Chương 1: Is There An Afterlife?
It is late at night, everything on the street appears black until it is under the spotlight of the street lights. Thea is walking home after a late shift at the bar where she works. Her feet ache and her eyes barely want to stay open. As she slowly makes her way down the sidewalk, two large men appear from around a corner. They are laughing loudly and slurring their words. Drunk. Thea ducks her head and tries to hurry past.
"Where you headed gorgeous?" The taller of the two men inquirers.
Thea feels very awake now, fear and adrenaline rush through her veins as she doesn't answer and tries to walk past. The other man steps in front of her, blocking her exit.
"Oh come on now. There's no reason to be like that sugar." He smells strongly of booze and cigarettes, his eyes are rimmed with red.
Mustering all of her strength, she whispers demandingly: "Get out of my way!"
The tall man comes to stand behind her so she is completely trapped.
"Or what? There is nothing you can do about it." She knows he is right, under their jackets she can see the outline of substantial biceps and their hefty hands clenched into fits could easily be the size of her thigh. Thea did the only thing she could think to do.
"Help! Somebody help! Help!" The tall man looks startled and afraid.
"What the hell?! Shut up!" And with his huge fist, he sends her falling back with a blow to the stomach. Thea rolls on to her side, wheezing for breath.
"Quick! Grab her purse!" One of the men says. Refusing to take defeat, she scrabbles hurriedly to her feet, her breaths still short.
"No! Get the hell away from me you creeps!" She yells despite her protesting, burning lungs. The tall man swiftly pulls something out of his pocket, and holds it in front of him. Thea relizes that it is a gun as the bullet 'clicks' as it is popped into its chamber.
"I said: Shut. The. Hell. Up." He spits the words at her. With so much fear and panic driving her decisions, she makes a last resort call. Thea spits straight into the tall man's eye and rams past him, running away. She hears him scream out: "Ahh! You bitch!"
Thea barley makes it two steps when the other man grabs her arm and throws her down on the ground. She doesn't know what to do, what is there for her to do? She tries to yell out and kick at the men but it is no use. The tall man crouches down beside her as the other holds her down. Thea realizes that tears are running down her cheeks, all though she makes no noise.
"Maybe this will teach you some manners," The tall man points the gun at her head and pulls the trigger.
Thea is first hit with an unbearable burning in her forehead that forces her to scream out, one last time. No… what?... Where?
Pulled from being suspended in the darkness, Thea awakes. But she wasn't asleep. Now she is standing in a dark tunnel, with high walls and ceilings made of bricks. Along the center of the tunnel is a slow moving river of water, that's when she spots a small wooden dock in front of her with a rowboat tied down. She walks forward, cautiously. Thea is worried about something she can't quite figure out, but she feels like something or someone is here. Then her worries are answered as she steps onto the dock. There is a young man sitting in the rowboat.
His eyes stare down at the floor of the boat, his dark black hair falling in his face. He wears a suit made entirely of balck material, popping against his pale, nearly transparent skin. He slowly raises his eyes up to Thea, his sharp, angular face takes her breath away. His iris is the same colour as his pupil making it look like his eyes are entirely made of darkness.
"Welcome to the canal, " He says in a deep, mysterious voice. "I know you are confused, I will answer any questions that you may have. To put it plain and simple, you have died and you are now in the transport stage where I will take you to your afterlife."
A feeling of panic stabes Thea in the gut, that is when she realizes she isn't breathing. She puts her hand quickly on her chest. No heartbeat. "I- I am dead?!" She practically screams.
The man lets out an annoyed sigh. "Yes. Now if you would like to arrive on time I highly suggest you postpone your panic attack when we are not on a tight schedule."
Thea looks him straight in the eyes. "Where are we going?" He raises out of the boat and steps beside Thea. She has a strong urge to run, but if she is already dead, what could this man do? To her surprise he puts out his hand. She takes it apprehensively, and he helps her down onto her seat on the boat.
"Watch your step. I am taking you to your after life."
"Yes you had said that, but what is the afterlife?"
