She slept soundly and peacefully until about 2:00am, when she woke up, startled. She was sure that she heard a voice. Forcing herself to believe it was a dream, she lay back and closed her eyes.
"Kuki!" A familiar voice whispered. Kuki opened her eyes again and nearly fell out of her bed in shock.
She pulled the cord for her light and sure enough, in front of her was her old friend Wallabee Beatles.
"W…Wally?"
He gave a happy smile and she dived towards him for one of her all famous bed hugs. Nearly in tears. When her body reached his, she just fell right through him, as if falling into thin air.
"You can't touch me Kooks, I'm a ghost." Wally softly told her.
She sat back on her bed and gazed at him with her tear filled eyes.
"I…It's really you." She stuttered. He nodded and sat on the bed. "I've missed you so much."
"I've missed you too Kuki." He held out a hand to place it on her face, but of course it went right through her. "Crud, I'll never get used to that."
Kuki smiled. "I can't believe it!"
"Wow, you look…different." Wally said softly to her.
"You too!" It was strange, although Wally died when he was nine, he seemed to have grown into a teenager. He looked just as he always had done, but had grown just as much as Kuki had.
"You're a teen." Wally pointed out sadly.
"Yeah," Kuki looked down at her feet.
"Oh well…Hey! I've got an idea! Come on!" Wally jumped to his feet and ran downstairs. Kuki followed him curiously.
He stopped at the bottom of the stairs, if he were still alive, Kuki would have run into him. However, being nothing more than a spirit, she ran through him.
He floated into the living room and Kuki followed.
"We always used to play hide 'n' seek in here. Remember?" Wally smiled.
Kuki nodded and smiled too. She used to love it as a kid, when the Kids Next Door had days off, they would all go to one of the kids houses and play different games there. When they went Kuki's house, it would usually be Kuki's favorite game, hide and seek.
"Kuki? Is that you down there?" Genki's voice could be heard from upstairs. "Don't go into the living room remember!"
"Oh no!" Kuki whispered, she began to run out, but Wally swooped through her and stood in front of her.
"Hey, where you goin'?" He asked.
"She doesn't want me in here." Kuki told him. "You just heard her."
"Since when did you listen her?" Wally grinned evilly. Kuki returned the smile in a sweeter way.
"C'mon, let's play a game!" Wally told her.
"A game?"
"Yeah, a game, I know you're a teen now but c'mon you can't have forgotten how to have fun."
Kuki rolled her eyes. She was too tired, but she knew that Wally wasn't likely to let her go to bed.
"How 'bout hade 'n' seek?" Wally asked. "I'll hide!"
Kuki closed her eyes and began to count.
"What am I doing?...I must be dreaming." Kuki whispered to herself.
That's what she told herself. That it was all a dream. She went up to her room. Curled up in her bed and went to sleep.
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The next morning, she woke up with a yawn. She put on her dressing gown and walked down the stairs where her mother was already awake.
"Kuki, have you been sleepwalking again? You were downstairs last night. I hope you didn't go into the living room." Her mother said. Kuki just chose to ignore her and make herself a cup of cocoa.
"Boo!" Wally appeared in front of her. Kuki gasped and stepped back. Her mother looked up from the table and gazed at Kuki in confusion.
Kuki looked at him then glanced back at her mom.
"It's only you who can see me. She doesn't have a clue that I'm here." Wally told her. "I waited in that garden shed all night for you! I didn't…"
His eyes widened as he realized who it was sitting at the table. Kuki walked past him and sat on the chair opposite her mother, who had stood up and was walking over to the fridge.
"Is that?..." Wally asked, Kuki nodded.
"It is?" He grinned. Kuki nodded again.
"The megabitch! Lemme at her! G…get me a gun! A catapult, I'll shoot it in the guts!" He howled with laughter.
Kuki shook her head rapidly and glared at him. He tutted.
"You're no fun now that you're a teen you know that?" He sighed.
"Are you in the office today mother?" Kuki asked, ignoring him.
"No, I have the day off." Genki replied. Wally was standing just in front of her and threw himself back dramatically.
"The death breath! She got me with the death breath!" He gasped. Making his hands into a cross. "Be gone! Evil one!"
Kuki held back a smirk. He fell to the floor, acting as if he were to faint. He gave a mean grin and shuffled himself to in between her mother's legs, so that he was looking up her skirt.
"Wow!" He whispered and looked at Kuki, he winked and pointed up. "Cobwebs!"
Kuki burst out laughing. Genki gave her a strange look.
"What's so funny."
"N…nothing, I just remembered a joke Abby told me yesterday. Why don't you sit down?"
Her mother joined her at the table and looked her up and down.
"Kuki Chan! Why don't you cheer up? If this is the way you behave, it's no wonder Jason left you!" Her mother said.
Kuki said nothing, she just looked sadly at the cocoa in her mug.
"I'm going into the garden." Kuki said quietly, she got up from the table and walked into the back garden. She sat on the bench and sniffed sadly.
Wally appeared next to her.
"More boy trouble huh?" He said softly. "If I were alive I'd go and kick the crud out of 'em."
Kuki looked up at him and smiled softly.
"Why are you here?" She whispered.
"I know you're unhappy. I can't get back until you're happy. I would have came sooner but…You know, Joey needed me." Wally chuckled.
"Joey? So he was talking to you!" Kuki giggled. Wally nodded.
"So…What could make you happy?" Wally asked casually.
"Well, the only thing that could really make me happy, would be getting Jason back." Kuki replied, shrugging.
"Okay, I'll help you." Wally told her.
"Really?" Kuki asked. Wally nodded. "Great! Wally, you're the best."
She went to hug him, obviously, she went right through him.
Flashback
Kuki ran into the park, sobbing heavily. She went there when she wanted some time alone. This was one of those times. She sat against a tree and hugged her knees. Burying her head in them.
"Kooks? You okay?" Kuki looked up to see her short Australian friend sitting in the tree which she was leant against.
Kuki nodded and held her breath to stop herself crying.
"What's wrong?" He asked. She just shook her head with a sniff.
"It's your parents again isn't it?" She nodded.
"Mom?" She nodded.
"Oh Kooks."
She wiped her tears and looked up at him. She decided to join him up in the tree and climbed it with care. He pulled her up when she was at arms length. He placed her next to him and she placed a head on his shoulder.
"Maybe she's right. Maybe I can't do anything right." She sniffed.
"What? What are you saying that for?" Wally placed an arm around her. "You're great! She's not! She's always fighting with your dad, and being mean to you! You've got to be what you want to be. And don't you ever be like her!"
Kuki sniffed and chuckled as she held onto his hoodie tightly.
"Promise?" He held out his pinkie.
"Okay, I promise." She held out her pinky finger and hooked it onto his.
"Ow!" He moaned as she squeezed his pinky tightly.
Kuki giggled. He smiled and tugged playfully at her hair. She closed her eyes and nuzzled closer to him.
It was times like this when she was glad she had a friend like him.
End of flashback
