i pressed my lips together thoughtfully, trying to come up with a rational solution for what was going on around me.

"are group hallucinations a thing?" i asked julie, who held her cross like it was going to help in any way.

"i hope so," she replied, eying the boys suspiciously,"but until we figure it out... who are you and what are you doing in my mom's studio?"

"your mom's studio?" the shaggy haired boy chuckled, walking over to the piano,"this is our studio. trust me, the grand piano is brand new."

i knit my brows in confusion, knowing that wasn't true. it had come with the house, and god only knows how old this house is,"i don't think-"

"my couch!" the boy exclaimed, jumping into the seat right next to me.

i scrambled to get away from him, not prepared to know what it would feel like to come in contact with me. i knew about auditory and visual hallucinations, but i didn't know what it was like to touch one. and i sure as hell didn't wanna find out.

he looked right at me,"and lily's here, and-" he looked past me, his face scrunching up in confusion,"but that is definitely not my six string."

"and i'm not lily." i replied awkwardly, not sure what i needed to say to convince him.

he chuckled, waving his hand dismissively, "classic lily, so funny."

i let out an exasperated sigh, deciding it was useless arguing with something my mind had clearly made up.

the boys were clearly confused as to how their studio had changed so much, so while they tried to figure it out, julie came to sit next to me.

"are they really ghosts?" she whispered loudly in my ear.

"ghosts aren't real," i dismissed the theory, glancing over at the conversing boys,"i think the cafeteria ladies might have laced our pudding cups."

she gave me a confused look, knowing i was just pulling answers from thin air. because the truth is, i have none. i have no explanation for what's going on in this studio, and it's freaking me out.

i watched as the blonde walked over to us, almost like he was going to approach the situation with a gentle hand. that was, until he barked at us,"why are you in our studio?"

julie gasped, thrusting the cross forward and right through the boy. my eyes widened as julie and i shared a look of shock.

"oh my god," she turned to the boy,"how did you do that?!"

the boy sighed, looking back at his friends, "clearly they aren't understanding, clearly they don't get it," he turned back to us,"okay, look, we're ghosts, alright? we're just three ghosts and we're really happy to be home. so, thank you for the flowers, they really brighten up the room."

"you can't be ghosts." i stood up from the couch for maybe the first time since they arrived. my t-shirt draped over my thighs and it occurred to me that if i had been meeting any cute apparitions, i should have dressed nicer. but we didn't have time for any of that.

the brunet boy laughed,"i think i'd know what we are."

"ghosts aren't real," i explained, crossing my arms over my chest and looking at the boys suspiciously,"next you're gonna tell me you met a fairy or a superhero."

the shaggy haired boy looked amongst his friends, before smirking at me,"we're pretty real, babe."

i shook my head in disbelief,"no, because if you were real, i could touch you. and i can't even-" i lost the ability to say anymore when my hand smacked right into his shoulder. i knew that had to be a fluke, so i tried again,"i can't even-"

when my hand collided with his shoulder for what was probably the sixth time, he pushed it off,"clearly you can, so stop it."

i let out a shaky breath, glancing over at julie, "um, julie, is my world crumbling around me right now?"

she nodded slowly, giving me a small sympathetic frown,"hey, at least your mom was right."

i sighed, deciding i could touch base on my mother later,"c-can you touch them?"

julie shrugged walking over to the two boys she was yet to pass through,"not blondie. what about..." she swiped her hands straight through both of the boys.

i gave her an incredulous look, not sure how that was possible,"what? but i just...i just-" i smacked the shaggy haired boy's shoulder again. i walked over and poked the other brunet, and when the blond caught my arm before i could do anything, i groaned,"why- why me? why can i-"

"are you dead?" the blond guy questioned, causing my eyes to widen.

"a-am i dead?" i echoed, whipping my head to julie,"julie, am i dead? did i die, is this the afterlife? i don't even believe in-"

"you're not dead," she told me,"maybe you're just special."

"special enough to touch a bunch of..." i glanced at the boys clothing, trying to figure them out,"pacsun model ghosts, great."

the brown haired boy smiled at me in amusement,"we're actually in a band called sunset curve. lily's our biggest fan."

"tell your friends."

i rolled my eyes, tired of him calling me by this unknown person's name,"babe, my name is jordan."

he gave me a confused look,"that's not- look, whatever we can discuss your comedic timing later, because this is an inappropriate time to prank. but for now, we're in a band and last night was supposed to be a really big night for us."

julie shook her head at his comment, pulling out her phone.

the boys gave her a confused look,"what is that? what is she doing?"

"it's my phone," she replied, before realizing she was being crazy,"no, they're not real. stop talking to them."

