Chapter 12:
Andrea
“That wasn’t a good birthday prank, was it?” I asked
in an unsure voice while throwing them uneasy glances like a child caught red
handed stealing a cookie from the jar. I got back on my feet and sat
uncomfortably on my chair.
Everyone started to smile except Brian; he got the
worried look on his face again. I sometimes hate Brian’s ability to tell when
I’m lying.
“You’re gonna be a great actor someday, Nicky.”
Howie chuckled while getting back to his chair. He almost joined me under the
table. “You got me.”
“You were not moving for like two minutes with
fear written all over your face, and then suddenly you screamed and get under
the table. That was brilliant, man.” AJ chimed in.
“Yes, that was brilliant; we almost had a heart
attack, Nick. Thanks for being so considerate.” The sarcasm on Leighanne’s
voice was very obvious. I couldn’t blame her because she feared for Baylee’s
safety.
“I’m sorry.” I whispered under my breath while
looking down on my plate. “That won’t happen again. I’m sorry for ruining your
birthday, Rok.”
“You didn’t ruin anything, buddy. We’re just
getting started.” Brian replied with a warm smile.
“Come on, guys, I’m starving.” Kevin finally
spoke. One look at him and I knew he wasn’t happy about what I did, but he
wouldn’t say anything for the sake of Brian’s celebration.
We quietly ate our lunch. I still couldn’t get the
scene I just witnessed out of my head. I wondered what it was about, who were
those people. I scanned the room for Andrea; she might help me understand
things.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“I’ve been looking all over for you.”
Her tired and slightly annoyed voice made me
wonder if she really did spent time looking for me.
She could have easily known where I was
considering she was a ghost, right? Plus my tour bus isn’t hard to find. I
tried to smile but didn’t succeed.
“Were you in the restaurant?” I asked her instead
“Yes.” She casually replied
“Did I just see the future? Will those people get
hurt?”
“No, Nick.” She shook her head “You saw what
happened to them; she showed you what happened that day.”
“She?” I asked with one eyebrow raised.
“Doesn’t matter for now,” She waved her hand dismissively
“I am here to help you with other things.”
“Like what?”
“Teach you how to recognize a soul or spirit,
whatever you wanna call them, when you see one
comes to mind.” She smirked
“Who are you?” I wondered why she had to help me
with those kinds of stuff.
“My name is Andrea Miller. I was a ramp model, and
on my way to stardom when my life was taken away. I died in 1987 when I was 23
years old in a car accident. Anything else you want to know?”
“Why are you here?”
“We have the same gift, Nick; the ability to see
dead people. But unlike you, I grew up seeing them. My Mom would always tell me
when I was younger that children below seven years old could see ghosts, but I
kept seeing them even after my seventh birthday. I helped some of them to cross
over and have peace. When I died I thought I was done helping them, but I
became a guardian and here I am.”
I just stared at her trying to process what she
told me. I still didn’t get the connection why she was here confusing the hell
out of me.
“Daniel sent me to warn you about Michael, and he
just assigned me to be your guardian ten minutes ago. So, I might hang out with
you for a while if you don’t mind. You are lucky, I wish I had a guardian back
then to help and guide me.”
“Who the hell is Michael and why do I keep hearing
his name?”
“Michael is a broken soul who doesn’t want people
crossing over and suffer here on Earth just like him. There are so many like
him, and they are the very reason why guardians and people like you exist.”
“Guardians? People like me?” I asked pointing to
myself; this was getting more and more confusing.
“People like you are the one who help lost souls
with their unfinished business so they could cross over and find peace forever.
And we, guardians, guide people like you. Guardians and people like you works
hard together to be successful.” She answered while pointing at me, then to
herself and bringing her left and right index finger together.
“Why me?”
“I am pretty sure Patty mentioned about you having
pure heart? That’s true, Nick, that’s why you were chosen.”
“Wait. Wait. Wait.” I held up my hand to stop her
from talking “What’s your definition of pure heart?”
“You are a very good person inside, Nick. You just
feel lost at the moment, which is understandable since you are still young.”
“Says the 23 year old girl.” I almost rolled my
eyes.
“I may look like 23, but I am like 41 years old
now.” She laughed.
“Speaking of Patty, didn’t Michael help her?”
“He did. He thought he could persuade her to stay
on Earth and join him. But that girl trusted and believed in you so much that
you were going to help her, so she turned down Michael’s offer.”
I felt my chest tighten a bit when I remembered
Patty and how she believed in me. I still miss her sometimes.
“But Michael wasn’t happy when you helped Ben
crossed over, and you did it so easily. One of our undercovers confirmed
Michael is planning something for you. I guess you are aware that ghost can
hurt you, right?” Her eyes revealed that she was waiting for a positive answer,
so I nodded though I had no idea. “I am here to help, and to convince you to
continue doing what you are doing. It’s not like you have to find a ghost
everyday and help them. Just try to do something for those asking for your
help.”
Her face lit up when she gave me a sweet smile. I
nodded though I still couldn’t understand everything she said.
“Time for your sound check; I’ll be around, Nick.”
She said before she disappeared, then I heard knocks on my tour bus door.
***