Sobs shook the little boy as he cried both uncontrollably and inconsolably onto his fathers shoulder. "It's ok Trent" the older man said. The little boy looked up, tears of frustration, pain and anger glistening in his dark brown eyes.

"IT IS NOT ALL RIGHT" he screamed; voice surprisingly strong despite the choking sobs that were coming from deep within his chest. "IT WILL NEVER BE 'ALL RIGHT IT WON'T" he continued in the outraged voice. "Never" he repeated, this time the sobs overtook him. His father made no move to comfort him. He was a very young looking man, not a day over 30, but his face wore a pained expression and lines crossed his forehead. His eyes gave away most of his pain. They were a soft blue and they gave off a feeling of sadness to anyone who looked upon them.

"Trent, you are right, it will never go away completely but it will fade with time" the man said, his voice sounding very pained.

"It won't, I did it, I did it!" the boy, Trent, whispered.

"Don't say that!" the man warned. He was thinking the same of himself though. 'My fault' was the only thing going through his mind at that moment.

"Why didn't I go too?" the boy said more to himself than his father.

I would have lost more if you had been with her" the man whispered 'I should have stopped her' he told himself.

"I NEED her" the boy said, once again breaking into sobs. His father tried to sift through his more complicated emotions. He could not decide whether to comfort his son or sob himself. Finally he compromised by allowing his eyes to fill with tears and wrapping his arms around his son.

The next two years were hell for Trent Carter and his father, they moved all the time, going from town to town trying to escape the realities of what had happened to them. Trent's nightmares always had the same ending; solemn brown eyes staring back at him from the blood splattered woman on the floor. He woke up every night in a cold sweat, never getting used to the intense terror that the dreams brought back. Trent's father seemed not to notice that his son barely slept at nights. He had transformed dramatically from the time of the terrible event. His thick black hair, over the two years had become heavily specked with gray. His eyes looked hollow and the lines in his forehead had deepened. He also seemed not to notice every night his son comforted himself by strumming at one of his many instruments and signing lullabies to himself. Trent’s father had been occupying himself by seeing a woman who had recently lost her husband. He was happy only with her. Trent hated her. Hated the way she made his father's eyes sparkle and made him laugh when Trent himself had not been able to do so in two long years. The woman's daughter was very pretty but very silent too. She only talked to her mother and a friend of hers. She seemed to dislike his father as much as he disliked her mother.
One night when his father came in from a very long date Trent was waiting for him. Now 12 years old his eyes were even more defiant then they had been 2 years before.

"Se isn't mom" he shouted at his father before he was all the way in the door.

"I 'm quite capable of telling them apart thanks" his father snapped.

"I'm not sure you are! Do you remember mom?" he asked. "What color eyes did she have?"

"Green, beautiful green" his father answered with a faraway look on his face for a few moments.

"No" Trent whispered, he had not really meant his words earlier but suddenly he realized they were true. "They were brown" he said.

"Honest mistake" his father said, looking slightly started.

"Alice's eyes are green" Trent said as if not hearing him.

"MISS Alice" his father corrected.

"I see her eyes every night" Trent said, still not listening to his father. "They are pleading me for help" he continued. His father faltered. "I see her every night. I found her" he whispered.

"Nightmares. You didn't find her Granny Sue did" his father said in a choking voice.

"She told you that so you wouldn't worry about me" Trent said. He thought to himself that he wished his father had been given the reason to worry about his only son. His father sat down hard in his chair.

"The nightmares will go away" his father insisted.

"I'll remember her face forever. She looked so scared' Trent whispered again.

"STOP" his father shouted. "I need to tell you something! You aren't going to ruin it for me!" He took a deep breath. Trent's face changed a little bit, his eyes didn't look so clouded anymore. "I am marrying Alice" Trent's mouth opened in shock. All of the cloudiness had by then disappeared.

A few minutes later Trent ran out of the house, he was soaked through in minutes. The rain was pouring, coming down as hard as the night, the night she had died.
He remembered perfectly. His mother had gone alone to visit a crime scene. She had been a very good investigator. A man had threatened to kill himself and she had decided to go check it out. She and her husband, Trent's father, had been fighting that day so he hadn't objected. Her son, Trent, had tried to convince her to let him tag along but she had refused. When she hadn't been back for a few hours her son called Sue Leonard, who everyone called "Granny Sue" the only person he felt he could trust, and they'd gone down to the house where the suicide call had come from. Her car was in the driveway and when he had knocked on the door it was unlocked. He had gone inside looking for his mother. He had seen blood on the walls and been afraid and finally he had tripped over a long object. He had looked down to see his mother, lying dead on the floor eyes staring blankly at him.

Trent was pulled out of his memories by a tall woman with dark brown hair and eyes. She smiled at him. "Trent, I am sorry you had to see it. Don't be so hard on your father he truly is love. I love you always my Little Peppermint" Trent stared at her in disbelief. She reached down and touched his cheek, sending an odd chill through his body. He wondered for a second how she knew his mother's nickname for him, then he realized, mom.

"I love you too" he whispered. She didn't wait for anything else, just simply disappeared.

It took time for Trent to realize his father's love for Alice was real, even despite what he was sure was his mother's spirit told him. Eventually he came to love his new family almost as much as his first. Trent ALWAYS believed in ghosts after the event, but whether it was real or imagined you are left to dwell on yourself.

Author's Note- I had sudden inspiration while reading the 5th Harry Potter book. It is the only book to EVER make me cry. I don’t like the last half of the story. Just the first couple of paragraphs were good to me. Hope YOU liked it though. More Before Indifferent stories coming soon, if you haven't already read Skye's Story and Seth's Story, if you haven't read Indifferent do it NOW! You'll understand this one a LOT better! Oh, and one last thing, a poll. Does anyone out there believe in ghosts/spirits? Tell me by reviewing, or visiting my website (you can find it in my profile) and reviewing. Oh, or you could e-mail me. Doesn't matter!