Chantia ran her hands nervously down her
sides, trying to make sure her dress was sitting correctly. She was going to
see someone at the bank to try and take out a loan for the house, but she
wasn’t sure if the dress created the image she wanted to go for. She wasn’t the
type to wear dresses or makeup, but she wanted to appear slightly older and
hopefully more mature in order to increase her chances at the bank.
“I’m not so sure about this dress…” she
fretted nervously. She hadn’t had a lot of chances to prove herself at her job,
so she was rather worried that she’d be refused a loan. Weren’t people supposed
to be properly established in their jobs to qualify for a loan?
“Chantia, you’ll be fine,” Evelyn reassured
her daughter. “You have a well-paying job and no bad debt on your name. There
shouldn’t be a reason for them to refuse you. You shouldn’t worry so much.”
Chantia sighed heavily and dropped her
hands from her sides. She couldn’t help that she was worrying so much – this
meeting was going to be the making or breaking point as to whether she’ll be
able to buy the house or not! Add to the fact that she had only recently
started working and she was pretty sure it was acceptable for her to worry.
The doorbell rang. Chantia took a deep
breath, knowing it was time to face the challenge lying ahead of her.
“Hey,” Sam greeted her with a smile.
Chantia was irrationally glad to see him. She had asked him to accompany her to
the bank (as moral support) and she had been half afraid he would refuse.
Instead, he had smiled at her and promised her he’d be there. He wouldn’t be
there at the actual meeting itself, but he would be waiting for her when she
was done with the meeting.
“Hi,” she greeted him back nervously before
giving him a hug. She was nervous, but already she was slightly calmer. Sam
really was a good influence on her. He patted her comfortingly on the back
before he pulled back and smiled reassuringly at her.
“Come on, let’s go,” he told her and led
her to the taxi that was still waiting for them. Yes, she had a perfectly
functional car, but she didn’t want to arrive at the bank in a car that looked
like it was held together by duct tape.
On the way to the bank, Sam drew Chantia’s
attention away from the upcoming meeting by threading his fingers with hers.
“You know, today’s the last day the spring
festival will be in town,” he reminded her. “Do you want to go? After the
meeting, I mean,” he suggested.
Chantia smiled at him. “Sure,” she agreed
happily. It might be fun to go to the festival. She hadn’t attended a festival
in years. She was suddenly reminded of the last time she had attended the fair,
causing her to burst out laughing. Plumbob, she’d been a sulky child.
“You know, the last time I attended a fair
it rained out,” she informed him nostalgically. “I refused to go home, so
instead I stayed at the fair and got soaking wet. The pollen in the air also
caused my allergies to flare up, so in the end the day was such a let-down,”
she laughed reminiscently. She continued telling Sam about her first festival
visit for the rest of the trip, and by the time they reached the bank she had
completely forgotten about her nerves.
Of course, the moment they arrived at the
bank she was instantly reminded again. Who was she, a girl in her early
twenties, to think she’d be able to qualify for a loan? She continued fretting
until Sam reassuringly squeezed her hand.
“You’ll be fine,” he parroted her parents.
“Good luck.”
Chantia smiled shakily at him and nodded
before entering the building. It was time to face the music.
In the end, the meeting was a bit
anti-climactic. Chantia didn’t know what she had been expecting, but the woman
behind the desk only asked her to complete an application form and hand in some
documents before taking everything and telling Chantia that she’d be informed
within several days whether her application was approved or not. After that
Chantia was brusquely dismissed, leaving her to stare at the woman in
bewilderment.
“Wait, that’s it?” she asked, somewhat
confused by the proceedings. The woman looked up with a slightly irritated
expression.
“Yes. We’ll contact you if your application
gets approved,” she repeated impatiently.
Chantia decided it would be better to leave
the woman to her work after that, leaving with Sam for the spring festival
instead.
When they arrived at the festival it was
already quite busy. There were people at every activity, either participating
or just mingling around. The entire atmosphere surrounding the festival was
filled with infectious excitement and it wasn’t long before the excitement
infected Chantia as well.
“This was a great idea,” she informed Sam
smilingly before pulling him away to attempt the activities provided by the
festival.
They spent the rest of the day at the
festival, trying out the numerous activities available and simply enjoying the
wonderful weather. By the time they broke for lunch they had done the
horseshoes (which Chantia had won), the greeting card and the Love Tester
(where their love had been declared as passionate).
After lunch, they spent the afternoon doing
the more physical activities, like skating and dancing. Chantia was somewhat
sceptical about the skating rink at first – sure, she had gone ice skating
before and there wasn’t a lot of difference between the two…but skating in a
dress was a different story entirely.
“This is a bad idea,” she complained nervously
once she got onto the rink. “What if I fall? Wearing a dress is pretty, but it
really doesn’t provide much protection,” she explained worriedly. Sam chuckled
at her and put his hand of the small of her back to help her along.
“Don’t worry so much,” he teased her with a
fond smile. “You can use me to break your fall, if you really think it’s
necessary.”
