He Loves Me Not: Haunted Hook-up

by Matt Coolomon

  “And, ma’am, you haven’t had any um… encounters with him since?” Theo asked tentatively.

  The woman bellowed out a laugh. “Encounters? You mean the ghost in the brown suit, eh? Now I see what you kids are up to.”

  “No, we’re not up to anything,” Jules tried to say but the door was closing.

  “Go on! Don’t need any of your heebie jeebie crap around here.”

  The door slammed shut. Jules and Theo looked at each other.

  “Oh well. So much for that… only, she knew about the ghost,” Theo said as they walked back to the Jeep.

  “And she knew it was Henderson Jiles,” Jules pointed out. “That’s interesting.”

  Theo frowned, a look Jules noticed he had when in consternation over something. “I got a pretty strong vibe from her,” he said, pulling the Jeep around and driving off. “That was not a nice woman. I got the feeling she is all alone in the world, though. I’m guessing she lives all by herself and no one really cares about her much.”

  Jules was piecing the evidence together.

  “So where does this leave us? We’ve got a ghost who’s trying to kill anyone who reminds him of a young Viki Cranston. And thirty years later, Viki Cranston is a big fatty living in a dump, probably all alone in the world. Do you think she might have caused the professor to crash his car? Is that why he’s so angry?”

  “I doubt it,” Theo answered ponderingly. “If he assaulted her and she killed him because of that… well, that wouldn’t result in rage. I think a soul capable of rape would not be overly put out by being murdered, if that makes any sense.”

  Jules chuckled. “Yeah, I get you. Tit for tat.”

  “No, thirty years of vengeful rage would have to be fueled by something far worse than death,” Theo went on, nodding conclusively. “I’m thinking the professor was innocent. That he was shamed undeservedly.”

  “And in death he wants revenge… cool,” Jules agreed excitedly. “But why pick on me? I didn’t do anything to the guy.”

  “Yeah, well, he must think you’re Viki Cranston. And that’s the thing, isn’t it? We can’t have ghosts hanging around scaring people in their beds and making others fall off balconies, can we?” Theo pointed out. “That’s where ghost hunters come in. We have to find the answer. We have to work out what the ghost’s problem is and solve it.”

  Jules pulled his hand into her lap, squeezing it excitedly. “And that’s why we need a handle… Ghost Busters? No, that’s taken… Spirit Chasers? Nope. Hmm…”

  They had passed the grubby old railway yard and turned left into the nicer side of town. Jules was thrilled to be driving around in a new car with a cute boyfriend. She watched his face sort of dreamily as he drove.

  “So you could really pick up on how that woman was in her heart. Like, that she was not nice and that she’s alone. You got that from just meeting her?”

  Theo kind of nodded and shrugged that off like it was nothing much.

  “My mom’s really going to love you,” Jules said, giggling at the thought of introducing her spiritually gifted boyfriend to her hippie mother. “I can’t wait to take you home with me. You’re going to blow Mom away!”

  ***

  After filling the back of the Jeep with groceries and a few knick knacks to brighten up Jules’ new home, the afternoon was all about cuddling up watching TV together. They planned to find people around town who knew the professor and Viki Cranston way back then. Maybe someone who didn’t agree with what had been reported to have happened between them. They needed to find out why this ghost was so damned angry.

  Jules lay awake after Theo had closed his eyes and fallen soundly asleep. Her sleep had been disturbed by the notion of seeing the ghost again. She lay staring at the moon shadows, waiting, dreading the appearance of the creepy apparition.

  Sometime in the night her eyes shot open, terror gripping her. She was not paralyzed, though. She turned her head to look at Theo. The ghost was floating above him. He was lying on his back with his eyes closed. His translucent form floated from his body and followed the ghost upward and through the ceiling.

  Jules shook Theo. “Wake up! Wake up, Theo!”

  There was no response. Theo was completely out. Jules shook him and slapped his face gently. She lifted his eyelid to find his eye lifeless, completely blank. She pressed her ear to his chest. His heart was beating slowly and steadily. His chest was expanding and contracting upon his breath.

