Akihito bowed stiffly, standing on the balcony of the apartment’s room. “I deeply apologize for destroying your door,” he said.

June waved her hand, on the ground. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. What happened up there? I heard some fighting and a bit of talking, but I was worried something had happened for the last few minutes.”

“I calmed the ghost down,” he said, straightening.

“So, does that mean you exorcized it?”

“No,” he said nervously. “That’s not really my thing.”

“Oh.” She frowned, tilting her head. “Aren’t you an exorcist?”

“I specifically stated when we spoke online that it wasn’t precisely my profession.”

“Wait, really?”

He massaged his eyes. “Yes, I was quite direct about it.” He sighed. “But it doesn’t really matter. You shouldn’t be bothered by the ghost anymore.”

June shrugged. “Well, why didn’t you just lead with that? In that case, you just get comfortable, and I’ll be up to handle a few things in that room.” She picked up the ladder and folded it up before taking it to the shed not far away.

Once she was away, Akihito looked back to the barricade blocking the door on the other side of the room. While a ghost could be revealed when they were put under significant enough stress, they could rather quickly lose their corporeality.

After he incapacitated her, he stuck with her for a few minutes to calm the ghost down and sat her on the bed shoved in the barricade.

She was fully invisible once more, but he at least knew where she was.

“I need to move the bed now, alright?” he said, “Just hang on.”

Akihito grabbed the bed’s footboard and used it to slide it across the room. Since his old home didn’t have traditional beds, he was surprised by how light it was, easily pushing it around despite the fact it was made for two.

He then moved around the rest of the furniture, getting them roughly into place.

Although Akihito had planned on speaking with the ghost once he’d finished cleaning, there was a knock on the door before he could proceed. He opened it for June, and she quickly strode in.

“So,” she began as she walked to a heat vent, then plugged it up with a towel she had been carrying by fitting it underneath its grate. She then held out a broom. “Thanks for doing whatever to that ghost. As I said in the posting, the room is half-off, but...well, you wrecked it.”

“Yeah...again, sorry about that,” he said, taking the broom and glancing at the glass scattered through the room, and the salt outside.

“It’s fine, I guess,” she said tiredly, shuffling through her pocket. After a moment, she pulled out a roll of cash, took off the rubber band holding it together, then started flipping through the bills. “Twenty, forty, sixty...”

Akihito looked at the money with a surprised expression, his eyes following as the bills flicked up. “Wait-” he began after a bit of time.

She slid a good chunk of the cash and shoved it into the younger boy’s chest. “One-twenty bucks.”

“I mean, I didn’t really do this for cash or anything, I’ll settle for a disc-”

She rolled her eyes. “Are you turning down free money?” she asked as if it were some heinous crime. “Just take the shit and be happy. I’m not going to take advantage of a kid.”

He grabbed the cash without thinking. “But I really don’t need-”

“Your hands seem to disagree,” June said, walking away. She waved as she exited the room. “Go buy yourself a bike or something. I’ll get someone to replace the door in a week or so, so just sit tight.”

“But-” Akihito began before having the door shut on him.

He stared at the door for a bit, then sighed.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“America is going to take some getting used to,” he said to himself, shaking his head.

“You think?” a girl’s voice said from the bed.

“I do?” Akihito said, a bit perplexed by the sarcastic phrase. He quickly pulled out the candle he’d used earlier and set it on the slightly out-of-position nightstand beside the bed. He sat down and lit it again. He then twirled his staff, and a flame spouted out and floated to his right.

The ghost was revealed as it moved into place.

She wore a black varsity jacket that was a bit too large to fit her, and a shirt with grey and pink stripes. She also had a thick, black cotton wristband with the outlines of three stars, one red, white, and blue, overlaid on each other. Instead of a more traditional set of pants, she had a flexible pair meant for more vigorous exercise. Her hair was a very bright blonde and she wore a headband that kept it out of her face.

Although he had seldom seen blonde hair in person, what stood out most to Akihito was that she looked quite drained. Her eyes drooped and didn’t meet his, as if she felt guilty, and her hands were in her lap, wrapped around each other.

In response to seeing that, Akihito didn’t even hesitate to outstretch his arms.

“W-what?” she asked nervously. She looked away bashfully. “I’m not gonna fall into your hands...again.”

