Page 45 of Ghost of a Chance
“Fine, I’m sorry I doubted that Paul’s ghost was real.But you have to admit it’s a tough ask and a bit of odd circumstances,” she said, going over to the armchair where she’d sat the night before.
She twisted her legs underneath her as she took another sip of her coffee.“I don’t know how you like yours so you’ve got lots of cream and sugar.”
“It’s fine.My grandma used to make it that way.”He leaned against the arm of the sofa.
“Mine too.You and Paul were like… Lando and Han or Luke and Han?”
“More Luke and Han.I was definitely Luke like inA New Hopewhen Han has his back all the time.”
“You never got the chance to have his back,” she pointed out.“Obvious right?”
“Yeah.But still true.I see what you’re doing?”
“What am I doing?”
“Distracting me so I’ll tell you all my secrets.”
“So you have a lot of them.”
He made a motion like he was zipping his lip.
“No more about you?”
He arched both eyebrows at her.
“What was the last thing you remember Paul doing?”
“He had been working on quantum transference in class when he died.Paul felt like he’d let his parents down during his first attempt at college, which was part of why he was always pushing me.Got to make the elders proud.”
“How would we find out what he was working on?”
Taking his phone out with his free hand, he used his thumb to do an internet search.While Jasper didn’t remember much of Paul’s schedule, he could remember his adviser and favorite professor.After some digging, he found that Paul’s professor was still teaching at UVM and there were two classes listed for the next day.
“We could go ask his former professor tomorrow.First class is at ten.We could get there early and talk to him,” Jasper said.Finally it seemed he was contributing something to this project.
“We should bring the textbook with us and see if Paul’s ghost responds to the lab he spent so much time in,” she said.
“Great idea,” he responded, unable to stop watching the delicate way she sipped her coffee.There was something tough and don’t-mess-with-me about her entire persona today.
Catching him off guard, she lifted her eyebrows at him.“You’re staring.”
“So.”
Taking another sip of her coffee, she set her drink on the table next to her.“Tell me more about you.”
Uh what?
They’d talked a lot about him.He wanted to know more about her but didn’t want her to think everything he’d revealed was some sort of exchange.She needed to know about his past so that she could try to understand the poltergeist in the book.“There’s not much you don’t know.”
“I don’t even know where you’re from,” she pointed out.“All I know is you live in Chicago in a fairly nondescript apartment, are a fellowStar Warsgeek, and went to school in Burlington, but where are you from?”
If she was going to crack him open, he wouldn’t make it easy.He sat down on the edge of the coffee table, face-to-face with her.“I’m from Ravenpool, Vermont.It’s not too far from here.”
“Ravenpool?Is it a small town?”
“The tiniest.Numbers aren’t my thing so I can’t say how many people…but we have a Olive Garden near the interstate and some nice shops on Main Street.Just not much else.Mom grew up there and we lived with my grandparents until I was ten.”
“That’s interesting.Why did you move when you were ten?”
