Author's Note: I don't mean to make any copyright infringements through the publication of this story. I don't own Ghost Whisperer, the characters, or the prologue that follows this note. I'm simply a hard-core fan writing my own episode. As of now, it's still a work in progress. Please read and review. Most importantly, enjoy!

My name is Melinda Gordon. I'm married, I live in a small town, and I own an antique shop. I might be just like you, except that from the time I was a little girl I knew that I can talk to the dead. Earthbound spirits, my grandmother called them. They're stuck here because they have unfinished business with the living, and they come to me for help. In order to tell you my story, I have to tell you theirs.

Melinda was just about to close her store for the night when a strange feeling washed over her. She was overwhelmed by feelings of extreme sadness and anxiety. Standing in the empty shop behind the counter, she glanced around; her eyes sweeping over the antique furniture, jewelry, and dolls. No one was there. Her feelings were intense, though, and she only feels this way in the presence of spirits. She continued to look around when the lights flickered off. Feeling more anxious every second, she called out,

"Hello? Is anyone there?" The store was growing bone-chillingly cold. Melinda grabbed her purse and keys and hurried to the door. As she was stepping outside, she just missed hearing the gloomy whisper: "Soon… You'll see…"

Melinda felt much better after leaving the store, but she still couldn't shake the feelings she was having. It was unlike her to be depressed for no reason, yet she felt so much emotional pain it was as if her chest could explode. I'll be okay, she thought, there's nothing to be sad about. I'm just gonna go home, have a glass of wine, and let Jim cheer me up. Everything's gonna be fine.

She pulled up to her house, turned off the car, and made her way to the door. She stopped on the front porch to take a few deep breaths, I don't want Jim to see how upset I am. Just breathe, everything's okay. Just breathe… She opened the door and walked in. The house was warm, and the scent of garlic and tomatoes was floating through the air. Her mood instantly improved a bit as she followed the sound of clattering dishes and utensils. Jim was cooking at the stove. She walked into the kitchen, snuck up behind her pre-occupied husband, and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Hey!" Jim greeted her, turning around in her embrace and returning the gesture. "You're about to experience the best chicken parmesan this side of the Atlantic!" he cheerfully declared before giving her a soft kiss on the lips. He noticed her despondent expression. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Mel pulled slightly away from him, taking his hands in hers. She forced a less-than-convincing smile. "Nothing. I'm just really tired."

"You sure?"

"Yes. I'm okay…" She said weakly. She could see the concern in Jim's eyes; she knew that he didn't believe her, but she didn't feel up to talking about her unexplainable feelings right now.

Jim turned back to his cooking, still holding one of Mel's hands. He pulled her in close and put his arm around her. "Why don't you pour us some wine. Dinner will be ready in a minute, it'll make you feel better." He said, kissing the top of her head.

"Alright," she said, walking over to the wine cooler. "How was your day?" she asked as she poured some red wine into two glasses.

"Good. Rode around in the ambulance, saved a few lives… The usual."

"My hero," she crooned, grinning as she set the glasses on the kitchen table and sat down.

"How was yours?" He asked, scooping chicken and pasta onto two plates and placing it on the table. "Meet anyone interesting?"

Mel was reminded of her feelings when she closed the store. She tried to suppress a shiver, but failed. "No. Just a quiet day." She told him, trying to keep her voice light. She wasn't exactly lying… She hadn't spoken to any ghosts all day; she hadn't even sensed any until she was getting ready to leave. Now, the depression and anxiety seemed to be creeping back. Jim sat across from her, and they began to eat.

"Uh-huh." Jim said, "Why do I get the feeling there's something you're not telling me?" He tried to make eye contact, but she was avoiding it. He knew for sure something was wrong.

"I don't know. There's really nothing to tell." She took a gulp of her red wine, followed by a bite of chicken. "Mmm… You're right, this is the best."

Jim was about to rebuke her for changing the subject, but he decided against it. She would talk to him when she was ready. "Told you. It's an old recipe of my grandfather's. Full-blooded Italian."

"Really," Mel asked "I never would have thought."

"Why not? I am so hard-core Italian."

