hello, everybody. i am not dead. i have just lacked motivation. i am trying to get it back cuz there are lots of stories i want to finish/continue and i just feel bleh. so, sorry for the delay but here is something

Shit, this is not good. Shit! This is not good! Oh god… What am I going to do? It hurts so bad…

"Come on! Let's get out of here!" the guy yells.

I watch the men leave, frightened by a presence that they couldn't explain, blood appearing all of a sudden, being pushed around without warning. They had come to rob the house while you and your parents were out for dinner. If your mom wasn't cooking dinner, then you usually went out to eat, but you didn't stay out for long. Your parents had a purpose for going out to eat and that was the eat and come home. It was nice of you, though, to always get me something to-go so that I had something to eat. You guys left about an hour ago, so that was usually enough time to eat and come back, so you should be on your way home.

You had just left when these idiots came and tried to rob your house. I only wanted to scare them away, make sure they weren't here when you got home but… these guys were desperate. As soon as one of them pulled out a knife, I knew I had to get them out of here before you came home. They were running off of adrenaline and emotions, bad things to combine with weapons. It meant that if you startled them, they would react without thinking and most likely kill.

I can hear your car pull into the drive and the car door open. I have to go back to my hiding place… As I head there, I hear the door open and someone talking.

"Oh my god… What happened in here?" I hear you say.

"What is it?" your mom asks. I guess she sees the mess. "Oh my god! Why is everything strewn about? And where did all this blood come from?"

"Do you think someone tried to rob the house?"

"Even if they did, why would there be blood all over the place?"

"Maybe they spooked themselves and one cut themselves?" I hear you say nervously, trying to find an explanation.

Of course, you can't tell them about me… if you even think it is me. I don't think I'm going to tell you what all happened. If you ask, I'll confirm the break in, but other than that, I don't think there is a point to tell you anything else. I ran them off and that's all that matters. Besides, I'm a genius. I'm sure I can figure something out. I may not have access to my lab, but I'm pretty good with playing an impromptu doctor…

I woke up.

That's good.

My body feels like it has gone through four rounds of a vigorous workout regimen, but at least I am alive. I sit up and look at my wound, putting my finger into it. It hurts like hell but I need to figure out how deep it is. I pull my finger out and find blood only on the tip of my finger. So about an inch… that's not too bad. I move my arm and hiss, looking at it. Oh yeah, I forgot about that one. That bastard got really close to my brachial artery. I really would be dead if he had sliced that… I look up at the time and see that it is after 9AM, which means that everyone is out of the house. I eventually get up and go over to the mirror to take a look at myself. My image disgusts me. I am twice the person I used to be, full of scars, and ugly. I lift my shirt to access the damage properly. The wound is already inflamed, red and stinging, but it look better than it feels.

I go over to where I had apparently passed out on the floor and grab my phone, finding a ton of messages. They are all from you.

-Jimmy, there was a bunch of blood on the floor of the house. Did something happen while we were gone?

-Jimmy, answer me.

-Jimmy!

-JIMMY!

-Are you being a butt again and ignoring me?

-James Yokai Neutron, you've better answer me right now! I'm really worried…

Yokai? What the… that's not even close to my middle name… and why the heck would you pick that?

-Please… please, Jimmy. Please just let me know you're okay…

I sigh and text you back. I didn't realize how overdramatic I was being last night, thinking I would die from just a grazing wound like this. It was laughable. I guess since I have never been hurt like this, all the adrenaline just made my mind go wild. I chuckle to myself. How silly… Since everyone is gone, I decide to go to the bathroom where I know your family keeps a first aid kit and patch myself up. If I can ever get back to normal, I will definitely tell you about this. Going up against some robbers and getting a wound I didn't inflict on myself is kind of the highlight of this life so far. I saved you, even if you don't know it.

As I perform really shitty wound care on myself, my phone starts to vibrate and I see that it's you calling. I put the Q-tip in the trashcan and answer the phone.

"Hello?"

"Jimmy! Thank god! What happened last night? Why was there blood all over the living room?"

"Some guys tried to rob the house but I played the vengeful spirit and spooked them away. Unfortunately, one guy got a little knifey since I freaked him out and he got me."

"Are you okay? Was it your blood or his?"

"It… was… one of the other guys. I was doing a little poltergeist spiel and I was whispering and stuff and the guy pulled out a switchblade, slashing one of his friends. Once he pulled out the knife, I knew that I had to do something because if you guys came in and scared him, he'd try to hurt you."

"You're such an idiot, you know that?" you say with a laugh, but I can tell you are relieved I'm alright.

"Well, how could I let them take your stuff?"

"Stuff is replaceable, Jimmy, not you."

"So you enjoy having an invisible entity in your house?" I ask with a grin.

"Shut up… Thank you, though."

"Of course. I think this is the first time you've ever called me."

"I was going to text you but since you never answered my texts last night, I got worried and just had to hear your voice. There was a lot of blood so… I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"You're in love with me. I get it. No need to be shy."

"Ugh, in your dreams, Nerdtron."

"Which reminds me, Yokai?"

"I was trying to find something creative and I couldn't think of the Japanese word for ghost so I just settled on 'yokai'."

"The word is yurei."

"Oh, well, excuse me." You say and I can almost see your eyes rolling.

"Well, if you're going to say it, get it right."

"You're an ass sometimes, Neutron."

"That's nothing new… About what you said over IM the other day, I apologize for being curt with you. I would love to do the song with you."

"Awesome! That's great because Betty was being a bitch the other day about me not having something as awesome as her and Nick."

"Nick? Nick Dean?"

"Yeah…"

"Is she going out with Nick?"

"Yeah…"

"I can't believe her!"

"Jimmy, what do you expect? Everyone thinks you're dead."

Oh… right, I forgot. The only person who realizes that I'm not dead is you. Talking to you makes me feel like I haven't been trapped in this hell and that I live a normal life. How could I forget that to the world, I'm all but dead?

"Right… I forgot…"

"I have to go, class is about to start. When we get home, we can start on trying to get set up for the song."

"You have to find me first."

"Can we focus on one thing at a time?"

"We are. Find me and then we can work on the song."

"How am I supposed to find you if you are invisible? You are making things very, very hard."

"Just… find me, Cynthia."

I hang up the phone and finish working with my wound. It isn't pretty, but it will do. I sigh, knowing that asking you to find me is a little bit of a dick move, but I have to get into my lab and I need your help to get me back to normal. Without you, I'm just the ghost in everyone's imagination. Please don't be angry with me… I'm trying my best. I'm tired of this life but I can't do anything without you. I'm stuck here until you find me.

oh jimmy-jim, you know you're a genius but not like... a doctor right? i sense a bad moon rising...