  ***

  Theo flew beside the professor. In this form, speech was not possible. Communication was a form of telepathy. He understood he was being taken somewhere of significance to what this trapped soul was unable to break away from. Theo could feel the draw from above. He loved the sensation of being willed to fly up, high into the night sky, up where the souls of the departed were zooming along in a rush to find their next destination.

  As a living spirit, Theo was able to resist the draw from above. For the professor to do so, there would have to be a tremendously strong counter force pulling him back to the dimension of the living.

  The astral journey was short. The ghost of Henderson Jiles guided Theo to a trailer in the residential section. It was a dilapidated 1980s model with a tattered canvas awning. Inside, they floated side by side above a sleeping man. The ghost turned to Theo. There was immense sadness in its eyes. This sleeping man was his son.

  ***

  “Theo! Oh, Theo, where are you?” Jules cried, cuddling up to the warm yet seemingly lifeless form of her boyfriend.

  Theo’s arm lifted and hugged her. “Hey, don’t worry,” he said, kissing her head. “I’m here now.”

  “Oh, you’re back!” Jules cried, scooting up to kiss his face and lips. “What happened? I saw the ghost and you went with him. I saw your spirit, Theo!”

  “Yeah… how long was I gone? It was only a minute or so, right?”

  “Yes. Less than a minute.”

  “I thought so. See, I never really knew but I always thought time was different in that spiritual realm. I went with the professor to visit his son, who lives just over there near the bathrooms. But I was gone for, like, ten minutes in the time I was experiencing. But it was really only seconds, wasn’t it?”

  Jules was still kissing him. “Uh huh… seconds! But don’t do that anymore. That was freaky!”

  Theo kissed back, flipping over to press a thigh between hers and make her kind of squirm against his firmness. She was still a bit sore from their first time. She wanted to wait until she could enjoy being with him completely pain-free. Maybe tomorrow night, she thought as she returned his kisses.

  “Freaky, yes… but I got another name for us,” Theo declared excitedly. “In the morning we have to go to school and find a woman called Heather Morales.

  ***Chapter 13***

  Morning dawned pale and crisp to find Theo and Jules snuggled up together under the warm blankets of the bed in the cozy motor home. From the cradle of her boyfriend’s embrace, Jules felt the world was completely at peace. Or at least that she was. His body pressed against her back, warming her. His full penis pressed against her bottom. Even in sleep he was aroused. She shifted, testing her soreness. Almost gone. Tonight should do it. She was ready. So, it seemed, was he. His hand cupped her breast. Her nipple rose and grew sensitive under the semi-conscious touch. She sighed softly.

  “Sweet Julie,” he murmured in her ear, taking a teasing nibble of the lobe, toying with the three earrings there. She shivered. Maybe she wasn’t too sore. Maybe they could....

  “Oh!” she squeaked as his hand slipped down inside her pants and he began to stroke her clitoris.

  “Last time I came and you didn’t. Let me give you a little something.”

  “Theo...” it came out thin and drawn. “I want.. I...ohhhh.”

  “I know, babe. I know what you want. Tonight, it’s going to be the whole thing. But right now is just for you. Is this right, Julie?”

  He was rubbing slowly up and down.

  “
More like a circle,” she replied. He began a slow, rotating caress that had her burning all the way to the arches of her feet.

  “Oh, Theo, yes. Just like that,” she moaned. He acquiesced, continuing the easy caress. Her tension built. She bent one knee to allow him better access. Almost there... almost. “YES!” Jules writhed as her orgasm overtook her. Theo kissed the back of her neck and worked her through the shuddering ecstasy.

  At last, overstimulated, Jules squirmed away. “That was so nice, babe,” she said. “I can’t wait to have sex again.”

  “Me either,” he replied, “but for now breakfast and then back to the university.

  Jules wasn’t ready to move, so Theo set the coffee to brew while he pulled down the cereal and poured a bowl for each of them. By the time the cornflakes were waiting on the table with milk and spoons, Jules had at last recovered from her orgasm enough to rise from the bed and join him.