"Alright, Fabio. Whatever you say." she laughed.

Melinda and Jim finished dinner without any more mention of Mel's uncharacteristic behavior. Melinda decided to go to bed early; she was unusually tired. She was out like a light by 10:30. It wasn't until 3:00 AM that bad dreams started plaguing her sleep.

They were arguing. She watched from a distance. Jim and herself stood in the deserted street in front of her store. Their voices were muted, she couldn't make out what they were saying. Jim was waving his arms wildly at her; gesturing in frustration. She was shaking her head. She looked frightened, desperate. She grabbed for his hands, but he pushed her away. Then he turned and left. She fell to her knees, sobbing, screaming….

"NOOO!!" She bolted upright. She couldn't breathe. No matter how hard she tried to breathe in, she couldn't. She was suffocating. She barely registered Jim's presence. He sat facing her, with one hand bracing her back, the other holding her hand.

"Mel! Breathe. Come on. Breathe in." She was clutching at her chest. She looked terrified. "Mel? Baby, look at me. You've gotta breathe."

"I…. can't…." she managed to choke out. Her eyes started to roll back as she began to slump forward; Jim put his hands on her shoulders to support her and keep her upright. She was blacking out. All she could hear was the blood thundering in her ears and Jim's muffled voice.

"No! Mel, don't pass out. Look at me." He looked into Melinda's glazed eyes. She was pale and shaking. Her breaths were coming out in short shallow gasps. He knew they had to get her breathing under control fast, or she would pass out for sure.

Melinda struggled to make out Jim's face beyond the black spots clouding her vision. He looked frantic.

"Just focus on me." He said soothingly, "Breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth. Come on… In through the nose…. Out through the mouth. Slow breaths."

Melinda's breathing began to deepen. Her vision was clearing, and she could hear Jim's voice clearly again.

"You're doing good, just keep breathing."

Almost fully recovered, Mel broke down in tears. She was crying hysterically; her whole body shook with her sobs. Jim took her into his arms, and stroked her hair.

"You're okay," he whispered. "You're okay. Shhh…"

Mel continued to sob. She hugged Jim tightly as he tried to comfort her. "Everything's alright," he said, holding her and rubbing her back. After a minute, her crying slowed down. She was no longer sobbing, but tears still streamed down her face, and she sniffled and hiccupped with emotion. Jim pulled back so he could look at her.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

Mel could only nod her head. She was still somewhat short of breath. She wasn't sure if she really was alright, but she didn't know how to tell him so.

"What happened?" He said, holding her hands as he looked deeply into her tear-filled eyes.

"I… don't…. know." she whispered, hyperventilating slightly. "I… had a dream."

Jim nodded and waited for her to tell him more.

"We were fighting. I couldn't hear what we were saying, but…. You left me." she said, her voice breaking. "you left me…" she whispered again.

Jim took Melinda in his arms again. Holding her close, he quietly said, "Mel. You know I would never leave you. Don't you?"

Mel's voice was muffled against Jim's shoulder, "I think so… it was just so real. It hurt so much."

Jim's hand was on the back of her head, the other stroked her back. "I love you more than anything. I could never walk away from you. You're my whole world." He kissed her head. It broke his heart to see her in so much pain. He couldn't understand what was making her think this way all of a sudden. He prayed that she would believe what he was telling her.

Melinda slowly pulled away from Jim. She grabbed a handful of Kleenex from her nightstand and dabbed at her eyes and nose. Her crying had finally stopped, although the sadness still remained. What is happening to me? Am I losing it? she thought. She knew Jim would never leave her, but in the back of her mind she couldn't help but wonder if someday her gift would prove to be too much for their relationship. If she ever lost him, she would die. She looked at Jim, trying to keep her composure.

"I don't know what I'd ever do without you.' she told him. "I couldn't live…"

Jim touched her face, softly wiping away a remaining tear. "You don't need to think about that. I'm here. I'm not going anywhere."

Melinda leaned in and their lips met in a tender but passionate kiss. They wrapped their arms around each other; Mel clung to Jim. It wasn't long before they laid down and drifted back to sleep in each others' arms.

