The Ordinary Haunting

22. The Long Past - Part 2

"Tay Tawan, whichever you are, I think you'll always be able to be happy."

I pouted as I leaned back against the end of the couch behind me. The tip of a huge, curly philodendron leaf pricked at my ear. "That's a fault, in your book."

New massaged his legs, which were still trapped under Luna, and pouted right back. "Not 'be able' as in ignoring bad things. 'Be able' as in deserving good things."

I shook my head, taking my turn to huff through my nose. "What's good about dying at 29 and not even being able to pass on? I must have been a supervillain in my past life."

New chuckled. "I highly doubt that. Unless your evil superpower was the amazingly bad judgement of distances."

Heat rose even in my body. "I told you--"

"What about Way-Ar? Joss?" I blinked, caught off-guard as New smirked like what I would call a real supervillain. "Seems like that could be a good thing."

Thunder rolled overhead, low in the sky. It felt like sitting crouched in a box that was being kicked from all sides. (The kicker most likely being Off Jumpol, if anyone.)

"That's nothing," I protested chastely, which only made New's smirk sharpen.

"C'mon, just go on a date with him. Don't wait around too long. I thought you were the guy who rushes into everything."

I moved my frown from his mouth to his eyes. It was still too dark to make them out properly, but the slight tone change in that colourful voice of his was enough to tell me that, joking as he was, Real New was still there in that storm.

"I have a lot of time," I said. My conversation with Earth in the store came back with a clap.

And I don't want to spend it with Joss.

New's smirk softened into something a little more him. "Is that really how you see it? You just said there was nothing good about your situation now."

"Okay, there are a few good things." I stretched my fingers towards Luna and, when I couldn't reach her, shuffled myself across the floor. Her fur shifted under my touch like dandelions in a breeze, faint enough not to wake her. "I'm starting to realise it could be a good chance to do a few things over. Things I rushed through the first time."

"Like your pictures?"

"Mm. That was the start, probably."

"What else?"

"I really screwed up this lasagna dish once, because I didn't read the recipe very carefully."

"Noted. How about dating a pop star?"

I noticed our proximity had shortened considerably since I'd moved to pet Luna and took the opportunity to flick New under the chin. He didn't even flinch, absorbing what small force there was in order not to disturb the cat in his lap. I sat on my heels beside him disappointedly.

"How about talking to you?"

This time I got a flinch out of him.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

I pressed a finger into the back of my neck, wondering myself where I was taking this. "All the conversations we've had -- the real ones -- happened after I died. We barely said good morning to each other before. Funny, right?"

New relaxed and hummed. "You're funny, alright."

I rolled my eyes and poked my finger into his face now. "You're the 'funny' one. You make yourself so hard to talk to, you know. If I walked into the tearoom while you were there, you never even turned around. And you'd have those earphones in a lot of the time, too. One time I asked about your weekend and you didn't answer so I started talking about mine, thinking you felt too awkward to start, and then you just picked up your hot chocolate and walked out! You were listening to something again! Don't do that in the office!"