“What would your theme song be, Skye? Maybe I can play DJ tonight?” I ask her, hoping she will hear. The thought of Skye spontaneously playing music on her own vigil brings a smile to my face.
Reaching for my curling wand, I plug it into the outlet as the first song starts to play. The first couple of seconds of “Miss You to Death” by Holly Humberstone start to play, a song that gets me to sway my body as I separate each section of my hair.
The pendant’s familiar chant plays over the music.
“Skye?” I say eagerly.
“Nice moves.”
Her face appears in the reflection of my mirror. My pendant is glowing for the first time in twenty-four hours.
“I would probably play ‘It’s My Life by Bon Jovi.”
The jump scare causes me to burn my left arm.
“Ffttt! Goddamn it!”
I set the curling iron back onto the counter, unplugging it from the socket. First my hand, now my arm.
The universe is dead set on branding me.
“You should really stop using the lord’s name in vain. He has explicitly told me you are one curse word away from turning into a ghost yourself.”
“No, he did not,” I say, crossing my arms.
“You’re right, he didn’t. But you’ve really got to stop cutting and burning yourself.”
“Funny! Like I am doing it on purpose.”
Picking up my wide-tooth comb, I part my hair down the middle, perfecting the waves cascading down my back.
“What are you getting ready for?” she asks.
“You don’t know?”
Skye shakes her head, no longer reflecting back in my mirror. My head whips back and forth to either side of me as I try to spot her.
Lying on the reading nook, she is in full physical form with her feet propped up on the bench.
“Your vigil.”
I walk over to meet her, watching her closely, asking softly, “Come with me.”
She doesn’t respond.
Doesn’t meet my eyes.
Doesn’t even make a snide comment.
“Just promise me you will wear black,” I insist.
Her laugh bursts out as if it was hidden behind her dull eyes.
“As a matter of fact, I am going in a pink crop. Maybe I’ll even perform a public roast to everyone that shows up…”
“Your dad will be there,” I say deliberately.
Her nostrils flare as she lets out a deep breath, returning her gaze back to my pendant and no longer laughing.
