The
light was disappearing and a cold blanket began to envelope the couple. He held her hand, gave it a squeeze and was
gone. That, as Jo knew all too well, is
the problem with courting a ghost. At the
first sign of dark, the cold of death would reclaim him.
She
left the house, her heart taking flight, as it tends to when lovers part; and
her mind flooded with mutinous thoughts.
Jo
had been seeing William for about six months.
An unfortunate obsession with Jane Austen had left her intolerant of
modern men. They were either arrogant
rather than dashing or shy rather than brooding.
She
saw them in pubs and bars sitting idle, expanding their bellies with beer. Then, later, in clubs, they would not ask you
to dance. At least not in a civilised
manner.
As
weeks, months and years drifted by, Jo became so disenchanted with the cretins
on offer that she decided to tap other sources.
Her
first encounter with a ghost had been as a Guide at summer camp. Too much Coke at an illegal midnight feast
had caused her to wake up at about dawn in dire need of a pee.
On
the way back to the tent, Jo was approached by a Guide in a retro uniform. The apparition was soaked to the skin.
"I've
become separated from my team," she said by way of an explanation,
"Do you know where the oaks trees are?
We haven't got the acorn yet."
Jo,
confused and wanting rid, said they were up by the entrance of the site. She received a daisy for her troubles
("As a fair trade. We picked lots,
you see. I do love daisies.") and
the ghost-girl, poor Susie Watkins, who had drowned while on a ramble, walked
away.
In
her late-twenties Jo's hope for future happiness was ebbing away, and she
decided it was time to exploit the ghost market. The experience with Susie had shown her that
ghosts could interact with, and touch, humans and so she could see no reason
why she should not look for a ghost boyfriend.
Jo's
search began and ended at the old house in her local park one Friday
night. She reckoned the place looked old
enough to be Georgian. Maybe a
long-since expired gentleman was still waiting up there for love.
With
that in mind she sat out the night on the doorstep wrapped in her old Guides
blanket, waiting for the period after dawn before the dog walkers
appeared.
There
Jo sat until about two, when, wishing upon a star she drifted into sleep.
She
was woken after dawn by a hand gently shaking her shoulder and a male voice
asking, "Are you alright? Do you
need any help?"
Jo
jumped and looked around, her face pale with shock for a moment before
smiling. She was looking into a kindly,
concerned face with deep brown eyes, lined with well-kept hair and, to her
surprise and delight, the man was dressed just like Darcy, Knightley and the
rest.
Feeling
suddenly assertive she answered, "I think I will be just fine,
thank-you. My name is Jo and I am very
pleased to meet you."
"Oh!" William was slightly shocked by this. He was used to people being scared of him or
thinking he was a nut. "Mine is
William. What brings you to be here so
early, if you don't mind me asking?"
"You,
actually. I have been looking for a man
to court."
Smiling,
William said, "I'm not sure I can help you there. You do know that I am dead?"
"Yes,
but you can touch and feel still."
Jo heard a dog barking in the distance.
"Can we go inside for a chat?
I don't want to disturb the dog walkers."
"That
would be lovely. It is not very often I
have someone to speak with. Other ghosts
tend not to come through here and the rest of my family were contented to
cross-over but I never was a restful soul."
William
produced a key and inside they went. Jo
was expecting an empty, desolate and run-down interior. She was right about the emptiness but the
house was dressed in the decoration of William's time.
He
took her to a reception room and they spent the whole day together becoming
more acquainted, talking endlessly about their lives. That night, as sunset approached, she agreed
to come back the next day.
Very
soon, Jo was spending her days off with William inside the house that looked
desolate on the outside but was actually a cocoon of blossoming love. And once they shared their first kiss, they
were officially courting.
Daylight
hours were spent in a variety of indoor pursuits from both their eras. William even spent a week arranging a ghostly
ball after which they gave in and took part in the indoor pursuit that survives
all ages.
Every
night they would face the same problem, the night coming in to take William
away. By now it was winter and Jo had
too much time to herself to mull over the relationship. She didn't feel she could tell anyone about
it and they couldn't ever marry or have a family. Hell, they couldn't even spend 24 hours
together.
As
she walked home that evening Jo wondered if she should leave him. Sure they had a great time together and the
sex was amazing. But it was all so fake.
Their
world, their beautiful nutshell, was nothing but that- a bubble cutting them
off from reality. They spent days
together among furniture that was just an apparition, made love in a bed that
would disappear at nightfall. However
wonderful that world was, and no matter how long Jo had dreamed of such a man,
it was not what she wanted. They had no
future.
And
so she walked on in tears, wondering if, and how, she could leave him.
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