Connor shook his head and laughed shortly. Brooke wanted to reach out and slap him across the face, but that was something else she couldn't do.
"Pretty much everything you said there is wrong." He pushed himself away from the tree and brushed off his work uniform. "Come on."
"Where to?"
"Just trust me."
She cocked an eyebrow as she followed him through the cemetery. Some of the other spirits nearby looked their way, and she rose up a few feet off the ground, to at least make it look like she wasn't following him.
Connor slid into his car, and Brooke followed his lead by stepping through the passenger's door. She stretched her arms over her head, her hands pushing through the roof. Glancing down at her clothes, she decided she'd had enough of cut-offs, and concentrated on something new. The cut-offs faded away as a full-length pair of jeans formed over her legs.
"I'm starting to get used to some of this. Flying is getting easier, and changing clothes isn't so bad."
He pulled into traffic. "Wait until you start teleporting."
"Now that's something I can't see doing."
"Well, you can fly wherever you want, too."
"Flying from here to Paris? That might take a while."
"No way. You've never seen a soul fly straight up before?"
"Yeah, so?"
"So, you want to go to Paris, you fly up, I mean way up there, until you can see the planet from space. Then you come back down, heading straight for wherever you want to go. It's not as clean as teleporting, and you need to know your countries, but it works."
"That might be the scariest thing I've ever heard."
Connor smiled, and Brooke kept her eyes on him. She knew he was special. The fact that he could hear souls made him unique. But there was something about his simplicity, his kindness, that appealed to her. He didn't think he was better than anyone else.
She kept quiet as he drove through town, watching the world. An elderly spirit couple sat at a bus stop and held hands. Brooke tried to keep that picture in her head, as proof that life wasn't necessarily over upon death. But her mood still hovered between the great surprise that was her funeral and a sad depression.
He finally made the turn into the lot of the biggest movie theater in town. She shook her head and laughed as he found a nice parking spot in the nearly-deserted lot.
"You're taking me to a movie?"
"Do you have plans for the next few hours?"
"Not at all."
"Then why not? Let's go."
They walked together across the lot. For a brief moment Brooke actually felt normal again, like she hadn't died a few days ago. But an employee late to work gave them a strange look as he jogged past, and she was reminded once again that not only was she a spirit, but she shouldn't have a living friend.
Connor stopped on the curb and looked at the choices and times above.
"What do you want to see?"
"There's that new horror movie."
"Really? You want to see a horror movie, not some girly movie?"
She cringed, and her dislike of chick flicks was apparent in her tone. "I'll pass on the girly movie. What's the matter? You don't like horror movies?"
"I love horror movies. I just never met a woman that liked them."
"Well, you've been hanging out with the wrong women."
"I guess so."
He held the door open for her.
"I'm going to see a movie on the day of my funeral."
The ticket line was empty. Connor walked up to the counter while Brooke playfully walked through the rope guards. The young man running the ticket booth frowned as they approached.
"Uh, do you know you have a spirit with you?"
"Yeah, I know. I've been told before."
Connor paid for his ticket as the man shook his head at Brooke.
"It's a shame we can't charge them."
"Excuse me?"
"Souls," he said, nodding at Brooke. "They get to see movies for free."
"Oh, yeah," Brooke said. "That's just the best part of the whole thing. I'd much rather see free movies than be alive. You stupid bastard."
Connor nearly choked trying not to laugh. He took his ticket and they headed for the theater. There was only one other person wanting to see the same movie, with a few spirits hovering near the ceiling. Brooke watched in fascination as they appeared to be lounging in mid-air, their hands behind their heads.
"Is the back row okay?" Connor asked.
"Always the back," she said, smiling. "There's no other place to sit."
He sat in the middle, and Brooke wondered how she'd sit when he started fiddling with the seat next to him. He wedged his wallet in between the seat and armrest, locking the seat in place. She laughed as she sat.
"You've done this before."
"Actually, I haven't. This is new for me."
"Hey, lady!" a soul called above them. "What are you doing down there? Come up here with us."
She leaned closer to Connor. "What is he talking about?"
"Souls usually watch a movie from up there, to keep their light away from everyone else watching."
Brooke had seen many movies before, and never realized that's why souls stayed near the ceiling. She always thought they simply wanted to be near their own kind.
"It's okay if I stay here, right?"
"Yeah. That's why I brought you here."
Brooke smiled. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so relaxed around a guy. It dawned on her that she never had before. It was a first for her.
"Don't worry," he said. "I won't try to reach up your dress."
She giggled and tried to nudge his shoulder, but only managed to dip her own shoulder into his. The lights went out as a barrage of commercials began to play.
"Hush," she said. "The movie's starting."
For the next two hours Brooke forgot she was a soul. She even tried to grab his arm a few times during the jump scenes. She let out a shout when the demon jumped out of the closet, and tried to bury her head in Connor's shoulder. Connor laughed, and didn't recoil at the soul touching his arm.
