Once we poofed back to the studio, the boys insisted we go into Julies' house to wait for her; so now, here I am against my own will sitting in-between Alex and Luke as we await the return of their other band member. So far, the plan is going horribly; every time I try bringing up the club during our wait, her little brother makes some loud remark about ghosts, taking the boys' attention away from me.

"For the last time, mijo," His aunt shook her head, flicking on the light switch, "Ghosts are not real." I rolled my eyes, if only she knew.

"Typical adult," Reggie exclaimed, "do you remember when we were kids, and they never believed what we said?" Alex and I shared a glance; the two of us were always every teacher's favorite, meaning we never got into the same amount of trouble that Luke and Reggie did.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's just a you thing," Alex remarked, shaking his head in disagreement.

"We were always pretty trustworthy," I add; I hated how much I liked making witty remarks with Alex; it felt like high school again.

"She's not wrong," Luke shrugged; he hadn't spoken much since we'd left the club, he seemed the most worried about Julie getting caught; it's very apparent how much this band means to him, "I'm pretty sure my parents trusted Harper more then they trusted me."

"Pretty sure?" I asked, squinted at him teasingly; every time I made one of these witty comments, it felt like I was cracking slowly and slowly, becoming the girl I used to be; Luke smiled lightly, but I could still see the worry in his eyes, "You okay?" I don't want to ask, but it's obvious something is wrong.

"I'm just worried," He answered honestly, "Julie's dad is probably making her quit the band as we speak." The sadness on Luke's face made me feel conflicted; on the one hand, if she did quit, then they'll be more likely to join the club, but on the other hand, the boys looked alive tonight, more alive than I've felt in my 25 years of being at the club, did I really want to take that away from them?

"Well, there's not much we can do about that now," Reggie reminded him; I wasn't expecting this response from the usually optimistic boy, but I appreciated it none the less. Once they lose hope in this band, they'll want to join Caleb's, "but, we can still help Carlos, adults not believing children ends tonight." Before any of us could ask what he meant, he reached for the switch of the lamp behind him, "showtime." Carlos and his aunt both gasp as the light shuts off, causing Reggie to smirk proudly; I wanted to feel annoyed like Alex and Luke both clearly were, but I was getting kind of bored just sitting here and waiting; at least Reggie was making things interesting.

"Ghosts aren't real, huh?" Carlos remarked, nodding towards the lamp, "how do you explain that?"

"Light bulbs burn out all the time, Carlos," She reminded him in a knowing tone.

"Ooh, wrong answer Tia" Reggie winced, moving off the chair he sat on, "explain this," As Reggie flickers the blinds open and closed, Luke and Alex shared an annoyed glance; probably expecting me to feel the same, but instead I'm biting my lip, holding back a grin.

"Seriously?" Alex asks, throwing his hands up in the air, "you can't seriously find this funny," I hated to admit it, but I did, I guess I haven't realized it till now, but no one at the club was really "funny" or made jokes the way Reggie, Alex, and Luke did.

"Maybe it's my mom," The little boy exclaimed in a hopeful tone; I looked away from Alex and over to the little boy; the loss I saw in Julie's eyes earlier finally made sense; she was referring to her mom, "she knows I haven't been replacing the toilet paper!"

"Your mama would never scare us," The aunt exclaimed, placing her hands on his shoulders, "this is the work of the demon." Reggie immediately stopped flickering the blinds after she said this, a frown taking over his face.

"Hey," He muttered, "words hurt."

"Wait!" The little boy exclaimed, holding his Ipad once more, "I got to get it on video."

"Yeah, you do," Reggie points; he scans around us, trying to find another ghost trick to do.

"Hey Reg," I called out; I cringed at the old nickname that came out so naturally, "may I suggest an old classic?" I nod towards a laundry basket with white seats in it; Reggie grins at me before moving to throw the sheet over his head, just as I had instructed. Carlos tries to get a picture while his aunt wraps her arms around him, squealing nervously.

"Dang, it was in selfie mode," He mutters as his aunt drags him out of the room, practically screaming at this point. Reggie snickers proudly as they run out, plopping into the chair he was sitting on previously, while Alex and Luke have their arms crossed, frowns etched on their faces.

"Oh c'mon, Luke," I nudge him, shaking my head in amusement. The pout on his face was a familiar one; I can clearly remember him making this face whenever he wanted me to stop studying and pay attention to him, "you've gotta admit, that was kind of funny."