The next morning Melinda woke up alone in bed. She could hear Jim moving around downstairs, but she decided to stay in bed for a while longer. She was still feeling the same depression that had come over her yesterday. She felt lost, alone, and scared. What am I gonna do? I can't keep feeling this way, there's no reason to. I can't let Jim worry about me… He won't understand what's wrong. I don't even understand what's wrong. She felt as if she was going to start crying again, but she forced herself to stay calm. She looked at the clock on her nightstand; it was 7:45. I don't think I'll make it to work today. I can't deal with people when I'm feeling this way. It's just one day… I'll just stay home. She got up, put on her light blue satin robe, and headed to the bathroom. She really didn't want to get out of bed, but she knew it would only worry Jim even more if she didn't get up. She looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. She looked pale, and dark purple circles stuck out on the skin beneath her eyes. Great, I look like I'm dying. She grabbed a glass off the edge of the sink, drank some water, and took another quick glance in the mirror before heading downstairs.

Mel walked into the kitchen where Jim was sitting at the table in his paramedic uniform reading the newspaper. There was a plate of scrambled eggs, two pieces of toast, and two strips of bacon sitting in front of him. He looked up at her and smiled,

"Good morning. I made breakfast." He said. He noticed that she didn't look well, but he didn't dare mention it to her. He hoped she was doing better this morning than she was last night.

"Thanks, looks good." Melinda said wearily. She grabbed a plate, scooped up a spoonful of eggs out of the skillet on the stove, took a piece of toast, and sat down at the table. She pushed the eggs around with her fork, lost in thought.

Jim watched her closely. "How you feeling?" he asked.

She looked at him blankly for a moment before answering, "Fine. A little tired, I guess."

"Doesn't surprise me." Jim said. "Do you want to talk about what happened last night?"

Melinda looked down at her plate, and rested the fork beside it. She put her hands in her lap. "I thought we already did. I had a bad dream, that's all."

"That's not all. Mel, you had a full-blown panic attack. You almost passed out. You were acting strange even before bed last night. Something's bothering you, I can tell. Why won't you talk to me?"

Mel looked at Jim. There were tears forming behind her eyes. She looked so small and vulnerable. "I don't know what's wrong." she said quietly. "I feel… like everything's wrong. I don't know why. I just feel defeated." She sighed, and wiped a single tear from her eye before it had a chance to fall.

Jim listened patiently. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"I don't know. It just started yesterday. I feel like there's no point in doing anything right now. No point in waking up, even."

Jim was getting really worried. He'd never seen Melinda like this before. He was afraid for her; afraid that her thoughts might be even darker than she was letting on.

"Mel… You know that's not true. You help so many people, every day. I've never met anyone more caring than you. You can't really think that that's all pointless."

"Do I help them, though?" She asked. "Or do I just get in the way? I mean, so many people live their lives perfectly content in not knowing that there are earthbound spirits among us. Who am I to interfere? Sometimes I think they'd all just be better off without me." Where is this coming from? Mel thought. I've never thought this way before. What's happening to me?

Jim was unsure of what to do. She was sounding so hopeless, so disheartened. He knew that what she did mattered, but how could he convince her right now when she's so obviously thinking the opposite?

"What about all the spirits you've helped cross over?" Jim pointed out. "You think that they'd be better off? You helped those people. If it weren't for you, they'd be stuck here. And you've given their families and loved ones the kind of closure that they needed. Those people need you, Mel. You save them."

She felt better for a moment. Maybe Jim's right. I'm being stupid. I probably just need a day off to rest. I've been working too much lately, it must be taking a toll on me mentally.

Jim looked at Mel, who was deep in thought, wondering if what he said had stuck. "Mel?" He said, getting her attention.

Mel reached across the table and grabbed Jim's hand. "I love you." she said.

"I love you too. But I hate seeing you like this. You're too great of a person to get down on yourself."

Mel smiled for the first time that day. "I'll be okay." she told him. "I think I'm gonna take the day off, though, to recuperate." She looked down for a moment. "I think I need to figure some things out."

