Seeing is Believing

A story about a 25 year old woman who is starting to see the unbelievable. She tries to cope with help from her spirit guide who she just reconnected with.

 

 

Seeing is Believing

Megan Harris

 

She lifted her heavy eyes to her darkened room glancing to her alarm clock to see the glowing green numbers.

            2:59? Are you kidding me?, she thought turning around toward the wall and closing her eyes again. She felt sleep come back to her and fell back into it.

            “Alona?” the voice came from somewhere in the bright oblivion.

            “Who are you? Where am I?” she looked ahead to see a figure coming toward her and take shape from the light. Soon the figure was a silhouette of a man and she walked toward it, her curiosity begging her forward. She noticed his eyes first. They were a vibrant emerald green and stood out against his pale complexion.

            His lips curled into a smile, “Well, I’ve been waiting for this moment for a while.”

            “Moment? Who are you?” Alona squinted and tilted her head.

            “I’m Lucas. I’m your, uhm, spirit guide. I’d say nice to meet you but I’ve known you for a long time.”

            She looked at him questioningly and moved her mouth to form words.

            “What? I don’t look familiar to you at all? We were really close when you were four.” He smiled wider and put his hands on her shoulder.

            “Lucas,” she moved her hand over her mouth, “My imaginary friend Lucas?”

            “I’m really not so imaginary,” he laughed.

            “This is ridiculous. I’m twenty five years old. Why am I dreaming of this?”

            “It’s not a dream. This is real,” he reached his hand down and pinched her cheek making her wince in pain.

 “What did you do that for?” she whined while rubbing her cheek.

            “Proof? I’m digressing. Pinching you is not why I’m here. Alona you’re going to start seeing things that you may not be able to handle. I’m here to help you though it and get you prepared for what’s to come.”

            “See things?”

            “People mainly. Different planes of existence,” he stopped, noticing her confusion, “dead people.”   

            “I’m going to see ghosts?”

            “We like to be called spirits or just people if you could be so kind.”

            “I don’t even believe in ghosts. I don’t even believe in you.”

            Lucas sighed reached his pale thin arm into the pocket of his faded denim jeans and pulled out a piece of yellow paper, “Take this. Go to the address written on it and learn something. Someone will tell you all you need to know and what to do next.”

            She took the paper from him and looked down at it. A siren rang into her right ear and she awoke to the sight of her ceiling fan spinning. She reached over and turned off the alarm and felt a paper in her left hand still tucked under her silk blue pillow. She pulled it out and jumped off her bed when she realized it was the same yellow paper from the dream.

            You’re overreacting it was just a dream. It didn’t really happen. I bet I already had that paper from a while ago, she threw the paper in her waste basket and walked into her bathroom. The warm water trickling around her olive skin helped her forget her strange dream and she got ready for work without thinking of it. She grabbed her clean pink scrubs from her bathroom closet and shoved them in her backpack.

            Another long day and I’m going to be late, she said to herself as she turned off the lights of her apartment, locked the door behind her and ran across the street to the hospital.

           

“You’re late, baby! Veronica’s pissed, she was supposed to get off an hour ago,” Elis said as Alona walked into the ER nurses station. 

            “I’m sorry. I had a bad night,” Alona sat down at the desk and went through her charts for the day. Veronica emerged from the lobby across the hall and narrowed her eyes at her. Alona brandished a smile and continued to read her papers.

            “I’ve got this patient in room 120 but I was wondering if you could go check on him. I need a cigarette,” Elis grabbed her locker key her short acrylic nails glittered under the fluorescent light.

            “Sure. What’s with him?”

            “Just a minor head trauma, we’re waiting on the CT results though.” she handed Alona his chart. 

            “They did a CT for a minor head trauma?”

            “His wife insisted on it. She’s such a sweet lady. She’s in here with him every time he even lands on his feet funny.” Elis left the station and walked toward the locker rooms. Alona walked into the west corridor passing rooms of patients. She turned into room 120 at the end of the hall and saw the patient staring out the window.

