The Girl & The Ghost || Arshi FF

Chapter 6 - Question

Khushi tossed and turned in her bed but couldn't sleep. There was a ghost in her living room - a ghost with whom she'd just made living arrangements. It couldn't get crazier than this. How was she so nonchalant about this?

She knew that he wouldn't hurt her. If he wanted to, he could have done that, days ago. In fact he had ended up helping her the other night, albeit he was the one who made her unconscious. But still... he was a ghost; for crying out loud!

If she decided to leave, where would she go? This flat was cheap, near her office saving a lot of time and money on commute and she had paid a huge amount upfront, also the equipment and electronics that she'd bought while shifting. She had already been on a house-hunt earlier in the month and had failed miserably.

Though did the benefits outweigh the cost the main cost being having to share an apartment with a spirit?

Khushi sat on the bed and put her head in her hands and grumbled in frustration at her dilemma, at her inability to think straight through it. The choice was simple - stay with a ghost or leave, like a rational person would.

He didn't seem like an evil spirit. He was so taken aback when he realized that she could hear him. Being trapped in this place for months at end without having anyone else to even acknowledge you could be so lonely.

Great! Now she was defending a ghost.

She lied on her bed again. Maybe she could take it one day at a time. Decide what she wanted to do depending on how each day unfolded. That seemed like a good strategy.

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This human, Arnav deduced, was the busiest one he had come across ever since he got stuck here. Just like the past week, every morning she would jump out of her bed at the sound of the alarm and rush to the bathroom to get ready and then rush out of the door with a fruit in her hand.

It was almost as if she had never discovered that she was sharing a house with him. In the evenings when she came back, she'd be a bit more cautious.

She would clear her throat and ask, "Are you there? Everyday. Like it had become a routine."

On hearing him say "yes", she would reply with an "okay" and head to her bedroom her shelter from the madness, Arnav assumed.

Life for him didn't change much. The girl hardly ever spoke to him. Though he wasn't on edge since he didn't have to scare humans away. His days were peaceful.

A couple of days had passed in the exact same way till, one evening Arnav made an effort to lengthen their conversation.

After the usual question, before Khushi could head in her room, Arnav asked, "How was your day?"

Khushi seemed surprised. "You want to know about my day?" She spoke, looking straight at the source of his voice. She always tried to do that think that she is looking at him while talking. For some reason, it made him smile.

He was almost a feet taller than her. Her eyes would be below his neck, at his chest level. He wondered how she imagined him.

She sat on one of the chairs in the dining table and gestured Arnav to sit on the one opposite her. Arnav acquiesced; if it made her feel normal, it wasn't a big deal.

She eventually started speaking about her day. The more she spoke, the more relaxed she became. It was hectic, which Arnav had already assumed. It began with how her boss was over working her, that her job didn't pay well, to missing her home in Lucknow, though she was more or less alone over there too.

The positive aura that she had around her, started to fade and Arnav could sense that she was lonely. It was at these times like this, when her guard was down, he would catch a glimpse of what she tried to hide, underneath the smile.