Under_The_Whispering_Door_by_TJ_Klune

“I know,” Hugo said. “Stay with me. Just for tonight.”
Wallace was devastated. If they were anyone else, this could be the start
of something. A beginning rather than an end. But they weren’t anyone else.
They were Wallace and Hugo, dead and alive. A great chasm stretched
between them.
Hugo switched off the light, casting the room in semidarkness. He went to
the bed. It was simple. Wood frame. Large mattress. Blue sheets and
comforter. The pillows looked soft. The bed creaked when Hugo sat on it,
hands dangling between his legs. “Please,” Hugo said quietly.
“Just for tonight,” Wallace said.
He looked down at his own feet, hovering above the wood floors. He
scrunched up his face, and his shoes disappeared. He didn’t worry about the
rest. He wouldn’t sleep.
Hugo looked up as Wallace floated toward him. He had a strange
expression on his face, and Wallace wondered why Hugo had chosen him,
what he’d done in life to deserve this moment.
Hugo nodded, sliding back on the bed, stretching out against the far side.
He grabbed the dangling leash, tying it off to the headboard.
Wallace reached down and pressed his hands against the bed, wishing he
could lie down next to Hugo. His fingers curled in the soft comforter. He
pulled himself down until his face pressed against the blanket, breathing in
deeply. It smelled like Hugo, cardamom and cinnamon and honey. He sighed,
moving until he floated above Hugo, who rested his head on the pillow, eyes
glittering in the dark as he watched Wallace.
They didn’t speak at first. Wallace had so many things he wanted to say,
but he didn’t know how to start.
Hugo did. He always did. “Hello.”
Wallace said, “Hello, Hugo.”
Hugo raised his hand toward Wallace, fingers outstretched. Wallace did
the same, their hands inches apart. They couldn’t touch. Wallace was dead,
after all. But it was good. It was still good. Wallace imagined he could feel
the heat from Hugo’s skin.
Hugo said, “I think I know why you were brought to me.”
“Why?” Wallace asked.
Voices low, soft. Secret.