Anna kept looking at Peaches. “I mean, not that I know how that feels …”
“You’ve never had a love interest?” he asked.
“No.” She looked up at him. “Which is strange. Most people around here come in pairs.”
“Maybe it isn’t that you were forgotten,” James said carefully. “Maybe she’s saving you for something really good.”
Anna smiled. “That’s very optimistic of you, James.”
“I think I mightbeoptimistic,” he said.
“Likable,” she said. “Sympathetic. Almost creepily handsome. I have a good feeling about you.”
He laughed and seemed to relax. He was still rocking the swing with his ankle. It was nice. Comforting.
Anna felt for him. She could still feel the pull, too, underneath everything. But she was so used to it. It was like gravity for her.
“Can you make friends here?” James asked.
“Yeah. Of course.”
“Even if you’re not meant for the same story?”
“I mean,yeah,” Anna said. “Relationships don’t have to be eternal. People come and go from your life.”
“I suppose that’s true.”
“I’ve had a few friends here for years.”
He rested an elbow on the back of the swing and rested his head in his hand. “Has anyone been here longer than you?”
“No one who’s stayed.”
“You mean no one who hasn’t ended up in a story?”
“Not everyone ends up in stories.”
He looked concerned. “What do you mean?”
“Well, some people fade,” she said matter-of-factly.
“Theyfade?”
“Usually the ones who fade start out blurry. They just never take shape, and then they—” She waved her hand. “—fade away.”
James looked concerned. “Has anyone with a name faded?”
“Yeah. Sometimes.”
“That’s awful.”
“Oh.” Anna should be more thoughtful. None of this was matter-of-fact for him. And he wasfullof feelings. His personality must be a mile deep. “James, that’s not going to happen to you. You burst into life fully formed. That’ssucha good sign.”
“You’re sure?”
“Oh yeah. You’re like a tool built for a very specific job. I really think you’ll go in as soon as she has a chance to sit down.”
He tipped his head into his hand and scratched his head. “I shouldn’t let you comfort me like this. It’s very selfish.”
