Total pages in book: 55
Estimated words: 52976 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52976 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
I swear, I’m trying. I’m thinking about all of the things West loves—pizza, movies, girls, leather jackets, the smell of fresh-cut grass, edge pieces of brownies, the scratching of fingers gliding along the strings of an acoustic guitar when they change chords. My mind tries to fill with everything he loves, as if setting afire some kind of soul beacon that might reach West.
I feel him looking at me without seeing him at all.
Is that really him? Do I have a hold of West now?
“Dude, those are my nuts.”
I open my eyes.
Westley is in front of me. He’s the only thing there. All around us is white, misty nothingness.
And I’ve got a hold of his junk with my free hand, my fingers curling around the crotch of his worn jeans.
I stare at him, alarmed. “W-West??”
He clears his throat. “I know you miss me, but you gonna let go of my nuts before you squeeze the life out of all my future children, bro?”
The way his voice is strained, it sounds like I might be clasping his royal jewels with a little more fervor than is necessary.
On the other hand … “I-I can’t let go of you.”
He quirks an eyebrow. “And why not?”
“Because I don’t want to lose you again, and I need my soul back.”
“You need your what? Your soul? I don’t have it.”
“You do, actually. Half of it, we’re estimating.” I look around us. “Where the hell are we?”
“I was in the library on 7th until you appeared out of nowhere, grabbed hold of my nuts, and brought me into this weird blank space. I have no idea where you were.”
I frown at him. “You’re being awfully rude to a guy whose soul you apparently broke a piece off of. My soul is not a damned Hershey’s bar.”
“Again, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was in the middle of something very important.”
“Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been?” I snap at him. “I had no idea where you disappeared to!”
“You mean ever since the whole me-leaving-you-in-the-street thing? Yeah, that was bad, but I don’t have time to talk about it. You should just go back.”
“Go back …??”
“Yeah. Go back to your life. I’m fine. No need to worry about me.” He takes hold of the hand I’ve got on his crotch. “Or my nuts.”
But when he tries to pull my hand off, I cling to his junk tighter. His face twists. “I’m not letting go, West.”
His eyes grow double. “Jesus, dude, stop squeezing so hard! You trying to make lemonade down there??”
“When we separated on the street, something bad happened. You … took half of my soul with you.”
He squints at me. “The fuck …?”
“I’m serious, West. I’m exhibiting all of these crazy symptoms. Chills. My body temperature keeps falling. I can see ghosts everywhere. And it’s getting worse.”
“Really?”
“Has your existence been different ever since we separated? Surely you’ve noticed something.”
“I …” West peers away in thought. “I’ve been able to exist outside the apartment. Explore the world. I … I couldn’t do that before.” He looks at me. “Maybe the part of your soul I have is allowing me to do that.”
“Yeah, well, I’m happy for you, but I need it back.”
He frowns. “I’m sorry, but … I can’t give it back.”
“What do you mean?”
“I … I need it, bro.”
“No, you don’t.”
West tries to step away from me, then is reminded with a grimace that I’ve still got a vice grip on his baby maker. “Dude, let go of my dick!”
“If I don’t get all of my soul back soon—”
“I’m so fucking close to finding her, Griffin!”
That stops me. “Finding who?”
“Nina.” His whole demeanor changes, like a spell’s been cast over him. A happy smile breaks over his face I don’t think I’ve ever seen him wear before. His eyes shine with delight. “Nina, my sweet Nina. The girl I should never have let go, the one I should’ve confessed my feelings to. I told you about her … my beautiful, sweet Nina …”
I remember her. He spoke about her the first day we shared my body, that very first Halloween. Even as he says the name, I can remember her vividly, as if all of his memories of her are my own. We have been inside each other’s heads so many times, I feel just as familiar with Nina as he does.
I can’t believe I’m actually hesitating. “West …”
“Please. Just give me a little more time. I think if I give you back your—whatever I took—I’ll just appear in the apartment again and lose Nina forever.”
“West, I don’t know how much time I have left.”
“C’mon. It’s just a piece of your soul, right?”
“I … don’t know, actually. Maybe it’s just a piece. Mrs. Shaheen thinks it’s half. I don’t know if there’s a way to properly quantify a soul at all.”