  “You know,” she said between a bite and a sip, “that name, Heather Morales, sounds familiar.”

  “How so?” Theo asked. He took a big swig of hot coffee from a navy blue mug with a picture of a DNA strand on it. Jules took a dainty swallow. Her cup was plain brown to match the brown square dishes he used.

  “I remember last year I went on a date with this guy.” Theo quirked an eyebrow. “Don’t look at me like that. We didn’t even kiss. It was just one date. We went to see the theater department put on Antigone.”

  “Great date play,” he said, “Start with products of incest and end with being buried alive. The poor guy didn’t stand a chance.”

  “He didn’t anyway,” she replied. “I didn’t know it then, but he wasn’t my type.”

  “Oh? And what type would that be, Ms. Masterson?”

  “Sexy nerd,” she replied succinctly. He flicked milk at her. “Hey!” She protested, wiping the drops from her nose.

  “So, how do you know Heather Morales?” he asked, returning to the topic at hand as though nothing had happened.

  “I don’t think I know her. I’ve heard the name...” Jules thought. “Isn’t the chair of the drama department Dr. Morales?”

  “It might be,” he replied. “I don’t hang around the fine arts building much.”

  “I think it is. I have no idea if her first name is Heather, but I think I remember reading her bio in the playbill. She went to school here and came back to teach.”

  “That might be a good place to start,” Theo said, getting into the spirit of the hunt.

  After a quick shower, the couple climbed into their new Jeep and drove back to the university. It was quiet there on a Sunday morning, but they headed to the fine arts complex anyway. Most of the department was not housed in a single building, but in a spread out square of covered cement walkways. A few feet along in each direction, a hallway of offices was set perpendicular to the path. Each outer door had the names of the professors on it. First were the music teachers; the woodwind wing, the brass, the strings, the voice. Then art. A foul stench of turpentine hung in the air. They hurried past. Last was drama. Sure enough, the chair’s name was listed first, in large plastic letters. “H. Morales, PhD.”

  They tried the outer door into the hallway, but it was locked.

  “Well,” Theo said, “It was a long shot, but worth a try. At least now we know where to find her.”

  “Wait,” Julie said, “I think we should go into the auditorium.”

  “It’s locked, babe,” he reminded her. “It’s Sunday morning and there are no performances scheduled tonight.”

  “I know,” Jules replied, turning to go. But something held her back. “No,” she shook her head. “We need to go to the auditorium. Right now. Come on.” She took Theo’s hand and led him to the two story brick building.

  She pulled the handle and the door opened easily. The two of them looked at each other and went in.

  In the daylight, the feeling inside the cavernous room was completely different, warm and welcoming. Jules led Theo right up to the balcony. Near the front, a curvaceous middle-aged woman with silver-streaked curly hair and a handsome, makeup-free face sat overlooking the stage, muttering to herself and making little marks on a clipboard.

  “Excuse me,” Jules said softly. The woman didn’t jump. She must have heard them come in.

  “The theater isn’t open right now, dear. Our play isn’t until December. You should come, though. It’s going to be great fun.”

  “Oh, sure. It’s ‘A Christmas Carol,’ right?” Jules asked.

  “Uh huh,” the woman said distractedly.

  “We wouldn’t miss it. But that’s not really why we’re here.”

  “What then?” the woman asked, sounding impatient.

  “We’re here about Dr. Jiles,” Theo said softly. The clipboard and pen clattered to the floor and rolled away.

  “Dr. Jiles? You’re here... about... why?”

  “He’s not at peace,” Theo told her. “That’s not right. We’re trying to help.”

  His directness, which had not worked with hard-hearted Viki, appealed immediately to this kind professor. She turned and motioned them to a seat.

  “I know he’s not,” she told them. “Poor man.”

  “You knew him?” Jules asked.

  Dr. Morales nodded. “He was my mentor, my advisor. It’s from him I picked up the habit of watching the stage from the balcony. He used to do that all the time.”

  “So he was a good teacher, then?” Theo asked.

