“Do you own a fire extinguisher?” he asks, completely serious.
“I have two. One in the kitchen and one in my room, in between my nightstand and the bed. We went on a family vacation years ago and the cabin we stayed in had caught on fire like seventy-five years prior and killed a few people. I had the pleasure of being haunted by the ghosts of the residents who burned to death. Needless to say, it’s made me a little scared of my house catching on fire in the middle of the night.”
“It doesn’t hurt to be prepared,” Ethan says and nudges me with his elbow. “And text your friends back.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“Start with letting them know you’re not dead.”
“That is a good starting place.” I inhale and rest my head against Ethan’s shoulder. “I feel weird. I don’t really like being the center of attention, and things sound so pretentious.”
“Then don’t make it pretentious,” Ethan says like it’s simple to just say something without overthinking. I look back at the text conversation.
Harrison: Are you alive, Annie?
Laney: ???
Harrison: Seriously, sis, the fuck?
Laney: You’re starting to make me worry. Let us know you’re okay.
I’m making a bigger deal out of this than it actually is, but this is awkward. Hunter jumps up on the couch, crowding in next to me. I run my hand over his sleek fur and am instantly comforted.
“Good boy,” I tell him, and his tail thumps against the couch. I lean down, letting him lick my face.
Me: I’m dead. This is my ghost you’re talking to.
Laney: Not funny, Anora. If anyone’s ghost haunted a phone, it would be yours.
Harrison: Tell me something only Anora would know.
Me: My ghost would still know everything I know.
Harrison: Damn, you’re right. You’re okay?
Me: Yes. I’m home and Ethan is here. Do you guys want to come over so we can talk about anything?
Laney: Yes, please. I need to see your face to make sure you’re actually okay. And I want to meet this mysterious boyfriend of yours.
Harrison: Give me a few minutes to come up with an excuse to get my booty call to leave and I’ll be over.
Me: Gross.
He sends a GIF that says payback, and I know he’s referring to me mentioning Ethan being naked in my bed.
Laney: I’m at Josh’s, so I’m only fifteen minutes away. See you soon.
“They’re coming over,” I tell Ethan. “I should order food. What do you feel like?”
“Whatever you want is fine. I still don’t know what delivers here.”
“Chinese is always a good option. Lo mein is good comfort food,” I say and pull up a delivery service app. “I don’t normally order food this often, and I haven’t been running like usual. If I keep it up, I’m going to gain a hundred pounds.”
“Staying in good shape comes in handy when you’re running away from demons.”
“You are in very good shape,” I say, needing to look him over to prove my point.
“It’s quite literally part of my job. Along with finding a place for us to live, the Order makes sure we have access to a gym, not that I mind.” He shrugs. “Though we do eat takeout a lot when we’re on the road for work.”
“Yeah, but you’re one of those guys who gives up soda and loses ten pounds.”
“Soda?” he questions with a laugh. “No one calls it ‘soda’. It’s pop.”
“Pop? No.” I shake my head. “We’re not in the Midwest. Us New Yorkers call it soda.”
“That sounds so weird.”
“I like my soda, even though I don’t drink it very often. I had a Sprite addiction a few years ago that led to several cavities so I had to give it up. Wait, you lived in Chicago before coming here, but you also traveled all over. But saying pop instead of soda is a Midwest thing, isn’t it?”
“I was born in Chicago and it’ll always be home, in a sense. My dad was able to work local cases until I was about six or seven and then I started going on hunts with him.”
“And your mom?”
“Didn’t want anything to do with me. She actually wanted to terminate the pregnancy until my dad said he’d take the baby once she had it. So, she had me, signed her rights away, and left the hospital less than twenty-four hours after giving birth.”
“Fuck, I’m so sorry.”
“Why?” Ethan shrugs again. “Things worked out. I know how my dad can come across, but I think more than anything he just wanted a family. It’s not something most hunters are lucky to have.”
“It’s not a very family-oriented lifestyle,” I say and of course have to get way ahead of myself and wonder what would happen if Ethan and I had a kid. I wouldn’t want my children to grow up the same way Ethan did, and from what little I know about the Order, I wouldn’t want my children to touch that organization with a ten-foot pole.