Squaring my shoulders, I walked out of my room and down the hall. As other employees passed me, I could feel their lingering stares. I stuck out like a sore thumb right now. Once I made it outside, I headed for the front gate of the castle, where the bus would pull up. I knew that I was a few minutes early, but when I reached the gate I saw that Allan was already there. He waved when he saw me.

As I approached him, I noticed that he was dressed normal enough. He was wearing faded jeans and a gray long sleeved shirt. I waited for the expression to cross his face, the expression I’d seen a million times when someone’s eyes would get wide when they saw me, and then they’d try to cover it up and pretend like they didn’t notice the way I was dressed. The expression never came. He didn’t show any of that hidden embarrassment that my family did when they were out in public with me. He looked sincerely happy to see me.

“Hey!” he said when I was finally within earshot, “you weren’t kidding around before, you look awesome!”

“Thank you,” I said. I wasn’t letting my guard down. There was no way this guy could be so perfect.

“We’re going to look fantastic walking together,” he said as we waited for the bus to pull up. “We’ve got this very contrasted, white and black thing going on. Seriously, you look legit.”

I grinned in spite of myself. “You know,” I said, “I actually have a philosophy when it comes to getting dressed, and it’s ‘every day is Halloween if you try hard enough’.”

Allan nodded thoughtfully. “That’s a good philosophy.” He gave a short laugh. “Every day is Halloween for me.”

The bus had pulled up and a herd of tourists poured out. “Why do you say that?” I asked as we waited to get on.

He shook his head as he laughed to himself. “It’s nothing, just a dumb inside joke.”

I raised an eyebrow, but didn’t press the subject. As we got on the bus I noticed a few people staring at me, but that was nothing out of the ordinary. Allan and I took a seat in the back and continued chatting while we drove into town. I was again shocked at just how easy it was to talk to him. I had never felt so at ease with a guy I liked. During the ride, rain started to hit against the windows of the bus.

“Man,” Allan muttered, “I didn’t even think to bring an umbrella.”

“Oh it’s fine,” I said. “I don’t mind the rain.”

“That’s good,” he said, “because it is really coming down.”

When I turned my head to look out the far window, I almost jumped in surprise. Standing in the aisle of the bus was Greg. He smiled at me and nodded. Apparently, bringing the sword hilt was working. I smiled back and resisted the urge to give him a thumbs up. He probably wouldn’t know what a thumbs up even meant.

The guy in the seat across the aisle was giving me a weird look. Maybe he thought I was smiling at him. Turning around quickly, I glanced back at Allan. He looked troubled, but when he noticed my gaze, he smiled.

“So,” he said, “I thought we’d go out to eat, and then I’ve got a surprise I want to show you.”

I narrowed my eyes. Surprises were great, when they were from someone you knew really well and trusted. Surprises were less great when they were from a guy you’d talked to once and who knew literally nothing about you.

“Is this a good surprise?” I asked, “or like a, stuff your body parts into a freezer, kind of surprise?”

He raised his eyebrows as he stared at me, a look of confusion crossing his face. “I dunno,” he said, “when you put it that way it’s kind of hard to decide, but if I had to choose, I guess I would have to go with the good surprise option.”

I gave a hard laugh. “Thank you, that’s very reassuring.”

A crooked smile lit his face. “Don’t worry,” he said, “I know you’ll love it, and it absolutely does not involve freezers.”

When the bus finally pulled to a stop, I rose to my feet to climb off.

“Oh, you forgot your bag,” Allan said. I turned around to see him lifting the satchel from the ground and as I rushed to retrieve it from him, I saw a strange expression cross his face. “This is uh—” he hefted it up and down a bit, “this is really heavy. What are you carrying in here?”

Reaching out, I grabbed my bag. I was carrying around the hilt of a medieval sword, but I couldn’t very well tell him that.

“It’s a brick,” I blurted out.

He stared at me for a long moment. “What?” he asked.

Why had I said that? Without offering another word of explanation, I turned and got off the bus. Outside, the rain was coming down hard, and as soon as Allan got off we started running. Within moments I lagged behind. Allan had at least a solid foot of height on me, and my short legs could barely keep up. I wanted to yell at him to slow down, but in the confusion of the wind and rain, I didn’t know if he’d be able to hear me.

