A/N: Things have been coming pretty slow. I'm not quite sure exactly where I'm headed with the end of this yet, but things are coming lol. Hope you enjoy my stories as much as I enjoy writing them :) xx Mariah

As hard as Katie tried, she wasn't able to contact Alyssa. She could see the disappointment in Ned's eyes when after a half an hour no one had come.

She squeezed his hands and brought one to her mouth, kissing it. "Eventually she will make another appearance," she whispered, looking around the basement once more before she let go of his hands and moved to sit down more comfortably.

"Another?" He asked, confused.

"I only caught a glimpse of her once. It was just a glimpse and she was gone. I didn't think it meant anything until you expressed any concern." She tried her best to lie through her teeth.

She knew it all came down to her personal feelings about Alyssa and the fact that she didn't know if she could do this. She didn't know if she could talk to Ned about this, about his stupid ex. They avoided talking about Toby at all costs, why couldn't this be the same?

Alyssa was the worst in high school, (she wasn't even at her worst at the New Year's party) even if the girl was dead, and Katie sure as hell didn't want that damn girl in her head, let alone any of her siblings or mother's either. She was the absolute worst, and how could she tell Ned that?

"Why wouldn't you tell me?" He looked hurt, and she wanted to cry because that wasn't her intention at all.

"Ned," she whispered. "It's hard for me." She didn't know what else to say.

"And you don't think this is hard for me? You didn't have to drive her mother home because she was too heartbroken to drive." He muttered, turning and pushing his legs off the bed.

His first instinct was always to leave when he was angry or felt cornered.

He always did.

"Please, don't go." She sighed, moving to follow him where he sat on the edge of the bed.

"I should go home. I haven't in a while. My mom is probably worried," he sighed.

She tried to wrap her arms around him, but he wouldn't let her for very long before he stood up. "Ned, I'm sorry that Alyssa tortured me in high school and it's hard for me to want to establish any connection with her in the afterlife. But that doesn't mean I wasn't trying." She stood in front of him before he had the chance to go up the stairs. "Please just listen to me."

He sighed and turned the other way, pacing back and forth before he said anything. He breathed out and rubbed his face. "You've never told me about any of that with Alyssa before, Katie. I know you're trying and things don't happen overnight, and thank you for that."

"I didn't tell you because we don't talk about our exes," she whispered. "And it's because when we do, this is what happens."

"We should try and be more open about things. Maybe not tonight, but one day. Things will get easier," he said, going to hold her hands. "I don't want to fight like this and I definitely don't want to leave or go back to work."

She squeezed his hands and slowly wound her arms around him to pull him in for a hug. "I don't want you to leave or go back to work either. I'm only gonna be here for another day."

"Yes, only one more day." He sighed, pressing a kiss to her head. "Let's make the most of it then and go out to dinner before the movie."

She smiled and leaned up to kiss his lips briefly. "Okay. Just let me change real quick," she said, patting his shoulders.

He swung his arm around her and pulled her back in for another kiss. She melted into him, her knees giving out and he held her up with ease. When he pulled back, he touched her face and smiled. "You look good in these jeans," he said, licking his lips.

"Oh, yeah? You noticed?" She smiled, feeling his hands move around her backside and squeeze.

"I always do," he smiled, tapping her ass as he stepped back. "I'll go start the car."

"Okay. I'm just going to straighten my hair quick and change my shirt," she said, turning toward the bathroom. "Then we'll be good to go."

After dinner, they were closer than ever. It was cold and Katie had forgotten her gloves, so she tucked herself into Ned as they ran to his truck across the street from the sushi place they'd gone to.

"I'm glad I tried something new," Ned said, chuckling as he opened the driver's side door. "It was good. Just hop up here."

"I told you it would be. Me and Liv go after studying all the time." She said, hopping into the truck and sliding over past the driver's seat. Ned stepped up and sat to her as he turned the key. "I'm just glad Grandview is finally getting some more restaurants. Not just more of the same stuff." She rubbed her hands together and then wrapped her arms around him. "Hey, you good?"

He looked over at her as he let the truck sit and warm for a minute. He nodded. "Today's been rough, but yeah, I'm good. Thanks for checking in." He said, smiling.

"I always will," she laid her head on his shoulder and ran her hand over his chest. "We should get going if you want to get candy at the gas station before the trailers start."

"You know I always get skittles before a movie," he nodded, putting his car in drive so he could pull out of his parking spot by the curb and onto the road.

"You and skittles," she laughed, fishing her phone out of her purse. She absentmindedly ran through her usual apps. Facebook, Instagram, and her email.

A text came in, but nothing exciting. Her mom wanted her to grab wipes on her way home.

"Do you think the gas station will have wipes?" She asked, absent-mindedly as she unbuckled and slipped her phone into her jacket pocket.

"Why?" He turned off into the gas station and parked. He shut the truck off and leaned back in his seat as he glanced over.

"My mom asked me to pick some up," she said, moving out of the truck after a minute.

Ned walked up behind her and into the gas station. "We can always make a stop after the movie if they don't." He said.

"Will the grocery store still be open? It'll be like eleven thirty." She said, immediately walking down toward the one aisle with any merchandise besides food, cheap chips, and candy. She spied a package of wipes on the bottom shelf and grabbed two to be safe once she saw they were smaller. "Nevermind. We're good."

"Now for the important stuff, the snacks for the movie." He winked.

She laughed out loud. God, she loved him. "Yeah, go get your skittles big man." She shook her head and walked around toward the starbursts she wanted.

That was when Katie caught a second glimpse of her. Of Alyssa.

Her blonde hair bounced as she walked behind her boyfriend, ridiculously close to him for her liking, even if Alyssa was dead.

