CHAPTER SIX
Alex stood in the doorway and watched his friends. He smiled when they hugged before he turned away to give them some privacy.
"Well that's cute but it took him long enough."
"Hmmmm. Come on Reggie, let's give them some time."
When they sat on the couch, Flynn walked over to stand in front of them. She looked at both of them and they looked at her when suddenly she jumped between them to sit on the couch but Alex wasn't quick enough and Flynn landed in his lap, well she landed where his lap was. Jumping up quickly, he moved to sit beside her. She smiled serenely at him and then turned to Reggie.
"So, what is going on with your boy? And what does it have to do with my girl?"
Reggie looked at her and then around her at Alex pleading silently with his friend to help him out. Alex shook his head, telling his friend that he could deal with it himself and then promptly poofed away. Reggie looked back at Flynn who was watching him with a look of expectation and Reggie blurted out that Luke liked Julie and that he had been completely lost when she had gone missing today. Flynn smiled and sat back on the couch nodding her head. She still thought that this budding relationship between Julie and Luke was wrong, but she was glad that it wasn't all on Julie's side. And she had to admit that the boys were very cute. Now that she could see them and talk to them she started to grill Reggie about their life and everything.
"So, did you guys have girlfriends when you died? Did Alex? Cause he is kinda cute."
Reggie looked crestfallen when she asked that last question. Of course she would ask about Alex. Everyone always asked about Alex and Luke, never him and even as a ghost, he seemed to be missing out on the love. His sister, who had been 3 years younger than him had had a boyfriend before he had had a girlfriend and even though he never let on, it still hurt. Now, Luke had something going on with Julie and Alex had Willie. It just wasn't fair. He looked at Flynn, who was trying to act all indifferent about what his answer would be and he just couldn't hold his resentment in any longer. He blurted out that Alex was gay and she was out of luck. He immediately felt terrible when he saw her hurt and stunned look. He apologized straight away.
"Whoa dude, I'm guessing that this is a sore point for you."
"Sorry Flynn, I didn't mean to be hurtful."
"It's ok. I guess I can have a gay ghost friend, which would be cool. And you're pretty cool too Reggie. I'm sorry if I offended you."
Reggie smiled at her and the two of them started to talk. Flynn was fascinated by the 90's and Reggie, who loved to talk, was happy to answer all of her questions. Every now and then Flynn would look over at the door, keeping an eye on whether Julie and Luke had come back inside but then Reggie would say something funny and he would draw her attention back to him.
Rose stood to the side and watched as the young ones interacted. Ever since the boys had come into her daughter's life, she had been watching but this was different. She was back in her studio and it felt; well it was hard to describe how it felt. She watched Luke holding her daughter and smiled. It hurt her a little to know that this 'relationship' was going to be complicated but as long as Julie was happy and even if it didn't work out she knew that a little heartbreak would only make her stronger. It had for her and then she met Ray and she had known that everyone before him was just puppy love. Their love had been epic and she had known from the moment that she had seen him that she would marry him and spend the rest of her life with him. She only wished that they had had more time together. Wiping the tears from her cheek she looked over at her son. Watching him brought joy to her soul. He was always so funny and she was glad that the last year hadn't permanently damaged him. He seemed to be exactly the same but she knew that he had his bad days as well. They may not have had the music connection like she and Julie did but he was her little boy and they had done so much together and she hoped that she had shown his how to been a true man, just like his father was.
Thinking of Ray made her chest hurt and she knew that she had to see him before she left so she poofed into the house and found him on the couch, fast asleep in front of the TV. Kneeling beside him, she watched him as he slept. He had been so worried about Julie today and she hadn't been able to comfort him. It had torn her up seeing the look of anguish on his face but she had been able to help their daughter get home and she knew that that had helped. Hearing a whisper around her, she nodded her head and poofed away, but only after placing a kiss on Ray's forehead. Landing in front of the garage doors, she took a second to take in the scene in front of her before she cleared her throat causing the kids to look up at her.
"Mum, hi." Julie said as she stepped back from Luke with a blush on her cheeks. Rose smiled at them lovingly, reaching out a hand to caress her daughter's cheek. She told them that it was time for her to go and both of them responded immediately, asking if she could stay. Julie just wanted some more time with her mum and Luke wanted to ask Rose about his powers and Caleb. Rose looked up pleadingly and smiled, telling the kids that she had been granted just a little more time but they would have to make the most of it. Nodding their understanding, the three of them walked into the garage, telling everyone that they all had to talk as Rose had to leave soon. Of course that made Carlos sit up straighter.
