Find me to breathe

Part 3 - Replacing

Mr. Ghost looked shocked and said, "You're not supposed to hear me. Can you hear me? Can you see me?" He was rambling non-stop in the background, while I tried to focus my attention on Alex.

A few emotions flashed through Alex's face quickly. He leaned forward and asked, "Who are you? How did you know about my meeting?"

In the background, the chatty ghost spoke was getting more annoying. Unable to ignore him any further, I screamed, "Can you please shut up?"

No longer muttering in the background, the ghost looked shocked. Suddenly he smirked and said a few words that brought me back to reality, "you're not supposed to know about this meeting, missy. You're going to regret it."

Watching my expression and noticing that I was staring at something to the left of him, Alex turned his head. Aside from the streetlamp, there was no one behind him.

Realizing my mistake, I mumbled, "Sorry, that was not intended for you. I was speaking to a...ghost"

"A ghost?"

Knowing that I risk sounding like a psycho and at this point, at risk to be sent to a mental hospital. I desperately continued, "Yes. He's around 5'10, has a sharp nose, small scar on his eyebrow, and.." I paused while assessing Alex's reaction, made a wild guess based on a few ghosts that I have seen.

"And it looks like he died by a knife wound or gunshot to his stomach."

Both Alex and the ghost looked shocked. Mr. Ghost gasped and said, "How did you know? Were you there? Can you tell me who killed me?" Learning from my past mistake, I ignored him and waited for Alex to break the silence.

Moving his body towards the direction of Mr. Ghost, Alex's gaze darkened. He inquired, "What is your ghost's name?"

Mr. Ghost said, "Michael."

I had the impression that Alex was not the type to get shocked easily, however from his expression I could tell that he was taken aback. He muttered, "How is this possible?" and asked a series of questions, "Where was the last place you saw me, and what did we talk about?"

Michael dutifully responded, "I last saw you at your office where you were giving me directions on how to handle the Star corporation case." He paused briefly and followed with, "Are you sure you want to share more with her?"

I repeated Michael's words as my heart rate accelerated further. It felt like I was learning about another secret that I shouldn't have. I shivered slightly, unsure if it was from my prolonged interaction with a ghost or if it was from the light mist falling from the sky. Alex assessed my words and appeared to believe me. His next words should have been a warning, but at the time, I was too afraid of ghosts and too ecstatic that I found a free ghost repellant to understand that maybe humans were scarier than ghosts.

"You're the real deal. So, you're looking to be a secretary?" He paused for a moment and said,  

Sure, you can replace Michael."