Part 6
Dwight, "Ray, Winston did his best to find you. You have to understand that,"
Ray folded his arms. "Well I don't!" He started crying. "Great, just great," he said in a frustrated voice, wiping the tears from his eyes quickly.
"Ray, would it help if you told Winston how you feel?" Dwight asked.
"How in the world would that help?" Ray snapped. "Winston will hate me!"
"No he won't. Please Ray, let me try to help you two," Dwight said. "Perhaps you should tell me everything that happened first."
Ray looked away. "And why would I want to do that?"
"Ray, I know this is hard, but Peter's right - you do need to talk about it. Maybe if Winston were here, it would help him understand a little bit how you feel too," Dwight said.
Ray nodded, sighing. "Fine. Whatever. I don't even care anymore."
Dwight sighed, and shaking his head, he walked out into the waiting room. "Mr. Zeddemore?"
Winston looked up.
"I feel that Ray needs to have you with him," Dwight said. "I'd like you two to wait out here."
"If you think that's the best Dwight, we will," said Egon.
Peter glared at Dwight, but said nothing.
Winston nodded as he walked inside and saw that Ray was staring at the floor.
Dwight motioned for Winston to sit down. "Winston, Ray has something to say to you and I want you to let him finish before you say anything." Dwight turned to Ray. "All right, Ray, you have the floor. Now take your time."
Ray slowly looked up at Winston. "I'm sorry. I can't help it. I don't want to feel this way. Why didn't you find me sooner?" He wiped his eyes. "He hurt me."
"Oh, God! Ray, did he ra..."
"Winston, I told you not to interrupt!" Dwight scolded.
Ray shook his head. "He had one of those guys hit my legs over and over again with a steel bar. It hurt so badly and I kept hoping that you or the guys would come, but you didn't. You didn't come!" Winston placed his hand on Ray's shoulder, but Ray only looked away and mumbled, "I waited. Why didn't you come? Why did Dwayne hurt me?"
Winston glanced at Dwight and he motioned for him to go ahead and talk. "Ray, man. We were looking everywhere for you," Winston started.
Ray turned around. "Then why didn't you find me?"
Winston looked down. "That's my fault, homeboy. I should have told the guys about Dwayne a long time ago," he said, blinking back the tears that stung in his eyes
"Yeah, you should have!" Ray snapped angrily and folded his arms, turning away from Winston.
*****
Peter and Egon were both leaning against the door listening. Peter looked up at Egon and growled, "I knew it! I knew Winston took too long to tell his story! We should've left the minute we knew Ray was taken!"
"Calm down, Peter! Winston had to tell us. We couldn't go in blind."
"Damn it, Egon! If we had just left and found Ray in time…" Peter swallowed the lump he had in his throat. "Ray would've been all right, but instead that maniac Dwayne broke both his legs and slightly fractured his skull. It's a miracle that Ray's alive and talking again."
"Yes it is, and I want you to stop."
"Stop? Stop doing what?"
"Blaming Winston. It's not his fault."
"Then whose fault is it?" growled Peter. "Because from where I'm standing, it is."
Egon shook his head. "Peter, you don't mean that."
"Don't I?"
"I thought you didn't blame Winston."
Peter turned around and left the waiting room silently.
****
Winston had tears in his eyes. "I said I was sorry, Ray," he said, "and I mean it."
Ray didn't say anything. His eyes were watering too. "Just leave me alone," he said. "Everyone." He started to wheel himself from the room.
Winston grabbed the wheelchair before he could get very far. "I don't think your session is done, Ray. Please try to understand. What's wrong with you? Why are you acting this way? What happened to the Ray Stantz I knew?"
Ray stared at him. His eyes were cold as he answered, "That Ray Stantz died. Now leave me alone." He wheeled past Winston and out the door passing by Peter and Egon. He wheeled himself outside and waited by Ecto to go home.
Dwight walked from his office shaking his head. "It's going to take time. Pete, you might want to try and talk to him. You too, Egon and Winston."
The guys nodded and walked out towards Ecto. Winston opened the door and started to help Ray inside. "Leave me alone!" Ray snapped. "I can do it myself."
Without a word, Winston let go of the wheelchair and quietly sat in front with Egon who was driving. "Give him time Winston," Egon muttered. Winston just stared out the window.
There was little conversation on the way back to the firehouse. Ray wheeled himself upstairs and managed to get himself into bed.
****
The guys were all sitting down at the table. Peter stared at Winston. "We heard what Ray said in there."
"So what are we going to do? I don't like seeing Ray this way," Winston replied sadly.
"None of us do, but we have to give him time," said Egon.
"When do his casts come off?" Janine asked as she joined the group.