            “Hello Mr. Andrews. How are you feeling?”

            “Good. Thanks. My wife went to go find out what the results were. Did you tell her?”

            “We don’t know yet, sir. We’ll let you know as soon as they come back.”

            “I don’t even want to be here,” he moaned, “All I did was fall off a two foot ladder and now I’m lying on this god damned bed in this god damned hospital.”

            “I’m sorry, sir. Can I get anything for you?”

            “Cyanide pills, maybe?” he smiled a little and Alona smiled back at him.

            “We’ll let you know what the results were when we get them back.” She turned out of the room and walked back down the hall.

            She stopped a few doors down in front of room 115 seeing an old man with his back turned to her in the empty white room. He was crying with his arms in front of him like he was holding something.

            “Sir? Can I help you? Are you lost?” She reached her hand to grab his shoulder and just before she could touch him he turned to her. She saw his leathery crinkled hands holding bloody organs the blood flowed down to the floor creating a puddle by her feet. He whimpered trying to form words as his face cringed in pain.

            “Oh my God.” She stood stoic for a moment and then began looking around the room for something that could help the bleeding. The water pooled even deeper around her shoes and she could feel some leaking inside of them as she reached for him. “We’re going to get you some help, Sir. It will be okay.” With that he fell into her but as she put her arm up to catch him under his shoulder he dissolved into the air.

            She looked around the room trying to grab at an emotion to feel. The floor was clean, still freshly mopped, not even a speck of dirt and certainly no pool of blood. She turned around and headed straight toward the employee bathroom behind the nurses station. Am I losing it? She asked to her reflection in the mirror while turning on the cold water and splashing some to her face. She felt a hand on her back and she jumped back as she removed her hands from her face to see who it was. She saw Elis’ thick dark hand first and then her rich brown eyes.

            “Oh it’s just you, Elis. You scared the ever-loving out of me.” She reached back to touch Elis’ hand. It was nice, she thought, to feel something real.

            “Girl, of course it’s me. You know I’m in the bathroom doing my make up fifty times a shift. This face ain’t gonna keep itself pretty,” she said into the mirror while tracing the outline of her coral red lips with lip liner. She glanced over at Alona and her eyes softened, “Sweetie, what is wrong with you? You look sick, baby. Did you sleep last night? I tell you once, I tell you a million times you really need to sleep more. You can see those bag under your eyes, baby. Never gonna give me no god children if men see you looking like that.”

            “Elis, I slept well last night. I just think –“ she stopped herself, “Never mind, I need to get back to work. I don’t want to go into it right now.”

            “That’s alright, baby. We’ll talk about it later.” She smiled as she sprayed her graying kinky hair. Alona dried her face and left the room to the nurse’s station and sat back down.

Her shift was slow; no one had been admitted into the ER for hours. She busied herself with the station’s paperwork and transferred the day’s records into the database. Elis would sometimes putter around the desk grab supplies and run back down the room corridor. She almost did not notice when someone walked up to the desk. A tall lanky man in blue scrubs cleared his throat as he stood over her.

She looked up, “Hello, can I help you?”

“Hey, I’m Scott. I have this problem. I was wondering if you could help. I work in the morgue and the guys down there have this bet with me that I can’t get the best looking emergency care nurse’s number.”

She squinted at him and smiled, “Ah shucks, it is too bad I am only an intern!”

            “Okay, so it was the best looking LPN studying to be an RN’s number.”

            “Where did you say you worked again?”

            “I work in the morgue as an intern.”

            “Ah, so you pranced all the way up the stairs to get my number?”

            “Yes. I’ve been trying to get the courage to do it for weeks since you’ve started working here.”

            She noticed something about him then. His coffee colored eyes seemed sincere and caring. “You know what? I’ll give you my number. I’m not making any promises though.” She shook her finger at him while he handed her his clip board with an empty piece of paper clipped on it. She handed it back with a slight smile after scribbling her name and number on it.

