Disclaimer: Still don't own it
Well Caleb didn't kill anyone yet.
Not that I was worried since I couldn't die; but I still wanted Hanna to at least have a future outside of high school.
"Idiot," I said as I rolled my eyes at him while he pulled the car over, then looking over to stare at me. I didn't see what was so shocking about me staying with Hanna for the night since it wasn't like I would be intruding.
"You can't be serious," Caleb said to me, a little too condescending for my tastes.
"What's going on?" Hanna asked, confused by Caleb's behavior and looking towards the back seat where I was.
"She wants to stay with you tonight," Caleb told her and Hanna's eyes widened and it appeared that she didn't know what to think about that.
"I am not seeing what the big deal is," I said, leaning back and crossing my arms.
"You are not staying Hanna's for the night," Caleb said as if it were an order; which annoyed me since he had no power over me what so ever.
"Why can't she stay the night with me?" Hanna asked, not sure what the big deal was as well.
"Because she is a ghost and you can't see her; also she may have another episode and cause problems," he said and I was slightly offended at that.
"First off, last time I checked the only episodes involved Alison and her posse; which I would not be encountering at Hanna's house. Second, just because I am a ghost does not mean that can't stay over at someone's house for the night," I said, making my feelings of anger known to him. While there was a slight drop in temperature, I had enough control to make sure it wasn't a problem.
"I don't see a problem with it; she can stay if she wants," Hanna said and I smiled that I had her permission to stay; not that I needed it.
"You have to be kidding me; you are willing to let Mona stay with you given your history with her?" the boyfriend asked and I started to fume.
"Last time I checked, I wasn't the enemy anymore so stop treating me like one," I yelled at him and everything started to flicker and freeze.
"I am guessing she's mad," Hanna said, tightening her jacket and turning on the heater. Both she and Caleb stuck their hands out in front of the vents to warm them.
"Yeah," he simply answered and I could hear the stutter in his voice.
"Good; my history with Mona goes a lot deeper than you think. Also, you have no right to criticize Mona when you left me for Ravenswood," Hanna said and I could hear the anger in her voice. I suddenly felt happy and the environment returned to normal.
He stayed silent at that and I withheld the smirk and kept my face blank; though I could have rubbed it in if I wanted to. It annoyed me to no end that despite my sacrifices for Hanna, I was still met with suspicion by those around her. It was especially unnerving since I did more for her than any one of those girls and Caleb. I was both angry and sad that there were only a few people who were really mourning my death.
"I'm sorry," Caleb suddenly said as he restarted the car and continued towards Hanna's house.
"It's not me you should be apologizing to," Hanna stated and Caleb gave her a look like he agreed.
"I was apologizing to the both of you; you are both right," he said and it was nice to see Caleb Rivers admit that he was wrong.
"You can't keep treating me as the enemy; not since it no longer matters," I said, trying to make a point to him.
"You're right; it's sometimes hard to let go of the past," he replied and it was Hanna's turn to get slightly annoyed, judging by the look on her face.
"It sucks that only you can see and hear her," she said and I nodded in agreement as well as Caleb.
"I know; Miranda at least had the others besides me," Caleb mentioned and she looked like she understood what he was talking about; I wish I could and that someone would tell me.
"Can you ask her something for me?" Hanna inquired and I sighed as I just shook my head at that.
"I can hear you Hanna," I said to her, rolling my eyes.
"What is it?" Caleb asked and it almost seemed like he was amused by my annoyance because I could have sworn I saw a smirk.
"What is it like being dead?" she asked and I was caught by surprise by the question as well as Caleb; thankfully, it didn't impact his driving.
"I mean, I know you told me what it was like but you were only dead for a few minutes. I am just curious to what it is like for her," she continued and I wasn't sure how to respond.
"Just be honest," Caleb said, looking at me through the mirror and truthfully, it was a hard thing to do given that I used to breathe lies when I was still alive.
"I'm cold all the time and it never goes away. It's also like I am not really here but I have nowhere else to go; thus I feel stuck," I told her; through Caleb of course who relayed my words to her.
"I'm sorry; if we hadn't gone to you for help, you would still be alive," Hanna stated and I could hear the sincerity in her words.
"It's not your fault," was all I could say given what I now knew why I was now dead. Technically, it was Aria's and Ezra's fault that I am now gone. Caleb must have known that too because of the look he gave me as he relayed what I said to her.
"It is, but thanks anyways," she said, seeing through the lie. We eventually reached her house and the porch light was still on.
"Well mom isn't going to be happy with me," Hanna said, giving a heavy sigh. I smirked while Caleb looked sympathetic.
