Free Beyond - Volume 1 (YA Paranormal Romance) by S.P. van der Lee

potential lie.
    “No, what are you talking about? Someone wrote in your diary?” I don’t spot anything. Her eyes widen, but she’s not shaking. Normally she would shake, so she must be telling the truth.
    “Well, there’s something written in it , and it’s not my handwriting.” I sigh. “Could the guy who brought me home have done it?” My mom doesn’t even know I just had a date with that same guy.
    “I was there the whole time he was in your room, so that’s not possible.” She drives out of the parking lot. “Maybe you did it yourself, when you were hallucinating.”
    Maybe. But I can’t see myself writing like that , and it’s kind of a strange coincidence that he has the exact same handwriting. But how did he do it, if my mom was with him the entire time? She couldn’t have missed it, and I know she speaks the truth.
    But if it wasn’t him, then who did?
     
    ***
     
    The next day I ’m almost too scared to go to school, but I force myself to go anyway. Damian Hayes follows the same class schedule as me, and he’s sitting next to me, so I’m going to have to face him sometime. Looking at him, I can’t believe I just left him standing at Billy’s, but I got so confused after our kiss. I can’t imagine I conjured a kiss in my hallucinations that matched a real kiss. I need to talk to him.
    Damian turns his head to me and squints, but then his eyes widen. His walk stiffens and he sits down at the table. His eyes gaze into mine, and I can feel my heart beating in my throat. Then he turns his head toward the window and stares outside.  His foot taps on the floor. During the rest of the class he doesn’t turn his head around anymore, not even to watch the teacher.
    Why is Damian being so cold to me?
    I remember seeing the fear in his eyes yesterday, when I realized he was the blue ghost in my hallucination. Is he just angry at me for walking away during our date?
    I want to know what’s going on. I have to talk to him. Maybe he’ll answer my questions. It’s worth a shot, but I can’t say anything during class, because the teacher might send me out , and I don’t want anyone listening in on our conversation.
    The pencil between my fingers goes back and forth furiously. How is this all possible? Could I really have imagined Damian’s kissing mannerisms during my delusions? Should I just ask him?
    According to that article it is quite possible that I hallucinate about kissing, but I want to know if it was all real. I have to take this chance.
    I bite my lip and look at the clock above the door. It’s almost time to go. Tick, tock, tick, tock. It’s moving so slow ly. I can’t wait, but on the other hand I want to avoid it all. My heart is thumping.
    Am I really doing this? I have to know, I just have to do it.
    Three, two, one. It’s time. The bell rings. It’s time to confront him.
    I swallow and breathe in before I stand up, but Damian sprints away quickly as if he has somewhere to go. I throw my stuff into my bag and dash after him, leaving Lillian and Emma behind, determined to talk to him today.
    A gitated, Damian strides through the hallway and bumps into others and even pushes a few people aside. I haven’t seen him this anxious before. Damian dashes into an abandoned hall. I wonder what he’s going to do there.
    I’m having trouble keeping up, so I start running. Suddenly he stops and turns around. I gasp for air as I almost smash into him, but I manage to come to a halt right at his feet. We stare into each other’s eyes.
    “ Who … what are you?” I ask. It’s the first question that comes to mind.
    He doesn’t answer and only grimaces. Then he tries to tread past me, but I block his way. I know I’m asking a bizarre question, but that’s not a good reason to be so cold. Yesterday he kissed me, and now he wants to get away from me as fast as possible.
    He sighs. His lip curls upward, but he seems reluctant to talk. “You know who I am. Now move,” he answers.
    “Why