A/N: Holy Christmas, Batman! It's been a while, I know. I am SO sorry. Life got in the way, along with writer's block. Just a bit of a life update: I moved. I moved to a completely different state. First time on my own. I currently live about 20 minutes from Walt Disney World and I am a dog mom to a stubborn 3-year-old Shiba Inu Mix. I've been working on this chapter on and off for the last year and a half. It's actually the first part of a three-parter. When those other two parts will make their debut, I'm not quite sure. Part two, I can probably have up in the next few days. Part three is, like the first part, the problem child. Hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm also sorry that it's short...and for the painful beginning.

Chapter Song: Stay With Me by Danity Kane

Stay With Me, Don't Let Go

This wasn't supposed to happen.

They weren't supposed to still be here.

Why were they still here?

Julie's heart stopped after hearing Reggie's voice reply back to her in the dark. After flipping on the light and seeing all three of her ghost boys lying on the floor of the studio, she began to panic. The Orpheum was supposed to be their saving grace, their unfinished business that sent them to that giant concert in the sky. Yet, it hadn't worked. It hadn't worked and they were just a few jolts away from being wiped from existence.

"Point Caleb," Reggie uttered dejectedly.

No, it couldn't end like this.

Julie refused to let it end like this.

"You have to save yourself, right now," she cried as she floated between them. "Go join Caleb's club, please. It's better than not existing at all." If crossing over was out of the question, she would rather them exist somewhere than nowhere at all. "Please just go. Go. Poof out. Do something. Please, do it for me. Please."

"We're not going back there," Reggie answered with a shake of his head.

She stared at them. At the three boys who changed her life, and made her believe in music again. In the span of a few short weeks, they came to mean so much to Julie. Going from strangers, to bandmates, to friends, and finally to family. It wasn't fair. Her eyes went back and forth between the three of them before settling on Luke who had risen from his spot on the floor and was making his way towards her.

"No music is worth making, Julie, if it's not with you," he confessed, coming to a stop right in front of her. "No regrets."

Her heart wept, wishing that she could touch him. Wishing that, for one moment, she could reach out and hug him. But he was a ghost. If she tried, she would fall straight through him.

Still…

Before she could get a chance to think on it further, another jolt hit them and he fell to his knees in front of her.

"Luke!" She followed him down, cringing as another jolt racked his ghostly form. Instinct told her to reach for him, but reason held her back.

"Alex!" Her head shot up at Reggie's anguished voice just in time to watch the blond fade away.

"No! Alex!" she called after, tears streaming down her face.

Reggie looked at Luke, fear etched on his face. "Luke, I'm scared. I don't…I don't wanna go."

"I know, buddy," he responded, sniffling, as he reached out for him. "I know." Her heart broke even further when Reggie's hand fazed through Luke's.

"Luke," Reggie whispered, wide-eyed before he disappeared.

A sound like no other escaped the guitarist as he turned away from the spot where Reggie once was. "I'm sorry, Julie. I'm so sorry that we got ourselves into this mess. I didn't mean…" Another jolt interrupted him.

"It's okay, Luke," she choked out, tears streaming down her face. "It's okay."

He gave her a tired smile, one that she painfully returned, then he was gone. Julie's face crumbled as her eyes searched the spot he once occupied. She could feel her heart shattering from within her chest as an agonizing wail escaped her.


Awaking suddenly, Julie sobbed uncontrollably. She sat upright and brought her legs to her chest, wrapping her arms securely around them. None of that had been real, she knew, but her heart didn't seem to get that memo. It beat rapidly inside her chest, mourning a loss that hadn't happened. She could still see the pain and fear in the boys' eyes. That had been real. Those she remembered seeing in person, but the rest - watching them fade away - hadn't happened. They were still there. Still with her for however long time would allow.

It was a dream. It was a dream. It was nothing but a bad dream.

She allowed the affirmations to echo within her mind to settle her overactive imagination. Tried to take comfort in the fact that nothing she'd seen was real. But that didn't stop the tears from coming. Didn't stop her from feeling a sense of loss deep within her heart. Climbing out of bed, she slipped on her slippers and made her way downstairs. Her feet led her outside and to the studio. Part of her needed the quell the doubt that whispered in the back of her mind. She knew this was the only way to make it stop.

