The Ghost in Apartment 7b

Florence felt the touch, and it was oddly pleasant - she hadn't been expecting that. Instead of it just passing through, the hand rested on her shoulder, just sinking a little bit. It didn't pass the whole way through. Her cheeks blushed silver again, and she smiled shyly. "That was cool."

She raised her own hand and held it up, the palm facing him. "Can we try this?" She closed her eyes, and took a breath - which wasn't necessary, her being dead and all.
 
He was looking at her hand and blinked... "Sure..." the hand on her tingled a bit but it wasn't cold or unpleasant... maybe because she wasn't an evil ghost. Then he put up his hand too and placed it against her hand assuming thats what she meant. It was the same feeling and he was liking it. "This feels..." he said softly for some reason feeling like it he spoke to loud he'd ruin it. "Warm..."

He didn't mean the temperature, though that was part of it but it felt as if he were touching an emotion with his hand... and with the body some he supposed thats what would be left... the mind.. the spirit.. the emotions. "Uhhh..." he stopped talking and closed his eyes. This was as close as you could her to literally touching another person's soul... "Tell me about yourself." he whispered keeping his eyes closed letting his mind picture what it felt through her hand.
 
Florence whispered with her eyes closed, "It feels strange to me.... but in a good way, if you know what I mean." It was true - having not touched another human being in over 90 years, this felt so out of place for her, but she didn't want it to stop, so she left her hand there.Tell him about herself? She thought about this, and couldn't help a smile cross her face. "Well, I was born in 1905 in a small part of Mexico, but my mum was originally from here - New York - so when I was six, we moved back again. I grew up quite happily, until the day after my nineteenth birthday, I was bitten badly by a rabid dog I came across in the park, and the infection ultimately killed me." She sighed at the memory - if she hadn't have gone down that path, she would have lived.
 
He couldn't help but flinch, infected dog bite, probably rabies or cholera was not a pleasant way to go, fever, dementia, possible hallucination. he had studded about infections in his first year. If he had been around 90 years ago with modern medical knowledge she would have lived.

"I-I'm sorry." what else could he say? Since her death there had been two world wars, an astounding amount of scientific and cultural progress. You know he should get a TV.. it would give her something to do while he was studying and let her know some of the things shes missed. "Does it hurt... to die?" He realized it might not be the most appropriate question but it was one worth asking, he would alter all have to go through it some day.

He took her hand.. as mush as on could with a ghost and rested both of theirs in his lap as he sat down. Seemed better than holding his hand up, she might not have muscled that got tires and limbs with weight but he did.
 
Florence just looked at him, her head tilted to the side. She watched him curiously and asked, "Why did you say you're sorry? It wasn't your fault, so why are you apologising?" She found it very odd for him to say that.

Did it hurt to die? She thought about it, sifting through her foggy human memories, and could vaguely remember some pain. "I think it did - I can't remember it all too well. But I sort of like being a ghost - as a human, I was always fascinated with the stories of the afterlife, and I would sometimes wonder what it would be like to be dead. The irony now that I think about it." She laughed.

Florence watched him for a moment, and then softly said, "You look tired - you should sleep."
 
He flopped down on the bed. "I should." he agreed "But I'm not tired... well I am but I won't be able to sleep yet." he rolled onto her side and hugged onr of his pillows against his body. "Its not every day you find your new apartment has a ghost. And I fond it hard to sleep in new places at the best of times."

He was rambling and he knew it, still he yawned and Hugged the pillow tighter. "Do you think you could stay nearby until I wall asleep, I know its strange but I just broke up with my girlfriend and I miss having someone close when I'm falling asleep."
 
"True." She smiled, and nodded. "Sure. Do you want me to sing a song that my mother sang to me when I was younger to help me sleep?" Most of her human memories were fuzzy, but this one rang out clear and true for her. Florence shifted so she was sitting by his head, cross-legged.

She cleared her throat, and began to sing,

"Nana,nanita,nana
nanita ea.
Nana,nanita,nana
nanita ea.
Mi niño tiene sueño,
bendito sea.
Fuentecita que corre
clara y sonora.
ruiseñor que en la selva cantando llora.
Calla mientras la cuna se balancea,
Ala nanita,nana,nanita ,ea...."

She glanced down and he was sleeping. She smiled, and lay back just watching the boy sleep.
 
His night was only disturbed be the odd dream and rolling over in the middle of the night. But the time he woke up he was refreshed but he remained in bed. It was Sunday and he could afford to be lazy. He remembered a strange dream, with a ghost, it had to be a dream.. ghosts were not real. He rolled onto his back and stretched. Damn it was good to not have to worry about a room mate.

Yawning he put the pillow over his face and just breathed deep. Nothing like being able to laze in bed! Until your stomach stars rumbling and you sit up with the pillow being catapulted to the foot of the bed. He slipped out and stripped off his crumpled shirt and tossed it aside grabbing a bowl and cereal, milk, glass, spoon, sugar... breakfast!

At the old table in the kitchen he slapped together and ready to eat. Then he was sitting down and spooning cereal into his mouth. Man it was good to have your own apartment.
 
Florence had been floating about the basement of the building for the most of the morning, and she was happier than she had been for ages - she had a room-mate! Not just a roommate - a good-looking, decent guy.

