Page 104 of Midnight in Paris

‘Do you want me to drive?’ he’d said. ‘Only joking.’

She’d ignored him, putting the car into gear and making her way out of the car park. Moments later, he’d melted away and she’d been left feeling his absence so strongly that she’d nearly had to pull over. Why was it that just when her life was sorting itself out, just when she was beginning to dare to feel happy, she had to experience this brain glitch, this grief symptom that hadn’t revealed itself at all in the early days when – who knew – it might have brought her some comfort?

Once home, she’d called in sick for the rest of the day and keyed in Libby’s number.

‘Libby Cannings, can I help you?’

It always made her grin when she heard her friend’s work voice. But not that day.

‘I hope so,’ Sophie had said grimly.

After making sure that her friend was alone and had the time, Sophie had outlined what had been happening down the silent phone line.

‘Tom’s ghost?’ Libby had said when she’d finished.

‘No. Not a ghost. A hallucination.’

‘What’s the difference?’

Sophie had sighed; she’d forgotten that Libby was more open to this sort of thing than she was. ‘The difference is,’ she’d said, ‘that ghosts aren’t real, but hallucinations are.’

‘So you say.’

‘OK. Well, ghosts are beings in their own right. Hallucinations come from the mind.’

‘So what makes you sure you’re notseeingTom?’ Libby had sounded intrigued.

‘Libby! This isn’t helping! What should I do? Ignore them? Get counselling?’

‘What do you want to do?’

She’d closed her eyes, leant her head against the wall. ‘I’m not honestly sure,’ she’d admitted.

‘Well, is it horrible?’

‘What? Seeing Tom’s gh—I mean, the hallucinations?’

‘Yeah. Is he, like, mean or, I don’t know… dripping with blood or something?’

‘Ew! No. He’s just Tom. Annoying at worst.’

Libby was quiet for a minute. Beyond her, Sophie could hear the buzz of the office, the sounds of daily life. ‘Well, maybe just… enjoy it?’ she’d suggested.

‘Enjoy my hallucinations?’

‘Enjoy seeing him. If, as the doc says, it won’t last, then maybe just enjoy the ride. It sounds pretty harmless.’

‘It’s weird though.’

‘Well, yeah. But this is you we’re talking about, Sophie.’

Sophie had grinned. ‘Fair point.’

‘Have you thought about why it’s happening now?’ Libby had asked then. ‘If it is just your brain kind of firing off? Why didn’t it happen earlier?’

Sophie had scratched her nail along the length of the hall cupboard, making a small dent in its varnished top. ‘What do you mean?’

‘Well, what might have triggered him, I mean… them? Are you happy with Will? Looking forward to the wedding? Feeling OK?’

---