CHAPTER 9: I would follow you to the end of the world.

Ben point of view:

I´m awfully anxious. The reopening´s tomorrow, there are dozens of things that could go wrong. I would hate if this doesn´t work out after all the effort we made. Not only time, money, and moving from Chicago, but I even put my family in danger. I wouldn´t bear something bad happening to them.

"Smile, Ben!" Sarah puts her hands over my shoulders. "Take a deep breath. Everything will be alright. I can feel it."

I do as she says, take a deep breath and then hug her.

"I hope so. Thanks for being with me all along the way, Sarah."

"Don´t mention it. This was your dream, and with time, it became my dream, too."

"Tomorrow this place will be full of guests! Can you believe it?"

"I do!" she smiles. "But you know what? It also reminds me that we´ll have a lot of work to do so, we should have some fun tonight."

"I´m glad you mention it. After all the repairs and ghosts I really need that! We could go out."

"Where should we go?" her eyes light up with excitement.

"What about the new Italian restaurant?" I suggest.

"That sounds great!" she smiles. "We could drive the kids to Jess´ before dinner."

"Sure, let´s do that." I grab my jacket from the closet and put it on. "Speaking of kids, I´ve been thinking about what you told me the other day."

"What did I tell you?" she frowns while putting her earrings on.

"Griffin and Harper, in his room."

"Oh, that. I think it was a misunderstanding."

"Shouldn´t we have the talk with him?"

"I don´t think so." She shakes her head. "I mean, they´ve already had the talk at school, and they are smart kids…"

"True, but it´s not the same the talk at school than at home. We should talk to him before something happens…"

"Oh, no kidding!" she says sarcastically. "I´m aware of that, Ben! But I think it´s not time for that yet."

"Ok, whatever you say."

Sarah and I get ready for our night out, while the kids get ready for the last night of the Harry Potter marathon at Jess´ house. Once it gets dark, we wait for Savannah in the parking lot, who appears walking from the woods a few minutes later.

"You look fabulous, Sarah!" She comments looking at Sarah´s red blouse. "And you look so fancy, Ben!"

I´m wearing the same white shirt and black trousers I wore at the reopening. With a smile, I answer,

"Thanks! We´re going out."

"Out on a date." Zoey adds. "So romantic."

"When are you taking Harper on a date, Griffin?" Wyatt teases him. "You´re staying behind."

"Shut up, Wyatt! It´ll be soon!" Griff pushes his shoulder.

"True! You must take Harper on a date!" Savannah breaks in.

"I will! Stop pushing me!" he yells, and quickly changes the subject. "Dad, you two take the car. There´s no way all of us fit in it. We´re going by foot."

"We´re not taking the car." Sarah replies. "But we can go with you to Jess´ house, the restaurant is not that far from there."

"Why won´t you take the car?" Wyatt inquires.

"Because I´m planning on drinking tonight."

"We." Sarah corrects me. "We are planning on drinking tonight."

"Sounds good." Zoey nods. "You deserve some fun. But don't drink too much or you´ll have a hangover."

"Excuse me?!" Sarah´s voice goes from cheerful to serious. "How do you even know that?!"

"Well… TV."

"Ok, don´t worry about it. We´re just having a glass of wine."

Sulphur Springs is a small town, there are not so many people walking on the streets at night. However, I would be more relaxed if Savannah would cover her face to protect her identity. I couldn´t bare more ghosts rumors! That´s why Griff offers her his hoodie until we get to Jess´ house.

After some delicious pasta and a whole bottle of wine, Sarah and I come back home. The last time The Tremont was this quiet was before the ghost attacked us in the living room. The calm before the storm. But this time it feels different. It looks truly peaceful.

"Oh God, we´re finally home!" Sarah giggles. "My feet can´t take it no more!" she leans over the stair´s handrail.

"We should´ve gone by car…"

"No, we shouldn´t have." she shakes her head. "We wouldn´t have drunk wine, and I needed it. I don´t remember the last time I had a drink!"

"Yeah, you´re right." I gently pull a lock of hair our of her face. Her cheeks are red. "But a full bottle might be too much."

"It wouldn´t be a problem if we could get a taxi in this town!" she complains, but her laugh proves she is not being serious.

"Big cities like Chicago has its advantages. But Sulphur Springs has its own. Listen…" I pause. "No noise."

"Yeah, no neighbors, no traffic, no kids, and more importantly, no ghosts." She starts going up the stairs, barely holding her balance, and she trips, but luckily, grabs the handrail before falling.

"Are you ok?" I grab her waist helping her with her balance.

"Yes…" she giggles. "I think I forgot how hard it was to walk in heels after a glass of wine."

"Glasses, honey." I tease her, laughing. "Glasses of wine."

"Oh, shut up and help me!"

The first thing she does in our room is taking her heels off. I take off my shoes and start unbuttoning my shirt while she leaves her earrings over the dresser.

"Don´t you think sometimes all that happened in Sulphur Springs was a dream?" her question takes me by surprise. "I mean, it feels unreal, the ghosts, and all that."

"Not really. When the kids started with the rumors about Savannah, I… I admit I believed them. That was the reason I wanted to move back here. And then… the other week, before finding out about the ghost, I thought you were having a breakdown, and the fear and guilt I felt were awfully real…"

"Guilt?" she frowns. "You shouldn´t feel guilt, it wasn´t your fault." She comes close to me and sweetly caress my cheek.

"I know, but I kind of pushed you to move to Sulphur Springs…"

"You didn´t push me. We´re a family, and we make decisions as a whole. I would follow you to the end of the world."

Her words melt my heart. I hold her tight and kiss her while she runs her fingers through my hair.

"I love you, Sarah."

"I love you, Ben."