20. Chapter 20
Kylie
I wasn't sure what to expect when Nic mentioned a campfire by the beach. Maybe a football-sized little fire.
Turns out, I was way off. It's about the size of a barrel. Not big enough to be seen from space, but definitely bigger than I expected.
It’s the first time I’ve noticed this designated bonfire space. A circle of stones encases the fire spot and someone arranged huge, thick tree logs around it so we can sit together comfortably.
The moon is surprisingly light tonight, casting blue light over the lake. Owls hoot in the distance, leaves rustle in the wind and I hear the occasional cricket chirp.
"Hey you two!" Lauren waves at us and jumps in excitement as she spots Erik and I.
All dogs were left at home. They don't need to sit next to a fire, and I wouldn’t be able to relax if Abby was here.
I’d spend the entire time fretting and paranoid she’d accidentally set herself on fire.
So she's cuddled up in her bed with the teddy bear Erik won for me and gets to hang out with our ghost roommate.
Caleb is starting the fire, poking and prodding the pile of wood until it ignites. Henry lugs a wood log closer to feed the fire once it burns properly.
"Erik, can you give me a hand?" He presses out.
"Sure." He rushes over, his hand drifting along the small of my back as he leaves and I let my eyes trail after him.
It’s gotten even colder, a stern reminder winter is closing in. The first thing I did when we made our pit-stop at my home, was to find a warmer jacket and a thick blanket for outside while I was at it. Then I raided my cupboards.
"I brought snacks." I hold up the cotton bag I threw them into and join Lauren on one of the logs.
"Oh." She shakes her head as if I just woke her from a dream. "Sorry. I'm just admiring my boyfriend doing hot fire things." Caleb glances up with a frown, and Lauren blows him a kiss.
"Snacks. Snacks are good. Show me your snacks." She makes grabby hands for the bag and takes a peek. Meanwhile I decide to follow her example and watch Erik, carrying the log together with Henry.
"Chocolate! Awesome."
"Girls! I made dough for bread on sticks." Nic appears with a huge bowl in her hands. "I saw the recipe on some whimsical cooking account, so you guys are my guinea pigs. If it’s delicious, we have a new tradition."
"Which means we still need sticks to put the dough around, right?" I stare at the shore. The very dark and very spooky shore, lined with trees and all kinds of shrubbery for creepy things to hide behind.
"Worry not, your savior is here and he brought alcohol!"
All of our heads turn to Kieran, strolling closer like it’s his entrance video for a trash tv show.
He's got a grocery bag hooked on his finger, dangling over his shoulder and carrying a bunch of long sticks in his other hand.
The bag for one, clinks suspiciously. Just how many more bottles did he bring?
"Now you can say thanks to Dick for these ones.
" He leans them against one of the logs and carefully sets down his plastic bag.
"My little man is the best at finding sticks for campfires.
Don't give me that look, Nic." He points at her, and Nic narrows her eyes at him.
"Obviously I cleaned them and carved the ends pointier for your marshmallow or bread-on-a-stick pleasure. "
"So thoughtful," Lauren says sweetly and points at his bag. "But what else did you get?"
"Oh, you know. Some whiskey, some ginger ale, and lime juice."
"Sounds like a wild combination," I mutter, but Nic softly shakes her head.
"Best low-effort cocktail ever, let me tell you." She accepts the plastic cup Lauren hands her. Then I get one too.
"Come on here, guys. Time for drinks!" Lauren declares and pulls one cup for everyone out of the stack Kieran brought.
The guys trot over, each of them grabbing a plastic cup. Erik’s arm snakes around my waist, as if it’s the most natural thing in the world and not at all as if we decided to make things between us somewhat official mere hours ago.
We hold the cups in a circle, and Kieran pours our drinks with practiced precision.
"What exactly are we drinking?" Erik whispers into my ear, his breath tickling.
"Whiskey, ginger ale, lime," I whisper back just as softly. His lack of answer tells me he's not so sure about the combination either.
"Well, on that account..." Kieran lifts his cup higher up once we have all ingredients in our cups. "To Elizabeth."
"To Elizabeth," all of us mumble and tap our cups against each other, then take a sip.
My eyes widen. "Oh." I stare at the lazy cocktail. "This is actually not bad." The alcohol taste is more subtle than I thought.
"Told you." Nic nudges me with her elbow. "Now come on, sit down and grab your blanket. Time to get cozy."