Suddenly the boat jerks forward, moving down the canal on its own. "It is your peace place in a way. You get a home and access to do anything that you want, as anything is possible in the after life. Most people spend their time watching monitors that show their family and friends down on earth. They like to watch how they are doing. Time works differently here, days seem longer and brighter. You can eat anything, anytime or do anything without changing your appearance. You can change it if you want by going to a booth but you won't change unless you choose to. You get to be anything here."
"Is this heaven then?" Thea wonders out loud.
"It depends on your beliefs. Technically every religion has their own Gods and beliefs about the afterlife but the truth appears however you want it to be."
"Are all of the Gods here?"
"Yes, they all watch over their followers in any way they can here. You see, there are seven levels to the afterlife. The Gods are all on the top level, watching down on their people even after death. The way you were on earth determines which level you stay in in the afterlife, the highest being two as no human can enter one. The lower levels work and do labor to support the upper levels. If they are in seven, which means they are the worst human being possible, they work in the monitoring rooms, 24/7."
"What are the monitoring rooms?"
"The rulers of the afterlife watch over earth that way. They can step in and change anything if necessary. To work there means basically watching someone's life and if they step off their 'destined course' one of the leaders will have to step in."
"Is one of the leaders the Devil?" They seem to be going down a never ending tunnel of dark water and bricks. She feels slightly claustrophobic.
The man laughs lightly. " There isn't a Devil as much as a man who has to run the dark underbelly of earth. He isn't the bad guy so many people make him out to be, he just deals with the truth that so many deny. "
"And who are you then? What is your job here?"
"I am Death, sugar. I am the emotions, be them bad or good that come with the end of life in a physical form. My job is to transport the dead souls to the afterlife and keep them on schedule."
"Why is there a schedule? What do I need to be on time for?"
"My, you do have a lot of questions. It is always so annoying when they have lots of questions. Remember how I said time works differently here? Well, I need to get you to the other end of the canal so you can watch your funeral."
"I didn't think I was having a funeral. I am estranged with my parents and sister. The only people I thought would mourn my passing are my few friends from work." As Thea tries to picture her family and friends, the memories are soft, blurry.
"Well it said on your file that you are having a funeral. There's the shore, brace yourself." At the end of the tunnel there is another dock, at the seemingly same place she got on. The boat rams into the dock hard, jolting Thea forward. Death grips her wrist right before she is shot into the water and pulls her back onto the boat.
"Thanks." Thea quietly exclaims, surprised by his quick save.
"Happens every time," Death mumbles under his breath. He stands and offers her his hand again. This time she doesn't hesitate, she places her hand on his own taking the time to notice how cold it is against her skin. Once they are both safely on the dock, Death quickly walks toward the brick wall. He waves his hand in front of the wall and it suddenly dissolves in front of her.
"Wha-?"
"No time for questions about the entree. I opened the gate. That is all. Now hurry up." He grabs her arms and pulls her into the afterlife.
It looks like a busy city, not like anyone on earth. The buildings are tall, some colourful, some plain. Some even float in mid air. As they walk down the sidewalk together, Death and Thea pass many strange people. Some look normal enough, maybe with just some coloured hair but then there are very different people. People with three eyes, blue skin and even wings! She must look very shocked because when Death glances down at her, he smiles ever so slightly.
"Where are we going now?" She asks but her voice comes out small and hushed.
"I am taking you to your living quarters. There will be a monitor already set up displaying your funeral. After that get some rest tonight, I understand how this is a difficult change for you. Tomorrow feel free to explore and get a taste for the afterlife."
Thea nods.
"No questions? The Gods really are looking out for me!"
"Hilarious," Thea says sarcastically. "Well maybe I do have one more."
Death rolls his eyes. "Fine, what is it?"
"You had said that the afterlife has seven levels, which one am I on?"
"You are in two." He smiles down at her again, "You goody goody."
* * *
"What do you think?" Death asks as she looks around her new living room. Death had taken her to a towering apartment building, where her windows overlook the bustling streets below. Thea has always wanted to live in a penthouse with city views.
"I love it!" Thea exclaims. The main room has large, comfortable sofas facing a monitor along the left wall. To the right of the room is the elevator that she can use to visit family members in lower levels if she pleases. Beside the elevator is a whole, floor to ceiling, wall of windows. They let in the soft glow of the sun which makes the walls appear light yellow instead of white. On the far wall there is a door that leads to her bedroom.
