To keep him from being angry, Leo decided to spend his time trying to start up his laptop once again. He was still incredibly pissed off at Nyle for his passive behavior so to give himself something to do, he tried to plug the hidden laptop in and click into the WiFi. He was smart, it didn’t take much time to figure it out, and proceeded to spend a good few hours calming down through checking on everything. It wasn’t until he saw Nyle pass that he grow angry again. He kept behind to see what exactly Nyle planned to do and grew uncomfortable by just how casual he was. He only grew upset when he saw Nyle show himself, immediately moving quickly to tug on the other ghost’s arm with a deep frown.

“What the hell are you doing, Nyle?!” He whispered, his eyes darting from his boyfriend to the humans. He kept himself invisible but if the couple really tried to listen, they could hear the faint whispers of Leo’s voice. “Why are you giving them what they want?! Oliver said that it was best to just p-pretend they aren’t there so they can leave-“

“Whoa, w-wait, fuck,” sputtered the husband, physically pushing off the couch in horror and in turn accidentally spilled his beer, which only made Leo more upset. “I -fuck. U-Uh... I’m Bruce...” he greeted awkwardly, following his wife. “... there’s more than one of you?”
 
"Oliver can fuck off. You're both being dickheads to them, they haven't done anything wrong. If we're nice, we might get to watch TV and, you know, live normally-- as normally as we can under the circumstances. I don't want to stew angrily in the attic like a goddamn child, Leo. Nor do I want innocent people to get hurt because you're pissed off at them," spat Nyle in return, tugging his arm away and shooting the couple another reassuring grin, leaning down to try and mop the spilled beer up for them.

"...Uh, yeah. There's three of us. Only one of us died here, but a... friend of mine brought me here with my other mate Oliver. I dunno. We were planning on having her buy this place, but you guys swooped in first, and that's... well, it sucks, but it's fine! You two seem like a lovely couple, I... hope you're happy here? It's a nice area, huh? I loved it after a few months, really settled in well. Gigi, the next door neighbour, is a total sweetheart," gushed Nyle, just happy to communicate with other people for once. It was distracting to have Leo pull at him and Oliver glare at him from the corner, but he was determined to ignore it, turning his attention fully on Bruce and Tina. "So... uh... I'm Nyle. I... died a few months back, kinda a horrible story, really, but... hey, I'm not going to be an ass to you guys. I just want to... make sure you know that."
 
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“They aren’t innocent, they only bought this house to make a quick buck!” Leo snapped in return. “Didn’t you see the equipment? They’re ghost hunters, Nyle. All they want to do is film us and leave. If you just get them to leave, May could buy the house and we could enjoy everything without two f-fucking strangers. Ugh - whatever. No matter what I do or say, I’m going to lose this conversation to you. You can get all cozy up to these scumbags but I’m not going to.”

As Leo spoke, Bruce was scrambling to grab His phone. He was going to catch as much early evidence as he could and the fact that they were in front of one visible ghost and at least another invisible one was major. He nudged his wife in emphasis rich do the same and managed to record the very loud and clearly angry stops of Leo heading up the stairs to find Oliver.

“This is wild,” admitted Bruce with a laugh. “I mean, wow. This - this is the first time a ghost has wanted to talk to us. Hey, state your name and how you died,” he urged, his phone up.
 
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Now, Nyle had the utmost sympathy for the couple, feeling that they didn't deserve to be hounded and hurt just for buying a house. That didn't mean he wanted a camera stuck in his face and for their only interest to be him as a ghost, rather than as a person. He may be dead, but he still considered himself a person; he still had thoughts and feelings, and it did hurt to be reduced to nothing more than some spirit who they could use to propel themselves to fame in the ghost-hunting world. In fact, it pissed him off, as it would anyone - he just didn't think it was wise to be angry and take it out on them. Instead, he faded quickly and left the room, determined not to approach them again until they were without their cameras and technology.

"...You know, my only problem is you hurting them. They don't deserve that. Are they being pains? Sure, but they... seem like nice enough people. They have their agendas, but... so did May; this is what she does too," reminded Nyle as he trailed awkwardly behind his boyfriend, frowning at the tension. "You're acting like Oliver; I don't like it. We can't get rid of them, it's naive to think we can."
 
