October Ghosts. Jenny Plumb
Braden."
"Yeah." Olivia knew that wasn't the response her roommate wanted. Paula wanted Olivia to be excited and enthusiastic, so she could gossip about all of Braden's great qualities, but Olivia knew for certain that the qualities Paula wanted to gush about were not qualities Olivia would find noteworthy.
Even with the lack of enthusiasm, Paula prattled on about Braden as they walked from their dorm room in Monroe Hall to the cafeteria across the street. Luckily, Olivia only had to hear about Braden's good looks, muscular physique, and wealthy parents as they crossed the street.
Once they were in the lobby of the cafeteria, Olivia scanned past the line of students waiting to get in and spotted Jessie standing against the wall with his roommate Seth. Jessie was tall and lanky, with green eyes, light brown shaggy hair, scruff on his chin, and pale skin that had tanned over the summer months. Seth was shorter, at five-foot-eight, but more muscular than Jessie. Like Olivia, Seth was a redhead, but his short-cropped hair was bright orange, where Olivia's was a darker auburn.
Olivia still hadn't made up her mind about Seth. Usually, she could tell within minutes if a guy was worthy of some initial trust. All men were potential predators, and she was good at spotting the bad ones. But so far, Seth had her stumped. He rarely spoke, but when he did, he seemed smarter than most of the people around him, which was intimidating. But Jessie approved of Seth, and that was good enough for her—until he did something to prove himself untrustworthy.
The guys moved to stand at the end of the line with the women and said their hellos.
"Wasn't your new boyfriend going to have dinner with us?" Jessie asked Paula, glancing toward the doors behind them.
Paula nodded absently while checking her phone. Smiling, she said, "He's already inside saving us a table."
"Oh, great," Jessie answered.
Olivia could tell Jessie's cheerful answer was forced but doubted the others could. She linked her arm with his in comfort. She didn't understand or approve of his attraction to Paula, but she knew the oblivious rejection had to hurt.
Paula put her phone away and said, "Hey, Jessie, do you believe in ghosts?"
"Uh, sure. Why?"
"What about you, Seth?" Paula asked.
He shrugged. "Yes and no. I believe paranormal things happen that can't be explained by science alone, but I don't believe in the idea of a specific person's consciousness becoming an incorporeal entity that stays on our earth once they're dead."
"Incor-what?" Jessie asked, moving forward in the line.
"Incorporeal," Paula answered, smiling at Seth. "Meaning something that has no physical existence."
Seth nodded while Jessie muttered, "Oh."
Paula turned to Olivia. "You said you don't believe in ghosts, but what about other paranormal stuff?"
Olivia shook her head. "Just because science can't explain some things yet, doesn't mean there isn't a scientific explanation waiting to be found."
"What about you?" Jessie asked Paula. "Do you believe in ghosts?"
She nodded. "I do, but that's not why I was asking. I'm supposed to do a project for one of my psychology classes. I'll tell you guys about it inside." She let the cashier scan her student ID and entered the cafeteria.
The cafeteria seemed to always be crowded and noisy, but even more so at mealtimes. Once they got through the entrance, the line formed to pick up a tray. The center of the room was filled with tables and chairs, with people coming and going as they finished their meals. One wall held both the entrance and the exit, and the tables were surrounded on the other three sides with food options and an area to put used dishes and trays.
Once everyone had their food, Paula pointed out Braden, and their group went to sit at his table. Soon, Paula had introduced everyone to Braden.
Olivia knew Braden was on the wrestling team, and in her opinion, he looked the part. Tall, muscular, military haircut, nose that had been broken once or twice, and a scowling resting face. But he was pleasant enough when they started talking, so she tentatively gave him the benefit of the doubt.
"I was just telling them about our class project," Paula said as she sat next to Braden.
"Did they want to do it?" he asked.
"I haven't gotten that far yet." She turned to look around at the other people at the table. "Braden and I are supposed to do a project about group mentality and shifting opinions and beliefs. Our theory is that people who share an experience are likely to change their opinions to match the group consensus. Since I love ghosts and ghost stories, and Portland is full of supposedly haunted places, I decided to make that the basis for our project." Paula gestured to herself and then around the table at each person as she talked about them. "I'm a believer, Jessie is a believer, Seth is open to the possibility, and Olivia is a non-believer. I couldn't ask for a better subject pool."
Jessie turned to Braden. "What about you? Are you a believer?"
"No, but it doesn't matter, because I'm going to try to be impartial."
Paula put her hand on Braden's shoulder and said, "He's going to be the cameraman, so he doesn't get an opinion."
"Cameraman?" Olivia asked, not liking the sound of that. She wasn't fond of seeing herself on camera, and she certainly wouldn't want it shown to people she didn't know.
"To record any potential paranormal stuff and everyone's reactions. I've picked four haunted places in Portland, and I thought the five of us could visit each place together. We'd do one every Saturday this month and then at the end of October, I'll ask everyone's opinion again and see if they've changed with the group experience."
"Your plan isn't scientific. Are you going to have a control group?" Seth asked.
Paula scowled at him. "Obviously, it's not scientific. It's not supposed to be a scientific experiment; it's a project. It's about observing people's reactions and comparing notes on the projects with the rest of the class at the end of the term."
Braden spoke up. "One guy is asking people if they believe in God and then taking them to church for four weeks."
Paula nodded. "So what do you guys think? Will you be my Guinea pigs for October?"
"I would," Jessie said, "but I can't do this Saturday. There's a meeting Olivia and I both go to on the first Saturday of every month. But if we could start the following Saturday, then I'd be up for it."
Olivia appreciated Jessie including her, even though they weren't going to the same event. They were going to the same club but at different times. It was easier to avoid questions if people thought they were going together.
"October has five Saturdays," Seth pointed out. "When is the project due?"
"Not until the end of the term, so we could start the Saturday after this one." Paula turned to Braden. "That will give us more time to buy tickets and make reservations."
"Tickets and reservations?" Olivia asked. "You didn't say anything about this costing us money."
"Oh, it won't," Paula said. "Braden's paying."
Braden nodded. "It's my contribution. Paula's writing the paper."
"Does a reservation mean spending the night?" Seth asked.
"Yes. Two of the haunted places are hotels, so we plan to get a room for the night, but that doesn't mean we'll be sleeping. It's just a way to get access to all the supposedly haunted areas. Although we could crash for a few hours before going home if we're all tired."
Olivia didn't love the idea of spending the night in the same room with Braden and Seth since she didn't know them very well, but if Jessie and Paula were going to be there, too, she could deal.
"So if we started the following weekend, would you guys be up for it?" Paula asked.
"I'm in," Jessie answered with enthusiasm.
"Sure,"