"We use data about where you would have wanted to live on earth, and redesigned it to fit in the afterlife. Everything here is catered specifically to you." Death explains.
Thea sweeps her eyes over the room. Everything makes her feel warm and safe but none of the items in the room particularly speak to her. That's when her eyes land on a knit blanket thrown over the arm of the sofa. It is a soft pink, with flowers of every colour embroidered to it. Suddenly, the memory comes rushing back to her: Thea was only ten years old when her grandma had knitted this blacket for her. She was her adopted grandma, but Thea felt as though she fit in with her grandma the best. It was her favorite thing she owned, she would sleep cuddled up in it every night. Thea had been so sad when she had lost the blanket. Now, it is here in her new home.
Death suddenly appears at her side, worry displayed clearly on his face. "Are you alright?"
"That… blanket. I had no memory of it until just this second." How had she lost that blanket? Why hadn't Grandma made her a new one? Did she? Rushing down a rabbit hole of thoughts, Thea realizes that she can't remember a thing. "Now that I think about it, I don't really remember anything from my life. I know the basics but I have no specific memories."
Death rubs his hands down his face. "That makes sense with the way you had died. I am afraid that there are many more souls waiting for me at the Canal, I can't help you." He pauses for a moment, staring at her wall. "Actually, you can go to Dev. He will know how to help you."
"Who's Dev?"
"Remember that guy we were talking about on the boat? Yeah, that's Dev. His real name is Devin but he doesn't like when people call him that."
"Where do I go to see him?"
Death points to the elevator in the back of her room. " That elevator will take you anywhere you need to go. Just push the button that says: 'Monitoring Room' Tell Dev I sent you. Maybe then he won't be as pissed."
"Are you two friends?"
Death snickers, "You can say that."
Thea's back is to Death as she looks at the elevator. She turns and starts to say thank you but he has disappeared. Slightly confused, Thea walks over to the elevator and steps inside. The interior walls are bright and shiny gold with red carpet lining the floor. There is a panel beside the door that has rows and rows of buttons that go to all sorts of destinations around the afterlife. She presses the one that says Monitoring room as Death had instructed. The doors close and she speeds downward at an alarming speed. Thea throws her hand out instinctively and steadies herself on the wall. Her long black hair is floating beside her face, suspended in mid air. As the elevator slows to a stop, her hair returns to its normal place brushing along her back, looking completely untouched.
The gold doors shift open, revealing a busy work room. Everything is grey, the floors, walls and workers all share the dark monotone feeling. Every inch of wall that is not occupied by a window is covered with screens displaying a number of videos. People sit at desks in front of the screens, rapidly jotting down things into notebooks. As Thea emerges from the elevator, only one person looks up at her. He is in the center of everything, it is as though the room moves around him like he is frozen in time. Long muscular arms are crossed tightly over his chest in a very authoritative way. His hair is short and fiery red, curling atop his head like a crown of flames. Dark skin and dark eyes only add to his somber appearance, his body a statue of obscurity.
"And who are you?" He spits it at her, as though she has no right to be in the Monitoring room.
"Are you Dev? My name is Thea. Death sent me to talk to you."
He rolls his eyes and motions for her to follow him as he walks toward a screen in the back of the room. "What do you need to talk to me about?" Dev says In the same harsh tone.
"Um… I seem to have a problem with my memory. I don't have any specific memories from my life and things just keep slowly coming back to me. Like when I see some sort of trigger or something."
"Hm. And Deaths want me to help you get them back?"
"As do I."
"Well, I won't be able to get all of your memories back for you, they will hopefully come back over time. What we do here is the work no one wants. Sad, dark, awful embodiments of the human race. We have files for every human being of all of their worst memories, those are often what define a person. I can show you yours, help you figure out who you are again but, it will be hard for you."
"I want to see them." Thea states demandingly. She will not let him tell her what she can or cannot stand.
"Fine then." Dev places a hand on the black screen and it bursts to life around his fingers, the colours forming an image. When he removes his hand, a sense plays out.