"I'm not going to put them in harms way, Nyle, I was going to freak them out until they left but Oliver made a good point that if we don't interact, they'll leave! May... May was different, she wasn't manipulating me to make money. She doesn't film our interactions for everyone to see, does she? These people, they don't want to be our friends. You can get all close and whatnot but that doesn't mean they're genuine," he grumbled, grabbing his laptop to bring it up to the attic.

"Look, do what you want to do," he murmured, his grimace changing to a frown as he took a seat on the piles of blankets. "Just... don't involve me. I'm not going to do any of that spirit box bullshit or try to talk to them, they don't deserve it, okay? I just... can you stop being so mopy and just snuggle with me?"
 
"Why don't you stop being angsty?" He retorted out of petulance, only to drop the attempt of stubbornness just seconds later. He wasn't particularly happy with Leo at the moment, but he wasn't going to let his issues get in the way of their relationship. He had barely been back for a day after months away from him, not even knowing at the time whether he'd see him again - it was childish to let some small disagreement get in the way of being with him.

"...I just... I dunno. I don't think they should be hurt. Are they vultures? Maybe, but they're... more or less innocent-- I don't want to talk about it, you know? Let's just watch some YouTube or something, one of those cute cat videos you like. Or we could browse Instagram, just... do whatever," he shrugged, sitting down beside him with a quiet smile, offering a quick kiss to try and smooth over the brief tension. "...They'll leave eventually, I guarantee it. They'll have to. It just might take a while, okay?"
 
“You need to apologize to Oliver,” he added after accepting the kiss and promptly adjusted himself around the other, physically grabbing Nyle’s arms to wrap around him before leaning back a tad.

“Like I said, if we just keep quiet and don’t give them the attention, they’ll leave,” he continued before looking over at the door that led to the basement. “We should put a lick on it so they can’t come in.”
 
"Why do I need to apologise to Oliver? He was being an asshole to me. I get that you and him have the same ideas about how to handle the couple, but that doesn't mean I owe him an apology. I still think what you both did to that couple was wrong, Leo. It... wasn't nice of you," he grimaced, easing his arm away from his boyfriend, unable to hide the annoyance that hit his face at the suggestion. He liked Oliver a lot, the man having become a best friend to him, but like hell was he apologising.

"Whatever, I... don't want to go over this. You can leave the couple alone. I'll be talking to them because... I dunno. I think it's nice to be nice. I'll talk when they don't have equipment on hand, alright? So they can't document my existence. I just think it's nice to be friendly, and I'm thankful to talk to more people and stuff. They seem like nice guys," he insisted passionately, still sticking to his decision, despite it contradicting his boyfriend and best friend's opinion on what was best. "...Maybe they can tell Gigi that I'm here. I miss her a lot, she's... like the mother I never had, y'know? I'd love for her to come over here and for me to... to talk to her. Is that so wrong of me? Or would you rather I lock myself away until the couple leave? I think that's just stupid, Leo."
 
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“Gigi stopped by a few times,” Leo admitted after a pause. “Left a few flowers every now and then. She stopped eventually but I think it’s because she saw that the house was for sale again and got nervous. She... really did care about you,” he admitted somewhat jealously. He pauses again before leaning his head against Nyle with a frown. “You’re lucky, though you’re a likeable person. If any of us were to talk to these people, you’d be the one.”

As he spoke, Leo was desperate to press closer with a small groan. “... what did you do for months? You had Oliver so that’s something. Ugh - now I have to look up all the new shows on Netflix. I’m pissed, you know?”
 
"...Gigi was doing that and you only now told me? You know how much I like her, Leo. I... want her to visit, you know? There's no reason why she can't; there's nothing stopping her and I being friends, I... I miss her. I never got to even meet her son or... or do anything I planned to with her. I wanted to go to the bake sale with her a-and... and do normal stuff," he began, the mention of Gigi suddenly opening up the lock he had placed on his emotions. As much and as often as he stated that he was fine, it wasn't something he could easily get over.

