"Sometimes I wonder if we're all just walking zombies," Lisa mused, poking the half-eaten slice of pizza on her plate. The soft glow of the diner's neon lights cast an eerie red hue over her face, making her look like the main character in a low-budget horror film. To anyone else, it might've seemed like a joke. To Lisa, it was a daily existential thought.
Across from her, Emily rolled her eyes with an exaggerated sigh, stirring her milkshake like it held the secrets of the universe. "You've got to stop watching those weird documentaries at two in the morning," she said, her tone light but with that familiar tinge of concern. "You've been talking about zombies and ghosts for weeks now. It's... not normal."
"Normal's overrated," Lisa replied, lifting her gaze to meet Emily's, a glint of mischief in her dark eyes. "Besides, if I was normal, I wouldn't be here with you, eating overpriced pizza at the only diner in town."
Emily cracked a smile despite herself. "That's true. But maybe... just maybe, you should lay off the whole 'death' thing for a bit. You've been, I don't know, extra obsessed lately."
Lisa leaned back in her seat, arms crossed, staring into the glow of the jukebox across the room. "It's not a phase, Em. It's a calling."
"A calling?" Emily scoffed, "What, like a priest but for the undead?"
"Exactly." Lisa's grin widened. "Except, you know, less preaching and more... well, grave digging."
Emily leaned forward, elbows on the table, her blue eyes narrowing in mock suspicion. "I don't know, Lis. Are you sure you're not starting to look a little... dark? I mean, even for you."
Lisa shot her a playful look. "I'm just trying to understand the great mysteries of life. Like, why are we so obsessed with the living when the dead seem to have all the answers? They've already figured out the whole 'stop existing' thing. That seems like something worth learning from."
"You seriously need a hobby." Emily's tone was half-joking, but there was an edge of genuine concern. "What happened to knitting or, I don't know, learning how to drive without using the curb as a parking guide?"
Lisa smirked. "I can't knit, and driving's overrated. But, if I get a chance to learn necromancy, you bet I'm taking that class."
Emily stared at her, blinking slowly. "Okay, I'm officially freaked out."
Lisa chuckled, picking up the pizza slice and biting into it. "Don't worry. I've got this under control." She gestured to the stack of books on the booth next to her, each one sporting titles like The Art of Zombie Summoning and How to Raise a Ghost Without Really Trying. "Besides, it's not like I'm gonna summon a horde of undead at prom or something."
"I swear, if you did, I'd be the first one to leave," Emily replied, rolling her eyes.
Lisa laughed, but there was something deeper in her words. "I can't help it, Em. I've just always felt... out of place, you know? Everyone's obsessed with fitting in, but I don't fit. Not here, not with them. It's like they all have a 'normal' life, and I'm just standing on the edge of something weird waiting for my invitation to... whatever comes next."
Emily hesitated, her milkshake spoon dangling from her fingers. "Lis, you're not weird. You're... different. But that's why I love you. Just... maybe... try not to scare the entire town, okay? It's one thing to talk about raising the dead at school, and another thing to actually... do it."
Lisa leaned in, eyes twinkling with amusement. "I'm not gonna raise the dead, Em. That's the kind of thing that happens in the movies—and only when the characters do something dumb, like read from an ancient book they found in a basement."
"Good to know you're not that stupid," Emily said, sarcasm dripping from her voice.
"Hey, it's a fine line between genius and 'why are you in my basement?'" Lisa replied with a wink. "Besides, I already found the one thing I'm sure of: this stuff? It's not a phase. It's my thing."
"You're serious about this, huh?" Emily asked, her smile fading into something softer, more thoughtful.
Lisa shrugged, tapping the edge of her pizza slice against her plate. "What else is there, Em? I mean, I don't want to be just the girl who reads too many books. I want to know what happens after. And if no one else is willing to find out, then I guess I'll just have to do it myself."
Emily studied her for a long moment, her eyes flicking to the stack of books beside Lisa. "I get it, Lis. But maybe... I dunno, there's more to life than trying to solve the mysteries of the dead. What about the living? You've got a pretty good thing going with your research—maybe it's time to start living too."
Lisa paused, considering this. She'd never really thought about it that way. Living. A strange word, considering how much time she spent fixated on death. Still, Emily's words stuck with her. Maybe she wasn't completely wrong.
"I guess... but right now," Lisa said slowly, "living just feels... like going through the motions. You know? Like everyone's pretending, and I'm just standing there in the middle of it, hoping for something to happen."
"Maybe it already is," Emily said with a slight smile. "But you're looking in the wrong places."
"Like where?" Lisa asked.
Emily glanced around, as if making sure no one was eavesdropping. "Like... okay, hear me out: Maybe the answers aren't in some dusty old book or a graveyard at midnight. Maybe you're supposed to find your own story. Not just read about other people's."
Lisa stared at her for a moment. Emily wasn't wrong, and it was the first time in a long while that Lisa felt like someone got it. Maybe there was a way to mix her fascination with the supernatural with... well, living.
Lisa grinned. "You know, Em, you might just be onto something."
But before Emily could respond, the front door of the diner swung open, and a gust of cold wind rushed inside, making the neon lights flicker. Lisa glanced over, and in that split second, she swore she saw something—a shadow standing just outside the window.
A flicker of recognition.
And then it was gone.