Shhh..... I can hear you

Voice 4

"No I get that, obviously." he stared at her, scrunching his nose. "But how did you reach the window?"

She sighs leaning a bit back on the bed. "I climbed up here. It wasn't that hard. I mean not that hard if you have any sort of upper body strength."

"Aren't you being a bit creepy?" he asked with his sullen eyes wide open.

"You know what? Call me a creep for all you want. If I didn't see you through your bedroom window, I wouldn't have came and saved your butt from being in any pain." she reasoned with gusto in her voice. "Seriously, you are being so unreasonable right now. I saved you twice today and all you can think about is me being a creep?"

He sat there, contemplating. She was correct at the fact that she saved him twice today. But he didn't want to admit that she was right. This girl who he met less than 24 hours had been more involved in his life than any stranger before.

"I'm sorry."

Tiwa sat tilted her head to the side. She felt exhausted. She closed her eyes and slowly inhaled.

"So. What's up with you? I mean about the seizure-looking things you got going on there."

Josiah didn't know if the girl was to be trusted. Their was a number of things that could be reasons on not telling her.

For starts, he doesn't know her enough. Two, he doesn't know how to start up conversations easily, resulted by the amount of friends he has which were zero, or what he was aware of. Third, he was afraid. Afraid she was going to know him more than he knows himself. Scared of pouring all his problems and sorrow unto this poor girl who was ever so curious.

"Are you okay? You're not secretly having a heart attack, are you?" she speak with panic.

Josiah wave his noodle arms in quick denial, assuring her that he is fine.

"No, I'm fine. Well not fine. Well, you see, the thing you know, I uhm..." he kept stuttering, stalling himself some time to rehearse what he has to say in his head.

"Spit out already, seriously I am not gonna wait here all night just for you to keep-"

"I'm sorry, sorry. I just have this condition. It's complicated to explain." he quickly babbles.

"What kind of condition?" she asks, full of peculiarity.

He looked at her, her eager eyes committed to knowing more.

"Well, you might think I'm crazy. But... I have this thing where I can hear the dead." he finished, slapping his hand over his mouth, afraid that this was a mistake.

Tiwa turns to the front and stares straight ahead. In the dim light, he couldn't see her expression which was such a shame. Her eyes were wide and in some silence awe.

Nothing had cross this girl's mind.

"So let me get this straight. You can hear the afterlife? Are you sure you're not capping me?" she squints her eyes with uncertainty.

"Yeah that would make sense that I made this up just to look like this for the fun of it." he sarcastically retort back.

"Hey, you don't get authority to have that kind of attitude. After saving your life twice and not saying sorry, I think you better stop it right there." she warns and the boy quiets down.

"I believe you." she says, crossing her legs.

"Fore real?" he asks in disbelief, unsure about the girl next to her.

"Yeah. I can see the sincerity in your eyes. Plus it looked painful." he answers nochalantly.

A heavy weight that was crushing his shoulders was lifted that he was unaware with. Having to talk to someone about this was a pure relief. Of course, his mother and father were always their for him but this was different. Like he had a friend to talk to.

"Sooo... when did this start?" she asked turning a whole 90 degree angle to face him, resorting for him to do the same.

They were face to face. Now realizing that he couldn't see her face, he opened a light next to him, via his lamp.

"Since I was able to breathe air or recall memory I guess." he replies, dazing at the light in front of him. He fell into a quiet rhythm.

"Josiah?"

He snapped out of his state. "Sorry I just...." he stopped, "I don't really know who you are."

She heaves a breath. "Okay then. If this is how it's going to go."

"Hi, my name is Tiwa Bancroft, I am 13 years old and I have 4 other siblings. I love food, dancing, P1Harmony and baking. What I don't like is fish, children, racism and rude pricks. I moved her to this village because my mum and my stepdad had a thought of relocating to a quieter place." she lists and Josiah nods, absorbing the newly told information.

"Now you're turn." she points her hands to him.

"Well...  my name is Josiah Tempent. 14 years old. I live with my parents. I have a condition where I can hear the afterlife. I like sketching stuff. Like the tree in the backyard or the lonely window frame. I don't think I've ever had a friend before and I haven't left this village in my whole life." he said all at once.

In all his years of being alive, he had never said so much about hinself. His voice sounded foreign in his ear.

The young girl in front of him was scanning him. The yellow tone of his skin, the chapness of his lips, the sullen eyes that hang from the only light source. She had looked all over him, until her eyes landed on the chain dangling from his neck.

It moved as he moved, appearing and disappearing from the sheath of his white shirt. She wanted to ask him about the necklace that hanged. But had second thoughts.

What if it is a sensitive topic that he didn't want to share? Maybe he didn't want her to get more into his private life.

But she was already to deep in. There was no point of not wondering. They know so much of each other.