There was something decidedly disconcerting about seeing Vincent outside the classroom. In the early afternoon light that made it through the thick blanket of clouds perpetually draped over the town, he looked even more translucent than he did in the night. His feet left no imprints in the snow that covered the sidewalks; the snow that tumbled from the sky fell straight through him.

Still, even though he looked out of place, his eyes were shining as he took in the storefronts and family houses. Quinn couldn't stop watching him, a smile tugging at their lips when they noticed the way he dutifully stepped aside whenever he was in danger of colliding with someone on the sidewalk.

Quinn debated whether the question was offensive for a few seconds before they quietly inquired, "What does it feel like when someone runs into you?"

"I don't feel anything," Vincent said, huddling closer to them as the sidewalk got narrower, "But I think it's not very pleasant for the other person."

"Can I...?"

Understanding what Quinn was indicating, he gamely held out an arm. Slowly, Quinn reached out to touch his sleeve, only for their hand to pass right through him, their fingers tingling with pins and needles.

Shivering, Quinn pulled their hand back and stuffed it into the pocket of their coat. "How much farther is it?"

"It's just behind the town square," Vincent said.

Quinn nodded. They were glad that there was barely anyone around to see them talking to the air; even though it was a Friday afternoon, the weather kept most people inside. The only place that seemed to be as bustling as always was the Sugar & Spice. As it came into view, Quinn could see a slow-moving line of people waiting in front of the door, cheeks flushed from the cold as they waited for a seat inside the café.

"I wish we would've had something like this back then," Vincent said as they neared it. "The cakes smell heavenly."

Before Quinn got the chance to think about how the hell it was possible to smell things when you were a ghost, the door of the Sugar & Spice flew open, and out stepped none other than Luis.

Immediately, Quinn's flight or fight instinct kicked in, but before they could decide on either, he had already caught up with them.

"Hey, you," he said, easily falling into step with them like this was just a thing they did, like they'd been going on walks around town together for months and months. "Pretty chilly today, huh?"

Quinn exchanged a quick glance with Vincent, who still trailed next to them, head tilted to the side as he curiously studied Luis. Like the day before, Luis was wearing high-waisted pants and black boots, this time with a dark turtleneck peeking out from underneath a brown coat. Over his shoulder, he was confidently carrying a tote bag that said Vampires, Please Interact.

"Uh, yeah," Quinn said. "What... what are you doing here?"

"I was just picking up a book." Luis pointed over his shoulder at the café. "Whoever curates their paranormal section deserves a raise and a kiss on the mouth."

Suppressing a smile at the idea of Rhia hearing that, Quinn asked, "What did you get?"

Luis stopped in his tracks to rummage around in his tote bag. Quinn felt like they had a pretty good grasp on who he was as a person at this point, but they still weren't prepared for the book he proudly presented to them. It was called From Mothman to the Grafton Monster: An Exploration Of The Hidden and The Mystical In West Virginia.

Quinn looked up from the cover with a frown. "We're not in West Virginia."

"An astute observation," Luis agreed.

"Are you... planning to go to West Virginia?"

"Not right now, no. But when I do you best believe I'll be prepared should I encounter a..." Luis flipped the book open to a random page. "Sheepsquatch? That sounds kind of adorable, actually."

Vincent looked as confused as only someone from the 1930s could look when faced with a coffin maker talking enthusiastically about obscure cryptids.

"What's your fascination with these things?" Quinn chuckled as Luis shoved the book back into his bag and began walking again.

"Paranormal stuff, you mean?"

Quinn nodded.

"I don't know. I've just always felt like there has to be... more. To all of this." Luis gestured vaguely at the quiet alley ahead of them. "Something exciting, y'know? Something that's not so... mundane." He turned to look at Quinn again. "Why? Are you one of those skeptics who only believe in things they can see and touch?"

Quinn and Vincent exchanged a quick glance before Quinn placidly said, "I'm sure there are more things between heaven and earth than meets the eye."