"Ned," she called out, from the other aisle, meeting her eyes before he turned.

"Of course, it's you all the damn people can see me…" Alyssa scoffed and crossed her arms, rolling her eyes. "I always knew you were a freak." Alyssa disappeared and she knew that this was just the damn beginning.

Ned turned to face her, mouthing something, and before she could respond, she had to shake the feeling of that she was right back in high school off her back.

Alyssa knew she could see her now. There was no going back.

She had a feeling that it was going to be a lot like her sophomore year of high school all over again. Too much darkness and drama with Henry and Alyssa. She'd wanted to kill herself. It had only been a thought and was very fleeting, but it had been there. It stayed for quite a long time.

A really long time.

"Katie?" Suddenly he was beside her, not holding any package of skittles as she looked over his empty hands. "Babe, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

"Alyssa," she whispered, shaking her head. "I saw her."

Ned turned his head like he would see her too even if she was there, but she was already gone.

"What?" He looked back at her. "Where is she?"

"She's gone," she sighed, itching her neck. She could feel her skin crawling with anxiety and sweat, god she hated this. She didn't want to be wrapped with Alyssa.

Not again.

After the movie they were laying together in the basement again, spooning contentedly. Surprisingly Alyssa had left them alone so far and though Katie's eyes were heavy with sleep, Ned's fingers tracing circles along her stomach kept her tethered to consciousness. But it tickled when his hand ghosted under her shirt, over her ribs, and she foolishly alerted him to the fact when she squealed.

"A sweet spot, huh?" he asked against her ear, then repeated the move.

Her entire body tensed, and she pushes her back against his chest, kicking her feet out to try and move away from him. "Ned Banks, don't you dare."

He pins her easily, moving on top of her body and holding her hands over her head as he hovered above her. "As if you could outrun me. As if you could fight me off."

"Oh my god," she sputtered, laughing. "Now I have to break up with you." She remembered the time a few years ago when Ned had put her Bath & Body Works shimmering lotion all over his hand and said, "This is the skin of a killer, Bella," and she'd laughed so hard she'd nearly peed her pants. Both Ned and her dad would never let her live down the fact that she actually liked the Twilight series and owned all the movies. And the books. "I hate you," she told him now, again trying to push him off of her, but it's of no use.

"Did you forget that I took second-place at state junior year? I was also a pretty good defensive linebacker in football," he explained as she tried to wiggle out from underneath him. She can't stop giggling as they continue to wrestle playfully, and they only stop when, smiling, he said, "I'm thinking about transferring to the city."

"What?" she pushed him away and sat up, her back against his headboard. Dropping bombs like that out of nowhere was a signature Katie move and she didn't like it when the tables were turned. "Why?"

Ugh, she knew why. And that's exactly why she couldn't let him do it.

"It would be great on my resume to work at the NYPD, too," he said, shrugging. "We could go anywhere."

He was so excited when he decided on trying to get into the academy, she knew he could really go anywhere if he wanted. But didn't he want to stay home?

When they got together she knew the whole long-distance thing would be troubling, but did it effectively ruin living in Grandview for him?

"No," she told him firmly. "You can't move your dream for me. This year is almost over. May will be here before we know it. I want you to be where you want, Ned. I don't want to ruin it for you."

He looked at her like she's crazy. "How could you ruin anything? I've just been thinking… I don't want to be far away from you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"You don't have to move for me," she reasoned, sighing.

"I do hate moving Katie," he said, laughing. He leaned in to nuzzle his nose against her cheek. "Maybe I could just get my own place first. I want something of my own to look forward to."

With her.

The words went unspoken, but they still hung heavy in the air.

She wanted that, too, really. So much. But she couldn't let him transfer because of her. If he ended up getting hurt on the job, she wouldn't know what to do with herself.

"We're going to be okay, Ned," she promised him. "We love each other, and that'll get us through this year, and every year." She knew it sounded like she's trying to convince herself as well as him. She kind of was.

A snickering voice did too. It wasn't the voice inside her head, it was worse.

Alyssa.

"Do you actually believe that?" The blonde asked.

Alyssa was right at the foot of the bed and Katie tried to keep her out of her head. If she just ignored her… just maybe.

"I know, babe," he said, pulling her to him. "I guess it shouldn't be too long until you're home… maybe then you could move in with me?"

"Maybe," she said, quietly. She'd withdrawn from him, he could tell that. She couldn't stop glancing at the foot of the bed. Alyssa was always in the back of her head, worrying her.

"Hey, don't get caught up in your head," he whispered, rolling over as she snuggled into him.

Relief wanted to seep in and settle down to stay, but she had to be cautious first. How did he know? "You always know," she sat up to look at him, the blanket fell away from her.

"I got pretty good at reading you when we were just kids," he laughed, reaching out to run his fingers through the ends of her hair. "I mean, of course, you've changed some but you're still the same little Katie that I could cheer up with ice cream."

All she wanted was to believe him. She wanted to block out the voice of Alyssa who wanted to hurt her.

She couldn't tell Ned this. He wouldn't know how to handle it. How to handle the painful side of the girl he once loved. She hid it from him instead.

"You have to cheer me up with other stuff now," she admitted, plastering a smile on her face as she settled in against him, her ear against his chest.

He loved her more than she ever thought was possible. It should scare her, really. But it's not the intensity of love that worries her. It's the world's cold cynicism toward it; the idea that one day his feelings will change as they all inevitably do, that falling too hard and too fast at their age had somehow already sealed their fate.

Well, she won't have that. She won't allow it.

She won't allow Alyssa to take that from her, so she closed her eyes and claimed what's rightfully hers.