"Yeah! Yeah! When?" Slimer chimed in excitedly.
"Next week," answered Egon. "Then he starts therapy."
"Yes, and I'm going to get him walking again if my name isn't Winston Zeddemore ."
"Yeah, if he'll let you. "
"He will, Pete."
"I hope so, Winston. I hope so. Hey, I've got an idea on how to cheer Ray up. Let's take a vacation."
"Is that to cheer Ray up Pete, or you?"
"Hey Winston, we all need cheering up." Peter answered with a smile.
Winston sighed, not knowing whether Ray would go for that or not. Peter went up to the bedroom after lunch.
"What do you want, Peter?" Ray asked. "Why can't you guys just leave me alone?"
"Ray, we're trying to help," Peter said.
"Well, I don't want your help!" Ray said. "I can do things on my own."
Peter sighed, knowing he wasn't getting anywhere. "Hey, Tex. How does a vacation sound to you?"
Ray just stared at Peter.
"T-The guys and I just thought that might be what we all need to calm down," Peter suggested.
"Peter, I said before to leave me alone and I mean it!" Ray said. "And no, I don't want to go anywhere! I can't even walk, remember?"
Peter just shook his head. "Okay, Ray. You just sit there feeling sorry for yourself." At that, Peter left the room.
Ray sat in his wheelchair for a long time, staring at the door. Suddenly, he grabbed his radio off the nightstand and threw it across the floor. Peter just shook his head. "If you need me .You know where I'm at ." And then he left the room leaving Ray alone
*****
The week went by quickly. The guys were kept busy busting ghosts. Ray was told to answer the phone because Janine had to go with them. He sat and waited for the phone to ring, sighing as it rang yet again. "Hello. Ghostbusters. Yeah, I see. Okay, they'll be right there. Yes. Okay. I've got the address." Ray hung up and muttered, "Man! Some people sure are pushy. No wonder why Janine gets so crabby!" He looked up to see Ecto pull in. He watched as the guys got out. They looked tired. "You got another call."
"Now?" moaned Peter.
"Yes, now."
"Not me," said Janine. "I've had it. I'm not paid to do this."
"I'll go," said Egon.
"No!" Ray shouted, scaring everyone. "NO ONE GOES ALONE!"
Everyone turned around when Ray said that. The engineer was trying to hold back the tears in his eyes. "No one goes alone," Ray repeated, glaring angrily at them.
Peter walked up to Ray. "Okay, Tex. We won't. The rest of us will go."
Ray nodded. "Good," he said, folding his arms as he watched them leave.
An hour later, they were back from the bust. Ray looked miserable. "It's not fair! I want to bust ghosts, too!"
Winston glanced at Peter, concerned. Egon walked up to Ray. "Ray? Come upstairs with me for a minute," Egon said.
Ray sighed, feeling like he didn't have a choice. He let Egon push him upstairs. Ray had gotten his casts off his legs two days ago, but he still couldn't walk and he was getting more and more frustrated.
Egon wheeled him over to the bunk area. "Raymond, I wish to speak with you," Egon said.
Ray kept quiet.
Egon sat down. "It's been two days since your casts were removed and you haven't even tried to walk."
"I have too! Do you think I don't want to walk? "
"No, I think you do, but I also think you gave up. Well, I'm sorry Raymond, but there's no way are we going to let you give up. Peter, Winston, Janine and yes, even Slimer are going to work with you everyday until you get the strength back into your legs. Your first lesson begins now." Egon walked over to the door. "Okay, guys. Bring it in."
Peter and Winston brought in a machine that had bars on the end of it. Egon wheeled the machine over to him. "Ray, this is a lifting machine. It's to exercise your legs to get them strong again. What you do…"
"I know what to do!" snapped Ray.
Egon sighed, glancing in Peter's direction. "Raymond, we are trying to help you. Please understand that."
Ray nodded, blinking back the tears in his eyes. "I'm just so frustrated, Egon! I can't stand this anymore!"
"That's good, then. Let's work at it so you won't have to stand it," Peter said.
Ray sighed. He continued to try and the guys cheered him on. At the end of the day, he was exhausted. "I…can't do anymore…" Ray said.
"One more, Tex. Please." encouraged Peter. "If you do one more, I'll buy you a gallon of pickle-flavored ice cream. Your favorite."
For the first time in a long while, Ray gave Peter a huge smile. "Peter! Pickle-flavored ice cream! Gross!"
Egon, Winston, and Janine all made faces, but Slimer got all excited. "Pickle-flavored ice cream? Where? Where?" He floated off in search of it.
Ray did the last repetition. "I did it, guys! I did it!"
"You sure did, homeboy. You sure did," said Winston.
