Chapter Two:

It's been almost a month and a half since I met Lauren. I haven't heard from her at all. Part of me is worried and wonders where she is. But the bigger half couldn't care less if she took a flying leap.

"You don't mean that," Jesse told me, popping in as Dr. Lakeland walked out. I glared at my protector.

"How could you know what I mean?" I snapped, growling at him. I hate it when he reads my mind.

"You've been thinking about her since she left," he said, his dark brown hair falling over his eyes. 'Ass,' I thought. "Heard that," he smirked. "Don't feel bad," he mused, sitting down on the edge of my bed and putting his hand on mine. "I enjoy the dreams you have late at night." My face paled. He'd been there for that?

"Get out!" I screeched. Agent Forster, still the resident bitch, came running in. It had been decided, obviously by her, that she would stay on guard over my room until Nick was found. He'd been found, dead. Apparently, with only minor injuries, he'd walked off to try to find help and ended up dying of dehydration in the desert. Not surprisingly, Forster hadn't left.

"What's going on?" she said, her eyes searching the room for any invaders. I rolled my eyes as Jesse waved goodbye and faded into thin air. "Who's in here? Who are you talking to?" I exhaled heavily.

"Well I should be talking to you," I muttered darkly. "Considering you're the only one in here." Forster frowned.

"You were talking to someone before I came in," she said. I shook my head.

"Like I said, you're the only one in here." She shook her head.

"Whatever," she said. "Dr. Lakeland told me to let you know that you are free to be discharged today. You can go home." I smiled and so did she. "The nurse will be back in a moment to disconnect the IV. I'll drive you to wherever you live."

"No need," a voice said. "I'll drive her." I looked up in shock. There she was. Same red and black hair, same beautiful, tired dark green eyes.

"Lauren?" I said, hoping it was really her. I could hear Jesse laughing softly behind me and I know she did too. She smiled at me and I blushed. I looked down quickly.

"Hey…sis…," she said slowly. "My god, what have you gotten yourself into?" She looked at Agent Forster. "I'm sorry about this," she said, walking over and shaking her hand. "My sister gets herself into so much trouble. My husband and I told her that she wasn't allowed to go anywhere for Spring Break. She was supposed to come with us to go see Mom and Dad in Michigan. She bought her own ticket on a different plane, supposedly because it was cheaper. Yea right." A glare was thrown at me for something I didn't do. Agent Forster looked at Lauren oddly, as if she didn't know what was going on. I could see a small wisp of power emanating from her as she used a Compulsion spell. I stifled a small laugh.

"So, I'll just take my sister home now," she said, using the spell quite forcefully now. I admired her.

"Sure," Forster said.

"You'll sign the discharge papers for us," Lauren growled. Forster nodded. "Go," Lauren said. The FBI agent ran from the room. Lauren looked at me and we burst out laughing. "Come on," she said. She pointed at the IV and I looked down. It was disconnected. How the hell could she do these things? I was still working on symbols!

I stood up; expecting pain to hit me, but none came. I looked up at Lauren. She smiled and held out her hand. I took it gratefully and together, we escaped from the hospital.

Lauren and I drove to Nick's parents' condo. I dug in the planter by the door for the spare key. Once I found it, I unlocked the door and we went inside. I immediately ran to the kitchen for something decent to eat. Almost two months of hospital food had taken its toll.

I threw open the fridge and lo and behold, a box of pizza. I took it out, putting it on the counter and started stuffing my face with a piece.

"Want one?" I asked Lauren. She turned a sickly shade of green and shook her head. I frowned at her.

"I hate cold pizza," she said.

"Why?" I asked. She smiled, thinking.

"I have a friend, back where I live, who loves pizza. Eats it all the time. Especially cold. She likes to make breakfast, but the only thing she ever makes is cold pizza. So after five years of nothing but cold pizza for breakfast, you learn to steal her money and get McDonald's for breakfast." I laughed.

"What was her name?" Lauren's face darkened and she turned away, pretending to wipe off the crumbs I had spilled on the counter.

"Lena," she finally whispered. I blinked, confused, and opened my mouth to ask what had happened to Lena, but I changed my mind.

"Hey girls!" a voice called. Lauren whipped around, eyes scanning the room franticly, finally glaring at the figure that had appeared sitting at the kitchen table. "Wow," the guy said. "You haven't even been gone two months and you've already hooked up!" Lauren's eyes blazed. She pulled out a knife—where the hell did she keep that thing—and threw it at him. It should have stuck in his head right between his eyes, but, considering he was a ghost, it passed right threw and hit the wall, sticking fast.

"This isn't my house," I muttered. Lauren ignored me.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she screeched. The man shook his head.

"Lauren, Lauren, Lauren," he said. "I've always told you that you need to control that temper of yours." If looks could kill, I thought, watching her eyes.

"Elliot, Elliot, Elliot," Lauren said. "I thought I told you not to follow me." The boy, Elliot, shrugged.

