Teen Ghost at Dead Lake

by R. Barri Flowers

  "What did you tell her?"

  "What do you think?" she responded with an edge to her voice.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  On Saturday evening, Bonnie rested her head on Tabitha's shoulder as they watched a video in the living room. They were at a good place right now in their relationship. Though it had its ebbs and flows, they had settled into a rhythm where they could be honest with each other and take in stride the areas where they didn't see eye to eye.

  "Is it just me or did we choose the wrong movie?" Tabitha asked.

  "We can watch something else," Bonnie suggested.

  "Or we can make out," Tabitha said.

  Bonnie smiled. "That too."

  Tabitha leaned over and they began kissing. Bonnie thought she was a great kisser with soft lips.

  After a while, Tabitha pulled away. "Was that better than the movie?"

  Bonnie grinned. "What do you think?"

  "I think it was much better!"

  "Me, too." Bonnie sat up. "Do you want something to drink?"

  "Sure, whatever you're having."

  Bonnie stood. "Two pink lemonades coming right up."

  They were both in the kitchen when she handed Tabitha a glass.

  "Remember the time when you, me, and Noah got into a pink lemonade fight?" Bonnie asked.

  Tabitha laughed. "How could I forget? We all got soaked."

  Bonnie chuckled. "True and I had trouble getting the stains out of my white top."

  "You really miss him, don't you?"

  Bonnie nodded. "Yeah."

  "So do I," Tabitha said. "At least he's not suffering somewhere."

  "Hope not." Bonnie drank the lemonade pensively.

  "Has Paige said anything else about the Noah lookalike?" Tabitha asked casually over her glass.

  "Not to me."

  "Why would he come around and then suddenly disappear?"

  "I have no idea," Bonnie said. "Maybe he knew she was onto him now and didn't want to push it."

  "Yeah, unless he was a figment of her imagination and she was just looking for some attention," Tabitha threw out.

  "That would take attention grabbing too far, don't you think?"

  "Maybe, but the story doesn't really make much sense, especially when no one else has seen him."

  "At least not that we know of," Bonnie said. Even now, she was not sure what to make of Paige's story. Overall, she believed her, but sensed that there may be more to it. "Do you want to try to watch the rest of the movie? Or we can make out some more."

  As expected, Tabitha chose the latter.

  They were interrupted by a knock on the door.

  "I better see who it is," Bonnie said reluctantly, pulling away from Tabitha.

  "Do you have to?" Tabitha complained.

  "I'll get rid of them," Bonnie told her, getting up.

  She went to the door and opened it to find Paige standing there.

  * * *

  After Amber left, Paige made up an excuse for her mother that she needed to get some notes for school from Bonnie. What she didn't tell her was that she actually wanted some thoughts from Bonnie about his death and his relationship with Amber.

  I'd rather get more information from Noah, Paige thought. But since he seemed to have gone into hiding again, she needed to sort some things out for herself in trying to decide if his death was truly a suicide or something else.

  "Hey," Paige said after Bonnie opened the door.

  "Hey." Bonnie looked at her. "What's up?"

  "I was wondering if I could talk to you about something."

  "Can it wait till tomorrow? I'm kind of busy right now." She paused. "Tabitha's here, so..."

  Paige blushed. "I'm sorry. Yes, it can wait till tomorrow."

  "It's fine," Tabitha said, coming to the door.

  "Are you sure?" Paige asked.

  "Yeah. We were just watching a boring movie anyway. Come on in."

  Paige turned to Bonnie, who nodded with approval. She still felt uneasy barging in on them. "This won't take long," she promised, walking inside the house.

  As they stood in the living room, Paige wondered if this was a good idea. She didn't really want to point any fingers, at least not without more to go on. But she needed to fill in some of the blanks in Noah's life and hoped Bonnie could help, even if it meant cutting into her time with Tabitha.

  Paige looked at Bonnie. "I was wondering why Amber broke up with Noah," she said evenly.