"Mum's here?"
Flynn turned surprised eyes to Julie as Reggie got up and walked over to Carlos. He told him that his mum had helped them all escape from Caleb and that she wanted so much to be able to give him a huge hug right now but that she wasn't able to touch, just like they couldn't touch him. Carlos nodded and with tears in his eyes asked why he couldn't see her. Reggie was at a loss because none of them knew why these two could even see them.
Julie took over as she sat next to her brother giving her explanation to him. She assumed that because they had known about the boys and with what had happened the previous night, she assumed that it had had some kind of effect on everyone who knew about the boys being ghosts. He nodded his head slowly, taking in everything she had said. She quietly spoke to him for a few more minutes, relaying words from their mother and soon the three of them were in tears and Carlos and Julie were hugging, in turn making everyone else in the room cry. When they separated the three Molina's all nodded and Luke noticed that they all had the same tilt in their head and he smiled as he wiped away his tears. Sitting up straighter, Julie and Carlos sat side by side as they listened to Luke ask Rose what she knew about his power. Rose explained to them all that she really didn't know too much. She had been told that all three boys would be powerful because they had spent so many years in the void, not using their powers. When she had sent them to Julie she hadn't known that it would trigger this situation with Caleb. It was only later that she had been told about his thirst for power and how that had put everyone in danger.
"But why can Luke use his and we, if we have a power, can't?"
"I don't know Reggie. It may have to do with Luke connecting with his parents and finishing that bit of business. I know that he had regrets and he was able to show his parents that he did love them and that he was happy. Julie helped him to do that."
Luke smiled over at Julie, remembering the day when she had given his song to his parents and he had to admit, amongst all of the grief he had felt he had also felt lighter and stronger. He then looked over at Rose and told her about how he had felt that day and she said that it was a good sign that maybe she was right. Rose looked over at Alex and Reggie and asked them about their families. Neither boy knew where their families were as their houses were gone.
"We can help you find them." Carlos said to which both Flynn and Julie nodded their heads. Nick just looked at them all, feeling a little lost with everything that had been going on. He had to come terms with Julie's band actually being ghosts and then the whole possession thing and now this. He wanted to understand and help but he just didn't know how. When he said as much to Julie, she smiled at him and said that anything he did would help. They had to track down Alex and Reggie's families.
"But not tonight. Everyone needs some sleep. We can meet up tomorrow and start the search. The sooner we defeat Caleb the better. I don't want anyone going through what Nick did today. We can't lose."
Everyone agreed and when they all stood up, Flynn came to stand beside Julie, linking their arms together in solidarity. She told her friend that she would stay the night and Julie squeezed her best friend's arm. She told Carlos that he should go inside and get ready for bed.
"I want to say good bye to mum. Where is she?"
Julie pointed to where their mother stood and Carlos looked over at her before thanking her for everything she had done for him and telling her that he missed her every day and that he hoped that she was happy where she was. Once again, everyone was crying and no one more so than Rose. She walked over to her children and came to a stop in front of her son. Reaching out her hand she made to cradle his cheek whilst telling him that he made her proud every day.
Julie relayed the sentiment to her brother through her tears and he smiled before nodding his head and he then turned and walked away. Julie watched her mother as she watched Carlos leave and it brought fresh tears to her eyes, the sadness on her mother's face was gut wrenching. Once her son had left, Rose turned to look at her daughter.
"Never doubt that you make me proud as well Julie. I love you all so much and it is so hard not to be with you every day but knowing that you all have each other makes it a little easier." She held open her arms and Julie moved towards her and was surprised when she felt her mother's arms around her. Briefly stepping back the two women looked at each other and then embraced again. It wasn't long before Rose heard the voices again; telling her that her time was up and she would have to leave. She told the kids that she had to go but she promised that she would watch over them all and she would do all that she could to make sure that they succeeded. Julie stepped back and was instantly wrapped in another pair of arms as she watched her mother disappear. Turning around, she wept into Luke's shoulder as he cradled her and murmured soft words of support to her. When her tears had dried, she looked over at Flynn who held out her hand. Julie grasped it and the two girls walked out of the garage with Nick following them. He told them that he was going to head home and tried to get some sleep but he would back in the morning to help them with the search. Julie thanked him and said goodnight as she and Flynn headed into the house. When they reached her room, all three boys were already in there. Luke was reclining on the bed whilst Reggie was sitting on the pouf at the end of her bed and Alex was sitting near the window. Letting out a frustrated sigh, Julie asked them why they were there.
