I'm so glad you guys are excited to ride this angst train :3

"You made one hell of a first impression, Hathaway," Mason's voice drawled.

My eyes felt crusty when I forced them open. I didn't remember falling asleep, but it must have been long enough for me to sober up.

Mason sat on the floor across from my bed, watching me with sad eyes. "How's the hangover?"

I groaned, rolling away from him, and pressed my pillow over my head. Memories of what happened downstairs made me internally wince. I tried to keep my temper in check around Abe, not wanting to piss off the only parent that cared enough not to lock me up.

"You know–" Mason started but was interrupted by a knock at my door. I strongly considered ignoring it, but then they knocked again. Louder.

I shifted off the bed, hands covering my face as if it would stop the spinning, and slowly walked to the door. I flicked the lock and opened it enough to see who it was.

To my surprise and my ire, it was my new babysitter. Dimitri kept his expression neutral and stood a small distance from the door. "I wanted to see if you were up and bring you this," he answered my unspoken question, a water bottle held out to me. "Your father mentioned you don't eat together, so I thought I would ask if you were hungry?"

I cocked my head, completely thrown by him. "Are you offering to make me food?" I asked, "Is that part of your job as well, nanny?" I couldn't contain the snark; I hated what Dimitri was hired to do, even if he was being nice.

Despite my attitude, he passed me the bottle with a calm look in his eyes. "I'm making food for myself. You are welcome to join me if you want." With that, he turned and went back downstairs, not looking back to see if I followed.

"That was weird," Mason commented beside me, surprisingly quiet throughout the whole exchange. "I don't like him. He's too nice." His declaration made me laugh—I used to think Mason was too nice.

I wasn't about to take Dimitri up on his offer; if Abe thought we were getting along, he would keep Dimitri on. Though, I was thankful for the water. It had been a while since someone came by to check on me.

I hated the warm feeling it gave me.

Showered and changed, I walked down the stairs, checking for Abe or Pavel before going to the next room. There was the smell of food; it was enticing and made my stomach rumble, a reminder I hadn't eaten a proper meal in a while. I could just give in and play nice with my supposed bodyguard, but I hated that Abe had hired him. If my life wasn't already so limited, I now had a shadow.

I was almost at the back door when a blond man appeared beside me. He surprised me; instantly making me nervous when he grinned. "You're Rose, right? Wow, you really can see me."

"Oh yeah, there's a new guy here. Meet Ivan." Mason chimed in beside me, also popping out of nowhere.

I glared at Mason, "Did you tell him?"

Ivan shook his head and answered me, "No, I heard about you, and now I know it's true. You can help me!"

"I don't help people," I hissed, dodging around him. "Leave me alone." I reached for the door handle when I heard footsteps.

"Rose? Is that you?" Dimitri's voice called from the kitchen. I swore under my breath and slipped out the door. He probably heard it close, so I rushed out to the street and then tried to put as much distance between me and the house.

My advantage was I knew my way around, taking side streets and jumping over a couple of fences until I was far enough away. It was late at night, so the streets were quiet. It was how I preferred it. I drew less attention at night; if anyone saw me talking to myself they didn't care. Even the dead were quiet at night.

Mason strolled beside me, always vigilant, he could keep the less friendly ghosts away from me. He was always protective of me growing up, something that turned into love for him, but I only saw him as my best friend. The night I watched him die would always be the worst night of my life, haunted by it still in my dreams.

After that night, I lost everything.

"Where are we going?" Mason asked, pulling me from my thoughts.

I shrugged, walking through the streets to the train station. "I need to get something else to take the edge off since you got my ID taken off me." I did not doubt that Abe would have someone go through my room again to find the rest of my stashed bottles, and the new guard dog would make sure I didn't buy more. So I had to go with plan B.

The first time I smoked weed was when Eddie brought some to a party, giving me a couple of joints that I held on to. I never used them until after I could see ghosts, it worked almost as well at blocking them out. The main issue was it was harder to get.

I waited until we were on the train before texting one of the few numbers on my phone.

Deirdre had me participate in a group therapy months ago; all I gained from it was someone who had access to weed and would occasionally sell it to me. I hoped he had some available.

I sent the text and got a response within minutes. I grinned, mildly excited about seeing Caleb. While we weren't in the same situations, he never called me crazy, claiming he knew crazy and I wasn't it.

Mason glanced at my phone and grumbled, "Oh, that's where we are going."

Habits die hard, even when you are dead; Mason always got jealous when I spoke to a guy who showed interest in me. I found it more funny than annoying, especially now. I wondered if he expected us to have a Ghosts moment.

"Jealousy isn't a good colour on you, Casper," I jibed, putting my phone back into my coat. He shot me a look of disdain at the nickname and stalked to the other end of the cart. I rolled my eyes and relaxed in my seat.

We were alone in the cart except for one person—a dead one. The man looked like he was homeless, still in a beanie and a coat that was covered in dirt and had holes. Our eyes met, and I knew he figured out I could see him. A smile pulled at the corners of his lips, and he nodded at me. "It's a quiet night," he spoke softly.

I hesitated before responding, "Yep." There was no point pretending when there was no one else around.

The man stood, patting his coat. "Always greet the crows when they arrive," he told me with a wink. It sounded like gibberish, but his words made a shiver go down my spine. With another nod, the man walked through the train doors and disappeared from view.

I took a deep breath and slowly released it. I really hated ghosts.

I only knocked once on the pale door before it swung open, and I was pulled into a hug. "Rose!" Caleb cooed, lifting me off the ground in a tight bear hug. He was as tall as my bodyguard, maybe a little shorter at six foot and five inches. His dark curls hung in front of his eyes with the same goofy smile on his face as usual.