  Bonnie chuckled. "Is that what she told you?"

  "Yes. She came over and we talked about Noah and when they were together."

  "Amber didn't break up with Noah," Bonnie said, "it was the other way around."

  "Really?"

  "Amber cheated on Noah with his friend, Scott."

  "You mean the guy she's dating now?" Paige asked.

  "Yeah," Bonnie said. "Noah was not too happy about it and kicked her to the curb. It didn't take long for Amber to hook up with Scott after that—and they no longer needed to hide it."

  Paige wondered why Amber lied to her about the breakup. Did it also mean she was lying when maintaining that Noah killed himself?

  "Amber would say anything to put herself in a good light," Tabitha said. "Same is true with her girlfriends—always looking out for themselves."

  "Amber also said that Noah didn't have any enemies," Paige tossed out casually, "the type who may have wanted him dead."

  Bonnie's brows shot up. "Are you saying you think someone killed Noah?"

  Paige paused, carefully considering her response. "I'm just throwing it out there as a possibility."

  "Why would you even think that was possible?" Tabitha asked.

  "I talked to Noah's mom," she replied, adding, "just to learn more about the guy who lived in the house before me. She didn't believe that Noah was suicidal."

  "No parent wants to believe a child would do something like that," Bonnie said. "But murder is a stretch. It's more likely he could have died accidentally."

  "Except the police ruled that out," Tabitha said. "They spoke to everyone who knew Noah—including us—and concluded that because of his history of depression, he just lost it and decided to jump off the cliff."

  Paige wondered if maybe Noah was simply having a hard time accepting that he could have been solely responsible for his death, and if his mother was in denial about his being suicidal.

  Or could Noah have really been the victim of foul play and needed her help to find out who was responsible.

  "So you're saying no one had a serious beef with Noah," Paige said, eyeing Bonnie.

  "Not that I know of. I mean, he was really pissed with Scott for sleeping with Amber," Bonnie told her. "Noah and Scott never got along after that. But since Scott ended up with Amber, he had no reason to go after Noah."

  "What about Amber?" Paige asked curiously, knowing that she had lied to her about breaking up with Noah.

  "I can think of a lot of things to call her, but killer wouldn't be one of them," Bonnie said honestly. "She has guys wrapped around her finger and doesn't seem to mind playing with their emotions—including Noah's. Killing him would go against her nature as a spoiled bitch who doesn't like to get her hands dirty!"

  Paige couldn't help but hone in on that last comment. It had been obvious since her first day at Dead Lake High that Bonnie didn't like Amber very much. But could she be misreading her or Amber's capabilities?

  "Maybe you should talk to Kyle Manning, Noah's best friend," Bonnie suggested. "I'm sure he'll tell you the same thing about how Noah died. But if anyone had it out for Noah, he would probably know."

  "Thanks," Paige told her. "I'm not obsessed with this. Maybe I just got carried away with the idea that Noah didn't kill himself." Thanks to his ghost, she thought.

  "Did that Noah imposter have anything to do with it?" Bonnie asked.

  "No," Paige said. Not that either of them would ever consider or even believe that the imposter turned out to be the real deal who had come back as a ghost. "It was
silly to even bring it up."

  "I wasn't really close to Noah like Bonnie or some of his other friends," Tabitha said, "but they don't get many murders in Dead Lake. Of course, there aren't many suicides either. Hopefully, it will stay that way."

  Paige smiled. "I hope so, too. Well, I'll let you get back to that boring movie."

  "You're welcome to stay and watch it with us," Bonnie offered.

  Paige was a tiny bit tempted, but didn't want to intrude any further on their time together. "I can't," she told her, leaving it at that. "See you later."

  * * *

  Noah greeted Paige after she left Bonnie's house and crossed the street. "Hey."

  "I was wondering when I'd see you again," she said.

  "Same here. When you're a ghost or whatever, you don't always have the same concept of time and places as the living. At least that's been the case for me."