It is Thea, years younger standing in the living room of a house with natural colours and soft glow from many lamps around the room. Her house, she realizes. A woman stands facing Thea, mom, and is yelling at her. Telling her that she is a disappointment to the family, that she wishes Thea would be more like her sister. Mia, is sitting on the dark brown couch, watching her older sister take in the brutal words of their mother. Tears stream down Thea's face as she asks what she is doing wrong, asks for forgiveness, asks for her to stop yelling. But she doesn't, she never does. This is the moment Thea conjured the idea of running away. She tried to push past her mother to climb the stairs to her bedroom, like she always did, but her mom wound up and smacked Thea across the face. She fell back into the banister, her cheek burning. Although it would leave a mark on her cheek, a permanent one is left on her heart.
The colours seem to melt from the screen, blending together to form a new picture; a small crappy apartment. It is dark and run down, with a bed in one corner and a bathroom in the other. Barely even a kitchen, just a microwave. Thea's apartment. She used her little bit of money she hid in her room at home to run away and rent an apartment. On top of high school workload, she also worked long hours as a waitress to survive. It is a cold night in December, Thea is cuddled up on her bed with a blanket trying to warm up, she has no heat. This is the night where she cried with her whole body, thrashing back and forth, her hands scratching at herself. The pain in her mind is unbearable, and as the tears made her unable to breath, she decided to welcome death with a little push. Anything to stop the pain.
Again the image melts away, and new things start to take shape. Thea is working behind the bar at a restaurant, and she suddenly remembers this was only a few weeks before she dies. Dressed in proper work attire, she takes peoples drink orders and smiles. She conversats and flirts with the boys so they buy more drinks. But she never takes off the cardigan she wears with her button down and skirt. Well, that was until one of the clumsy waitresses stumbles into Thea and spills soda all over her. Her cardigan is what attracted most of the liquid and so she was left with no choice. This revealed her pale white arms, lined with rows of skinny scares. The waitress looked away, uncomfortable. No one ever knew what to say, Thea didn't want them to say anything. No new scars had been added in months, but you can't escape the past when your body shows the world your story. It's this vulnerability, this feeling of being ashamed is why no one ever sees her scars.
Now, she is standing in the Monitoring room, arms wrapped around her chest almost like she is trying to keep her heart inside of her. Thea slowly raises her eyes up to look at Dev, and when their gazes meet, his brows are pulled together and his mouth pulled down at the corners. There is sympathy in his dark eyes.
"Did you…?" Thea's voice is hoarse and weak. She quickly clears her throat before continuing. "Did you make all those things happen to me?"
"No. Humans make their own decisions, I just kept you on the right path," he says.
"And what is my path? To die young without ever doing anything with my life? To not even be able to enjoy the afterlife because I have no memories? I don't even know who i am and now all I know is that my life wasn't exactly peachy, so thanks," Thea turns on her heel and starts to storm out of the room but Dev catches her arm. He holds her gently and with caution as he pulls her back towards him.
"Please let me talk for a moment," Dev pleads, seemingly reluctant to when letting go of her arm. She simply nods, now suddenly very aware of her long sleeve sweater that she hadn't noticed before. Out of her old habits, she pulls the knitted sleeves down over her hands, like built in gloves.
"You have to understand that those were the absolute worst moments of your life, you have no idea what amazing things you have accomplished otherwise. I am sorry I can't show you these memories but I remember them. You would help everyone, friends would call you in the middle of the night crying and you would not hesitate before running to help them. Co-workers would text needing advice and you would always give it. When people were down, you helped them get up. I know you don't remember now but you actually saved lives, I would say that is a pretty important path, wouldn't you?"
Thea nods, looking at the floor, "how did I save lives? I mean, how much could I have actually done?"
"Watch your funeral, I'm sure it will come back to you."
"Okay, well thanks," Thea brings her eyes up to his and gives him genuine gratitude this time. Then, she leaves. The elevator takes her right back into the bright and light living room of her apartment. Her new home instantly relaxes her, she takes a deep breath to calm her racing heart. The living room smells sweet, like vanilla. Like her favorite candle, Thea remembers.
Slowly, with gliding steps, she heads over to the couch. In one swift movement, she flops on to it, slouching and letting the cushions hold her. The large monitor, not unlike those in the Monitoring room, erupts in her presence.
"Hello Ms. Thea, would you like to begin the viewing of your funeral?" Asks the screen in a sing-song voice.
