"You asked."
Gabriel finally entered the room properly, though he stayed on his side of the invisible barrier. “We must establish some fixed arrangement.”
“An arrangement?”
"Boundaries. Professional ones."
"Such as?"
"No dancing."
"Agreed."
"No... touching."
"Obviously."
"No discussing the past."
"That might be difficult."
"No discussing the personal past."
"Agreed."
"No... looking."
Clara raised an eyebrow. "No looking?"
"No looking like that."
"Like what?"
"Like you're trying to see through me."
"I'm not trying. I succeed."
"That's the problem."
They stood there, negotiating their rules across the invisible barrier, both pretending this was sensible and normal and not at all like standing on the edge of that cliff Clara had mentioned.
"“Are there any more arrangements?” Clara asked.
"Yes. No climbing ladders."
“Poppycock!”
“You were within a hair's breadth of expiring.”
"The ladder broke!"
"Because you were climbing it."
"That's not how physics works."
"That's exactly how physics works. Force plus deteriorating wood equals disaster."
"Your ladder was a disaster before I got near it."