"I can't believe you're encouraging him," Alex shook his head disappointedly, "do you have any idea what you've done," He says to Reggie this time.

"Yeah, I do," Reggie responded confidently, "I've defended every kid who's never been believed; some might say I'm a superhero." I chuckle lightly, while Alex and Luke stare at him blankly, "We should probably hide before Julie finds out, huh?" Reggie's eyes widen in realization seconds later, and he runs out of the room; Alex and Luke share a glance before standing to go after him; I poof out shortly after, arriving in the studio just as the three of them run in.

"If you weren't already dead, Julie would kill you," Alex reminds Reggie, who flops himself on the couch in response. Now that they were out of there, he wasn't too worried about Julie. "And Harper Jane Paige," Alex shakes his head disappointedly, using my full name, "I can't believe you, of all people found that amusing, you're usually on my side."

"I know," Luke chimes in before I can speak, "Remember when Harper used to yell at us for being too rowdy? Now look at her; she's laughing at Reggie."

"I didn't yell," I defended myself, crossing my arms across my chest. The three boys stared at me blankly; I needed to get this conversation off me and onto what I was here for; I'm getting off track, "Besides, I've been at the club for 25 years; I haven't gotten to enjoy Reggie's antics in forever."

"Lucky you," Alex muttered; at the mention of the club, all three of them grew more serious looking, "why did you stay there, at the club, I mean?" Alex asked; I took a breath; this was my chance, to prove to them how fantastic the club can be; you've got this, Harper.

"They're my family," I answer honestly, the boys stared at me, all taking in what I was saying, "I know they seem tough, but this club and the ghosts I met in it are the only the only good thing that came out of dying."

"I'm glad you found them," Luke nodded, smiling at me genuinely, "c-can I ask you a question?" by the stutter in his voice, I knew the question wasn't going to be easy to answer. Still, I also knew Caleb; he would answer, no matter how uncomfortable the question was.

"Yeah," I finally answered, nodding my head, "of course."

"The night you," Luke paused, trying to think of how to word his question, "the night you became a ghost, you said it was in the city; why were you there in the first place? you hate the city." I took a breath; when I explained how I died, I purposely left out the reason why I was in the city; but I know Luke; he is persistent; he's never going to let this question go.

"Um," I fidgeted with the rings on my fingers nervously; what would Caleb say? What response will get the boys to come to the club? The answer was obvious; I just didn't want to say it, "I was coming to see you," I finally say; I keep my eyes on my hands, avoiding the reactions on their faces; I knew being honest would be the best way to gain their trust, maybe hearing this would make them want to come to the club.

"Us?" Reggie stuttered.

"Yeah," I cracked a sad smile, "I wanted to see if you'd made it big, so-"

"You came to the Orpheum," Alex continued for me; when I looked up at them, Reggie and Alex's eyes were wide in shock, while Luke's were full of guilt. "you died because you were coming to see us?"

"Harper," Luke muttered sadly; I didn't feel good seeing Luke feel so guilty like I thought I would, his expression was heartbreaking, "this is all my fault."

"It's not," I reassure him, was it, though? I was the one who was too big of a wimp to see him; I was the one who ran, but he's the reason I ran in the first place; if he didn't break my heart, I wouldn't have needed to. "I was so close to entering the venue that night, but I ran and got hit; that's no one's fault by mine." I finally say it felt half-hearted; everything I'd made myself believe about that night wasn't necessarily true; it was a lot to take in. I stayed silent, waiting for the three of them to say something, anything, but the three of them stayed quiet, watching me sadly.

"Harper," Luke finally said; I hummed in response, nodding for him to go on, "C-can we talk? There's something I need to tell you; it's kind of overdue." I wasn't really sure if a one on one would be good right now; the usually calm and composed Harper had vanished, now replaced with the awkward and venerable teenage girl who had died long ago.

"Yeah, sure," I nod, trying my best not to seem nervous, "do you wanna go somewhere else, or?"

"Reggie and I can leave," Alex informs us before Luke can answer, "we'll see you guys later." He and Reggie both flash us comforting smiles before poofing away; I glance at Luke again, taking in a breath, you've got this, Harper; just do what Caleb would do, do not let your emotions get in the way.

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Sorry I've been MIA the last couple of days!
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