When Emily pulled up to the decrepit house, still sitting precariously atop the only hill the town seemed to have, she expected to feel heart wrenching dread. She expected fear for all the trauma that had happened in this house, and most of all she expected to be launched back into the past where she buried the horrid memories.
Yet, even through the rain that pummeled her car and the distant sounds of roiling thunder, Emily only felt relief.
As if a massive weight had been lifted her shoulders hunched, her head came to rest at the top of the steering wheel. Her nose scrunched, a tick she developed in order to try and settle a rising smile.
Emily took a deep breath, letting it out in a long, guttural sigh. She was finally back. The bleak town had managed to rope her back in, and this time, she had little to no choice but to stay.
A shuffling from the backseat had Emily raising tired eyes to her rear-view mirror. A sleeping Lydia curled around her white stuffed snake with a vice like grip, face scrunched. A little whimper fell from her mouth, and Emily huffed before leaning back and brushing her daughters sleek black bangs away from her pale face.
The eight year olds hazel eyes immidiately sprung open, a sliver of fear in them before she saw her mother's reassuring smile.
"We're here, honey." Emily said softly, giving Lydia's small knee a tiny pat. She saw her daughter cautiously peer at the house through the darkness. She said nothing, just barely lightening her grip on her snake.
Emily gave her daughter another tight smile before undoing her seatbelt and reaching for the black umbrella she stored in the glove compartment of the small SUV. After a bit of rummaging through old receipts, napkins, maps, and a string of mumbled curses, Emily snagged the umbrella.
She went to open the car door, but found herself pausing. She glanced back at Lydia, who now furrowed her eyebrows at her in curiosity.
Did Adam and Barbara even know she was the one who bought the house? All of the paperwork had been relatively rushed as Emily needed to get herself and Lydia out of Washington as soon as possible, and she doubted the person living there had much time to pack and lament about their forced move.
Emily felt a pang of guilt at that. Was it wrong to get her dad to threaten the owner of the house with large amounts of money and blackmail? Yes, it was. But then his face rushed back into her mind, along with Lydia, terrified, huddled in the corner hastily wiping at her tear streaked face.
Her jaw locked, she tightened her grip on the umbrella. Emily didn't care if it was wrong, they needed to get out, and this house was the best and most affordable option.
Taking a deep breath, she finally met her daughters gaze. "I'm going to go run inside and make sure everything's all in order, alright? Stay here, I'll be right back."
After she saw Lydia's small nod, Emily stepped out into the storm. She pulled up the umbrella as fast as she could, but her hair still ended up soaked. With a huff, she slowly made her way to the porch of the house-of her house. Their house.
She got to the door, and hesitantly placed her hand on the wet, chilled doorknob. A crack of thunder sounded. Emily's breath quickened, eyes screwed shut, and before she lost the nerve she wrenched the door open and hastily slammed it shut behind her, leaning back on it for support.
The house was musty, smelling of dust and a faint trace of lavender. It was also quiet. Slowly Emily's eyes opened, her hand instinctually reaching for the light switch beside the door.
She flipped it on. Her legs almost gave out beneath her when she glimpsed the familiar surroundings. A strangled laugh escaped Emily's lips.
Almost everything was exactly the same. All of the renovations Delia had made that the Maitlands had despised, the tiny chips in the wall that they had never been able to fully repair, and the one banister in the middle of the stairs that no one had ever bothered to fix.
For the first time in a very long time, Emily felt safe. She couldn't wait to bring Lydia inside and...
She heard a creak from the floorboards above her. Then more footsteps, and a loud crash. Her mouth curved up in a wry smile, knowing exactly what was going on.
"Oh!" she cried in her best damsel in distress voice, "I wonder what on earth that sound was! I surely hope it wasn't a...a ghost!"
Everything fell silent again, before two sets of footsteps began running above her, and then there they were, barreling down the stairs and looking exactly like they did all those years ago.
A genuine smile and giggle appeared on her face as she stared back into Adam and Barbara's open-mouthed shock.
"It's...really good to see you guys." Emily felt something wet on her face, and she knew it wasn't from the rain.
Her voice seemed to snap the couple out of their shock. "Emily!" they cried in unison, launching to envelop their 'daughter' in a ghostly embrace.
