Chapter 9
:: DELIA'S POV:: -May 9th (Continued)-
Like my mother used to always joke to me, "Men- Can't live with 'em. End of story."
If mom were here, I'd so tell her how right she was.
I mean, all I was doing was unpacking my stuff from school! That's it!
I was home for the weekend, as usual. I had typical dorm stuff to deal with; laundry, restocking the snacks for the drive back and the whatnot. Granted, med school was grueling, but did I really deserve this?
I was in my room, unpacking and reveling in nostalgia. I had just started to put some of my shirts in my closet when- poof!- this dude just materializes in front of me!
I was not a happy camper. If some guy in hospital-issue pajamas and a robe just popped up in front of you; how would you deal with it?
I had tried to yell at him and drag him out of my room, but as it turns out- dude's a ghost, or somethin'.
I took a deep cleansing breath- like they teach you in yoga classes- and gave the guy a once-over. I studied his white-streaked brown hair, the multi-colored stubble spread over his chin, and then I looked him in the eye.
His eyes were what got me. They were naturally deep brown, but they looked almost black against his sickly pale skin. There were circles under his eyes that were so deep, I initially thought that they were bruises. He looked like he hadn't slept in ages.
And I also got the impression of a deep sense of sadness, bordering on anguish.
Contrite, I sat on my bed, and we had talked for awhile. He told me that his name was Garrett Daniels. He told me about his wife, and his kids. He told me about getting in an accident and winding up in Brookhaven Hospital. He even told me that he believed this freaky sounding ho' was sneaking into his room at night and injecting him with what he believed was a hallucinogenic herb.
He also said that I was going to disappear from existence that very night.
Seemingly on cue, my closet had exploded to life, and this monster- which he called "Pyramid Head"- burst out, and grabbed my ankle. It started to drag me into my closet.
Luckily, I'd managed to brow-beat Garrett into trying to help me. Though unluckily, he'd only managed to succeed in getting himself dragged in as well.
I think at that point, we'd both passed out or something, because I sure as hell don't remember what happened until I woke up in Brookhaven.
I had partially blamed him for this, but I let the accusations drop. I wanted to get the hell out of there.
He had called for a nurse, but when she came in, I made an interesting discovery.
Now I was the one who was incorporeal.
Garrett looked at me, sighed, and had said, "Welcome to my world."
"Huh?" I said.
"Huh?" the nurse said.
Garrett, who had appeared to be in a fog, looked at the nurse. "Nothing. Never mind." He said hastily.
The nurse, who at this point, must have thought him to be totally insane, gave a rather placating smile, and left.
Garrett looked at me, a wan smile on his face. "Now it's your turn I suppose." He murmured.
I ignored that.
Something occurred to me. "Grab your notebook and write to me. Don't say anything." I said.
He gave me a blank look. "Why?"
"Because, you ninny, if you're the only one who sees me, and someone here catches you talking to thin air, then what do you think will happen?" I prodded, my voice dripping with sarcasm.
The light seemed to dawn on him. "They'd lock me up, throw away the key, and I'd never figure out what the hell happened to my family." He looked downtrodden.
He picked up his notebook, and a pen. Flipping to the last page, he started to scribble something.
He held the notebook page up. Okay, then what do we do now?
I thought it over. "Where do you live?" I asked.
He just looked at me. He scribbled again. Blue Creek Apartments. Apartment 308.
I sighed. No wonder the guy drank. That place was one step up from the ghetto.
"Well, why don't I go there and see if your family's okay?"
Garrett froze for a few minutes. He seemed speechless. Finally, You would do that?
"Sure, what the hell, what else could I do like this anyway?" I waved my hand through the foot of his bed, displaying my new "handicap."
He smiled at me, and it was bright and sunny, as though he had just won the lottery.
I walked into the bed a little bit, and gave him the closest thing to a hug that I could give him. "You rest now." I said gently.
He looked frightened. "Will you stay 'til I fall asleep?" He whispered. His eyes were wide, giving him the appearance of a frightened child.
I nodded, hugging myself.
He leaned back, closing his eyes. Within about fifteen minutes, his breathing became even and steady. He had fallen asleep.
I glanced out the window. It was nighttime. Rain was falling in a steady drizzle.
"Hell." I muttered. I hoped my "condition" applied to the weather too. I was wearing my favorite green silk tee-shirt. Rain would just not do.
I turned to the door, and attempted to walk through it.
I passed through like a knife through butter, no sweat!
Sadly, the euphoria only lasted for about two seconds. I promptly fell through the floor.
Now, given the circumstances, I thought that I could handle such a thing well.
However, I did not.
"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
If I had been "real" I was sure I'd have scared the shit out of the whole hospital.
Thump. I suddenly hit solid ground.
"Ow!" I yelped. "Hey, wait….not ow." I was fine. Weird.
I was in the lobby. This worked for me; I stood up, and left right through the front door.
Literally.
I stood out in the rain for a minute, staring up at the sky. I was as dry as I could be. Cool!
Blue Creek Apartments…Blue Creek Apartments… Wasn't that on the corner of Katz and Munson?
I sighed. Ah well, it's not like I have anything better to do…
I started to walk up Carroll Street. I thought of Garrett's wife and his kids.
I decided not to think about what might be waiting for me at his place, I was sure I'd find out soon enough…