a smile formed on my face as we stood on the balcony, peering into what was called the hollywood ghost club. it was exactly my kind of scene. the fancy dresses, the elaborate stage, and overall, it just kind of looked like an award show. the only thing stopping me from enjoying the night, was the fact that i was wholly underdressed.

we all looked around in amazement, as willie brought us to a stopping point.

"woah," luke stated, giving willie a surprised look,"so this is where your hotshot ghost lives, huh?"

alex nodded, not fully understanding the situation,"yeah, we've walked past this hotel like a million times. how come we've never heard of it?"

willie gave a devilish smile,"that's because this area has been sealed off for decades. i mean, you wouldn't even know this place exists unless you're invited."

"yeah, uh huh, interesting," i commented flatly, pretending to care about what he had said, before i spoke my mind,"hey, willie, you know what would have been so cute and funny?"

"what?" he questioned, looking at me with raised eyebrows.

my face fell, as i got ready to scold my brother, "if you had told us that this place was black tie! look at us," i gestured between luke and me, "we're wearing denim jackets. denim, william."

he laughed at me, ever so amused by my completely valid crisis,"look, i've gotta go make sure everything's cool, but i'll be right back."

he turned on his heels and trotted off, and i rolled my eyes noting that he had completely ignored my problem.

luke gave me a small frown,"i like our jackets."

i let out a small chuckle, reaching up to pat his check patronizingly,"me too, patterson."

reggie looked wearily at the sign on the wall, as we all leaned against the railing to look down at the patrons,"hollywood ghost club? this place is creepy."

i nodded in agreement, surprised that this was where my brother chose to spend his time. i never pegged him for a clubber, let alone a club that forced him to wear a blazer.

"yeah, well," alex shrugged, giving reggie a blank stare,"so are we."

i nodded in agreement, secretly wondering how willie got tied up in all of this. elegant ball gowns and black ties were never his scene. it just made me a little suspicious of this whole thing.

after another few minutes of being stuck in our place by the railing, reggie let out a nervous sigh,"i don't know about this."

alex looked over to him, trying to be supportive,"well, if you get scared you can always hide behind me...i'll be hiding behind luke."

i chuckled lightly, rolling my eyes at the boy who had just stepped behind luke, despite being taller than him.

though luke didn't find it as amusing,"you guys need to grow up, okay? we're gonna get back at bobby. he needs to pay for what he did to us."

"yeah," alex spoke, trying to assure luke, but turning over to whisper to reggie,"i'm still gonna hide behind him."

willie poofed next to luke, back from whatever he had been doing,"we're all good."

alex nodded,"oh, uh cool."

"also," i walked over next to him and clapped him on the shoulders, just like i used to when he was alive,"we've only got like an hour, cause of a gig with julie."

he let out a sigh of nostalgia,"man, i miss that girl. but yeah, no worries."

i nodded and we began to walk down the steps. luke and i walked together, but said nothing. we were both too impressed at the elegance of club, and spent all of our time looking around at every little thing.

"normally, i'd have my deck and i'd backboard this heavy twenty set," willie explained to us as he reached the bottom of the staircase,"but tonight, we have company. i hope you guys are ready for this."

i knit my brows in confusion, sharing a look with luke. while this place was beautiful, i wasn't convinced that it didn't have any dark secrets lying below the surface.

we stopped in the middle of the staircase, staring down at all the patrons.

"are you seeing what i'm seeing?" alex questioned, unable to take his eyes off of the stage.

i'll admit, it was a very nice stage. i knew i would kill to perform on a stage like that, in front of an audience like the one that stood in our midst.

luke shrugged, stepping down the steps as he popped his collar,"i think we're a little overdressed."

i chuckled lightly, the rest of us trailing behind him until we reached willie.

before we could comment on the brilliant stage, or the elaborate lighting, a couple walked straight through alex and willie.

"woah!" he exclaimed, staring at the couple with wide eyes,"i thought these people were all going to be ghosts."

willie shook his head, gesturing to all the people that stood before us,"these are all lifers."

i sucked my tongue, glancing over at willie in a blank stare,"so, right now i look like i'm talking to myself? awesome."

luke chuckled, trying to find some sort of consolation,"yeah, but...at least you're pretty. they'll never take that away from you."

i laughed, shaking my head at him,"yeah, cause everyone knows that last thing looks do... is fade."

he smiled in amusement at me, before we tuned back into the conversation at hand.

"this is a very exclusive crowd," willie explained to us,"everybody here has, uh, paid a lot to get a sneak peek at the afterlife."

