Elise took her time walking down the stairs. The tangy smell of homemade marinara sauce can only mean one thing in her family. Spaghetti with meatballs, a beloved favorite. She was led to the dining room table, where a decadent spread was set. Spaghetti with meatballs, a wooden bowl that contained fresh house salad, and the unforgettable garlic bread; the staple of this stereotypical American dinner.

  “About time you showed up.” Tori relayed her sassy nature, which was cut short by a frustrated Lily.

  “Can you not terrorize your sister or any member of this family, for once!” A metal jug containing ice cold water was slammed by Lily’s forceful motherly rage. Several droplets from the jug’s top flew onto Tori’s forehead, causing her to yelp. To Elise especially, this was a miniscule but sweet mercy. However, the subtle grimace of vengeance shown on Lily’s face was all the better. The family members were all now set at the table; Elise, Tori, Lily, and Jake.

  “So, who’s gonna say grace?” Jake clasped his hands, more so out of anticipation of a delicious meal than worshiping deity. A couple moments passed silently until Tori raised her hand. Although being an annoying brat most of the time, Tori was perhaps the most devout believer in the family.

  “Okay, everybody hold hands.” Tori initiated the evening ritual, asking for a blessing on the food. Elise humbly clasped two hands; Jake on the left and Lily on the right. After Tori ensured everybody bowed their heads and closed their eyes, she followed the gesture and invoked a blessing from God.

  “Our dear Lord in heaven, we thank you for the opportunity to gather together as a family…” A game, at least when the parents were praying, was for Elise and Tori to peek and see who is not being reverent during the prayer, either child tattling on the other soon thereafter. For whatever reason, Tori and Elise’s sibling rivalry brought more drama than necessary. Tori being preoccupied would give free reign for Elise to check to see if Tori was keeping her eyes closed. Word of invocation with closed eyes remained; no sisterly bickering tonight. “It’s in your Holy Name we pray. Amen.” Amens were repeated from the others, but one of which was different in timbre than the rest. There, in the corner, was the malicious looking apparition, slowly clapping her hands, as if to add mockery to her entrance.

  Like in the drawings, the apparition looked akin to Elise, aside from a few differences. The first main difference was the deep pits of umbra, holes wasting into the void, where eyes were supposed to be. The second was the skin, or lack thereof, mimicking the complexion of overcast skies. The final detail was the most odd, as the clothes that were worn were almost an exact replica of what Elise would wear, but with a subtle discoloration.

  “It’s comforting to know that you have God on your side, isn’t it?” Although her mouth moved, the phantom’s speech was interpreted as a medium-pitched wispy and breathy tone. The phantom clasped her hands walking closer to the end of the table where the others sat.

  “Tabitha, not now!” Elise was all too familiar with the communication between the two. The replies in her mind echoed enough in the subliminal space surrounding, in such a way that the specter would consistently and undoubtedly understand. The crooked smile stretched across Tabitha’s face, the left side facial crease being similar to an elongated penetrating wound.

  “If not now, then when?” Tabitha halted in her movement. “We used to be so tight when you were younger. You hardly talk about me let alone think about me anymore.” The crooked smile warped into a slight frown, a single digit running down her cheek to allude to a tear being shed.

  “...lise. Elise?” Immediately snapping out of a trance, Elise felt her mother shoving the basket of garlic bread into her elbow. “Take one or two and pass.” As if to pretend nothing was wrong, Elise nodded and proceeded to put one piece of garlic bread on her plate, passing it to Jake who took not two, but three portions of garlic bread; rather large ones too. One bite later, Elise felt someone breathing down her neck.

  “But by all means, don’t let me disturb you.” Although a sarcastic connotation, Elise was a little startled. The slight twitch of astonishment caused Tabitha to laugh. “After all, you now have Jake in your life to take care of you. It seems that you don’t need me anymore.” Jake raised his head as if he heard Tabitha’s voice, but it was only to compliment Lily on the taste of the food.

  “Jake has nothing to do with that. Stop making shit up!” Elise wanted to furrow her eyes, but fearing suspicion arising from her family members, she could only grit her teeth.

  “Is that so? Well Elise, I must say that I am amazed. I didn’t think you had the gall to get rid of me for no reason…or is it because you regret not heeding to my advice given in the past?” Tabitha’s voice tempered a bit, which caused Elise to swell in remembrance.

