Everything hurt as he lay dying in a pool of his own blood. The wound on his stomach pumped out more blood, and he coughed up some more. His vision began to blur, maybe with tears, maybe because it had begun to drizzle, he wasn't sure. But Leon knew he was inside the house, so even if it was indeed drizzling outside, he wouldn't even feel it. His brain was fuzzy, and playing tricks on him. His heartbeat slowed, and he blinked, staring into the eyes of the people he loved the most in the world.
"We need to make sure no one finds the body."
"Sawyer, call Vincent. He's the only one we can trust to take care of this. And then drive to the club, make sure people see you. Once he is discovered missing, the police will suspect you first. You need a strong alibi. "
He wasn't sure who among them had pulled the trigger, but it didn't matter. His mother walked in, and for a second, he hoped she would save him.
"Why are you here? His blood is ruining my imported rug. You could have done this elsewhere."
"M-mum…"
"I am not your mother, not anymore. You stopped being my son the day I gave birth to my Sawyer. How dare you, an adopted son, try to compete with the child I birthed?" She sneered.
But he never competed with Sawyer. He loved his little brother, and always took care of him since he was born. It wasn't his fault that he was smarter, stronger, and more capable than Sawyer. It was just his natural talent. All he had done was try to impress them by working hard for four years in the nation's top college. He won the top awards, hoping they would be proud, instead, they were angry because Sawyer wasn't even smart enough to get into the college.
He had hoped that the woman who raised him would have more sympathy, instead, all he got was hatred in her eyes. He lost all hope then. No one was coming to save him. More tears rolled down his eyes, and he felt his heart beat slow down.
"You don't deserve to be part of this family. You should have stayed in your place."
Hearing this made Leon's eyes that were closing snap open. His hopelessness became anger, but he was too weak to speak. Yet, inside his mind, he yelled over and over.
"Why! Why did you adopt me if you knew you wouldn't love me as soon as you had your own child? Why did you bring me here if you didn't want me in your family?"
The anger made his heart beat faster, but that only made his wound bleed even more. And with his last dying breath, he swore…
"If there is a next life, I will make you all pay for this betrayal. My death must be avenged." He closed his eyes, and his body became slack.
Leon screamed as he stood from the ground, but no one heard him. He looked around in shock, and realised why he was standing despite being shot to death. He turned to face his body. No one heard his shocked scream, because they couldn't see him. He was truly dead. Sawyer poked him with a golf club, to confirm he was dead. Vincent came soon after and hauled his body away, to be buried in a shallow grave. He watched all of this, powerless to stop any of it from happening.
No one would even know what truly happened to him. And because he was an orphan that was adopted by the Hansen family, no one would even be looking for him. He stayed by his grave where Vincent had buried him, just watching. No tears came, he couldn't even feel anger or hate, or fear. He was just a spirit, with no body to feel emotions. All he had left was to wander.
As he walked aimlessly, he met an old woman.
"Hello dear. What brings you here?"
He was startled to hear her voice.
"You can see me?" He said, and she laughed.
"Of course I can, silly." She replied.
"We can all see you." A teenage voice said, and Leon turned to see a young boy, probably between 14 and 16 behind him.
Then he saw more people, and he realised what was happening. While he was wandering, he had been so absent minded that he walked into a cemetery without realising it. They weren't alive. They were all dead. He sighed.
"Aren't we supposed to cross into a light or something like that after death?" He asked.
"Usually, yes."
"So why am I stuck here? No one can see, or hear me except those who are already dead. What's the point?"
"You are the reason you're still here. You couldn't hold on to life, but you still refused to let go. Only spirits with regrets, resentment, or other forms of unfinished business are left behind in this plane. Until you resolve this, you will remain this way forever. Let go of what is weighing your soul here."
"Never! I must avenge my death." He snapped, and the old woman just chuckled again.
"In this form, you can do nothing. Why hold on so tight?" She asked and he scoffed.
"You're here too. So why are you holding on? Take your own advice."
Before she could respond, there was a ringing sound that made the rest of the spirits immediately turn.
"What's that?" He asked, and followed them.
"A chance. Once in a while, a soul is ready to cross over, but is still tied to a body. Some eventually commit suicide and free their souls to damnation, but if you're lucky enough to be compatible, you can take their place. You want to live, and they want to die. A fair exchange."
As they moved, more and more spirits began to drop back.
"Why are they stopping?"
"The closer you get, the easier it is to tell who is compatible, and who isn't. Those souls that aren't compatible won't be able to complete that exchange. So why bother following?" She replied.
But the closer Leon got to the ringing sound, the stronger the pulse he felt.
"Lucky bastard!" The last spirit following Leon and the old woman cursed and turned back.
"Is it truly luck? You're choosing to return to a life of more troubles, when you could let go of all that holds you back, and find eternal peace." She chuckled as they got to a boundary line.
"I refuse to let my death go unpunished." He replied to her.
"This is where I must stop. I have escorted you this far. The body is yours if you want it, but beware, pursue your goal at your own peril. Once you have no reason to live anymore, you will lose that body. How long can the need for vengeance sustain you?"