The cold is slowly creeping through all the layers I’m wearing, so it’s a perfect plan if I ever heard one. Tonight’s sky is completely clear, the mountain tops dark shadows against the starry sky.
"The stars here are just crazy," I mumble, staring and trying to find a star sign. Not an easy task because I can’t remember for the life of me what they look like.
Erik takes a seat next to me and drapes my blanket around my shoulders. As soon as he sits, I lean against him, pull the blanket tighter around me until I’m cocooned in and keep staring at the sky.
"I don't think I've ever seen the Milky Way so clearly." When I lower my gaze, I find all the couples huddled up together and Kieran sitting between them, sulking.
"Do you think Bobby’s story is true?" he suddenly asks and jumps up, pacing around the fire. "I don't know, I've been thinking about this story the whole evening. It's so unfair."
"I totally agree," Lauren mumbles and takes a sip of her cocktail. “So, I decide it’s made up.”
"I think it is true," Henry declares and takes a sip of his drink. Nic is also huddled up in a blanket and sneaks under his free arm.
“Boo!” Lauren gives him a thumbs down. "Though, you'd know best, Henry. You're the only one here who has lived in Wayward Hollow his entire life."
"He is?" I glance at Caleb. I was sure he lived here all his life too.
"Moved here when I was eighteen," he says. "And you?" That's directed at Erik.
"Moved here when I was three."
"Interesting," Caleb mumbles and tilts his head. "I thought you were born here, too."
"But anyways, my dad knew O'Brien, so he's not a figment of Bobby’s imagination," Henry reveals. “I doubt he’d invent a whole story around the autumn fair, so I believe him.”
"Seriously, though, who does your father not know?" Erik chuckles and shakes his head.
I take another sip of my drink. My cheeks turn warmer and warmer the further the evening progresses. I'm not sure if it's because of the whiskey, because of the fire finally picking up or the fact I’m giddy about Erik’s arm around my shoulders.
"He was still a child when O’Brien passed, so..." Henry shrugs and stretches his legs towards the fire. "But he remembers Nicholas being a kind guy. Though he also mentioned he was not very joyful."
"No wonder." Nic shakes her head and leans against Henry. "Imagine, you leave your entire family and home country behind for love, think you finally have a future with the woman you adore and then you get what? Two years with the love of your life?"
"I hate it so much," I mumble and take a sip of my drink. “They deserved to live happily ever after.”
"I wouldn’t be surprised if she haunts Wayward Hollow." Kieran taps his lip and turns to walk the other way around the fire. "I mean, we all know this area is very prone to ghosts." He shoots Nic a pointed look.
"Ghost cat," she clarifies with a grin. Kieran sits back down, this time next to me.
"Pretty sure mine isn't a cat, though." Suddenly my eyes widen. Oh my god.
What if the ghost in my house is Elizabeth? And what if the bones they found in my garden are hers?
They can't be, right? I mean, there has to be a cemetery somewhere. They wouldn’t have buried people in random spots back then.
Or would they?
Maybe I'll make a little trip to the town hall and ask if they have an archive. There has to be some records about where Elizabeth was buried.
"Kylie." Kieran taps my shoulder and points at my house in the distance. "Did you leave the light on in your living room?"
"Nope," I declare confidently, shaking my head.
"Because it's kind of flickering."
"Huh?" I turn around to look at my home. He's right. The lights are going crazy almost disco worthy. And I know it’s not Abby who’s doing this.
"Oh well. Let my ghost have fun." I shrug and hide a yawn behind my hand.
"You seem chill about your ghost." Nic puts her hands against her red cheeks.
Lauren gets up and hands each of us one of the sticks Kieran brought, then makes a round with Nic's bowl of dough.
"Thanks," I mumble when she offers it to me, pulling a handful of dough out of there. It sticks to my fingers and wrapping it around my stick proves a challenge, but somehow, I do it.
Erik’s attempt is much more helpless. Whenever he tries to let go of the dough, it either slides off the stick it won’t let go of his hand.
"Here." I offer him mine and we switch. Then I finally answer Nic.
"I mean, there's nothing I can change about it.
As long as it's only some doors closing or the lights flickering, I can live with it, even if I get scared. If they ever start throwing plates or making me levitate, then I’ll start to panic. "
"Still..." Lauren shudders. "I could never."