"At least she can't see that you have a guest," Caleb said and we all had a laugh even though the subject was a bit sensitive for me.
"Well, hopefully she hasn't stayed up for me even though I know she probably has," she said and I didn't doubt it. I was willing to bet that Ashley Marin made a point to make sure she knew where her daughter was given the town's recent events.
"Well it's good that you have a mother that cares about you," Caleb said and I nodded in agreement, getting out of the car along with Hanna.
"I'll be sure to think that when she grounds me," Hanna stated, leaning in the give Caleb a kiss on the lips.
"Be careful and don't do anything stupid," he said and I knew that was directed to me.
"Yes mom," I said sarcastically and just narrowed his eyes at me while I rolled mine. I then turned to follow Hanna into her house.
Whether out of politeness or forgetting that I was a ghost, Hanna left the door open long enough for me to come in; even though I could have just phased through it. After closing the door and locking it behind her, a few locks that seemed to be new, I followed her into the kitchen where Ashley was; sitting at the counter and reading a book. Looking up from whatever she was reading, I could see that she wasn't happy after glancing from the clock.
"And where have you been?" Mrs. M asked, the anger quite clear in her voice. I noticed that it was almost midnight and understood why the older woman would be a little mad.
"Me and Caleb were out; I am also home before curfew," Hanna replied as if it were nothing and I could see the older woman's eyes narrow slightly.
"That curfew is designed for the weekends only; you have school tomorrow as well as an interview with that counselor from Yale," Ashley said and I did a double take.
"How did you get into Yale?" I asked, almost demanded. Yeah Hanna was smarter than most people though; but her getting into Yale was something else.
"Just because I am getting interviewed, doesn't mean I am getting in. I already got accepted in a few schools already so there is no point," Hanna said, opening the refrigerator to grab some milk.
"It's good to have options and you have accomplished so much; which is why you should do the interview and see if you can get in," Mrs. M said and I could hear the excitement in her voice.
"She is right Hanna; listen to your mother," I practically commanded; sounding a little excited myself. If Hanna had a chance to get into Yale then she should definitely go for it.
"I'll do it; but I am still going into psychology and criminology," she stated and I would have fainted if I were still alive.
"I still can't believe that you are not going into fashion and going into something with a huge future. I am not sure whether to be proud or call a therapist," stated Hanna's mother and I rapidly nodded in agreement. This was such a reversal of the Hanna I knew that I wondered what prompted it.
"I'm going to bed; see you in the morning," Hanna said and gave her mother a quick peck on the cheek before heading to her room.
I followed closely behind and was still amazed that the blond friend that I knew was going into something else than fashion. When we had still been together, it had been all that she had talked about doing; we even agreed to open a shop together once she became successful. I wondered who else knew about this new career choice of hers as well as what steps she had taken so far since criminology required special classes at school.
"It was after you died and what Alison did to Spencer," Hanna suddenly said after we entered her room and closed the door behind us. It was as if she knew I was wondering and decided to answer my question; which I was grateful since it appeared that she knew I was here with her.
The room wasn't any different than the last time I had been in it. The only thing that I did notice was that all of the pictures she had of me had been restored to their usual spots; alongside the other girls but whatever. At least all the ones with Alison were now gone from the room and would never return again. Hanna tossed her bag onto the bed and made sure her door was locked as well as her window.
"Smart," I said and it was good that everyone was taking extra precautions nowadays.
"I am guessing you don't sleep since you are a ghost," Hanna said as she changed into her pajamas. They were really pink and sort of cute in a way.
"Yeah; hope you have some magazines," I said as I moved throughout the room to look at her reading material. She had a stack of fashion magazines and other stuff on her vanity so I had stuff to read for the night.
"Do you need a light?" she asked, standing next to her bed. I tried to come up with an answer and decided to touch her once for a yes in order to communicate with her.
"We're going to have to come up with a way for you to communicate easier because you are just too cold," Hanna complained as she searched her vanity for a night light. Hanna could technically sleep through anything so the light wouldn't bother her.
After laying a few of the magazines out for me, she turned off the light that was next to her bed and said good night to me. I sat on the floor, just reading when I heard something from downstairs. Curious as well as worried, I headed out of the room and down the stairs to see who had arrived. It was dark as I made my way through the house until I spotted movement in the kitchen. I gasped when I saw that a hoodie had broken in.
I needed to warn Hanna before it was too late.
Before I headed upstairs, I made sure to see what the intruder was doing. From what it looked like, she was looking for something in the house by going through the Marin women's furnishings. I knew it was a woman because I could see the bumps on her chest and wondered if it was the same person I had seen earlier a number of times. Maybe this was Alison's secret sister.
