The ghost has stopped tormenting me. I don’t call it “haunting”. That’s such an imprecise word. Tormenting is what the ghost did to me. To us. My dog Toby always saw the ghost too. When I walked Toby in the early morning gloom, the ghost would appear. We would only catch a glimpse for a fraction of a second before it was gone. I would stand, shivering and staring. Toby would point, perk up his ears, and sniff toward where the ghost had been.
Now, the ghost is gone. I don’t know if I should be relieved or worried. What would scare away a ghost?
I told my sister about the ghost once. She laughed, but only with her eyes. She would never laugh out loud at me, but I could tell from her eyes that she was laughing. I don’t like to look at other people’s eyes. I wish I hadn’t looked at hers that day.
The ghost didn’t show up this morning. It didn’t show up as I walked Toby to school later, but it never would show up when we were on our way to school. I don’t blame it. There are a lot of reasons I don’t want to go to school. Here comes one now. Randy is an asshole.
I scramble to get my headphones from my backpack. I plug them into my phone and crank up the music. Randy will yell and stand in my way, but he will never touch me. Nobody dares touch me. Toby’s growl keeps everyone away.
Randy blocks my way. Some of his friends show up and stand in front of me too. That’s okay. I can stand here all day. Toby sits next to me and bares his fangs. I know Randy and his friends are yelling, but I can’t hear. I don’t care. They’re assholes.
Suddenly, they stand aside. My sister is here. She taps me on the shoulder. She knows better than to leave her hand on me. A tap is enough. Toby stands up, shakes, and walks next to me as we enter the school. Once inside, my sister turns right. Toby and I turn left.
I take my seat in the classroom. Toby sits by my side. The teacher waves to get my attention and pantomimes taking off headphones. I’m not allowed to wear my headphones in class. I turn off my phone and stuff the headphones into my backpack.
Class is much the same as any other day. I like it that way. Predictable. Toby sits patiently until the bell rings. Like Pavlov’s bell, Toby knows when class is over. He jumps up and nearly drags me from the classroom. He needs to pee, so I take him out onto the lawn in front of the school.
“What are you doing, weirdo?”
Randy.
Toby is busy peeing. He doesn’t growl. Randy moves closer. Too close.
“Get away from him.”
My sister is here.
I reach into my backpack, trying to find my headphones.
“What’s he doing with that leash?” Randy is an asshole.
“He’s walking his dog.” My sister always stands up for me.
“He doesn’t have a goddamn dog. He just drags a leash around. I asked him yesterday why he drags a leash everywhere. He’s a goddamn weirdo.”
I stop looking for my headphones and stare at the leash. Toby is gone. The dirty leash lays empty on the grass. I sit down and begin to rock back and forth. Toby is gone. Toby is gone.
My sister wraps her arms around me. The touch is too much, and I begin to scream. I can’t scream loud enough.
Now I know what can scare away a ghost — reality.
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