His experience compared to Leo's was different - his boyfriend had opted to take his own life, whereas Nyle hadn't. He hadn't wanted to end his life when he felt like things were going good for him; it was a decision taken completely out of his hands. It meant he missed everything about being alive, even if he hardly mentioned it for fear of causing tension or upset. Except now, he grew watery eyed, refusing to glance at his boyfriend in order to hide the tears before they fell.

"I... I dunno, we just... talked a lot. We watched TV when May was gone; we didn't want her being freaked out and thinking that we were some of the other people who died there. We... We read and used her laptop for games. Normal stuff, I guess," he answered shakily, forcing a laugh to reassure him that he was okay. "Does it matter? We got through it; he's my best friend, really, other than you, so it wasn't that bad."
 
“... Nyle, you don’t have to pretend this is fine when it isn’t. There’s no reason for you to force yourself to be a cheerful person when you aren’t happy,” he reminded slowly, concern evident on his face as he took Nyle’s hand in his. Going as far as to offer it a kiss, he hesitated before speaking again, trying to figure out the right words and not make the situation worse.

“Let’s take everything one day at a time, okay? I... I would be willing to talk to those creeps downstairs if it meant you could speak to Gigi again. I know how much you cared for her, I don’t want you to miss out on that. You... didn’t deserve any of this,” he reminded quietly all the while avoiding his eyes in fear that if he did, he could somehow make things awkward,
 
"I don't think she'd react well if... if she did come over and saw us, Leo. She'd freak out and that'd upset me more, you know? Besides, I don't want her seeing... this. It's not a look I can pull off," he weakly smiled as he broadly gestured to the bullet wound in the middle of his forehead, shrugging to himself. He had given up trying to hide it at this point, deciding that the constant anxiety he felt at organising and arranging his hair every few seconds wasn't one he could continue for much longer.

"I'm fine, I just... it's not easy. Oliver's fine with it, he... he literally shrugs it off and I don't know how because... I'm fucking scarred by what happened, it was terrifying a-and I keep seeing it play over and over. I dunno, I'll be alright, I guess," he shrugged again, smiling a little wider. "It'd be worse if I didn't have you, but I do so I'm... I'm alright, promise."
 
“Please be honest with me,” urged Leo, moving from the close embrace with a deepening frown. “The therapist - she said it’s important to be honest with yourself,” he explained with pursed lips. He was - and never will be - definitely not be in the right emotional state of mind to give advice but he could admit it. In fact, he was well aware that he needed more therapy, especially after the trauma of the last few months.

“I know that it was scary,” he began quietly, “I know I didn’t... deal with the same end as you did but I understand how scary it is, yeah? Just - I want to help you. I just got you back I don’t want to see you upset, I-I want to celebrate with you. I can’t celebrate with you if I know you aren’t happy.”
 
"I got shot in the head, Leo. I don't think I'm going to be celebrating a-anything, not... not as much as I want. I dunno, I don't want to talk about it that much, it... it's not something I want to discuss. You heard it anyway, you don't need details. You were on the phone, you... must have heard," he began, grimacing to himself once stumbling upon that realisation. He hadn't really thought about it until know, and it made him feel immensely guilty about it all. He had been the one to get killed, but Leo had helplessly listened on, unable to do a single thing about it.

"...I'm sorry, I... I shouldn't have fucking gone to that party, I should have stayed with you, right? Oliver shouldn't have been killed either, that... was my fault. He could have left; he was literally in the elevator and then I... I called for him and he came back and... then I saw him get shot, so I know that's my fault a-and that sucks," he continued, gratefully leaning to pet Bitters, thankful that the cat at least helped relax him a little. Without the pet's presence, he would be more of a mess than he already was. "And I... I have a family that'll never get to see me again, and... and it's just a mess. I'm glad we're together, don't get me wrong. That's the only good part about this, but it's... I shouldn't have died yet, I didn't w-want to... god, can we stop? You're making me cry and I can't sit and watch Netflix i-if I'm crying, dummy~!"
 
“Yeah, there’s a lot of things we could have done but we can’t. We can’t change what happened and there’s no reason to focus on that. I mean, that dumb fucking costume probably didn’t help much, huh?” He reminded with a nervous smile, his anxiety spiking when he realized his attempt to cheer the other up failed.