Eventually, we made it to the restaurant he’d picked out. It was a rustic little diner, the kind that sells country-style American food. Once inside, a waitress greeted us and led us to a booth in the corner. She handed us our menus and left to get us our drinks. As I started browsing the menu, I could hear Allan stifle a laugh.

I glanced up. “What is it?” I asked.

“Oh nothing,” he said, grinning, “It’s just that the rain made your make-up run a little.”

Raising my hand to my cheek, I wiped away some of the raindrops. When I looked down at my fingers, they were covered in black make-up gunk. “Fantastic,” I muttered. I could feel the heat of a blush rising to my face.

“I think it really adds to your whole look though,” reassured Allan. “It’s very emotionally evocative. It makes me wonder if you’ve been crying. Perhaps underneath your hardened, sarcastic exterior, you are truly a fragile soul.”

I rolled my eyes at him, hoping that I didn’t appear as embarrassed as I felt. “You’re a weirdo,” I said matter-of-factly.

He shrugged, but a smile still played at the corners of his mouth.

Pushing back my chair, I stood up. “I’m going to fix this,” I said with a gesture to my face, “so you should order the chicken strips for me.”

He nodded as I walked away. Weaving between the tables, I finally managed to find a bathroom in the back of the diner. Pushing the door open, I stepped inside and walked over to one of the mirrors. I almost jumped when I saw my own reflection. A horrifying amount of mascara was running down my face and though it looked totally awesome, it was perhaps a bit too hardcore for a first date. Grabbing a paper towel, I started wiping it away.

“You could have told me I had make-up running down my face Greg,” I muttered. There was no response. With a pause, I glanced around. Usually he appeared when I talked to him. Pursing my lips, I turned back to the mirror and finished washing off my face.

When I was finally looking a little less terrifying, I threw the paper towel away and walked back into the diner. I could see Allan sitting at the booth, a plate in front of him. Our food had already arrived. As I made my way through the tables again, I could see Greg, hovering beside my seat. I raised my eyebrows in surprise. He looked furious. I wanted to ask him what was going on, but for obvious reasons, I knew that I couldn’t. Sitting down, I gave Allan a little smile.

“How do I look now?” I asked.

“Pretty good,” he said with a laugh, “though I think I’m going to miss the crying emo kid look.” He glanced down at his plate. “Well, shall we dig in?”

“Yes,” I said with enthusiasm. I was starving.

Suddenly, I froze. A sensation had just come over me—a spine-chilling, heart-stopping, skin-crawling sensation. I felt like I’d just been dunked in a tub of ice, and then pushed off of a skyscraper. I almost cried out in surprise, but I bit it back. My expression must have betrayed me though, because Allan suddenly leaned forward in alarm.

“Are you okay?” he asked. He sounded worried. Really worried.

“I’m fine,” I gasped, feeling breathless. What on earth had just happe—

“Jessica,” a voice said inside my head.

I almost screamed. I could feel it now, an entire extra consciousness in my mind. I knew it was Greg, I knew it without a shadow of a doubt. I could feel him, his thoughts and his feelings. Could he hear my thoughts too?

“Are you possessing me right now?” I thought as hard as I could. I tried to imagine that I was yelling the words.

“Yes, but I can explain—”

“Get out! Get out, get out!” I screamed internally. “We’re friends now, but we have definitely not reached this point!”

This was weird. This was beyond weird. I must have been making some really bizarre expressions because the anxious look on Allan’s face wasn’t going away. This was my first date with quite possibly the man of my dreams. Of course Greg would use this time to practice possession.

“I felt it was necessary to posses you,” he said in a rush. “It’s the only we can both talk without you looking like someone who’s gone mad!”

“Are you sure?” I asked, “Because I’m pretty sure I look like a crazy person right now!”

“Calm yourself,” he said. “You’re still in control of your being. In truth, I can barely stay in your head. You’re using a great amount of will to force me out.”

“Apparently not enough!”

“He did something to your drink!” Greg said frantically. “He poured something into your water! It was a clear liquid, but I do not know what it was. I don’t trust him.”

My stomach dropped as I stared at Allan with wide eyes. “Are you sure?” I asked.

“As sure as I am dead.”

I swallowed. The cold feeling was suddenly gone and when I glanced to my left, I saw Greg. He was glaring at Allan.

