Darkness is comforting.
It gives me solace, and most importantly, the sense of security.

Nobody can find me.

Not even him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raise your hand if you've ever had an imaginary friend. Someone who talks to you, understands you. They come in all shapes and sizes. Some had fuzzy pink head, others had glittery eyes that stare straight through your soul. Just like Bing Bong from Inside Out.

But I never knew what mine looked like.

I tried. Really. I did. Squinting my eyes real hard when I felt him, trying to catch a glimpse of what he may looked like. I don't really know what he sounded like either. But I can understand him just fine. How? You ask. I see them in my mind. His words. Like a typewriter tapping out words across a fresh sheet of paper. His words spoke to me.

My parents knew about him. I made sure they knew. When he pushed me on the swing, or when he led the way when I was lost.

But as I soon grew older, his words lessened. It was as if the typewriter had ran out of ink, the words seemed faded into a pale grey. I started to panic one day, clutching onto my momma's apron, begging her to ask him to stay as tears flowed down my cheeks.

"Can't you ask him to stay, Momma?" I pleaded.

Momma crouched down, leveling herself to my height as she gently pushed up my chin to meet her eyes.
Sympathy was evident in her gaze.

"I'm sorry, honey. He's needed somewhere else, someone who needs him." she placed my head against her chest, hands smoothing down my back. "You're a big boy now. Soon, you'll forget about him."

"But I need him! I NEED HIM! I NEED HIM!" I wailed and sobbed against her bosom.

Momma just stayed silent, rubbing her hands against my back as she waited for me to calm down.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ethan! Wait for me!"

I stopped on my track, waiting as Lisa jogged towards me. I'm a freshman now. Majoring in business at a local university downtown. High school was fairly alright. I mean I wasn't targeted by the school bullies. I guess that was better than I asked for.

"Seriously, you need to exercise more. The gym is just a block away from your dorm," I chastised as Lisa was bent over, panting a little harsher just from the little jog.

"Mind you, Ethan. I do exercise, okay?" she shot me a dirty look.

"Yeah right. Last time I checked, surfing the net wasn't recognised as sports." I shot back.

You see, Lisa wasn't your typical Cali girl. Scratch that. She wasn't a typical girl. Period. Unlike other girls who spend their time dolling up trying to catch the hottest hunk, Lisa does the exact opposite. She's always clad in tank tops and sweatpants.

Oh! And flip flops too.

And no boys would ever glance her way the second time. Well, except me. But that's only when I caught a glimpse of her flip flops.

They were...eccentric, to put in nicely. Bright, neon green with googly eyes paired with two hot pink middle fingers flipping you off at the sides. Yeah. You can definitely count on her to find the weirdest flip flop in the market.

"Blah blah blah. Look. I'm here not to listen to you nag, but to bring your ass over to the party!" she exasperated. She clasped my hand, tugging me towards the nearest club, The Dungeon while her flip flops made squishy sounds on the wet pavement, flipping everyone off on our way.

I trudged behind her dejectedly, dreading to go to the Party of the Year. Halloween party. Let's be honest, I wasn't exactly dressed for the occasion. Neither was Lisa. 'Cept for her hideous flip flops if they count.

As we reached the club, we pushed past at least three draculas and two slutty nurses to get to the bar. Mike grinned and waved at us when he spotted me and Lisa. He was dressed as.... Take a guess.

A dracula.

"Where's your costume, dude?!" Mike yelled.

"I'm dead inside. How original can I get?" I shrugged.

Rolling his eyes, he turned to Lisa. "What 'bout you?"

Lisa pointed to her feet. Figures.

"Wicked," his lips pulled back to an awkward grin, baring his fake fangs.

"I've ordered us three glasses of Virgin's Piss," he added nonchalantly.

I almost choked on my spit. "A virgin's what?"

"Virgin's Piss, Ethan. It's a festive cocktail," he took a glass from the bartender and handed to me.

I swirled the drink, trying to figure out its contents. Lisa took a sniff at it before tilting back her head, drinking it down. Since I didn't want to be a pussy, I scrunched up my face and downed it in one-shot. I almost gagged as I tried to keep it down my stomach. It really tasted like urine. How aptly named.

I looked around the club, trying to distract myself from puking my guts out. The decorations were passable if not generic. Carved pumpkins and cauldrons littered on the steps leading to the second floor. Swiveling in my seat, I looked at the other side of the club. My eyes lit up when I saw something fresh.

Sitting in a corner was an old lady dressed in some gypsy clothing. She was doing some rubbing motions on the crystal ball which sat on a jeweled cushion. Her patron was listening attentively to her as she mumbled some cryptic messages.

I decided to give it a go, just for the fun of it. I tapped on Lisa's shoulder to get her attention then asked if she wanted to join me for the fortune telling. She shook her head, wanting to check out the second floor.

I walked to the corner as the girl got up from her seat glassy-eyed.

"How much?" I asked as I took the vacant seat.

"I'm here to warn, not to earn," the old woman croaked. She grasped my hand and placed it on the orbuculum. "What do you wish to know, boy?"

I gave it a thought. What do I want to know? My future spouse? Will I be able to graduate on time? The list is endless.

"Can't you tell my fortune in general?" I questioned, scratching my head shyly.

She narrowed her eyes before mumbled some words in a foreign language. Celtic, I guess? Suddenly, her eyes shot open. She raised her arm, finger pointing straight at me.

"Your past will soon replace your future," she whispered in a scratchy voice.

...............................................................

Author's notes:

That's it guys. Stay tuned for the continuation on the next chapter. I know it's not scary in this chapter as I tried to lay a few hints and clues in this chapter (also I may be a little too scared to write anything scary since it's 2:30 am now).

The story may not progress as you imagined. Hope you enjoyed it and vote for it.

Cheers!