“So… London! I guess you are excited about this, aren't you?” Mason said.
We were on our way to see my father, who came only for a day. After that we were to travel home with him. That's what was told to the ghosts by me. But I was planning for a surprise for them.
“What is it?” Mason noticed something, the time we spent together had taught us the signs that we reflect when something is on our minds. I had to keep the surprise hidden for a little more time, at least until we reach our destination.
The train was almost empty but it has eyes, the security cameras would show a crazy person talking to himself… in sign language.
I placed a blue-tooth headphone, started to communicate and he read my lips.
“I was thinking of something,” I said “I am lucky to have you all… but if I wasn't attacked at that day, you know, the day when you all appeared for me for the first time, would I ever find out about you?”
I saw it in Mason, he knew me the best by now. He knew that that was not it, but he didn't say anything.
“I would… if I caught you smoking” my mother said.
We departed from the Liverpool Street Railway Station, got off for lunch in Stafford, then we reached our final destination at London Euston Station, and there he was, my father with a strange man I have never seen before.
“What's with the short beard?” my father said.
“They call it dirty” I explained the fashion.
“Being dirty is a fashion now?” he hugged me in front of his friend and then he introduced me to him.
“This is Mister David Gail. He's one of London's finest. We will be having dinner with him today”
We shook hands and then we went to his place. His wife, Rose, was a very delightful woman, the way she and David were together, it reminded me of my own foster parents. They gave us the tour inside the house.
“I'm sure all this walking had left you hungry by now” Rose said.
“Just nod. No need to act too polite with us young man”
The ghosts continued the tour, looking at the places which we weren't allowed to go to. Like their room, or David's office. He had a lot of files labelled confidential, that's what they told me.
After we were done with dinner we started to chat. The talk was mostly about me, since I was the new face and the guest of honour. My father had been here more than once.
“Psychology? Why did you choose this major?” Rose asked.
“I would like to understand the human mind, it's very interesting to know more about it. I also would like to help people too and know how to help them deal with their problems” I told them of the reason why I wanted to stay on this major, and not why I chose it. I chose it after my sessions with my shrink, Dr. Eta. She was the one assigned to me at the asylum after my first encounter with the ghosts. She made me become interested in that field, because as kids, we choose what looks good to us, probably that's why most people wish to be singers or actors, or like my litter sister when she was a child, a super hero.
We had a nice time, they were really a treat. It felt refreshing to be with a family and not with students all the time.
“I guess we will be heading to the hotel” my father said.
Rose whispered something to her husband's ear; he looked at her and then nodded.
“Why not stay here? You can stay at the guest room, and your son can stay at Sharon's room” David said.
“That's my daughter, she is on vacation… its dark outside and it's not the first time for you Ali to spend the night here”
My father hesitated, but David saw in him and me what we already knew and felt.
“You do both look tired, right?”
My father looked at me, he saw in a way that it would be better to stay, so he agreed.
They guided us to the rooms; mine was the first, it was Sharon's room. I found Jack inside with Mason, the latter tried to tell him to leave this room alone.
“So where did Sharon go for the holidays?” my father asked.
“To the United states” David answered.
“She is visiting New York and LA” Rose continued.
“Really?!” my father said, and I knew he would ruin my surprise, but it didn't matter, because I was about to reveal it before I went to bed.
“That's where my son is going tomorrow” my father said.
Mason caught that, I saw the look on his eyes and my facial expressions changed. I felt Rose's eyes on me as she saw me smiling awkwardly.
“Well that's great, I hope you'll have a good time” David said, and then they left me alone in the room.
“What's going on? What is your father talking about?” Mason asked. The smile was still on my face. Jack got curious too.
My mother came with Emma and then she joined the conversation.
“Why is that woman saying that my son is acting strange?” My mother said, apparently she caught that from Rose before she came in.
“Gather the troops, I have something to say” I told Mason.
They all came here, and they all knew now that tomorrow we are not going to Emirates for the holidays.
“I was keeping it as a surprise for everyone. I managed to do so until now. We are going to your homeland. I bought the tickets online” The ghosts were surprised indeed.
“When I was born, you tried to leave me, but then you went back because you couldn't. I remembered why you left, you were trying to be with your families… you have done so much for me, I don't know how else I can repay you all. I want you to see your families. I have a backup story of why they would receive letters from all of you. So when we get there in the hotel, I will write to them all what you want to say and then visit them so you can see them once again”
They all were happy to know what the surprise was. Chow came to me and tried to embrace me without touching me, or maybe he did but I couldn't feel it. The others joined him too, and I wasn't tired anymore.
“How about we start writing those letters now?” I said.
“Ladies first”
That is what Jack had said, so we went to Emma's parents first. She found out that they were both alive, and that she has a younger sister now. They named her Emma, too. She looked almost like her, all of the ghosts agreed. I told them of the story I had prepared, something just to let the idea of a message coming from beyond the grave to be more believable.
Her baby sister, who was three years younger than me, started to cry when she heard what her sister had to say to her family. Emma went and hugged her, and then she went and hugged her family.
“I'll stay with them for a while, I'll meet you tonight at the hotel” Emma told me.
“Thank you very much, thank you” both parents and their daughter hugged me in tears.
I said my goodbyes, and then I went to the second family on the list. It was Jack's family and they existed in the same state. There were four states. Three of the ghosts’ families were at the one we're at right now, two at the next, and two others were at the one to follow, and then there's one last stop, one that I didn't tell the ghosts about.
“Let's go and see my girlfriend first” Jack said.
After going through another tear shed, we went to Jack's family.
“Thank you, Mister Hassan, it was really nice of you to come all this way for this… I think this will give closure to certain things” Jack's widow said.
“It was my pleasure… I wish there
's something more I can do”
“This was more than enough”
I excused myself, telling her that I have more letters to deliver. Once we were outside, Jack stopped us. I kept walking, he forgave me because we were in public, but the others had to suffer a topic which will hunt us for a very long time.
“Did you see that… my girlfriend was sadder than my wife?!!” Jack said.
We were now at the second state, and we started to wonder why none of the ghosts was a New Yorker. Three ghosts were about to meet their families. Chow won the pick this time. He was about to see his wife and for the first time, his daughter, who was three months old when she was inside her mother's womb.
I knocked the door using a door knocker, feeling like a character from an old mystery novel. For some reason Chow stood in front of me and he had a strange look on his face. He stared at me, waiting for something.
The door opened and a woman appeared. I saw Chow's lips and read what they said.
“That's right, I had a hot blond wife” and then he winked. He was looking at me so he can see my surprised face; he had never mentioned his wife to me. The woman in front of me studied me and then she placed her hand on the glasses which she hanged on her neck. This gave me the chance to reply to Chow.
“She's old too” I said. Chow turned to see the old lady next to him.
“Yes? May I help you?” the woman said.
“Mother in law” Chow explained who she was. The woman kept looking at me for an answer while I was interpreting Chow's signs.
“Oh… ah… My name is Hassan” the woman