Thanks for walking me home.

Who: Patrick and May
When: After school
Where: Streets of Marquette

Ghosts. Ghosts in Marquette. Ghosts in Marquette and she had no idea why they were there. May was confused needless to say. She couldn't comprehend why there would be ghosts in the town and she'd been terrified the previous day, but now? Now she was just completely and utterly at a loss for words. She didn't know what to think. They were everywhere and they looked just as scared and confused, if not more so, than she herself did. She'd texted her father during her last class and let him know she was going to walk home. She wanted to think. Wanted to get some air. Wanted to pretend like everything was normal even though there were dead things walking about all over. She pulled her jacket tighter around her as she left the school and headed the long way towards home. Maybe she wouldn't see a ghost on her way there. Maybe it was all a dream and she'd wake up soon and be in her bed and none of this would have ever happened. Maybe, but she doubted it.

Patrick had, well, he'd been surprised by the sudden arrival of ghosts. Not that he'd thought they were an impossibility, or anything, but he'd never seen them before. It was surprising to see them everywhere around him. Nonetheless, he felt a little better off than others, who hadn't believed in the existence of them in the slightest bit before now. Heading out from the school, he spotted someone who looked much less at peace with the situation than he felt. He wasn't really one for talking to people he didn't know, but he found himself walking up alongside the girl. "You alright?" Not that he could do anything to fix it if she weren't, but. It was polite.

She gasped when she heard a voice behind her. She might have screamed if she hadn't turned around and seen the boy there. Non-transparent. Obviously not a ghost. Her lips were parted a bit in surprise but she nodded quickly. "Yes... yes I think so..." she told him. "Just... kinda scared." she admitted. "Not used to all the... craziness?" If that's even what she could call it. It was more than crazy. It was confusing and hard to believe and completely and utterly insane.

"I doubt anyone's really used to having ghosts amongst us," Patrick pointed out, with a shrug of his shoulders. In other words, it was perfectly understandable that the girl might be a bit scared of the situation. Who wouldn't be upon finding out that there's such a thing as ghosts after knowing absolutely nothing about it for so long? "You walking far?" He asked, after a moment, giving her a slightly concerned look. Since... well, stranger or not, it wouldn't exactly be appropriate to let someone walk very far alone whilst they were a bit on the scared side. While there was this sort of thing going on. (Even if the ghosts couldn't harm her.) "I could walk you there, if you want." Immediately after saying that, of course, he realized that he could provide little to no protection for ANYONE, but... hopefully, this time, it was the thought that counted rather than actual protection being needed since he was bit on the useless side.

She shook her head. "Not that far..." she told him, pointing in the direction of her house. "A few blocks really, but I'd really appreciate it actually." she told the boy. And whether he could provide protection or not, being around someone else and not alone was a lot better an idea that walking now that she'd set out. She was beginning to wonder why she hadn't just let her father pick her up. Thinking wasn't going to be something she could do a lot of when there were ghosts about. Stupid, stupid. You should have gotten a ride. "My dad's home... he can probably drive you back to your house if you walk me. If it's not too much trouble." she said, voice soft, barely above a whisper.

"It's not too much trouble at all," Patrick replied, with a small smile. Admittedly, he'd have said the same if she'd told him she lived three miles away. (Although, he might've thought about locating a car at that point since it would seem a little silly to walk that far.) "And if it's not too much trouble, and your dad is alright with it, then I'd definitely take the ride home, too, once I've escorted you there." Because, really, as much as he wasn't exactly terrified of the ghosts, they did make him a little uneasy.

She gave a little smile at that and May took a step in the direction of her house. "I'm May..." she told him. She couldn't place his face, but she didn't really hang out with a lot of people outside of the little clique she had going. Well not one she had going. Heather was the queen of that particular group, May was just along for the ride. "What's your name?"

"Patrick Daven," he replied, following her lead. The name May wasn't exactly the most uncommon of names, though he hadn't really associated with someone who looked like May, for some reason. "Nice to meet you, May." Patrick was, if nothing else, a believer in exchanging pleasantries. Being polite was an important part of his expected behavior, after all. (Expected by himself, of course, as his parents had always thought he ought to be a little more wild to prepare for a less wild future...)

"You too. Probably would have been more 'nice' if there weren't ghosts around..." she said softly, tucking her fingers into her pockets as she walked along. "What grade are you in?" she asked. Might as well keep up the talking. That and keep her eyes on the snow beneath her feet. It was lots better to focus on the white fluff than the path ahead of her. The path could hold ghostly figures and if she could help it, she'd rather not see them.

There didn't seem to be quite as many ghosts right here, though there was still more than he'd particularly want around. "I'm a senior." Not too much time at school left, really, though perhaps he didn't care for the idea of being done with it and moving onto marriage immediately after. It was odd to both look forward to the end of high school as well as dread what lay beyond it. "And what grade are you in?" He wasn't the best at keeping up conversations, or small talk, or anything, but... he was trying. If for no other reason than it might put the girl slightly more at ease if he kept up a conversation. Even if it turned out to be a rather pathetic attempt.

"I'm a junior." she replied. "You don't have long left." she added with a tiny try at a smile. "Glad to be almost out of school? Planning on running away from this town as soon as possible?" Hell, she probably would when school let out for her too, if her dad wasn't here. She didn't think that he could handle the heartbreak of losing someone else though, so she wasn't about to leave him like her mother had. She refused to put him through that kind of thing again. Of course she wasn't going to blurt that to this boy. She wouldn't even tell Heather all the things that had gone down between her parents.

