Enlightened

by Charlotte Michelle

  “Why am I here?” he asks again. “Why am I not in Heaven?” His eyes lift to us.

  “I’m not sure. Do you not feel at peace?” Kayla asks. Kyle scrunches his eyebrows and presses his lips together.

  “Someone killed me.”

  “Do you know who?” Kayla asks.

  Kyle falls silent again, and I cross my arms over my chest, waiting for him to respond. If he knows who killed him, then I’ll be able to seek the revenge I desperately need. If he knows who killed him and I make sure the man pays, then perhaps Kyle will be at peace.

  A selfish part of me silently thinks, If we don’t avenge him, then perhaps he will remain on Earth. And then we can see him again. And again.

  I feel sick at the thought.

  “I-I have to go,” Kyle whispers, his brows pulled together as a frown falls on his lips. What does he mean, he has to go?

  “Meet us here tomorrow. Same time,” Kayla says, her voice desperate.

  Kyle slowly smiles as he shakes his head. “I can’t. You guys have a date. But I will see you soon.” His eyes meet mine again and linger as his essence slowly drifts away with the wind, deteriorating right in front of our eyes.

  Silence and loneliness accompany us. Neither of us speaks or moves. We just stare at the spot where my brother was just standing. My dead brother. He was gone, and again, I missed the opportunity to tell him goodbye. To tell him I loved him.

  But he’ll see us soon. That’s what he said.

  How soon was soon? Saturday? Will he be here on Saturday? What if by soon, he means a whole other year? What if I have to wait until his next birthday to see him again?

  I bite my bottom lip as I feel it tremble. It’s as if I am losing him all over again.

  Arms slip around my waist, and a warm head presses against my chest. I feel the body in my arms shake as sobs wrack through Kayla. I cling tightly to her, resting my chin on top of her head as tears roll down my cheeks.

  Why did he come to us? Why the tease? I just accepted the fact that he was gone forever. And now he just shows up? For what? To cry in front of me and tell me that he’s scared? To remind me that I failed my little brother again?

  There has to be a reason Kyle appeared the moment Kayla and I played basketball together. And the next time that I see him, I’ll be sure to find out the answer.

  Chapter Nine

  Date

  *Kayla*

  October 2, 2015

  Last night was the most confusing night I have ever experienced. More confusing than when an officer showed up at our doorstep and told me there was an accident, and I knew I’d never see my father again.

  I saw the impossible. I saw the ghost of Kyle Perkins, and the only reason I’m not going to a psychologist is because Dallas saw him as well.

  Not only did I see the ghost, the ghost actually spoke to us and embraced Dallas. He acted like Kyle, and when he found out that he was, in fact, dead, he cried like Kyle.

  Questions have been running through my mind all night; I barely got any sleep. I tried to find reason in this situation. Why was Kyle still here? Why hasn’t he gone to Heaven, where no pain on Earth could touch him? Why isn’t he at peace?

  That answer seems to be obvious, however. His murderer still hasn’t been found.

  But that happens all the time, where murderers get away, but we never hear cases of the ghost of the victim lingering. So why is Kyle? Why can’t he rest?

  I lean my head back against the tree and look across the courtyard to see people carelessly chatting away. The book is all but forgotten in my hands as I can’t seem to keep my focus on it.

  I see Dallas walking out of the school doors and briskly making his way toward me. I lift an eyebrow as he falls to the ground beside me, letting out a groan. I smirk to keep the chuckle at bay. Clearly, he’s having a tough time focusing as well.

  “All I think about is last night,” he mutters, lifting a hand to shield the sun as he tilts his head to look at me. His blue eyes are brilliant under the shining sun, and I find myself momentarily lost in them.

  “He said he’d return,” I whisper, shrugging my shoulders.

  “He didn’t say when. What if it’s in another year?” Dallas asks. I let out a sigh. That thought crossed my mind as well. What if Kyle was only allowed to visit us on his birthday? Do we have to wait another year to see him again, to ask the necessary questions to catch his killer?

