Not long after, I entered middle school at Crystal Bay Middle School. Like a lot of people, this is when I found my place in the world. Before, I was just a kid having fun in treehouses and being completely oblivious to the world. Now, I was in it.

And I was having the time of my life.

In this chapter of my life, Jack was a big influence on me. Desmond was still around, helping me out and being a good brother, but something about Jack drew me to him. Was it his natural aptitude for playing guitar? The tattoos and piercings? The orange-dyed hair? His charisma? Only God knows.

But what I did know, was that he introduced me to his electric guitar, and ever since picking it up, I fell in love with playing guitar. It was the first time I felt like I found the one thing I'm truly passionate about.

Having Jack around to teach me was a blessing, but having an outlet to express my thoughts and feelings meant more to me than anything. It wasn't long after that I took music and singing classes, trying to improve at this newfound skill I wanted to pursue.

Interestingly enough, even though Jack was in a band, Toxic Chemistry, the idea of being a solo man, running his show, and composing everything gave me a sense of freedom I didn't know was possible.

So that's what I did: dropped electric for acoustic, picked up the microphone, chose a style that was predominately indie folk, and just went with it. And thank God it worked.

Luckily, from my elementary school, Lyn was transferred to the same middle school as me, which was the best news I could hear. Going from elementary school to middle school was a big difference, so having someone I knew for 2+ years with me was a relief.

But she wasn't the only friend I had going into adolescence. I met two of my closest friends for the following years, Samuel or Sam, and Adrian.

Sam was a huge sucker for motorcycles, always talking about different brands, models, races, pretty much anything motorcycles. But he was like that since he was little from his pretty cool dad, having a collection of sports bikes himself which he used to take Sam for a ride to school with. I remember the look on his face every time he got off that, knowing damn well he was going to ride that one day.

Adrian was an interesting kid. He was probably the shyest kid out of the friends I made over my life at that time, but little did I know how fun his life was back at home.

One day, coming home from school, I went over to his place and met his father, Dannis, who seemed ordinary at first. But when he saw me, he immediately knew who I was. I was shocked, unsure how he already knew who he was.

I asked him, "Excuse me, do I know you?"

Dannis shook his head and explained his position, "No, you don't. But I've met your dad." he smiled and winked.

I looked at Adrian and back at Dannis, "But how? Are you... a ghost hunter?" I had to find out.

Dannis nodded, "Correct. In fact, I'm Maxwell's partner. We've been in the business for many years now, as I'm sure you know." he claimed.

I looked into his house, and asked him generously, "Is it possible if I could come in? Adrian invited me in."

"Of course you can. I could even show you my equipment if you wish." Dannis offered.

I had a bright smile on my face, eager to see what he and my dad use to capture these ghosts, "That would be cool! My dad is pretty silent on this stuff, so it would be awesome to see it all in person." I said with sadness in my voice.

Dannis greeted me as he showed us around the house. But at this point, I didn't care about what his lounge room looked like, I just wanted to see what may've been one of the world's coolest professions during the 90s.

The door that led to his office was bolted and locked like it was the entrance to a bank safe. After punching in his password on the holographic interface next to the door, he opened it and revealed what may've been the coolest room I ever saw.

Growing up, I knew my father was a ghost hunter, but he never told me why or what he did. Admittedly, he was a silent person in general. I think that's why he was always stressed, because a lot of the feelings he had were boiled up, and ghost hunting must've been a tough job, even for someone like my father who had previous experience in the military.

My father was my first real acknowledgment of how rapidly technology was advancing at the time during the last decade. During the late 80s, an alien encounter occurred which resulted in trade between otherworld species, especially the Xyloids.

Xyloids can look different depending on the alien, but most have green skin, large black eyes, and a humanoid skeletal system. This species was particularly known for its far superior technology, which allowed them to trade with us in return for human labor. Thinking about it, that was a pretty good deal for what may've been the biggest contribution to human innovation we've witnessed.

Communication between Xyloids was made possible through translation technology they had developed, which allowed it to detect and learn our language through vocal, emotional, body, and facial recognition, then attempt to directly translate it through their spoken language. Since then, however, Xyloids have attempted to learn our language.

The scariest thing about Xyloids though, is their ability to use shapeshifting technology to disguise themselves as humans. This introduced laws that would eventually increase paranoia amongst people on Earth against Xyloids, and sometimes even violent retaliations.

But enough about aliens, the biggest discussion at hand was about ghosts or evil spirits. These ghosts would be forces sent by the Devil to possess others into performing heinous tasks and were used to debate the legitimacy of vampires and werewolves. But even if I knew they were real, nobody would know if spirits were the reason for their actions.

However, these evil spirits were not known until the recent discovery of a special kind of thermal technology, developed to specifically find their heat signatures and help capture them. This breakthrough has resulted in not only interesting uses for these spirits but also decreased cases of crime across the globe.

