Chapter 4: Eliza the ghost

The week I got back to the island, I kept having the same dream.

I dreamt of having a family.

A family I could call my own.

A family that I never had.

That Saturday morning, I awoke from that dream… I rolled out of bed wondering when it would come true.

…..

"Vaughn! We're having breakfast with everyone at the Café Ok?" Julia shouted from the bottom of the stair case.

I huffed angrily, but really… I was happy.

All my friends were all sitting at the same table… the table we sat at everyday. Sometimes I feel that tings are too perfect, I feel that all this will come to an end eventually. But I ignore that feeling and try to enjoy it while I still can. That's all I can do right?

…..

Most of the time we were the loudest people in the whole restaurant, but for some reason no one said a word.

"So what's going on guys? Why so quiet?" I asked while picking at my porridge.

"…. Did you hear what happened to Gannon?" Lanna whispered.

"No."

"His daughter died about a week ago… it was a car accident. She was going to come to the island to live with him the next day… her grandmother was driving her to the ferry to leave. It was raining outside and their car swerved off the road. They both died about an hour later."

I looked over at Gannon, who happened to be at the other side of the restaurant.

"There also is a rumor going around that his daughter is haunting the island, giving cursed roses to unsuspecting villagers."

I glared at Lanna, "You shouldn't be talking about someone's daughter like that Lanna!" I growled.

Lanna hid behind Denny's shoulder and whimpered.
"Lay off, Vaughn. She didn't start the rumor, besides I think it's true."

"Are you kidding me Denny? Of all people, you actually listened to this rumor?"

Denny just shrugged. "I've seen her before."

"…. You saw the ghost girl?"

"Everyone has… everyone except you and Chelsea. That's only because you guys were in the city."

Chelsea blushed and glanced at me. "I think it's true too… V-Vaughn."

Sabrina and Alisa nodded their head in agreement. "We think so too."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I looked over at Julia and Elliot, but they nodded in agreement as well.

"You all are crazy! I can't believe you would fall for such a stupid rumor!"

I got up and left money for my breakfast and left. Little did I know, Chelsea was behind me.

"V-Vaughn… wait up!"

I kept walking, but she eventually caught up with me.

"I'm sorry about that… but I think she's an angel... trying to tell us something."

"You are such a dope. There is no such thing."

"Yes there is Vaughn! Angels are as real as you and me! I know… I saw an angel once!"

I rolled my eyes at and kept walking. Then I bumped into something very… small.

"Ouch! Grrr... Watch out... err, I mean sorry Sir. Ummm… May you take this rose as an apology?"

Chelsea was almost as surprised as I was. I looked at the rose carefully… It looked like an ordinary flower to me…

I then did something to confirm my suspicions. I pinched the little girl's nose, to make sure she was real.

"Ouch! Hey mister! What was that for?"

I sighed and clucked my tongue. "I knew she wasn't a ghost. She's just a weird little kid… who should be in school right now!"

Chelsea smiled at the girl. "What's your name sweetie?"

The girl's face lit up and she walked towards Chelsea, yet she was eyeing me suspiciously.

"E- I mean C-Charlie…"

I began to laugh and Charlie quickly glared at me.

"That's a boy's name! It's actually the same name as that other kid… Chen's kid, Charlie!"

I laughed so hard; I held my stomach and wiped the tears from my eyes.

Charlie stomped her foot. "Be quiet meanie! It's my middle name ok? I hate you!"

She stuck her tongue out at me and grabbed Chelsea's hand.

Chelsea just giggled at the snobby little girl.

"You're boyfriend is mean to me. Tell him to go away!"

Chelsea and I both blushed a deep red and I turned away to avoid the awkward stare Chelsea gave me.

"H-He's n-not my b-b-boyfriend Charlie, he's just my friend."

Charlie smiled brightly at Chelsea then glared at me.

"Ok! Can I stay with you then?"

Chelsea's face became very stern…and confused.

"Don't you have parents to take care of you Charlie?"

Charlie's smile faded and she bit her lip, as if trying hard not to cry. She was very silent for a long time.

"No."

Chelsea flashed a concerned look my way… telling me without saying, "this girl needs our help!"

I sighed in defeat and shrugged. Why not? ….That's been my motto for a while now.

Chelsea smiled brightly at my response, and then smiled at Charlie.

"You can stay with me for a while Charlie."

Charlie wrapped her arms around Chelsea's waist and squealed happily.

"Yaaay! It's going to be just like playing house! You're the mommy, he's the daddy, and I'm the baby!"

Once again Chelsea and I were blushing.

We got back to Chelsea's house around noon. First we had to get Charlie a bed, some clothes, a school uniform, and we also had to restock Chelsea's fridge and cabinets. I was carrying most of the stuff and the girls were holding no more than two bags.

I was relived to finally be able to put all that crap down.

"I'll help you put the stuff away Vaughn."

My eye twitched and I slowly got up from the soft couch that began calling my name.

