The marigolds of Dia de los Muertos

     Noah and Megan had managed to make it to the rooftop garden. Each didn't see the other because Megan was in the small greenhouse looking at the bright flowers that swooped down from the hanging baskets or clustered together on various shelves as if trying to stay warm.
     Noah arrived and knelt next to the pool. He stuck his hand in tentatively, checking to see just how warm the water was. It felt soft and wonderful. The mist reaching up to surround his face.  He thought about getting in but realized that he would have to get out and back into the chilly December air. Then he heard someone singing..."Oh the weather outside is frightful but the fire is sooo delightful, so let it snow, let it snow...."He looked up to see Jack appear from behind a large pot.
     "Ah, Noah," he said with such a familiar tone that Noah wasn't sure if he was alive or otherwise. "Glad you could come. Please, next time do bring that bathing suit and a towel. It's quite delightful," Jack said and followed it with another smile.
     Noah stood-up letting the water dribble back into the pool. He paused, tilted his head, and realized it was the man who helped Mr. Jenkins get the fountain working again. "Are you the handyman?"
     "Yes." Jack said. "I am.  I am Jack Stars."
     Again, Noah questioned himself about whether or not Jack was real.
     "Sorry about your brother, but the dead don't really leave us do they?"
     Before Noah could answer, Megan appeared in the doorway of the greenhouse. She stopped when she saw the pair. Both seemed young and a bit awkward. She looked from one to the another.
     Jack spoke first, "Oh, how nice, Megan, this is Noah. Noah, Megan."
     Each stood looking at each other. Jack looking from one to the other, smiling.
     "Hello."
     "Hello."
     "Great," said Jack. "Shall I get you two some hot chocolate? You two have much in common. The door between life and death is such an illusion, don't you think?" He turned, started singing the song again while walking toward his small apartment.
     They looked at one another. Noah said, with a hint of urgency, "I see dead people."
     "I bring things back to life," she responded.
     The marigolds, glistening from the mist, clustered around the pair.