Unanswered by Liza Mynx (books under 200 pages txt) 📕

my right arm, a second degree burn on my right leg, and a small burn on my forehead. They let me go home, and ever since I came to the hospital everyday after school. I stayed in her room for as long as I could. I sometimes just watched her slowly breathe on her bed. I knew she was alive, but I couldn’t hear her voice so sometimes I had my doubts.
“Where...where am I?”
“You’re in a hospital unit in intensive care. Do you remember what happened?”

She shook her head, but not like she was saying no, but like she was clearing her thoughts. “I remember we had an argument, I drove to the stop sign on Orange Street, and then I heard someone scream...” Her voice trailed off and she looked at me. Her expression was full of amazement, pain, and...shame. “I’m sorry, Claire.”
“Why are you sorry? I was the one who was being unreasonable. The fight was my fault.”
“Oh, sweetie, I don’t mean the fight. Well, I am sorry about that, and you are fine. Don’t ever forget that I’ll always love you.” She gave me a strong but loving look and said, “No matter what. But that not’s what I wanted to talk about, well, not yet anyway. I’m sorry I didn’t believe you about Chris.”
She’s apologizing about Chris?! Clearly she needs to get her priorities straightened out!
“Why,” I struggled to find words. “Why are you apologizing for not believing me about Chris?”
“Now, this is going to be hard for me to say, partly because I am in pain and partly because I still can not believe it my self. When I stopped at that stop sign, there was a moment where it felt like the whole world had stopped. Everything was in slow motion. I was talking to you before it happened, but when everything paused you were in mid sentence. You didn’t continue talking till after this.
I had looked over to the passenger seat because I felt an extremely cold air radiating from that area, and he was sitting there in the car with me! He looked over to me and talked to me! It was the most amazing thing! He talked for a long time, and it was really only a few seconds, but the world and time itself paused! Do you know what he said?” I shook my head and she continued. “He said, ‘You are about to crash into a black truck. I tell you this because if I had nothing to do with it you would die from the crash, but I will protect your life. You will be badly injured and will go through a lot of pain, but you will not die. I’m saving you because you need to help Claire find the guilty one. She’ll explain everything.’ And then he vanished, time started again and I saw the black truck spinning out of control. Then, I wake up here.”
Chris talked to my mom! He saved her life! He wanted her to help me find the guilty one?
That was the only thing that didn’t make sense.
My mother looked at me with the face that I hadn’t realized till then I missed so much. She was concerned for me. “What is it?”
“The guilty one. I don’t get it.”
“Well, guilty means-”
“I know what that means! I don’t get who that is or what it has to deal with him.”
“Think back, Claire. You saw him a few times before correct?” She didn’t wait for me to answer. She was back. “Did he talk to you?”

“Yeah. He said...” I gasped. “He said that I knew who the killer was! He texted me and the text read ‘You know the killer. They are closer then you think’! Mom, he wants us to find the person who murdered him!”
She looked skeptical at first, but then she really thought. “First degree murder is of course illegal. That would make the murderer a guilty person...” She gasped too. “Yes, of course! Of course he would want us to find his murderer! So they can’t hurt anyone else! Claire, my darling, you are a genius!”
I didn’t feel happy like she did. I felt the over whelming pain of talking about Chris, and murderers, and how they interact. The knife was stabbing me again, but not in my stomach. This time my heart was being tormented by the constant stabbing. I didn’t show my pain on the outside, but on the inside I was screaming in horror knowing that too many stabs at the heart would end my pain...and me.
“Mom, I can’t do that,” I whispered.
Her concerned look returned. “Why? Honey, we need to do this. We can’t be the cause of others dying.”
“Mom, you’re a lawyer! You can put together a search party and find that killer. I want no part in this. It’s too painful.”
“Claire.” She said my name softly, and I loved the way her softness felt warm across my cold skin. “I know Chris was very special to you, and I know how special you were to him. You two were so close you were like brother and sister. Sometimes bickered like siblings also,” she laughed. “But you have to help him so he can move on and be happy. He needs you right now.” She put her bandaged hand on mine.
“But I can’t let him move on, cause that means that he’ll be gone forever.”
“Sweety, when you really care about someone they never leave you. Chris is dead, he has been that way for a year, but that doesn’t mean he is gone and he left you. No, I can guarantee that he will watch over you and everyone else who cared about him.” She squeezed my hand slightly. “Now, go home and get some rest, but could you tell the nurse I need some pain killer before you leave?”
I smiled at her. “Of course I will. Do you think they could give me some pain killer too?”
The concern was back. “Are you in pain?”
Not yet.
“No ma’am. Just a joke.”
She smiled at me. “Come here.” She opened her arms and I hugged her gently. “Everything is going to be fine. It’ll work out, darling.”
I hope so. Mom, you almost died because of me being stubborn! I’m not sure we should do this...