Ray smiled. "I think I can do one more."
"No. That's enough for now," said Egon. "More later. Then the real training starts."
Ray nodded, tired. Peter helped him up and wheeled him back to his bed where Ray took a nap before going to see Dwight later that afternoon. "Peter, I really don't want to go," Ray said as they pulled up to Dwight's office.
"Ray, you need to talk about this and you won't talk about it with any of us," Peter said.
"Fine! If you want me to talk, maybe I will, but not to Dwight!" Ray snapped, folding his arms over his chest.
"Raymond… Please, we're only trying to help," Egon said.
"Help? Ha! You guys weren't even there. You have no idea what that monster did to me. No idea," Ray said angrily.
Egon put a hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps not, Raymond, but we want you to understand that we are trying to help you overcome what happened to you."
Ray nodded. "Okay. Let's get this over with." Ray rolled himself in. "Hey, Dwight we're here. Let's get this bull session going."
"Ray, I think you're ready for a group discussion."
"You mean with strangers?"
"No. I meant that I think we can have Peter and Egon join us."
"All right, you're the doctor."
Dwight opened the door and looked out into the waiting room. "Peter, Egon - you two can come in now."
That afternoon Ray told his story. Egon had to turn away so they wouldn't notice his tears. Peter kept clenching his fist. Winston just sat silently as Ray spoke. Once the session was over and the group went outside, Winston struck the top of Ecto hard with his fist.
"Easy, Winston. It will be okay," said Peter.
"Man, Peter. I can't believe Dwayne did that to Ray. No wonder he's been so down and not the Ray we know."
"Yeah, I know. I wish I could just strangle that monster as Ray called him," replied Peter.
"Let's get Ray home," said Egon, still angry at what he learned.
****
Later that night, Egon found himself staring at the TV. Peter walked down to the second floor and found Egon sitting in front of the couch. "Couldn't sleep?" Peter asked, sitting next to him.
Egon jumped. He quickly wiped his eyes and Peter saw that he wasn't really watching the television. Oh Peter, I didn't hear you come in," Egon quickly said and started to get up. "No. I was just watching a movie but I'm going to go to bed now…"
"Hold it, Spengs," Peter said. "You're not getting away from me that easily."
Egon sighed. "I'm not?"
Peter shook his head. "No," he said. "I know you too well for that, Spengs. Should I make the cocoa or will you?"
Egon got up. "I'll make it. You don't add marshmallows."
"After Stay Puft, can you blame me?"
"Not really."
The two friends went into the kitchen. After Egon made the cocoa - with marshmallows for him and plain for Peter - they sat down. "I know what happened to Ray was bad, but I didn't think it would be like what he described. Peter, why would another human inflict pain on another human?"
"I don't know, Spengs. I wish I did." Peter answered. "If I did, I'd be able to stop wars from ever happening again."
Egon paused for a moment, taking a slow sip. "I just wanted to run out of there. I felt so sick."
"Yeah, me too. I think I did get sick," Peter replied.
"At least now we know why Ray's been acting the way he has. Peter, do you think he'll ever be okay again? I mean really okay?"
"I hope so, Egon. I hope so."
****
Far, far, far away from the safety of the firehouse in another dimension, thunder roared and lightning streaked across the sky. This was not ordinary lightning. It was much more powerful. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck a sphere and cracked it open. Slowly, a dark mist came out and formed into what was once Dwayne Hicks.
"Free! Free at last! I'll make them pay for trapping me here. But first, I'll make Zee and Chubby suffer! Dwayne began laughing. At first it was low then it built up until it was echoing throughout the dimension he was trapped in.
****
Ray stared at Winston, who was standing across the floor. "You've got to be kidding. You want me to walk over to you?"
"I want you to try. Ray, it's been two weeks since they removed the casts. Egon said you've been doing great with the lifting machine and we think it's time for you to try and walk."
"That easy for you to say," the occultist replied. "You're not the one in this wheelchair. Winston, I want to walk again but I can't."
"Raymond Francis Stantz, that word is not, nor should it be in your vocabulary. I never want to hear you say I can't again. Now you get up and walk over to Winston."
"Hello to you too, Janine," Ray said as Winston looked up and smiled at her
Janine returned the smile. "We've got a call so Peter, Egon, and I are going to check it out."
Ray stared at her. "Is it safe?"
"Egon said it's only a class five."
"Oh they can be slimy and annoying but I guess three people can handle it. Just don't separate."
"Ray, we're professionals. We three can handle a simple class five," said Peter as he walked into the bedroom. "Okay Ms. Melnitz, we're waiting."
"I'm coming," Janie replied as she followed Peter from the room, mumbling. "You better be giving me a raise soon."
