Morlen didn't notice that he was going in the wrong direction to his house until he found himself stopping in town. He looked out of the window and at the quirky little shop; Connor's shop. Morlen sighed to himself and got out of the car. He knocked loudly on the entrance, knowing it had already closed.

He could see through the closed blinds and Connor was sitting on the front desk like he was waiting for someone. As soon as Morlen knocked, Connor hopped down and made his way over to unlock the entrance, but he paused. "Is that Morlen?" he asked to be sure that he wasn't letting a stranger in.

"Yes," Morlen said. He kept forgetting that Connor was blind.

Connor finished unlocking the door, and Morlen stormed in as soon as he could fit through the gap. "Are you okay?" Conner asked.

Morlen didn't answer him. Instead, he looked around the shop, hating the world a little less. The more he remembered about what he used to see as a child, the more he felt what the shop had to offer him as a medium. The energy was something he had always longed to explore.

"Oh," Connor said and dug his hand into his pocket and pulled out a crystal. "A certain someone said you needed a Rose Quartz." He held it out for Morlen to take. Connor heard him shuffling closer.

"Alfie," Morlen said, looking at the ragged pink crystal sitting on Connor's palm. His lips curled at the sides at the thought of Alfie caring enough to bother Connor about an inconvenient crystal. "What do I do with it?" Morlen asked after picking it up and twiddling it around in his fingers.

"Keep it with you for a few weeks, maybe in your pocket or your bag. Fidget with it if you need to. You're drawn to it for a reason. You'll know when you don't need it anymore," Connor smiled. His palm tingled from where Morlen touched it with his fingers.

"Thanks," Morlen mumbled and shoved it into his pocket. He stared at Connor, but Connor could always tell when the attention was on him, and he stood up straighter.

"So, what are you doing here? Do you want to talk about-"

"Koda," Morlen interrupted, panicking. He didn't want to continuously talk about his sensitivity to the world of the paranormal.

"Oh?" Connor said and started moving towards the door behind the counter that led to his apartment upstairs.

Morlen followed and waited until they were seated on the couch to continue. "Koda, I think, is uh..." Morlen didn't know how to word it. "I think he's taking the next step in his relationship with Alfie."

Connor raised his eyebrows, thinking that he would be the last person who Morlen would find to discuss his son. Morlen's wife was no longer around, and Morlen obviously needed to speak to someone who he could trust. "How do you know?"

"How could I not know. They wouldn't stop looking at each other and grinning."

Connor smiled. Morlen liked to pretend that he didn't know much about his son, but that wasn't the case. "Have you spoken to him about it?"

"No. I don't know how I would even approach the topic."

"Do you want to talk to him about it?"

There was a long pause as Morlen thought about his answer. "I think so. Enya would've wanted to know." Morlen sat back against the couch. "Do you think it's too intrusive to ask?"

"Maybe just let it be known that you won't deny Koda the chance to talk about it. Let Koda know that he can approach you."

Morlen nodded. "Okay," he said before taking his gaze to the window and looking out across the town. The sea of lights was nice on the eyes. "Sorry about barging in like this."

"You're welcome here any time Morlen," Connor said and moved towards his kitchen area. "Do you want a beer? I was about to put on a podcast."

"Uh, sure." Morlen had nowhere else to be. The thought of sitting by himself in a home full of his dead wife's stuff wasn't exactly the night he wanted.

"Also, I have podcasts about mediumship if you are interested?" Connor went to his stereo and started fumbling around for the right lead, and Morlen almost smiled to himself. In the face of such heartache and sadness, there were always people willing to help. Morlen couldn't be more grateful, even though he had a hard time showing it. Connor knew that Morlen visiting without being asked was Morlen showing his gratitude.

* * * * *

"Am I staying over again tonight?" Koda asked when it reached eight in the evening. He and Alfie were lying together on the couch, watching a horror movie on the TV.

"If you want to," Alfie said with a smile. The horror film was boring him.

"I do want to," Koda said, absentmindedly running his fingers through Alfie's hair. He was getting used to having someone so close all the time. "Your parents won't mind will they, now that they know we've had sex?"

"No, it wouldn't make sense if they did. They're too late if they were ever worried about us doing that."

Koda grinned, and Alfie knew he was thinking about it. "True. If they were worried, they wouldn't have let us share a bed."

Alfie sat up on Koda's lap. He still felt a little tender. "I'm happy that we did it. I wouldn't have cared if my parents didn't want me to. I'm eighteen and can't get pregnant."

