"I'm so tired. We've been going around in circles all morning," I complained to Philip, watching him sit there and drink his third cup of coffee. He liked his morning cup of coffee or going on coffee dates, but he kept on doing just that for the past four hours. We'd probably visited around five cafes, and three of which he had decided to order from.

I tried to think from the sentimental side, but Philip had been so random because these were not the usual places we had our coffee dates before. He was probably stress eating again, and I felt bad that I couldn't ease up his burden.

And one important thing was that Keeper was right. I hated to admit it, but I should have really eaten a heavy meal earlier today. It was almost lunch, and all I could think of was finishing that chunk of lasagna that Philip had left on his plate.

We were not that kind of couple before–the sharing type. I only tried eating his leftovers because no one could actually see me, not unless another soul was around. And besides, having died and all this, I could lighten up a bit and try doing the extremes. Because if not now, when else could I have my share of being shameless?

But I was really hungry. The Residential Hall was at least an hour away from here.

Philip checked his phone and replied to a message. With a heavy sigh, he stood up and walked to his car. In a hurry, I got inside the car right when he opened the door. It was funny how I had to squeeze my way in and tumble inside to the passenger seat in order to get around the area without having to walk.

As ghosts, we took up space. We could not pass across walls or anything, much to our inconvenience. Like the way we could actually go through a person, much to our disadvantage, again. Like if I tried to touch Philip or run my hand across his blonde hair to lessen the messy state of it, my hand would just go across as if I was only reaching for air.

In a minute, he got a call on his phone. "Yeah?"

There was a pause.

"I'll be there. No, I'm not that far. I'm on my way."

Another long pause. I wondered what he was hearing on the other line, because he was teary-eyed again.

In a moment, I heard him say, "Look, Jen, there's nothing much we could do at this point. It's driving me insane, too. But... just... there's nothing, Jen."

Oh, I realized he was talking to Jen, my best friend from college. She was actually Philip's childhood friend, which was the reason why we got introduced in the first place. Jen was our matchmaker, which made her the pretty special friend for both us. She was supposed to be my maid of honor if only things didn't turn up like this.

"What time? Yeah, I'll go to her wake tonight. Maybe around eight in the evening. I have some other things to do first. The venue is her parents' house. I'll see you there."

My mom and dad lived four cities away. I mean, they had a nice house and it was spacious enough to hold my wake there. Knowing my mom, she would likely hold it there than have it in a funeral home around here, which could have made it much more convenient for me. But it wasn't as if they would know that I actually became a ghost for several days before moving on.

Should I whisper in his ears that he should just go to my parents' house right away? Would that be too weird for Philip? Because if I would go around and follow Philip until eight in the evening, then I had no way of getting back before the portal closed.

It was tempting for me to go against the rules, but the risk didn't seem to be worth it. I might lose all my chances on these twenty-seven days on Earth, and who knew what would happen to my soul? They already gave me a warning.

It had been a quiet ride. No music. No more sudden stops to browse on his phone. Nothing. Just this uncomfortable silence.

With a sigh, I told Philip, "I'm sorry to suddenly leave in the middle of our wedding preparation."

He couldn't hear me, of course. But just the same, there was sadness in his eyes that was easy to see. It was as if he was actually listening to my words.

I could only imagine what it would feel like to be the one who was left behind in this way. It was terrifying, for sure. In my case, my strongest emotion was frustration for not being able to be alive again. But for Philip, it must be this incomprehensible sadness of being the one who had to carry the thought that his fiancee had died in a vehicular accident and she would never come back. Just the very thought that everything–our entire lives planned out–was suddenly gone. It was suddenly taken away without even a warning.

Before I realized it, I was already sobbing. This was why I had to get my life back, however that might happen. Because he was such a good man, and I didn't want him to be unhappy. I couldn't leave him like this. We had plans, and it was so unfair that he had to make another one in this state.

It wasn't my choice to leave him. I didn't want to, so why did I have to go?

When Philip stopped by for gas, I got out of the car as well. I wanted to stay by his side, but this place was already near the Residential Hall. I had no idea where he was about to go before visiting my wake, but it seemed like he would be there until late in the evening. I saw his text to Jen that he would probably go to the wake at around eleven in the evening instead.

If only Keeper would give us a free ride during our stay here on Earth, that would have been amazing. Should I just bargain for this?

A thought came into mind. I could actually make this an official request. But did I really need this kind of convenience, when there were tons of other things that I could use my wishes for. Would the benefit outweigh the risk?

I let out a sigh.

I'd just think this through. There was no need to rush it all in one go, and my mind was not in a good state to make decisions regarding my official wishes. It had only been a day. For once, I should probably let myself ease up a bit.

░ ▒ ░ ▒ ░

I got back to the Residential Hall a little after four in the afternoon. Of course, the first thing I did was to satisfy my hunger. I hadn't had any food all day. When they passed by the kitchen, the other residents only looked at me with those eyes of understanding, as if they had also been in my state before.

Finishing my meal with a glass of water, I tidied up the dishes and went around the Residential Hall. I was thinking of going out again, because it was still a bit early. But the only place I could really think of was my wake. All the people I wanted to see for the last time would all be there. I had to make solid plans for tomorrow.

When I went outside the veranda, I noticed that there was a pool and Keeper was there. He was reading a book and seemingly enjoying the afternoon sun. After spending so many years in this world, I envied that feeling that he could just be this relaxed.

"Hi," I greeted him, welcoming myself to the empty chair beside him.

He looked at me from above his eyeglasses. "You're back early."

"I reached a dead end, unfortunately. If I would keep on wandering around and go to my wake, I might not make it to nine o'clock."

"Well, that's good to hear. At least I don't have to be worried about you going past the curfew."

"Is it really dangerous? Because there's a lot of things to do if only I could stay up late. I'm used to staying up late when I was still alive," I told him.

"I'm not surprised."

I raised an eyebrow. "And that means what?"

"You're pretty easy to read, you know? That part of you maximizing the hours of every day is hardly a surprise."

"Ha ha. Very funny."

"And look, I could hardly care whether you stay up late or not, just do it here in the Residential Hall. Like, you know, make a detailed plan all night or something. Just don't make me bargain for your soul. Even in the afterlife, there are certain rules that keep the order in between worlds," he told me.

"How about I go to another world? This 'stop' is not entirely that fascinating. I can't do much other than just go around. It's like being alive but not seen and able to touch people."

"Well, this 'stop' is here so you can make amends before you finally move on. Not everyone's given the chance, so you might as well make good use of it."

"Well, I'm trying," I said, shrugging. Going off topic to lighten up the mood, I asked him, "What are you reading there?"

He showed me the book cover. It was a fiction novel.

"What's the genre?"

"Crime. Mystery. However you name it," he replied.

"Interesting. That's probably why you were called for this job. You like things like this," I said.

He only stared at me. I wish it would be like some stare of disinterest or like he just didn't like my joke, but there was a deeper pierce that left me feeling bad for having said that.

I instantly said, "Sorry."

He blinked, letting out a sigh. "In time, you will probably know why I ended up here. Being a busybody yourself, I could only hope that you would never find out, but I guess it's inevitable."

"Is it such a bad thing?" I asked him.

"Oh, yes, it is, A1C72." He got up from his chair, putting on his shirt.

"Why do you say that?"

He smirked. "I'm not a good soul like you."