"Yes," she responds.
It is a very small funeral, thirty people or less attending. It does not look like the funerals you see on T.V. it is not outside and there is no casket being lowered into the ground. The feeling is the same but it is far less dramatic. Theas casket is at the front of a small church hall, with her family and friends facing it in the pews. Flowers line the aisle and a large picture of Thea is presented on a stand, displaying a happy, smiling girl. No one is crying. Except for one girl, she is tall and lean with piercing blonde hair. She has the skin of a model and the dress of an icon, she is gorgeous. It's Indigo. Thea remembers. Her best friend.
One could not simply describe Indigo, she was wild and crazy. Smart and talented. Never be fooled by her beauty for she could kill you with a glance. They had met in highschool, Thea was dealing with a lot as she just started living on her own. Indigo was destined for glory, a fiery princess with iron will and a heart of gold. They were in the same english class. The girls bonded over the love of books and writing, the partnership led them to win every debate, dominate the class discussions and created a forceful friendship. Indigo was the only person Thea felt like she could turn to, so she could rant about her work day, watch corny movies and have a shoulder to cry on. The only reason Thea had not died by her own hand was Indigo, that was her will to live. Through it all, they stuck together. And now, a ball of sorrow drowns Thea. She stares at her friend, mentaly telling her she's sorry, it will be ok, i will miss you. Thank you.
Forcing herself to tear her gaze away, Thea looks over the other faces in the room. Sitting in the front row is her 'family', a plump, short man with round glasses is her father. Next to him is her Mom, a scowl sits upon her aged face. Then, at the end is Mia. She looks older than when Thea had last seen her years ago, more grown into herself. She looks over to her emotionless parents sitting beside her, and a single tear falls from her light blue eye and on to her night black dress. Around the rows are a few other faces, old friends from school or work, her boss and even her highschool english teacher.
A sudden and loud 'ding!' complies Thea to emerge from within herself and back to her apartment. It came from the elevator.
"Ms. Thea, Dev is requesting access to enter your home, shall it be granted?" It asks in the same cheery voice.
"Um, sure." She answers, taken aback.
The gold doors part to reveal Dev, in all of his dimeness. He raises his eyes from the floor to meet Theas as he enters her living room.
"What are you doing here?" Thea questions, not moving from her place on the couch.
He shrugs as he takes a seat next to her, "It seemed like a bad idea."
Theas uncomfortableness bubbles up at his sudden remark and she laughs at him. "Oh ok! And why, might I ask, is this bad?"
The ever so slight smile crosses his face, transforming it into angelic beauty. He no longer looks dark or scary, he looks young and alive. A smile can do a lot to a person's appearance. "It's bad because I don't want to overwhelm you," he says.
"I seem to be doing quite alright though so quit assuming what my breaking point is," she replies poised and calm.
This time, Dev does a little flirty half smile, this makes him look adventurous and silly. "Noted."
She turns her attention back to the screen to watch the service. Thea finds it is terrible to watch her family pretend to care about anything that happened in her former life, they did not ever care when she was alive. That's when she sees Dev shifting positions out of the corner of her eye, and spots a gold bracelet under the sleeve of his black shirt. The sight of it sends a feeling of familiarity through her, she knows that something has to be related to her life, and this bracelet. Swiftly, Thea turns and grabs him by the wrist, she pulls up the arm of his shirt and takes in the band. It is a bright, shiny gold with a craving of vines woven around it. The memory takes over her.
It was like a dream, Theas mind was blurry and all that pushed her forward was a seemingly outer force telling her to jump. She was at the peek of her depression, standing on the roof of her apartment building. You don't need to suffer anymore. She told herself. Just jump and it will all go away. You have no one. You are nothing. What possibly could you do in life? Just end it. There is no point going on. You deserve to die. Thea believed this. Her demons told her just what to do to fix it, so she listened. Leaning forward, balancing on her tippy toes. . . . she lets go. Thea just decides to fall. And in her mind she falls, falls, falls, falls, but that doesn't happen. Someone grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back onto the roof. She is caught by strong arms, and the last thing she sees is a gold bracelet around their wrist.
"You," Thea breaths out at Dev. "You saved me?"
