“Yoochun, if you pull that around my brother, I’m going to exorcise you from here.”

“Relax,” he said calmly. “I won’t do this.” He juggled another apple in addition to the three he already had going. “I doubt he’ll think ‘ghosts’ and jump automatically to some new vortex that allows fruit to go through counterclockwise cycles in suspension or whatnot.” He snorted. “What kind of person takes a bunch of physics and philosophy classes and stuff and aspires to be a rapper one day? That’s really weird.” He paused. “I wanted to be a rapper and a singer, but look where that ended up.”

I rolled my eyes. “You speak so lightly about your death.”

“Hey, happens, you know?” He tossed all the fruit into the sink, and I proceeded to wash them. Who knows if any ectoplasm made its way onto my food? “You can’t control what life throws at you. I hate bringing Junsu into this, but he needs to let go. We died. That’s that. He can’t hang onto this life for long.”

Now there was something I hadn’t considered. “Why are you ghosts?” I asked.

Yoochun helped me dry the apples. “Because we choose that path. Junsu wasn’t ready to die, and I didn’t feel like leaving him alone.”

“You guys are really good friends, huh?”

“It wasn’t that hard of a choice, really.”

“ happens, right?” I said sarcastically.

“You got that right.” He leaned against the counter, watching me wash the dishes. My hair was pulled back into a bun today, and he messed with it. “Do you and Junsu have something going on behind my back?” he asked lightly. When I dropped a plate rather loudly and blushed, he smirked. “That’s what I thought. How can you guys be seeing each other? He’s a ghost. You’re not.”

“We’re not seeing each other, Yoochun,” I whispered.

“Then what’s going on? You break up with him?”

“No. It’s…” I shook my head. “It’s a really long story.”

“I’m not getting any older,” he joked. His arms folded across his chest, waiting.

My sigh was full of exasperation. “What do you want me to say? We like each other, but a fat lot of good that will do when I can’t even touch him. He has to concentrate very hard to touch my face, and the one time we did all that, you came and ruined the moment. Now he’s gotten distant, and…” My blush made a comeback. “Ever since he saw me and Jae…together, he won’t speak to me. If he does, it’s asking me to please move so I won’t feel that cold sensation when he passes through me. I don’t like not talking to him. Cass is almost a nuisance in his eyes, and I think he’s pulling your tricks on my cat.”

“He’s hitting on your cat?” he exclaimed incredulously.

“You never hit on me,” I said, my eyes closed in exasperation.

“I was a bit of a ert to you. It’s my way of being flirtatious.”

“Uh-huh. Right.” Cass rubbed against my legs, and I momentarily reached down to scratch her head. She purred happily and wandered over to the couch. “Things are just really bad between us right now, and I don’t feel like opening a big can of badness with him. I hate fighting with people, I really do. If it’s Junsu, forget it.”

“Just tell him how you feel.”

I wish it was that simple. “That’s not…it would be impossible for us to be together,” I stuttered.

Yoochun was examining his nails with great interest. “That’s not what Jae told me.”

I started, dropping another plate in the sink. “You…you spoke with Jaejoong?!”

“Not exactly,” he corrected, rolling his eyes. “The idiot was kind of looking around the room and speaking to me at random. He was saying some pretty weird , and I couldn’t talk to him because I just…can’t…talk to him. Anyway, he was spouting crap, and the one I picked up on was you guys pretending to still be together for Yunho’s sake and to make Junsu jealous. Well, you have accomplished both ends successfully. That is why Junsu isn’t speaking to you. He’s jealous.”

“Junsu is too adorable to be that jealous!” It’s true! He was this cute, innocent guy! How can I drive him to be cold and distant?! He was…cute, there’s just no other word for it! “He’s so…youthful. I can’t see him getting green-eyed to that point.”

“Yeah, he’s adorable. But he’s jealous, alright. He’s completely inexperienced when it comes to women, but he is a man. He’s jealous, E. He sees you and Jae ‘together’ and wishes he was in Jae’s place.” He glanced up towards the ceiling. “Tonight will be the major turnaround in everything. It all falls down to your acting skills. Just how far are you willing to go to make him envious?” He covered his mouth. “I wish I could speak with these people. Human drama sounds like so much fun.” He did look pretty wistful.

As he stared at me, an idea formed slowly in my mind. “Yoochun…where did I put that board?”

“Um, I think it’s still in that closet. Why?”

“Think about it. I only saw and talked to you guys after I used the Ouija board. Maybe…maybe if we humans use it tonight, they can finally interact with you! Yeah, my plan is getting less murky! Okay, obviously Junsu’s not going to talk with us, so can you do the board thing, please? I think Jae really wants to speak with you, Yunho’s going to get a kick out of you, and Changmin has this interest in weird things as it is, so no problems all around!” I stopped and gave him a cold look. “If you do anything stupid…”

“I won’t,” he promised solemnly. “Scout’s honor.”