  I bite my bottom lip. “He wouldn’t want us to be waiting around for him. He’d want you to look to your future. He’d want you to live on as if it didn’t happen,” I say. I know my words are not something Dallas wishes to hear. Why would he? He’d rather hear, “Let’s just stay in Aurora for as long as it takes for him to return. Put everything else on hold. He’s all that matters right now.”

  Dallas falls silent, and he closes his eyes, laying still as the sun kisses his cheeks. I ensure that nothing but my legs and feet are in the sun. My face tends to burn rather easily.

  I return to leaning my head against the tree and close my eyes as well. I take a deep breath and listen to the sweet sounds of nature around us. The bickering students have wandered inside, and as of right now, it is only me and Dallas.

  The song of birds fills the silence. The light breeze cools the heat from the sun and whistles through the rustling leaves above. I take a deep breath, feeling my hair lightly blowing; however, the ponytail keeps it from getting too chaotic.

  Dallas and I remain in silence, enjoying each other’s company. I know his mind is racing with thoughts of Kyle. Mine was just a moment ago, but I seem to be able to get a moment of rest as my mind goes blank and I fall into a soft doze.

  The ringing of the bell is distant, but it manages to wake me from my nap. I flinch, my eyes widening as I realize we’re going to be late to our next class. My eyes snap down to where Dallas was laying; however, he’s no longer in his previous position. He now has his head on my lap and his arm wrapped around my waist.

  Oh my…I hear a gentle snore come from him, and I bite my bottom lip. I have a mental battle with myself: should I wake him or let him sleep? If I let him sleep, we’ll both be late to class, and it will result in a detention.

  I have never had a detention in all my four years here. I know Dallas is perfectly all right with receiving one, but I’m not sure I am.

  “Dallas…” I whisper, and when I see his eyes squeeze tight and a pout form on his lips, I tense. My heart squeezes, and I come to the conclusion that I can’t wake him. Sighing, I lay my head back, my arms crossed over my chest since I don’t know where to rest my arms with Dallas on my lap.

  I try to drop them by my sides and sink my fingers into the grass. For a moment, I’m comfortable, but before long I am itching to move. I want to lay down too. The bark of the tree is digging into my shoulder blades and scratching my head.

  Gently pushing Dallas aside, I’m able to twist my body around so I am laying down, parallel to the tree with Dallas’s head still on my lap. I grab my backpack and shove it under my head. I allow the calming atmosphere to lull me to sleep, forgetting about the impending detention…and the fact I will wake up with a lobster red face.

  The next time I come to is when another bell rings. I quickly sit up, feeling lightheaded by the speed of which I did so. My legs are heavy, and I look down to see Dallas is still draped over them. I reach down and poke his head, biting my bottom lip. I cannot miss another class, no matter how peaceful and needed that nap was; I have to get up.

  “Dallas. Get up.” He groans and grabs onto the fabric of my shirt, pulling it into a fist as he continues to sleep. He is like a child.

  Reaching down, I pry his fingers off my shirt and then put both my hands on his arm and shoulder. With a deep breath and a push, I manage to roll him down to my feet. I easily kick him off and struggle to stand up. My feet seem to have followed suit with Dallas and me; they are asleep. I wiggle my toes and shake my legs, trying to get the blood flowing.

  “What are you doing?
” Dallas grumbles. I brush the butt of my jeans before I lean down and grab my backpack.

  “We already missed a class. We need to get to our next one. Get up,” I say.

  Dallas rubs his eyes with the heel of his palm, and I wince, having to look away. There’s no way that could be good for his eyes. I hear him moan as he stretches before he stands up. When I look back at him, he’s smiling widely at me. What is he grinning at? He’s going to make us late again.

  “You ditched a class? Why?” he asks. I glare over at him.

  “Because you took up my legs as a pillow. I didn’t have the heart to wake you when you pouted and started sucking your thumb when I nudged you.” I shrug my shoulders, letting him have a taste of his own medicine. He thinks he is going to tease me for letting him sleep on me? Well, now he believes he sucks his thumb still.

  Dallas sputters, his eyes wide with horror as he looks at me, searching for any trace of a joke. I just roll my eyes and give him an apologetic smile. “I bet that’s why you can’t keep a girl for longer than a week,” I say, patting his shoulder as I walk past him.

