CHAPTER 15 -Royce's' Past.
Bianca and Luke were playing Snakes and Ladders when the room suddenly got very cold. Zeke - who had been listening to music on one of the beds - remove his earphones and looked at his siblings quizzically.
"Did you guys feel that?" He swung his legs over the side of the bed and checked the window. "Oh, never mind, it's just the wind."
"Moron." Bianca muttered softly before rolling the dice. She reached for her game piece when another cold blast hit her in the side of the face. "Close the window, dammit."
"Why, the wind isn't blowing anymore." Luke replied irritably. His sister looked up.
"Yes it is - I just felt it again." Her look changed again to uncertainty and she scanned the room quickly.
"What the hell's the problem, Bianca? Take your turn!" Luke demanded.
"Shut up for a second and listen!" Before anyone could respond, a slight chuckle erupted from inside the room. A pressure mark appeared on the bed beside Zeke and he jumped from his spot, looking around wildly. The chuckling grew into soft laughter.
"Geez, I had almost forgotten what a blast this was!" Lucas reached into his pocket and grabbed a pair of glasses. He put them to his face and frowned.
"What the hell are you doing here?" He demanded. Bianca turned her attention back towards the bed and the pressure mark before snatching the glasses from her brothers' face and placing them on her nose.
"Oh, it's you Prince. What are you doing in here?"
"Susan said that you were looking for me and I almost never keep a dolly waiting." Royce replied sliding off the bed and shouldering his bat. "What can I do for you?" Reaching into her bag beside her, Bianca produced a well- used VHS and handed it to the ghost.
"I'd like you to prove the historical accuracy of this movie." She said sweetly.
"A flick huh?" Royce read the title. "Grease..?"
"Some shitty movie set in the 50's." Zeke replied monotonously. The ghost let another short laugh escape his throat.
"Well, unless it takes place before '53, I can't be much help to you." He passed the video back to Bianca, who had suddenly become very pouty and disappointed.
"No. It takes place in 1959."
"Well then, I am completely useless to you." Royce said. The ghost paused and swayed a bit, clutching his head before regaining his composure.
"Hey, are you alright?" Bianca stood from her position on the floor and reached out a hand to the spirit. Royce shook his head as though trying to forget a distant memory and cast her a look.
"Yeah fine. I just get headaches sometimes, you know? It's almost as if something is trying to remind me of why I'm in this situation, not that I really need any reminders." He shrugged his shoulders and touched the side of his face thoughtfully. "But it never stops hurting, even for a moment. It's always burning or stinging."
"You took your bandages off. I guess Broadway did a good job." Bianca said.
"Huh? Oh right. Well, they served their purpose - I stopped bleeding."
"Speaking of the devil, have you by any chance seen my sister around? I think something's bugging her, she hasn't been herself lately and we never see her anymore." Luke piped up. Royce opened his mouth to reply but shut it abruptly. He hadn't seen Broadway either since the night n the garage. She was so upset, the way she had looked at him with tears in her eyes while he had stood there stone faced and told her not to come near him. Royce figured she was honoring his request, though, something told her otherwise.
"No. I haven't seen her either. But I'll bet you any money that she's in the garage if anywhere." Royce suddenly felt guilty and uncomfortable. "I'll go check it out and come back in a flash, alright?"
Royce didn't give them the chance to reply before he phased out of the room and into the garage. He hadn't taken two steps towards the back when another surging headache caused him to drop his bat and grasp his right arm tightly.
"What is this?" He thought painfully. He was used to pain surges every once and a while, but twice in the span of five minutes was crazy. Something was wrong. Royce knew that this had happened before, but he couldn't remember why. He scanned the walls of the garage briefly and tried to make the room stop spinning. Spinning. Rolling. Flipping. Royce sucked in a dead breath and mentally kicked himself for not remembering the date. He needed to get to a calendar to be sure and thought that he had seen one in the kitchenette of the resort. When the burning of his body returned to a dull sting, he straightened and phased back into the resort.
"Hey you guys! You all have to come see this!! QUICK!" Arthur's panicky voice came from the other end of the building, where the bedrooms and lounge were. Royce could hear people making their way quickly into the TV area par his urgent request and asking in one communal voice what his shouting was all about. Remembering what he had come to do, Royce put the commotion aside for the moment and continued his search for the small wall- organizer. He found it situated snugly between the fridge and counter and stared at the date. He was right, but before Royce had time to think about anything else, another searing wave of pain hit him and he dropped to the floor.
"Easy there, Royce." He thought. "Just don't think too much and it'll pass." Royce kicked himself again for getting to caught up in trivial things to forget the anniversary. It was 50 years today when it all began, or ended rather. Despite himself, Royce thought about how people had always said that memory was the first thing to go in old age and he almost grinned. Another wave of pain brought his out of his train of thought and then, it all subsided.
"Ow.." Picking himself off the ground, the ghost wiped a smear of blood from his lips and looked off towards the lounge. He took a few cautious steps forward but stopped when he heard Broadway's voice, filled with horror and despair up ahead. Silently he made his way to the room and stood in the doorway, his gaze falling on the TV where all attention was fixated.
Royce froze. He felt hot, then cold all over, and then very sick. He was pretty sure that if his heart could beat, it would have skipped a few as he listened to the reporter on the screen speak; live on location at none other than his Valley High.
