“You can’t take that kind of drain! You need to come home, now, Mike!” Not much was known about previously cursed ghosts, but the longer they were cursed, the higher the drain.
If this ghost that had decided to follow Mike around was angry, or perhaps high spirited, he could truly harm Mike, even without wanting to. The power drain alone could make Mike faint.
“I already booked my ticket. I alerted Mom too, and that Rino guy. I need to go through training now, even if I don’t want to work as a medium.” I knew as much. It was the only way we could learn how to live normally with our abilities.
“You can stay with us at the mansion,” I offered, quickly. I doubted he’d want to move back in with Mom.
“I already made plans to live with Dylan while I’m training. He was the first one I called.”
“Oh.” They were getting even closer. “When did you talk to him?”
“Two days ago. I tried to wait and see if I could hold out until my work here was done. But I can’t.”
Two days… And Dylan never told me? We had a sort of bestie agreement, or so I’d thought. He’d kept it secret from me, but why? Had Mike asked him to?
“I can pick you up at the airport. When is your plane scheduled to land?”
“No need. Dylan will pick me up. I just wanted to tell you I was coming home.”
“Oh, um. Okay. Let me know if I can help you with anything.”
“I will. I can’t wait to see you and Jackson again.” His voice was warmer now, and I knew he was battling with his fatigue. I wouldn’t take anything personal, whatever he needed. If Dylan was the one he wanted, then I would stand aside.
“Me neither. I’ll tell him you’re coming.”
“Thank you.”
We hung up and I hurried to Jackson’s studio. He’d moved on from sketching, to painting. And it was a mess. Making a room just for him to paint in had been vital, and we displayed his finished art pieces on the walls around the mansion.
I knew I couldn’t tell him what was happening with Mike, not the truth anyway. His fear of ghosts wasn’t something I noticed anymore. He seemed to feel truly safe and at home here, no nightmares either. I haven’t asked him if it was still something that bothered him. I figured it wouldn’t help to ask, so unless he showed signs of unease, I’d let him be regarding ghost talk. He had a therapist he could call if he ever needed someone to talk to, so that helped too.
I hurried inside the room. “Mike is coming home!” I said, excitedly. Then stopped dead.
I’d forgotten…
I’d completely forgotten…
In the middle of the room stood Jackson with the biggest painting to date, two men, one blond and tall, one shorter with brown hair. And the words.‘Be mine forever’was painted in gold above them, arching over the flower arch the men stood under.
“Baby,” he said, sounding nervous. I felt my eyes begin to water and I silently hated myself for ruining this for him.
For us.
“I’m sorry,” I said, backing out of the room.
“Pete!” He grabbed my hand before I could escape. I couldn’t bear looking at him. I’d messed everything up. “Look at me, baby.” I did, reluctantly. “Will you do me the honor of marrying me?” He was smiling softly at me, his eyes gleaming with love and nerves.
My tears were overflowing when I nodded. “Yes, I’ll marry you. Of course, I will! Like was that even really a question?” I ignored how my eyes kept leaking tears.
He laughed and pulled me into a hug. “My fiancé,” he whispered into my ear, before claiming my lips, showing me who I belonged to.
“NOOOO!” Nic wailed. “WE MISSED IT!!!”
Jackson
Pete and I were lazing in bed aftercelebratingour engagement. I couldn’t wait to tell everyone. It was the first weekend in the month, which meant Kyle and Rino would be here soon. They stayed for a whole weekend each month and we often played with them while they were here. It was normal for us to be with them now, and we kept experimenting with new stuff, like toys, blindfolds, and rope. Kyle was more experimental than Pete was, but Pete had found a few things that he loved during our time with the others.
Pete and I had realized early on that we couldn’t keep the mansion open every single day. We needed time to deep clean and for our staff to have some time off. So, each month we had one week off. Itwas the last week of the month, making it possible for us to see family and friends without our members being here.
