Chapter 3: Arden

Carla didn't remember the "Phantom possession", as Leon called it. Like he said, she recalled it as a car crash, which was better than the reality.

"I'm so glad you're okay." She cried, hugging me tightly. I hugged her back, thankful she had no major injuries. She had bruising on her chest, but that was easily dismissed as a result of the crash. I guess I have Leon to thank for that, but I haven't expressed that yet.

"Did you check your phone? Everyone's so worried." I revealed, and her mouth parted into an O-shape as she scrolled through her phone. Worried was an understatement. Jasmine and Aeri had blown up our phones, asking which hospital we were transferred to and if we were alright in an endless succession of text messages and missed phone calls. Carla's parents were the same and already on their way to the hospital.

"Arden, is that...?" Carla pointed her finger past my shoulder at the door where Leon stood, his large stature leaning against the frame with his arms crossed.

"Oh, yeah." I laughed awkwardly. "It was a misunderstanding, and he was the one who called the police for us, actually."

"Oh, I see." She said slowly, but I could tell she was still wary. It was fair considering I had a panic attack and literally ran away from him before the incident.

"I'm sorry, Carla." I tried to resist, but tears welled in my eyes. She was hurt and almost killed, and it was all my fault.

"What are you sorry for? It wasn't your fault, Arden!" Her words were so sincere. If only she knew the truth. I hugged her tighter than before. I didn't deserve her.

"Carla!" Two voices shouted in unison from the door. I turned around to see her parents rush to her side, pulling her into a large embrace. Her younger siblings, Raina and Matthew, cried as they hugged their older sister. I quietly slid out of the room to give the family their privacy, but not before capturing the image of the big loving family. My parents would never learn of the incident, and even if they did, I doubted they would send more than a text.

I felt a pair of eyes on me and shifted my gaze to Leon, whose blue eyes promptly looked away. It was all so crazy. Less than twelve hours ago, we had met as complete strangers and now I was supposed to trust him and believe in the existence of evil Phantoms hurting people.

Truthfully, I was utterly terrified and the logical side of me was screaming for me to run away. He was a complete stranger and was blurting nonsense that sounded like a fantasy movie. I could easily frame Leon as insane, pretend our conversation never happened, and ride the freak car crash incident train. However, Carla was in the hospital because of me and I would be no better than my parents if I ran away from the truth.

I sighed heavily. If Leon was right and the Phantoms I've seen my whole life were capable of interfering with innocent people like Carla again, then I would have to find out how to prevent more attacks, right? Memories of the night prior where I was trapped in that car, completely helpless, flashed before me. I hated to admit it, but if it weren't for Leon's intervention, Carla and I could have died. If she had gotten any more hurt and I had survived, I wouldn't know what to do with myself.

The two of us walked through the hospital. When we reached the exit, my steps slowed. Leon seemed to notice my hesitation, and placed his hands in his black jean pockets. "Take your time."

I didn't reply, maintaining my gaze at the ground, when my phone in my back pocket suddenly buzzed. It managed to survive the car crash surprisingly. I unlocked the screen and my breath hitched. It was another text from Mia.

"Wish you were here :("

I closed my eyes and sighed deeply. As much as I hated seeing my parents, it had been months since I had last seen Mia, and she deserved to have her big sister at her birthday.

"Hey, before you kidnap me, can I ask for a favor?" I met his eyes which creased as he smiled, chuckling slightly.

"Sure, it's the least I can do."

My nerves relaxed ever so slightly, and I followed him outside. Luckily, it was warm and sunny. My favorite weather. I shielded my eyes from the bright sun and trailed behind Leon as he led me through the parking lot. An unexpectedly luxurious car sat at the far end of the lot, and even more unexpectedly, it was Leon's.

"This is your car?" I asked incredulously, openly gawking at the sleek black Lexus sedan.

"Of course." He winked, and I felt my heart skip. Maybe I was an idiot, but his good looks definitely helped in the trust department. He opened the passenger side door for me, and I slipped inside, still gawking at the leather seats and sleek interior. Leon entered from the driver's side, pulling his sleeves up to his elbows and revealing that same tattoo that intrigued me the night before.

"Like what you see?" His lip quirked up at the side and I felt heat burn across my face. I turned away, neglecting to answer. Yes, I was an idiot. Just because he was good looking didn't mean he wasn't a borderline creep. Then again, he saved Carla and my life. I sighed, rubbing my temples. If this was all a dream, I would have an amazing movie pitch.

I gave him the address to my parent's house and we drove silently in the car. I looked off into the window until a certain question began burning inside of me. "How did you expect me to just believe you last night, anyway?"

"It was more of a hope." Leon replied, turning the car onto the highway. "There aren't many like you that we find outside of our circle, so it's not a very sophisticated procedure."

"I see." I tapped my lips. Now that I knew the Phantom thing was not just a figment of my imagination, was it appropriate to ask questions? I had so many. "If you don't mind me asking, when did you start seeing Phantoms?"

"Ever since I can remember." His blue eyes were hard as they focused on the road. "Some are docile, while others aren't. It can depend on where you are."

While unfortunate, his answer brought a feeling of relief to my mind like it was oddly nice to know that I wasn't the only child being haunted by ghostly disfigured creatures.

"Why are they here? And how long have your people known about them?"

"There's no confirmed origin, but we believe they are born from negative energy. The more negativity, the stronger the Phantoms." He met my gaze at a red light. "And it's our people."

I bit the inside of my cheek. I never met another Seer, as he called us, so how was I supposed to feel related to them? "Then, how come my parents don't see them?"

"It's not genetic, necessarily. Depends more on individual spiritual affinity. Everyone has a certain level, but a majority of people do not have enough to even see Phantoms, let alone use spiritual energy."

"Spiritual energy?" What in the world did he mean by that? I almost laughed at the seemingly fictional jargon, but I stopped as my memory flashed of Leon crushing the vehicle with her own two feet and ripping the top off of the car like it was tinfoil.

"Yes, I like to compare it to electricity." We reached a red light, and he reached for the plastic water bottle sitting in the cupholder between us. He held it up by the cap and without moving, the plastic water bottle twisted in on itself as if invisible hands wrung it out like a tablecloth. My eyes widened like a child witnessing a magic trick. "It requires innate skill, technique, and training in order to use effectively, and is the only way to expel Phantoms."

"And kill water bottles. Noted." I joked, but his emphasis on killing Phantoms sent shivers down my spine. If a creature like the cab driver couldn't be killed by normal weapons like guns, was there even a winning chance at expelling them all?

"You look concerned."

I pictured Carla's motionless body beneath me and I shook my head, turning back to the window. "Innocent people can die, you know."

"I know." His voice was barely over a whisper, I almost didn't hear him. Leon promptly parked on the street in front of my childhood home. He then turned to me and smiled. "But don't worry, I'm the strongest."

And with that, he pushed open the door and stepped outside. I sat still in my seat, unsure how to respond. The strongest? Him? It must have been one of his jokes. I decided against pondering his response and opened the car door, preparing to face the biggest ghosts of my life.