"Copycat," I teased for Stellan saying that I had brain fog, obviously having heard me say it. I took another bite of my sandwich, chewed, and swallowed. "Oh, this tastes so good!"
"Ssshhh!! Your parents are going to think you're doing something you shouldn't in here," Stellan teased. "Or that you're talking to your imaginary friends again."
"Well, that's your fault," I said between bites.
He laughed. "Yeah, well I guess it is."
"So, why haven't I jumped yet?" I took a sip of my iced tea to wash it down.
Stellan placed his hands on his knees. "Jumped?"
I swallowed the bite I had been chewing. "You know. Why haven't I gone on to my next assignment?"
He shrugged. "Well, for one thing, Shay's not out of danger yet. And for another thing, you haven't learned your lesson yet."
"What am I supposed to learn here in this jump?" I took another bite, finishing off the rest of my sandwich.
Stellan tilted his head to the side, looking sexy as he sat on my bed. "That's what you have to figure out."
I raised an eyebrow. "You won't even give me a hint?"
"Nope! Not yet." He leaned back onto Shay's pillow, placing his arms under his head.
I took another sip of my tea and thought of something. "So, am I your first assignment?"
He sat up, looking at me as he shook his head, completely serious. "No, you're not."
I nodded, trying to understand. "So, what are you?"
He shrugged. "I'm your Spiritual Guide."
I scoffed, shaking my head. "I know, but 'what' are you? A ghost? An angel trying to earn his wings?"
"I'm… Your... Spiritual... Guide," he said slowly, as if I were an imbecile.
I scoffed, getting to my feet when there was a knock on the door. I glared at him, giving him a silent warning. "Come in!"
Mom peeked her head in the door, a worried expression coloring her face. "Are you alright, dear?"
I nodded. "I'm fine, Mom." I shrugged. "Just talking to myself."
"Arguing with yourself is more like it," Stellan commented.
I glared at him but didn't dare say anything for fear Shay's Mom would think I had lost it for sure.
She looked over at the bed and then at me again, having seen nothing. "Well alright, dear. Try and get some rest." Then she walked in and took away my dirty dishes.
"Mom, don't bother," I replied. "I'll wash them in the morning."
Mom scoffed. "Don't be absurd! You know you'll have an ant problem if you do." Then she kissed the top of my head. "Good night, dear. Get some sleep. I know that tonight couldn't have been easy for you."
Actually, it was much easier than she thought, but I didn't say it. "Thanks, Mom."
She nodded. "No matter what, I hope you know that I love you, dear."
I smiled as a warm feeling filled my chest. "Thanks, Mom. I love you, too." It felt nice, having people to care for me... even if they were really caring for Shay. But I hadn't had it in such a long time, I'd take it. "Night, Mom."
"Good night, darling." She started to pull the door closed but stopped. "Oh! Don't forget! Jack, is coming over first thing in the morning."
I suddenly remembered that Jack was my tutor, and that I had a tutor instead of going to school. "Mom, why can't I go to school instead of having a tutor?"
"Dear." Mom scoffed, answering me as if I had been told this a hundred times before. "You know that with your father's work, it's just too dangerous for you to go to a regular school."
"Well, what about a private school?" I asked, knowing that was probably why Shay had rebelled against her parents. When you keep too tight a leash on a child, they eventually baulk.
Mom let out an exasperated breath. "Shay, let's not talk about it tonight. Get some rest." Then she quickly closed the door before I thought of something else to argue about.
"No wonder Shay rebelled." I shook my head.
"Now you know why you're still here... among other things." Stellan pulled back the blankets and patted the bed next to him. "Now, come here and get some sleep. You need rest."
"Not next to you, I'm not." He had said it himself that I wasn't supposed to fall in love with him, which wasn't a danger now. But if we slept in the same bed repeatedly, that may test my emotional state a bit too much.
He scoffed. "Well, where do you expect me to sleep?"
I shrugged. "Where do ghosts usually sleep?"
"I'm not a ghost."
"So you said."
There was another knock on the door and then my brother peeked his head in and looked around. "You really are going to have to stop talking to yourself."
I sighed as I crossed the room to the bed. "Thanks, Renn. See you in the morning."
"Night," he replied, looking around my room one more time.
Stellan smirked as he patted the bed, wagging his eyebrows, teasing me. "They're going to think you're crazy if you keep that up."
"Yes," I whispered. "No thanks to you." I let out an exasperated breath and climbed under the blankets beside Stellan and he wrapped his arm around me. Warmth immediately surrounded me, along with a feeling of security. "Why are you doing this?"
"It's my job to protect you," he replied, lying down on the pillow beside me. "Now, get some rest."
"Do you sleep with all of your charges?"
Stellan's body stiffened behind me. "Get some sleep."
I noticed that he hadn't answered the question. Then I giggled, wondering if he would be doing this if I were a guy. He was not what I expected a Spiritual Guide to be like. But as I lay there beside him with his arms wrapped around me, I had to admit that I felt safer than I had for a very long time. At that moment, I was glad that Stellan was with me... even though he was the most annoying person I'd never met.
As I drifted off to sleep, I just hoped that I could help Shay. There was a lot of work still to be done, and I wondered how much more it would take to get her life back on track. But with as much as Shay had done for me in the past, I was going to stick it out until I knew she would be okay. I just hoped I survived Stellan in the process.