They all laughed in their crushing embrace. Adam and Barbara shot off questions a mile a minute, overjoyed. Emily giggled and broke away, holding them both at arm's length.
"Wow, you guys look good." they both rolled their eyes at the little joke, laughing along with Emily.
"Oh, Emily, it's been forever since we've heard from you!" Barbara exclaimed, shaking Emily by her forearm. "How are things? How long do you think you'll be staying?"
"We made sure that your room stayed almost exactly the same, and I even put in a bookshelf, since I remembered how much you liked reading. You still read, don't you? Man, that would be super embarrassing if you didn't. I mean, I guess I could always get rid of it if you didn't-" Emily shook her head at Adams rambling, bringing them both back in for another quick hug before pulling away again.
"Thank you, Adam, I really appreciate it. And...uh, well, about the whole staying thing-"
"Oh! Is this just a visit? I'm sorry, it's just been a while since someone had been able to see us. Ever since your father and Delia moved it's been quite lonely, and we were hoping you might stay for a couple days. Just long enough for us to catch up on things!" Barbara reasurred, Adam nodding along with her.
Emily smiled even wider. "Actually, I bought the house." the couple just stared at her, once again shocked into silence. "I'm here to stay for a pretty long while."
Both Adam and Barbara positively lit up, shrieking their happiness.
Emily wished to keep enjoying in their excitement as they went on about everyone that they could do together, but then she remembered the special someone who still waited out in the car, and her stomach clenched in nervousness.
Seemingly able to sense the abrupt switch in mood, the couple stopped their rambling and looked at Emily in worry.
"Dear, is everything...alright? Was...there a reason you moved back here?" Barbara asked softly, rubbing a cool trail over Emily's upper arm in comfort.
Her mind instantly conjured up a picture of his snarling face and the bottle being thrown at her precious Lydia, but she resolutely shook her head. Yes, that was exactly the reason she moved back, but that's not what was cause her nervousness.
"It's just..." she murmured, looking away from the ever concerned faces of the Maitlands. "Lydia..."
The couple briefly looked at each other in confusion before turning back to Emily, waiting for her to explain.
"I don't know how she will be able to see you." Emily finally blurted, hugging herself tightly.
That's what had been on her mind throughout the entire ride to Connecticut. Sure, she would be able to see the Maitlands, but Lydia? She would be just as clueless to their existence as everyone else.
"...who's Lydia?" Adam inquired, the tension in the air becoming unbearable, even for him.
Emily's eyes widened a fraction, before let let out a bark of a laugh. How could she forget? Her dad and Delia had moved out and sold the house before she had gotten pregnant.
"Lydia is my daughter. And she's currently waiting in the car."
There was a moment of complete silence before Emily was wrapped into another joyous hug. The couple started rambling again, about how happy they were for her, that they couldn't wait to meet their goddaughter, wondering what she looked like...
And then both abruptly stopped, the reality of the situation coming up them, as well.
"She...won't be able to see us, will she?" Barbara whispered in horror, Adam deflating beside her. Emily wanted so badly to comfort them, hating the pain she saw in their eyes, but she knew there was nothing she could do.
"I don't know." she answered honestly. Lydia had taken after her, but when she left for college she didn't encounter any other forms of spiritual life. Emily truthfully had no idea if Lydia could see the dead like she once could.
"Well, I suppose there's only one way to find out, right?" Adam added hesitantly, squeezing his wife's shoulder run reassurance.
Emily nodded. "I'll go get her from the car. Could you two just, I don't know, sit on the couch or something? We'll see if she reacts to you guys at all, and if not, I'll tell her you're there." They both have her wary looks. Emily felt her stomach drop. "Do you think that'll work?"
"Honey, I don't know. From what we read in the Handbook, most people are only able to briefly see through the veil after a traumatic event if they aren't already a medium." Barbara closed her eyes for a moment, composing herself. The ghost didn't know what she would do if her own goddaughter couldn't see her.
Emily's eyes darkened. If Lydia wasn't a medium, then the trauma she endured at the hands of her father should, unfortunately, be enough for her to see the Maitlands.
