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“May I join you?” asked Nash. He’d been watching Jenna sitting near the fountain in the gardens for nearly an hour. They were all watching her, concerned that she might harm herself.

“Of course, Nash. I actually owe you an apology.”

“Me?” he frowned. “You don’t owe me an apology. You’ve done absolutely nothing wrong.”

“You reached for my hand out of friendship and I shunned you,” she said looking down into the fountain. Nash shook his head.

“Jenna, a man attacked you. The touch of a man will set you off for a while. I should have been more considerate. I know it wasn’t about me. It was about your attackers.”

“Thank you for saying that,” she said. “You always were the nicest boy in school. I remember when your family was transferred to Arizona. You were only in eighth grade, I think.”

“That’s right,” he smiled. “We had been at a base called The Depot. In fact, many of the people here were there.”

“Really? That seems odd,” she frowned.

“Yes,” he laughed. “I suppose it does feel odd. We’re all different, Jenna. We were exposed to something while at this strange base and now have unusual skills.”

“Like what you did at the lake when we were in high school?”

“You remember that?” he asked. She nodded. “I never meant for anyone to see me. If I hadn’t done what I did, Josie would have died.”

“I saw it as a miracle from God, Nash. I never thought you were strange. You lifted that water like it was nothing and there she was, crawling her way along the bottom of the lake. You saved her life.”

“I can’t believe you saw me. I wish you had told me,” he said smiling at her. “I felt alone during that time. I couldn’t tell everyone what was happening to me.”

“I’m sorry. I should have come to you. You were my friend, my dearest friend. I hated that we lost touch after I went to the convent.”

“Why did you go?” he asked. “You were one of the smartest people in school. Surely you had scholarship offers.”

“I wish that were true,” she said. “My parents were so poor at that time they didn’t even have the money to submit my college applications. I knew that I needed to go to work and help support them. But if I took a job, I wouldn’t be able to support them and myself. The convent seemed logical.

“I was a devout Catholic, so were my family members. The convent allowed you to live there rent free and when I became a nun, all of my small salary went to them. It was enough for a while, then everything just crumbled.”

“I’m sorry,” he said reaching for her hand again. He hovered above her, then pulled back but this time, Jenna reached for him.

“We shouldn’t be afraid to touch when we’re old friends,” she said. He nodded, smiling at her.

“I’m sorry about what happened to you, Jenna but I’m so glad I’ve found you again. I’ve thought of you many times over the years.”

“Same,” she smiled. “I had a terrible crush on you when I was in high school.”

“Why didn’t you say something?” he asked.

“We were such friends, buddies almost, I didn’t want to ruin that. All the girls wanted to date you and they were so beautiful and dressed perfectly. I was the poor girl from the wrong side of the tracks.”

“No. No, you weren’t,” he said shaking his head. “You were my best friend and I had a crush on you as well.” He squeezed her hand and she smiled, nodding at him.

“Funny how the world works, isn’t it. All those missed opportunities for us and look at us now.”

“We’re the same people, Jenna.”

“No. No, I’m not,” she said. “What that man, those men, did to me left me a shell of myself. I’ll never be alright again. Never.”

She stood quickly and walked down the path toward the river. He started to follow and felt the cool hand at his shoulder.

“Let her have some time to think,” said the ghostly figure of Nathan. “What happened to her didn’t just destroy her as a woman but destroyed her faith. That’s not easy for a woman who was a nun.”

“I care for her, Nathan.”

“I know you do. You must let this happen in its own time. Do not rush her or she may leave and place herself in more danger. Did you speak with Winter and Hiro?”

“No,” he said shaking his head. “Not yet.”

“Do it now,” said Nathan.

“I’m getting orders from a ghost,” he smirked. Nathan nodded as Franklin, Yori, Archie, Grip, and the other male ghosts appeared. “Okay, okay, I get it. I’m getting orders from all the ghosts.”

“Not all,” smiled Yori. “The women have chosen not to push you. Yet.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. The last thing I need is Martha haunting me in the middle of the night.”