Tamsyn Murray-Afterlife 01 My So-Called Afterlife Read Online Free PDF

wannabe. I’dmet her type before and shook my head incredulously. It seemed even the afterlife had a queen bee.
    Deciding to give her a chance to prove me wrong, I smiled. ‘Hi. I’m Lucy.’
    The girl gazed down at me, her perfect rosebud lips twisting in disdain. ‘And what have we here? Don’t tell me the freak’s got herself a girlfriend.’
    Steeling myself, I got to my feet and prepared to bite back.
    ‘Why didn’t anyone tell me Barbie had died?’ I shook my head sorrowfully. ‘Poor Ken. How will he cope?’
    OK, it was hardly comedy genius, but at least I’d stood my ground.
    Looking my black skinny jeans and grey denim waistcoat up and down, it was a moment before the girl spoke. ‘If you’re smart, you’ll learn that anyone who hangs around with losers like Ginger here is the lowest of the low.’ She tossed her hair and turned to her attendants. ‘Come on, let’s see if Ryan’s around.’
    Scornfully, I watched them leave. ‘Nice shoes, shame about the wearer.’
    Hep’s forehead creased into a murderous glower. ‘Kimberly Jones. She likes to think she’s special, but she’s stuck here the same as the rest of us.’
    ‘I’ve seen her type before. Don’t let her get you down.’ I waved a dismissive hand. ‘She didn’t even make sense. You’re not ginger.’
    Scowl deepening further, Hep said, ‘I was before I dyedmy hair. Pity I didn’t think about touching up my roots before I killed myself. See?’ Her head dipped to display her parting. Above the black there were two centimetres of unmistakeable ginger. ‘How was I supposed to know I’d be stuck with them forever?’
    It was a fair question. I’d been on my way home from a party when I’d died and looked pretty damn hot, if I said so myself. Sadly, the dice hadn’t rolled so generously for Hep. I decided to change the subject. ‘Who’s Ryan?’
    Her face softened. ‘Ryan’s all right. He’s about our age, died in a car crash, but you’d never know it to look at him.’ She grimaced. ‘Kimberly would love to call herself his girlfriend, but she’s not his type.’
    The words made me think. I hadn’t considered that as a ghost I still had a chance at a love life. Now that I knew ghosts could touch each other, questions were queuing up for answers. Was it easy to hold their hand? Come to think of it, did it feel the same when you snogged them? It was becoming apparent there was a lot I didn’t know.
    ‘Right,’ I said, nodding. ‘Who’s Rosemary?’
    She was silent for so long I thought she wasn’t going to reply at all. When she finally did speak, it was through gritted teeth. ‘My stupid parents thought I looked like my great aunt and named me after her.’ She shook her head in fury. ‘And people wonder why I committed suicide. At least now I can be called whatever I want.’
    It didn’t seem to me that being called Rosemary was reason enough to take your own life, but who was I toargue? I’d always liked my name. Even so, I imagined there was a lot more to it than Hep was letting on, but it wasn’t the kind of conversation you have with someone you’ve only just met. Once again, I took the easy escape. ‘Tell me again how to move this carton?’
    After twenty minutes of sweat-breaking concentration, I still couldn’t shift it and my frustration was starting to show.
    ‘It takes time,’ Hep commented as I collapsed into a groaning heap. ‘Nobody gets it on their first try.’
    I heaved a melodramatic sigh. ‘But I’ve got my heart set on a job at the celestial drive-thru.’
    She smiled. ‘I didn’t realise you were the ambitious type. Give it a rest now and try again tomorrow. You’ll get there in the end.’
    Knowing she was right didn’t make me feel any better. If I had one fault, it was not knowing when to give up. Like when I’d demanded ballet lessons at the age of four and persevered until the age of seven, even after it became painfully clear I had three left feet. My mother, bless her,