Allie - 2


Later that night, Allie and Haley were unwinding after work. It had been a mostly slow night but Allie could never shake how dirty and sweaty she felt after each shift. She was just about to head toward the bathroom to shower when Haley found the card that Josh gave her in her purse.


"Haley, get out of my purse." She snapped, slipping out of her jeans.


"Hey I just wanna look at the invite thing."


"Why?"


"Because I'm curious." Haley studied it and Allie sighed, tossing her jeans into the laundry hamper.


"Well, have fun with that. I'm gonna shower." Allie took off her shirt and tossed it in with the jeans, stepping into the bathroom. She heard Haley mutter some weird phrase as she closed the door behind her. Then just as Allie turned on the water, she heard Haley yell- "HOLY SHIT!"


Her heart missing a beat, Allie turned off the water and shot up, turning and peering out of the bathroom.


"What's wrong?" She asked. "You're gonna piss off the neighbors!"


"Uh, you might wanna come see this."


Cautiously, Allie slowly made her way back into the bedroom from the hall. Haley was nowhere to be seen, but rather a floating pair of sweatpants and a tank top.


"What the fuck?! A-are you invisible?" Allie said incredulously. She was seriously caught off guard but also amused by what she was seeing.


"Yeah! I mean, I think so! I said what was written on the card, and my hand disappeared! Then I looked down and- and my body's gone!" The disembodied voice of Haley emanated from somewhere, but it didn't really seem to be coming from where her mouth would be.


"Whoa I mean, this is really weird." Allie should've slapped herself for being captain obvious. "What does it feel like?" She added.


"Nothing. I feel fine, I think?" Haley reported, still panicked. Allie slowly approached her best friend, reaching out a finger to poke her. She suddenly prodded some unseen skin where Haley's chest was.


"Holy shit, it's like you're there but you're not there!" Allie was astonished.


"Okay can you stop with the obvious observation and help me get back to normal?" Haley began to substitute annoyance for shock.


"Uh-" Allie picked up the card off the bed. She spotted the strange words on the back. They were written there as if someone was taking some notes and had nowhere else to write it. "Maybe this is the- uh what do you call it?"


"What, the reversal spell or whatever?"


"Yeah. Did you say… Evane- wait isn't that the name of the band?"


"Yeah it is- wait!" Haley swiped the card from Allie and held it up to her face. It was humorous, Allie chuckled at the floating card. "Do you think if I say it again it'll reverse it?"


Allie shrugged. "Worth a try."


"Evanescent."


Nothing happened.


"Shit."


"I would think that spell would bring you to life, not make you invisible." Allie joked. An unseen hand rightfully smacked her on the head.


"Here, let me see if it's the other thing." Allie took the card back, reading it as best she could. "Dimidium Alvo?"


Looking up at Haley expecting the clothes to once again be filled by her best friend, Allie noticed a strange sensation in her waist. Then, she fell to the floor and Haley started screaming profanities again. Allie propped herself up but quickly realized something was wrong, her legs were still standing even as she lay on the floor. Allie craned her head to look up at Haley's empty pajamas.


"Hey, what just happened?"


"Holy shit, you're alive?" Haley knelt down, Allie looked at the interior of the empty tank top.


"Uh, yeah. What… happened?"


"You didn't notice? You- you fell off your legs!"


This information was a little too much for Allie to take in. She wasn't really scared, just overwhelmed with confusion like she was when her face was vanished earlier. Picking herself up with her hands, she repositioned herself to see her legs. Sure enough, they ended at her waist just below her navel.


"What the fuck?" She wasn't typically one to swear, but this more than warranted it. Allie looked down and pried under her torso. It wasn't bleeding nor did it hurt, it was just covered by skin. "H-how am I not bleeding?"


"I don't fucking know! Magic?" Haley said, kneeling down.


"This is so weird, I mean like- I just don't know how to react to this." Allie walked her legs around a little bit, still able to control them somehow. "Like, I wanna be scared but for some reason I'm not?"


"Yeah, I think I know what you mean." Haley said. "Hey let me help you onto the bed." Allie lifted her arms so that Haley could do just that. The unseen arms of Haley set her gently down on the bed, which felt odd on the cross section of her waist.


"Thanks."


"You're heavy, you know that?"


"What? I haven't even got legs and I'm that heavy?"


"Maybe I'm just weak."


The girls watched in disbelief as Allie walked her disembodied legs around the bedroom with ease. It was disorienting to be controlling a part of her body separate from the rest of her, it was almost as if the two of them should've been absolutely terrified but the fact that this was actually happening must've meant that disbelief overcame any fears. Allie jumped up and down a few times which was fun but she fell down, so she got up and sat her legs on the bed next to her torso. Then Haley's phone rang, startling them both.


"The neighbor's calling you." Allie picked up her phone from the bed and handed it to Haley.


"Shit." Haley took it and answered it. "Hello?"


While Haley assured the neighbors that everything was okay in spite of the profanity, Allie took a moment to observe her separated legs. She poked the top of her waist, which was smooth and unblemished. Then she crossed her legs and uncrossed them, just feeling what it was like to control them while being detached was so surreal and interesting. It was oddly intriguing, and she even found herself thinking of exercises that could be possible like that. What could the possibilities of being in two places at once offer?


"Okay, we need to go to bed. The neighbors are getting mad." Haley hung up her phone.


"Wait, I wanna see if I can put myself back together."


"Go for it."


Allie lifted herself up and positioned her torso over her waist, then lowered it in place. It fit, but didn't feel right. Allie stood up only for her to tumble from her legs again. Haley helped her up.


"So much for that. How the fuck are we gonna get back to normal?" Haley whined.


"Wait. Haley, hand me the card."


"I don't wanna touch that thing!"


"Just hand it to me!" Allie extended her arm and Haley handed her the card. Reading the show date, she had an idea. "That's it! We can go to Josh's magic thing tomorrow. He can fix us."


"Al, we don't have time. We have to study, and don't you usually go running on Saturdays?"


"Do you wanna stay like this through the holidays? What will your mom say?" Allie put her hands on her hips, or would have if they were where they were supposed to be.


"Forget that, what would your dad say?" Haley shot back. The notion made Allie shudder, the dad jokes would be unbearable.


"Anyway, this is probably our only chance." Allie said, holding up the card.


Haley sighed. "Okay fine. But how are we supposed to go out in public like this?"


Allie's heart sank. There was no way around that, was there? Everyone was going to see her in half and Haley invisible. She just shrugged. "It'll be a funny story one day?"


Haley's floating clothes drooped down as she admitted defeat. "Okay well, I'm going to bed. And I'm calling out of work tomorrow."


"Ooh Dan is gonna be pissed at you."


"You want me to go to work like this?"


Allie chuckled at the idea. "Well I don't think he'll believe you if you tell him you're invisible."


"I'll send him a picture. I don't care." Haley left for her bedroom. "Night!"


"Goodnight." So many things weighed on Allie's mind, but this was different. It was so extreme, it was like a distraction. Something interesting, even if it was more stress piled onto what she was already feeling. Regardless of how many pieces she was in, she still needed a shower. And she needed to study. As for sleep, that was going to have to wait for another night.