  Two years ago was Elise’s first year of high school. The most important things to a girl besides good grades and makeup was love and attention. The great mistake was Elise having a raging crush on one of the most popular guys in school, Brad Conners. Brad was one of the ‘bad boys’ at the school, which many girls found incredibly attractive. In an effort to fight other girls for his attention, she resorted to dramatic measures.

  Many men cannot resist the thought of sexual endeavors, much less the crazed poonhounds known as ‘teenage boys’. Luckily, she received his number in biology where they were lab partners. Simple texts led to getting to know each other, then to flirting, and finally evolved to distastefully heated phone conversations. Elise thought that their communications were quite promising, until she managed to overhear a conversation from the head cheerleader while at lunch.

  “You guys didn’t hear it from me, but Brad and I are totally having phone sex.” She looked towards her fellow cheerleaders.

  “Oh em gee! No way!” A shorter one with freckles and blond hair shouted.

  “Oh em gee, yes way!” The leader replied. “In fact, I just received a text from him right now!” They all squealed in anticipation, all hovering over the phone. But the excitement slowly turned into disgust when they found out Brad requested a risque photo.

  “He wants you to send a nude? God, what a pig!” Several others would express themselves in similar rants. “Are you gonna send him one?”

  “Hell no! Only sluts do that kinda shit. But, I’ll play hard to get; that will just make him remember me more.” The lead cheerleader nodded her head with approvals from her squad. Intaking the entire conversation, Elise knew exactly what she had to do to win over Brad’s attention.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  The photo was sent without warning, in which Brad sent a reply stating that he would be thinking about her all day. The naive Elise thought that this meant she came out on top. Unfortunately, photos like that were an essential product to use for blackmail. In an effort to go the extra mile, he convinced that he would release the photo unless she would give him sexual favors. Weighing her options, Elise ultimately decided to meet Brad in a secluded area to ‘talk about it’.

  Right outside the high school was a forest, where there were trails that students and people from around town would use for exercise. The designated meeting location was a small hill overlooking a deep drop into a lake with a nearby cove. Surrounded by trees and various flora, Brad stood there with an aggressive and toned face. He donned a navy hoodie and a backwards cap, hiding his eyes with expensive shades.

  “So, we’re here. Now, talk.” Brad sent some dark colored spit flying into a shrub, continuing to relish in his chewing tobacco. His hands were in his jeans, looking annoyed.

  “Listen Brad, you’re being a dick about this!” Elise had enough and her voice was commanding. “What do I have to do to get you to erase that photo?” Brad laughed, finally spitting the contents of his mouth out.

  “Sucky, sucky.” He waggled his tongue suggestively while tugging his pockets forward with the hands therein. Elise shook her head and huffed, teeth semi-baring from anger.

  “I’m not doing that! No way no how!” Brad tilted his head, then beckoned Elise to come closer. When Elise hesitantly approached, Brad took his phone out of his pocket. After he put in his code, Elise’s mistake concealed in a picture was the first thing that popped up.

  “One click and I send it to Brittany, and you know exactly what she will do.” His thumb hovered over the button to complete the deed. “So, what will it be? Don’t worry. Take your time.” The last phrase felt a little humiliating, enough for Tabitha to make an appearance.

  “He’s not bluffing, you know. If he sends that, it’s gonna spread throughout the school.” Tabitha appeared, leaning on a nearby tree. “Just suck him off, and then you’ll be free.”

  “How the hell do you know that?” Elise staunched her face, still looking at Brad. He shrugged, flexing his thumb as if he would press the button any moment. A moment of silence led to a lowly response.

  “Oh, I don’t know for sure. But believe me, this is the most plausible outcome. Why else would he meet you out here?” Tabitha walked into Elise’s peripheral vision as Brad stepped a few feet away to gander at the view down below. Elise took a moment to consider this perplexing notion. If he was keen on getting what he wanted, he would probably have had his way with her by now.

  “Well, it’s either my body or my mental health. I’d rather lose my virginity than my mind.” Elise drew a loud gulp, as a calm breeze guided her closer to her fate.

  “Or…” Elise looked behind her to then see Tabitha making a shoving motion.

  “You want me to murder him?” Tabitha had made many suggestions in the past that led to the loss of friend and family interaction, but never homicidal ideation.