8. Under The Cherry Tree

SilentGirl: She woke up today!
GhostBoy: She did??!! I’m happy for you, but I’m not sure we should be talking. I mean, I know we talk like everyday, but it still feels wrong knowing your mom said you weren’t aloud to anymore...
I sighed. I knew how he felt about talking behind my mom’s back, but I haven’t really been talking to Sammy in a while. I know I’m being a little dramatic about what happened two weeks ago, but she really hurt my feelings! She hasn’t even bothered texting me, calling me, or even talking to me at school. I mean, three days after that happened she sent me a text saying, ‘I’m sorry.’ That was the last time she tried to talk to me! So, I really haven’t had anyone but him to talk to, and it’s not like I’m going to go to a school counselor. I can already imagine what type of nut house they would send me to.
SilentGirl: I know how you feel, and I’m sorry but you’re the only one I can talk to. You’re the only one around any more or who understands. Wait, that reminds me! Guess what my mom said to me today????!!!!???!!! Go on! Just guess!!
GhostBoy: Ummm..... That.... you look really pretty and... she thanked you for saving her life?
SilentGirl: No! First of all, I’m not pretty I’m beautiful! Second of all, she doesn’t know that I’m the one who saved her. I didn’t think about that when she was talking to me.... Anyway, nope! That’s not it! Keep guessing!
GhostBoy: Wow! Somebody’s full of themself... Ha! Come on! Just tell me! I don’t like thinking! It makes my brain hurt! That’s why I dropped out of school....
I laughed. He had such a way with humor.
SilentGirl: Ha! Ha! Ha! So funny! Anyway, she was talking to me about the crash and she said that she saw Chris! Can you believe it??!!
I waited. I waited for a few seconds, but then those seconds turned to minutes. I waited five minutes before I decided to type another message.
SilentGirl: GB, are you there? Did you leave? The screen says you didn’t.... Are you okay?

Another five minutes.
Maybe telling him about what Mom said was a bad idea. I mean...well...I don’t get why it would be bad to tell him! He said two weeks ago that he also saw Chris’s spirit, so why would it be bad telling him that my mom saw Chris also?
I waited, and waited, and waited. Nothing happened. My screen still said that GhostBoy was logged on, so it wasn’t like he left. Maybe he was just typing back a long message! No. He would’ve typed back when he knew I was worried about him. What could be going on?
I was just about to give up when I got a message.
GhostBoy: We need to meet. Like, face to face.
WHAT?! He wants us to meet...in PERSON?! How could that happen? Why does he want to? Why do we have to? Should I meet him? Is he really a teenager? Could he be a predator? What if he’s lying about seeing Chris? Why am I thinking all these questions instead of asking him for the answers? Because I’m me. There’s one question answered.
SilentGirl: Why do we need to meet? Why can’t we be fine just talking over the internet? I mean, it’s enough for me. Why isn’t that enough for you???? Huh????
GhostBoy: It’s just not....*Growl* It’s just not the same!
SilentGirl: I don’t think that’s such a good idea....
GhostBoy: Why? We’re friends right?
SilentGirl: Well, yeah we are but that doesn’t mean we HAVE to meet face to face right?
GhostBoy: I’ll meet you in twenty minutes at the bench in the old park under the Japanese cherry tree. See ya then.
He logged off.
Under the Japanese cherry tree in the old park...that’s where Chris and I would go to talk. That was our spot! Why does he want to meet there? Why not somewhere with more people like the diner or the mall? Why in the old park? Well, I have to get going if I want to meet him there in twenty minutes. Do I really want to go though?
I didn’t think the answer to my question because I knew it would have stopped me. I grabbed my keys and walked out to my car.

On my way to the old park, which was on the other side of town, I didn’t think about what I was doing and how dangerous it could be. I thought about how I felt about actually meeting GhostBoy. I felt thrilled. I could see if he was a really cute popular guy who just went in the chat room to meet new people, or if he was a big looser who didn’t have any friends and knew that no one knew who anyone was in the chat room so he could meet people and actually talk to them. Was he really a teenage boy though? Or was he some forty year old man who could hurt or possibly kill me?
I shook that out of my head. I went back to thinking about him being really cute.
When I arrived at the old park I almost burst out laughing. I don’t know why I was