Fearless
Molly runs. From what or who, she's not entirely sure. All she knows is she has to keep running. It's a survival instinct that both her body and mind need to listen to. Still, her mind has been a dangerous place lately and she's not entirely sure she can trust it.
So Molly keeps running. She watches as graves pass her by in a blur, darkness of the night surrounding her. She takes a moment to look up at the midnight blue sky as she runs, the luminous glow of the moonlight brightening the darkness.
Why am I running away? I should be helping you. I trusted you…No. I really should keep running. Not just to save myself, but to save you from the hurt you'd feel if you hurt me.
Suddenly, Molly trips and hits the cold, hard ground on impact. Pain rushes through her body, but the adrenaline keeps her alert. Feeling as though she might lose consciousness, she holds on and forces herself to stay awake.
Then Molly sees it. A dark shadow standing over her with menacing red orange colored eyes. They look like a sunset, almost captivating, but she knows there's danger behind those eyes. Something evil that was once good.
Just as the shadowy creature is about to remove its hood, Molly puts her hand out.
"Stop!" Molly yelled.
The shadow creature stops and waits for Molly to give her reason.
"I…I know you would never hurt me. I don't know what evil has caused you to be this way…But I know…There's good in you. Please…Just try…To see the light again." Molly said.
The shadow creature puts down its hand and stares at Molly, conflicted. Then, it speaks.
"I…I'm sorry…" The shadow creature said.
Suddenly, it rushes towards Molly, ready to attack and finally end her.
Molly shields herself with her hands, knowing it won't help but braces for the impact. Then, she feels it, a pain like no other. A cold burning sensation in her chest as the shadow creature's hand phases through her chest right to her heart and slowly sucks the joy and life out of her, lifting her off the ground as it does. She tries to scream, but can't make a sound.
The world around Molly slowly disappears as she fades into unconsciousness, but doesn't black out without saying one last thing.
"I…I still love you." Molly said.
The shadow creature drops a lifeless Molly on the ground, shocked. Her kind words sting like a burning knife in its heart. Still, her power of joy is like no other and, although it's what the creature wanted, it can't help but feel extremely guilty for what it's done.
The shadow creature walks away, leaving Molly behind to wither away in the dark graveyard. Then it stops, looking back one last time.
"I still love you too, Molly. I…I'm sorry." The shadow creature said.
Suddenly, Molly wakes up in the middle of the night gasping for air and crying. She puts her hand on her chest, breathing deeply, trying to calm herself.
"It's okay. It was just another nightmare. I'm safe. I'm okay." Molly said.
Molly's phone beeps and it startles her, but she immediately picks it up to see who's texting her this late. Her heart skips a beat when she sees it's Ollie just making sure she's okay. He knows she's been having a hard time since Scratch became human and left.
So, Molly replies with a simple, I'm fine with a smiley face. She hopes it's enough, but knows she'll be questioned by her family and friends about this, hiding her feelings behind a smile to cope, doesn't really work on them anymore.
Molly then looks over at Scratch's little ghost house. A sad sense of grief washes over her, but only for a moment. Then, she smiles.
"Scratch, I'm sad you're gone. We were supposed to be friends for all eternity…And it's hard saying goodbye…But just knowing you're happy and living your life is enough for me to move forward with mine." Molly said.
Molly smiles as she looks back at her phone and she tries to move on from her nightmare. It's a lot, but she's been going to therapy to talk about the grief she's experienced. Not revealing to her therapist that Scratch was a ghost, but that he was a family friend who had to move away.
It helps Molly to talk with a professional about these feelings. It's better than bottling them up until she hits a breaking point. She's been doing much better. It's just the nightmares that come up every once in a while that scare her.
Molly then sees another text from Ollie, telling her to look outside.
Confused and intrigued, Molly puts her phone down and opens the shades to her window to find Ollie, standing outside in the middle of the night. He's wearing the suit he wore to the Brighton middle school dance and holding flowers.
Surprised and finding it hard to control her blushing at this moment, Molly opens the window and tries her best to yell quietly.
"What are you doing? You're going to get us both in so much trouble!" Molly said.
Ollie smiles, putting out his hand and gesturing for Molly to come down.
"I'm here to cheer you up! And what better way to do that than with a romantic gesture? Come dance with me!" Ollie replied.
Molly looks at Ollie with a lovestruck stare, then realizes she's in her pajamas. She wants to go dance with him, but first she has to get ready.
"Okay, just hold on one minute." Molly said.