“It better damn well stay like that.”

The dinner that night was an unforgettable one, much like a Thanksgiving feast. The amount of food we made was outrageous. Then again, Changmin ate enough for five people, and oftentimes I was very close to calling him a hippo. Yunho usually ate like a normal person, and Jae would be acting too much like my boyfriend to think about eating. I was more like Changmin. I had no idea how I stayed that skinny; I would eat mountains of food and barely hit 110. Amazing? Not really. I call it high metabolism.

“You are the most awesome chef I have ever met!” I exclaimed as I set the table.

“Aw, shucks.” Yoochun scratched his head in mock bashfulness. “It’s nothing, E.”

“It means a lot to me.” I smiled up at him. “Thank you.”

Junsu appeared next to the couch, once again staring off into outer space. “Your brother’s here,” he announced dully. “He’s talking to your boyfriend and Changmin in the elevator.” Oh, so he acknowledges him as my boyfriend, huh? I could have sworn he had a name…I disregarded it, and ran to open the door.

Time had changed Yunho a lot. Of course, he looked taller, tanner and manlier than ever before. That was probably due to his nonexistent snaggle teeth and chubby, chipmunk cheeks (go alliteration!) that were no more. He grinned down at me, and I threw my arms around his neck. “Yunnie!” I cried. “It’s so good to see you! Oh, I’ve missed you, big brother!”

He laughed. “I’ve missed you, too.” He ruffled my hair and gestured to my apartment. “Judging by the outside of this place, it’s really crappy. But when you come in, it looks like a four-star hotel! I think you being here had a positive influence on the landowner. And you didn’t tell me about having a widescreen!” he said, his eyes popping.

My paycheck wasn’t that big, but because I had my parents convinced they were paying rent, I had a lot of money in my wallet. I had been able to buy a lot of new things: a huge flatscreen, a new Dell Inspiron notebook, and a bunch of other gadgets. Thankfully, Jaejoong raised his voice to make sure I didn’t ramble about my money. “I give her an allowance every week. My dad thinks it’s the coolest thing in the world, my girlfriend living on her own.” He faltered slightly on that word. Junsu turned to stare down at the floor. For once I was glad no one but me and Yoochun could see him.

Yunho beamed at us. “I knew it was coming sooner or later. You guys were meant for each other.”

Wow, lying to him felt horrible.

“We introduced ourselves in the elevator,” Changmin piped up, the youngest towering over all. “Erin…your brother is the coolest motherer in the world! He actually plays Maple Story and looks cool while doing it! I mean, I bet he looks cool! And he listens to all of my favorite bands and then some! Have you heard him rap? Oh, my God.” If I wasn’t mistaken, Minnie was close to having a man crush on my brother.

“Rap for us, man!” Jaejoong yelled, thumping him on the back.

Yunho waved his hands in front of him. “No, I couldn’t.”

“Do it!” I said encouragingly.

He gave me a look of disdain before starting. “Gwanshiminnun chok nal wihanchok iranun gose nan gudaemanui kokdugakshi no ranun sorie modun sumul jugil pillyoga omnunde.” He smirked triumphantly as we started clapping. Yoochun looked impressed, and Junsu just blinked. A small smile threatened to form on his lips, but it disappeared. “It’s nothing, really. Just a matter of being able to control my breaths, talking fast, and forming words.”

“You are still modest as hell,” I giggled.

“You are, too,” he shot back. “Jaejoong told me all about something you painted--”

“FOOD!” Changmin saved me at the last minute and rushed to grab a plate. The conversation halted for the time being as we gathered around the table, stuffing our faces. We talked a bit, but all of us were concentrating very hard on the food in front of us. Yoochun stayed away from the kitchen, trying not to tempt himself. He watched us in interest, laughing every once in a while at some weird eating habit.

“Did you know that Junsu used to open his mouth whenever he took a straw out?” he commented.

I snorted into my barbequed chicken leg. Everyone at the table glanced at me.

“Inside joke,” I explained quickly. Junsu’s fists were curled up. When everyone went back to their food, I said under my breath, “And he probably looked very cute while doing it, too.”

That unfroze the young man. His hands went back to normal, but he didn’t look at me.

“I think we should play a game,” I declared once Changmin had decided four servings of everything were enough. “I spoke to my grandmother the other day, and she gave me directions on how to use…” I paused for a dramatic effect. “A Ouija board.” Jaejoong took on a knowing look, Changmin got excited, and Yunho didn’t look surprised. After all, we had been there when our grandma held a session. “I’ve tried it by myself, but the effects were…strange. I want to see our results with four people in the room. Come on.”