Running up to Hanna's room, I had to think of a way to wake her up and warn her about the hoodie that was downstairs. Since she couldn't hear me, I had to wake her up some way else by possibly using my body. While she lay sleeping in her bed, I used my hand to enter her body; hoping that the extreme coldness of my form was enough to do the job of waking her up. It took a minute but she eventually woke up because of the violent shivering of her body.
"What is it Mona; do you need another magazine?" Hanna asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and seemingly annoyed that I had woken her up.
"A is here; you need to call for help," I frantically said as I kept prodding her with my corporal form. She didn't seem to get the hint as she kept moving away and turned to the lamp next to the bed.
"No, don't do that," I practically yelled at her and the environment of the room began to react with Hanna's things starting to shake. As the light of the lamp filled the room, I turned to the closed door and hoped that the intruder hadn't yet come upstairs.
My hopes were dashed though when the door opened and revealed the hoodie. Hanna saw the intruder and looked shocked as well as scared while the intruder stood at the doorway, looking at her. No one moved and I started breathing heavily as a fury of emotions flooded my being; mostly fear for Hanna's safety. Images suddenly entered my mind as memories began to form from another time and place.
I land at the bottom of the stairs hard and more pain entered my body. My attacker was at the top of the stairwell and was walking down as I crawled towards the front door in an attempt to get away. My blood was pouring out of my body from multiple places and I tried to ignore the pain as much as I could. All I knew was that I needed to escape the house and get help. I reach the door and attempt to push myself up to grab the door handle when my hair is grabbed. I am then brought face to face with my attacker who once again stabs me with her knife.
"No," I said as the memory of my death began to fade and I watch as the hoodie begins to step inside the room. I could hear Hanna breathing in the background, and I just stood there as my emotions began to get the better of me.
"No," I once again said but instead of a whisper, I said it loud and snarled the words as my rage came to the forefront.
The room began to shake like there was an earthquake and the temperature dropped so fast that you could see the breath from the hoodie almost immediately. If Hanna was feeling the cold, I couldn't see it as all of my attention was completely focused on the hoodie in front of me. All I knew was that I needed to protect my friend and I stepped forward towards the intruder. She seemed to not be taking the cold well because I could see her form shiver from it.
"Go away," I growled at her as my rage knew no bounds. All I could feel was pure hatred towards the intruder and I was suddenly caught off guard when the person took a step backwards from me.
"Mona?" Hanna whispered and I would have looked at her if I wasn't so distracted.
"Get out!" I screamed and the room erupted with such a fury that I would have been shocked if I was paying attention.
Things began to fly off the shelves and fly across the room. The hoodie put up her hands to shield herself as more and more of Hanna's stuff circled around the room. Some of the heavier things began to move and a tall bookshelf that she used for pictures fell over and glass from the frames shattered onto the ground. One of the shelves above the hoodie snapped of the wall and directly fell on top of her head; causing her to fall to the floor with a loud thud.
When she didn't move, I turned to see if Hanna was safe; who was just curled in her bed and staring straight at me.
"You can see me?" I asked, shocked and still breathing heavily. I had calmed down and everything in the room was still, but I had definitely caused a mess everywhere. Hanna just nodded and continued to stare at me until her mother suddenly appeared in the door way.
"Oh my God; Hanna," Ashley said with a terrified form as she carefully stepped over the unconscious, possibly dead intruder.
She had a large metal bat in her hands and she reached for Hanna's hand as she moved right through me, which told me that she didn't see me. Hanna could though with the way she was looking at me and I didn't know why she could. Then again, I still didn't understand why Caleb could see me so I suppose it didn't matter; for now anyways.
"I called the police; we need to get out of here and into my room," said Hanna's mother, pulling at her daughter and trying to get the two out of the way.
"Just go," I'll keep an eye on her," I said but Hanna, who could also hear me as well as see me, shook her head.
"No; we need to see who this is," Hanna said firmly, letting go of her mother's hand and moving towards the body. She was saying it more to me than her mother who just gave a nervous nod.
While Ashley gripped her bat, Hanna kneeled down and I did as well; giving her a nod as she reached for the fabric that covered the hoodie's face. With a violent tug, Hanna ripped the garment of the face of the intruder and we both gave a surprised gasp as the face of our enemy was on full display. We were both shocked to see who the person was since we knew full well who she was.
It was Mindy; once an ally of mine and now a member of Allison's new posse.
Please R&R and a special thanks to Paraddicted for the pre-read!