“... yeah, let’s just watch some shows,” he eventually murmured, returning to press close though it was clear that he wasn’t exactly focusing on the season of Friends they had left off on, his eyes instead locked on the corner as he fiddled with his - or rather, Nyle’s - sweatshirt sleeves.
 
"...That costume was a nightmare, yeah. Only positive of it was that it got me a lot of attention; had people bringing me drinks all night. I don't think that was the aim of it, though. You didn't really want me being Mr. Popular at that party, did 'ya?" He asked quietly, his mood seeming to lighten a little once the costume was mentioned. It had been a detriment on the night, but he didn't think it was to blame for his death. Countless of people had normal clothes on and still died, after all.

"Honestly, I think it's... funny? I dunno. I just have this image of me being carried out of the party by medics in that costume and it cracks me up. God, did my family have to see me in that thing? I mean, I'm sure they'd find it funny - if they weren't, like, grieving or whatever," he laughed, nudging his boyfriend gently to try and lighten the mood. "...Hey, 'm alright. Promise. It's Oliver that needs the therapy sessions. I can talk about it; he's pretending it didn't happen and that ain't healthy."
 
“I sure as hell hope they didn’t. Imagine you being buried with that ugly ass costume, yeah? Like, don’t be dumb,” he scolded, rolling his eyes before closing them before exhaling quietly. He didn’t really care about Friends, he had caught up on all of them already, but he knew it was at least a good background noise.

“I love you, you know that?” He whispered after a pause, absently rubbing his hands across his wrists. “Like, a lot. Sure, this isn’t the best situation but I’m going to try my hardest to make you feel better.”
 
"I know you do, silly. I love you too, obviously. I crammed myself into a tiny fucking box just to be with you. If that isn't evidence of my love, I don't know what is, dude. Just relax, alright? I'm not okay, I won't pretend I am, but I'll get there. I'm not going to breakdown and disappear from you; I'll work on my shit and get over it," he yawned, wrapping his arm back around the other to tug him in close, encouraging him to rest in close against him.

He didn't budge from the intimate position, even when Oliver entered and took his place on the opposite space on the floor, frowning to himself. It didn't make him feel any better to see them cuddled up close, but he also couldn't be by himself either; it made him feel worse. Feeling like a third wheel, therefore, was the best out of the two horrible options.

"...You two are all good now, yeah?" He asked with a faint smile, holding his knees to his chest. "That's good, I hate you two, like, butting heads. I can't deal with that."
 
"You can come and cuddle too, if you want," suggested Leo once looking over at the other, smiling to see him again. "It's nice to be affectionate and I'm not uncomfortable with it," he admitted, desperate to get the other over. He didn't know much about the other but he knew that Oliver was a good guy - he must have been if he was willing to be by Nyle's side.

"Listen, I... think I should talk to that couple. I think if we give them what they want for awhile, they'd let May come over. I want you to be happy, too, Oliver. So... so maybe if we do that, they'll let May come and speak with you and do whatever. Wouldn't you want to see May? Or at the very least, you can use the laptop to talk to her if you want.
 
"Don't talk to those people, Leo. I mean it. It's best to ignore them. Besides, I don't want to see or speak to May. I mean, other than to break up with her, anyway--"

"Dude. I told you, yeah? You... You're being dumb. He was saying he should break up with her but I told him; he's not thinking straight," explained Nyle awkwardly, snapping to attention at his friend's decision, frowning deeply to himself at Oliver's relaxed, nonchalant expression. After all, he had had months to think about it and a few events during those months had convinced him that he ought to do what was right and split up with May, despite Nyle's constant protests. "I-I mean, she's so nice and she's a good friend and... and you love her, and she loves you, s-so don't be so... so stupid!"

"I'm not being stupid; it's my relationship. May's nice and all, but it's not... going to work. I want to tell her the truth about stuff," began Oliver confidently, the man hesitating before turning to glance at Leo. "I've cheated on her a few times - with guys. I don't think she'd be happy about that so... breaking up with her is... the mature thing to do, yeah? Rather than, like, continuing a relationship with someone I'm not... into. I dunno, I don't want to hurt her but I've fucked up and I think coming clean is... for the best. Nyle disagrees."