"006, do you know what your number means?" Brenner questions, his voice sending shivers through the small girl's body.

"No," she replies.

"6 is an evil number. Just like 13. The people who sold you to me would call you the devil. That's where the number "6" originated," he explains.

-

Frankie's grip on her backpack straps tightens. She walks down the road, kicking the leaves under her feet.

She usually walks home, but today is colder than usual, and she wishes she brought a jacket along with her. It's so cold that her breath fogs up in front of her face. Her memories are enough to light a fire in her, however.

Cars pass her every few minutes, and none of them even bother to stop.

"Brighten up, child," the spirit appears beside her, "the cold is better than the hot." Frankie scoffs in reply, "you don't have a body to know how cold it is right now. I can't believe I have to walk through this!"

"Don't complain," the spirit blankly states, "at least you're alive to feel."

Frankie frowns apologetically. "What's your name anyway? You never did say."

"You can call me Alex," the spirit responds. Frankie nods and goes to say something else, however, the spirit disappears.

A car drives up beside her, and the window rolls down to reveal what looks to a high school boy. A senior maybe. Frankie feels a bit of panic rise within her as she looks towards the boy.

"Hey kid, do you need a ride?" He offers, eyeing the girl curiously. Frankie shakes her head 'no' and begins to speed her steps. The car drives beside her. "C'mon, it's freezing out here, I can't let you walk home in this weather," the boy pleads.

Finally, Frankie nods. She climbs into the car, and the boy rolls up the window.

The first few minutes are silent.

"Turn left," Frankie mumbles, breaking the silence. The boy complies, turning the wheel. She looks out the window to the right of her, the scenery speeds past her. Journey's "Open Arms" plays lightly on the radio.

"What's your name?" The boy asks. Frankie stiffens a little.

"F-Frankie. Frankie Prynne," she answers, turning to look at the boy, "what's your name?"

"Steve Harrington," he responds, glancing at the girl every few seconds. A small giggle erupts from the girl, causing the high schooler to become confused. "What's so funny?" He questions.

Frankie shrugs a little before saying, "Nothing...it's just..."Steve" is such an unoriginal name. Your parents are clearly not that creati—"

"Hey hey, don't bash my name!" Steve defends, smiling a little, "I mean, here I am, giving you a ride, and you bash my name in return?" Frankie laughs lightly and shrugs.

"Turn right."

Once again, Steve complies. The scenery around them becomes even more forest-y than before. Naturally, this makes Steve a bit wary. Why is her house so far into the woods? Why don't her parents pick her up from school?

"Why don't your parents pick you up?"

Frankie shifts uncomfortably, trying to think of a good excuse to feed him. She can't exactly just say, "I don't have parents", or he'll rat her out.

"Tell him they're working. They're always working," a spirit whispers from behind her, casually lounging in the back seat. Frankie nods a little.

"They're working. They work a lot," she nonchalantly hums.

Steve frowns a little. He can relate to that more than he wishes. Now that she says that, he feels some sort of connection to her. As weird as she is, he feels like maybe she needs someone to be here for her. Plus, he doesn't like the idea of what could happen to her if she keeps walking all this way alone.

"Oh...well, from now on, I'll give you a ride to and from school," he insists. Frankie blinks quickly.

"What?! No, I– you don't even know me! I'm perfectly fine walking—"

"No arguing. I'm not letting you walk all this way, that's final," Steve demands, giving her a serious look. Frankie rolls her eyes a little. "Fine. You better not be late though!" She hums, giving in.

Steve smiles and nods.

A house comes into view in the distance. Shivers run down Steve's spine at the sight. The house is really creepy looking.

"I know it's creepy, I'm working on," Frankie mutters, practically reading his thoughts. Steve nods, driving up to the house and parking before it. "Do you stay here alone a lot?"

Frankie nods.

"Yeah, like I said: parents work a lot."

With that, she opens the car door and gathers her belongings. Just before she closes the door, Steve speaks up.

"8am, tomorrow. Sharp. Be ready," he says, pointing a finger at her. Frankie laughs and nods.

"Alright. Bye, Steve," she waves her hand and closes the door to his 1981 BMW. As soon as the door shuts, the car speeds away. Frankie trudges up the steps of her porch and into the weirdly warm house.

"We put the heater on for you," Dina, a common spirit to the house, says with a joyful tone, "sure wish I could feel warmth again.."

"Wait till Halloween," Frankie groans, throwing her backpack aside and plopping face first onto the couch.

"Oh c'mon, Frankie! We've all been waiting to hear the song for weeks now!" Dina complains. Suddenly, an entire group of ghosts appear around her. Frankie rolls her eyes, "so wait some more!"

A series of groans are heard as the ghosts disappear.

"Jeez, get off my back!" Frankie complains, thankful when she is met with silence.

"Halloweens close, you'll all be free to "be alive" by then. You better stop bothering me then."

|

(Dad Steve meets orphan Frankie. How do ya think this'll end?)