One by one, they filed into my bedroom. I noticed Yoochun had disappeared. He was going through with it! YAY! Junsu hung around us, watching us with a blend of curiosity and wariness. I set the board up while Yunho lit the candles. Changmin turned off the lights, leaving the room in total darkness save for the orange glow of the flickering light. I instructed them to place two fingers lightly on the plainchette. I moved it around, “warming” the board up. “Are there any spirits with us tonight?”

We waited anxiously, staring at the small triangle. Slowly, it moved to the YES.

I heard Junsu sigh. Killjoy.

“Are you a…friendly spirit?”

YES.

“What is your name?”

REALLY? Coming from the source, a sarcastic response was expected.

“Yes,” I almost grumbled.

PARK YOOCHUN.

Another sigh issued from Junsu.

“Um, how long have you been dead?”

AT LEAST ASK DIFFERENT QUESTIONS FROM LAST TIME.

All eyes went to me. Jaejoong raised his eyebrow.

“Fine.” The acting was gone; if he wanted sarcasm, he was going to get it. “If you’re going to be an about it, then screw you. I am not introducing my friends to someone who isn’t going to take this seriously. Bye, Yoochun.” I attempted to move the plainchette to GOODBYE, but it refused to budge an inch. “Yoochun, let go.”

OH ERIN. Stop. DONT BE LIKE THAT.

“Then stop ing around!”

“Erin…?” Yunho asked uneaily. Changmin gaped at me. Jaejoong hid his smile.

ALRIGHT GUYS I AM THE GHOST THAT SOMEWHAT HAUNTS THIS APARTMENT. Stop. AT LEAST I AM ONE OF THEM. Stop. THE OTHER ONES BEING A REAL JERK RIGHT NOW BECAUSE HES PISSED AT OUR FAVORITE GIRL. Stop. ISNT THAT RIGHT SU?

The observing ghost was gone. SHE DID MAKE ME MAD.

“Junsu?” I whispered, disbelievingly.

“Erin!” Yunho puffed in shock. “You’re only supposed to have one ghost tied to the board!”

“I didn’t know he’d do this. Why are you doing this, Su?”

I WANTED TO APOLOGIZE FOR BEING MEAN TO YOU. Stop. I WAS JEALOUS.

“Told you so,” Jaejoong muttered.

Changmin turned to gawk at him. “You told her he was jealous?” he asked impressively. “Are you a psychic or something?”

“More like observant.” He looked back at me. “Keep talking to them.”

“Right.” I went back to the board. “Are you still mad at me?”

It moved to the NO.

“Good. I hate it when people are angry with me.”

SORRY ERIN. Stop. BUT WHEN I WALKED IN I WASNT THINKING STRAIGHT AND I DIDNT EVEN GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO EXPLAIN YOURSELF BUT I WAS SO ANGRY. Stop. AND IT KIND OF MADE ME REMEMBER REALLY BAD TIMES IN MY LIFE.

What? “Why don’t ya’ll come out?” I asked in a low voice. “Let them see you, and let me see you so we can speak.”

“Okay.” Yoochun was directly behind Changmin, who yelped and scrambled over to my side in a hurry. Jaejoong stared up at him with his huge eyes. Yunho scooted closer to me, trembling. “I’m Yoochun, the one that was talking earlier.” He gestured behind him. “This shy beast is Junsu, the one you were just talking to. Take it easy on him, E. He’s very embarrassed right now.”

Junsu glanced at me from under his lashes before looking back at the floor.

Yunho and Jaejoong exchanged looks. “Have you known about this for a while?” he asked Jaejoong suspiciously.

He shrugged sheepishly. “Not exactly,” he answered honestly. “E told me she had some unusual roommates that were never here, but then she told me the truth, and I still couldn’t see them. Plainly, we can see them now.” He looked at Yoochun. “How did you get your hair to be like that? I’ve been trying to grow it out, but it’s not working…”

“Oh, see, back when I was alive, I would use Dove…”

“Really? I may have to try that out…”

Changmin stared at Junsu, who deftly ignored us as best as he could. He was acting much like the way he’d acted in front of me when I’d first seen him. “Junsu, right? You seem to be around my age, more or less. I just turned eighteen in February, and you look about nineteen or so. I have no actual idea.” He looked at me slyly. “We’re the only teens in the house.”

“Um…” I stared blankly at him. “I guess so?”

“Yep. I may seem like a kid, but I am only a year younger than you.”

“I…yeah, that sounds about right. You do work with me at the bookstore.”

“A year’s not that much.” He looked back at Junsu. “Am I right?”

Junsu shook his head. “I’m twenty-one. Yoochun’s twenty-two.” He bit on his lip. “Erin, can we talk…?”

“Of course,” I said quickly. “Can everyone go out to the living room? Junsu and I need to speak alone.”