Preview - Six Feet Over/Under

Below is an excerpt from the book I'm writing this month. Enjoy!

—

Vanessa didn’t remember falling asleep. Apparently she hadn’t planned for it, either; she was still sitting on the couch, a textbook open on her lap desk and her water bottle tucked between her and the armrest. One of her throw pillows had ended up on the floor, and based on the position of her feet, she’d probably kicked it off during her sleep.

The TV was still on, and had been automatically moving from episode to episode while she slept. Judging by which episode she heard playing, she’s probably been asleep for at least three or four hours.

When she looked to her left, she saw the crumbs of her dinner still sitting on her plate. It wasn’t like her to not clean up a mess; she must have been more tired than she’d realized. She started shifting in her seat, pulling her legs back under her as she tried to reposition. As this happened, however, a strange noise caused her to freeze.

To her right, she heard someone breathing.

Had her roommate come home? Even if she had, Alice only liked reality shows, so she wouldn’t be engrossed in a medical drama at the moment. Vanessa looked to her right, and saw a stranger sitting next to her on the couch.

“Fuck!” Vanessa jumped to her feet, knocking all her books to the floor. The pencils clattered on the ground, the lap desk made a loud thud, and the person on the couch rolled her eyes.

“Oh my god, could you be quiet? He’s about to tell us if it’s lupus or not,” the stranger said.

Vanessa froze in surprise. Who on earth would break into her house just to watch TV? Who would be so dismissive about it? When she finally responded, her voice shook with indignation. “I will not! Who are you, and why are you in my dorm?!”

The stranger’s eyes went wide, then she turned to look at Vanessa. Before she spoke, Vanessa finally took a moment to memorize this girl’s appearance; if this escalated, she might need to talk to the police, after all.

The strange girl had perfectly straight, long, black hair that rested on her shoulders. She wore beat-up gym shoes and distressed, black denim pants with far too many holes in them. Her gray tank top was equally shabby; it clearly had a graphic on it at one point, but the image had so heavily faded that it was impossible to tell what it might have been. Her face was slightly thin, incredibly pale, and she had heavy bags under her eyes. 

Vanessa stared at the stranger, who seemed shocked about something. After a moment, the stranger rose off the couch, ending up roughly a foot over Vanessa. She hadn’t risen to her feet, however. Somehow, despite everything Vanessa thought she knew, this stranger had floated off the couch and was now hovering in midair.

“Wait,” the strange girl finally said, “you can see me?!”