  “Well, that’s one way to look at it. Think of it as an unfortunate accident; nobody will ever know.” This both perturbed and infuriated Elise, because Tabitha was not wrong. There were a large number of reports of people going missing. Those stories never get coverage past a missing notice page in the newspaper or at the supermarket. Not even local television would dare to make these cases as part of their run time.

  Elise looked down at her hands, and then towards Brad, still preoccupied with the view. Turning back to Tabitha, she strongly considered the possibility of following through. It would get rid of the problem, and without repercussions. Brad was still mumbling to himself, no doubt about narcissistic ramblings.

  “Hey, Brad..?” One step, two steps, three. Brad cocked his head back, raising an eyebrow in interest to see if Elise would stoop. “I’ve considered it and…” Brad gave a boyish chuckle and manifested his hands towards his zipper. Before he could expose himself, Elise faced her whole body away. “I don’t give a shit what you do, I’m not blowing you.” Beep! The text to Brittany was sent, and the next day the photo spread like wildfire.

  Immense regret was felt, bullying was on the rise, and Elise once again became isolated. No more friends, no more social contact, none of it. She was held an outcast for the remainder of the school year, Tabitha the only one to keep her any sort of company.

  “It may have felt grave at the time, but I can rest easy knowing that I am not a murderer.” Elise narrowed her eyes, while the phantom’s abyssal ocular sockets contorted, simulating eye rolls. Grabbing a piece of garlic bread, she took an expressively slow bite all while maintaining eye contact.

  “Well, suit yourself.” Tabitha snickered. “I’ll expect you to be calling on me one of these days; school begins tomorrow after all.” It was Sunday, the evening before the first day of Elise’s junior year. Although it has been well over 12 months since the incident with Brad, there was no guarantee that the entirety of school forgot. “See you then, bitch.” The crooked smirk that entered was the same that left.

  “Yo can you stop staring at me, you creep?” Snapping back to the common reality, Elise found herself locking eyes with Tori who was at the side of the table where Tabitha once stood.

  “Sorry.” The disdain in Elise’s eyes rubbed Tori the wrong way, but there was a hint in the expression that symbolized neutral ground. “I’m gonna go to bed, I- I don’t feel good.”

  “I’ll clean your plate up, sweetie. Have a good night.” A mother’s intuition is never wrong, evidenced by the concerned stare, the same that was shown after the afternoon’s twisted hallucination. Elise leaned in for the ritualistic forehead kiss from Lily, and associated gagging noise from Tori. The chair was shoved in without a word towards the rest of her family. As she ascended the stairs, Elise looked around the living room down below. Photographs layered the hearth of the fireplace and walls, both of current loved ones and others who have since passed.

  Rarely was there ever a better feeling than the sensations after using melon scented facial scrub. The lathering debrided the minimal dead skin cells on Elise’s near perfect facial skin. The tingling thereafter was minimal, but refreshing enough to warrant a sigh of satisfaction. The sensation didn’t linger, but the sweet odor did.

  Hair was let down, pajamas were put on, and a mentally exhausted Elise fell to bed with perplexed thought. Prolonged visions of Tabitha’s actions in times past danced about her consciousness, everything from mild suggestions in the beginning of childhood to the most recent confrontation today. Stress, a wounded heart, and a broken soul laid themselves to rest with Elise, as she wished for clearer waters to swim in.

  Upon a nearby wall was a picture of paradise, the thriving small town of Rosewood Mountain. Just a glimpse of this wonder relieved its designer. When Elise focused her gaze, the still image on the wall bled into life. The distant murmur of townsfolk working about their day, the wildlife shown peacefully living in harmony encompassing the town, all these things danced about within Elise’s psyche. The comfort bid Elise to close her eyes, hoping to leave her sorrows behind.

  In a ripple of void and an echoing breath, Elise found herself on a hill overlooking a sight of people who were hard at work. The morning dew resting on the foliage brushed itself onto the skin of Elise’s leg. The cool dampness instilled serenity, a quiet breeze carrying her hair into its waves. There was no fresher air in existence, as pure ecstasy brewed upon a full lung of air. The sensations were mild, and distinct steps approaching from behind Elise warranted simple astonishment. The voice that followed was young, determined, and a masculine tone.

  “Welcome back, Lady Lancaster.”