Chapter 3

Evan didn't go to the convenience store. Instead, he paced back and forth on the lonely, silent street. Amelia, floating in the air, looked confused as she watched him. She also looked guilty for saying something she shouldn't have and was trying to remember what came next. Then, Amelia saw Evan's smartphone lying on the street. She floated down, picked it up, and held it.

"Wow... I can really hold things... I'm so confused about whether I'm a ghost or not," Amelia said, looking at Evan's phone, clearly pleased with herself.

She looked at Evan's unlocked screen, tapped on his chat app, and opened the class group chat. After finding the right contact, she started typing a message casually while floating in the air. A pale and panicked Evan didn't notice. He just kept pacing, deep in thought and biting his nails.

Amelia stared at the screen, hoping for a reply. Suddenly, "BING," a message came in on Evan's phone. Amelia immediately read it and typed a reply. "BING," within a short time, Amelia got another reply and quickly typed a response back. Evan, who heard the repeated notifications, turned around. His eyes widened when he saw Amelia holding his phone and he rushed over to her. Evan snatched his phone and read the screen.

Evan's face went even paler. He was looking at a chat with the living Amelia, who had replied even though it was two in the morning. Evan read the chat history from the top, and this is what it said:

"Hey... you asleep?" Evan asked.

"Huh... who is this?" Amelia asked after a moment.

"You know me, I'm Evan, the guy who sits next to you in class, remember?" Evan asked.

"What do you want? You gonna follow me again, huh? Wasn't getting slapped enough for you that time? You better watch it... my boyfriend said he'll beat you up if you pull anything again," Amelia replied, followed by angry, steaming red smiley emojis.

"Just calm down and listen. You're going to die in 50 days. Something big is going to happen that will change all our lives. Can you come to my house now? You'll be safer with me," Evan said.

Evan could see a one-and-a-half-minute pause before the reply came in, and of course, it wasn't pleasant to read.

"You're a sick creep... what do you want now? I told you to leave me alone. Tomorrow I'm going to talk to a teacher and get my seat changed. I'm not sitting next to you. Leave me alone, it's late, I'm going to sleep," Amelia replied with a string of angry emojis.

"Wait, I have to meet you today or tomorrow, or I'll die," Evan replied.

"Good, just die. Don't ever contact me again," Amelia replied.

And after that, a notification at the bottom of the chat showed that Amelia had blocked Evan, so her profile picture was no longer visible. Evan turned to look at the ghost of Amelia, who was floating casually, smiling and looking away to avoid Evan's stare.

"Why did you do this?" Evan asked, annoyed.

"Um... sorry, I was trying to help," Amelia replied without looking at Evan.

"You messed everything up. I told you, you slapped me a few months ago... just because I was getting rid of the ghost of a woman who died in childbirth and was following you because you weren't being careful," Evan said.

"Ugh... I know... sorry," a genuinely regretful Amelia replied.

"Now how am I supposed to help you, and how am I supposed to know what happens to me the day after tomorrow... this is a total disaster," Evan said, frustrated.

"Hmm... maybe we should go to school now. Maybe I'll remember something there," Amelia suggested.

"It's 2 a.m.... the school gate won't be open," Evan replied.

"Oh... right," Amelia said.

The two were silent. Amelia looked guilty and floated behind Evan, not daring to look at his face. Meanwhile, Evan looked like he was deep in thought, running his hand through his short, messy hair. After a while of silence, Evan finally turned around, ran his hand through his hair again, and looked at Amelia, who was floating in front of him.

"Let's just go home. There's no point in being on the street like this. You can come with me to school tomorrow," Evan said.

"Oh... so you're not getting food?" a casual ghost of Amelia asked.

"No, I'm not... I've suddenly lost my appetite... I just want to sleep," Evan replied.

"Okay... sorry again," Amelia said.

"Whatever, it's fine... it's already happened... what else can I say," Evan said.

"Thanks, hehe," a cheerful Amelia said again.

They walked back to the house. When they got there and opened the door, Evan was shocked to see his dad, mom, and grandma standing in front of the door, smiling at him as if they were welcoming him. Evan felt extremely uneasy because his parents and grandma looked like a welcoming committee greeting him because he was about to join them very soon.

But then something unexpected happened. Suddenly, his dad, mom, and grandma raised their arms, and their arms stretched out. "GRAB," they immediately grabbed the ghost of Amelia and pulled her inside before she could react. After that, they took Amelia to the living room without letting her look at Evan.

"Huh... what's the meaning of this? My mom, dad, and grandma being out at 2 a.m. is already weird... and now they're grabbing Amelia... I should follow them," Evan thought.

Evan immediately ran to the living room. He saw his mom, dad, and grandma sitting at the dining table with Amelia. The three of them were looking at Amelia with smiles on their faces. Amelia looked relaxed and not scared at all. Her body language suggested that she was talking to them even though her mouth was shut. Evan slowly approached, but suddenly his mom, dad, and grandma turned to look at him, and their faces became angry and terrifying.

"GULP," Evan froze and swallowed. He just watched from a distance, standing still without moving an inch. After a while, Amelia stood up and floated over to Evan.

"Evan, they want to come with us to school tomorrow," Amelia said.

"Huh... how? What did you talk to them about?" Evan asked.

"I told them everything, why I came here... and how I don't remember anything... and... how you're going to die the day after tomorrow because you're helping me," Amelia replied.

"Huh... you can talk to them?" Evan asked.

"Of course I can, they're nice. They said I'm like their daughter-in-law, hehe," a happy Amelia said.

"Please don't get sidetracked. So, they didn't say how they can come with us to school since they're supposed to be tied to this house and can't leave," Evan asked.

"Yeah... they said we should use the family heirloom in the study in the back. They told you to get it and bring it here," Amelia replied.

Evan's face immediately changed. Of all the rooms in his house, the study, left behind by his grandfather, was the only one he had never entered, or more accurately, he was scared to go in there. Amelia, who suddenly saw Evan go quiet and pale, immediately waved her hand in front of his face, making Evan gasp.

"What's wrong?" Amelia asked.

"Nothing... so you're coming with me to the study?" Evan asked.

"Yeah, Grandma said I should meet Grandpa too," Amelia replied.

"Ugh... this is such a drag... why is this happening... whatever, let's go," Evan replied.

Evan and Amelia walked out of the living room and went down the hall toward the back of the house. Meanwhile, Evan's mom, dad, and grandma, who were still sitting at the dining table, turned their heads 180 degrees and followed Evan and Amelia as they walked down the hall. Their terrifying faces, their smiles, and their eyes looked like bottomless pits, not beautiful and handsome as they usually were.

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