"Because you're a little scaredy-cat," Kieran teases her and pokes her cheek. Lauren subtly scratches her temple with her middle finger facing him.
"As if you’re any better." She flicks some dough his way and hits him right on the side of his head. "You're at least as easily scared as I am."
"You can both be grateful our houses aren't haunted. Yet," Nic declares. Both of them turn to her with wide, panicked eyes.
"No, no, no." Kieran shakes his head and lifts his hands defensively. "Don't speak it into existence. It’s only cool when someone else’s house is haunted."
"But what if—"
"Shush." Lauren throws her hand over Nic's mouth to shut her up.
"Okay, okay."
The three of them try to find out who among them is the biggest scaredy-cat. Meanwhile I lean my head against Erik's shoulder and take a deep breath. His scent mixes with the smoke and even the bread, and it's a wonderful combination. The perfect moment for the end of this wonderful day.
We have so much to talk about. Our kiss. What exactly our expectations are. What we want out of this.
But it can wait. Because I am having way too much fun hanging out with all of my new friends and try not to burn this dough around my stick.
The evening ends with a lot more than the one cocktail Kieran poured us. Nic and Henry also bought a bunch of beers, and by 1 a.m., Lauren made us do two rounds of shots.
Now the logs are barely glowing anymore, there’s no more dough for stick bread left, all alcohol bottles are empty and a chain of yawns goes around the campfire.
"Time to go home," Henry declares and gets up, stretching his arms over his head.
"No," Nic whines and pouts as he pulls her to her feet. Erik and Caleb grab shovels I didn't even see before and throw sand over the remains of our fire to extinguish it completely.
"Fine, you all go home with your pretty boyfriends," Kieran mumbles, barely understandable with how badly he's slurring his words.
"You're a lightweight," I tease him and nudge him with my elbow. He breaks into a lazy giggle, his eyes already falling closed.
"Look at you drinking us all under the table." Lauren stands up and sways dangerously. Before she can fall, she makes the wise decision to sit back down.
"It's a talent," I shrug. Erik appears next to me and offers me his hand.
"Are you staying over?" I ask him in a whisper. He stopped drinking after a second cup of the whiskey mix and I wonder if it has anything to do with his father’s addiction.
"Yes he is!" Lauren shouts, earning a thrown piece of baked dough from Kieran. I’m surprised at the accurate aim, considering his drunken state.
"If it's okay?" Erik asks. I nod before he even finishes his question.
Kieran mumbles under his breath and demonstratively turns his head away from us.
"Just go ahead, you two," Caleb declares, fixing Kieran with an amused stare. "Lauren and I will get this sad pile of sass home."
"Hey," Kieran objects, but when he catches Caleb's eyes, he sinks into himself. "Okay."
"That's what I like to hear. Good night, you two."
"Good night, everyone," I say, loud enough so Henry and Nic hear me too. They give us a lazy wave. We grab a bunch of empty bottles and trash lying around, then make our way back to my home.
The light in my living room is on as we make our way along the shore and then over a small path through shrubbery. I'm not even mad it’s on, because it's really damn dark on our way. So thanks to the ghost, we can at least see enough of the path to not trip on branches blocking it.
"Are you feeling alright?" I ask Erik and fumble the key out of my pocket.
He shoots me a confused glance. "Yeah, sure. Why wouldn't I be?"
"I don't know how good you are with alcohol." I shrug and accidentally drop the keys. Thankfully they reflect the moon light so they don’t disappear in the darkness. "But if you feel alright, I do have one half of a bed to spare instead of the couch."
"Yeah? Is that okay? I mean, I'll totally take it." He nods and from the corner of my eyes I watch his lips curl into a smile. "Gotta protect you from intruders and all that."
"Oh yeah." I nod, biting my cheek to keep from grinning. "That's so important out here in the middle of nowhere. Intruders."
"You'd be surprised." He walks up the steps to my porch and waits for me to unlock the door. "Last year Nic's ex tried to break into her house."
"Well, mine won't. It would require him to care." I push the door open and motion for him to go ahead, in case the ghost decides to throw plates my way after all.
Thankfully, it doesn’t.
As much as I'd love to keep a conversation going, I'm almost falling asleep standing up. So I kick my shoes into a corner and head into the kitchen for a glass of water before going to sleep.
Ten minutes later, we're in my bed. His arm is around my hip and my face right by his chest. But before I can even think of cuddling, sleep drags me under.