She heard movement from upstairs, and her eyes lit up - he was awake! She quickly floated up through the floor, and straight into the kitchen of the apartment. "Morning." She smiled brightly at him.

Oops - that had not been a good idea! He probably thinks it was all a dream, she thought to herself, stricken by the sudden paleness of his face.
 
He dropped his spoon and the milk splashed all over his face.. So it wasn't a dream.. "Oh... hey.." he picked up his spoon and tried to pretend he wasn't surprised. "I was just eating, didn't see you." he started eating again and in a minute of silence was done and washing his dishes. "I.. uh.. thank you for last night." he said as he separated dream from reality though I feel kind of rude eating in front of you without being able to offer you anything.."

He leaned against the counter and scratched the back of his neck, there no real established rules for how you're meant to treat a ghost so.. uhh, I'll just wing it and you're welcome to let me know if you have any preferences... also what did you do while I slept,, couldn't have sung all night."
 
Florence perched on the counter opposite him, and she smiled brightly. "I sang for a bit - by the way, did you like the song? My mum sang it to me when I was little. After you fell asleep, I just wandered around for a bit, thinking to myself about different things."

She picked up the top of the cookie tin and peered into it. "One of the things I miss about being human is biscuits. Moist, chewy biscuits....." She sighed, but then smiled. "What are you doing today?"
 
Gosh couldn't imagine not being able to eat. It would be like not being able to breathe... it it was exactly like that. "I did the was very.. soothing." he wondered if Florence got bored a lot and it ghosts could get bored. She certainly acted human enough with feelings and not all mopey, cry-y or whatever else ghosts were mean to be.

He put the kettle on and pushed through the papers he had to study today, not too many it would only take him the morning. Then pulling a mug down and filling the coffee pot he sat down and out of convention offered Florence a chair. "And I have to go to class tomorrow, not going to pass by just sitting around. Will you do ok?" he sipped his coffee and smiled at her. How could he think it had been a dream?
 
Florence rolled her eyes. "I'll be fine - I have lived here on my own for about thirty years." She sat in the chair offered, and leaned back. She watched him drink, and shuffle through the papers. She pulled a face at them. "How can you stand to go through all of those? What are you studying anyway?"

In her human life, she had been fascinated with literature and had always been a reader. She had intended to open a school herself but then she had died.
 
"I want to be a doctor." he said "Theres a lot I need to know and even more I want to know. But when I started I knew it would be a lot of work." He said showing her his textbooks. "I don't have a lot to do today which is why I have the time to clean. Just a paper to finish up." he pulled his papers towards himself and read through them making sure he could continue where he left off. "Its interesting though, biology was always my best subject. Its the talking to patients and learning what i need to know from them thats the problem for me."
 
"I always wanted to be a teacher of literature." She confessed with a shy smile at him. "I love kids, and I love reading. You wouldn't have any novels I could read, do you?" She had been without reading for too long, and she needed to read.

Florence stood and floated aimlessly around the room, glancing at everything in the kitchen. She came to the board on the wall with all of the photos on it and smiled. "This your family?" She pointed.
 
"I have a few in my bag, mostly historical novels but theres a couple of others... and yeah, at the tops my sister with my parents, couple of cousins and that one on the right.." he stood and walked over to the board. he had packet it as is and just hung it up. His father was where the Irish blood came from and his mother was half Hispanic, they had met in college, his sister had their mother's features.

The girl on the right however with her soft smile and red hair.. he unpinned the picture and slotted it into the trash. "This here is my best friend back home, we were going to come here together but he got accepted on a football scholarship to New York State."

He tilted his head "How far from here can you go anyway.. are you bound to locations at all? Why did you stay here alone so long?"
 
She watched him put it in the bin, and was surprised, but didn't say anything. Instead she shrugged. "I guess I can go anywhere, but I just stayed here, because people don't take well to ghosts. And this has been mainly empty for years."
 
He was still puzzled "But you showed yourself to me when I arrived instead of moving on.." he said slowly moving away from the board and leaning against the counter. "You're still here, you could leave at any time but you don't, you could have left when I was asleep. I guess everyone gets lonely..."

That was something he could relate to. He had no real friends on campus.. "Tell you what if you think of something for us to do, we'll do it. Once we get this place cleaned up." he smiled he had wanted an apartment but maybe he'd found a friend.
 
"Yeah... even ghosts." Florence smiled, and added, "Besides, I am a girl, albeit a ghost girl, and a new guy moving into the apartment caught my attention."

She thought about the rest of the day, and then suggested, "How about we just sit here, and you can inform me about what's happening in the world. I don't go out, so I pretty much have no clue about what it going on out there. And maybe tonight, we could go for a walk around the building? It is really quiet around here at night, so nobody else will be awake."
 
He was surprised and his grow knitted... "So its because you like me??" he blurted out as he looked at her. It was hard to believe they'd only just met after all and well, they were sharing an apartment but that was one night and nothing happened, and she would have to have almost as soon as she saw him.

"Alright well, what to you want to know?" he asked finally "A lot has changed, so we'll have a lot to talk about." his tone was slow and purposeful. "Iys has after all been a long time."
 
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