            “Thanks, can I call you tomorrow?” He scratched the side of his curly blonde hair as he tilted his head.

            “Did you seriously have a bet to get my number?”

            He shifted, “No, actually. No one in the morgue actually talks to me.”

            “Well then yes you can call me whenever you’d like.”

            “Good, I’ll talk to you later then.” He turned around and walked toward the elevator with a grin stretched across his face.

 

            Elis rolled up behind Alona as she was sneaking in time for school work before her shift ended.

            “So honey -” Elis said putting her arm around her.

            Alona flinched and clutched her chest, “Yeah?”

            “Good Lord, you’re jumpy today. You want to talk about what’s wrong?”  

            Alona sighed, “Elis do you believe in ghosts?”

            “Well of course I believe in spirits baby.”

            “Do you think we can see them? Do you think we can talk to them?”

            “I talk to my mother every night before I say my prayers. She never says anything back but I like to believe she’s up their listening to me with the Lord.” Elis subconsciously played with the intricate silver cross hung off her neck. Alona turned to put her files away. “Why do you ask, sugar?”

            “No reason. Listen. I have to go it’s almost ten o’clock. I think I need to go to bed early tonight.” Alona stood up and walked down the hall to the locker room. The lighting was significantly darker over her locker and as she pulled the latch she thought she saw a pair of green eyes beside her.

            “Lucas?” she turned her head to ask the empty locker room. There was no response and she changed into her clothes. I’m going crazy. That’s all.  She threw her scrubs into her duffle bag and walked out of the locker room toward the hospital’s double doors.

            Arriving back to her apartment she walked straight into her bedroom. She dropped her duffle bag by her bedroom door before falling into the bed she had left unmade. She pulled the pillow to her face and fell asleep.

            Not long after she was awakened by two whispering voices, “Is she a seer?”

            “Yes and she can hear us, be quiet or you’ll wake her.”

            I’m just dreaming, she closed her eyes and fell asleep again.

 

            Tuesday morning she awoke to her cell phone ringing in her jean pocket.

            “Hello.” She answered annoyed.

            “Baby, because we both have the day off today. Do you want to go for a walk?” Elis asked from the other end.

            “Yeah, give me thirty minutes. I just woke up. I’ll meet you on the square?”

            “Sounds good, darling.” Elis hung up and Alona rose from her bed. She headed for the shower groggily, removing her clothing as she walked.

            She stared at the pallid shower wall and let herself zone out to the rhythm of the water as it rinsed the sleep off of her body. The water turned cold suddenly making her snap back to reality and quickly jump out of the freezing shower. She stood over the sink and traced the purple bags under her eyes while frowning. I’m so ugly today. She stuck the tooth brush in her mouth and tied her hair back worried she might be late to meet Elis. 

            She grabbed her pink jogging outfit out of her closet, threw it on and headed out toward the town square. Oberlin wasn’t the biggest city but it was definitely the most beautiful during autumn. Alona watched the multi colored maple leaves fall around her as she breathed in the Indian summer air.

            Elis was sitting on a wrought iron bench under one of the trees and she stood up to hug Alona when she spotted her.

            “Elis! I hope I didn’t keep you waiting long.”

            “No, not at all sweetie. I just stopped over at the newsstand to play my numbers.”

            “That’s good.” Alona said walking a head a little and then slowing down when Elis begin to follow.

            “How do you like your internship so far?” Elis questioned.

            “It’s alright I guess. I was expecting more excitement.” 

            “You have to go to the big cities for the constant excitement. Here, we’re only busy on weekend nights.”

            “Maybe I should have done my internship at Cleveland or Pittsburgh.” Alona giggled and stopped suddenly when something caught her eye. A man in a top hat and black suit was walking toward them. She stared speechless as he tipped his hat, grinning at her while he walked past them. She glanced over at Elis who was looking at the autumn trees unaware of what just occurred.