****
All was quiet when Dwayne arrived at the firehouse. He hid and waited for his time to strike.
Winston placed his hand on the wheelchair. "Try again!" he exclaimed.
"I am trying! I can't do it!" Ray cried as he tried again and fell back into the wheelchair.
Winston stepped away. "Try harder, Ray. I know you can do it."
Ray slowly stood up again, balancing himself against the wheelchair. "Now slowly walk towards me," Winston said.
Ray nodded as he tried to take a step, but fell down. He sighed as Winston hurried over to help him up. "I can't, Winston! I just can't do it."
"Okay, homeboy. We're going to give it a rest for a while. I'm going down to fix some coffee. You want a cup?" Ray nodded. "Okay. I'll be back in a few minutes. You rest, okay?" Winston said as he left the room.
It had been over a few minutes and Winston had not returned from the kitchen. Curious, Ray slowly wheeled his chair to the ramp and started down when he heard a voice he had hoped he would never hear again.
"Okay, Zee. Now that I've got you taken care of, time to find Chubby."
Ray looked down and saw Winston lying on the floor with Dwayne's ghost floating over him. Dwayne looked up and grinned. "I see you, Chubby, and I'm coming for you!"
Dwayne flew up at Ray, grabbed him, and threw him to the floor. Then, he took his wheelchair and threw it out the window. He flew at Ray then grabbed him by his arm and lifted him off the floor. Ray let out a gasp. "Come on, Chubby. I want you to watch me kill Zee - something I should have done a long time ago." He flew down the stairs, dropped Ray in the middle of the floor and then flew towards Winston. "You die today, Zee!" he screamed.
"Leave Winston alone!" Ray yelled.
"Who's going to stop me?" Dwayne snarled at him.
"I am." Ray slowly pulled himself to his feet. "I won't let you hurt Winston."
Dwayne ignored him, moving in to kill Winston. Ray slowly moved towards his locker. He made it and grabbed his proton pack. "Hey dipstick!"
Dwayne turned around and Ray blasted him at full power. The ghost screamed as he tried to get away, but Ray held on tight. He knew if he let go Dwayne, would escape. Slimer, having heard the racket, suddenly appeared.
"Slimer! The trap! Get the trap!" Ray yelled. Quickly Slimer got a trap, threw it under Dwayne, and opened it. And for the second time, Dwayne was sucked up into the trap. Ray hurried over and picked it up. "Now you're going in our containment unit." He gave the trap to Slimer, who took it downstairs and placed it in the unit. Ray then hurried over to Winston to see if he was okay.
Winston moaned. "It's okay, Winston. You'll be fine," Ray said. He looked up when he heard Ecto pulling into the firehouse.
"Ray, what happened?" Egon asked.
"Yeah! What happened? We saw your wheelchair lying in the street. Are you and Winston okay?" asked a concerned Peter.
Ray told them everything. "I don't know what Dwayne did to him," Ray said.
Winston slowly opened his eyes.
"You're all right, buddy," Peter said, standing next to him.
Winston sat up, confused. "Ray?" he asked.
Ray nodded, smiling. "You okay?"
"Yeah, m'man. Just got a killer headache," Winston moaned.
"I'm calling 9-1-1," Janine said.
"I'll be all right, Janine," Winston insisted. "Hey Ray, where's Dwayne?"
"I um, trapped him. Slimer put him into the containment this time," Ray said and Winston nodded.
Suddenly Winston realized something. "Wait a minute, Ray. How did you trap him?"
"I, um, managed to get over to my locker…" Ray said.
"You walked, didn't you?" Winston asked
"Uh, yeah. I guess I did," Ray said. "Winston! I walked!" he shouted excitedly.
Peter, Egon, and Janine all came over to Ray. "I knew you could! Ray, I just knew it!" Peter yelled as he gave Ray a hug.
"Yes. I quite agree," Egon added in with a smile.
"Ray we're so proud of you," said Janine.
Ray looked at Winston " Winston, are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah. I am, thanks to you, homeboy. You saved my life, Ray."
Ray smiled. "I'm sorry I was rough on you, Winston. I was so angry with you, but when I saw Dwayne was going to kill you, I had to do something. I love you, Winston."
Winston smiled and gave Ray a hug. Suddenly the phone rang and Ray slowly went to the steps. "Come on, guys. We've got a ghost to bust." At that, Ray went down the steps one at a time.
"Do you want to tell him, Egon?" asked Peter.
Egon shook his head. "I don't have the heart."
"Tell him what?" asked Winston.
"That was the phone on the TV," answered Peter.
Ray sat down and waited for his friends with a huge smile on his face. He was going to be all right and so was Winston.