After the movie ended the few souls watching drifted through the roof of the theater, and the lone person in the middle rows left. Connor smiled as he stood and stretched, looking down at her.
"What did you think?"
Brooke rose to her feet and leaned forward. He closed his eyes, as her light was too much, but didn't flinch.
"What was that?" he asked.
"I just kissed you on the cheek."
His face turned red under the rising lights, and Brooke grinned . She wished he could see her smile.
"Uh, thank you. I have to admit…that's a new one for me."
She had the feeling they would have plenty of new ones.
CHAPTER 10
A month had passed since Brooke died. Connor stepped into his apartment and set his take-out on the coffee table. He stripped the top half of his uniform off and tossed it in the hamper in the closet. One of their luggage carts died in mid-run, and they had to transfer everything to a new cart. His muscles were feeling it.
He was searching for a shirt to wear when he heard the familiar voice in the living room.
"Hey, Connor? I see that death trap you drive outside. Are you home?" Brooke asked.
"I'm in the bedroom."
"Oooh, can I see?"
"Sure. Not much to see, though."
He was still rooting through his dresser when the new light in the room threw his shadow on the wall. He found an old tee shirt and held it up to make sure there weren't any holes in it.
"Aww. I thought you were naked."
"It's a good thing I wasn't. I don't need a blind spirit stumbling around the place."
"Is that crab-cake I smell?"
"Yeah, from Tony's."
"You jerk."
"What?"
"I love Tony's crab-cakes."
Connor and Brooke's friendship had evolved. Death had done something to h
er, made her more carefree than ever. They spent nearly every day together, and she flirted with him often. He found himself flirting back, even though he wasn't sure how good he was at it. It was easy to flirt with her, and he didn't know why. Perhaps it was because there was no fear of her slapping him in the face.
"Looks like the show's over," she said when he slipped on his shirt. "You know, you're gonna have to come up with a story for all the ladies about your shoulder. I'm not sure they'll believe that you took a girl away from a weirdo cult."
"I can say I was a cage fighter or something."
"Yeah, you definitely look the part for that."
He smiled at her. "So, what did you get in to today?"
"I flew around town for a while. There was some kind of music thing going on at the park, so I stayed for that."
"Any teleporting?"
"You ask me that every single day, and I always tell you the same thing. Hell, no."
"I'm telling you, it's not as hard as it seems."
"And how would you know? Have you done it?"
"There there, now. Don't get angry. Even if you're so hot when you're angry."
"I'll show you angry."
Her soul flashed for a moment, and moved in a small circle, before floating still once again.
"What did you do?"
"I just kicked you in the stomach."
"I didn't feel a thing. You'd better work out more."
They walked to the living room where Connor set up dinner. He always felt slightly guilty eating in front of Brooke, but she seemed to be okay with it, and he couldn't starve himself. The crab-cake was delicious, and he tried to hide how much.
"It's okay," she said. "I know that tastes good."
He glanced at her on the couch and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Sorry."
She laughed, although he thought he heard sadness in it. "I met some cool people today at the park. I might hang out with them sometimes, if that's okay with you."
"Of course it's okay. Why wouldn't it be?"
"I don't know. I just didn't want you to think I was abandoning you. Maybe you should do the same thing. Get a few friends."
"I've got friends. Some people from work asked me to go to the bar after work on Friday night."
"Are you going to?"
"No. Bars aren't a good place for me. A lot of depressed, angry souls hang out there. It's not very fun."
"So you'd rather just hang out with me instead of people?"
"I like you," he said. "But don't forget about baseball."
He turned on the TV, and Brooke laughed. "Let's make a deal. You can watch half of the game, and then we put on the SyFy channel."
"It's my TV. Why am I having to cut a deal?"
"Please?" she said, and Connor felt his heart softening. "Don't make me go below to see what Katie is watching."
"Nothing tells me all is right with the world like Katie screaming at the souls in her apartment."
"She brings it on herself. She watches TV in her bra and a thong, and wonders why male souls move through her place."
"Does she really?"
"Down, boy."
Connor smiled, took another bite of his crab-cake, and gestured to the TV. "You've got a deal."
"And that's why you're my best living friend who can hear souls."
He felt himself unwinding as he watched the ballgame with his friend. Ryan always succeeded in getting Connor amped up, where Brooke had a relaxing effect on him. He couldn't see her face. All he had to go on was the tone of her voice, but it sounded like she genuinely enjoyed his company.
"Okay, now, why did that guy just bunt right there?" she asked.
"They're playing National League rules. So the pitcher has to hit. Two men are on base, so he's just moving them over."
"Moving them where?"
"To the next base," he said with a laugh.
"Why doesn't the pitcher just hit the ball himself?"
"They usually suck at hitting."
"That's not very nice."
"You should be a baseball coach."
"I've always wanted to go to a game."
"You don't even really like baseball. If you had real hands you'd steal that remote from me in a second."
"I know, but the food, the sun, the people, it looks fun."