            “Did you see that?” Alona grabbed Elis’ arm.

            “See what?”

            “The man in a top hat!”

            “I don’t see any top hats baby. You’d think that’d be something I’d notice.”

            Alona turned her head to see if she could point out the man but she could not see past the crowd of people that were walking behind them.

            “I could show you him if there weren’t so many people on the square today.”

            “So many people?” Elis squinted her eyes, “Baby, there is only five other people on the square with you and I.”

            Alona looked around and counted at least forty people. People were walking around, talking, kissing on benches, playing in the park, or walking their dogs. She couldn’t tell who was really there and who she was just imagining.

            “I have to go Elis. I’m not feeling well. I’ll see you at work tomorrow.” Alona turned around and bolted down the street dodging people real or imaginary as she ran.

 

            Alona dug through her garbage can furiously while papers and coffee grounds flew around her kitchen floor.

            “Where is it? F**k. F**k. F**k!” She screamed into the garbage can.

            The yellow paper was under a greasy chicken bone and she pulled it out victoriously. Under the grease stain she could just make out what seemed to be an address.

            “Down the block, turn left, door #9. Go at midnight.” She went over the directions in her head. That’s an alley way? Why would Lucas be sending me there? At night? Her cell phone began to vibrate on the kitchen counter snapping her out of her mind.

            “Hello?” The voice questioned on the other end to Alona the soft voice sounded familiar but she couldn’t place it.

            “Hi, this is Alona. Who’s this?”

            “Oh Hello! This is Scott. You gave me your number yesterday.”

            “Hi Scott! How are you?”

            “I’m good. I was just looking at your number and freaking out slightly about whether or not to call you. How are you?”

            “I’m well for the most part. I’m glad you called except now isn’t the best of times. Can I talk to you tomorrow at work? I’m really busy right now.”

            Scott’s voice became softer and he sounded wounded, “Yeah, that’s okay. Take your time.”

            “Bye Scott. I promise we’ll talk tomorrow.”

            “Good bye Alona.”

            She closed her phone and placed it back on the counter laying the greasy yellow note on top of it. This floor is a f*****g mess, she thought as she bent over to clean everything up. 

 

            11:50?, Alona stared at the clock on her living room wall anxiously. I guess I could leave now. I can wait outside the door if it’s locked. She rose off of her couch, grabbed her keys from her end table and opened her apartment door. Just outside there was a large man standing on her stoop, her eyes widened as he stared her down with his dark brown eyes. He was about as tall as her door frame towering over Alona. He reached out his brown broad hand to her Alona put her head down and turned away from him locking her door behind her.

            “You’re not real.” She called out behind her as she walked down the sidewalk; the man just stood silently staring a head at her closed door.

            The wind was chilly and the street lights became increasingly inadequate as she got closer to the alley. It had rained earlier and the autumn leaves were clingy wet to the sidewalk. She looked to her left, the alley way was shadowy and there was no lighting at all. She stared at the darkness for a while, sighed heavily and began to walk down it.

            As she walked she looked toward the concrete sides of the buildings for doors counting them. One, she caught a glimpse of a metal door to her left. Two, on her right. Three. Four. Five. All lined up next to each other. A light flickered a head of her over what looked to be a red metal door with something painted on it in black. She passed three more doors and stood in front of the lit one. The symbol on the door was something she had seen before. A pentagram? She thought while twisting the knob on the door. It opened effortlessly and she walked inside the room.

            It was dimly lit, with many high wooden shelves lined up in the small room. To her left in a corner a couple who looked like they came right from Woodstock were talking and stopped to look at her. She waved politely and continued to walk forward. She looked at the contents of the shelves. Small bottles were labeled with herbs in them, tarot card boxes, candles and gemstones were set neatly on them.

            She noticed two Asian women behind the counter in front of her and she walked toward them

            “Hello. I was told to come here. I think I need some help.” She said to the gray haired one with the wrinkled face standing.