"they seem pretty real to me." i commented, reaching up to touch the shaggy haired boys gorgeous locks.

if i wasn't so freaked out by my beliefs running out of the door, i might have given myself a moment to realize how attractive all these guys were.

he looked down at me, a small smile tugging at his lips,"i really missed you, lil."

i drew my hand back, my gaze stiffening to form a harsh glare,"my name is jordan. do you wanna see my driver's license or my passport to prove it?"

he looked at me expectantly, and i took out my lanyard. it had both the keys to my car and my driver's license.

i dropped it into his palms, but watched frightfully as it fell straight to the ground.

"oh, right," i muttered, remembering that in a ghost book i had read, they couldn't hold anything,"here."

i held it up to his face and he inspected the piece of plastic.

"t-that doesn't make any sense," he spoke quietly, most likely talking to himself,"it says you were born in 2004."

i nodded slowly, not seeing the problem,"yeah, i'm sixteen."

he looked at me with confusion, like it was impossible that i was speaking the truth.

before he could get a word in, julie spoke up, "there is a sunset curve, and you did die...but not last night."

i knit my brows, walking over to peer at the phone. my eyes widened at the text on the screen,"you died twenty five years ago."

as my realization fully kicked in, it all become too much for me to handle. i needed to make sense of this whole situation, and i couldn't do that with them standing right in front of me.

i couldn't cope with the fact that i had just met seventeen year old ghosts, who had died back in the nineties. it all seemed like a fever dream.

"i-i can't do this, i've gotta go." i said abruptly, gripping onto my keys with a tight fist.

"you're not leaving me!" julie pulled me back to her.

i let out an exasperated huff, throwing my head back to lean against her shoulder,"why not?"

"cause we're in this together." she smiled facetiously at the boys.

i turned to her, glancing at the doors,"we'll be in this together from afar. i'm gonna see if your dad needs any help with dinner."

before she could grab me, i ran off, careful to avoid touching my new ghost friends.

•

"the blond is named alex," julie whispered to me in the middle of dinner,"the short haired boy is reggie, and the long haired boy is luke."

"wrong tense," i replied harshly, pushing my food around my plate,"was, was, and was."

i hadn't planned on staying for dinner, but julie insisted i both stay for dinner and the night. i knew we would be up until the morning discussing what we had seen, but i made a mental note to talk to my mother about it as well.

if anyone would know why i was able to both see and feel ghosts, it would be her.

i sat in silence as julie's tía rambled on and on about how moving was good for the family. i didn't exactly agree, but then again, i hadn't been the healthiest when it came to my own grief.

when i saw the three boys walk straight through the front door and into the room, i gasped in shock. julie's dad gave me a confused look, so i tried to cover it up with a cough.

"sorry," i stated, trying to come up with a lie, "food went down the wrong tube."

he nodded slowly, reluctantly returning his attention to his own plate.

i did my best to subtly elbow julie, trying to gain her attention to the boys who were sauntering towards the table.

she looked up and yelped at the sight of them.

"i, uh, i kicked her!" i exclaimed quickly, trying to rationalize her otherwise uncharacteristic scream.

"why?" carlos, julie's little brother, questioned.

i bit my lip, staring at him with annoyance, wondering why a little boy would possibly be questioning a violent act against his sibling,"why not, carlos?"

"hey julie," luke leaned over to her,"i really like what you guys did to the place."

"you shouldn't be here!" she said through gritted teeth, wishing they would go away.

"i'm just here to help, mija." tía answered, assuming julie had been talking to her.

alex grabbed onto luke's shoulders,"i think that's our cue to leave."

"wait, one second," luke tore away from him and walked over to me,"can i please talk to you?"

i stared at him for a moment, before gesturing to all the people around me who assume i was crazy.

i shook my head lightly and he sighed.

"please, just come to the studio." he begged, glancing at the door.

i thought over the offer, trying to decide if i trusted him. and of course, i knew that i didn't.

i just couldn't walk off with a ghost. not until i talked to my mom about it. i couldn't trust myself to leave with him, because that would be an admission that i believed he was real.

that would make this whole situation real, and i was just wasn't ready for that to happen.

i shook my head no, and looked down at my spaghetti, waiting for him to leave.

"she's not lily, man," alex told him, clapping his shoulder,"let's go."

"okay, but why can she touch us?" luke questioned, reaching out to touch my arm, "that's gotta mean something."

his hand landed on my arm, and i immediately drew back, my expression hardening.

"let's go," alex said more sternly, pulling at his friend,"give her some space."

they left the house and i sighed, feeling my head start to pound. this whole day had come as a complete shock to me, and it was clear it was getting the best of me.

my mind wasn't able to wrap around something i couldn't explain, and it was driving me crazy.

"you alright, jordan?" tía asked, resting a hand on my shoulder,"you've hardly eaten at all."

"i got food after rehearsal." i lied. the truth was, i had completely lost my appetite.

and i wasn't sure i would ever get it back.