The End
Dwight, "Ray, Winston did his best to find you. You have to understand that,"
Ray folded his arms. "Well I don't!" He started crying. "Great, just great," he said in a frustrated voice, wiping the tears from his eyes quickly.
"Ray, would it help if you told Winston how you feel?" Dwight asked.
"How in the world would that help?" Ray snapped. "Winston will hate me!"
"No he won't. Please Ray, let me try to help you two," Dwight said. "Perhaps you should tell me everything that happened first."
Ray looked away. "And why would I want to do that?"
"Ray, I know this is hard, but Peter's right - you do need to talk about it. Maybe if Winston were here, it would help him understand a little bit how you feel too," Dwight said.
Ray nodded, sighing. "Fine. Whatever. I don't even care anymore."
Dwight sighed, and shaking his head, he walked out into the waiting room. "Mr. Zeddemore?"
Winston looked up.
"I feel that Ray needs to have you with him," Dwight said. "I'd like you two to wait out here."
"If you think that's the best Dwight, we will," said Egon.
Peter glared at Dwight, but said nothing.
Winston nodded as he walked inside and saw that Ray was staring at the floor.
Dwight motioned for Winston to sit down. "Winston, Ray has something to say to you and I want you to let him finish before you say anything." Dwight turned to Ray. "All right, Ray, you have the floor. Now take your time."
Ray slowly looked up at Winston. "I'm sorry. I can't help it. I don't want to feel this way. Why didn't you find me sooner?" He wiped his eyes. "He hurt me."
"Oh, God! Ray, did he ra..."
"Winston, I told you not to interrupt!" Dwight scolded.
Ray shook his head. "He had one of those guys hit my legs over and over again with a steel bar. It hurt so badly and I kept hoping that you or the guys would come, but you didn't. You didn't come!" Winston placed his hand on Ray's shoulder, but Ray only looked away and mumbled, "I waited. Why didn't you come? Why did Dwayne hurt me?"
Winston glanced at Dwight and he motioned for him to go ahead and talk. "Ray, man. We were looking everywhere for you," Winston started.
Ray turned around. "Then why didn't you find me?"
Winston looked down. "That's my fault, homeboy. I should have told the guys about Dwayne a long time ago," he said, blinking back the tears that stung in his eyes
"Yeah, you should have!" Ray snapped angrily and folded his arms, turning away from Winston.
*****
Peter and Egon were both leaning against the door listening. Peter looked up at Egon and growled, "I knew it! I knew Winston took too long to tell his story! We should've left the minute we knew Ray was taken!"
"Calm down, Peter! Winston had to tell us. We couldn't go in blind."
"Damn it, Egon! If we had just left and found Ray in time…" Peter swallowed the lump he had in his throat. "Ray would've been all right, but instead that maniac Dwayne broke both his legs and slightly fractured his skull. It's a miracle that Ray's alive and talking again."
"Yes it is, and I want you to stop."
"Stop? Stop doing what?"
"Blaming Winston. It's not his fault."
"Then whose fault is it?" growled Peter. "Because from where I'm standing, it is."
Egon shook his head. "Peter, you don't mean that."
"Don't I?"
"I thought you didn't blame Winston."
Peter turned around and left the waiting room silently.
****
Winston had tears in his eyes. "I said I was sorry, Ray," he said, "and I mean it."
Ray didn't say anything. His eyes were watering too. "Just leave me alone," he said. "Everyone." He started to wheel himself from the room.
Winston grabbed the wheelchair before he could get very far. "I don't think your session is done, Ray. Please try to understand. What's wrong with you? Why are you acting this way? What happened to the Ray Stantz I knew?"
Ray stared at him. His eyes were cold as he answered, "That Ray Stantz died. Now leave me alone." He wheeled past Winston and out the door passing by Peter and Egon. He wheeled himself outside and waited by Ecto to go home.
Dwight walked from his office shaking his head. "It's going to take time. Pete, you might want to try and talk to him. You too, Egon and Winston."
The guys nodded and walked out towards Ecto. Winston opened the door and started to help Ray inside. "Leave me alone!" Ray snapped. "I can do it myself."
Without a word, Winston let go of the wheelchair and quietly sat in front with Egon who was driving. "Give him time Winston," Egon muttered. Winston just stared out the window.
There was little conversation on the way back to the firehouse. Ray wheeled himself upstairs and managed to get himself into bed.
****
The guys were all sitting down at the table. Peter stared at Winston. "We heard what Ray said in there."
"So what are we going to do? I don't like seeing Ray this way," Winston replied sadly.
"None of us do, but we have to give him time," said Egon.
"When do his casts come off?" Janine asked as she joined the group.
