When You’re Gone Novels & Stories

She said, “It'll come to you when it would, okay?” “But…” I stuttered and she was gone. She disappeared! Can all of them do that too? An exchange?! I might lose someone?! Fucking Hell!

It was empty, but it was finally mine and that was all that mattered. After the buyer left, I made a cup of coffee and opened my laptop at the dining table. There were only twenty nine days left before my flight to Rome. My departure had entered its final countdown. I opened the emails from the Teatro di Roma, drowning myself in the music, the staging concepts, and the vocal inspirations for the upcoming musical. For the first time in a long time, I was completely absorbed in something I actually loved. The notes and melodies wrapped around my mind, pulling me into a state of flow that completely blocked out the agonizing silence of the mansion.

When I'm gone When I'm gone You're gonna miss me when I'm gone You're gonna miss me by my hair You're gonna miss me everywhere, oh You're gonna miss me when I'm gone When I'm gone When I'm gone You're gonna miss me when I'm gone You're gonna miss me by my walk You're gonna miss me by my talk, oh You're gonna miss me when I'm gone I got my ticket for the long way 'round The one with the prettiest of views It's got mountains, it's got rivers It's got sights give you shivers But it sure would be prettier with you When I'm gone When I'm gone You're gonna miss me when I'm gone You're gonna miss me by my walk You're gonna miss me by my talk, oh You're gonna miss me when I'm gone When I'm gone When

"Bella… please, come back…" The truth behind our parents' deaths had come to light. Audrey had paid her price. And slowly, I began to fade. In a haze, I thought I saw our parents waving to me. 'Bobby… it's time for me to go.' … Bobby's POV When I learned Bella had gone overseas to provide aid, it felt like half my soul had vanished. That moment, I understood true panic. The last time I had such a terrible feeling… was the night our parents died.

I was not back in a week. By the time I had handled what needed handling and made it back to the city, she was not at the coffee shop and not at the noodle place and not at her campus address and the number I had for her had been disconnected and the contact who had helped me find her in the first place came back with nothing. Three months later I received a message through a channel I trusted completely. She was gone. That was the word used. Gone. The way it was used when gone meant something specific and permanent, the way it was used when someone wanted you to understand that looking was finished.

“What… what are you talking about? That’s impossible. Joseph, get back here right now. Who knows if you’re lying to me…” I hung up before she could finish. Jaime was capable. She would investigate on her own. I returned to my hometown with my mother’s urn in my arms. The yard of my old home was overgrown with weeds. My mother and I had not returned since my father’s death more than ten years ago. I remembered my mother smiling as she told my father that I had married a good girl and that her daughter‑in‑law would take her to live a better life. We had been fine when we left. Now my mother had become ashes, and I had been diagnosed with leukemia.

A cold, mechanical voice suddenly rang out. [Do you want to leave this world?] "Yes." My mom held me tightly. In my dad's horrified stare, she jumped. He lunged forward like a madman, but his hands grabbed nothing but air. My mom's voice was ice cold. "David, goodbye forever." The next second, our bodies were wrapped in a soft glow and disappeared completely before his eyes.

The woman wasn’t a malicious spirit at all, but boy was she talkative, and Akira needed the quiet for work. So, one day, Akira whipped out and burned the frankincense right in the living room where Tonya usually appeared. It made her fade – a different kind of fade from when a spirit is finally free – but more akin to paint smeared with a finger. Akira referred to it as glitch. The only problem with frankincense is that it produced too much smoke and made the whole apartment smell musty, like a wet forest.

His pleas were silenced forever—left to vanish in the distance. Turning to my driver, I said, "Take me to the orphanage. Did you buy Jeannie’s birthday cake?" The car sped forward, the passing scenery blurring into long, straight lines. I rolled down the window, letting the warm breeze kiss my face. Everything was moving forward toward the light.

Cars sped past me, caught up in the bustle of the city. I suddenly had a thought. Would Mom and Dad feel sad if I died? Eyes unfocused, I walked toward the center of the road.