Ghost [Niall Horan]

Chapter 12

     The rest of the night, we sat circling the bonfire, roasting corn, marshmallows and other edibles and proteins. I tried to be social as possible with everyone but ended getting myself socially stranded. It wasn't their fault though, I was doing it to myself. Whenever I tried to get myself involved in their talk, I'd voice out my views and they'd listen to it so carefully and they'd communicate. But after a certain span of time I'd quite down and they'd continue with their topic of talk. I guess, I wasn't actually needed here. I was also feeling a bit lost;  lost in thought actually. Niall's said sentence reeling over my mind every second now and then, word by word. I am currently trying to decipher numeral entendres. But it ends up coming to that one place where I do not want it to be. It's intended directly at me. I'll be completely honest, what we have between us is completely platonic. He's a ghost. A bodyless medium. A soul. What else can we have? We're barely friends. We're in two complete different realms. He's dead and I'm alive. Breathing and functioning. He, as in Niall dear, relies on my goddam body for his own physical support. And I'm having a feeling whatever he said, the very last sentence he spoke, meant he was slowly developing feelings for me? I'm just jumping into conclusions. Over thinking. The art of creating problems that actually did not exist. And that's what I'm doing right now. I should get over it. The heck of a ghost he is, everything he says signifies a different take. He's notorious. Got me thinking and gave me a brainstorm. I get up from my seated place storm to the tent. Nobody bothering to ask me about my departure. I get into the tent and get into the sleeping bag. I pray and make my breathing calm. The cold slowly getting to me. It's surely cold at night or maybe not.

"I shouldn't say such things yet" I hear. That's why it got cold suddenly. Get a heater fixed to yourself. Brother, amen.

"Yeah, you definitely shouldn't" I reply.

I hear him shift and he comes closer to me, where I lay. The cold making me grit my teeth.

"You're awake?" he brings his face closer to mine, to look at me or probably confirm if I was alive or not.

"Ever heard of something wonderful, called personal space? Get a textbook on personal management because I'm shivering to death" I reply, sulking.

"Yeah, you're awake" he chuckles.

"Definitely, wide awake. If I wasn't I wouldn't have been speaking" I say.

"Right..." he pulls on the word as if feeling awkward to have this conversation with me. "About what I said earlier. I tend to speak rubbish all the time. My mouth has a mind of its own."

"I'm well aware" I reply.

"Uhm... yeah. So..." he says awkwardly.

"So, I don't want to talk. I want to sleep. Good night" I turn away.

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"Now, I have this terrible backache. I'm not going back camping. Not anytime soon" I tell Jenna. She laughs.

"My parents went, too. You're nice enough to join them in such family gatherings. I tend to skip it" Josh smiles as he takes a large bite of his sandwich. I'm actually, quite glad to have made up with Josh and his friends. They're cool and friendly and I don't feel alone anymore. More surprisingly, Amanda and her sidekicks don't pick up on me anymore. More like poison me with their glares in the distance.

"No. More like roam around the camp like a ruggamuffin" I say. Everyone seems to laugh at my unintended joke. They all seem to have gotten under Niall's influence. Laugh at anything kind of motto in the air.

"I'd like to see you in your raggamuffin ensemble" Josh laughs.

"Sorry, but you won't have the pleasure to" Niall sits on the empty chair next to me in the corner. He eyes Josh dangerously. Too bad, Josh isn't aware of Niall's existence.