Geoff estranged from his UK relatives is a widower living in Portland. He is in his late forties when he faces the bad midlife crisis of being forced into retirement. Unlike many it might be one of the best things to have ever happened to him recently. For sure the next bad thing that happens could also be considered candidate for the title of 'Usually a really bad thing that is actually for the best'.

Haunted

I remember the moment I became haunted.

Kindergarten, first day, they lined us up

Boys on one side, girls on the other

And as soon as they put me with the boys, the haunting began

The ghost being the girl I should have been

And as time went by

That haunting, that echo of what could have been

Only grew worse.

Until the day the doctor took me the first time

And my mind split

And the girl went deep inside

And I started being haunted by darker things

“We have a ghost.”

Everyone looked up from their breakfast plates. The clinking of utensils on plates ceased. Lisa, of course, was first to comment. “Cool!” I knew she would like it.

“Can’t be. The leasing agent would have said something!”

“Really, Daddy, about a ghost? I don’t think so.”

Bill’s mind was not really on work the following week. One of his colleagues John Arbuthnot noticed it.
“Ok Bill. Who is she and do we know her or more importantly, have I known her?”

“Eh?”

“You are clearly going through the motions this week. You messed up a trade yesterday. It was lucky that I spotted it otherwise your position would have been down by a mere trifle of three million quid. So, once again, who is she and do we, your partners in crime know her?”

“Sorry to disappoint you John, it is not a she. It is a thing and I have to decide by the end of the week.”

Author retains all rights to this original work of fiction.

Thursday, March 29th 8:43 PM
The after party was more like an after dance than a gathering of all the contestants being made available for the audience to schmooze with. With how I was feeling about the competition right now that was kind of a relief. I didn't think I had it in me to smile while people told me I should have won or placed. What was I doing here?!

“Flapjacks,” I said. I have no idea why....

I awoke Saturday morning as the light was just starting to break up the darkness in my room. I got out of bed, slipped on a housecoat, and decided to see if I could explore the house without getting lost. I peeked in at Lisa and she was snoring. I went downstairs and saw a room with a light on. It was my dad’s home office. He was at his computer reading some gibberish. “Hi, Daddy!”

Mike was asked to cover a shift by a knowing friend on their birthday. Because the scheduling boss made an incorrect assumption, he ended up being something he could only dream of.

The last day of school was a Friday, and school was released at noon. We could have waited until Saturday morning, but we had everything ready and we left Friday afternoon in a caravan of two cars … mom in one, and Aunt Katy, Lisa and me in the other. Lisa and I just had to ride together, and my mom said she couldn’t listen to us for two-hundred miles. The three of us chatted as the miles zoomed by, and we arrived in Houston in time for the evening traffic.

“Todd Remeika?” The therapist called, poking her head out the door just enough to see into the waiting room.

“Uh, yeah, that’s…me,” I nodded, not moving from my chair. I could hear the muscles in the necks of every other patient creaking as they turned to look at me. Oh, right, yeah, I was supposed to get up. I stood up from the chair, straight as a shot and dropped my phone on the floor. Picking it up, I jetted across the floor and nearly slammed into the therapist who was now holding the door open just enough for me to get through.

I pick up in Livermore, just the same day as the last post. If you feel the need to go back and read those, I'll wait right here for you. I couldn't pick a good part to make as a preview, so I'll just leave it all down below.

March 6th 1983

Geoff estranged from his UK relatives is a widower living in Portland. He is in his late forties when he faces the bad midlife crisis of being forced into retirement. Unlike many it might be one of the best things to have ever happened to him recently. For sure the next bad thing that happens could also be considered candidate for the title of 'Usually a really bad thing that is actually for the best'.

[4:30pm in a City of London Dealing room]

“Coming for a drink Bill?” asked one of the Dealers to another.
“It is Friday and we’ve had a very good week plus it is Henley finals weekend. A bunch of us have wangled passes into the Leander tent. Lots of lovely fillies on show. There’s one with your name on it if you want it.” He added.

“A filly or a pass?” asked a half interested Bill who was gazing out of the office window at the river Thames and Tower Bridge.

“Both if you have a mind…”

“Sorry Tony, I would love to but I’ve been summoned,” replied Bill with a sigh.

“Summoned? I guess it’s not to court as it is Friday. Parents?”

“Nah. My parents are probably somewhere in the Pacific on their boat. The summoner is my Godfather.”

Kelly wipes the sweat from his forehead. He looks up as people moved about at the park. He was lucky to get a job at Universal Studios Hollywood. He had found himself in Los Angeles, California hoping he could find a job and start a new life. The small town he lived in with his family and what they did to him, was the reason he left.