Ghost Zayn Malik haunts One Direction on the March cover of 'Tiger Beat'

It appears that One Direction needs ghost protection.

On the March 2016 cover of Tiger Beat, the boy band that makes hearts flutter is pictured proudly in bold black and white.

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The only weird thing about the image is that Zayn, former member of the group and current solo artist, stands behind the boys in a muted, blurry gray.

This image clearly begs the question: Is Zayn Malik a ghost?

Image: Tiger Beat

“We call him Ghost Zayn. Look, it’s a tribute to 1D, the band that dominated the pop world for four years, not just the remaining members," Tiger Beat Editor-in-Chief Leesa Coble told Mashable in an email. "But it still gives a nod to the fact that he didn’t hang on until the bitter end. We connected with diehard fans and 1D fan clubs before we committed to running the shot with or without him, and Ghost Zayn won. It was pretty simple.”

While many disagree with all the editing that goes into magazine cover photos, we have to say that this one is an exception, as it really promotes body positivity for the underrepresented ghost population.