"What can we do to pass on to the next life?" asked Rita, her voice trembling with uncertainty.
"We need to make peace with our regrets in order to move on," said Thomas, his tone calm but serious.
"That's good and all, but the thing is, I don't even remember anything other than myself, my parents, and some other people," Rita muttered to herself, frustration creeping into her voice. She felt trapped in the fog of her memory, unable to remember anything beyond the basics.
"Okay... So what step should we take from here?" Rita asked, hoping for something concrete to grasp onto.
"Well, first things first, you need to remember the people you knew when you were alive. That way, you might be able to remember any regrets you had," Thomas suggested, his expression thoughtful. "I would if I remembered anyone at all," he added with a sigh. "What do they have to do with this?" Rita asked, not fully understanding the connection.
"One of them might be your killer," Thomas said, looking at her intently.
Rita recoiled slightly. "No one I know would ever try to harm me, because they were all nice to me," she said, defensive about whatever memories she had left. "Think back, has anyone you knew said anything about killing you or at the very least showed malicious intent toward you?" Thomas pressed, his tone serious.
Rita paused, her brow furrowed as she tried to think. "I can't remember much of anyone, and I don't think my parents would ever do anything to harm me, so that's out of the question," Rita said quietly. She began to rack her brain, searching for something, anything.
"Wait a minute," Rita said as a thought sparked. "I remember now, I was responsible for the arrest of one of my classmate's father in my second year of high school."
Thomas nodded, urging her to continue.
"He was having an affair with one of his students in my class. I caught them after school in the music room. He was doing unforgivable things to her, so I recorded it and showed it to the school's principal. He was not only fired on the spot but also sentenced to six years in prison for getting intimately involved with a minor." Rita paused, her face darkening with the memory. "His son cursed me and told me he would kill me after the incident."
"Ah, there we go, we now have something to work with," Thomas said, his voice sharp with interest.
"Do you have any idea where he could be at the moment?" Thomas asked, his tone serious as they both began to focus on the new lead.
"If I remember correctly, his mother was a businesswoman, so maybe he took over her job or is currently working with her," Rita said uncertainly, unsure if her memory was entirely accurate.
"Okay, we will start with him first," Thomas said as both he and Rita prepared to leave the school grounds.
As they walked away, Rita felt a strange sensation. "I don't know why I came to school today. I'm so tired," Ryner muttered, stifling a yawn as he sat in his classroom. "This teacher is so boring, she'll definitely put me to sleep in no time."
Ryner's eyes glazed over as he gazed through the window, but then his attention was caught by something strange. Two students were leaving the school grounds while class was in session.
"Who are those two? Are they seriously sneaking off while school is still in session? Teenagers nowadays. I feel sorry for their parents," Ryner muttered under his breath, his brow furrowing in confusion.
"Wait a minute," Ryner whispered again, his heart racing as he squinted at the figures in the distance. "Is that really Rita?"
Without thinking, Ryner jumped out of his chair and rushed out of the classroom.
"Ryner, where are you going?" the teacher called after him.
"To the toilet!" Ryner shouted, not bothering to look back.
"I didn't give you permission to leave, come back this instant!" the teacher yelled, but Ryner was already gone.
As he rushed down the hall, his mind raced with questions. "I don't know if I'm right or not, but that girl looks exactly like Rita... she died five years ago. So what is she doing here?" Ryner asked himself, unsure if he was seeing things or if he was truly losing his mind.
"This was where his mother worked," Rita said, pointing toward a building as she and Thomas stood outside.
"Okay, let's go inside," Thomas said.
Both of them walked through the wall as though it were nothing, their ghostly forms gliding effortlessly past the solid structure.
"No way!! Did I just see them walk through the walls?" Ryner gasped in disbelief. "I must really be dreaming, or I'm going crazy," he muttered, his mind reeling at what he had just witnessed.
"There he is," Rita shouted suddenly, pointing to a man sitting in an office. "His name is Trevor, I remember now."
"Oh, I see," Thomas said, starting to examine Trevor.
Trevor, now much older, was sitting at his desk, typing away on his computer. He stretched, yawned, and then sat back in his chair.
"Wow, I didn't expect Trevor to grow up and be so mature," Rita said, staring at him with a wistful expression, remembering the time they had spent together.
"We'll watch him for the day and see how it goes," Thomas suggested, sensing there was more to Trevor's story than Rita knew.
As Rita watched Trevor closely, her eyes caught sight of a picture on his desk. "No way," Rita whispered, her heart racing. "He has that picture, then that means... he was the boy I met when we were kids."
Her mind raced, the pieces starting to fall into place. "We had a huge fight over the fact that I sent his father to jail. From then on, he severed all ties with me. Maybe that's my regret, because I think he hated me," Rita said, overwhelmed by a sudden wave of guilt.
After a long silence, Trevor sighed and lifted up the picture frame, gazing at the photo for a long moment. "Why did you have to go, Rita? I've never been the same since you were gone. I didn't even get the chance to tell you how I felt," Trevor said softly, his voice tinged with sadness. As tears started to stream down his face, Rita felt a mix of relief and sorrow.
"Let's go, Thomas," Rita said quietly, her heart heavy. "He isn't our guy."
"Are you sure about that?" Thomas asked, his voice tinged with doubt.
"I'm pretty sure. He doesn't have any hatred for me, which makes me feel relieved. But I'm still here, so something else is holding me back," Rita said with a sigh.
As they prepared to leave, Thomas and Rita walked right through Ryner, who was standing in the hallway, still in shock from what he had witnessed.
"No way!!! They really are ghosts!" Ryner shouted in a frightened voice, stumbling backward as he processed what had just happened.
"Wait, is that Ryner?" Rita said to herself, staring at the boy in disbelief.
Without thinking, Rita walked toward Ryner.
"No, stay away from me!" Ryner shouted, backing away in fear.
"Wait, can Ryner really see us?" Rita asked, stunned by the possibility.
"I don't know," Thomas said, looking at Ryner with confusion. "But it seems like he can." Ryner startled immediately ran away.
The mystery was growing deeper by the second, and Rita wasn't sure where this new path would lead them. But one thing was certain: they were no longer alone in their quest for answers.