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“The ht here The sizzle” She presses her concave stomach “I want to dance with him”

Is she joking?

“Well, that would be nice,” I say at last, in placatory tones “But I’ve really got to get to the office-”

As I move forward, Sadie thrusts a bare arm across my path and I stop, taken aback

“Do you kno long it’s been since I’ve danced?” she says with sudden passion “Do you kno long it’s been since I’ve… shaken my booty? All those years, trapped in an old woman’s body In a place with no music, with no life…”

I feel a rub of guilt inside as I remember the picture of Sadie, ancient and wrinkled in her pink shawl

“OK,” I say quickly “Fair enough So, let’s dance at hohts, have a little party-”

“I don’t want to dance at hoo out with a man and enjoy myself!”

“You want to go on a date,” I say disbelievingly, and her eyes light up

“Yes! Exactly! A date with a

What exactly is it about being a ghost that she doesn’t understand?

“Sadie, you’re dead”

“I know!” she says in irritation “You don’t have to keep re me!”

“So you can’t go on a date Sorry That’s the way it is” I shrug and start walking on again Two seconds later, Sadie lands in front of me once more, her jaw set

“Ask him for me”

“What?”

“I can’t do it on o-between If you go out with hio out with him on a date If you dance with him, I can dance with him too”

She’s serious I al

“You want o on a date for you,” I say, to clarify “With souy I don’t know So you can have a dance”

“I just want one last little burst of fun with a handsome man while I still have the chance” Sadie’s head falls forward and her ain “One more whirl around a dance floor That’s all I ask before I disappear from this world” Her voice descends to a low, pitiful whisper “It’s my last desire My final wish”