“It’s a bad idea,” Chantia repeated, but
her broad smile took the sting out of her words and she allowed Sam to guide
her along on the rink. In the end, she did fall, but because Sam went down with
her and only laughed when they fell, it didn’t bother her that much.
Still, after that Chantia decided the risk
for falling was too high, so instead they retreated to the dance floor (where
the risk for falling was much lower).
By the time they had enough of dancing, the
fair was winding down and darkness was starting to fall. One by one the lights
started to come on and the noise level started getting down as the park were
depleted of children and filled with couples celebrating Love Day instead.
“Thank you for today,” Chantia told Sam as
they relaxed at the fountain. “I had a lot of fun. We should do this again.”
Sam smiled happily at her. “I’m glad you
enjoyed it.”
Chantia sighed contently and wrapped her
arms around Sam, enjoying his presence. The time she spent with him always
seemed so endless. She could honestly see herself spending the rest of her life
with him.
A slight breeze started blowing softly,
rustling the leaves in the park and causing the water of the fountain to patter
slightly louder onto the residue water. In a bush to their left, a cricket
started chirping, creating additional ambient sound. Chantia allowed herself to
just relax and enjoy the moment, but the moment lasted far too short before Sam
pulled away from her.
He rubbed his neck, a sure sign he was
nervous.
“I, uhm, there’s something I want to tell
you,” he told her somewhat nervously. At her quizzical ‘okay’, he took a deep
breath and started talking.
“People have told me before that I have a
gift with words; that I have a very beautiful way of stating things and
provoking emotions from people’s hearts. The thing is, I tried extremely hard,
but I just simply couldn’t find the words to describe you,” he confessed.
“There are so many ways to describe you, and yet, none of those ways quite
manage to do you justice. So, Chantia, instead of waxing fancy poems and the
like, I’d rather keep it simple and let my actions speak for themselves.”
In conclusion, he did something Chantia
really hadn’t been expecting at all.
Time stopped. She couldn’t tear her eyes
away from the man in front of her, and the small black velvet box in his hand,
opened up to reveal one of the most beautiful rings she had ever seen. It was
perfect. Sam didn’t even need to ask the question anymore, but he did it
anyway.
“Chantia, will you marry me?”
She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t breathe.
All she could do was stare at him and hope her growing smile and nearly
imperceptible nod would answer him.
“Yes,” she finally agreed breathlessly.
“Yes, I will marry you.”
Chantia walked around on clouds for the
next couple of days, constantly pausing to look at the ring on her hand. She
honestly couldn’t remember ever being so happy before. How many times had she
daydreamt before to spend the rest of her life with Sam? He was the only person
she’d ever dated, but he was so perfect for her. He was everything she could
ever hope for.
Her happiness only increased when the bank
finally contacted her and informed her that her application had been approved. It
would take several weeks before everything would be finalized, but pretty soon
she’d be the proud owner of the house on the hill.
The wonderful news caused Chantia to make a
long-overdue visit.
“I missed you,” Chantia told Charlotte as
she gave her oldest friend a hug. Between attending university and making
arrangements for the house, it felt like she hadn’t seen her friend in ages.
“It’s been a while,” Charlotte agreed with
a smile, just as happy to see her friend. Chantia took a deep breath and
launched into conversation, explaining the real reason she visited the ghost.
“I’m buying the house,” she informed her
best and oldest friend. The ghostly girl hadn’t changed at all in all the time
Chantia had known her. “I’ve made arrangements and signed a contract and
everything, so it’s official: I’m buying the house. Now you guys don’t have to
worry about losing your home.”
For a long minute Charlotte just stared at
Chantia, before a broad and genuine smile appeared on her face.
“It wasn’t really necessary,” Charlotte
assured Chantia, “but thank you. Really, thank you. You have no idea how much
this means to us.”
Chantia gave the ghost a hug, happy she
made the long-dead girl smile again. It had been a long time since she’s seen
such a genuine smile from the ghost.
“Oh, and I’m getting married!” Chantia
continued enthusiastically. “To Sam. Well, his name’s actually Samuel, but we
just call him Sam. He’s been my boyfriend ever since high school,” she
explained excitedly. “It’s a pity he’s unable to see ghosts – I’d have loved to
have you meet each other.”
“Oh,” Charlotte replied with surprise in
her voice. “Well, congratulations then. I hope the two of you are happy and I
wish you the best of luck.” She hesitated slightly before continuing.
“What…kind of person is he?” she asked hesitantly.
Chantia smiled happily and told Charlotte
everything she could about Sam; about how supportive he was of her; of how he
just understood her; of his dream of being a professional writer and everything
else she could think of. By the time she finished, Charlotte had a carefully
blank expression on her face, but then the light flickered slightly across her
face and Chantia was left uncertain if the expression had really existed.
“He sounds nice,” Charlotte replied with a
smile. “Even so, I’d really love to meet him. Maybe…Mia’s potion?” she suggested
hesitantly. “If Mia can replicate her potion, then…Sam…will be able to see me,
right?”
“Hmm,” Chantia mused before she nodded.
“You’re right, it should work. I’ll ask her when I see her again,” she
promised.
