Ghost Glass

I never knew who made them. One day, they were just... everywhere.

Stand in front of one long enough, and you'll see the ghosts.

At first they stand in the distance, barely smudges in the distance.

They seem tentative, hopeful, shy even. As if they can't quite believe at first that we could see them. Or they didn't want to hope, just to be let down again.

Eventually they draw closer.

Every store that could get them couldn't keep them in stock.

Countless videos on social media. Doing "breakdowns". All sorts of theories on how they worked, how to "hack" them in various ways.

I never planned on getting one. I didn't really see the appeal of what appeared on the surface to be some sort of (albeit impressive) technical Halloween parlor trick.

3D tracked somehow. You could walk back and forth and the ghosts would appear to really be there, shifting with your perspective. Silhouettes behind fogged glass. Black and white, but still so, so realistic. Some would even turn their heads to follow you. But not always.

One day at work they called everyone to an all-hands Zoom meeting. They said everyone would be getting a panel of Ghost Glass as bonus. For having worked so hard. Some people were excited.

Others, well... they didn't say anything. I was one of the latter group.

A few days later a crew arrived. They asked me to pick a wall, and they installed the Glass.

At first it was pretty anticlimactic. I didn't see anything. It was just a white panel in my living room next to my desk.

A constant source of light. I remember thinking "Congrats R&D, you've managed to make a less useful LED panel. Raises all around.".

Then one morning I walk in with my coffee to start work and there he was. I think it was a he. Hard to tell sometimes. Off in the distance of the non-landscape. Drowning in white.

At first while I was working my eyes kept cutting back to the Glass. Sometimes he was closer. Sometimes further away. Occasionally he'd move over to one side of the frame.

Eventually, work became more demanding, and the Glass became part of the scenery. I worked. I had food delivered. I slept.

Eventually he got right up to the glass. I started a routine where I would say good morning to him. Even though I knew he wasn't real.

Months passed like this. Eventually there were more. Coming closer and closer. Touching the glass. Standing there. I watched them and they watched me.

I remember one day I walked in, and they were all gone.

That was a bad day.

I wondered if they were ever coming back. I thought about calling the company to complain, but, work, you know. It took over again.

They came back though. Thank god.

I thought about giving them names, then didn't.

I tried to imagine what life was like on that side. Wandering. Seeing. Mute, but... at least they were together. They had a place they belonged.

Work kept ramping up. The turnover was getting bad.

People would just ghost the company. Which is crazy right? You'd never work in my industry again pulling a stunt like that, but it just kept happening.

I started eating my lunch with the ghosts.

I'd talk to them. Tell them about how bad work was getting. No sign that they could ever hear me, no real response. But it felt good to get it off my chest.

I stopped watching TV and movies. Stopped playing games and watching videos online. I didn't need all that anymore. I had my ghost friends.

I'd celebrate holidays with them. Show them memes from my phone. I set up a chair right in front of the Glass. Christmas. New Years. Getting drunk with the ghosts.

I barely noticed when my boss went missing. I knew my job and I did it well. I didn't need a babysitter to get things done.

I kept taking breaks though, more and more. To talk to my friends.

I'd tell them stories. Try to motivate them. Suggest exercise regimens. Show them some of my art. I'd ask them questions about their lives. I'd make jokes and could imagine them laughing.

They were there for me when no one else was.

One day I tried to connect to the company server, but it was offline. I assumed it was a temporary issue.

Fine by me. I was salaried, and it's more time to spend with my friends.

There were a lot of them, more and more every day. Standing room only.

I never expected to be so popular.

Eventually I brought my bed into the room with the Glass. I wanted to check in on them first thing in the morning, and say good night to them just before I went to bed.

Eventually, with the internet out, with no sounds outside, I got it. I suppose I knew that people were disappearing. Dropping like flies.

I wasn't afraid because I knew where they went. They went to be with their friends. Their followers.

It wasn't anything to be afraid of. It was better over there. Over here you were alone. All day, every day. There you could be with your friends always.

You couldn't talk. You couldn't eat. Couldn't sleep. But you wouldn't be alone anymore.

Fair trade.