Even though I knew my own limitations, it still didn't make me happy to hear someone else point them out. Emotions were the hardest thing for a person to control. If I was unhappy, then I was unhappy. I couldn't deceive myself into feeling happy. Still, I could keep that unhappiness from showing, so Gu Mo wouldn't keep gloating.
Gu Mo looked at me and laughed. There was a hearty ring to it.
Nangong Yao had been sitting off to the side, looking at his phone as though he had no interest in our conversation. Now he looked up and said, "Come to think of it, I've already been a ghost."
It sounded like a morbid joke.
I couldn't laugh, but Gu Mo laughed even harder.
Strangely, I could tell that Gu Mo was genuinely happy—not putting on an exaggerated show of calm and composure, nor trying to mock anyone.
"Is it really that funny?" I asked Gu Mo darkly.
"It's pretty amusing. The world's about to end, so don't be so tense." Gu Mo leaned over and patted my shoulder, then let out a breath. "Honestly, it's damn exhausting when only a few of us know about all this and have to shoulder it."
I stared at Gu Mo.
Gu Mo smiled at me. "Wouldn't it be interesting if the whole world knew there were ghosts?"
"You're awful," I said.
Gu Mo waved a hand. "No, this is the wheel of history turning. Besides, what can such a small number of people accomplish? The people determined to get themselves killed will still do it. They're still the majority. If everyone knew, at least fewer people would go looking for trouble. Wouldn't that be a good thing?"
In the long run, Gu Mo seemed to have a point.
"There's something