  "So you haven't been avoiding me ever since you suggested that someone may have been out to get you and asking for my help?"

  He grinned. "Believe me I'd never want to avoid you."

  "Why should I believe you?" she asked, gazing up at his face.

  "Once I might have said because you're hot and I like spending time with you," he answered honestly. "While those things are certainly true, I'd never intentionally leave you hanging as the sole person who knows I'm still here for some reason."

  "Okay," Paige said. "But we need to talk before you go away again."

  Noah could see that she was serious. "I'll stick around," he promised, even if he wasn't sure it was a promise he could keep.

  "Good. Let's take a walk..."

  "All right." He liked the idea of walking with her. If he weren't dead, they could do that a lot. And swim, too.

  "Your mom knows about you," Paige told him.

  "What?" He stared at her wide-eyed. "You told her?"

  "No, but she's sensed your presence in different rooms. She felt that you were still around in some way, even if she couldn't explain it."

  "Yeah, I suppose I have been hanging around her a lot, trying to find a way to tell her I wasn't dead—at least not in the traditional way."

  "Well, now she understands that," Paige said. "She knew without me telling her that you and I were communicating."

  "Guess I'm not that surprised, really. Mom has always been into metaphysical stuff. Losing me was probably one of the toughest things she's had to deal with. Knowing a part of me was still alive gave her something to hold onto."

  Paige turned to him. "Your mom doesn't believe you committed suicide."

  "She knew me better than just about anyone," Noah said.

  "Do you think you could have suppressed the memory of killing yourself, even in death?" Paige asked bluntly.

  Noah stared at the question. "I never thought of that," he admitted and came clean on something else. "I remember that I stopped taking antidepressants."

  "Why?"

  "They were making me feel like crap," he told her.

  "So then, it's possible that—"

  He cut her off. "Yeah, I guess. But, I remember feeling better off the meds. It was almost like everything I felt regarding my dad's death had been lifted so I could cope. Does that sound like someone who was ready to give up on life?"

  "No, it doesn't," Paige said.

  "I've been thinking the same thing," Noah told her.

  "So who do you think might have been out to get you?" Before he could respond, she added, "What do you know that could have put a target on your back?"

  He considered the questions as images and thoughts flashed through his head. "I pissed off more than a few people," he said.

  "Like who?"

  Noah ran off a few names that came to mind, but imagined there were more that he couldn't quite hone in on. He wasn't surprised that Paige didn't know all of them.

  "You really think one of them could have pushed you off the cliff?" she asked skeptically.

  "I don't want to think so, but people do crazy things when they're desperate to keep secrets."

  "What secrets?"

  "Jealousy, cheating, drug use, drug dealing, student-teacher affairs, even killing someone else—you name it," he said.

  Paige eyed him. "So you threatened to expose all of these things?"

  "Maybe I'm starting to remember bits and pieces. I just wanted to do the right thing, even if I went about it the wrong way. With your help, I hope it all comes back. Then maybe I can nail down if someone took me out."

  "I hope you can remember, too," she said. "It would make things a lot easier for both of us."

  "I know." Noah wasn't too sure that he wanted to get this over with too soon. He was enjoying her company too much and didn't want to see it end. He wondered if she felt the same way.

  "We'd better head back now," Paige said, turning around.

  "Yeah, okay."

  "So Amber said she broke up with you. But Bonnie said it wasn't true and that Amber cheated on you. Which is it?"

  Noah was surprised that she had spoken to them about that. "I think we probably broke up with each other," he said. "Yeah, she fooled around with my friend. But things were never all that great between us, so it was probably just a matter of time."

  "Oh."

  "Oh," he said with a chuckle.

  "What do you want me to say?" she asked.

  "That you like me just a little and that things could have worked out for us had this not happened," he replied boldly.

  Paige chuckled. "You think so, do you?"

  He grinned. "I would definitely have been willing to give it a try if you were."

  "Maybe so, if things had been different," she conceded.