"Maybe." It would be a bit odd to live anywhere except for Marquette. He'd been living there his entire life, after all, and while he'd left town on occasion he hadn't exactly spent a lot of time away from home. "I'll probably continue my studies," he added, with a shrug, "and I haven't the foggiest whether I'll be leaving Marquette or not." Because, well, shouldn't that be something he'd discuss with his betrothed? Even thinking that felt a little weird. Honestly, the thoughts that were now crossing his mind made him think that, perhaps, it was time he did find out who the girl was. Perhaps it was time to meet her, so he could come to terms with the whole situation. Though... meeting the girl he'd wind up married to would certainly make the situation seem a bit more real. "I guess you could say my future's a bit on the unclear side." Not that the girl really cared, but, you know, just trying to make conversation.

She nodded. Sketchy future. She was a little curious why he didn't have more plans when he was so close to graduating, but she didn't pry. It wasn't her business after all. Had Heather been there, she would have continued to poke at the boy until he spilled his guts about everything from his birth to that very moment in time. But May wasn't Heather. She lacked that oomph to poke at people that way. She couldn't manipulate them the way that her friend could. Sometimes she wished she could so things would be easier. She'd have to learn someday. "Gotcha." she said. "I know what you mean. I still don't know what colleges to apply for."

Patrick had applied to plenty of colleges. Plenty, plenty, plenty. Though, he hadn't figured he'd get in to any of them. At any rate, his entire future was pretty much completely up for grabs. He didn't know what he'd be doing, how he'd be getting there, or even where he'd be living come the summer months. The only thing he REALLY knew was that he'd be spending it as a newly married boy. "You'll probably figure out the right ones to apply for." Patrick figured that when you looked into a college, it either spoke to you or it didn't. And if it didn't speak to you, well, perhaps applying anyway might be a good idea. Just in case you didn't get into the ones that did speak to you. (Admittedly, though, he thought that May might have less of a problem with being rejected than he would.) "Though, I'd just apply for the ones you're interested in and the ones that might be alright, even if they're not the best option. Back ups are nice to have."

May nodded. "I plan on applying to a whole slew of places, even if I don't intend to attend. I'll probably get something close to home." She'd probably end up doing that for sure. Getting a place that could keep her close to her father. Keep her from making him feel abandoned. She turned for a moment to look up at him again, take in his features. Then her eyes were back on the snow once more. She still couldn't remember him. He had that vague sense of familiarity, but a lot of people did. May didn't exactly get to know a lot of people outside her group so it wasn't unlikely that the boy probably went to school with her the whole time she'd been there. "Um... how long have you lived in Marquette?" she questioned.

"My entire life," he admitted, with a shrug of his shoulders. He'd never moved away, never been away long even. Quite honestly, he liked living in Marquette. He liked knowing who many of his classmates were, even if he wasn't exactly friends with the majority of them. Even if... a lot of them didn't know who he was, as Patrick didn't have a hard time fading into the background. "You? How long have you been living here?"

"Since I started high school." she told him. "My parents got divorced and dad came here. I came with him." she smiled. And she was glad she had. She couldn't imagine living with her mother and her new husband. She'd much rather deal with the ghosts than him. The guy that ruined her happy little family.

"A few years of Marquette," he replied, with a slight nod. "Haven't gotten sick of the place yet?" Which, well, he'd been here much longer and had yet to get sick of it. He was sort of, well, fond of the place after all. There was nothing too terrible about it. He offered her a brief smile, peering in the direction they were going. Perhaps they were getting close, but then again, perhaps not. He hadn't really the slightest idea where she lived, after all.

They were pretty close. In fact, she saw her house coming into view already and she smiled. "Not yet. I've got dad here and he seems to like it okay. It's not so bad. Though, the ghosts I could live without really. That one's mine." she told him, pointing to the house. "I really appreciate you walking me home. It was really sweet."

"I think I could live without the ghosts, too," Patrick admitted, glancing around to see if any of them were in sight at the moment. He didn't see any, but... well, that didn't mean there wasn't one just out of sight that he hadn't yet spotted. "No problem, I'd walk you home anytime." Which was true, because, really, he'd do just about anything that seemed like the right thing to do. The polite thing to do. The kind thing to do. Anything falling under one of those categories, he would find it hard to avoid doing.

She smiled at him again. "That's sweet." she told him. "Lemme get my dad and he'll drive you home. I think I'll ride with you guys so that you don't have to be alone with him. He might do the whole psychiatrist thing and start asking you how you're handling the ghosts and stuff and... yeah. I'll save you." she promised. "The least I can do for the walk home."

Patrick was sort of grateful for that, as the idea of sitting in a car with someone who was trying to pick his brain? Yeah, not that appealing at the moment. Or at any moment, really, since the idea of actually talking to someone (outside of those who already had full knowledge of who and what he was) about anything of importance seemed like a rather bad idea. "Thanks," he added, with an appreciative smile.

May left him only momentarily, returning a bit later with a man who looked nothing like her. Absolutely Caucasian without a smidge of Asian in him. She smiled and introduced him as her father and he grinned and shook the boys hand. "Thank you for walking my daughter home." he said, waving a hand at the car and smiling again. "Let's get you outta the cold."