Gift of Shadows

“Wanna go on a date with me?” I asked.

Micah froze in the bathroom's doorway, pants unbuttoned to reveal bikini undies in bright turquoise with chibi anime characters on them. He glanced down and then back up at me.

“Not that seeing you undressed isn’t the highlight of my day,” I teased. We started the day that way, snuggled together in the loft, me waking him slowly with kisses. Micah was not a morning person, but he never said no to kisses or my mouth on his cock.

“We just went to a wake.”

The wake was an interruption in our Sunday off. We’d had a lot of those lately, but Sally had been a student in our crafting classes. Usually we’d get home, strip as he was doing, and snuggle up on the futon or spend some time crafting, but we both took a few hours to say our goodbyes.

“Yes, I was there,” I said with a smile. “But a wake isn’t really a date.”

“Was Sally there?” Micah asked.

“Do I get more strip teasing for answering questions? Technically, it was Sally’s wake, so yes, she was there.”

“Alex,” Micah growled, which was so sexy. 

My small and pretty boyfriend with his half-Japanese, half-Irish features always brought me to my knees with desire. I could have spent forever examining the freckles across his nose, or the nuances of his expressions as his brain ran away with thoughts he never voiced. The sneak peek of the cute undies, which he made, and my memory of how they would hug his ass and outline his beautiful cock, made me hard. Him scowling and looking ready to demand answers made my heart race. If I hadn’t had a special request from Sally, I’d have dropped to my knees and let him tell me how the day was going to go.

“Was her ghost there?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” He re-buttoned his pants, tight black slacks that hugged his sweet little butt nearly as perfectly as my hands could, but I instantly missed the glimpse of the undies. He’d been making quite a few new pairs lately from exclusive fabrics he found online. It was often like a treasure hunt discovering what he hid beneath his very practical outerwear.

“You felt nothing?” I asked. Micah got sensations when supernatural things were nearby. Sometimes he saw stuff, not like I did, but I’d been working on improving my skills. He mostly ignored his, using it to guide us away from potential trouble.

“Funeral homes always feel awful.”

“Like ants on your skin awful?”

“Like everyone is watching me,” Micah corrected. He adjusted his shirt to shove it back into the waistband. “Our date has something to do with Sally?”

“Estate sale,” I said.

“On the same day as her wake?” He wandered into the bathroom, cursing in four languages as he went. I didn’t disagree with his assessment. She had passed a week ago, the entire process a little strange to both of us. I was used to big parties for funerals, almost like weddings, and for Micah, funerals had lots of variance. His travels across the world had given him tons of experience, but the rushed event we’d encountered today had been odd.

“It’s probably money related,” I said.

“Isn’t everything?” he sighed. “Why does Sally want us at her estate sale?”

“Supposed to give something to a grandchild?” I had a name and an item, but not enough clarification from Sally to know more. Ghosts were rarely straightforward with what they needed.

Micah exited the bathroom, his hair and clothes back in place, but no less grumpy. Hopefully, this request would be an easy one to fulfill. I’d learned with a lot of practice that if I could gift people whatever their request was, within my power, they seemed to move on faster. Some spirits had been around a long time and either couldn’t convey what they needed, or had lost all sense of self, unable to really communicate at all. Those I’d learned to avoid as they often pulsed with dark energy and had a habit of trying to take all of mine.

He grumbled something about cake and slow Sundays, sounding adorably put out, but he would go anyway simply because I asked him to.

“We can stop at the bakery and get cake on the way back,” I promised. There was a vegan place that opened up a few streets over from our shop with amazing desserts. Micah’s stomach hated anything with dairy in it, including butter, but they had a flourless chocolate cake made with a coconut cream that was divine.

I stepped in close to him, cupping his face to catch his lips in a kiss until he was smiling at me. “That’s better.”

He sighed. “I wanted to snuggle with you and the boys today.”

“We still can. After we get back.” Link and Jet, our orange and black cats sat nestled together on the futon, fast asleep in a ray of sunshine from the open front blinds. “Just gotta settle old Sally first.” I put my hand over my heart, remembering how she would pat my hand as I passed and told me I was a good boy, and to take care of Micah.

“Let’s go. And I won’t forget you promised me cake,” Micah grabbed my hand, and I pulled out my phone to order a ride share.