Sometimes they could still see them. The kid they failed to save. It had been a few years since the incident, the family would stare into the empty room that used to be filled with the child’s usual clatter. Now it was filled with cobwebs and an emptiness that nothing could feel.

It was strange, really. They each had their own ways of honoring them, ‘what would Guest say about this?’, ‘I bet Guest would’ve loved this.’ They would see Guest hanging out at their usual spot.

But Guest was gone. Dead. That wouldn’t be possible, and they know it. They just want to have a little more time with them. They could still hear Guest’s laughter and remarks. It was just a coping mechanism.

Guest could still speak to them, honestly it was more of a haunting ghost than a hallucination. But when any of them brought up the incident the ghost/hallucination would either turn into a shadow or turn into how Guest’s body was found.

It was another day, Guest (Just their hallucination/ghost of Guest) was outside. Drawing on the sidewalk with chalk.