After we put all the food away I was finally able to relax. Chelsea and Charlie were giggling about how cute baby ducks were… (I honestly don't know either)

"Chelsea! Vaughn!… Can we play outside?"

I looked over at Chelsea hesitantly, but all I got in return was an apologetic smile.

"Sure. Let's get our jackets on first, Ok?"

Charlie jumped up and down happily.

"Yaaaay!"

Chelsea… curse your kindness! I got up once again and grabbed my jacket. My hand gently brushed Chelsea's hand as we both reached for our jackets. I blushed and turned away.

"S-Sorry."

"I-It's ok."

And with that, we both awkwardly went outside.

Chelsea and Charlie played tag while I watched from the grassy part of her farm. The cold fall wind gently blew multi-colored leaves away. Winter was on its way. I wonder if Chelsea's going to get sick…

My thoughts were soon interrupted by Chelsea's small voice.

"Hey, Vaughn! Why don't you come play with us?"

She reached out for my hand as I looked up at her.

"Come on… You're missing out on all the fun."

I grabbed her soft, warm hand. She looked at me mischievously and poked me in the stomach.

"You're it!"

I smiled at her then growled, "I'm going to get you both!"

The girls began screaming and running all over the place.

Soon I tripped, and both of them fell on top of me. We all started laughing.

"I don't know why you guy's aren't boyfriend and girlfriend… you guys are cute together!"

Chelsea looked away, trying to hide her blushing face. I blushed as well and grabbed Charlie.

"I'm going to tickle you to death for saying that!"

Charlie giggled than ran off.

I sighed and sat back down next to Chelsea.

"V-Vaughn… I-… never mind."

I laughed at Chelsea and wiped the dirt that was smeared on her face. I then looked at her seriously and I began to confess my feelings for her….

"Chelsea… I- want to tell you something… Lately I have been feeling-"

I was then cut off from finishing my sentence as Charlie tackled me.

"I got you!"

I sighed and began to tickle Charlie. ….. I guess I'm just going to have to finish later.

Chelsea smiled warmly at me from where she was sitting…

I knew this was going to something I will never forget.

We went back to the house when it began getting dark outside. Chelsea gave Charlie a bath, and put her in some pajamas, while I cooked some dinner. As I was finishing the mashed potatoes, I began to wonder if my dream had come true. Is this the family I never had?

Is this when everything starts to get better… or worse? Is this yet another happy time that will eventually end? I shook my head, trying to think of something else.

Chelsea walked out of the bathroom with Charlie, who was now dressed in pink pajamas.

"Chelsea took a bath with me! It was a bubble bath!"

My eyes grew wide, and now I was trying to rid my mind of some perverted thoughts.

"W-Well dinner is done. I made grilled chicken and mashed potatoes."

Chelsea smiled as she sat Charlie down at the table.

"Thank you, Vaughn. Go ahead and sit down. I'll make everyone's plate."

I wanted to resist, but to be honest… I was exhausted and starving.

Chelsea handed me the plate with the most food on it and a cup of hot milk then handed Charlie her plate with a glass of apple juice.

She sat down next to me and we began to eat.

After dinner, we watched some TV and before I knew it, Charlie was passed out on Chelsea's lap.

"Poor thing… she must be exhausted."

"Ya… She should be… I know she wore me out!"

Chelsea giggled and laid Charlie down on her new bed, and pulled the pink covers over her.

"She's so cute when she's sleeping."

I looked over at Chelsea and held her hand. She seemed confused at first but eventually held my hand tightly as well.

"Just like an angel…"

Chelsea looked at me and rested her head on my shoulder.

"Yeah… just like an angel."

…..

The next day I went over to Chelsea's house to see how she and Charlie were doing.

I knocked on the door, but no answer. I soon saw Chelsea scrambling around, shouting Charlie's name. I ran over to her and tried to talk to her.

"What's going on?'

Chelsea looked up at me with tear filled eyes.

"I can't find Charlie…"

My eyes were filled with worry and I began to help look for Charlie.

"Where did you see her last?"

"She was asleep last time I saw her! I woke up and she was gone!"

Then I realized where she was.

"Follow me!"

We ran to the forest, and sure enough Charlie was picking pink roses. Chelsea ran over to Charlie and hugged her tightly.

"Don't ever do that again, Charlie! You scared me half to death!"

I finally realized everything….

"Eliza… that's your first name isn't it?" I said quietly.

Chelsea gave me a confused look.

"Vaughn. That's silly… you said so yourself, that rumor isn't true."

Eliza, I should say, was very quiet.

"You're right… I was afraid you would realize this," Eliza sighed.

Eliza looked down sadly at the pile of pink roses she had gathered.

"Why didn't you just tell us?" Chelsea said with hurt filled in her voice.

Eliza looked up at the sky. "My dad will be all alone at my funeral. All I wanted was to help him. And I could do that by bringing people to the funeral to help him out. But I'm running out of time."

Chelsea and I stayed quiet for what seemed like forever. Then finally I broke that silence.