“That’s ok,” he said, quickly moving to pull out a large, plastic canteen of water. He flipped the cap up and drank from it. After a moment, he set it down and offered it to the ghost. “Water?”

She raised an eyebrow and stared at him with a mystified expression as if impressed by his stupidity.

“No? Ok.” He set it back into his pack and pulled out a box of playing cards. “I’ve got torampu. Want to play some?”

The girl brushed her hair further back. “I think I’m fine.”

“Got it...” he said. “Um...want to just talk then?”

“About what? Are you asking how I died?”

He shook his head. “No, I’m trying to...[what’s the phrase]...oh, right, break the ice!” he said, raising a finger in triumph.

“Right...” the ghost said. “I get the feeling you’re not from America. What’s your name again?”

He nodded politely. “I’m Shen Akihito, but I’d like it if you called me Akihito. I came from Japan to live as an international student at Saint Juliva University.”

“Well, I’m Sophia. Nice to meet you, I guess, Akihito. And before you ask, I’d rather not associate with my family...y’know, hence the lack of the last name.”

He smiled brightly. “That’s fine. Nice to meet you, Sophia.” His expression turned a bit more speculative. “So...about that ‘how you died’ thing...”

Sophia chuckled at him. “Oh so now you’re gonna ask.”

“S-sorry. I do need to know at least a little about why you’re here...and why you punched and kicked me three times...” He coughed. “...or was it four?”

“Well...” she averted her eyes. “I didn’t really have a reason. I just wanted peace and quiet. A place to stay and...I don’t know, to try not to go insane.”

“Understandable...”

“And how I died?” she looked to the balcony. “Well...that was just an accident. My...” she closed her eyes and hugged herself. “I’m still at the bottom of that cliff. If you had just looked down, you would have seen me.”

Akihito followed Sophia’s gaze, then looked back at the girl, who was in a bit of a trance. “How long have you been here?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe a month.”

“That must have been hard,” he said sincerely.

“I did go out of the room a few times, but...I didn’t have anywhere to go. I didn’t know what else to do.”

Akihito placed a hand on her back comfortingly. “Don’t worry, you’re not alone.”

She raised an eyebrow, curious what he meant.

“Tons of other ghosts are just like that...” he stared into the night thoughtfully. “A lot more than I could ever help, I think.” Then, Akihito smiled at her. “But I’m here if you need anything, understand?”

The ghost blinked rapidly as if something had caught her eye. “Uhh...” she sniffed. “Y-yeah. Thanks a lot.”

“Well, I should get in some sleep. I’m exhausted!” He stretched his arms out, then crawled across the bed and tucked himself in. “Oyasuminasaiii...” he said sleepily as he held out a hand and pretended to tug on his flame like a lamp. The fire suddenly snapped out, leaving the room totally dark.

“W-wait! Where am I meant to sleep?!” Sophia asked.

“Wakaranai...” Akihito slowly responded, rolling about under the covers, getting comfortable. “Do you need to sleep?”

“Of course I do! How don’t you know that?”

“Every ghost is different. Some eat food or drink water, and others don’t sleep, you know?”

“Huh...but I still don’t know where to sleep!” the ghost whined.

Akihito scooted further to the side, then lifted up some of the sheets. “You should get in quick, the room’s getting colder by the minute.”

“Wha- I’m not sharing a bed with you...” she complained.

“Relax, I always slept with my big sister back at home.”

“That...what do you mean by always?”

“Just get in, sister,” he said through a yawn. “Either that or you can take the sleeping blanket and pillow from my pack and use the floor. More space for me.”

Sophia moved to shuffle through his pack and was surprised by just how tight and organized everything within was. Although she couldn’t see well, it was pleasant to the eye. She carefully removed as little as she could before taking and unrolling the blanket. It was a fairly thick blanket and definitely comfortable and soft. She really wouldn’t complain about sleeping on it for the night.

Instead, Sophia placed it all back, unrolled some of the bed’s sheets, and slid beneath the sheets.

“What was it you said?” she quietly asked after a moment of settling down. “Ooyaasemense?”

Akihito chuckled. “Oya-su-mi- good night.”

She cleared her throat, then sheepishly said, “Oyasumi...?”

“Oyasumi...”