            “Don’t you look at people when you talk to them?” The younger one said softly.

            Alona looked down, “Oh. I’m sorry. I thought – the woman behind you.”

            “You’re a seer?” She interrupted, “How lucky! I wish I could see and talk to my spirit guide. You must really have some fun with yours.”

            “I don’t see mine. Well I did once, in a dream, he told me to come here.”

            The girl laughed, Alona noticed how young she was, maybe just 21.

            “Well, I know why. You pushed him away a long time ago. He wants to come back to you.”

            “How do I get him to come back?”

            “Easy. It’s a ritual. I spell if you will.” She grabbed a piece of notebook paper from tablet next to her, scribbled down a list with her red pen, and handed it to Alona. “Just walk around here – grab those items I have on the list. I’ll even let you have them for free – it’s no big deal. The spells is written underneath the items, light the candles and say that three times. He should show up after that.”

            Alona looked at the paper she read the words at the top, Guardian Invocation, then moved down the list and looked behind her at the shelves. She just needed candles and incense which were located right behind her. One purple candle and one black candle, she grabbed them off the shelf.

            “The purple is for psychic ability, seeing, and the black is for protection. Light both of them and let them burn a while before doing the spell.” The girl said from behind her.

            Alona looked at the incense and was shocked by the multiple scents, “Is there a specific kind I need?”

            “The “Spirit” scent.”

            That’s a weird name for a scent, Alona thought.

            “The scent will bind him to you. The black candle will keep any bad spirits away since it has a tendency to attract spirits.”

            “How did you hear me?”

            “In this world, we all have different gifts. You can see. I can read.” Her pouty red lips curled into a smile above her soft chin.

 

            Alona arrived back at her apartment at 1:00 and decided to begin burning her candles. She lit them and placed them in bowls on her night stand. She then lit the incense setting it in an old crystal flower vase, she had found in her kitchen. She watched them burn and she was filled with this indescribable energy, it made her feel so calm and safe.

            She pulled up the notebook paper and saw she had to put her blood in each flame. She ran into her closet and pulled out a needle from a sewing kit her mother had sent her. Over the candles she pricked her finger with the needles dropping a bit of blood on each flame and picked up the paper again. She read over the words in her head and then began to say them out loud,

“Of this blood, I offer mine. That I shall be protected. Let no evil come this way. For my guardian here now is bound to me,” the flames rose higher and she said it again louder, “Of this blood, I offer mine. That I shall be protected. Let no evil come this way. For my guardian here now is bound to me.” She could feel a hand on her shoulder and placed own on her shoulder to check – there was nothing there except a strange cold spot. She looked at the paper again, “Of this blood, I offer mine. That I shall be protected. Let no evil come this way. For my guardian here now is bound to me,”

“Took you long enough!” Lucas’ voice came from behind her and she turned around quickly grabbing her chest.

“Holy s**t!” She screamed.

“Told you I was real.” He shrugged and walked over to her.

“I didn’t think that it would work.”

“Well, you had to have thought it a little bit. Otherwise it wouldn’t have worked,” he pointed at the night stand, “Magic, this stuff, is all about mind over matter.” He wrapped his arms around her tightly, so much that she couldn’t move.

“You feel, human?” She said as the breath went out of her.

“Well of course I feel human, I used to be human!”

“Aren’t I supposed to like go right through you or something?”

“You watch way too many scary movies! I always told you when you were younger not to believe those things!”

Alona laughed at this and met his green eyes with her hazel ones.

“Now I’m the only one who sees you?”

“Well aside from other people like you, yes. So try not to talk to me in public. People will haul you off, and that would be counterproductive.” Lucas snarky smile overwhelmed his pale face and he looked down at her face moving his lips closer to hers. Alona held her breath as their lips met quickly and pulled away from each other. She slowly rose her hand to cover them, Did I just kiss a ghost?

