2024 Story Collection

Ghost & Immortal

"You know it's not really safe out here at night. Especially for a woman walking alone," she turns at the deep voice, only to be faced with a ghost looking about late 20s.

"Well, I'm the scariest thing out here tonight," she explains with a shrug before turning back around and continuing her late night walk.

"You can see me?" the ghost asks, or rather screams, as he runs up beside her.

"Shh," she rubs her temples. "Your giving me a migraine." She complains.

"You can hear me, you can really hear me!" the ghost floats around in circles around her as she walks. She rolls her eyes at him.

After a few minutes, she becomes curious despite herself.

"How'd you die?" she asks, looking around for a clue. "Car accident? Mugging? Sui-"

"I don't know," he interrupts before she can finish the word. "I don't remember." He's calmed down, now keeping pace beside her.

"How long have you been a ghost?" she asks, curious.

"This morning I woke up on the sidewalk and when I tried to talk to people they ignored me, then someone walked through me," his voice cracks. "It was horrible."

She looks at him, his whole body curling into itself. She had a feeling that his choice of words was an understatement.

"Do you have any memories?" she asks, trying to change the subject.

"Sadly, yes," he replies, not looking at her, his pace unconsciously slowing. She slows with him.

"Sadly?"

"I was alone," is all he says. She understands all too well. "My name is Tom."

"Well, that sucks," she says as she turns a corner. "That name is quite boring," she jokes, and he cracks a slight smile at it, making her smile in return.

"Sometimes life just sucks. Hopefully, death will be kinder to you," she says earnestly.

"You truly have a way with words," he says, only half joking.

"I know. I'm pretty fucking great." She replies, her tone serious, her chest puffed.

He laughs at her silliness, and it makes her laugh too.

"What do I do now?" he asks finally after a few minutes of them walking together in silence.

"Whatever you want," she tells him.

"What if I can't do what I want anymore?" he says, his voice filled with sadness. "What if it's no longer a possibility?"

"What's that? Become president?" she jokes.

"Fall in love," he replies, ignoring her joke. His voice is serious and heartbroken.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I've never fallen in love and I've been alive for a long time."

"In what, your twenty-something years of life?" He scoffs.

"Try 20,000 years." She says. "When I was born, people didn't die, they were killed, and it took a lot to do it. Humans have become so much weaker over time. I've watched you poison and weaken each other into the pathetic beings you are today."

"What?" he asks, stopped in shock. She stops as well, turning back to face the young ghost.

"I'm the closest thing this world has to an immortal," she says, staring at his agape mouth and wide eyes. "Why are you so shocked, your a literal ghost?" she gestures to his ghostly form.

"What?" he repeats.

She sighs. "Dear God, I think I broke him."

She reaches out and flicks his forehead. He flinches back when her hand makes contact. He looks back at her in even more shock than a few moments ago. She didn't think that was possible.

"You can touch me?" he asks.

"No," she says sarcastically, "I just channel my aura to flick your forehead or, better yet, forced an out-of-body experience to flick you-"

"Okay, I get it," he says embarrassed before suddenly stopping, looking back up at her in realization.

"Does that mean-" he jumps into her arms then, hugging her tight.

"Tom-" she tries to say.

"It's been so lonely," he says, leaning further into her.

"Get off me. I hate when people touch me," she snaps, not used to the physical touch.

"But I'm not people," he replies, moves back, letting her go, "I'm a ghost."

She ignores his comment, turning back around, continuing her walk.

"Can I be an exception?" he asks.

"I'm not answering that," she continues.

"I'll take that as a, maybe." He walks beside her, a wide smile on his face.

She rolls her eyes. For some reason, his words trigger something in her, she thought to long be dead-hope. It scared her. She knew the realities of caring about people.

"You know, we would make a great couple. Ghost, Immortal-"

"Maybe," she stops walking and stares at him in the eye, "until you complete your unfinished business and go to heaven and I'm left here all alone again having to deal with losing you. No, thank you."

"Wouldn't the time we have be worth it, though? The memories?"

"Our age gap-"

"It's only like 20,000 years, that's nothing these days," he jokes.

The absurdity of his statement brings a laugh out of her.

When she looks around she realizes, "this is my stop."

She walks up the steps to her apartment building. "Goodnight."

"Wait." He calls out to her from the base of the stairs. She does, turning once again to face him.

"Look, I know I can't offer you much, but I can offer you my heart, my love." He says, but his voice wavers toward the end as if unsure of his proposal. "I guess that really isn't much-" he mumbles under his breath.

She looks at him, at the young man that lost everything before he could ever have it. He was about as old as she looked. Could she allow herself to love, feel, care about someone?

Maybe she would try.

"Okay," she says, speaking before she could overthink it. "Serenade me and spoil me with your love."

He looks up at her in disbelief. "Did you just say yes?"

"Should I change my mind?" she jokes.

"No!" she shouts, then seems realizes how loud he was and clears his throat embarrassed. "Thank you."

"Follow me," she says, as she turns back, entering the building. He follows behind in utter disbelief that this was real.

The End.

February 10, 2024