"I'll accept that," Luis laughed. "What brings you here, then? Searching for a dead great-grandfather again?"

Vincent's eyebrows flew up, his confused expression making room for an entertained one. Quinn fought the urge to roll their eyes at him and told Luis, "Yeah, actually. I'm looking for the place where he lived."

Luis whistled quietly through his teeth. "Damn. Must've been an important man for you to put so much effort into finding out what happened to him."

"I... yeah. Important to me, at least."

By now they had almost reached the end of the main street. To their right was the alleyway that led to Obscura, the shop that Quinn had worked at all throughout the last semester. Hidden under a spell that concealed it from most people without magickal abilities, it sold everything a witch could need, from ingredients for potions to ritual candles. Glancing down the street, Quinn felt a small pang of guilt. They had quit their job there abruptly and without an explanation back in December, leaving the owner, a kind older woman, scrambling for someone new to fill the position.

All Quinn wanted was to bring more space between them and this part of Oakriver, but before they could do so, Vincent suddenly said, "It's down there."

Of course it was. Squaring their shoulders, Quinn came to an abrupt halt and said, "It should be somewhere around here. It was nice seeing—"

Luis was already craning his neck to glance into the dark alley. "I'll come with you."

Quinn tried to think of an excuse that would make him leave before they realized that that wasn't actually what they wanted. Luis was good company; with him, this entire thing didn't seem all that serious anymore. When they glanced at Vincent for confirmation, he only shrugged.

"Okay," Quinn agreed.

Together, the three turned the corner. This alley was home to some of the older townhouses, dark windows watching them as the trio wound their way between them. It was much gloomier here than in the main road, and quieter, too. Quinn had to squint to make out the houses at the far end of it, and the crunching of their footsteps in the snow echoed loudly from the walls edging closer on both sides.

"I don't think I've ever been here before," Luis mused. "I didn't know there were shops down here."

"Shops?" Quinn quietly echoed before they followed his gaze.

Luis was looking directly at Obscura. The shop owner's words echoed in Quinn's ears again: Only witches or people with an affinity for the magickal can see through the fabric of the spell. They shouldn't have been surprised to find out that Luis belonged to the latter group.

Quinn was about to say something but was interrupted by a pained little noise from their right that made them stop in their tracks. Vincent was staring up at one of the houses, a hand coming up to cover his mouth.

Momentarily forgetting about Luis, Quinn fully turned to face him. "Is this it?" they whispered under their breath.

Vincent shook his head. His hand was trembling when he lowered it, his hazy form going unfocused as he took a step closer to the building. "No. I mean, it was here, I'm sure of it, but they... They must've torn it down."

Now that Quinn looked more closely at the building, they could see what he meant: between the others, the house stuck out like a sore thumb, its style different, its bricks lighter. It had clearly been built in a different decade than all the others.

"I'm sorry," Quinn said.

"For what?" Luis's voice made them jump.

"Nothing." Quinn shook their head, their eyes still fixed on Vincent's face.

"Our store was right here, on the first floor," he whispered, more to himself than to Quinn. "And the second floor was where we lived. Above us was another family. They used to come down all the time to complain because we were so loud." He trailed off, his fingertips just shy of brushing the wall. "I almost forgot about that."

"Is everything okay?" Luis inquired from behind Quinn.

"I don't know," Quinn tonelessly said. They tried to make eye contact with Vincent, but he was still staring at the building, his blue eyes almost colorless. His silhouette was flickering in a way that reminded Quinn of a candle in the wind, solid one second and barely there in the next.

Behind them, Luis gave a nervous chuckle. "You're doing the thing again."

"What thing?"

"The staring at nothing like a possessed child in a horror movie thing."

Gulping, Quinn turned around to face him. "It's... it's nothing. The house isn't here. They tore it down."

Luis frowned. "And you could tell that just from looking at the façade?"