“Seriously,” Allan said. He looked panicked. “Are you okay? You just got really pale.”

“Um,” I mumbled. My mind was racing. I didn’t know what to do! This was the sort of thing that happened in T.V. shows or movies. He was trying to drug me! It seemed impossible; he was too nice, too perfect. Why did he have to turn out to be a creep? “I’m feeling sick,” I said, “really, really sick. I think we should head back to the castle.”

His eyes grew visibly wider. “H-hold on,” he said. Grabbing my cup, he held it towards me. “Here, drink some water; I’m sure that will make you feel better.”

I was tempted to grab the water and throw it in his face. Instead, I shakily stood up. “No, thank you, really, I’m not feeling well. I’m so sorry, I feel bad. I’ll—I’ll pay for my meal if you want, but I think we should go.”

Allan looked even more distressed than before. “No,” he said. He looked genuinely concerned. “I asked, so I’ll pay.” He quickly led me to the front where he gave the waitress his card.

Glancing behind me, I saw the booth we had been sitting at, and the untouched plates of food. Suddenly, even though I knew it was stupid, I felt guilty. Allan seemed so worried about me and he was ready to leave just because I said I felt sick. Maybe Greg was mistaken. Maybe he’d misunderstood something he’d seen. Looking up, I saw Greg. He still looked enraged. Shaking my head, I followed Allan to the door. I didn’t know what to think.

Outside, the rain was coming down harder than ever. “Here,” Allan said, holding out his hand, “you can keep your head down and out of the rain, I’ll lead you.”

Without thinking, I took his hand and bowed my head. The rain was coming down so hard that if I looked up, I would be blinded. We ran for a while and as the rain seeped through my cardigan, I shivered. It was freezing. Soon enough, we came to a stop underneath a building overhang. Looking up, I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.

“Where are we?” I asked. This didn’t look like the bus stop.

“Sorry,” Allan said, “I just needed to catch my breath for a second. We’re almost there.”

“To the bus stop?” I clarified. I was starting to get really freaked out.

He shook his head. “To the surprise.”

My heart pounded in my chest. “I’m really not feeling good,” I said. “Please, let’s just head back.”

“This will make you feel better, I swear.” He placed a hand on my shoulder, his expression surprisingly earnest. “Trust me, just for a little bit, please.”

“Don’t trust him on your life,” Greg whispered.

I glanced up at Greg. This was awful. “I’m sorry Allan,” I said, “but I really think this date should be over. I can take myself to the bus.”

Allan stared at me for a long moment, his pale blue eyes boring into mine. He wasn’t letting go of my shoulder.

“I understand,” he said at last. He looked down in defeat and let go of me. “I’m really sorry,” he murmured. “I just wanted you to have fun tonight and now you’re feeling sick. Truth is, the surprise was just a tarot card reading. When you said that you weren’t my type, I thought this sort of thing would be right up your alley.” He shook his head and laughed. “Honestly, I’m just being super selfish. I was hoping you’d feel well enough to go because I already paid for it. I’m sorry, I am so cheap.”

Looking around again, I realized that I recognized our surroundings. This was the part of town I’d come to when I visited that Wiccan shop. I remembered that the cashier had given me a flier for a tarot card reading. Biting my lip, I glanced down, hating myself for what I was about to do. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t trust Allan. If what Greg said was true, then this guy was bad news. And I was a giant idiot.

“Fine,” I said, “let’s go do this stupid card reading. But I swear to you, if you touch me I will scream my head off and douse you in pepper spray.” I totally didn’t have pepper spray. Maybe I should have brought Greg’s sword along after all.

Allan looked utterly bewildered. “Why would—” he shook his head. “Never mind, it’s a deal.”

“You are a fool,” Greg whispered as I followed Allan back out into the rain.

‘Yes I am,’ I thought to myself.

The rain was still coming down as we weaved through the buildings, but I forced myself to pay attention to where we were going this time. Sure enough, my suspicion was confirmed. We were nearing the little shop with The Black Cat sign hanging above it. However, instead of going to the shop, we headed to the door next to it. Jogging up the steps, Allan knocked on the door. At that moment, I almost chickened out. While Allan was at the door, I could’ve started running and probably gotten a pretty good head start before he noticed I was gone. I shook my head. I was being overly paranoid, right? I mean, Brittney knew Allan. She said he was a nice guy. That had to count for something, didn’t it?