Koda laughed. It was a sound that made Alfie feel warm inside. "It's not just pregnancy they worry about."

"I know, I know." Alfie reluctantly climbed off his boyfriend's knee. He looked down at Koda and flashed him a toothy grin. His eyes could barely stop themselves from scaling his body. "I have a ghost to deal with. Is it okay if I come back in half an hour?"

"Of course," Koda beamed and watched him leave the room. He was getting used to his strange new way of thinking about life. Death to him no longer felt so terrifying, knowing that there were miracles like Alfie and Connor to help on the other side. Koda was also adjusting to Alfie's random outbursts of talking to people who weren't a part of their conversation. Often, Alfie would pause and look behind him like he was watching someone. Koda found it all rather fascinating and enjoyed asking about the ghosts, but to Alfie, it was just how he lived his life.

Alfie hurried to his office when he felt a stronger presence of a ghost. He knew who it was and how important it was to give them all of his attention. Alfie shut the door to his office, lit the candles around his room, turned off the lights, and sat on his beanbag. He crossed his legs and closed his eyes, allowing his body to relax and his mind to empty.

"I know you usually show yourself when you want to, but today I'm giving permission for the last time," Alfie said in a low and gentle tone. When the presence grew stronger, he opened his eyes and smiled at the man who was smiling back. "Hello, Dorinto. Is it time?"

* * * * *

Tom leaned over Molly, watching her paintbrush drag a cadmium yellow across the paper until it blended with emerald green. Molly messed around with her paints until she had to stop and tell Tom to move back because he was blocking her light.

"Why don't you relax for the rest of the night?" Tom asked, standing behind her and massaging her shoulders. "You've been painting all day."

"I haven't."

"I know what you're like Mol. You'll surface for food, and that's it. Have you checked in with Alfie today? Other than at dinner?"

"He's been with Koda. I'm quite glad I haven't checked in on him," she chuckled and turned to look at Tom's reaction. He was grinning too. "It's nice to see Alfie spending all of his time with a living person for a change. I'm so happy for them."

"Me too. Koda's a good kid. He's making Alfie remember that he's human, and it's about time he started living like a teenager," Tom said, and Molly stood up, so his hands fell by his sides. He wanted to grip her waist and pull them together and kiss her, but they were still taking baby steps.

"So... what did you do at work today?" Molly asked, shoving her hands under warm water. The paint always found a way onto her clothes, in her hair, on her skin. Though Molly didn't mind, but sometimes it took a while to wash out.

"I..." Tom narrowed his eyes, wondering if she really wanted to know or if she was still rubbing it in his face that he had lied. "I've been assigned to a new case. We'll get the rundown tomorrow. It involves some very dangerous dealers who have been making millions by selling illegal drugs. They're wanted in not just this country, but all over Europe."

Molly's jaw dropped open. "Are you serious?"

Tom nodded. "It's an undercover job. My new name is Lewis."

Molly rested a hand on her hip, examining Tom. Alfie had taken a lot of his features, and she missed him. "I want you to move back home," she said, not thinking she'd say it so soon, but she loved Tom, and they could work through their issues together by going back to how things were.

"Are you sure?" Tom asked. His heart had jolted with surprise.

Molly nodded. "Alfie needs his father, and I need you too."

Tom moved towards her, and bright lights in the studio gave away his tears. They glistened in the corners of his eyes, but he didn't let them fall. "I don't know if I deserve this, but I missed you so much."

Tom's big frame engulfed molly. Her head fell against his chest, and her legs weakened from the rush of emotions to her heart. "I missed you too," she whispered and felt him hug her tighter like he was trying to squeeze all of his warmth into her.

"Let's never break up again," Tom mumbled into her long dark hair.

"Okay," she said and looked up, resting her chin on his chest.

Tom brushed a hand through her hair, and it got stuck in a splodge of purple paint. He sighed with content and said, "I love you so much."

Molly reached up to cup his face and pulled it closer. "I love you too, Lewis."

Tom laughed and rested their foreheads together. "Shall we make some hot drinks and go embarrass our son and his boyfriend?"

"Absolutely." Molly and Tom Willow left the art studio and walked hand in hand through their home, happy and in love like they always had been, and always would be. Molly had wanted to kiss Tom as much as he wanted to kiss her. They had to make up for their lost time together, but they had the rest of their lives to show their affection.