"It is. We'll have to go to a game sometime."
"Me and you, to a ballgame?"
"Why not? We've been to a few movies, went driving, you went shopping with me—"
"And everyone stares at you, like you've got two heads. How do you deal with it?"
He shrugged. "I just don't care. I had a friend named Ryan. He's on his way to reincarnation, but I always told him the same thing. You're my friend, and looks from people won't change that."
She was quiet for an inning before speaking up.
"Connor, I don't know how I would've dealt with all this if not for you."
He looked at her. Her tone was sincere, no trace of the humor they shared with each other. She still floated above the couch, her soul nearly level with his head. He still had nightmares, some worse than others, but no longer thought of her as the soul of Mike Burns. She was Brooke Martin, his friend.
"You'd have been fine."
He felt exposed, vulnerable. She could see every emotion written across his face, but he didn't have that luxury. He remembered what she looked like. Beautiful auburn hair, dark brown eyes, slender figure, glasses that might have been a touch too big. She definitely had a quality that demanded a second and third look.
"Okay, well," she said. "The next time you go to a game, I'd love to come along."
"Sure. It's a date."
He immediately regretted his choice of words, but managed to refrain from scrunching his face. Brooke said nothing, and he could only imagine the thoughts going through her head.
"So, what do you want to do this weekend?" she asked.
Last weekend they went to see a movie. It was more crowded than usual, and they had to sit in the back corner to avoid annoying anyone. The souls above shouted at Brooke for her to join them, but she stayed with him the entire time.
"It doesn't really matter to me."
"Well, I do have an idea."
Her tone put him on guard. "And what's that?"
"Let's go dancing. We'll go to a club."
His only response was a frown.
"Oh, come on, Connor. I know you're not embarrassed to be seen with me by now."
"Embarrassed? I've never been embarrassed with you."
"Aww, thank you. Then we should go. Music, fun, beautiful women for you to look at."
"I'm looking at one right now."
"You're looking at a ball of light."
Even though she was technically right, Connor had never met anyone more beautiful.
"I don't know. The problem is…I can't dance."
"You can't dance? Why the hell not?"
"Look at me. Do I look graceful to you?"
She said nothing, simply hovered over the couch.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Looking at you."
His face grew hot. "Stop."
"Oh, you can flirt, but you can't take it?"
He stood up and went to the kitchen to splash cold water on his face. He couldn't get rid of his smile, and her sweet laughter in the living room didn't help him regain his composure.
"I never used to be able to flirt," she said. "I must be getting good at it."
"Stop patting yourself on the back. I just can't see your face. It throws me off sometimes."
He went back to the living room to see Brooke floating near the TV. Her soul flashed as her laughter died out.
"Put some music on. I'll show you how to dance."
"Oh dear God, this should be fun."
He switched channels from the ballgame to one of the music stations, and leaned against the wall. A chuckle or two escaped as he watched the spirit bounce in the air, up and down and side to side.
"So, all
I have to do is move my head around like I'm crazy, and that's dancing?"
"You can't see my arms and legs. I'm really busting out some good moves here."
"You could be dancing naked, and I wouldn't know."
"That's not too far from the truth."
His eyes grew large, and he coughed to hide his surprise. He couldn't stop the question from coming out.
"What are you wearing?"
"Let's just stay shorter clothes than I usually wear."
There was a knock at the door. Connor gave Brooke one last look before crossing the living room. "Tease."
"You expecting company?"
"I'm always expecting company, just not the kind that knocks."
He opened the door to see the back of a blond head with long hair, black shorts, and tan legs. She turned and offered a bright smile, running a hand through her hair.
"Hi. Connor, right?"
He nodded, and Brooke said the name before he did.
"Amber."
"We've met," she said. "You, uh, do remember me, right?"
He nodded once again.
"The strong, silent type," she said. "I like that. Can I come in?"
Standing aside, he glanced at Brooke as Amber moved past him. He tried to question her with his eyes. Brooke knew Amber better than anyone. What was she doing at his apartment?
"Nice place. Cozy."
"Thanks."
"Oh," Amber said, noticing Brooke. "There's a soul here."
"Yes, there is."
Amber kept her eyes on Brooke, thinking she would leave. When Brooke didn't budge Amber faced Connor, ignoring her.
"I don't even know how to start this," she said. "You came to my mother's house after Brooke died. But I was so drunk I don't remember much. I remember you, and I think there was a soul there, too."
Brooke flashed. "You think?"
"I don't even remember what we talked about. I just remember…us on the bed. And Mom going crazy."
Amber sat on the couch without prompting, making herself comfortable. She crossed her legs and rested her hands on her knees. Connor raised an eyebrow at her confidence in other people's apartments and leaned against the wall. Other guys might have found her forwardness charming. He didn't.
"I don't know how this is gonna come out, but I didn't try to take advantage of you or anything," he said.
She laughed. Amber was a gorgeous woman, but something was off about her laugh. It was nothing like Brooke's.
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