A single light source emanated from the windows as she stood outside. Grabbing the handle, Julie pulled the door open and found Alex and Reggie sprawled out on the pull-out, fast asleep. She sighed in relief at the sight of them and her feet led her further into the space. That's when she realized the absence of one of her ghosts. She turned in place as she searched for him.

"Hey." Julie jumped slightly before looking in the direction of the voice. Luke sat in the loft, smirking down at her.

"What…" He quickly shushed her, placing a finger on his lips before beckoning her up. She climbed the ladder with ease. When she reached the top, Luke was seated against the wall with his guitar in hand. "I thought you guys didn't sleep."

"We normally don't, but Caleb's stamps took a lot out of us."

She nodded, realizing how much sense it made. "So, how come you're not asleep like they are?"

With a shrug, he replied, "Got a song on the brain, and if I sleep now I know I'll forget it in the morning. I guess almost being wiped from existence did a lot for my inspiration." Biting her lip, she tried not to let the pain of remembrance show on her face.

But Luke noticed. "You okay?"

She smiled softly at his concern. "Yeah." He wasn't convinced but didn't question her further. "What were you working on?" she inquired, gesturing towards his guitar.

Grinning, he motioned for her to sit beside him. She took a place next to him, relishing in the feel of him solid against her. He repositioned his guitar and began softly strumming away so as to not disturb the two asleep downstairs. "I haven't figured out the words yet, but the melody came easily."

Julie watched him as he sunk into his element. For the umpteenth time in the last 24 hours, she was grateful for his presence in her life. But the was one thing that her dream was forcing Julie to realize. Her time with him was limited. Her days with her boys had an expiration date, they just didn't know when that was. A different kind of fear crept up in the back of her mind and she attempted to push it down.

"Julie?" Her attention was pulled back to him; her brown eyes meeting his hazel-green. They shone with confusion and concern. "You sure you're okay?"

Forcing a smile, she nodded. "Yeah, I think I'm just tired." She began shifting to a standing position. "I should probably get back to bed. I'll see you later." Moving towards the ladder, she stopped when she felt his hand on her wrist and glanced back at him.

"Can I walk you?" he asked, almost nervous. Giving him a soft smile, she nodded.

Julie was quiet the entire walk back to the house, but Luke made enough noise for the both of them; humming underneath his breath. The sound kept her thoughts from straying to unpleasant things. When they reached her bedroom, she turned to him, their eyes meeting in the darkness. The silence that passed between them brought her back to yesterday; to them standing in the doorway of the studio as she tried to find the right words to convey her gratitude towards him. This time, though, there was no threat of Caleb's curse looming over them. There was a nervous energy flowing through her veins as she stood before him. There had been one yesterday as well, but most of that stemmed from the upcoming performance in front of hundreds of people. This one was different but felt familiar.

"Thanks," she finally breathed, "for walking me."

He grinned. "Of course, Julie. G'night." He was about to poof out, but Julie's hand on his wrist stopped him before he had the chance to.

"Stay?" she pleaded. "J-Just for a little while."

He stared silently at her before smiling and nodded. "Yeah. Sure."

Luke followed her into her room, closing the door behind him. He watched as she crawled into her bed and shifted to make room for him. Removing his Vans, Luke climbed onto her mattress and laid down beside her. Julie stared at him as he got comfortable, biting her bottom lip as she contemplated something. Before she could lose her nerve, she moved closer to him and snaked an arm around his stomach. She doubted herself when she felt him tense, but then he relaxed and returned the embrace, pulling her closer. Smiling to herself, she buried her face into the fabric of his shirt.

As she began to drift off, she felt a slight pressure on the crown of her head followed by whispered words that she couldn't quite make out.

Again, apologies for the short chapter. Also, I made a JuliexLuke edit on YouTube. I would be forever grateful if you guys could check it out. Link is in my profile.