"Remember what I told you?" he asked. "If it concerns my sister, it concerns me." He smirked, obviously pleased with himself. I saw Lauren reach for another knife—again, where the hell did she keep these things?—and Elliot flinched.

"Go away," Lauren said. Elliot shrugged again.

"Nope," he said. "I like it here. Nice view." He looked me up and down. I could tell he was imagining me in bed with Lauren. Apparently Lauren could tell too.

"You're gay!" she snarled. Elliot laughed. I could tell Lauren was whispering a spell by the movements she was making with her fingertips.

"Ah, ah, ah," Elliot said. "If you force me to go away right now, I'll send David to Lena with you're exact location." Lauren's eyes widened.

"No," she whispered. "No, you wouldn't do that." Elliot nodded. Then he frowned softly.

"Why shouldn't I?" he asked.

"I told you that night in the bar in `81," she screeched. "She's safer if she's not around me!" Elliot sighed.

"Again with that bullshit?" he said quietly. "You really are clueless. And you're making a big mistake. Can't you see how desperate she is right now?" His eyes turned stone cold with anger. "She could use a great person like you right now!" Lauren looked down to the floor. Her face flooded with shame.

"She's safer without me." Elliot glared at her.

"Then Chris really is the right person for her," he said pointedly. I could hear her gasp. A small tear began to form in the corner of her eye. Before it could fall, she swiped up her car keys and left the house. Seconds later, I could hear the engine start and the tires squeal loudly as she drove away.

I silently put the pizza box back in the refrigerator. My appetite was gone. I didn't want to eat at all anymore.

"I'm sorry you had to hear that," Elliot said quietly, his fingers gently tapping on the table. I shook my head.

"I don't want to know what happened," I said, turning away and going upstairs.

As I lay on the bed, looking out the window hours later, I could see the stars glistening brightly. I realized that I hadn't thought about Nick at all the past few hours, which was strange. I thought about him almost all the time.

A car screeched into the driveway, music blaring. I sat up. Lauren was back. I got downstairs and out the front door just in time to see her fall out of the car. My blood ran cold. Was she dead?

I ran to her side and rolled her onto her back. No injuries were visible. A sigh of relief escaped my lips when she opened her eyes and smiled up at me.

"Maybe one too many hits on the vodka," she said quietly. I shook my head then helped her stand up, putting her arm around my shoulders to even out her weight so she could walk.

As we walked inside, I noticed that Elliot was no longer here. "Dipshit's gone," Lauren slurred. "He's not a ghost. He can leave his body for short times. We all can. All he did was go back home." I nodded and walked her into the living room. I laid her down on the large sofa and sat down on the coffee table in front of it.

"You okay?" I asked her. She smiled, nodding.

"Just drunk," she said. "Be okay in the morning." I bit my lip.

"Okay," I said. "Good night." She whispered a response that I couldn't understand. I smiled softly and brushed her cheek with my hand before standing up and walking up the stairs and back to my room. I hoped she would be okay.

I flopped down on my bed again and turned out the light. I closed my eyes and begged for sleep to come. When it did, I was plagued by the same nightmare I always had.

I was walking through some sort of warehouse. All of a sudden, Sebastian appeared in front of me. He smiled maliciously and held up a knife. Without any control over my body, I pulled out one of my own. I couldn't move. My body moved on its own. I was simply a passenger in this. Sebastian and I circled each other. Then he leapt. He pinned me easily. 'Die,' he whispered, slitting my throat. Normally, Nick was the last person I thought of as I bled out on the warehouse floor. This time, it was Lauren's name I choked out as I died.

I woke up with a start. My eyes blinked rapidly, trying to clear the dream from my mind. I flung the blankets off of me and raced down the stairs, desperate for something to drink.

As I poured myself a glass of water to cool my nerves, I could hear soft breathing from the living room. I looked over and remembered that Lauren had fallen asleep on the couch. I took a quick sip of water and put the glass down, walking over to her. I stifled a laugh when I saw that she had rolled off of the sofa and onto the floor, now tangled up in her blanket. I mentally thanked Jesse for covering her so she wouldn't be cold.

Lauren's sleeping face was beautiful. She looked full of life and energy, not tired and drained like she did when she was awake. A moment of thought and I lay down besides her, covering both of us with the blanket. I gasped softly when she rolled over and curled up against me, her arms around my waist and her leg over mine. I relaxed and settled into her touch, holding her close to me. Her head fit perfectly in the crook of my neck. I realized this and smiled. Moving slowly so as not to wake her up, I bent down and kissed her lips chastely. She nestled closer. Beautiful, I thought.

Lauren woke up before me. I felt her move and opened my eyes. Confusion was spread across her face and I noticed that we were still holding each other. I quickly detached myself and sat up. She blinked, frowning.

"Why are you leaving?" she whispered sleepily. My eyes widened. She put her hand behind my neck, tilting my head down. Shivers ran down my spine as our lips met. She pulled me onto her. I wrapped my legs around her waist as she touched my bottom lip with her tongue, asking to deepen the kiss. I let her in and she gently ran her tongue around my mouth before touching mine with hers.

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