 

            The bathroom light flickered as Alona stepped out of the shower and wiped the fog off of the mirror. She wrapped her towel tightly around her and started to brush her teeth. She bent down to spit out excess paste in the sink and when she lifted her head she saw Lucas smiling behind her.

            “Holy s**t! Lucas you’re not supposed to be in here.” She growled at him with a foamy mouth.

            “I got bored waiting for you to wake up.” He lifted his arm around her shoulder and smiled.

            “I’m going to be late. I’m going to be late and I have an annoying ghost following me around.” She removed his arm and rinsed out her mouth.

He put his hand to his mouth and coughed out, “Spirit.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever.” She said as she walked out of the bathroom and into her bedroom. She opened her closet door and turned toward Lucas who was standing behind her. “Do you mind?” She motioned her hands toward her chest and then at the closet.

“Oh you want me to leave? You’re afraid a dead person might see you naked?” He laughed.

“No, I want you to leave because I don’t want a man to see me naked.”

“I’m dead, I’m basically asexual. Besides what makes you think I haven’t seen you naked already?”

She narrowed her eyes at him, “Seriously?”

“Okay, I’ll leave. I’ll be in the living room.” He walked out and let Alona dress herself.

“F*****g ghost.” She said into her closet as she pulled out her jeans and a red shirt. She walked into the living room once she dressed completely she saw Lucas standing in her kitchen cooking eggs over her stove.

“Ghost don’t sleep, but they eat?” she questioned.

“I don’t eat either. I’m making you an omelet.”

“I hate eggs. Some guardian angel you are.”

“Do I have wings? Am I playing a harp?

“No.”

“Not an angel. Duh. Plus, you love eggs. You used to eat them all the time.”

“When I was four years old Lucas. I’m not a child anymore, my tastes change.” She picked up her remote to turn on her TV.

“I could tell you weren’t a child anymore in the shower this morning.” He flipped the eggs in the pan as he said this.

“You what?” She flung the remote at him and he caught it with his empty hand.

“I’m kidding, Alona. Chill out. Anyways, the spirit world as strict rules about those kind of things.”

“I’m going to go to work, before I have to find a way to bring you back to life and kill you again.” She grabbed her duffle bag and opened her apartment door.

“I’m coming too!” He jumped over the bar and ran toward her.

“Oh no you’re not! Stay here and watch the news.”

“Hospitals are much more fun! Plus I’m your guide you bound me to you!”

“Damn it! Lucas. Stay here. You’ll just get in the way.”

“See you at work!” He smiled as he disappeared before her eyes. 

“Lucas! I’m going to f*****g kill you.” She screamed at the ceiling.

 

Alona was sitting at the cafeteria finishing her lunch and was surprised she hadn’t heard from Lucas the entire day. She was seventeen patients into her shift and was feeling more excited about her internship than before.

“Hey Alona!” Scott’s voice came from behind her and she turned around to see him holding a tray. “Mind if I join you?”

“Oh sure! Please.”

“So I know you’re almost finished but I was wondering if you wanted to get coffee on the square after your shift.”

“Yeah! I’d love that.”

“Good! I’ll let you go back to work then. Meet me in the front of the hospital at 6?”

“See you at six!” She smiled while picking up her tray and dumping the food items in the trash.

She walked to the locker room to grab her tooth brush from her bag and felt Lucas tap her shoulder.

“Stop! Don’t talk to me! Someone will think I’m crazy!” She whispered and turned around quickly.

“Relax. No one is here!” he waved his hand around the room.

“Okay, what do you want?”

“So you have a boyfriend?”

“He’s not a boyfriend. He’s a man I’m talking to.”

“Boyfriend.”

“What are you jealous or something?”

Lucas shrugged, “Not jealous. Just curious.”

“You’re jealous,” she laughed closing her locker, “I thought ghosts had strict rules about those things. I have to go brush my teeth go back home, I’ll see you there.” She smiled and walked out of the room. 

[To be continued.]

 

 

           

                  

 

Author's Note

ignore grammar problems.