"Yes," Quinn said. They were aware that their tone was clipped, but they didn't care. They just wanted to get away from this place, back into the street where Vincent had laughed and joked and looked present. "Let's get out of here."

Even though he looked like he wanted to object, Luis only cast one more glance down the alley before he turned around. When Quinn looked over their shoulder to make sure that Vincent was following them, they found him walking next to them with a blank expression on his face, his shoulders slumped, his feet dragging. He looked so tired. Quinn wanted to reach out and squeeze his hand, but all their fingers could hold onto was air.

"You sure everything's okay?" Luis asked when they'd made it back to the main street and Quinn still hadn't said anything. He was peering down at them with his head tilted, brown eyes curious as he studied them.

Quinn tore their gaze away and gave a curt nod.

"Hey, I'm sure you'll find a way to learn more about your great-grandfather." Luis gave them a small nudge with his shoulder. "This is a small town. When someone dies here, their ghost lives on for a while. Trust me."

Quinn felt a little bit like crying. They couldn't look at Vincent as they murmured, "Yeah. I'm sure you're right."

"I mean, there's probably still a bunch of records about him. Like... at the morgue, maybe? Oh God, that's fucking morbid, I'm so sorry—"

Luis's voice faded into the background when Quinn raised their gaze and caught sight of the figure coming towards them on the other side of the road. It only took a split second for Quinn to recognize her; bright red hair. Dark make-up. Ripped fishnets.

Quinn grabbed onto Luis's sleeve and dragged him into the nearest doorway without thinking twice about it. Huddled into the shadows, they watched with bated breath as the girl neared them, her face a stormcloud, her strides hitting the earth like lightning. Mercifully, she didn't look in their direction even once, instead continuing down the road and disappearing around a corner.

When she was gone, Quinn let their head fall back against the brick wall behind them, scrubbing their hands over their face as they exhaled.

"Uhm." Luis's voice made Quinn's gaze snap up to meet his. "What's going on?"

It was only then that Quinn realized how close they were standing. Close enough that they had to crane their head back to look up at Luis's face. Close enough that they could see the snowflakes that had gotten caught in his brown curls and dusted his shoulders. It was ridiculous how long his lashes were, honestly, and his eyes—

"Sorry." Clearing their throat, Quinn very intentionally uncurled their fingers from his sleeve. "I—I saw an old classmate I didn't want to run into."

Luis raised his eyebrows. This close, Quinn could see that one of his front teeth was slightly chipped when he grinned. It was the most devastating sight they had ever seen. "Ah. That's clearly the only appropriate reaction, then."

"I... used to have a crush on her in middle school. It was embarrassing," Quinn babbled. They didn't even know what they were saying. "Sorry. I panicked."

They took a stumbling step back into the alley, almost slipping on the cobblestones. Luis steadied them with a hand on their lower back and a small laugh. "You're kind of strange, you know that?"

"Says the guy who naps in coffins," Quinn retorted. Their cheeks felt very warm. Everything about them felt very warm.

"Touché." Luis started sauntering down the street again, the weight of his hand at Quinn's back disappearing. "Tell me about your middle school crush, then."

With his touch gone, Quinn recovered a little. Rushing to keep up with him, they asked, "Why don't you tell me about your middle school crush?"

"Fine," Luis agreed. "His name was Abram and we kissed once behind the school gym. Afterward, he decided that he didn't like boys and I decided I definitely did."

The words were out before Quin could bite their tongue. "Only boys?"

"No," Luis laughed. "I'm not super into labels, but if I had to pick one I'd probably say I'm bi."

Before Quinn could think better of it, they blurted, "I'm pansexual."

For a brief second, Quinn braced for the usual confused frown they got when they dropped the term, but Luis's grin only broadened. "Nice."

Quinn couldn't help but smile back. It was nice.

It was so nice, in fact, that they only realized when they were almost back at the campus that at some point during their conversation Vincent had quietly vanished.