"That sounds like a good idea. You want me to stay home with you?" Jim asked.

"No, it's okay. You go to work. I think I need some time alone."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I'm sure."

Jim was nervous about leaving her alone while she was so depressed, but he knew that she'd probably be fine. A day off would do her good. He stood up from the table, took his plate to the sink, and walked back over to where Mel was sitting. He kneeled down beside her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"I want you to promise me that you'll call me if you need anything." He said.

Melinda nodded, "I promise."

"Okay." Jim said before giving her a kiss. "I'm gonna call and check up on you every few hours, so you better answer the phone or I'll worry."

Mel laughed, "You worry too much. I'll be fine. Now go, you'll be late."

They shared another kiss before Jim stood up, grabbed his bag, and walked out the door. Melinda watched him go, and took a deep breath. I hope I'll be fine.

After Jim left, Melinda ate a few bites of her now-cold breakfast and scraped the rest into the garbage disposal. She called Delia on her cell phone to let her know she wouldn't be in today.

"Hello!" Delia's cheery voice answered.

"Hey." Melinda said, sounding less happy than she meant to.

"What's wrong?" Delia asked worriedly.

"Nothing." Mel said, trying to brighten her tone a bit. "Well, except… I wanted to let you know that I won't be in today. I'm not feeling well and…. Do you think you'll be alright on your own?"

Delia was surprised, Melinda never missed work. She hoped everything was okay. "Yeah, I'll be good. Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah." Melinda said. "I just need a day to rest. But feel free to call me if you need to."

"Okay. I will." Delia said. "I hope you feel better."

"Thanks, Delia. Bye."

"Bye."

After getting off the phone, Melinda decided to go back to bed for a while, but again her sleep was troubled…

Melinda was walking through a desolate field of pale gray grass. The sky was dark, and she was alone. "Hello?" she cried out, but heard nothing but the wind. She began running. She ran through the tall grass, her white nightgown flowing with the breeze. Lightning illuminated the charcoal clouds. She tripped and fell to the ground. When she looked up, a figure in a maroon hooded cloak stood over her. "Who are you? What do you want?" Melinda asked. The figure remained silent. Melinda shakily stood up. "Talk to me! What do you want?" The figure answered her in a low raspy voice, "He will leave you…" Melinda felt weakened by the spirit's energy, but she still pressed further. "Who?" she demanded. "Who will leave me?" The figure responded, "He will leave you. Everyone will go until no one remains." Melinda blinked back tears. "I don't know what you're talking about." she said." The spirit disappeared and reappeared behind her. Melinda spun around to face it. "You're burden is too heavy to share." The figure said, "As the weight grows, you will find yourself alone." And with that, the spirit disappeared. Melinda was alone in the field again. She heard a sound from far away. She ran towards it. The further she ran, the louder it became. It was a shrill, high-pitched noise. She kept running….

Melinda's eyes flew open. The phone was ringing. She sat up and answered it,

"Hello?" she said breathlessly.

"Mel?" said Jim. "Are you okay?"

Melinda let out a long breath. "Yeah… I was asleep. Sorry."

Jim paused for a moment. He heard her voice when she answered; she didn't sound sleepy, she sounded frightened. He shrugged it off. "Sorry to wake you, I just wanted to check in and make sure you were alright."

Melinda's heart was pounding, but she knew if she told Jim about her dream he would leave work to be with her. She didn't want to burden him. You're burden is too heavy to share…. The voice from her dream echoed in her head. She tried to chase the thought out of her mind.

"Mel?" Jim said over the phone. "Are you there?"

"Yeah." she responded. "Sorry. I'm okay. Thanks for calling."

"You sure you're okay?" he asked.

"Positive." She lied. "What time do you get off work?"

"5:00"

Mel looked at the clock. It was 2:03. Did I really sleep for five hours? "Okay. I'll see you when you get home." she said.

Jim hoped that she would be safe in the meantime. "I love you." he said.

"I love you too. Bye."

"Bye."

