Point of Extinction, Chapter Eight

13; Theresa Pyrope.  Ignored.

12; Jake English.  Ignored.

11; Eric Ampora.  Ignored.

10; Solomon Captor, we all know how that went.

9; Francesca Peixes, how unfortunate it didn't work.

7;Rose Lalonde, you liked her.  Maybe she liked you too, but it never came to anything.

6; Karen Maryam.  She was a lesbian, and you had that odd type of friendship where you both sort of actually hated eachother, but played it for laughs.

5; Mayor Johnson.  His parents were pretty messed up, explaining his name.  He was too childish to fall in love, but it was one of the best relations you've had.  You protected him.

4;Gary Makara.  Oh no. Just, no.  We don't talk about this one.

3; Tyrone Nitram.  You sort of scared him away.

2; Narissa Leijon.  Ignored, you got a little distracted after you scared away Tyrone and spent about ten years catching up on the times.

1; John Egbert.

John.

Fucking.

Egbert.

Your name is Dave Strider and you have two more years till you cease existing, unless John can fall in love with you.  John.  You never expected this, you must admit.  He's like the optimistic Karl Vantas of the future.  With fluffier hair and big blue eyes, framed in little rectangles of nearsighted correction.  And those. Buckteeth.  Gosh he is the most adorable person you have ever met.  Or well, right now, not met yet, but seen.  And even just seeing him, well, you're starting to fall in love just a little bit.  Just a little! This stupid thing doesn't need to be any more fairytale than it already is.

What a lamentive situation, you think.  You have only two years with the one that you want most.  Maybe you'll get lucky, maybe he'll save you.  Yeah right.

Of course first, you should show yourself.  So you do.  Casually.  You show up, sitting on the couch when he gets home from school.  His Dad works a lot, you didn't have to worry about triggering a freakout with his father there to see it, but not the cause.  You're the cause, it is you.  Actually it isn't, because he doesn't freak out.  At least, not in a huge or very bad way, more in just a general "omg ghost" way.  He walks in, stops, drops his backpack on the ground, which is almost where his jaw goes.  "...woah."

"hey there, the names dave strider, im dead" You introduce yourself, standing up and holding out your hand for him to shake.  He takes it hesitantly, like he's worried his hand will go right through yours.  A reasonable concern, really.  It doesn't though, and the handshake goes smoothly, if a bit too enthusiastic on his end, like an intern shaking the hand of his new boss, whom he big-time idolizes.  You don't want him to idolize you, you want to be his friend.  Preferably with a certain genderwise prefix added onto that word.

"i'm uh, john egbert, and i'm alive and holy fuck this is cool, you're a ghost!"  He grins, clapping his hands together.  "dad always said i was silly when i'd watch ghostbusters and the sixth sense over and over again trying to get the ability to see ghosts, but here you are!" He laughs, and you can tell he's just joking about that.  Mostly.  "this is so cool though! do i have like, paranormal seeing powers, or something?"

"well no, im the only ghost youll be able to see, for reasons i shouldnt exactly say, theyre really stupid reasons even i dont totally comprehend" you shrug, then sit down again.  "so yeah, you get an invisible dead ghost buddy now, congraturations"

"congraturations.  really?"

"when youre dead you get a lot of time to confuse the electric bills of arcades and video game junkies alike"  You chuckle a bit, and he sits down next to you, still grinning.

"so, what i have to look forward to in having a ghost buddy is lots of bad references?"

"ironically bad references, yes"

"jeez youre a regular coolkid aren't you!"

"yeah, i have been for a century"

"you're old!"  You're not that old, you've just had to slog through adolescence twelve and a half times already.

"do i look old to you?"

"you look thirteen..."

"then thats how old i am"  Technically.  It's not creepy, honest!  You're physically the same age as him, and your mental maturity is about the same.  Just cause you've been around for nearly a century and have got to age twenty several times over.  But it's less creepy than Twilight is!  And now, that is a relevant pop culture reference.

"i'm confused."

"weird ghost shit"  Explains everything.  Well, almost everything.  You think the only universal explanation for anything is weird time shit, or if you're planning on breaking the fourth wall, weird plot shit.

"oh, okay."

And so goes the start of a beautiful friendship, and also the start of you falling hopelessly in love with your last option.  That will probably come to nothing, and you'll stop existing, and oh well.  You won't give a shit when there's nothing left of you, since there won't be any of you left to give a shit anyway.

Although, admittedly, you really don't want to leave him behind.  He's fun to be around, and he's adorable, and he's probably the best friend you've had since Francesca.  Except this time, it's you who wishes the friendship could be more.  Though it becomes quickly obvious that he means to play the straight man, you just can't help but like him in a totally homo way.  And you only fall for him even more when you see that picture of his nanna on the mantle and realize just what you're looking at.

Jane Crocker.  Old Jane Crocker, admittedly, it took a few takes for you to make the connection.  But once you do, it's unmistakable that it's her.  It's the eyes that give it away, such an odd light blue color.  And then you put the pieces together and finally make the realization.

Yes, your final option is the great grandson of your forbidden lover, Karl Vantas.