Elizabeth was a good person, and Lisa had known that for a long time. From the moment Elizabeth had revealed her true self, Lisa understood that the girl had no reservations towards her. Only a person who truly trusted and considered you a good friend would do that.
"I know, I know Elizabeth is my most trusted friend," Lisa nodded in agreement, turning to Jason, "I told you before that I liked you. I guess I didn't quite understand what I was thinking at the time... maybe it was curiosity... you're like a wizard living in a forest... reclusive, so... I think it was just a little girl's curiosity towards the unknown..."
Lisa stumbled over her words, her hands gesturing in the air, "Forget what I said before, I want to go back to being myself!"
Jason remained unfazed, simply nodding in response, "You are young, and whatever decision you make should reflect what your heart desires, not influenced by external factors. That's the right way." As he spoke, he poured a cup of tea for Lisa and himself. The steam rose from the cup, twisting and turning as it dissipated in the air.
"Like this cup of tea, even though the steam obscures your view, once it's gone, the tea is still tea," Jason continued, though it sounded like nonsense.
He lifted his tea cup to Lisa, took a slow sip, and Lisa shrugged and took a sip of her own. It was a bit too hot, so she barely drank any. She didn't particularly like this beverage, preferring soda, but she didn't let it show.
They sat in awkward silence, Lisa unsure of what to say to Jason. The atmosphere was strange, but only for Lisa, as Jason seemed perfectly at ease, sipping his tea and reading his book.
After some thought, Lisa decided to get up and leave. She nodded at Jason and said, "I'm leaving!"
Jason didn't stand up to see her off, he just continued reading his book. Lisa suddenly felt superfluous in his presence, and considering the years she had had feelings for him, she found it amusing. She shook her head, left the room, and gently closed the door behind her.
And with each step, tears began to fall.
God knows what kind of emotion this was, maybe young girls' feelings are just inexplicably complicated. And she didn't even ask the question she came here to ask.
The next morning, after breakfast, Jason tidied up and drove his old pickup towards Joseph's house. He didn't go in, just shouted from outside, "Joseph, it's time to go."
Jason's call brought out Lisa. She opened the door and watched him from a distance until Joseph came out. Then she turned around to go back in. Joseph glanced back at Lisa, shook his head, and walked towards Jason, shrugging and saying, "Ever since she came back yesterday, she's been like this, not talking to you unless you initiate the conversation!"
Joseph got in Jason's truck, sitting in the passenger seat, "I kind of regret telling her anything. She must hate me now. Don't look at me like that, Huan, why would Lisa like you? What do you have that attracts girls? Just change that..."
"I really love when you talk to yourself like this," Jason shook his head at him, "She'll understand on her own, this is a mistake. But... I don't want to say anything to her, she'll have to get through this herself. Let's go, Luke Prescott, I know him, his wife died in a car accident." With that, Jason started the truck and drove towards the town center. Luke's house was in the town, a seemingly luxurious mansion.
Luke Prescott was one of the two surgeons at the town's only hospital. It was a small private hospital, with a total staff of eight people. Three doctors, four nurses, and a janitor. But the town's population was small too, so a small hospital was enough to meet their needs.
"Tell me about him," Jason said as he drove, referring to Mr. Prescott and his late wife.
"He's a local celebrity, quite wealthy too, likes to go to bars, and his wife... his wife was hit by a car. God knows what happened, Sally Hart was like she was drunk, then got hit by a speeding car," Joseph said, "According to the police investigation, the driver was at fault, and Luke Prescott received a large compensation."
"Sounds like a great story!" Jason laughed, "An unfaithful husband, a wife who mysteriously got hit by a car, and a large sum of money. Did his wife have insurance?"
"Of course, she did. At least, everyone in town knows he profited from it. Some even speculated that Luke Prescott had something to do with it," Joseph shrugged, "Who knows. Listen, Huan, he's our client, we are employed by him, so we just need to do as he says."
"I know!" Jason nodded. He was not the type to meddle, only preferring to get involved in matters that concerned him or that he was interested in.
The car entered the town and stopped in front of a luxurious mansion. Jason whistled and looked at Joseph, who spread his hands, "Doctors always have a lot of money."
As they got off the car, the large gate of the mansion opened automatically. Jason drove in and parked in the spacious front yard. The door of the mansion opened, and a middle-aged man in a white shirt, pants, and shoes walked out, looking every bit the courteous gentleman.
"Mr. Jason, hello, I'm glad to meet you!" The middle-aged man extended his hand to Jason and hugged Joseph, patting him on the shoulder, "Old buddy, I'm glad to see you. I'm all set, you can start whenever you're ready!"
After releasing Joseph, the middle-aged man waved his hand and led the two into the mansion. The living room was spacious, with a tasteful European-style decor.
Upon entering, Jason took a look around. The middle-aged man motioned for Joseph to sit down, and tried to offer Jason a seat as well, but Jason gestured that he preferred to look around, pointing to the living room and upstairs.
"Of course, I can show you around!" Luke Prescott nodded and led Jason upstairs, with Joseph trailing behind.
"This is my bedroom, and the one across is my wife's," Luke Prescott pointed to a door across the hall, pushing it open.
A cold chill filled the room, and Joseph took a step back. Luke Prescott shook his head sentimentally, "This room has been unoccupied for a long time. Only I come in from time to time. From the window, you can see the flowers and swimming pool in the backyard, the view is very open. Sally liked to sit by the window, looking at those things..."
Jason walked to the window, looking out. The view was indeed open, but his gaze settled on the pool, and he frowned at Luke Prescott, "This chill is not because the room is unoccupied!"
Luke Prescott looked surprised, "Before you, there was a medium... who said that my wife's soul was trapped in this room, and that's why I'm stuck too!" Luke Prescott was taken aback, looking at Jason as he said, "There was a medium before you... he said that my wife's soul is trapped in this room, and that's why I'm also trapped!"
"Hey, Luke, I trust Jason. He's a very talented guy!" Joseph chimed in, addressing Luke Prescott, "I think you'll agree with his perspective."
Luke Prescott just nodded, remaining silent.
Regardless of how Luke Prescott was feeling, Jason just nodded and said, "Your wife's soul is not here at all. She has her own place to go. The reason you're trapped... it's because of this swimming pool."
Upon hearing this, Luke Prescott looked incredulously at Jason and said, "But... but the previous mediums all said that it was my wife's soul, she was trapped here, and so I was affected."
"So... what kind of impact did you experience?" Jason withdrew his gaze from the swimming pool outside the window and looked at Luke Prescott.
"I feel like someone is entangling me. Especially when I'm sleeping, someone breaks into my room and then presses down on me, rendering me unable to move. That feeling... it's terrifying. You can't move, you can't shout, and it even feels like you can't breathe... I saw it very clearly, it was a woman... if it's not Sally, I can't think of anyone else!"
"Do you believe those mediums from before?" Jason asked as he walked out of the room, heading downstairs.
Luke Prescott hurriedly followed, with Joseph trailing behind. As they walked downstairs, Luke Prescott said, "No, I don't quite trust them, because my problem hasn't been solved. It was all no use, I heard about you from Joseph..."
"If you don't believe those mediums, then you can try to believe in me..." Jason said as he left the mansion, heading towards the swimming pool in the backyard.
"Alright, I'll try to convince myself to trust someone... you've got to believe in someone, for the sake of my damn predicament. It's been a long time." Luke Prescott gritted his teeth as he spoke.