"Yeah! Yeah! When?" Slimer chimed in excitedly.
"Next week," answered Egon. "Then he starts therapy."
"Yes, and I'm going to get him walking again if my name isn't Winston Zeddemore ."
"Yeah, if he'll let you. "
"He will, Pete."
"I hope so, Winston. I hope so. Hey, I've got an idea on how to cheer Ray up. Let's take a vacation."
"Is that to cheer Ray up Pete, or you?"
"Hey Winston, we all need cheering up." Peter answered with a smile.
Winston sighed, not knowing whether Ray would go for that or not. Peter went up to the bedroom after lunch.
"What do you want, Peter?" Ray asked. "Why can't you guys just leave me alone?"
"Ray, we're trying to help," Peter said.
"Well, I don't want your help!" Ray said. "I can do things on my own."
Peter sighed, knowing he wasn't getting anywhere. "Hey, Tex. How does a vacation sound to you?"
Ray just stared at Peter.
"T-The guys and I just thought that might be what we all need to calm down," Peter suggested.
"Peter, I said before to leave me alone and I mean it!" Ray said. "And no, I don't want to go anywhere! I can't even walk, remember?"
Peter just shook his head. "Okay, Ray. You just sit there feeling sorry for yourself." At that, Peter left the room.
Ray sat in his wheelchair for a long time, staring at the door. Suddenly, he grabbed his radio off the nightstand and threw it across the floor. Peter just shook his head. "If you need me .You know where I'm at ." And then he left the room leaving Ray alone
*****
The week went by quickly. The guys were kept busy busting ghosts. Ray was told to answer the phone because Janine had to go with them. He sat and waited for the phone to ring, sighing as it rang yet again. "Hello. Ghostbusters. Yeah, I see. Okay, they'll be right there. Yes. Okay. I've got the address." Ray hung up and muttered, "Man! Some people sure are pushy. No wonder why Janine gets so crabby!" He looked up to see Ecto pull in. He watched as the guys got out. They looked tired. "You got another call."
"Now?" moaned Peter.
"Yes, now."
"Not me," said Janine. "I've had it. I'm not paid to do this."
"I'll go," said Egon.
"No!" Ray shouted, scaring everyone. "NO ONE GOES ALONE!"
Everyone turned around when Ray said that. The engineer was trying to hold back the tears in his eyes. "No one goes alone," Ray repeated, glaring angrily at them.
Peter walked up to Ray. "Okay, Tex. We won't. The rest of us will go."
Ray nodded. "Good," he said, folding his arms as he watched them leave.
An hour later, they were back from the bust. Ray looked miserable. "It's not fair! I want to bust ghosts, too!"
Winston glanced at Peter, concerned. Egon walked up to Ray. "Ray? Come upstairs with me for a minute," Egon said.
Ray sighed, feeling like he didn't have a choice. He let Egon push him upstairs. Ray had gotten his casts off his legs two days ago, but he still couldn't walk and he was getting more and more frustrated.
Egon wheeled him over to the bunk area. "Raymond, I wish to speak with you," Egon said.
Ray kept quiet.
Egon sat down. "It's been two days since your casts were removed and you haven't even tried to walk."
"I have too! Do you think I don't want to walk? "
"No, I think you do, but I also think you gave up. Well, I'm sorry Raymond, but there's no way are we going to let you give up. Peter, Winston, Janine and yes, even Slimer are going to work with you everyday until you get the strength back into your legs. Your first lesson begins now." Egon walked over to the door. "Okay, guys. Bring it in."
Peter and Winston brought in a machine that had bars on the end of it. Egon wheeled the machine over to him. "Ray, this is a lifting machine. It's to exercise your legs to get them strong again. What you do…"
"I know what to do!" snapped Ray.
Egon sighed, glancing in Peter's direction. "Raymond, we are trying to help you. Please understand that."
Ray nodded, blinking back the tears in his eyes. "I'm just so frustrated, Egon! I can't stand this anymore!"
"That's good, then. Let's work at it so you won't have to stand it," Peter said.
Ray sighed. He continued to try and the guys cheered him on. At the end of the day, he was exhausted. "I…can't do anymore…" Ray said.
"One more, Tex. Please." encouraged Peter. "If you do one more, I'll buy you a gallon of pickle-flavored ice cream. Your favorite."
For the first time in a long while, Ray gave Peter a huge smile. "Peter! Pickle-flavored ice cream! Gross!"
Egon, Winston, and Janine all made faces, but Slimer got all excited. "Pickle-flavored ice cream? Where? Where?" He floated off in search of it.
Ray did the last repetition. "I did it, guys! I did it!"
"You sure did, homeboy. You sure did," said Winston.
