Cupid's Ghost

Chapter 1 - Static Routine

As the afternoon faded into early evening, June began shelving the last few returns and sweeping the front step. She stared out at the street for a long while before turning the sign to CLOSED.

She didn't need to be out tonight. There was no appointment, no errand. But there was a weight in her chest that hadn't lifted all day.

"Let's go for a walk," she murmured aloud, not really expecting a reply.

Lily blinked from the stair railing, where she was half-leaning, half-floating. "Seriously?"

"I just... need air. I've been stuck inside all week."

"You run a bookstore. That kind of comes with the territory."

June gave her a sideways look. "And you've been stuck with me."

"Best haunting gig I've ever had."

June smirked despite herself, grabbed her coat, and slipped out the door.

June stepped out into the cool dusk, pulling her jacket tighter around her. Lily hovered just behind, unusually quiet.

The city felt... off. Sounds were muffled, like someone had thrown a heavy blanket over the world. Cars passed, lights blinked on, and everything moved normally—but June's skin prickled with unease.

Suddenly, there was yelling down a side alley. June picked up the pace.

"This is very relaxing," Lily said sarcastically.

June glanced over to see Lily floating along comfortably on her side.

June raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, it's nice to stretch your legs from time to time."

Lily shrugged, arms folded as she hovered beside her. "I can walk," she said, and began moving her legs back and forth in a cartoonish imitation of walking.

It struck June how absurd the whole display was—partly because it had been so long since Lily had actually walked that her timing was off. She looked like a poorly animated, faintly glowing girl moonwalking down the sidewalk.

June laughed then. Hard. Snorting and everything.

Lily beamed with pride. "That's what I live for."

That prompted another burst of laughter from June—laughter at the irony of the words more than the joke.

As they settled down, Lily—now back to her usual drifting posture—got a distant look in her eyes.

"This was a good idea," she said.

"I do have those occasionally," June replied.

"I really do wish you would make some real friends," Lily added wistfully.

June tensed. This conversation had come up often lately. It seemed Lily was pushing harder and harder.

June opened her mouth. "I—"

"Gladys doesn't count!" Lily cut her off. "Or Albert!"

June gave her a blank look. "Albert?"

Lily waved a hand like it was obvious. "The cat."

June's face remained unchanged.

"The stray."

"Yes?"

"She's a girl," June said flatly.

Lily blinked. "Oh."

June crossed her arms. "That cat has been hanging around for at least a year."

"I'm only ten years old!" Lily protested. "I don't know the difference between boys and girls."

"You may have died at ten, but it's been fifteen years—and we were in biology class together. I know because it was nearly impossible to concentrate while you were snickering at every word."

Lily cracked, grinning. "Mrs. Painsworth would've lost it if she'd ever seen me."

June smiled despite herself.

Lily scrunched her face into faux wrinkles and said in her best impression, "I will not have any laughter in this class. We all need to be serious."

They turned down a side street flanked with brick buildings, the sidewalk cracked and dappled with fallen leaves. June didn't know what she was looking for, but her feet did, and she maintained a steady pace.

They walked in silence for a while. A distant siren wailed and faded. Somewhere a dog barked once and then stopped.

"Do you ever think it's strange?" June asked quietly. "That this is still going on? You. Me. All of it."

Lily didn't answer right away. When she did, her voice was faint. "I think about it all the time."

June stopped walking. The streetlights stretched long shadows over the sidewalk. Her eyes lifted, and for just a moment, she thought she saw something shimmer in the air above the crosswalk ahead. A flicker. A ripple.

But then it was gone.

Lily's gaze was already there. Watching.

June's voice was barely a whisper. "Something's really coming, isn't it?"

Lily just nodded.