Bianca and Luke were playing Snakes and Ladders when the room suddenly got very cold. Zeke - who had been listening to music on one of the beds - remove his earphones and looked at his siblings quizzically.
"Did you guys feel that?" He swung his legs over the side of the bed and checked the window. "Oh, never mind, it's just the wind."
"Moron." Bianca muttered softly before rolling the dice. She reached for her game piece when another cold blast hit her in the side of the face. "Close the window, dammit."
"Why, the wind isn't blowing anymore." Luke replied irritably. His sister looked up.
"Yes it is - I just felt it again." Her look changed again to uncertainty and she scanned the room quickly.
"What the hell's the problem, Bianca? Take your turn!" Luke demanded.
"Shut up for a second and listen!" Before anyone could respond, a slight chuckle erupted from inside the room. A pressure mark appeared on the bed beside Zeke and he jumped from his spot, looking around wildly. The chuckling grew into soft laughter.
"Geez, I had almost forgotten what a blast this was!" Lucas reached into his pocket and grabbed a pair of glasses. He put them to his face and frowned.
"What the hell are you doing here?" He demanded. Bianca turned her attention back towards the bed and the pressure mark before snatching the glasses from her brothers' face and placing them on her nose.
"Oh, it's you Prince. What are you doing in here?"
"Susan said that you were looking for me and I almost never keep a dolly waiting." Royce replied sliding off the bed and shouldering his bat. "What can I do for you?" Reaching into her bag beside her, Bianca produced a well- used VHS and handed it to the ghost.
"I'd like you to prove the historical accuracy of this movie." She said sweetly.
"A flick huh?" Royce read the title. "Grease..?"
"Some shitty movie set in the 50's." Zeke replied monotonously. The ghost let another short laugh escape his throat.
"Well, unless it takes place before '53, I can't be much help to you." He passed the video back to Bianca, who had suddenly become very pouty and disappointed.
"No. It takes place in 1959."
"Well then, I am completely useless to you." Royce said. The ghost paused and swayed a bit, clutching his head before regaining his composure.
"Hey, are you alright?" Bianca stood from her position on the floor and reached out a hand to the spirit. Royce shook his head as though trying to forget a distant memory and cast her a look.
"Yeah fine. I just get headaches sometimes, you know? It's almost as if something is trying to remind me of why I'm in this situation, not that I really need any reminders." He shrugged his shoulders and touched the side of his face thoughtfully. "But it never stops hurting, even for a moment. It's always burning or stinging."
"You took your bandages off. I guess Broadway did a good job." Bianca said.
"Huh? Oh right. Well, they served their purpose - I stopped bleeding."
"Speaking of the devil, have you by any chance seen my sister around? I think something's bugging her, she hasn't been herself lately and we never see her anymore." Luke piped up. Royce opened his mouth to reply but shut it abruptly. He hadn't seen Broadway either since the night n the garage. She was so upset, the way she had looked at him with tears in her eyes while he had stood there stone faced and told her not to come near him. Royce figured she was honoring his request, though, something told her otherwise.
"No. I haven't seen her either. But I'll bet you any money that she's in the garage if anywhere." Royce suddenly felt guilty and uncomfortable. "I'll go check it out and come back in a flash, alright?"
Royce didn't give them the chance to reply before he phased out of the room and into the garage. He hadn't taken two steps towards the back when another surging headache caused him to drop his bat and grasp his right arm tightly.
"What is this?" He thought painfully. He was used to pain surges every once and a while, but twice in the span of five minutes was crazy. Something was wrong. Royce knew that this had happened before, but he couldn't remember why. He scanned the walls of the garage briefly and tried to make the room stop spinning. Spinning. Rolling. Flipping. Royce sucked in a dead breath and mentally kicked himself for not remembering the date. He needed to get to a calendar to be sure and thought that he had seen one in the kitchenette of the resort. When the burning of his body returned to a dull sting, he straightened and phased back into the resort.
"Hey you guys! You all have to come see this!! QUICK!" Arthur's panicky voice came from the other end of the building, where the bedrooms and lounge were. Royce could hear people making their way quickly into the TV area par his urgent request and asking in one communal voice what his shouting was all about. Remembering what he had come to do, Royce put the commotion aside for the moment and continued his search for the small wall- organizer. He found it situated snugly between the fridge and counter and stared at the date. He was right, but before Royce had time to think about anything else, another searing wave of pain hit him and he dropped to the floor.
"Easy there, Royce." He thought. "Just don't think too much and it'll pass." Royce kicked himself again for getting to caught up in trivial things to forget the anniversary. It was 50 years today when it all began, or ended rather. Despite himself, Royce thought about how people had always said that memory was the first thing to go in old age and he almost grinned. Another wave of pain brought his out of his train of thought and then, it all subsided.
"Ow.." Picking himself off the ground, the ghost wiped a smear of blood from his lips and looked off towards the lounge. He took a few cautious steps forward but stopped when he heard Broadway's voice, filled with horror and despair up ahead. Silently he made his way to the room and stood in the doorway, his gaze falling on the TV where all attention was fixated.
Royce froze. He felt hot, then cold all over, and then very sick. He was pretty sure that if his heart could beat, it would have skipped a few as he listened to the reporter on the screen speak; live on location at none other than his Valley High.