The end of classes came unbelievably fast. Cooper was sweating furiously by the time he had packed his things into his locker and was ready to head home. He normally took the bus but could walk if need be, so there was no issue when it came to attending the dodgeball rematch.

Unfortunately, he was positive it would turn into a beating rather than a fair game. He’d called a big guy like Cage a gorilla, after all, and in that guy’s mind, Cooper had been the one to come up with it. Elsie was able to get away with it completely. Stupid ghosts. Always poking their noses where they didn’t belong.

Elsie had showed her face again ten minutes ago, after his final class ended. She had no food now, which he took as a sign that she was particularly invested in the outcome of this fight.

“Don’t worry,” she told a shaky Cooper as he crept down the hall toward the exit at the back of the school. They opened into the soccer, baseball, and football fields. Despite the school being relatively small, they seemed to invest a lot of money into sports. “I’ll be by your side the whole time. There’s no need to be scared.”

“Of course I’m scared!” he hissed, peeking out of the glass window at the top of the door. “They’re going to kill me.”

“Then you can join me!” she said, as though it was a positive thing.

“You are going to be the death of me,” Cooper grumbled. He could just go home, pretending none of this ever happened, but that would simply delay the inevitable. Besides…he kind of hoped the guys Cage invited would decide to become friends with him afterwards. It wasn’t impossible, right?

“That’s what friends are for,” she said, peering through the window too.

“…You consider us friends?” He’d never had a real friend before, especially a ghostly one. Besides, they barely knew each other.

Elsie turned toward him, confused. “Of course. Why else would I follow you around?”

His eyes darted away, unable to maintain eye contact.

“Why?” she asked quietly. “Is there something wrong with that?”

“No, no. Well, yeah, actually. You’re a ghost. You’re dead.” He pointed at her nose. “I can’t be friends with someone who isn’t alive.”

“Why not?”

“It’s weird.”

“That’s a bit rude.”

“Well, it’s the truth.”

“Hmm.” She studied him, not upset but maybe a little hurt. “Then what should I do to become your friend?”

“I don’t know. Be alive, maybe?”

“I don’t know if that’s possible.”

“Then we can’t be friends.”

Now she really did look sad, like a kicked puppy. It made Cooper want to rewind time and take back everything he said, even if he truly meant it at the time. “Uh, I’m sorry, I—”

“It’s okay,” she said softly, pulling out a churro and biting into it. He began to wonder if the reason she ate so much was because she did it when she was nervous. “It’s just that I’ve never had any friends, so I thought it was nice to find someone who could talk to me.”

A knife shot through his heart. He felt horrible. Of course she got lonely. Ghosts could barely communicate with anybody, especially people their own age. He’d been so cruel to her for no reason. The real monster between the two of them was him.

“If…” He felt the back of his neck heat up as he scratched the back of his head, nervous and awkward. “If I win…No. If I lose this dodgeball game, I’ll agree to be friends. How does that sound?” It was impossible to win, so no matter what, he’d be able to help her feel better.

Her face lit up and she leaned toward him, her eyes an inch from his. “Promise?”

“…Sure.” He tried to lean away but was backed up against the wall. “I guess.”

“Then I’ll be rooting against you.” She shoved the last of the churro into her mouth, then eagerly gestured for him to open the door. “Let’s hurry, before you change your mind!”

If he wasn’t so scared, he might have smiled. She could be cute when she got excited. Up until now, she’d been pretty stoic and emotionless.

If she wasn’t a ghost, he might have felt overjoyed to have her as a friend.