"We weren't tired."
Julie shook her head at them and said that even though they didn't need to sleep, she did and they would have to leave. The three of them had the audacity to look sad and asked that if they were quiet could they stay.
"No, that's just creepy. Tell me you haven't done that to me before?"
When they looked awkwardly at each other, Julie threw a pillow at Alex and as it went through him, she told them all to leave. An instant later they all poofed out of the room. Flynn just laughed at Julie and proceeded to get ready for bed. The girls talked for a few hours more before finally falling asleep. Julie dreamed of her mother, of the time before her illness when they didn't seem to have a care in the world and it brought her joy. For a moment after she woke, Julie could have sworn that her mother was still in the room but she knew that even though she wasn't, she would be looking over her for now and forever.
Caleb walked up and down his office. He was so angry that they had gotten away from him. He had been so close to getting some answers and then that women had appeared, and Luke had finally used his powers and they were greater than even Caleb had imagined. Now he had to get them back and it had to be soon. Even with all of the souls that he had taken, his power was getting low because he continued to push the boundaries of what he could do and it took a lot of his power just to keep everything going. They hadn't had many newcomers to the club of late and he worried that if he didn't get control of the boys' powers then he would disappear and he wasn't willing for that to happen. Not now, not ever.
Nick walked hesitantly up to Julie's front door remembering the last time he did it, was it only yesterday, and he was taken over by that Caleb guy. He certainly didn't want to have to go through anything like that again. This time when he knocked on the door, he scanned the area to make sure that he was alone. Within minutes, the door opened and he saw Carlo standing there. After being invited in, he followed Carlos to the kitchen where the girls were, eating breakfast. Before he could say hello, Ray walked in and asked if he'd like something to eat. He politely refused and sat next to Flynn as the girls and Carlos finished their breakfast. Then the four of them headed out to the garage, grabbing both Julie and Carlos' laptops. They had a lot of research to do. When they arrived, the boys were already there waiting for them and Luke walked over to Julie, quietly asking her how she was feeling today. Taking a moment to just look at him, she told him that with him by her side, she would always be fine. Luke leant down and placed a gentle kiss on her lips which made her blush and the rest of their friends to let out a collective 'awww' to which both Luke and Julie gave them dirty looks before smiling at each other.
"Enough guys, we have a lot of work to do." Luke said to the room in general thus making everyone head over to the couch. Alex and Reggie sat on the floor whilst Julie, Flynn, Nick and Carlos sat in the seats. Luke sat on the arm of the couch, next to Julie and draped his arm around her shoulders. Julie settled into it and started typing on her laptop.
"Ok, who do we look up first?"
"Look up Reggie's family. He was closer to them at the end. I'm sure that mine are fine."
Julie looked over at Alex and felt her heart break. He was so sad and everyone in the room could see it even though he was looking at the floor. It was in the tone of his voice and the slump of his shoulders but she knew that nothing anyone said would help him at the moment. Maybe finding his family would ease some of his pain but for now, they would do as he said and look for Reggie's family.
"OK, so Reggie, what's your last name and your date of birth?"
"Getting a little personal there aren't ya Julie."
Julie rolled her eyes and told him that she needed as much information as she could get so she could Google him. He gave her a blank look and she just told him not to worry about it but that she really did need the information. At the encouragement of his friends he told her that his last name was Jacobson and he was born on March 3rd 1978. Julie typed in the information as well as sunset curve. She immediately got hundreds of hits and she clicked on the first one. It seemed to be an interview that someone had done on the 20th anniversary of their death.
"Do you know a Rebecca?"
"Becca? Yeah, she's my sister. Why? Did you find her?"
"I found an interview she did about 5 years ago and it lists her as living in Los Angeles. Her last name is different though," Julie looked at the screen to get the name again. "It's says her name is Rebecca Colder."
"So she must have married Daniel. I'm happy for her."
With a new name to look up, they started their research in earnest. Using not only Google but social media they manage to track down where Rebecca worked and discovered that she had a daughter around the same age as Julie.
"Did you say her daughter's name was Regina Colder?"
Julie looked over at Nick and nodded her head, asking him why he wanted to know.
"Because I know a Regina Colder, she goes by Reggie and she lives on my street. She is a year younger than us." Nick said as he looked over at Reggie. "And come to think of it, she does look a little bit like you."
Reggie sat there with his mouth wide open, trying to take in that not only was Becca married but that she had a daughter who she seemed to have named after him. He had to go and see them. He had to be with his family. He looked over at his friends and told them that they had to go and go now.