  “One of the best,” she replied. “He knew just how to get touchy, artistic students to do exactly what he wanted, not because he was mean or bossy, but because everyone loved him and wanted to please him. I dreamed of being that kind of teacher.”

  “Was there ever any indication that he... misbehaved with the students?” Jules asked gently.

  “Never,” Dr. Morales replied. “He loved his wife. She was so pretty, so nice. I always wondered where she went after... well after the accident. Listen, I was with him pretty much all the time. If he’d done anything, I would have known about it.”

  “But what about the allegations,” Theo pressed.

  “Bullshit,” the professor replied bluntly. “I knew that girl. She had a lot of spark. With discipline and training she could really have been something. I was stage manager that year, and I tried to take her under my wing, mentor her, but she was arrogant. She was convinced she knew more about acting than anyone. Well, anyone except Dr. Jiles. It was a shame.”

  “What was?” Jules asked.

  “She had a crush on him. It would have been nothing. Girls had crushes on him all the time. He never even noticed. I’m not sure what happened, but one day Viki was prosing on about how amazing he was, and the next, she accused him of rape. I never believed it.”

  What she didn’t say, but Jules could see, was that she had been more than a little in love with Dr. Jiles herself. But unlike Viki, Heather had strived to remain professional.

  “Well, that’s the story from my perspective,” she told them. “I hope you can do something for poor Dr. Jiles. He deserves his rest. It must be terrible haunting an auditorium for decades, watching all the plays but never getting to do his part”

  “We’ll do what we can for him,” Theo assured her. “Is there anything else that might be of help to us? We have suspicions but no proof.”

  “Maybe...” Dr. Morales said thoughtfully. “But there’s no way you would ever find it.”

  “What?” Jules asked a little too eagerly. Theo gave her a warning look. Dr. Morales, lost in reminisces, didn’t seem to notice.

  “Oh, it’s just that she had a journal. A pretty little gold and white book she was forever scribbling in. If a person could find that... but no. She probably got rid of it years ago. Venal as that girl was, I suspect she found a rich husband and moved to California.”

  “Uh, not exactly,” Jules replied, suppressing a giggle. “Thank you, Dr. Morales. You’ve been a great help.”

  “You’re welcome, Julie.”


  Jules gaped. “How did you know my name?”

  “He told me,” she replied. “He’s always here. He said Julie and Theodore would be coming to talk to me, and I should help them. That’s you two, right?”

  “You talk to his ghost?” Theo asked, his jaw sagging. “Why didn’t you tell him to move on?”

  “He can’t. Not until his name is cleared. Can you do it, you two? Can you clear his name?”

  “We’ll try,” Jules promised. Then she took Theo’s hand and they left the auditorium to its ghosts, living and dead.

  "Well, what now?" Jules exclaimed. "So this Viki Cranston was a lying bitch and the poor professor got trashed. But what are we supposed to do about that now? As if some old diary is still going to be around after thirty years."

  Theo took the turnoff to the railway yards. "I don't know what to do, but I can find out if that diary is in the Cranston woman's house or not."

  He navigated through the grubby streets and pulled up behind the rusty car wreck again.

  "Just let me concentrate for a moment," he said, and Jules waited while he sat with his window down, staring at the little cottage. "There's a small white book with gold trimmings in a red box on the floor of that old garage," he announced.

  "In the garage?" Jules repeated for confirmation. This would be easy.

  "Yes. It's in the back left corner from here," Theo went on. "The box might be like an orange or rusty brown color. The book is at the bottom, under some other books."

  "Drive along a bit further. Let's check out that laneway."

  There was a narrow walkway between the Cranston house and the neighbor. It was overgrown with branches of trees drooping over the rotting paling fences.

  "There!" Jules exclaimed excitedly. "Easy as that!"

  Theo gulped. "Easy as what? What are you thinking, Julie? We're not going to break and enter."

  "No... not we, just me. And I'm not going to break anything. See those louver windows? They pop out easily with a screwdriver. Do we have a screwdriver?"

  "There's one at home. But we'll get into trouble if we get caught."