  “Take that back.” I look over to see Dallas collecting his backpack before he breaks into a run, chasing me.

  I let out a shriek as I bolt away, silently thanking myself that I decided to wear my Nikes instead of flip-flops today.

  Dallas follows close behind me, and when I reach the door, I have to slow to a stop to pull it open. That moment of pause allows him to grab me by the hips and lift me up. “Take it back!” he growls, pushing me against the wall. My eyes are wide, fear overcoming me slightly before ebbing away when I see a smile on his lips.

  “You have buck teeth!” I scream when he absentmindedly tickles my side. Dallas’s mouth drops open before he steps away from me.

  “That’s so rude.” He shakes his head as he grabs the door, pulling it open. “You’re going to be late,” he says, his eyebrows raising when I don’t move away from the wall.

  Grunting, I push away and enter the school swiftly, hurrying forward with Dallas following my brisk pace. “I didn’t mean it,” I tell him when we reach my classroom. I turn to look up at him, biting my bottom lip.

  Dallas smirks. “I know, Kay. Now get in there. I’ll see you tonight at five,” he says, sending me a wink before he turns and heads down the hall to his classroom.

  Kay?

  No one has ever called me Kay before. I always told people I hated that nickname. It always sounded like the abbreviation of “okay.”

  “We’re going to the mall, Kay.”

  “I’ll see you tonight, Kay.”

  “I lost my dog, Kay.”

  But for some reason, the way Dallas said it, it was so gentle and tender that it was as if he was caressing my name with his voice. It was almost as if he spoke too rough, he would have broken my name.

  Kay. I like when Dallas uses the name.

  Dallas is punctual, that much is true. He arrives right at five o’clock. And I am still shimmying my way into black skinny jeans.

  I hear Katie let him in downstairs as I fumble around my room, grabbing the first shirt I see, which happens to be a simple dark blue V-neck. I slip on black sandals, throw my hair up into a messy ponytail, and look in the mirror.

  I spent too much time on my makeup, but it is stellar. I nod in approval as I grab my purse off my bed and run out of my room and down the stairs to see Dallas standing by the front door, chatting with Katie.

  “I’m sorry you saw me that way,” I hear him whisper. I tilt my head in confusion as I step closer. As if sensing my presence, Dallas lifts his head to look at me.

  Oh, why do his eyes have to be so beautiful? I get lost in them, watching as they look me up and down. He bunches his lips to the side, a symbol of being in thought.

  Does he not like the way I look? I mean, I can’t blame him. I threw myself together just a moment ago.

  Dallas unexpectedly walks forward, stopping a few inches away. I feel my breathing hitch as I look up at him with wonder. What is he doing? Very slowly, he lifts his hand and wraps his fingers around my ponytail. Gently, he tugs it loose until my hair falls down around my shoulders.

  He doesn’t stop there. No. Dallas then takes my hair in his hands and runs his fingers through it, pulling it all to one side and over the shoulder. He then smiles and steps back. “I like your hair down,” he says softly.

  Butterflies flutter around in my stomach as I finally allow myself to take in his appearance.

  His hair, as usual, is perfectly combed to the side. It’s short, due to the fact he cut it yesterday; however, he is still able to style it. He’s dressed in dark jeans and a hunter green polo. I gulp at how handsome he looks.

  His looks by far outshine mine. Does he really want to show up to the local theater with me? Doesn’t he know who we could see?

  “Ready?” he asks, stepping back and offering me a hand. I place my own in his and feel his fingers wrap around it. I smile, sending Katie a wink.

  “Have fun,” she says, her voice light and singsong. I nod my head.

  “I will. Tell Mom I’ll be out until late,” I say. Katie nods, saluting me.

  I typically don’t favor leaving Katie home alone at night, since our mom works a night shift at the hospital. She works with Mrs. Perkins. That’s how I was given the job to tutor Kyle. Katie insisted I go out, promising to lock the doors behind me and not answer unless it’s the family signature knock.

