Ever stood - floated - in front of Taylor. The scythe hummed with a dormant energy in his right hand. Anyone looking in from the outside would have seen a woman with dark hair staring into open space, disbelieving. Yet as the force field that had been blocking her from leaving her place of work gradually dissipated, she did, in fact, believe.

  “You… you…” she wasn’t able to complete the sentence. She slowly raised a hand, reaching out in front of her. Ever floated closer to her. He reached a ghost hand, hesitating for a second, before his ghost fingers occupied the same space as her human ones. There was no visceral reaction, as expected. He shifted his digits ever so slightly - then shifted back to human form.

  Taylor gasped as Ever reappeared in front of her, his fingers woven into hers. He gently pushed his palm towards her until it touched hers. She didn’t pull away. Days and days he’d spent wondering if he’d ever feel her touch again and here he was, holding her hand. There was no time to waste: he leant forward and kissed her on the forehead. She was still staring at their intertwined hands when Ever pulled away from her.

  “Do it again,” she murmured. Ever started leaning in. This time, she leaned away. “What are you doing? Go into your reaper form again.”

  “Oh.” Did she not notice what he’d just done? To be honest, it had happened so fast that even Ever wasn’t sure if he’d actually done that. He took a step back, relaxed his shoulders and blinked out of existence in front of Taylor. “Holy crap.” She took a few steps forward, occupying the space that Ever had been standing in. “Are you still here?”

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  “Yes, I am.” Ever said, his words inaudible to Taylor. She had been standing in the same space that Ever was in, but not for long. He was now floating by the wall, watching her flail her arms maniacally.

  “Now come back.”

  Ever acquiesced, reappearing once more.

  “Holy crap,” she repeated. “So that day that I went to the cemetery, you were there creeping around me?”

  Ever winced. “I was. But you still didn’t answer my question. Why did you visit me that day?”

  Taylor looked away from him. “I checked your address a week earlier and it told me that you lived at the cemetery, but I thought it was a mistake. I had to see for myself.” She looked at him, letting him see the regret in her face. “Like I said, I was - I am - sorry."

  Ever heaved a great sigh. “I had been wondering what I did wrong, why you suddenly were so cold towards me.”

  Taylor wrestled internally with herself, eventually dropping her shoulders. “It was wrong for me to do that. I understand if you won’t accept my apology.”

  Ever nodded; it was neither a yes or a no. Grasping the door handle, the bell once again tinkled cheerfully as he opened it and stepped outside. “Can we go for a walk together?” He asked her, holding the door open.