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Pete wasn’t exactly thrilled about having to pick a roommate, but he wasn’t opposed to the idea either. Maybe it would be fun, like a sleepover that just happened to last forever.
Or maybe not.
But he definitely wasn’t counting on everyone jumping to pick him when Sam asked who was wanted to live with Pete.
“Okay, am I missing something?” she asked. “Why does everyone want to live with Pete? No offense.”
“None taken,” he said, almost automatically. Honestly, he was a little confused himself.
“Okay, look,” Alberta said. “We know you’re keeping the extra bedding in Pete’s room and we all want in.”
Right. That made sense. The other ghosts really liked the new pillows and blankets Sam had ordered for all the guest rooms. But she declared them strictly off limits after catching Hetty having Trevor knock them onto the floor to make some kind of comfy fort. Now they were stored in Pete’s room since Sam knew he would never break the rules.
Sam frowned. “You do know that you can’t use the pillows even if you are living in Pete’s room, right?”
Calculating looks went around the room. Then apparently everyone assumed they would cross that bridge when they got to it, because they started arguing over who got to live with Pete again.
He had to admit it was kind of nice. Pete was the kind of guy who always got picked last. Even by his own wife.
“Okay, enough!” Sam said when the noise got to be too much. “Pete, why don’t you pick why you want?”
Well, now he was on the spot. That was a tough decision. He said as much in a slightly nervous voice and she gave him an impatient look.
“Okay,” he said slowly. “I pick Trevor, I guess?” That was a safe choice. After all, that was who he had planned to pick before all this.
Trevor pumped his fist in the air. “Hell yeah! T-Money!” Then he did the gesture that went along with the words.
The pressure lifted off Pete’s shoulders as Sam turned to the rest of the ghosts. At least his situation got sorted relatively easily. But knowing the others, this was going to take a while.
Eventually, everyone was paired up and left for their separate rooms to work out logistics.
Pete kind of wished he was moving into Trevor’s room and not the other way around. He discovered his own room was kind of cramped for two people back when he shared with Nancy that one week.
“This is amazing,” Trevor said when he caught sight of the pile of pillows on the chair.
“You can’t even use the chair,” Pete pointed out.
“You totally can. Just balance on the pillows.”
Pete really didn’t get this whole new bedding thing. “But the chair’s already there.”
Trevor sighed impatiently. “But it isn’t soft or comfortable. Look, it matters more when you don’t have pants on, okay?”
Well, Pete couldn’t argue that. “I’ll take your word for it.” Maybe it was good that at least someone in this room could appreciate the value of the pillows.
“Thanks for picking me by the way,” Trevor said.
“Yeah, of course. I mean, I would have done it anyway.”
Something like guilt flickered over Trevor’s face for a moment. Then he looked down. “Thanks, man.”
Pete felt the strange pull to say something but he didn’t know what. And then Sam entered the room, asking about their sleeping arrangements, and the moment was gone.
When everyone returned to their rooms for the night, Pete lay down on the floor and got ready to sleep. He and Trevor had decided on it being that way, and Pete didn’t really mind. Even if it was uncomfortable.
But a few minutes later, he heard Trevor’s voice in the dark. “Okay, well, I feel bad watching this. Just get up here.”
Pete sat up. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, man. We’re adults. It’s fine.“ Trevor watched him process the information. “Just do it before I change my mind.”
Pete decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth and climbed onto the bed. It took a few minutes to find a comfortable position, but once he did, it was fine.
He and Trevor were pressed close together though, enough that their arms were touching no matter how much Pete shifted away. And once again, out of nowhere, he felt the urge to say something.
But not just any something. The more he lay there thinking about it, the more he realized that he didn’t just want Trevor here because they were good friends.
Pete felt like an idiot for realizing it now, staring up at the ceiling while he and Trevor were sharing the same bed. But he couldn’t forget it. He couldn’t go back.
Because that was it. That was why he liked Trevor so much, why he was Pete’s go to choice for a roommate even though they were about as different as two people could be.
Pete felt like a complete idiot. He had just gotten over the crush on Alberta and that had been an awkward mess of a situation. And this could only be worse because there was even less of a chance that Trevor liked him back. There had to be.
It took Pete a long time, but eventually he fell into an uneasy sleep. And when he woke up in the morning, before sunrise as usual, Trevor’s hand was clasped around his wrist.
He didn’t know what that meant.
The next day, after hearing about their new sleep arrangement, Sam begrudgingly set up one of the new pillows for Trevor. He was smug about it for the rest of the day, which pissed off Sass, who hadn’t slept because Thor apparently needed to work through some trauma.
Yeah, it was a weird situation. Pete didn’t exactly understand all of it but he figured it would be fine.
He was wrong.
The shouting started later in the night. Pete was awake, but he still jolted upright when Trevor grabbed his arm suddenly, sitting up beside him.
“What the hell was that?” Trevor said in a low voice.
And it just kept going. The sound was incredibly clear through the walls so Pete could hear every gory detail of exactly what Thor was dreaming about. And it was not pretty.
“This is not the new normal,” Trevor said beside him. He was lying down again, arms folded.
Pete made a face. “We should probably go say something.”
Trevor sighed. “Yeah, I guess.” But he stayed lying down. “This pillow is so comfortable. You have no idea.”
Now Pete was starting to get curious. The others still hadn’t stopped talking about how lucky Trevor was for getting to use a new pillow. There was no way it could be that good.
“Can I try your pillow?” Pete asked, trying not to make it weird. It definitely was, judging by the face Trevor made.
But then he agreed and moved over, turning on his side to make room. Pete moved closer. And then he was facing Trevor, right up beside him.
And the tension was back. Except this time, he could tell Trevor felt it too. It was clear in the way he looked at Pete, with strangely warm surprise.
Then Thor yelled something about murder and the moment shattered.
Trevor sat up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. Then he paused for a moment, turned, and pointed at Pete. “Let’s table this.”
And there was really nothing Pete could do but get up and follow him.
Once the whole situation was sorted, Pete should have been ready for bed. But he was full of nervous energy as he and Trevor headed back to his room. Well, their room now.
Once they walked through the door, Trevor rounded on him. “So you like me.”
Pete almost made a face. To hear it laid out like that made him feel like he was on display, even if it was reciprocated. At least he hoped it was.
He decided to be brave about it. “Yeah.”
And then Trevor was kissing him. All Pete could do was move on instinct. He could hardly believe this was happening. It had to be a dream, and he would wake up any second.
But he didn’t. He was still standing there, looking at Trevor with entirely new eyes.
Trevor was watching him with the same expression on his face. “I didn’t know for sure,” he said. “I had to give it a shot.”
“Do you know?” Pete asked in a low voice. The words stuck in his throat from the emotion.
“Yeah,” Trevor said. “I do.” And then he kissed Pete again.
It felt like fireworks were exploding through Pete’s chest. And the strangest thing was that all of this had come from Sam buying new pillows.
But he wasn’t about to complain. Not when Trevor was looking at him like that, like he was seeing things clearly for the first time.
Without having to look, Pete knew the expression was mirrored on his own face. Then Trevor kissed him again and it didn’t matter. For the first time, it felt like almost nothing mattered. Except this. Now.