Melinda thought about her dream. Why is this happening? She thought. What does it mean? What if the spirit is telling the truth? She couldn't think anymore about it right now, she was too tired. For some reason, the more she slept, the more exhausted she became. I'll just rest for a little while longer. She thought as she dozed off.

She was in the street outside of her store again. No one was around, except for Jim, who looked upset. It was the same as before, except this time she could hear their voices.

"I just can't do this anymore, Mel." Jim said, gesturing madly. "It's too much. I can't sit back and watch this destroy you. You're just too damn stubborn to know when to back away. It's not just hurting you anymore. It's hurting everyone around you."

Melinda yelled back at him, "What do you want me to do, Jim? This is who I am. I was born into this, it's never gonna change. I need to help these people. I don't have a choice."

"You have a choice." Jim calmly stated. "I just don't understand why you don't choose to walk away."

"I can't just walk away." she said.

Jim looked at her with hurt in his eyes. "Well I can." he said. "You don't leave me much of a choice anymore." He began to back away.

Melinda grabbed for his hands, "Jim, wait… Please…."

He pushed her hands away, turned around, and walked off, leaving her alone. She fell to her knees, crying, screaming….

"Jim." Melinda cried out, sitting upright in bed. She was covered in sweat, yet she was cold and shivering. She hugged her knees to her chest, put her head down and cried.

Jim came home at 4:30. There wasn't much happening today, and he was so worried about Melinda he decided to leave a half an hour early. He walked through the front door, put his bag down, and called out,

"Mel? I'm home."

He didn't hear an answer. He checked the kitchen and the living room, but there was no sign of her, so he figured she was upstairs. He walked up the stairs and went into the bedroom. Melinda was sitting in bed with her head resting on her knees; she was crying. Jim hurried over to her.

"Mel…" he said. She didn't respond. She didn't seem to even hear him. He sat beside her on the bed, and touched her arm. "Mel, talk to me."

Melinda lifted her head to look at him. Her face was soaked with tears, her eyes were red-rimmed. She reached out to him, and he wrapped her in a hug.

"You're freezing" he said, pulling the covers over her. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"I think I'm losing my mind." Mel whimpered.

For a few minutes Jim simply held Melinda as she cried. Neither of them said a word. When she was calm, Jim was the first to speak.

"What's going on?" he asked her, "I need you to tell me everything."

"I really don't know, Jim." she replied faintly. "I… I've been miserably depressed for two days now. I'm exhausted, but I can't even sleep without having terrible dreams. I'm scared… I don't know why I'm feeling this way. But right now I feel like it's never going to end."

"Do you feel sick? I mean, besides being tired." he asked her.

"No."

Jim felt helpless. He didn't understand what could be causing Melinda's problems, so he didn't know what to do to fix it. All he knew was that she couldn't go on like this much longer.

"Maybe both of us should take a few days off work. At least until we get this all sorted out."

Melinda thought back to the message from her dreams. "You can't." she said.

"Yes I can. Listen to me, Mel; you're the most important thing to me. Right now my job is to make sure you're going to be alright."

Melinda stared downward. "My burden is too heavy to share. As the weight grows, I will find myself alone." She murmured almost imperceptibly.

"What?" Jim asked.

Melinda looked at him. "It's what the spirit in my dream said. It said everyone will leave me, because of who I am."

Jim shook his head. "No. It's just a dream. You can't listen to that."

"It means something." she insisted, "I can feel it. Something's going to happen."

"What?" he asked. "What's going to happen?"

"I don't know." she said. "but I've never been wrong about these feelings before."

After talking some more, Mel reluctantly agreed to let Jim take some time off work to be with her. She called Delia to let her know what was going on.

"Hello." said Delia, answering the phone.

"Hey, Delia, it's me again." Mel said.

"Hey! How are you feeling?" she asked with concern.

"Well actually…. I'm not doing so well. I think I'm going to have to take a few days off, if that's alright." Mel said sheepishly.

"That's fine, do what you need to do. Are you going to be okay? Do you need me to bring you anything?"

"No, but thank you. I just need some time…"

Delia wondered what could be wrong; she'd never known Mel to voluntarily take time off of work. The store was her life. She wanted to ask Melinda what was going on, but she thought it best not to pry. "Take as much time as you need," Delia said, "I'll take care of the store for you. If you need anything at all, please let me know."

