･ﾟ☆ *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫:
" 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘫𝘢𝘮𝘴 "

"A BIKE SHACK." REGGIE OBSERVED. "Right where my house used to be."

The others frowned at the floral purple sign reading PETALS ON THE BEACH BIKE AND ROLLERBLADE RENTALS.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, man." Luke said with a grimace, patting Reggie's chest comfortingly.

"They made the Meyerson's house into a noodle shop." Reggie gestured to the connected building next door. "Why couldn't they have made mine like a pizzeria or something?" He pouted.

"They tore down the whole neighborhood." Ellie shook her head in disappointment, remembering when the little shops and restaurants used to houses.

Luke separated himself from the others, patting Reggie again and sitting on a log that sat on the ground. In his absence, Ellie stepped closer to Reggie, placing a hand on his shoulder, giving him a comforting smile when he looked over at her.

"Guess my folks are gone." Reggie mumbled.

"No, everyone's gone. Twenty five years, gone." Alex said. It hadn't really hit them until now just how long they'd been dead before they showed back up in the studio. Who knows what would have happened if Julie hadn't played their CD. "Friends, family, Bobby, everyone."

Ellie felt a pang in her chest, swallowing harshly.

"Bobby, that's right." Reggie replied. "What do you think happened to him?"

She could feel the boys' stares on her but kept her gaze to the ground. She didn't want to admit how much she had actually been thinking about Bobby since the reappeared as ghosts. But a serious, two year relationship that she always thought would have a happy ending made it difficult for her not to think of him. Though, thinking back to the night they died, maybe Bobby wasn't as serious with her as she was with him. Even then, she wondered how he lived after their deaths. Did he grieve for them? For her? How long did it take for him to move on? Did he ever get married or have kids? Did he ever tell them stories about his old band that could've made it big time if it wasn't for that fateful night?

"He probably just got old like everybody else and moved on." Luke shrugged like it was no big deal, his demeanor too calm for Alex's liking.

"Dude, how are you so casual about all of this?" The drummer asked. "I mean, don't you wanna figure out what happened?"

Luke huffed. "Well let's be real for a second. It's not like any of us were that close to our families. My folks always regretted buying me that guitar. Reggie, your parents were literally a fight away from a divorce." The bassist winced at the reminder. "Alex, your parents were never cool again after you told them you were gay. Ellie.." Luke paused, not wanting to sound insensitive to her situation. "It had been months since you went to see your mom."

Ellie sighed, knowing that Luke was right. Besides a high school relationship, what was she really leaving behind?

"Okay, none of us had it great." Alex admitted. "But at least we had something! You know, what do we have now?"

Ellie crossed her arms over her chest, chewing on her lip anxiously while she subconsciously dug the tip of her shoe into the sand beneath her. She'd been actively avoiding thinking about the reality of their situation since they woke up in the dark room. Because while Alex's anxiety caused him to overthink and ramble, Ellie's caused her to shut down almost completely. There were days when they were alive that the boys couldn't get a single word out of her because she was just going through the motions of the day. And because she wasn't one to talk about her feelings, they didn't always figure out the problem.

"And before you say cool teleportation skills, just know, I'm not entirely okay with that either! Alright, it tingles. In weird places." Alex explained, gesturing with his hands.

Ellie's nose scrunched up. "Ew."

"I'll tell you what we had." Luke sprung up from his seat. "It's what we've had since the day we came together." He said, hopping up onto the log.

The other three ghosts just stared blankly at their friend. "Guys, we have us." He informed when they didn't respond. "We're the only family we're ever gonna need. You know what else we have?" He asked, rhetorically.

"I'm gonna guess death breath?" Reggie remarked. Alex pointed to him in agreement and Ellie felt the corners of her mouth quirk up.

"Our music, you dork." Luke corrected with a chuckle. "We have our music, you guys. People, actual people, can hear us play! Okay, they can't see us, fine, but they can feel us. If I had my guitar, I'd play for all these people right now. Just like we used to do down at the pier." He said, gesturing to the people that were spread across the beach.

"Yeah, they can't tip what they can't see." Alex countered.

Luke let his shoulders drop, stepping down from the log. "It's not about the tips, Alex. It's about playing music. Connecting with people, making a difference in their day." He nudged the blonde boys shoulder. "I just–I wish I had my guitar."