Molly then closes her window and blinds as she changes into her sparkly purple dress and shoes that she wore to the dance. She then tries her best to sneak down her attic ladder and out the door. This proves to be a challenge as she has to walk past her parents bedroom.
Molly cautiously makes her way past her parents room and down the stairs. She looks up one last time and realizes she didn't wake anyone up.
Molly sighs with relief and quietly opens the door, blushing and giggling as she runs towards her boyfriend and jumps in his arms.
Ollie catches Molly and they do a spin before stopping to look at one another lovingly. Both teens blushing as they hold each other close. It's just what Molly needs, a happy moment to take her mind off of her nightmares.
Molly then looks at the flowers Ollie dropped on the ground when he caught her in his arms. She giggles as she picks them up.
"Are these for me?" Molly asked.
Ollie rubs the back of his head, embarrassed.
"Oh yeah, sorry! I didn't mean to drop them. I just had to catch you." Ollie replied.
Molly puts the flowers down again and hugs Ollie, feeling so safe with him.
"I know. You're always here to catch me when I fall." Molly said.
Ollie hugs Molly back and they slowly start dancing, no music, just the soothing sounds of nature to guide them through the night. It's beautiful, albeit a bit ominous in the dark.
After they dance for a bit, Molly starts to feel a little scared. She doesn't know why, but she thinks it has to do with her abandonment issues she's been talking about with her therapist.
Ollie notices Molly shaking in his arms and starts to worry.
"Are you okay?" Ollie asked.
Molly looks up at Ollie, her eyes glossy with tears.
"It's just…If Scratch left and forgot about me…And so many friends forgot about me when I left and moved so many times…I keep thinking…What if you leave and forget about me too? What if Libby, Andrea, and my whole family leaves and forgets about me? I'm just scared, Ollie…" Molly replied.
Molly starts to cry, letting her tears fall and revealing her trauma in a way she never expected. On a peaceful and romantic night of dancing with her boyfriend.
Ollie puts his hand on Molly's cheek to wipe her tears away.
"I would never leave or forget about you. Neither will your friends or family. Remember, Brighton is your forever home. And I can promise you that I'm not going anywhere." Ollie said.
Molly nods, taking the hand Ollie put on her cheek and holding it in hers.
"Thank you for saying that. I needed to hear it after everything that's happened." Molly replied.
Ollie then pulls Molly closer to him as they start to dance again. It's nice, this moment. Just a sweet dance to let go of everything and just be together.
"I love you." Ollie said.
Molly takes in Ollie's words. The words she wants to say back and those feelings she wants to reciprocate so badly, but she's still scared. If she says those words and he leaves, it will hurt her all over again. Still, she tries her best to be brave.
"Ollie, I…" Molly replied.
Suddenly, lightning strikes across the night sky followed by a loud burst of thunder. Then rain comes pouring down fast and hard. A sudden storm in the calm.
Molly looks up at the sky and starts laughing, a smile across her face as the hyperactive energy in her takes over. She starts spinning around in circles and splashing in puddles like a little kid, letting her inner child come out to play.
Ollie looks at Molly confused, but smiles along with her, happy to see her having fun again.
"What are you doing? We have to get inside!" Ollie said.
Molly then stops, putting her hand out to Ollie.
"Not after one last dance. Come on! It'll be fun!" Molly replied.
Ollie can't believe he's doing this, but he smiles and takes Molly's hand and starts dancing with her.
Molly smiles and happily enjoys this moment, her joy giving her that positive energy that she hasn't felt in so long. Therapy, grieving, nightmares, sadness…It's all gone in an instant with Ollie. She loves this feeling of letting go and being free.
Molly then breaks away and starts spinning around and laughing again, but Ollie picks her up and spins her around as they splash around in the pouring rain together. It's childish and probably going to get them both grounded, but they don't care.
Once they stop spinning, Ollie looks at Molly, both catching their breath from dancing and spinning around so much. They both feel a sense of calm and comfort in each other's arms.
Then Ollie closes his eyes and leans in and Molly does the same as they share their first kiss. It's dark and the storm causes chaos all around them. Yet they can't help but feel a calm spark in this moment.
They pull away from the kiss, both blushing messes as the storm rages on around them. Lost in the moment, they continue to stare into each other's eyes lovingly.
Molly hugs Ollie, holding him close and never wanting to let go.
"Promise you'll never leave me?" Molly asked.
Ollie can feel Molly shaking in his arms again. She's definitely got some trauma to work through, but he'll be there for her every step of the way. No matter what.
"I promise." Ollie replied.