Droog put his head in his hands as he sat down at his desk. It had been a full week now. He still couldn't get used to living alone once again. The house seemed incredibly empty without her. It just ... didn't feel right. The Crew had managed to arrange a small funeral. It was nothing grand, but it was more than enough for Droog. Just a little something to show their respects. Even Slick didn't protest. Droog was sure he had seen both him and his kid shed some tears. The worst part was that Droog hadn't even managed to get revenge on Snowman's little brat. They had all run from the fight, leaving the Crew victorious. But for what price?
Boxcars was constantly trying to get Droog to leave the house and live a little. He didn't want him to slip into depression. But it might have been too late. Droog spent his days either hunched over at his desk, like now, or slowly pacing through the house. He avoided going into Aradia's room. He wasn't ready for that yet. He didn't know what to do with that room now. He was tempted to just leave it like that. He didn't want to go through all the memories that were hidden behind the door.
The others had gone out, after unsuccessfully trying to convince him to join them. He sat at the desk, tears falling on the documents that had been tossed on it. Suddenly, the plastic container in which he stored his pencils tipped over. He picked it up with a sigh. Probably just the breeze. As soon as he set it down, it tipped over again.
"All right, who's messing with ..."
He heard giggling. That sound is only cute when you have a child living with you. Not particularly when you're home alone at 11pm. He reached for his knife, but then stopped. She was right there. In front of him. Floating. He could see through her; it was like a mirage. But it had to be her. Same clothes, same bushy hair, horns, ... The only things that were a bit different were her eyes, blank white instead of their usual yellow and burgundy colors, and the fact that she was smiling at him.
He had to be losing it. "Kid?" he asked slowly.
She nodded.
Ok, maybe he was losing it. He didn't care. He reached out, but his hand went right through her. Right, she was still dead. But Droog just started to believe in ghosts.
"Hey, spirits still bothering you?"
She shook her head. He hadn't seen her this happy in years. She was like her old self again. Before all the stuff with the spirits began. She was dead, but she was still here.
"You here to stay?"
She nodded happily. He could hear her laughing. He felt a smile appear on his own face.
"Atta girl. Come on."
They hurried outside to join the Crew. Droog couldn't believe he would ever think Aradia would ever just leave him. Nothing could ever tear a father and his daughter apart.
...
Okay, here you go! For real this time, this is the last chapter of this mini series. Thank you for reading!