I was actually happy with my family, unlike most of my friends or other kids my age. It was something I was proud of.
Before long, Jacob had called up Ricky and told him to meet us at the beach. He went to change into his trunks and then we left for my motel so I could change into an actual bathing suit. I owned three in total: two bikinis and a one-piece. I wasn't planning on taking off my shorts the whole time, but I put on a full bikini set anyway. The red frill on the top was what made me love the suit so much, even though it was cute without it. Instead of putting on a top, I just shrugged on Elaina's white leather jacket, bringing one of the room's towels and my phone with me.
I was surprised but relieved when Jacob didn't stare at my exposed midriff. That definitely would have put an awkward damper on the night. As we started toward the beach, I put down the sun visor and looked in the mirror. I didn't rely too much on make-up, I was at the point where what other people thought of my naked face wasn't my top priority. Instead, I focused on my hair. That was always what I focused on more.
"Hey, Jake?" An idea popped into my head. "What do you think I'd look like with short hair?" What I got in response was a laugh. I looked at him, his head thrown back and eyes closed. "You'd better pay attention to the road, Jake," I warned, narrowing my eyes - I wouldn't look that bad with short hair, right? He chuckled a little and looked ahead again. I turned back to my reflection.
"You know, my dad is the only other person who really calls me that." I looked at him. What?
"It's a common nickname for 'Jacob', why does nobody else call you that?" He shook his head an shrugged in a silent 'I don't know'. We drove on in silence until we reached the beach. Almost as soon as Jacob parked the car and we got out, Ricky's Crown Vic showed up and parked next to Jake's Saturn. Elaina was the first one out.
After kicking off her flip flops, she picked them up and ran towards us. "Kal, I told you you looked better in my jacket than I did!" I hugged her as a quick 'thanks' and took off my own flip flops, letting my toes sift through the warm sand.
"I thought I recognized it from somewhere," Jacob commented, and Elaina and I laughed. Ricky came up behind Elaina and hugged her, his tall, six foot three frame towering over her five foot seven one. He made me feel tiny, as I was only five foot five. The air grew a little colder. I turned to look at Jacob, but Abe wasn't there. The stereotype about a ghost's presence making the air turn cold was true. I suppose it must have been the two in Ricky's backseat.
My three friends started walking towards the beach until Elaina noticed I wasn't with going with them. "Come on, let's go, Kal!"
"I'll be right there, I forgot my towel in the car," I explained, which was true. I walked back around the hood of Jake's car and leaned through the half-closed windows, stretching my arm down until I grasped my phone. I pulled my arm out and slipped it into my jacket pocket before trying for my towel. I grabbed it and pulled it out, then turned and waved to Ricky's ghosts. They waved back, and I ran after my friends.
The hour and a half we spent flew by, and I even went all the way underwater. Elaina was really helping me get out of my fear of open water. My shorts had started weighing me down, and I eventually had to take them off. The red of my top's frill matched that of the fabric of my bottoms, and when I re-entered the water, Elaina commented on it.
"Your suit is adorable, girl! Very nautical," she played with the frill as she spoke, and I laughed and splashed her away, only about ribs deep in the water. That was when she pulled me under. I came up for air after a few seconds of shock and laughed, wiping the water out of my eyes before splashing her again. The boys only laughed at us. Elaina was right about my bikini, though; the rest of my top was navy-and-white striped.
The sun was setting when we finally left the water, and all of us were shivering as our bodies touched the cold air. I grabbed my towel and shook the sand off of it before wrapping it around my body. We dried off as much as we could and sand was sticking to our feet, but all in all, the entire night was worth it. Jacob and I shared our goodbyes with Elaina and Ricky, and we headed in our separate ways.
The ride back to the motel was mostly a comfortable silence. I hugged my jacket around my shoulders and Jake wore his shirt. The hem was wet where it made contact with his trunks, but that was all. I had tracked sand into his car, and I really hoped he didn't mind.
It wasn't until we were almost back home when he broke the silence. "You should come over tomorrow." I nodded in agreement, but he didn't stop talking. "We can talk more about my grandpa thing."
"There's more about your grandpa thing?" I cocked an eyebrow as I looked at him. He shot a glance at me before looking at the road again.
"Well yeah, there's always more to mysterious stories, isn't there?" He was probably right, but what more could there be to this? I thought he told me everything.
"I guess you have a point. If there really is something more to it and this isn't a scam to get me back at your house - for whatever reason - I'm in." He laughed at my words.
"This isn't a scam, I promise. It's probably something I should have taken seriously a long time ago, actually." I nodded absentmindedly, seeing the motel just up ahead. He spoke again when he parked on the side of the street. "I'll pick you up after work, alright?"
I rolled down my window all the way before getting out of the car. After closing the door, I leaned into it. "Your mom's going to start thinking I can't drive for myself if you keep chauffeuring me around like this, Jake," I said. "But sure. I'll see you then."
I waited until he drove away before crossing the street. When I finally made it up to my room I realized just how tired I actually was. I could barely muster up the will to change out of my slightly damp bikini before flopping down onto my bed and falling asleep. I didn't even bother getting under the covers, and my last thought was of what secrets the next day would hold.