"I'll be right back." with this she abruptly turned back towards the door, popping open the umbrella and once again facing the onslaught of the building storm. She quickly closed the door behind her, squinting her eyes to see through the rain pelting down.
Her converse almost slipped out from under her multiple times as she shuffled to the car. Once close enough she saw her daughter sleeping peacefully once again, almost being consumed by the amount of luggage and garbage from their long trek east.
Emily gently knocked on he window, startling Lydia out of her slumber and opened the door. She had to raise her voice just to hear herself over the storm.
"It's time to go inside. Do you want me to carry you?" Lydia nodded her head, her blacks curls bouncing as she unbuckled and reached towards her mother. Emily scooped her up, with the plush snake lodged between their chests with Lydia's attempt to keep it clean.
Her mother smiled, pressing her face into her daughters hair for a moment before closing the door and once again making her way through the mud and to the house. Lydia's penchant to be a neat freak-boarding germaphobe-was also something that came from Emily herself, as she was the same way at Lydia's age.
They reached the door and Lydia squirmed a bit in her arms, angling to be perched on Emily's hip to get a full view once they entered. Emily felt her shiver, and just then realized that her daughter was only wearing a short, black nightdress they picked up from a Wal-Mart. She cursed, and immidiately flung the door open hard enough it bounced off the back wall. Lydia flinched at the noise, and Emily once again cursed under her breath before bolting in and locking the door behind them.
Everything outside was once again muffled, and Emily only had eyes for her daughter. She saw the girl look curiously at the Victorian chandelier above them, then continue on the survey the rest of the room. Lydia took a deep breath, nose scrunched, and then buried her nose in the soft felt of her snake.
Emily chuckled. Of course Lydia would find the dusty interior smelly. She had only ever lived in a small, meticulously cleaned studio apartment.
Lydia's eyes continued on their way, glancing at every little thing that was in sight. Emily's gaze broke away from her daughter and settled on the Maitlands, anxiously twitching on the couch as they waiting for Lydia to turn to them.
They clasped each others hands in what would have been a painful grip if they were alive, faces twisted in hope, riveted on their goddaughter and her wandering gaze. Emily felt a pang of sadness, but was distracted when Lydia suddenly went stiff in her arms.
She looked to her daughter and saw her staring right at the couch-right at Adam and Barbara- with her snake now clutched even tighter to her chest and breath stuttering.
"Mommy..." she whispered, burying her face into Emily's shoulder when the Maitlands bolted up from the couch with enthusiastic grins on their faces.
And, despite her daughters initial fear, Emily felt relieved and overjoyed, as well. For Lydia to be able to see Adam and Barbara lifted a massive weight off her shoulders that she didn't think she could have beared.
"It's okay, Lydia." she soothed, dropping her umbrella onto the floor and running a soothing hand through her daughter hair as they approached. Their faces were almost stretched to their limit with how much they were smiling.
"Hello, Lydia." Barbara started. When the girl refused to come out of her mother's shoulder, Emily nudged her a little so a single eye peaked out in Barbara and Adams direction.
"Hey there, kiddo. Nice to meet you." Adam whispered, entranced by what looked like a mini version of the girl they first met years ago, and the one they helped raise into the beautiful women before them.
Cajoled by the friendly aura of the couple, Lydia cautiously lifted her head all the way to look at them properly. Her grip on the snake never lessened, but Emily was proud to see her daughter facing something she was afraid of.
Lydia swallowed. "Who...who are you?" she whispered, gaze flitting between the two ghosts and their blazing smiles.
"I'm Barbara, sweetie, and this is my husband, Adam." they both have a small wave, extending a hand in Lydia's direction. She looked up at her mother, who nodded in encouragement, and with the strength of her mother's approval behind her reached out a shook each of their hands.
Lydia furrowed her eyebrows at the cold touch, but the Maitlands were absolutely glowing. Once again the girl looked at her mother, eyes bursting with questions. Emily's smile softened, and she ran her fingers through Lydia's hair once again.
"These are your godparents, Lydia." her mother explained, looking back up at the Maitlands and their overjoyed expressions. Filled with a warmth she had not felt for a long time, Emily's eyes slipped closed and she leaned down just enough to lay her forehead against her daughters.
"This is our family now."