"Thanks so much." Mel replied, "The same goes for you."

"Okay." Delia said. "Get better. I'll talk to you soon."

"Definitely. Bye."

"Bye."

Melinda hung up the phone. She felt horrible for leaving Delia to manage the store alone, but she knew that it wouldn't do any good for her to be there. She sat in bed, just thinking for awhile, slightly comforted by the sound of Jim walking around downstairs.

Jim walked out onto the front porch and sat down. He picked up his cell phone and scrolled through his list of contacts, stopping at the name Payne. He contemplated for a moment whether or not he should make the call, but he decided he had no choice. He hit send.

"Hello?" Rick Payne answered.

"Hey, Professor Payne. It's Jim Clancy."

"What's wrong? Did something happen to Melinda?" Rick asked fearfully.

"Well…" Jim said, "I'm not really sure. Look, I need to make this quick because I don't want her to know I'm calling you. Have you ever heard of a spirit causing someone to feel…. Depressed or anxious?"

"You have a spirit messing with your head?" Rick asked.

"If you want to put it lightly," Jim said, "It's not me. It's Melinda."

"Oh." Rick said, "Well, you're not giving me much to go on here, Jim. She has a ghost that's making her depressed…."

"Not just depressed, Payne." Jim stated harshly, "It's destroying her. I've never seen her like this. She said she's been having nightmares, and it almost seems like every dream is making her worse."

Rick tried to remember if he had ever read anything that might explain Melinda's affliction. "I honestly can't think of anything off the top of my head." Rick said, "But give me some time to look into it and I'll get back to you."

Jim sighed, "Alright. I appreciate it." And with that, Jim hung up the phone. He leaned forward and put his head in his hands. He was so frustrated; he wanted more than anything to just make it all go away, to make her better with the clap of his hands. But he knew that there was little he could do right now. He could only hope that whatever was causing her pain could be defeated somehow. He heard the front door click and creak open. He sat up and turned to see Melinda standing in the doorway.

"Hi.' she said quietly.

"Hi."

Melinda walked over to Jim and sat beside him. "What are you doing out here?" she asked.

"Nothing." Jim said. "Just thinking."

Mel leaned against him and put her head on his shoulder. He put his arm around her. They sat that way for a while, neither one saying anything. Both were lost in their own thoughts. He's upset. Mel was thinking. It's all because of me.

"This spirit," Jim suddenly said, "from your dream. Have you seen it before?"

Melinda thought about it. "No. I don't think so."

'What do you think it wants?" Jim asked.

"I don't know." Mel admitted sadly. She had an idea of what it wanted, but she couldn't tell Jim. I think it wants me to die.

That night, things began to get worse. Melinda sleep was restless, and at 4:00 AM she had another dream.

She found herself in the gray field again. It was bitterly cold and rain was pouring down. She thought she was alone, but as she turned around she saw someone in the distance. She began to walk towards them, then she broke into a run. Getting closer, she realized it was Jim. He was wearing dark gray flannel pants and a white t-shirt. She called out his name, but he didn't look at her. She continued running. Jim saw her approaching. They locked eyes for a moment; then he turned around, and began walking away. "No!" Melinda yelled "Jim! Wait! JIM!" she'd almost caught up to him, when suddenly, he disappeared. Melinda stopped abruptly. She looked around, trying to find him, but he was gone. She was drenched from the rain, and freezing. She sat down and started rocking back and forth, telling herself: "This isn't real. It's just a dream. This isn't real. This isn't real…" A voice behind her whispered, "This is real, Melinda…."

Jim woke up at 4:05 AM. He turned over in bed and realized Melinda wasn't there. Worried, he got out bed to search for her. The bathroom was empty. He walked down the stairs and went into the kitchen, but she wasn't there either. He checked the living room, but it was also empty. Growing fearful, he walked into the back hallway. He saw Melinda sitting cross-legged on the floor with her hands over her ears, rocking back and forth. In one swift motion he was kneeling on the ground in front of her.

