Page 69 of Ghost of a Chance
“Quantum entanglement attempts to explain how particles can become linked in a way that’s not explainable by regular physics.”
So Paul was studying how energy moved through space and time when he died.“Is there any way he could have attached…”
Trailing off, she paused.This was ridiculous.She was about to ask him if his roommate had transferred his soul to a book.At this point, anything seemed possible, but from what little she did know about science and physics as a college undergrad, pulling something like that off would be especially impossible.
“I don’t know.I mean if you were going to ask if he’d moved his energy into the book intentionally, that would be venturing into something far beyond college physics.”
Hearing it out loud, she cringed.“More like fairy tales or fiction.I mean in my books it would work.But I don’t have to logically prove how that works outside of the page.Given my lack of science brain, that’s not a good thing.”
He laughed softly and continued giving her a layman’s breakdown of what the professor was going over during the class.
As Jasper explained the lesson, Kirsty’s mind wandered.Paul was starting to take shape for her, the way a character did when she was writing.
Paul was so much more than just a playful poltergeist to her now.He was taking shape as a person.Would he have felt like the world was limitless when he’d learned this?That anything was possible?
She wished she’d met him.From all that Jasper had shared, Paul sounded like he was a special person.He’d definitely taken care of Jasper in a way that made her like him just a little bit more.
She wasn’t a detective and honestly not very good at solving mysteries but she wanted to be…for Jasper and for Paul.
“You sure know a lot about this stuff.Why weren’t you taking physics?”
“Uh, that’s complicated.”
“Okay.”He called things complicated when he didn’t want to discuss them.Maybe it wasn’t important to everything going on anyway.
“I just can’t whisper it.I’ll tell you later when we’re out of class.”He squeezed her hand.
A little shiver jolted through her fingers.There wasn’t anyone she felt comfortable touching this intimately, but Jasper proved to be the exception.
He gave her a quizzical look, reaching up to pat his hair.“Is my hair sticking up?”
“No.”
“You’re staring.”
“It’scomplicated.”
His lips twitched as he turned to pay attention to the professor and she jotted down notes on concepts that she’d have him explain to her later.
Because there was no way she was getting anything as she sat next to Jasper, enjoying the fresh scent of his body spray, the way he tapped his fingers on the desk as he leaned in to listen more intently.
There was something about him that made it hard for her to look away.
She’d always been a loner and liked it.She hadn’t wanted or missed having a bestie in school or in life.She had everything she needed with her mom and her books.
After Buck, no man was worth the pain she’d experienced.But somehow Jasper felt different.
* * *
She was so cute trying to figure out physics.To Jasper it was natural.The concepts and theories all made sense.It was probably in his genes.Another thing he could chock up to his dad.
His father had wanted to be a high school physics teacher, but Jasper never really wanted to follow in that path.Maybe because his mom always talked about his dad working on his science fiction short story.
As the lecture concluded, the professor left through the back.Next they had an appointment to speak to Paul’s old professor before the lab he was holding in about forty minutes.
It felt natural to reach for Kirsty’s hand as the classroom emptied, so he did it.For a second her hand was stiff, and then her fingers slid through his, sending a pulse of awareness straight through him.“What’d you think?”
“I’m trying to somehow make sense of Paul trapped in a textbook.Do you think he loved this class so much he didn’t want to leave it?”