Ray smiled. "I think I can do one more."
"No. That's enough for now," said Egon. "More later. Then the real training starts."
Ray nodded, tired. Peter helped him up and wheeled him back to his bed where Ray took a nap before going to see Dwight later that afternoon. "Peter, I really don't want to go," Ray said as they pulled up to Dwight's office.
"Ray, you need to talk about this and you won't talk about it with any of us," Peter said.
"Fine! If you want me to talk, maybe I will, but not to Dwight!" Ray snapped, folding his arms over his chest.
"Raymond… Please, we're only trying to help," Egon said.
"Help? Ha! You guys weren't even there. You have no idea what that monster did to me. No idea," Ray said angrily.
Egon put a hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps not, Raymond, but we want you to understand that we are trying to help you overcome what happened to you."
Ray nodded. "Okay. Let's get this over with." Ray rolled himself in. "Hey, Dwight we're here. Let's get this bull session going."
"Ray, I think you're ready for a group discussion."
"You mean with strangers?"
"No. I meant that I think we can have Peter and Egon join us."
"All right, you're the doctor."
Dwight opened the door and looked out into the waiting room. "Peter, Egon - you two can come in now."
That afternoon Ray told his story. Egon had to turn away so they wouldn't notice his tears. Peter kept clenching his fist. Winston just sat silently as Ray spoke. Once the session was over and the group went outside, Winston struck the top of Ecto hard with his fist.
"Easy, Winston. It will be okay," said Peter.
"Man, Peter. I can't believe Dwayne did that to Ray. No wonder he's been so down and not the Ray we know."
"Yeah, I know. I wish I could just strangle that monster as Ray called him," replied Peter.
"Let's get Ray home," said Egon, still angry at what he learned.
****
Later that night, Egon found himself staring at the TV. Peter walked down to the second floor and found Egon sitting in front of the couch. "Couldn't sleep?" Peter asked, sitting next to him.
Egon jumped. He quickly wiped his eyes and Peter saw that he wasn't really watching the television. Oh Peter, I didn't hear you come in," Egon quickly said and started to get up. "No. I was just watching a movie but I'm going to go to bed now…"
"Hold it, Spengs," Peter said. "You're not getting away from me that easily."
Egon sighed. "I'm not?"
Peter shook his head. "No," he said. "I know you too well for that, Spengs. Should I make the cocoa or will you?"
Egon got up. "I'll make it. You don't add marshmallows."
"After Stay Puft, can you blame me?"
"Not really."
The two friends went into the kitchen. After Egon made the cocoa - with marshmallows for him and plain for Peter - they sat down. "I know what happened to Ray was bad, but I didn't think it would be like what he described. Peter, why would another human inflict pain on another human?"
"I don't know, Spengs. I wish I did." Peter answered. "If I did, I'd be able to stop wars from ever happening again."
Egon paused for a moment, taking a slow sip. "I just wanted to run out of there. I felt so sick."
"Yeah, me too. I think I did get sick," Peter replied.
"At least now we know why Ray's been acting the way he has. Peter, do you think he'll ever be okay again? I mean really okay?"
"I hope so, Egon. I hope so."
****
Far, far, far away from the safety of the firehouse in another dimension, thunder roared and lightning streaked across the sky. This was not ordinary lightning. It was much more powerful. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck a sphere and cracked it open. Slowly, a dark mist came out and formed into what was once Dwayne Hicks.
"Free! Free at last! I'll make them pay for trapping me here. But first, I'll make Zee and Chubby suffer! Dwayne began laughing. At first it was low then it built up until it was echoing throughout the dimension he was trapped in.
****
Ray stared at Winston, who was standing across the floor. "You've got to be kidding. You want me to walk over to you?"
"I want you to try. Ray, it's been two weeks since they removed the casts. Egon said you've been doing great with the lifting machine and we think it's time for you to try and walk."
"That easy for you to say," the occultist replied. "You're not the one in this wheelchair. Winston, I want to walk again but I can't."
"Raymond Francis Stantz, that word is not, nor should it be in your vocabulary. I never want to hear you say I can't again. Now you get up and walk over to Winston."
"Hello to you too, Janine," Ray said as Winston looked up and smiled at her
Janine returned the smile. "We've got a call so Peter, Egon, and I are going to check it out."
Ray stared at her. "Is it safe?"
"Egon said it's only a class five."
"Oh they can be slimy and annoying but I guess three people can handle it. Just don't separate."
"Ray, we're professionals. We three can handle a simple class five," said Peter as he walked into the bedroom. "Okay Ms. Melnitz, we're waiting."
"I'm coming," Janie replied as she followed Peter from the room, mumbling. "You better be giving me a raise soon."