"i always knew rich people did weird stuff like
this." reggie commented, causing me to laugh.

i looked around at all the people, wondering just how much they had paid,"all that and... i get to see it for free. feeling pretty good to be me right now, guys."

a man in white tuxedo walked up to us, seeming to see the boys just fine,"lady and gentlemen, i have a table for you."

i knit my brows in confusion, trying to figure out exactly what the rules were. it seemed that some people could see them, and some people couldn't. it occurred to me that perhaps our waiter was ghost, but i decided to drop it as i took a seat between alex and luke.

luke wasted no time in semantics, leaning over to talk to willie,"okay, so who's gonna make us visible so we can confront our old band mate?"

"none of these lifers have the power to do that," willie explained as music started to play and the lights dimmed. a bright smile formed on his face as he turned toward the stage,"oh, but here comes the ghost who does."

i looked at the stage to watch what was obviously going to be a very elaborate performance.

"ladies and gentlemen, back from the dead by popular demand, please welcome: caleb covington!"

a bunch of cheers rang out from the crowd, as the ghost appeared in purple smoke.

"did you miss me?" he questioned, as the crowd answered enthusiastically.

i looked over to luke, who was watching with awe in his eyes. i was glad he was enjoying himself, but i had my skepticism about the situation.

"i did too!" caleb covington exclaimed, causing the audience to laugh, as he continued his introduction,"welcome to the party of your dreams. from the egyptians to the druids, to the person sitting next to you, we've all wondered, 'where do we go when that final light is snuffed out?' allow me to show you."

i raised my eyebrows in intrigue as the man before us started to sing,"let me introduce myself, we've got some time to kill. consider me the pearly gates to your new favorite thrills."

i watched suspiciously as he started to float towards us, instinctively grabbing onto luke's arm for protection. he didn't say anything about the gesture, unable to take his eyes away from the impressive ghost.

"we could go make history, or you could rest in peace. but here there ain't no misery, cause on the other side we live like kinds. what you gonna do? what you gonna do? let your body loose, let your body. what you gonna do, what you gonna do? show you a thing or two, cause you ain't seen nothin'."

suddenly, he landed on the ground, and an entire ensemble appeared with him- the band, along with dancers.

my eyes widened at the sight, unable to completely process what was happening at the moment.

"life is good on the other side of hollywood. life is good on the other side of hollywood. so, welcome to the brotherhood, where you won't be misunderstood. life is good on the other side of hollywood."

he walked downstage to the dance floor, where he was surrounded by a bunch of dancing waiters,"everything has got a price, but happiness is free. just so happens you're in luck, we got a vacancy. we can set the night on fire, and break out of the scene," caleb walked over to our table, while a waiter pulled the centerpiece away from us.

"hey, look." willie pointed to covington, who was taking our tablecloth.

he pulled it up, leaving a scantily clad dancer on top of our table,"your soul print on the walk of fame on the boulevard of your wildest dreams."

i couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy as luke watched the girl above us dance. i felt myself wondering if he had ever looked at me like that.

covington walked by us, placing his hands on my shoulder,"what you gonna do, what you gonna do, boys? let your body loose, let your body loose. what you gonna do, what you gonna do, boys? it ain't bragging if it's true, now you ain't seen nothin'."

he poofed away from our table, as the rest of the dancers jumped off the respective guests tables and joined him on the dance floor.

"life is good on the other side of hollywood. life is good on the other side of hollywood. so welcome to the brotherhood, where you won't be misunderstood. life is good on the other side of hollywood."

while the guys started to get really into it, clapping along and dancing in their seats, i watched covington with my arms crossed and my head tilted with suspicion.

it was strange, how he was singing directly to my friends, and mostly vying for their attention throughout the entire performance.

he transported to the top of the stage for the bridge of his song,"the rain don't blind the rising souls, they've got too much to see. i got your glamor, got your gold, got all you'll ever need. let me hear you now-"

the crowd, willie included, started to sing along with him,"the rain don't blind the rising souls, they've got too much to see. i got your glamor, got your gold, got all you'll ever need."

covington took back over, once again singing specifically to my friends,"yeah, i said watch me make a move, watch me make a move boys."

"what you gonna do, what you gonna do?" the crowd continued to sing along, meanwhile i sat silently.

there was just something off about this situation, though i couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was.

"i said watch me make a move, no i don't disappoint."

"what you gonna do, what you gonna do?"

"watch me make a move, i'm your number one choice."

"what you gonna do, what you gonna do?"

"watch me make a move, come on, give me that noise. a tomb with a view, ain't something?"

the chorus started and, once again, i couldn't help but ponder how willie had gotten wrapped up in all of this. he was never the kind of guy to be seen at a jazz club, but now he seemed like an avid member of it. something just wasn't right.

"long live the dead!" covington exclaimed, before disappearing into thin air.