Ghost and the Writer

Shopping

The next chance Mandy got to bother August was during the next meal - next breakfast, in other words.

"So, what happened after?" She asked. "With your parents."

"They left the old man's house with a box of money and their rosy life together began," August replied, this time not betting on his pride as a writer to explain it in compelling terms.

"Love at first sight, though, so nice," Mandy made a dreamy expression.

"Yes, I'm happy for them," August said rather simply, not much happiness in his voice, but it seemed sincere enough.

Mandy was surprised at the reply. It felt unexpected, but she didn't comment on that. "Are you the only child?"

"Far from it," August waved his hand. "There's six of us."

"Whoaa... Which one are you?" Mandy kept asking.

"Second."

The bell rang and August went to get his order. Wok noodles this time.

Mandy looked conflicted for a bit as he ate, fidgeting a little, but as he was almost done she finally asked "August, do you dislike normal food? I mean - fried eggs, bacon, peas, salad and stuff?"

"I have no time to cook, if you mean to ask 'why take out?' " Came a reply.

Mandy made a relieved breath. Asking about diet had always been such a landmine zone at the time when she was alive, didn't seem like August cared, though.

Mandy resolved herself, put up her hands by her sides."I have time to cook!" The ghost volunteered.

August choked on his last noodles and cast a surprised yet mildly suspicious look at her as he coughed "...Why would you do that?"

The girl startled, then averted her eyes seeming a bit flustered. It was the first time she saw surprise on his face and seeing him choke on his food even further amplified her own feelings of surprise. 

"...I am freeloading like you said... and you are giving me books to read, so..." Mandy's voice quieted to a mumble, but then she made a small smile. "I've always liked cooking too."

"..." August peered at Mandy intently for a while, like observing a strange specimen.

Mandy pursed her lips, nervous under his gaze. His glances in her direction had been so sparse over the past few days, but now he was staring. "...what?"

"No, nothing," he replied and averted his eyes. "Have you shopped online?" He asked.

"No idea what that is." She replied.

"Do you know what a computer is?" He asked.

"You are typing on one, no?" Mandy pointed towards the room where August's work desk was.

August didn't ask anything more, got up, and took out a small bag from a shelf, sliding out a pad and plugged it in. It hadn't been too long since he last used it, so the battery wasn't completely dead, but it did need charging. He started it, opened a search engine and tapped in it, keyboard popped out on the screen.

Mandy was looking over his shoulder all the while, not asking anything more for now. Her eyes were shining curiously.

"Here. Type in any question you have, tap enter, and study up."

"Eh-- what--" Mandy took the pad, but she looked at it flustered. She looked down on the pad, then up at August, but he was already heading away to work.

Frustrated, Mandy decided to type the words 'shopping online'. That took a while, since she wasn't used to qwerty.

By the evening she had more or less figured how to use this computer and placed an order from the same company that brought the porcelain set. August was already logged in, so all Mandy had to do was confirm the address (which she did know) and wait for the arrival of the package.

For the night after that, she was glued to the device, reading up on all kinds of things, at first her expression was brimming with excitement, but as the morning approached and her fingers slid over pictures of families on a social site, she looked sorrowful. It might have been a mistake to enter the names of some girls she used to know back when she had been alive.

A ring by the door snapped her out of sadness, but before she said anything, August had crawled off the sofa like a zombie, his eyes closed, and went to get the door.

Much like with the porcelain set, Mandy watched August sign on a small pad and take the packages. This time - three of them. Without asking what they were, though, he went back to the sofa, passing out as soon as he reached it.

Mandy watched him go in silence, then started unpacking things with excitement. First came the kitchen utensils - pans, pots, knives, a cutting board and so on. The ghost floated them around herself, carrying them over to the counter that way, then finding a place for each. She reminded of a little child, who had just gotten the best toy ever.

Her excitement didn't stop throughout all the unpacking process - only at the fresh produce her expression became a bit conflicted as she gently brushed over the bright red of an apple. She gave it a hungry look, but gave up. Not like she felt actual hunger either way.

She let out a breath, her expression changing as she refocused, and efficiently unpacked the rest, setting everything out where things should be with a proud expression.

"This is how a kitchen should be!" She mumbled to herself with a nod.

Glancing back revealed that August was still out cold, so for now she picked up the pad again to keep browsing. She did close the tabs from the social site, though, not wishing her own mood to plummet again.

Gradually smile settled on her face as she browsed through recipes of all sorts. "Solstices and all hallows, huh," she mumbled dreamily. She was looking forward to the next one as her eyes sparkled looking at creamy cakes.

"Possessing someone is also an option," came a sleepy note from August's direction.

Mandy almost dropped the pad. She hadn't noticed him waking up at all. Even more shocking was the fact that he had connected the dots... not that they were that hard to connect if one thought about it, but it was surprising nevertheless. "Eh? Possess?"

"Don't tell me you've never tried," August yawned and dragged himself towards the bathroom.

Mandy puffed up her cheeks and crossed her arms. "I have not."