In Dannis' room had a wardrobe of his ghost hunter uniforms, which resembled a hazmat suit. Next to the outfits were the canisters held on their back to contain the evil spirits they captured.

But what amazed me the most was what lay in front of me: multiple holographic screens, keyboards, his thermal goggles, and the gun they used to perform the job.

I ran over to the desk where the gun lay and pointed at it, "What's that? Is this the gun you use to capture ghosts?" I asked, anticipating to hear his answer.

Dannis walked over and pushed me aside away from his equipment, wary that I would touch something, "Yes, it is. The gun attaches to the canister over in the wardrobe to your right. The spirits get transferred into the gun through the tube and into that." he pointed at the wardrobe.

Adrian interrupts the conversation with a prideful comment, "I've worked with my dad. I know how to capture ghosts like he can, and it's really fun. You should try it sometime."

I look at Dannis and jump on this opportunity, "Oh, could I join you? I promise I'll be good!"

Dannis sighed and thought about it before answering, "Well, tomorrow I am doing a solo job. Maybe you two could tag along after school? We operate late at night, so be careful, okay?"

I couldn't help myself but high-five Adrian. Ever since I learned my dad was a ghost hunter, I wanted to see what it entailed and the evil spirits I'd never seen before.

On that rainy night we went out to do ghost hunting, I asked Dannis while sitting in the backseat of the car, "So, who do you work for? Do people call you to come and send them away?"

Dannis responded while driving, "Kind of. What we are is a wing of the military. That's why it was so easy for your dad to work as a ghost hunter. His experience in the army helped solidify a position in this organization."

He continued speaking, "Basically, people call the organization and they round up recent experiences and send us to investigate. Sometimes, there's not even a spirit in sight. And to be honest, those are the best nights."

I questioned his opinion on quiet jobs, "The best nights? Wouldn't the nights with them be the most fun?"

As the droplets hit the car windows, barely able to see outside, Dannis sighed and hesitated to expand further, but said it in my favor, "Michael, this world, it's... it's evil. I never knew just how bad it was, until I took up this job. The things people do to one another, it's horrific. I just hope you never get to see it."

The rest of the trip was silent.

As the car stopped, we put on our equipment and went to question the residents who complained about a potential possession. We stood at the front door of her house as we spoke,

"Ghost hunter Dannis here, what is the situation?" he said.

The lady was panicking, really bad. Like she just witnessed a murder in front of her eyes. I have never seen anyone as terrified as she was.

"Oh my God! You gotta help me!" tears rolled down her cheeks.

"My husband, he was murdered! He was... he was m-murdered..." She fell on her knees, crying.

Me and Adrian were scared, completely unaware of what we were about to witness.

"Michael, Adrian. Stay here. I'll go and investigate." Dannis turned to tell us as he turned on his flashlight and investigated the corpse.

In the distance as Dannis opened the door to the murder scene, I remember clearly that word he uttered after witnessing it.

"Fuck..."

I walked past the lady as she was still crying, Adrian attempted to stop me, but I refused. My curiosity got the better of me, and I regretted it.

As I stood there, staring into the room, was a man slumped over at the wall, who, to put it lightly, was unrecognizable.

His face was torn from the skull, his intestines ripped out of his stomach, throat slit, and blood had soaked throughout the wood.

I vividly remember it, staring at him, emotionless, unable to put into words what I was staring at.

I was traumatized.

It took a good 30 seconds for Dannis to realize I was there. At that point, he didn't care anymore.

He walked up to the corpse to inspect it. As he looked over the body, he muttered something,

"Bite marks on the neck? What the... what is this?"

As he uttered the words 'bite marks', I immediately thought of my limited knowledge of vampires, "It couldn't be a vampire, right?"

Dannis immediately looks back at me, like I offended him, "Fuck you, this person was just murdered and you bring up-" he paused, sighed, and facepalmed.

"I'm sorry for swearing at you. This is just a lot to take in..."

I look at him sorrowfully and comfort him with my words, "It's okay, I understand. I'll just be outside." I left the premises.

As I left the building, I looked at the woman who looked at me, then I walked towards the car and sat inside.

Repeatedly, I was imagining that scene playing in my head. No matter what I did, it wouldn't leave. Again and again, like a record player stuck on a loop.

Adrian entered the car and sat next to me, "Hey Michael, are you okay? Dad told us not to look."

I sat there in silence, staring at the car seat.

He was right.

A 13-year-old wasn't supposed to see that. Hell, nobody should.

I turn to him and speak, "Adrian. I think I might take the day off tomorrow."

He nodded in agreement, and we waited in the car before Dannis came back.

"I've reported the case to the police. Did a quick check of ghosts, but nothing. This is something beyond my control." Dennis said as he put on the seat belt, ready to drive home.