"Mel?' he said, touching her arms. Her eyes were shut tightly. He heard her quietly murmuring something. Leaning in closer, he heard her.

"No. This isn't real." she was saying "This is not real. This is not real."

"Mel!" Jim shouted, lightly shaking her. "Mel, wake up."

Melinda continued rocking and talking to herself. Jim gently took her hands away from her ears.

"Melinda!" He called. She stopped moving, and her eyes slowly opened.

"Jim?" she asked softly. "What happened? Where am I?"

Jim held her hands. "You're in the hallway. I think you were sleepwalking."

Melinda was dazed. She tried to stand up; Jim helped her to her feet. He put his hands on either side of her head, bringing her attention back to him. "Did you have another dream?" he asked.

"Yeah." she said. "But this was worse than before." She thought back to her dream…

The voice behind her whispered, "This is real, Melinda. There's no way to stop it." Melinda tried to stand, but couldn't. She couldn't move. "What do you want from me?" she asked. The spirit laughed eerily. "I only want what's best." The spirit said. It's voice was low; Melinda couldn't tell whether it was male or female, but the sound of it gave her goosebumps. It continued, "If you remain, all will be lost. Everyone will suffer." "I don't understand" Melinda said. The spirit began to diminish from sight, "You must end it." Melinda was left alone again, sitting in the same spot. There was nowhere for her to go. She heard indecipherable whispers surrounding her. She put her hands over her ears. Again, she began to rock, whispering to herself, "This is not real… This is not real…"

"What happened?" Jim asked, breaking Melinda's reverie.

Melinda looked away from Jim. It was just too horrible…

"Mel?" Jim prodded.

Melinda's voice was barely above a whisper, "I have to end it."

"What?!" Jim asked. "Mel, please don't…"

Melinda interrupted him, "It's what the spirit told me. He said I must end it."

"End what?" Jim asked; knowing what it meant but refusing to accept it.

Melinda didn't respond. She stepped around Jim and walked into the kitchen, going to the refrigerator for a bottle of water. She felt as if she might break down at any moment, and talking would only unleash the tears. Facing the fridge, she uncapped the bottle and began drinking from it. Jim was right behind her.

"Mel. You can't just ignore this." He said. She continued to face the refrigerator. "Mel, please look at me." Jim put his hand on her shoulder, and lightly turned her towards him. "What does this spirit want you to end?" Jim asked warily.

The tears broke loose from Melinda's eyes. She couldn't keep it in any longer. "My life…" she cried. She leaned against Jim for support as she wept. Jim struggled to keep calm himself. He prayed to God that she wasn't actually considering it. He couldn't live with himself if anything happened to her. He held her tightly, as if his love alone could save her from the darkness that was consuming her. They didn't attempt to go back to sleep.

The morning was rough on both Melinda and Jim. Jim offered to make breakfast again, but Mel had no desire to eat anything.

"I'm not feeling very well." she said.

"What's wrong?" Jim asked, placing a hand on her forehead.

"It's nothing really, I just have a headache."

"Why don't you try to lay down?" Jim suggested.

"I can't." she said tiredly. "I can't handle another nightmare right now."

"I understand. But you need to sleep, Mel. You're exhausted. Go lay on the couch. I'll be right here in case anything happens. If I see any sign that you're having a bad dream, I'll wake you up."

Mel looked like she was considering it.

"Come on." Jim said, leading her to the couch, "I won't take no for an answer."

She sat down and put her feet up. Jim grabbed her by the ankles, pulled her into a laying position, and propped a pillow under her head.

"Hey!" she protested. Jim held up his index finger, signaling her to wait, and hurried into the kitchen. He returned with two ibuprofens and a glass of water.

"For your headache." he said.

Melinda took the medicine from his hand and swallowed it down with the water. "Thanks. You're too good to me." Jim got down on one knee, brushed a few stray hairs away from Melinda's face, and kissed her on the forehead. Then, he took the light wool throw from the back of the couch and covered her with it.

"Sleep." he ordered. "I'll be right here." He watched Melinda as she drifted to sleep almost instantly.