Before any of them could even blink, Luke's body spun around, the small flash of light filled their vision. When he turned back around, he held his guitar in his arms.

It happened so fast that the three ghosts had to take a second to process what they saw before they reacted.

"Whoa!" Reggie gasped. "That was rad!"

"How did you do that?" Ellie spoke up, sharing the same baffled expression as her friends.

"I don't know." Luke answered, looking at his guitar in confusion. "I-I-I mean, I wished for it, and then it came in my hands–"

"I-I wish I had a puppy." Reggie closed his eyes and squatted down, ready to catch whatever hopefully appeared. "A hamster? Pizza?" When nothing appeared, Reggie let his arms fall and pouted, kicking at the sand and plopping himself on the ground like a child.

"Hey," Luke grinned. "I think I know something that'll cheer you up." Reggie looked up hopefully. Luke suddenly starts strumming a familiar tune, one Ellie hadn't heard since the boys first fall out as a band back in the 90's.

Reggie had been somewhat in the middle after an argument between Luke and Alex broke out that eventually caused them end the relationship they'd had going on for a few months. Once their hard feelings had been brushed aside and the band got back together, Reggie had taken the liberty to write a small tune that lifted everyone's spirits and it was like nothing had ever happened. In Ellie's song journal, where it had been written, it was labeled as Reggie's Jam.

Luke shot Alex and Ellie encouraging looks, the two of them sharing a glancing before caving in. Alex slipped his hands out of his pockets, leaning towards Reggie. "Come on, Reginald." Alex teased, using his hands to make a beat on his thighs and chest.

Ellie could see her best friend start to smile and took matters into her own hands, bending down to grab Reggie's hands and pulling him to his feet as Luke counted off. "A one, two, three, four!"

"Can you? Can you hear me?" Reggie caved, singing his song.

Ellie chuckled, sharing a happy look with Alex and Luke. "Loud and clear!" She responded.

"We gotta get, we gotta get ready!" Reggie jumped up onto the log, the other three ghosts following.

"Cause it's been years!" Luke added, the four hopping off the other side.

Ellie had a subconscious thought and suddenly, her old tambourine appeared in her hands. The boys looked at her in surprise as they sang but grinned and continued.

"Whoa, oh, oh, oh. This band is back."

The brunette tapped the instrument on her side, her higher voice harmonizing with the boys' voices.

"Whoa, oh, oh, oh. This band is back!"

Reggie had hopped up onto a chair, jumping down a line of them as the other musicians. It was then that they realized the beach goers were all dancing to the music and remembered that they could still hear them.

"Can you?"

"Yes, we can!"

"Can you hear me?"

The ghosts bounced the words to each other, all four voices coming together to sing, "Loud and clear!"

"We gotta get,"

"Wanna get,"

"Gotta get ready,"

"Cause it's been years! Hey!" They sang together again, skipping happily while Reggie continued to hop down the line of chairs.

"Whoa, oh, oh, oh. This band is back.
whoa, oh, oh, oh. This band is back!"

The ghosts stopped at a couple that were dancing in their seats. "You won't find the speaker. It's direct spot audio! Heard about it in a TED Talk." The boy explained, the two of them continuing to jam out while the music played.

Ellie giggled when she felt a hand pull at her arm, playing her tambourine as Reggie pulled her along with the guys. They played as they made their way away from the beach, eventually stopping as they got back into the city.

The song was definitely successful in cheering up Reggie, and, along with seeing her boys happy again, Ellie was just glad to get her mind off of their problems. They were already dead, they had all the time in the world to worry about them.

Julie's room was a bit too decorated for Ellie's taste. Although, thinking back to her old room that had been covered in rock band posters, vinyl record covers and Polaroids of her and the boys, she probably didn't have much room to talk.

The ghosts had eventually made their way back to Julie's house where the boys had the bright idea to look through Julie's room.

Ellie had told them that it was weird and that Julie would be pissed if she found out that they were in there. The boys assured her that they'd be out before Julie got home from school and assigned her the position of lookout.

She had no interest in snooping around Julie's things, so while the guys went looked around, Ellie sat by the door. She made the quick decision not to tell the guys when she faintly heard the front door open or when she heard Julie greet her dad downstairs, then start walking up the stairs and definitely not when the door opened.