Before I could decide what to do, the door opened to reveal a tall, thin woman. She was totally decked out in bead necklaces and a peasant skirt. Allan glanced down at me.

“Are you coming?” he asked.

Glancing to my right, I saw that Greg was still beside me. With a sigh, I slowly walked up the steps. If things got bad, maybe Greg could possess Allan or the psychic lady, and I could get out of there.

“Come in, come in,” she said energetically. “Get in out of the rain!” She hurried us inside and I looked around at the interior of the building with wide eyes. This lady was seriously dedicated. Beaded fabric hung from the walls and muted candlelight lit the room. There were probably five sticks of incense burning too, making it hard to breathe. In the middle of the room was a small round table, circled by three velvet chairs. As Greg drifted into the room, his appearance flickered in and out a lot, even more than usual. I stared at him in concern.

“There’s something strange here,” he said. His voice was weak. “Something is not right.”

“Please,” said the lady, “come take a seat and make yourselves comfortable.”

Nervously, I sat down. Allan sat down too, in the chair beside me. The psychic moved around the table and paused beside a candle, her warm brown skin glowing in the firelight. Holding a small bundle of leaves over the flame, she let them catch on fire. The bundle looked a lot like one of the smudge sticks I used weeks ago when I was trying to get rid of Greg. As soon as the leaves were lit, she blew them out and waved the smoking bundle around before setting it back down.

“Alright,” she said. Her voice was soft. Picking up a deck of cards, she sat down as well. Shuffling the deck, she looked up at the two of us with a smile still on her face.

Allan leaned forward. “I’m sorry,” he said, “but my date’s not feeling very well. Could we have a quick reading please?”

She raised her eyebrows, as if she understood something more than what Allan had said. A chill ran down my spine. “Of course,” she replied, “that would be no problem.”

Moving quickly, she stood back up and put the cards away. I glanced at Greg as the anxiety within me grew. He looked just as nervous as me now, which wasn’t reassuring at all. Walking over to a chest lined with drawers, the psychic pulled one open and took out a silk bag. Returning to her chair, she took a small white candle out of the bag. Placing it in the center of the table, she also took out a vial of essential oil. With a dropper, she put a few drops on the unlit tip of the candle. Lastly, she revealed an even smaller bag full of coarse sand or crystals. Actually, as I looked closer, I could see that it might be salt.

Upon lighting the candle, she began to create a spiraling circle of salt around the candle’s base. Taking a deep breath, she began to speak.

The words she was saying made no sense. I stared at her in confusion. She definitely wasn’t speaking English, but as I listened, I couldn’t even place the language. It just sounded like a garbled mess of consonants and vowels, like gibberish. My eyes widened. In fact, it sounded an awful lot like the gibberish I had heard for days when Greg first started haunting me.

“I don’t believe it,” I heard him whisper. “She’s got it all wrong, but I think it’s supposed to be Gaelic!”

I glanced at Allan, to see if he could shed any light upon what was going on. He was staring intently at the medium, his hands pressed firmly against the table and his expression almost pained. Something really weird was going on. I needed to get out of here.

“NO!” Greg’s voice cut through my thoughts like a knife. I could see Allan flinch as I glanced up at the ghost. “It’s a spell!” he cried. His eyes were wide with terror as he stared at me. His appearance was flickering a lot now. “Hurry Jessica! Do something, make her stop!”

I leapt to my feet, knocking my chair over in the process. “Hey!” I yelled. She continued with her chanting. “Stop! Are you listening to me? I said stop!” It was hard to hear myself over Greg’s anguished yells. Reaching out, I pushed the candle over and scattered the salt across the room. The psychic fell back suddenly, as if pushed by an unseen force. A horrible silence filled the air.

I looked around, my heart beating frantically. There was no sign of Greg.

The lady’s breath was heavy as she unsteadily rose to her feet. She gave me a tired smile. “It is done,” she said, sounding relieved.

I was feeling anything but relieved. “What the cuss was that?” I asked. I could barely contain myself. “What did you just do?”

Allan stood up as well and rested a hand on my shoulder. I shoved his hand away. “It’s alright,” he said. His eyes were reassuring. “That thing that was haunting you is gone now. You’re safe.”