  Noah, feeling even more courageous after hearing that, held her hand and was glad when she didn't pull away. "I know this is a little weird."

  "Yeah, just a little," she joked, "but it's nice anyway."

  He paused, relishing the thought, before asking, "So are you really going to the dance with Drew?"

  She gazed at him. "I can't exactly go with you, can I?"

  "Not in the way I'd like."

  "Then what's your problem with Drew?" she asked. "You've had an issue with him from the start."

  "Have I?"

  Paige nodded. "You told me I should be careful around him. Do you think he could have pushed you off the cliff?"

  Noah thought about it. He wanted to say yes, if only to keep them apart. But he didn't want to be with her that way. He'd had his issues with Drew, mainly because they were so competitive that they could never really get past that. But that didn't seem to rise to the level of murder, no matter how much Drew wanted to beat him in the pool. Did it?

  "I just don't think he's good enough for you," Noah told her.

  She frowned. "How do you know that?"

  "He's never cared much about other girls he's dated."

  "Maybe it will be different this time," she said.

  Noah found his hand slipping from hers. "So you're dating him?"

  "I didn't say that."

  "What would you call it?" he pressed.

  "I'd call it going to a school dance together." She frowned. "Not that it's any of your business since we're not dating and can't—"

  "I know," he said regrettably. "I'm sorry. I have no right to go all territorial on you."

  "I agree. You don't have that right."

  They reached the front of her house.

  "When will I see you again?" she asked.

  "I'll be around," he responded. "But I won't get in the way of your personal life."

  "You already have," she said. "But it doesn't mean that's a bad thing."

  He smiled. "That's good to know."

  "I'd better go in now."

  "We'll talk," Noah promised. "Bye."

  "Bye."

  Their eyes locked and, for an instant, Noah thought about kissing her. But he didn't want to cross any unwanted boundaries and risk losing her. Not that he had her. It just felt like he did on some level.

&nbs
p; He waited until she had gone into the house before whisking over to the pier to toss pebbles in the lake, since he had nothing better to do.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  On Tuesday, Kyle sat at a table on school grounds reading a text from his girlfriend, Lora. She actually wanted to cut classes and hang out by the lake. He was really tempted, but he couldn't afford to blow off his Biology exam this afternoon. He suggested instead that she come to his house later and spend the night. She could slip out in the morning before his parents woke up.

  As expected, she was receptive to that idea. He texted his buddies, Scott and Jeffrey, letting them know he couldn't make it to the lake tonight to drink and talk about girls.

  "Hey," he heard the voice and looked up to see Paige standing there.

  "Hey." He grinned. "What's up?"

  "Do you have a moment?"

  Kyle glanced at his watch. "Yeah." He waited for her to sit, and then asked, "Is that freak impersonating Noah still bothering you?"

  "No, not anymore," she said, pausing. "I was wondering, though, if you know anyone who might have had it in for Noah."

  Kyle raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

  She met his eyes. "Someone who might have wanted him dead..."

  "You're asking if I think someone killed him..." Kyle stared at her.

  "I know the police say it was suicide, but after reading about the case, I just wonder if they could have it wrong."

  Kyle kept his cool, even if he was thrown off his game by her insinuation. "I don't think so," he said calmly. "Noah chose to end his life for his own reasons. Trying to make it out to be anything else won't change that."

  Paige frowned. "Since you were his best friend, maybe you should keep an open mind about his cause of death."

  Kyle sighed and narrowed his eyes. "I would if I felt there was reason to. But I have too much respect for the police and their investigation to just throw it under the rug for some halfcocked notion that came from who knows where. My advice to you is to leave it alone and let Noah rest in peace." He stood up abruptly. "I have to go."

  Kyle walked away, trying to keep his nerves in check as he drifted back in time...

  * * *

  He and Noah took the boat belonging to Kyle's father out on the lake. They brought along some beer and chips, while talking about school sports, and their girlfriends.