Instead, Ellie smiled up at the girl. "Hey, Julie."

Julie looked confused before catching sight of the three boys scattered throughout the room. Luke was standing on a chair and looking at the items on her shelves, Alex was attempting to pick up a picture frame and Reggie making angels on her bed.

"What are you guys doing in my room?" Julie exclaimed, her confused expression quickly becoming an angry one.

Alex and Reggie let out high pitched noises, trying to come up with excuses. "We were looking for the kitchen?" Luke offered.

"Ellie, you were supposed to be lookout!" Alex hissed quietly, ducking his head when Julie sent him a look of disbelief.

Ellie smiled sarcastically and pointed at the girl in front of her. "Oh, look! Julie's here!"

"This...this can't happen. It's creepy. Get off my bed, please." Julie scolded. Reggie did as told and sprung off the bed, avoiding Ellie's glare.

"If only someone had told you guys that before you even came in here. Oh, wait!" Ellie sarcastically remarked, getting up to stand next to Julie.

"Hey Julie." Luke raised his hand. "What's in the box?" He asked, pointing at a small white box on Julie's shelf.

"That's off limits." Julie replied.

Ellie winced. "Wrong answer." She mumbled quietly, knowing Luke would become even more curious.

"Oh, okay." Luke chuckled. "Girl stuff."

"Ohh, like butterflies and glitter?" Reggie wondered, his thoughts definitely more pure than Luke's.

Ellie pinched the bridge of her nose as Julie crossed her arms over her chest.

"Oh, come on. I'm sorry about them." Alex apologized.

Ellie made her way around Julie to take a seat on the edge of the bed. "Yeah, don't mind them. They only other girls room they've been in is mine." She smirked.

"It's none of your business!" Julie said to Luke, disregarding the things the others said. "And yes, there might be some glitter." She admitted, Reggie giving Ellie a smug look that she couldn't be mad at.

"Hey!" Alex laughed, bring their attention to him. "I actually picked something up!" He said excitedly. A soon as the words left his mouth, the picture frame he had successfully picked up fell through his hands, thankfully landing in Julie's bed and not the floor. "I dropped it." He frowned.

Julie sighed when she saw what he had picked up.

"Is that your mom?" Luke asked curiously, the boys leaning over the picture to examine it.

"Dude." Ellie whispered, giving him an incredulous look. She also took a second to peak at the photo, heart melting at the sight of a young Julie being kissed on the cheek by her mother. Her moms face was mainly cut off and only a bit of her side profile was visible, but they shared the same curly locks and tan skin.

"Yes, and it's my favorite picture of us, so if you break it I'll break you." Julie threatened, the boys looking up from the picture when she snatched it from their vision.

"Okay, well, sorry because were kind of unbreakable at this point." Alex retorted.

Ellie took that as a challenge, raising a questioning eyebrow at him. "Are you sure?"

The three boys swallowed harshly.

"I don't get it." Julie says to them. "You guys can mess up my bed, pick up your instruments, but you can't pick up other stuff?"

"I know right? It's hard. But for some reason, our instruments, easy." Luke shrugged, earning nods of agreement from the other ghosts.

"Yeah, like super easy." Reggie concurred. "Oh, and check out what I learned today!" He stood up and held out his arms, his red and white bass landing a second later. Unfortunately for Reggie, the weight of his instrument was unexpected and it brought him down to the bean bag at the foot of the bed.

The others winced. "Yeah, that looked super easy." Julie sarcastically said as Ellie helped Reggie lift the instrument from his chest.

"But it's like I always thought," Luke grinned. "Our instruments are attached to our souls."

"Hey." A new voice spoke accompanied by a small knock.

Reggie awkwardly rolled over to stand next to Alex. Ellie gave him a weird look, standing from her spot to walk over to him and the guys. When she glanced at them, she resisted the urge to laugh when saw Alex's arm across Luke's chest and Luke's hand on his, the two exes looking at each other awkwardly before ripping their hands apart.

"Everything okay?" Julie's dad asked, leaning into the room.

"Yeah! I'm fine." Julie answered a little too enthusiastically.

"I thought I heard you talking to someone." Mr Molina said.

Julie shook her head. "Nope. Must've been my laptop, that I just closed." She explained, gesturing over to the device.

Her dad seemed to buy her lie, chuckling lightly with a nod. "Okay. If you need anything..." He trailed off, pointing questioningly at the door.