He put my feet back on the ground and drew back, shaking his head to shift his hair, only for it to move back to the same spot. "I haven't seen you in weeks. I was getting worried."

I grinned, "New semester, things got busy." I glanced at my phone, noting the time and frowned, "Sorry to make it a short visit, but I'm not meant to be out."

Caleb threw his head back and laughed, "Still breaking the rules, I see." He went into his apartment and waved me in. I stepped in and closed the door, not venturing in too far.

The small apartment was filled with old computers and spare parts, cables running along the ground in all directions. The only light source came from his three monitors in the middle of the room and the two lava lamps on his table.

I never found out his full diagnosis, but I knew he had ADHD and depression. He once told me that fixing computers was easier to focus on because it was less work than trying to fix himself.

"You're in luck," Caleb began, shifted some things on his counter and then returned to me with a brown paper bag, "I got a bunch of it, but then it started messing with my new medication, so it's all yours."

I pulled out my wallet, grabbed a couple of notes and swapped him for the bag. The first time I offered to pay, Caleb turned me down, but when I explained it was Abe's money, after that he was happy to take it. "Thanks," I smiled and slid the bag into the inside pocket of my coat.

He tilted his head, studying me momentarily, "Still struggling with it all?"

"Always," I grumbled with a grimace. "I'll text you when I have free time again. I'm sure Christmas will be a great time to get away."

He laughed and agreed, Caleb's relationship with his family was about as good as mine. With another bone-crushing hug, I waved goodbye and bounded down the stairway to the lobby where Mason waited for me. His arms were crossed and had an expression like he had sucked on a lemon.

"Did you get it?" he huffed, taking personal offence to me getting something that would block him out. I could understand why he would be upset, but I also didn't care if it gave me some peace.

"Yes, and you need to get over it," I told him, opening the door and jumping down the steps to the sidewalk. "I'm allowed to have a break sometimes."

"Rose," Mason called, then laughed, "you're fucked."

I halted and spun to face him. Instead of Mason standing behind me, it was Dimitri.

I jumped back, "What the fuck! How–"

Dimitri held his phone up, a small map on it. "Your father gave me access to your GPS," he explained in a controlled tone. Even in the dim lighting of the street, I could see he was pissed. "It's my job to make sure you are safe. So that means you don't leave without me."

"If you haven't noticed, I don't want you following me around," I scoffed and turned on my heel, marching away. I had no idea where I was going, only that I wanted to get away from him.

"What was so important that you travel halfway across the city at night?" Dimitri asked as he followed, falling into step beside me. "You realise how dangerous this is, right?"

"I've never had an issue. The only time I've had a creep following me would be right now."

Dimitri furrowed his brows and then cut in front of me so I had to stop. "I'm not here to play games. Your father hired me and I always do my job well." Dimitri gripped my shoulder and turned me around, guiding me down the street to a familiar car.

I struggled against him, but it was useless; I would have better luck bending metal. "I don't need someone telling me what to do," I argued.

Dimitri yanked open the passenger door and blocked me in so I couldn't escape. He leaned down with determined eyes locked on mine, "I don't care. Get in."

I didn't back down from his stare, tossing up if it was worth it to break away from him or if just giving in would be better. After a moment, I relented. "Fine." I dropped into the car and crossed my arms.

"You really are feisty, I like it," a new voice commented.

I glanced behind me to see the same blond man from earlier. I raised my brows at him, "Are you haunting Dimitri or something?"

Ivan grinned, "I like to think of it as watching over him." He paused when Dimitri climbed in behind the wheel. He nodded forward, "Don't tell him I'm here though."

I scoffed. "He wouldn't believe me even if I did."

"What?" Dimitri asked. He turned his head and waited for a response. When I didn't answer, he sighed, "Put on your seatbelt."

The drive was silent except for the two ghosts chatting in the backseat.

"How long do you think Shrek will last?" Mason asked, eyes on Dimitri. "I think you could piss him off enough that he'll be gone in a week."

Ivan laughed, "You don't know the level of control Dimitri has. It would take a lot to make him quit."

"Well, you don't know Rose. Pissing people off is her superpower."

I spun in my seat and glared at the both of them, "Would you two just shut up!" Both ghosts were surprised by my outburst, eyes on me and then slowly shifted to Dimitri. I heard him clear his throat and I remembered that he couldn't hear them. I dropped back into my seat and faced the window.

I could feel his eyes on me.

"What?" I snapped, "Didn't Abe warn you?"

Dimitri didn't reply straight away. "He mentioned that you had issues."

A laugh bubbled out of my mouth despite myself. Issues. Made it sound fixable when put that way. "If you ask my therapist, she would tell you it's my trauma."

"What would you call it?"

I turned to catch his eye, "None of your business."

From the corner of my eye, I saw Ivan lean over to Mason. "Is she always like this?"

Mason smirked. "Yep."

We pulled up, and Dimitri got out first; when I tried to exit, I couldn't open the door. Dimitri had to open it for me. "Really?" I demanded, "You put on the child lock?"

His expression stayed blank, "I wasn't taking any chances." I started to stalk away when he called my name. "I won't tell Mr Mazur about tonight, but you need to be aware—I will take this job very seriously. It will be easier for us both if you accept that."

I felt a wave of anger roll through me, my fists curling. "It will be easier for us both if you just accept that I don't give a fuck what you want."

His jaw clenched; that precious control that Ivan spoke about already looked to be hanging by a thread. Maybe Mason was right and I would make him quit by the end of the week.

"Night, comrade," I saluted and then walked away. At least making Dimitri quit gave me a goal for the week.