"We'll help you then."

And that's what we did. We gathered all the roses on the island and asked every single villager. Eliza even was befriended by Mirabelle and the group down at the Café.

Little by little she made her way into our hearts, especially Chelsea's.

Chelsea took care of Eliza and treated her like a daughter or a younger sister. Every day I would hear how much she loved Eliza.

Eliza soon started school and became fast friends with Charlie… ironically.

It seemed Eliza had done her job. She helped her father; the whole town would be there at the funeral supporting him.

But something very strange began to happen. The day before the funeral we found pink roses in trash cans. It seemed more and more of them began to show up there as the day was coming to an end.

Eliza was persistent and just asked people over and over to accept her gift. Villagers just ignored her like she wasn't there.

She knocked on the animal shop door and Mirabelle answered.

"Hello? Hello? Is anyone there?"

"Hello Mirabelle, would you please accept this invitation to my friend's funer-"

"Hello? Man, those darned ding dong ditchers!"

And Mirabelle slammed the door in Eliza's face. I was stunned. How could Mirabelle do that? She loved Eliza! Eliza just brushed herself off and ran up to Charlie. Surely, he won't ignore her!

"Hello Charlie."

"Umm… Hello lady! Have we met before?"

Eliza was shocked at his statement, and so was I.

Chelsea had enough and stomped up to Charlie.

"Charlie! Don't you remember? It's you're best friend, Eliza! Don't play such a cruel joke on her young man!"

Charlie seemed genuinely confused.

"…..I have no idea what you're talking about Chelsea. I have to get back to work now… bye Vaughn, bye Chelsea!"

He didn't even say goodbye to her… like she didn't even exist. I asked everyone about it at the Café, but everyone claimed they never heard of a girl named Eliza.

"Come on, Mark! Surely you haven't forgotten Eliza! You and her were best friends! You took her fishing yesterday for goddess's sakes!"

Mark just shook his head sadly.

"I don't remember."

I looked desperately at the rest of my friends, but they all shook their heads.

"We have no idea who Eliza is. She died, and we never even met her. I'm sorry Vaughn…"

"You're wrong Julia! She's alive! You're all wrong!"

I stormed out of the Café and bumped into Chelsea.

She was carrying a handful of roses.

I held out my hand to help her up, but she stayed on the ground, hovering over the roses that fell on the ground.

"Chelsea…"

"They all said no. They all forgot her…. Everyone. D-Does this mean we'll eventually forget her to, Vaughn?"

I could see tears fall to the ground, making the dirt moist.

I picked her up and held her tightly.

"I-I don't w-want to forget her Vaughn! I want to remember her, remember all the good times I h-had with her!"

She buried her head in my shoulder and I let her cry. I rubbed her back to try to calm her down.

"Chelsea… I don't think you can forget her. You spent the most time with her; I know you won't forget her. I promise."

Chelsea slowly let go of me and sniffed…

"I hope you're right."

I woke up that morning feeling as if I forgot something very important. Something was happening today… and I couldn't help but feel that it was something very special.

I got out of bed and spotted a pink rose on my dresser. That's strange…. I hate flowers. I picked up the soft rose and threw it away.

I walked out side to see Chelsea, wearing all black and holding a rose similar to the one I just threw away….. She was also crying.

"I-I got dressed like this today and I brought this rose, but I can't remember why."

Suddenly, a flash of a little blond girl came to my mind… Eliza!

Chelsea must have thought of her too, and we began to run to the church. We opened the doors slowly to see Gannon, all alone.

He turned around and smiled sadly at us.

"Oh. Hello Chelsea, hello Vaughn…. Are you here for the… oh never mind."

Chelsea sat down next to Gannon and held his hand.

"We're here for both of you."

Gannon's eyes began to tear up and he smiled.

"Thank you…."

Then the doors opened once more. The whole town was at the other end of the church, and they were holding their pink rose.

Mark, Mirabelle and Charlie, the ones closest to Eliza, were at the front of the crowd.

"I know this sounds strange, but we feel like we should… be here."

With that, everyone sat down. The service began. People were crying, and even praying. Some were just silent.

A moment later, Chelsea got up and placed her rose onto the tiny coffin. After she did this, everyone followed.

There must have been at least one hundred on top of the small casket.

When the services were over, I could have sworn I saw a little girl holding Gannon's hand and smiling. She looked over at Chelsea and me and waved. We waved back sadly as she disappeared from our view.

The next day, Gannon approached us at the Café.

"Thanks for comin' to the funeral. It really helped me out… I think little Eliza would have loved you all..."

"Huh," Mark said with a confused look on his face.

Gannon just chuckled. "Never mind."

Gannon left the Café, rather happy.

I then noticed Chelsea staring off into the distance, like she was trying to remember something.

What ever we forgot…. Will remain forgotten.

Sorry I haven't updated recently… a lot of stuff has been happening lately…

Well I hoped you liked this chapter… please review and let me know what you think! :)