As promised, Chantia talked to Mia. Mia
still had her notes of creating the potion, so she had absolutely no problem
with giving one to her sister. Charlotte was an important part of Chantia’s
life and Sam was also an important part, so Mia could understand why her sister
wanted the potion.
“As promised, one ‘ghost potion’,” Mia
stated as she handed the potion over. “Don’t drink it – it must be thrown on
the ground. Once you step into the vapours it should start working,” she
delivered the instructions.
Several days later, Chantia managed to
convince Sam to use the potion. He was a bit sceptical, but Chantia had to
admit his expression was pretty funny when he noticed he had turned into a
ghost.
“What the – did this thing kill me?!” Sam
asked in a panicked voice. Chantia laughed and pulled him closer to her,
proving he wasn’t quite as incorporeal as he appeared. Of course, the fact that
it was Chantia touching him instead of someone unable to interact with ghosts
didn’t exactly help his cause.
“You’re still alive, silly,” Chantia
assured her fiancé. “I told you this would happen, remember?” Sam raised an
eyebrow, clearly disagreeing with her.
“Not quite,” he disagreed. “You told me
this thing would make me see ghosts, not make me become a ghost.”
“Details, details,” Chantia waved her hand
dismissively. “The end result is the same. You’ll be like that for three hours,
and then you’ll be able to interact with ghosts further on.”
Sam agreed to meet Charlotte, so Chantia
took him to the house she now owned and introduced him to the ghosts. Charlotte
in particular made sure to talk a long time with, seemingly trying to decide
whether she approved of him or not.
Chantia, meanwhile, took the time to
reconnect with the other ghosts again. While she still considered them as some
of her best friends, it had been some time since she had last spoken with them.
“Clint’s gone?!” Chantia asked
incredulously after hearing the news. She had noticed the blue ghost had been
missing the last couple of times she had visited, but she had never considered
that he might actually be gone.
“Yes,” Angelica confirmed with a complex
tone – Chantia could hear sadness, happiness, and yes, even a bit of envy in
the ghost’s voice. “That sweet girl of his passed away, so he moved on to be
with her again,” the age-old woman explained. “He was so in love when he died,
and she was so heartbroken, that he decided to stay and watch over her,”
Angelica explained reminiscently. “She’s joined him now, so they moved on
together.”
Chantia stared at Angelica, her eyes
burning slightly. Clint was her friend, and she’ll really miss him, but the way
Angelica talked about it…she couldn’t help but to feel happy for him.
“Oh,” she said, her voice catching
slightly. “Well, in that case, I…well, I guess I’m happy for him. I’m really
going to miss him, though.”
Angelica smiled sadly. “I know,” she agreed
tearily, “but I’m so happy for him. Life as a Lost is very lonely, and so very
few of us get the chance to resolve our reason before being forced to move on.
That Clint satisfied his reason…” she wiped away ghostly tears, shaking her
head. “He is such a lucky man.”
“Yeah,” Chantia agreed softly, feeling her
chest tighten. She couldn’t help but be sad that he was gone, but put like
that…she really was happy for him.
“Anyway,” Angelica changed the subject,
wiping away the last of her tears, “I hear you’re getting married. I just want
to say congratulations,” the woman congratulated Chantia with that decidedly
proud tone that only elders seemed to get correct.
Before long, the sky started to darken,
heralding the end of their visit. Just before Chantia and Sam left, Charlotte
pulled Chantia away, anxious to talk to her.
“Your Sam is…he’s a very nice person,” the
ghost informed her diplomatically, but Chantia wasn’t blind. She could see
something was bothering her friend. She crossed her arms across her chest,
slightly on edge.
“But something is bothering you, right?”
Chantia asked suspiciously. “Like what?” Sam was a wonderful man. Why would
Charlotte have a problem with him?
Charlotte hesitated slightly before taking
the plunge. “I don’t trust him,” she stated bluntly. “He’s a nice guy, Chantia,
but…” She shook her head, “…he’s too perfect. Nobody’s that perfect.”
Chantia scoffed, highly offended. “Excuse
me? Sam is a wonderful person – there’s nothing wrong with him! I can’t…why
would you say something like that?”
“I’m not saying he’s a bad person Chantia,”
Charlotte protested, “I’m just saying you should –”
“No Charlotte. I don’t care what you say. I
have never been so offended,” Chantia interrupted angrily. “How can you say
that? You know how important he is to me!” With that she stalked away with
angry tears in her eyes, ignoring Charlotte’s calls to listen to her.
Sam was a wonderful person. She knew him.
Nothing was wrong with him, and he wasn’t hiding anything from her. She
couldn’t believe Charlotte would implicate he wasn’t to be trusted. Sam was
everything she had ever wanted in a man. He was amazing and understanding and
loving and supportive and perfect and –
- and nobody’s perfect, her mind whispered
traitorously.
_~…~_
So Chantia managed to get the house after
all. I’d say she had some interesting ups and downs in this chapter. The
wedding was originally supposed to be in this chapter, but the scenes with the
ghosts sneaked in so I had to move the wedding to a later chapter. But I
managed to sneak some plot in, so I’m happy. :)
