Chapter Two: A Ghost With Too Many Words
If silence had been her oldest companion, then words were her rebellion against it.
She had so many words saved up inside her words unsaid, songs unfinished, jokes unanswered that when the he looked at her and spoke, it was like ripping the cork out of a bottle shaken far too long.
She exploded.
"You can SEE me! Oh my stars, my heavens, my ancestors, my imaginary friends you can actually SEE me! And HEAR me too? Wait, say something else, go on. Don't just stand there looking like a statue carved out of broody silence. Blink twice if I'm not hallucinating. No? Fine. Blink three times if you think I'm pretty."
The boy only raised a brow.
She gasped, slapping her own cheeks. "Oh no. Ohhhh no. You're one of *those*. The mysterious, silent, 'I only speak when it matters' type. Ugh. I mean, great jawline, stunning eyes, but could you at least oh! You're still staring. Wow. Okay. No pressure. Just the first human contact I've had in forever and you're acting like you saw a giraffe doing ballet in the living room."
She paced in a small circle, biting her lip. Then, she stopped and jabbed a finger at him. "Say something! Anything! Tell me your name. Tell me if my hair looks good. Tell me I'm not dead actually, wait, don't tell me that. Scratch that last one. Just… talk!"
He finally spoke. A single word.
"Loud."
Her jaw fell open. "Excuse me? Loud? *LOUD?* I'll have you know this is years YEARS of pent-up conversational genius finally spilling out! Do you have any idea what happens to a girl when nobody listens to her for… I don't even know how long? Decades? Centuries? I might be a hundred! Or two! My skincare routine is apparently flawless, though, so good for me."
His lips quirked the tiniest, almost invisible flicker of a smirk. It was gone in a second, but she saw it. Her eyes widened.
"Ohhhh. You smiled. You did. Don't you dare deny it."
The boy looked away, adjusting the strap of his backpack like it suddenly needed his urgent attention.
"Oh, this is fantastic," she said, practically bouncing. "You, Mister Silent Shadow, are going to be my new best friend. Nope, don't argue. Too late. Contract signed. Friendship locked. Ride-or-die status activated. Congratulations!"
She spun dramatically, arms wide, and phased halfway through the wall before popping her head back out. "Also, by the way, do your parents know you can see dead girls? No? Of course not. They can't see me. Only you. Which means we're special. We've got a connection. Destiny! Soul-bond! Interdimensional fate or whatever!"
"Annoying," he muttered.
She gasped again. "Oh-ho-ho. You wound me. Right in my nonexistent heart. But also, that was two whole words strung together into a sentence. Look at you, making progress already!"
The boy gave her one long, unreadable look and started up the staircase.
Naturally, she floated after him.
—
"Wait, wait, wait. Where are you going? Upstairs? Why? Bedroom? Ohhh, scandalous. Don't worry, I'm very respectful of privacy. Unless, you know, I'm not. Which I'm probably not. Fair warning, I like to talk. And sing. And make terrible jokes. You'll get used to it. Eventually. Maybe."
He entered a room and dropped his backpack on the bed. She perched on his desk like a cat, swinging her legs through the wood.
"So. New guy. What's your story? You move here against your will? Is this one of those situations where your parents got a promotion in the city and dragged you here and now you're sulking about it because you left behind your entire life, your friends, your secret hobbies? Yeah? Nailed it? I knew it. I'm psychic. Ghost psychic."
His eyes flicked to her. "Stop."
"Ooooh. Chills. Short, sweet, commanding. You're very 'mysterious stranger in a novel who secretly has powers.' Do you secretly have powers? No, wait, don't answer. Actually, do answer. Please answer. No? Fine, keep your secrets. Brood away."
She leaned close, her face inches from his. "But you *can* see me. That's not normal. You're not normal. And I'm not normal. Which makes us perfectly abnormal together."
For a moment, their eyes met again, and her playful grin faltered. Something heavy and strange tugged inside her chest, something she couldn't name. She shook it off instantly, clapping her hands.
"Anyway! You need a tour guide. This house is HUGE, and you're going to get lost. Luckily, I've lived here for well, for however long I've been here so I know all the creaky boards, all the drafty windows, all the places where the wallpaper peels in interesting shapes. And you're going to love the attic. It's haunted. By me. Obviously. Surprise!"
He sighed, lying back on the bed as if the weight of the universe had already crushed him.
She hovered above him upside down, peering into his face. "You're very quiet. Has anyone ever told you that? Oh wait, of course they have. But don't worry I talk enough for both of us. It's destiny. Yin and yang. Silence and noise. Brooding and babbling. Perfect combo."
He closed his eyes. She poked his cheek with one translucent finger that went right through him.
"Oh, right. Forgot about that part. Can't touch you. Yet. But mark my words, one day, I'm going to high-five you, and it's going to be glorious. Monumental. Universe-shaking."
"Go away," he muttered into the pillow.
She laughed. Loud, delighted, fearless. "Not a chance, Handsome. You're stuck with me now. Forever."
And with that, she flopped dramatically onto the ceiling, humming a cheerful tune as if she'd already made herself right at home in his life.
For the first time since she'd woken in this cursed, endless house, she wasn't afraid of being alone anymore.
Because someone finally saw her.
To be continued...