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Ever since he was a little boy, Otabek could remember seeing spirits and ghosts. He’d been born on October 31, the day the spirit world and human world came closest, so he assumes it’s why his supernatural connection is stronger than most people’s. He can see spirits and ghosts best on the day of his birth, but Otabek managed to gain a few visible companions over the years of traveling and competing as a professional ice skater.
Yuri, a young Russian teenager with a bowl cut, was Otabek’s first supernatural companion. He walked into Otabek’s life accompanied by a color-point cat that followed Yuri everywhere. Otabek had never seen an animal ghost before the wispy cat, but Yuri just shrugged his thin shoulders when asked how his companion had come to be.
“She was with me in the fire.” He said simply. Her name is Potya, short for Puma Tiger Scorpion, and Otabek thinks that’s fitting name for such a fiercely loyal and trustworthy creature. In fact, it had been Potya that had taken a liking to Otabek and her surly owner had followed.
The next two are a pair of ghosts, a man named JJ and his wife, Isabella. Otabek picked them up in Canada, while training at a rink. JJ is quick to amend that they’re not really married, because JJ was murdered by Bella’s alcoholic father when he caught the pair getting handsy outside of marriage. Otabek found the whole situation rather tragic, her father had come home much earlier than usual, seen them lying down and kissing, and Bella had been stabbed while trying to pull her father off of JJ.
“We weren’t even doing anything bad, we promised each other we wouldn’t.” JJ cried as they recounted their story. Bella patted his back with tears in her eyes.
Otabek’s last permanent hanger-on and the newest to the spirit world of the group was Mila, a Russian-American teenager. She had dyed red hair and loved ice skating, telling Otabek that’s why she stuck around. She could live vicariously through him; she said, and laughed when Otabek choked at her word choice.
The group is diverse, JJ and Isabella appeared to be from the 1950s, Yuri from the turn of the 19th century, and Mila had passed in the 90s. Everyone gets along well enough, although JJ thinks Yuri is a brat, while Yuri thinks JJ is a jerk. The girls appear to take this dynamic in stride, Isabella acting like a surrogate mother and Mila and Otabek as a older siblings to Yuri. JJ just has to deal with it.
Altogether, having ghostly companions isn’t terrible. Otabek enjoys the company, he doesn’t have many (live) friends, but his schedule keeps him busy. If he wants company from his companions, all he needs to do is ask. However, he’s come to realize that he’ll continue to grow older, while his friends will be the same forever. Barring an accident, of course, but it made him think about the fleeting nature of time.
It’s been another year, another birthday. At the beginning of the year, Otabek moved back to his birthplace of Almaty, Kazakhstan, to settle in before the current skating season. Otabek hypnotizes he will be spending tonight in the company of a larger number of spirits tonight, if past years are anything to go by.
“Happy Birthday!” A shout jerks Otabek out of his otherworldly musings, as he opens his apartment door. A large group ghosts and spirits are crowded into his small apartment, all smiling and waving at him. JJ comes forward, and wraps him in a gesture of a hug, though he feels more corporeal tonight. Potya winds between Otabek’s legs, her tail swishing patterns of cold around his feet.
“You seemed really down in the past few weeks, we thought you might like some friendly company tonight.” Isabella says softly, leaning into kiss Otabek’s cheek.
The guests are certainty friendly. Otabek is happy that he is the only one (that he knows of) that can hear the festivities, because these beings know how to party. While touch is limited between worlds, sound isn’t, so most of the “gifts” for Otabek are auditory or visual. He’d almost protested when he heard his party guests had gifts for him, but Mila had quickly stated that many of the ghosts hadn’t seen a living person in years and were excited to celebrate his birthday with him, gifts included.
Yuri makes his way over to Otabek late in the evening. He’s hiding something behind his back and waits for Otabek’s attention. “Hey, what’s up, Yuri?” Yuri looks solemnly up at Otabek before showing what’s in his hands. A stuffed tiger, one from Otabek’s childhood, stares back at him. Yuri had always liked that one.
Yuri grips the plush tightly and squeezes his eyes shut, as Otabek watches the tiger’s button eyes turn a brilliant green. “You’ve shown me I can’t wait any longer.” Yuri mumbles quietly, as if ashamed. Abruptly, he thrusts the stuffed toy at Otabek and runs away into the throng of people. Otabek picks up the very real, physical item and examines the eyes.
“Kid’s got power. One of the spirit’s apprenticing him, he’ll be crossing over.” JJ speaks quietly from Otabek‘s side, motioning with his thumb at a tall silver-haired man. “He’s probably leaving before dawn. Stronger gateways and all. I didn’t know he’d planned this for tonight, I‘m sorry.”
Otabek stands quickly, scanning the crowd for a flash of blonde hair. He finally finds Yuri sitting by Potya’s favorite window, idly stroking the purring cat. “Thank you for the gift, Yuri.” Otabek isn’t sure what to say, as Yuri appears to be holding back tears. As Otabek squats down next to the boy, Yuri throws his arms around Otabek. He’s light, but Otabek can feel the weight, dragging on his sides and pulling him down towards his friend.
“Don’t forget me after I go, please?” Yuri is crying now, Otabek can feel the wet tears soak in to his shirt, and suddenly he’s crying too.
“I won’t, I promise, ok Yuri? I’ll look at that tiger every day, and think of you, ok? Otabek strokes Yuri’s back with his thumbs, hopefully in a soothing manner, but his head is reeling. Is this really goodbye?
Yuri pulls back, fixing his eyes firmly on Otabek. “I’ll see you again. I’ll get as strong as you, and come see you. I promise.”
Otabek smiles. “It’s a deal.”
Otabek pads into his bedroom, headed towards a dusty shelf of medals and trophies. Sitting in the middle, a single stuffed tiger sits, as though in a place of honor. Otabek takes the tiger down, the only item without a layer of dust covering it. He is placing the plush on small table with a shrine of candles and a cake big enough for one, when he feels a chilly draft of air caress his bare feet.
He looks around for an open window but finds none. Bewildered, he looks down. A familiar cat stares back at him, meowing in greeting. Otabek’s head whips towards the open door.
Yuri is standing in the doorway, not looking a day older, but his hair is now styled in a bob rather than a bowl cut. A schooled look of cool indifference is on his face, but that only lasts a second before Otabek is hugging him, exactly as he had that last night before Yuri left for the spirit world.
“You came back!” Otabek can’t believe his eyes.
Yuri returns the hug just a tightly. “We had a deal, remember?”