****
All was quiet when Dwayne arrived at the firehouse. He hid and waited for his time to strike.
Winston placed his hand on the wheelchair. "Try again!" he exclaimed.
"I am trying! I can't do it!" Ray cried as he tried again and fell back into the wheelchair.
Winston stepped away. "Try harder, Ray. I know you can do it."
Ray slowly stood up again, balancing himself against the wheelchair. "Now slowly walk towards me," Winston said.
Ray nodded as he tried to take a step, but fell down. He sighed as Winston hurried over to help him up. "I can't, Winston! I just can't do it."
"Okay, homeboy. We're going to give it a rest for a while. I'm going down to fix some coffee. You want a cup?" Ray nodded. "Okay. I'll be back in a few minutes. You rest, okay?" Winston said as he left the room.
It had been over a few minutes and Winston had not returned from the kitchen. Curious, Ray slowly wheeled his chair to the ramp and started down when he heard a voice he had hoped he would never hear again.
"Okay, Zee. Now that I've got you taken care of, time to find Chubby."
Ray looked down and saw Winston lying on the floor with Dwayne's ghost floating over him. Dwayne looked up and grinned. "I see you, Chubby, and I'm coming for you!"
Dwayne flew up at Ray, grabbed him, and threw him to the floor. Then, he took his wheelchair and threw it out the window. He flew at Ray then grabbed him by his arm and lifted him off the floor. Ray let out a gasp. "Come on, Chubby. I want you to watch me kill Zee - something I should have done a long time ago." He flew down the stairs, dropped Ray in the middle of the floor and then flew towards Winston. "You die today, Zee!" he screamed.
"Leave Winston alone!" Ray yelled.
"Who's going to stop me?" Dwayne snarled at him.
"I am." Ray slowly pulled himself to his feet. "I won't let you hurt Winston."
Dwayne ignored him, moving in to kill Winston. Ray slowly moved towards his locker. He made it and grabbed his proton pack. "Hey dipstick!"
Dwayne turned around and Ray blasted him at full power. The ghost screamed as he tried to get away, but Ray held on tight. He knew if he let go Dwayne, would escape. Slimer, having heard the racket, suddenly appeared.
"Slimer! The trap! Get the trap!" Ray yelled. Quickly Slimer got a trap, threw it under Dwayne, and opened it. And for the second time, Dwayne was sucked up into the trap. Ray hurried over and picked it up. "Now you're going in our containment unit." He gave the trap to Slimer, who took it downstairs and placed it in the unit. Ray then hurried over to Winston to see if he was okay.
Winston moaned. "It's okay, Winston. You'll be fine," Ray said. He looked up when he heard Ecto pulling into the firehouse.
"Ray, what happened?" Egon asked.
"Yeah! What happened? We saw your wheelchair lying in the street. Are you and Winston okay?" asked a concerned Peter.
Ray told them everything. "I don't know what Dwayne did to him," Ray said.
Winston slowly opened his eyes.
"You're all right, buddy," Peter said, standing next to him.
Winston sat up, confused. "Ray?" he asked.
Ray nodded, smiling. "You okay?"
"Yeah, m'man. Just got a killer headache," Winston moaned.
"I'm calling 9-1-1," Janine said.
"I'll be all right, Janine," Winston insisted. "Hey Ray, where's Dwayne?"
"I um, trapped him. Slimer put him into the containment this time," Ray said and Winston nodded.
Suddenly Winston realized something. "Wait a minute, Ray. How did you trap him?"
"I, um, managed to get over to my locker…" Ray said.
"You walked, didn't you?" Winston asked
"Uh, yeah. I guess I did," Ray said. "Winston! I walked!" he shouted excitedly.
Peter, Egon, and Janine all came over to Ray. "I knew you could! Ray, I just knew it!" Peter yelled as he gave Ray a hug.
"Yes. I quite agree," Egon added in with a smile.
"Ray we're so proud of you," said Janine.
Ray looked at Winston " Winston, are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah. I am, thanks to you, homeboy. You saved my life, Ray."
Ray smiled. "I'm sorry I was rough on you, Winston. I was so angry with you, but when I saw Dwayne was going to kill you, I had to do something. I love you, Winston."
Winston smiled and gave Ray a hug. Suddenly the phone rang and Ray slowly went to the steps. "Come on, guys. We've got a ghost to bust." At that, Ray went down the steps one at a time.
"Do you want to tell him, Egon?" asked Peter.
Egon shook his head. "I don't have the heart."
"Tell him what?" asked Winston.
"That was the phone on the TV," answered Peter.
Ray sat down and waited for his friends with a huge smile on his face. He was going to be all right and so was Winston.
The End