  Dallas leads me to a Ford Escape, and I slow my pace, arching my eyebrows at him. “I figured it was a little too cold and late to drive in the Wrangler. It’s Mom’s car. She has the day off,” he answers my unspoken question.

  I smile as he opens the door and then closes it behind me. Once Dallas is in the driver’s seat, nerves begin to settle in.

  I’m actually going on a date with Dallas Perkins. The star basketball player of Waubonsie. Why would he want to go out with me?

  I remind myself that this isn’t a real date. He’s doing this because he feels sorry that my Saturday was interrupted by his episode. This is an apology date. Nothing more.

  It can’t be.

  When we arrive to the Showplace 16 theater, I unbuckle my seat belt and slide out of the car. Dallas walks around the front to meet me, holding out his hand again. I take it.

  “I heard good reviews about this movie,” he says, pulling me close so we walk side by side. I gulp as we enter the theater, heading toward the long line. He goes to a stop and then uses my hand to twirl me around. I look up at him, the height difference evident when we’re close.

  Dallas subconsciously plays with my fingers as his blue eyes bore into my own. I bite my bottom lip, and he lets out a grunt. “Stop doing that,” he mumbles, tearing his gaze away and turning his head to the side.

  “What?” I ask. What did I do? I literally haven’t done anything! I can’t honestly be ruining this date already, can I?

  “You bite your lip every other minute. It drives me crazy,” he says. A small smile twitches on my lips, and I giggle.

  “Sorry,” I whisper. Dallas shakes his head and uses my hand to pull me forward with the moving line.

  “It’s not okay. It’ll take a lot more than ‘sorry’ to cover it. Perhaps maybe you can take me zip-lining. Or horseback riding. Or maybe on a boat ride.” Dallas shrugs, a large smile adorning his face.

  Humph. The twerp is making fun of me. My conditions are actual wishes. They are on my bucket list. I do want to go on a hot air balloon and jet skiing. I do want to go on a plane, for I have never been on one.

  I’m sure Dallas has done all the things he just listed. Maybe not zip-lining.

  “Ha ha,” I grumble, shaking my head, although I can’t help but smile back. It’s impossible. His smile is infectious.

  Dallas buys our tickets, and when we get to the concessions, I insist on paying for our popcorn. I don’t want Dallas to pay for everything.

  Besides, it’s not a real date.

  Dallas finally agrees with
splitting concessions in half, and we take our seats in the theater.

  Surprisingly, we did not run into anyone while in the lobby. I did notice a few recognizable faces in the actual theater; however, Dallas didn’t drop my hand or seem embarrassed. Sitting in the middle, a few rows back, I cross my legs and set the tub of popcorn in between us. Dallas takes a handful and tosses it in his mouth.

  I decide to do the same, believing that Dallas won’t mind that I’m not dainty and elegant when I eat. I’m not going to pick up a single kernel with the tips of my nails every single time.

  Throughout the movie, Dallas shifts between holding my hand and placing his hand on my leg. I don’t mind either. Both are comforting, and I am happy to have contact with him.

  “That was good,” I say when we exit the theater. Dallas pulls me to his side, and we step away from the exiting crowd. I blush, dipping my head when I notice how close I am to him. Our chests touch, and his hands are now on my hips.

  Breathe.

  We’re in front of people! In public! Breathe.

  Dallas chuckles softly, placing a finger under my chin and tilting it upward so that I’m forced to look into his hypnotizing blue eyes. I’m shocked frozen at our proximity. His head slowly lowers until our noses are touching.

  Is he going to kiss me?

  My stomach does flips as I come to the conclusion that, yes indeed, he is going to kiss me.

  “Dallas!” I jump, causing our heads to bonk together. We both hiss in pain, and I twirl around to see Mikey, Tyler, Ashley, and Shannon.

  Oh. My. Goodness.

  Dallas grips my hand tightly as I feel like I’m going to faint. Why does this have to be happening?

  “How are you doing, buddy?” Tyler asks, walking over, and to my surprise, he pulls me into a hug. “Evening, Kayla.”

  “Evening.” My voice is as quiet as a mouse as I look wide eyed at him.