"Yeah, thanks." Julie responded. Ray gave his daughter one last smile before he shut the door behind him.

Julie immediately brought her hands up to her temple. If Ellie didn't love her boys so much, she would feel bad for Julie. Ellie's had most of her life to grow used to the boys' antics, but Julie literally met them last night.

"Your dad seems like the kind of guy who likes to barbecue." Reggie smiled. "I bet he has a great ribs recipe."

"I don't know, but if you guys wanna talk to me we have to do it in the studio. He's worried enough about me as it is." Julie frowned.

Luke shrugged. "He seems chill. You should just tell him about us."

Ellie resisted the urge not to facepalm.

"You're kidding, right?" Julie glared at him causing his grin to falter. She sighed."This past year, everyone's been watching over me, being super nice as if they're waiting for me to snap. If I tell my dad I met a ghost band, I'll be back to talking to Dr. Turner three days a week."

Luke grimaced. "Yeah, you probably shouldn't tell him."

Ellie frowned, knowing exactly how Julie was feeling. The only difference was that Ellie never had the option of going to see a therapist because her family couldn't afford it.

She felt a hand touch her arm and turned her head. Reggie was giving her a concerned look and raised his eyebrows as if to ask if she was okay. Ellie grasped the hand on her arm with hers, squeezing it lightly as she gave him a reassuring smile.

"Julie..." Luke's voice interrupted their moment, their hands falling apart as their attention moved to him. The boy was back on the chair he was in when Julie walked in, looking longing at the same box.

"Oh my gosh! I thought I told you to leave that alone!" She yelled in exasperation.

"I know, you just should've said nothing because now I can't stop thinking about it. So...what's in the box, Julie?" Luke pleaded, just as Ellie predicted.

"It's just my dream box, okay?" Julie snapped. "Whenever I get a thought or something, I write it down and get it out of my mind." She explained in a calmer tone.

Luke was only more intrigued. "Like lyrics?"

"They would be if I still wrote music, like I used to with my mom." Julie looked down sadly. "Now it's just full of stuff that doesn't make me sad."

Alex stood up abruptly. "But, I mean, you do play. We heard you this morning."

Julie's faced morphed into anger once again. "In the garage?"

This time, Ellie did face palm.

Luke stepped down from the chair, landing a slap on the blonde boys shoulder with a glare.

"So you were there too?" Julie questioned.

"Uh..." Alex and Reggie trailed off, Ellie scratching the back of her neck awkwardly, unable to point fingers for this situation.

Luke laughed lightly, jumping and landing on his front on the bed. "So, where is your kitchen, by the way?" He changed the subject, smiling charmingly at Julie.

Julie played along, resting her hands on her knees as she leaned down to his level. "Okay, we need to set some boundaries." She smiled. It was a smile Ellie recognized because it was one women always used when they were annoyed. Men never seemed to spot it. "For starters," She stood up, pointing at her door. "Stay out of my room!"

"Mhm, crystal clear. Let's go."

"Yes, ma'am! We are out of here!"

The boys began to spew agreements and left through the closed door, Reggie playing random notes on his bass as they stepped out.

Ellie, being the last one out, stopped suddenly a few steps from the door, remembering a detail from the night before. It seems as if Alex had the same idea, coming back up the stairs just after the guys made it down. The two shared a silent nod, popping their heads through the door.

"Hey!" Alex called, startling Julie who had gone to move her mothers picture back to where it originally was.

"Uh, sorry, we didn't mean to bother you. Did you get back into your music program?" Ellie asked.

Julie exhaled. "No, no I didn't." She quietly replied.

"I'm sorry," Alex frowned. "That really sucks."

"Thanks." Julie nodded appreciatively.

The silence that followed was awkward, the two ghosts looking around aimlessly. Julie pursed her lips, looking at them expectantly. "Is that it?"

"Yeah, yeah." Alex tried to smile. "This is getting weird."

Julie waved at them and Ellie took that as her cue to put an end to this exchange. "Okay." She mumbled, grabbing Alex by the shoulders and pulling him out.

𝐚 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐬:
𝘈 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘣𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳. 𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘌𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘦'𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘶𝘺𝘴. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘹𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘪𝘧 𝘪𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴, 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘐'𝘮 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘴𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦 𝘶𝘱𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘯!