Aiden likes to be alone when he has a lot to process, but I'm the opposite, and I can’t imagine being without him after tonight’s talk with Ms. Callahan. Apparently he remembers this from last time, because I don't have to say anything about it. He drives us directly to my apartment and follows me up the stairs.

We didn’t plan for dinner, so we pull out all the various Tupperware containers full of leftovers from my mom and make a sort of buffet on my coffee table. Mashed sweet potatoes, chicken in bourbon sauce, cold green beans, and a shared slice of chocolate cake. I’m a little quiet right now, but Aiden doesn’t seem bothered by that. He doesn’t push me to talk, only flips on an old episode of Twin Peaks that we’ve watched together before. I fit myself up against his side, licking chocolate sauce off of my fingers, letting myself just exist in his warmth for a while.

Kasey shows up sometime later, yawning and tired. She’s been busy searching for a private place close to Benton Street. We want to talk to Will without taking him all the way to the Ghost Office, but we all agreed that the sidewalk is too exposed. She reports that she’s scouted out a good location, then flops onto the couch to watch an episode with us.

Which is how I end up with Aiden to my left, passed out with his head in my lap, and Kasey to my right, asleep with her ghost-legs dangling from the cushions.

There’s so much going on in my mind right now, and I didn’t expect to get much rest tonight. But sitting here bracketed by my two favorite people, I find myself fighting to keep my eyes open. I reach over and plug in Aiden’s phone for him, then double-check that his alarm is set for work tomorrow.

If he’s having nightmares tonight, it doesn’t show in his expression, but just in case, I sit there tracing my knuckles over his cheek for a few quiet minutes, hoping that somewhere in his sleep he’ll remember that I’m right here with him.

Hoping that somehow he knows I always will be, for however long he’ll have me there.

~~~~

“Is that a ouija board, Jamie?”

This afternoon in my apartment is a very different scene than last night in my apartment, mostly because Noah and Raj are the ones on my couch. It’s loud in here, but I’m glad that Noah answered when I called. I want a few minutes to not think about anything, give my brain a little break. Since these two are the experts in not thinking...

“Don’t touch the ouija board, Noah.”

“Why do you have it, dude?” Raj asks, as Noah ignores me and scoops up the plastic-wrapped box. “Talking to ghosts?”

“Yep, every day,” I answer, and Raj laughs.

“Where’d you even get it?”

“Um - from a website called Other Side.”

Other Side sells a lot of different stuff, as it turns out. Automatic writing planchettes, pendulums and pendulum boards, spirit lights. They had a subsection called ‘trigger objects’, but when I opened it and saw only a weird-looking teddy bear for sale, I closed the tab and then closed down my laptop. I’ve been looking into cleansing rituals for electronics, but now that the ouija board has shown up, I think my entire existence is probably cursed already, anyways.

Kasey better have a good reason for making me buy this. The thing was $39.99 plus shipping. No local stores carry them. The closest I could find was a tiny shop two counties over with a very seedy website, and I decided I’d rather pay for shipping than get murdered, so.

“Can you send the spirits a message for me?” Noah asks, fastening a hair tie around his bun and picking his controller back up.

I guess I could tell Kasey and Will something? “What’s the message?”

“The message is: Jamie sucks at video games, and he has no idea what ‘cover me’ means-”

“Dude!” I reach over to smack him, but he moves his knee away in time. “That was all Raj, I had to cover him, he was right out in the open! Can we please just try this ambush again, this is so embarrassing-”

“Me?” Raj gapes at me, his eyebrows shooting up. “How is this not Noah’s fault? I’m pretty sure it doesn't even count as an ambush if you just run in blindly firing a shotgun, Noah, you dumb bastard!”

“I didn’t run in on purpose.” The lie is so opaque that Noah can’t even look at us while he says it.

“Oh no?” I ask, twisting to glare at him. “Then why did you shout ‘it’s Noah time, bitches!’ when you did it?”

“Relax, bro, they’re just ghouls, and they’re only level twenty.”

“Those level twenty ghouls disemboweled you,” Raj reminds him.

“What’s life without a little risk, baby?" Noah asks, grinning. "The ladies love it.”

“Yeah, ladies love a man who’s been disemboweled,” I answer. “Major turn on.”

“What do you know about getting ladies turned on, Jamie? Not exactly your area of expertise, is it?”

“Oh, Noah, you piece of shit,” I groan, trying not to laugh. “Can you please find higher cover this time? And put that MedKit in my inventory, I need it more than you, your armor is way better.”

“So you two can leave me to bleed out again? I don’t think so.”

“Noah!” Raj tosses his hands into the air. “Give Jamie the kit or trade him your fucking armor! He needs to lead, he’s the only one with a silent weapon!”

“Yeah, a crossbow, and it does like six damage, even with the scope-”

“Do you even know what an ambush is, Noah?” I yell.

Before I know it, all three of us are shouting. Raj gets up and jabs a finger to the screen to demonstrate his point, while I try to seize Noah’s controller and trade myself the armor. He grabs it back, and we both fall off the couch, accidentally triggering the ambush with nobody in the right position. The yelling gets even louder as we scramble to save ourselves, and Noah has to dive under the coffee table for his controller.

It’s not long before the screen says GAME OVER in big, bleeding letters.

“Fatality,” the TV grumbles, and we all groan loudly, tossing our controllers aside.

“Um, hi?” someone says, and we all twist to face the door.

“Ripley!” everyone calls back in tandem. He grins, spreading his fingers in a little wave.

“How was school?” I ask, climbing back onto the couch.

“Fine.”

“Ripples,” Raj moans, rubbing his fingers in circles on his temples. “Please get over here and replace Noah before I throw this fucking controller through the window.”

“Not sure anyone could ever replace Noah,” Ripley answers, and Noah pops up, grinning, to hook an arm around his shoulders.

“See? Ripples gets it. This is what a real friend looks like. You two take note.”

“Oh, my god.” I open my mouth to let out a torrent of curses, but stop, looking at Noah and Ripley. I’ve just realized that I forgot to ask Noah why he didn’t say anything about the tattoo design.

Raj hands Ripley Noah’s controller.

“Come here, dude. Let’s try this with you instead of run-and-gun over there.”

Ripley shrugs off his denim jacket, sits on the couch, and drops his backpack to the floor. “I haven’t played this.”

Raj starts pointing to buttons on the controller.

“Okay, this is to shoot, this reloads, this is to move, and this one is to Spider Leap.”

“Spider Leap?” Ripley asks, and I decide to jump in before we can get too far off-topic.

“Hey, Noah,” I call. “Why didn’t you say anything to Ripley about the snow leopard he drew for you?”

Ripley almost drops the controller into his lap, his ears immediately turning red, but Noah doesn’t seem bothered.

“Duh, because I wanted to let it heal before I showed him.”

Ripley twists sharply on the couch, staring up at Noah. “What? What do you mean, heal?”

Noah unzips his hoodie and drops it onto the coffee table. He was wearing a sleeveless shirt beneath it, and he extends a bare arm to show us the inner crook of his elbow.

“It’s still swollen, but I finally cleaned it off last night, so you get the idea.”

Ripley springs to his feet so quickly that the controller tumbles out of his hand and onto the floor. He bends down and reaches for it blindly, his eyes glued to Noah’s arm, then gives up and circles around the couch. He takes Noah’s wrist in his hand, holding him still, staring down at the new tattoo. His mouth moves like he’s trying to say something, but nothing comes out.

I move over for a better look, then let out a low whistle. It looks fucking incredible. Whoever tattooed this did a spectacular job with Ripley’s artwork. It’s an exact, perfect replica of it, like the original slipped off the paper and stuck to Noah’s skin.

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen Ripley’s eyes so wide.

“That-” he begins, and stops. “You - that’s my-”

“It’s fucking sick, right?” Noah grins happily. “And watch this.” He bends his arm, closing the cat’s mouth, then opens it again slowly. The snow leopard’s jaws part in a silent roar. “I’m obsessed with it.”

Ripley stares and stares. It takes him a minute to say anything.

“I - I can’t-” He tears his gaze away and looks into Noah’s face. “You got my artwork tattooed?”

Noah looks confused, now. “Isn’t that why you drew it for me?”

“I-” Ripley shakes his head, dazed. “It was a suggestion - an idea-”

“Oh.” Noah hesitates, glancing over at me. “Should I not have-?”

“This is amazing,” Ripley breathes, leaning even closer to the design. “Oh my fucking god, Noah!”

Noah laughs, clearly relieved, and Ripley does, too, pressing his hands to his mouth.

“Oh, shit, dude. For a sec I thought you were mad or someth-”

“Can I take a picture of it?”

“Of course, man!”

My phone buzzes, and I turn away to answer it, smiling to myself as Raj and Noah start loudly telling Ripley about their tattoo shop excursion.

“Hey, you.” As always, Aiden’s voice sends an immediate rush of warmth through my chest.

“Hey,” I answer, pressing the phone to my cheek.

“What’s - do I hear people shouting?”

“Noah got Ripley’s design tattooed. Everyone is very hype about it. I wish you were here.”

“Oh, shit! Send me a picture.”

“I will.”

“So I only have a few minutes, I’m supposed to be working, but - are we still doing the ouija board thing tonight?”

“Kasey said-” I break off, realizing that I shouldn’t talk about this with the guys here. Before I can relocate to my bedroom, a soft, musical jingle drifts in through the open window.

“Wait a minute!” Raj yells. “Everyone shut up!”

They do, listening, and then Noah says: “Ice cream truck.”

I look through the window and spot it by the curb, but - I can’t run out there while I’m on the phone with Aiden.

“I want some ice cream! Can you guys at least wait until-?” I turn around to find the door clicking shut, my couch and apartment both suddenly empty. I sigh deeply and drop into the armchair. “Those jerks better get me a creamsicle. Noah owes me one, especially after that stunt he pulled with the shotgun.”

“Jesus Christ, what’s going on over there?” Aiden asks.

“Nothing, nevermind. To answer your question, yes, we’re still on for the ouija board thing tonight. I can’t believe those words are coming out of my mouth, by the way. We are so cursed. I don’t even want to take the plastic off of the box.”

“It’s just Will, we know he’s friendly.”

“Or, is he playing a very meticulous long-con that ends with him devouring our souls? You and I are gonna end up trapped in a ghost’s stomach for all of eternity.”

“Well, at least we’ll be together,” Aiden answers, and I find myself smiling at nobody, my fingers curling around my phone.

“Aiden… I wanted to tell you last night, but I - it’s hard for me to-” I break off, and Aiden waits patiently while I pull myself together. “You know what it means to me, right? That you told me. About you.”

There’s a silence. “I…”

“Because it means a lot to me. Even if you haven’t told me the full story yet. I know I joke about it, but you can take as long as you need, to tell me the rest. I mean that.” Another silence, longer this time. “Aiden?”

“I’m here.” His voice is warm and soft, much quieter than it was before. “That’s - thank you.”

“Don’t thank me, I’m the one who should be… Look, I just want to say that I appreciate everything you’ve done for us so far. Me, Kasey, Will, Kent and Gabby.... not to mention that it’s all thanks to you that Noah is safe, and Ralph is off - I don’t know. Tripping an old lady in the middle of a crosswalk? What does he get up to, in his spare time?”

Aiden lets out one of those nose-laughs, and I imagine him shaking his head at me.

“It’s not a big-”

“Thank you.”

“Jamie, you don’t have to keep saying-”

“Thank you. Thank you thank you thank you-”

“Okay!” he laughs. “That’s enough. You’re welcome, okay? You’re welcome!”

I smile at my phone, as if he could see it. “Good. That’s better.”

“Alright, enough,” he says, but I can hear him smiling back at me. “Come on, stay focused. We’ve got a long-lost artifact to find.”

~~~~

It’s midnight, and all members of the ghost hunting team are gathered in the middle of that empty lot where Will used to hang out. It’s a little more secluded, definitely better than trying to do cross-realm communication in the middle of a residential street. Kasey successfully walked Will over from Benton Street, but she had to keep checking to make sure that he was still with her. We’re not sure if he walks, or floats, or what the fuck, so. Better safe than sorry, and we don’t want to misplace him.

Unfortunately, this means that we can only get three or four more answers out of him tonight, at most.

Aiden didn’t want to risk making magic light in public, so we have a row of candles lining the ouija board. At least it’s not windy, but the setup looks like - just - the last thing that happens in the horror movie before the demon gets unleashed. Especially with all of us sitting on the grass around it, looking like we’re preparing for some terrifying ritual.

“Let’s just get started,” Kasey says. “A little information is better than none.”

She turns to me and points at the planchette.

“Um, yeah, no,” I tell her firmly. “Not my ass. Aiden can do it, this time.”

“Jamie.” Aiden reaches for the planchette, looking at me with affectionate exasperation. “For the last time, you’re already haunted.”

“Yeah, but this is like, devil shit, and I will not fux with it.”

“You’re really your mother’s son, you know that?”

“Yes, I’m wildly aware.”

“Alright, enough,” Kasey interrupts. “Can we please-?”

“Yep, got it.” Aiden sets the planchette on the ouija board, over the painted letter A.

“Listen up, Will,” Kasey instructs. “Aiden’s gonna move the planchette, and you stop him on the letter you need by tapping me once. We only have one question, so use up all the heat you’ve got.”

We all wait for a moment, as if he might respond. Kasey glances at Aiden, making sure he’s ready, then turns to face the board.

“Where can we find the artifact that we need?”

It turns out that Will has three letters worth of heat left in him.

“M, U, S,” Aiden says, his eyebrows furrowing.

A handful of minutes pass in thoughtful silence before Kasey slaps a hand to her forehead.

“Oh, my god! Of course. Isn’t it obvious? What sort of place houses historical artifacts?”

Aiden and I stare at her until I finally say what we’re both thinking.

“I’m sorry. Are you saying that we need to steal something from a museum?”