My Brother's Voice

By Gwendolyn

He died on thanksgiving roughly five years ago. I loved my brohter very much. He always swore he would never leave me and he lived up to his vow.

I found out the hard way my brother was dead. My sister and I had been down in Newport Beach celebrating Thanksgiving with my grandfather and his new wife. The entire day just seemed wrong, my sister was a mess and my family was yelling at one another. My parents left after dinner but Rhiannon and i stayed the entire weekend. Neither of us were entirely too happy about having to stay.

Sunday morning rolled around adn my sister and i st out for home about 120 miles north to the mojave desert. We lived in a dirt town called Yucca Valley. when we finally reached home neither parent was there witch was odd for a sunday afternoon. My brothr hadn't lived with us since he was 14 and didn't get along with my dad.

Our town had a rivalry with 29 Palms high school and we had played a football game aginst themn that friday and i was eager to know if we won. I went into my Parent's room and found the news paper. When i saw the front page i was almost sick. the head lines read " Two Yucca Valley Youths Die in Freak Accident." i saw the picture and my brothers body lat next to a mangled green ford maverick nicknmed the flying avocado. That night it really flew but then crashed and burned.

we found out later that there were six people in the car that my brother's best friend mike had been driving. the other person killed had been Rachel my brother's bride to be. they were to be married the following friday at midnight in the Joshua Tree National Monument.

Nothing happened for almost a year. my sister and i drifted apart and i hated my father more and more everyday. I tried to keep my brother alive by taking over his duties at the lkocal community theatre, where his funeral was held. My brither loved the stage and the theatre.

I had lost a lot of weight and was begining ro have nightmares. Voices haunted me and i found myself always checking my back becasue i thought some one was there.

It was nearing thanksgiving now and my family had become silent. One late afternoon i was working on the notes for my stagecrew at the theatre when the phone rang.

" Hello."

" Hey Rugrat, it's me."

" Excuse me?"

" It's me Aaron. I wanted to let you know intend to keep my promise. I am ok."

" Who is this? Mike! How dare you pull a trick like this. I hate you." I dropped the phone and started crying hysterically.

After calming myself i put on my shoes and grabbed my trench coat and headed to the theatre. When mike showed up i wasted no time and planted my fist into his face.

" Holy shit! what the hell kinda demon possessed you?" Mike was surprised by my anger.

" He was your best friend. How could you do something so mean!"

Mike stood there a lanky 6'6" tall. he wore black pants and an Iron maiden t-shirt. His hair was Black and curly his face the color of milk and eyes full of pain.

"Did Aaron call you too?"

I looked at mike for a long time.

"He called me last night. At first i thought it was a joke but he knew too much. Then i thought maybe he hadn't died but i saw the body i saw him dead. He wants us to know he is still with us."

Mike and i cried for a long time together.

we never spoke much after that. Aaron never called again. I began hearing voices all the time and I swore a few times i saw my brother walking on the side of the road like he always did. I began feeling haunted by not just him. My brother had opened me to a world i wasn't ready for. It began to spook those i was close too but brought my sister and i closer in our xperiences with the same things.

Then it came time for us to move. My dad had already left for Hawaii and my sister and I were left alone at our house. Myu brother began getting violent. we thought he was the only ghost that haunted us but we were wrong. My brother had opened me to being a reciever and others wanted to be heard.

I see things in the night i am afraid of. But what haunts me the most is my brother's Voice.