Horror Stories from Horrified - Volume One (2)

?Next time I?ll have a r ing,? he thr eatened blear ily. ?And then you?ll be sor r y.?
We stagger ed up thr ough Angel, his good mood untouched by my r ebuttal like it always
was and w ould be again.
?You know I mean it, r ight? I?d do it in a hear tbeat.?
That tr uth was a war m coal in my thr oat, a war mth that didn?t feel deser ved.
?Yeah. I know ,? I told him.
The answ er seemed to please him. His easy mood, the tw inkling lights of Upper Str eet
and the infectious city nightlife made me almost want to take that r isk. Or an even bigger
leap of faith.
?Do you believe in ghosts??
?Sur e.? He didn?t even hesitate. ?They?r e ever yw her e.?
We passed a bus stop of lit-up faces, couples huddled into each other , guys laughing on
their phones. Light hear ts and joyful souls, shaking off the bur den of the year in hopes of a
better futur e.
?Why do you ask??
Steve pulled me to a stop in the midst of a par ty spilling out of a kar aoke bar. The gr oup
shar ed sloppy goodbyes and kisses ar ound us.
?Is it something to do w ith your dad??
His sudden sobr iety caught me off-guar d. The question opened an easy door but w hat if
speaking about it made it mor e r eal, for him as w ell as for me? I couldn?t poison the w ell of
his optimism, that w ouldn?t be fair.
A w oman pulled him into an embr ace, mistaking him for one of her par ty. He w ished her
goodnight and br ushed her off w ith kind but clumsy insistence.
?Alex? ??
Boots in the snow , side by side. Silence. Blood on the gr ound, r ed smear ed w ith w hite
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