Desolate Me

Moving Target

He sighed. “I know but as long as we’re together it’s not going to matter if she’s there.”

“What if she says something else?” My eyes got wide. “Is there anything else to say?”

“No I’m pretty sure she said everything on Wednesday.”

We lapsed back into silence as we finished our walk back to the house. The weirdest thing for me about living alone was the quiet. When my mother was alive, there was always some sort of noise in the house, a radio, a TV, cello music, or even her humming.

Since coming here, living in the room at the school or now in the big house, I had to come up with ways to fill the silence. I was fine with being by myself, I think I’ve told everyone I knew billions of times.

But it was the quiet. It unnerved me and it was the only thing about being alone that I didn’t like. That’s probably why part of me was happy the ghost had moved in with me. With him around no one could say it was quiet. He was anything but.

I unlocked the door and went inside, my freshly cut key sticking just a little as I tried to pull it out.

“I’m home!”

Peter chuckled behind me. “Why do you do that? I don’t think Paramore cares if you’re home or not. Then again I’m pretty sure he followed you to the tree house.”

As if he knew we were talking about him, my ghost came jogging down the stairs. He froze the second he saw Peter.

“What’s he doing here?”

Oh lord, that was a territorial tone if I’d ever heard one.

“Be nice.”

I closed the door and discarding my jacket on the coat rack by the door before leading the way into the living room.

“Seriously,” my ghost said, “why is he here? Please tell me you…”

“I wouldn’t finish that if I were you, Paramore. Or else I might have to find a way to bring you back so I can kill you again.”

I turned around and frowned at Peter.

“What’s the problem?”

He wasn’t looking at me, he was glaring at my ghost. Unlike everyone else, Peter could read my mind. The reasoning behind that had something to do with our connection. Strong emotions=strong connection. So he could see my ghost through reading my mind. Fun times to be had.

“Why threaten me, firestarter? Afraid someone is moving in on your territory?”

They were already puffed up like turkeys during mating season. And it I’d only been home a couple of minutes.  

Great.

“No fighting,” I said, looking from one to the other. “Or I’ll make you both leave.”

Peter narrowed his eyes at my ghost. “Don’t try anything.”

“Or you’ll what? Scorch me to death? Get over yourself and try focusing on her for once.”

“Our relationship is none of your business.”

“Well, I’d hope it would be somebody’s business.” The temperature in the room dropped as my ghost’s mood changed. The colder temperature didn’t affect Peter the way my ghost wanted it to. Peter was naturally warm, came with the element affinity.

Me on the other hand?

I may have been born in Ireland with natural antifreeze in my veins but eventually I’d freeze just as well as hamburger in a freezer.