He nods slowly, looking down at the cushion.
"But...why?"
"I had to," Dev brings his strong, dark gaze up to hers. "You were falling, literally, off your path. All of your mental health issues lead to your insane compassion, and your constant need to be the person for others you felt you needed in your time of pain. This saved so many people you knew, your phone calls to them and long conversations made others make the choice to live. You are amazing, do you know that? You have done some wonderful things, Thea."
Her eyes are large and rimmed with the wetness of her forming tears. This is when Dev looks at her, and really looks. He sees beyond just the brown of her eyes, he sees the life she viewed through them and the tears shed from them. He sees her long, black hair and wonders if she has ever cut it short. He looks at her lips and sees the words she has spoken from them. His eyes travel along the length of her body, taking in the fact that her legs held her up, her hands had touched and felt and her arms lined with scars are still beautiful. Dev sees her beauty.
A small tear rolls down her cheek, but she does not make any noise, just lets it fall. Thea makes no move to wipe it from her cheek so Dev reaches out and tentatively rubs her cheek with his thumb. She smiles sweetly up at him.
"Whatever possessed you to do that should possess you more often," Thea playful tells him.
Dev laughs softly and hunches his back so he is lowered enough to be inline with her face, "Oh really?"
"I love the juxtaposition of The Devil having a sweet side."
Dev rises to his feet quickly and reaches his hand down for Thea to take, "I assure you, I am no Devil. Come with me, I want to show you something." Thea slips her fingers in between his as he leads her over to the elevator. Dev was just offering to help her off of the couch but her soft hand felt so comforting in his that he clung to it, Thea made no move to get her hand back.
They enter the elevator, still holding hands, and Dev presses a button. It is one of the few round metal keys that is just a number. They are on their way down to six.
"Why are we going to Six?" Thea asks, looking up to Dev who is much taller than her.
"You'll see," his eyes pour into hers as he gives her a simple wink, followed by a sweet smile.
When the doors opened, Thea expected to see a fiery pit resembling Hell but was instead surprised by looking into what appears to be a bustling apartment lobby. The floors are a white marble and there are grand pillars of stone holding up the high ceiling. There is no door to exit the building, all of the walls are covered in elevators trimmed in gold.
"What is this?" Thea asks as Dev leads her from the elevator. Her heart sinks slightly as he lets go of her hand and hinds in the pockets of his jeans.
"This is the Six base. The lower levels are support for the upper levels. Things don't just magically happen here, it is the work of these people that guarantee the Threes and Twos a great afterlife. They spend all of their time working so that anything you could ever want is at your fingertips."
"I- I don't really like that. These poor people are doing all of this work for us and never get a chance to change? So what if they sucked on earth?! They deserve a chance to rest their souls, to prove to themselves they are good," Thea tells him, beginning to feel angry.
Dev stops in the middle of the marble floor to turn to her. "I knew you would be perfect," he tells her.
"Excuse me?"
"I have been trying to get the Gods on One to see this issue for years! They always dismiss me, I'm just an earth operator after all. They say I know nothing of real goodness, but you! You can make them see, we can set up a rehabilitation unit and allow people to move up levels," He is speaking very quickly, his eyes bright with excitement.
"Woah woah woah! I just got here, I know nothing about how this place works or how to tell if a person really deserves to move up."
"Yes you do," Dev cocks his head to the side, "you know people. You understand pain and you understand how to overcome it. You don't have to make any big decisions, just try and show them support. Give them help, be the person they need. The person that you needed so you became it for yourself. Please Thea!"
She sighs and rubs a hand over her forehead, "ok. I will help you, I want to help you. These people deserve to live a good afterlife."
Dev steps close to her, ignoring the bustle of people around them going in and out of elevators. "Thank you. You have no idea how much this will help people. How much this will help me." He reaches his arms out and holds her in an emotional embrace. She wraps her arms around his neck as his hands hold her waist.
And they stay there hugging in the middle of the Six base. Theas kindness and light glowing like an angel, and Dev's constant darkness creeping away. For Thea, she spent all of her earth life trying to out run her pain, trying to help anyone going through the same. Now, she is with the people of the lower levels, giving them love and support. To her, this is still a life. It is not the after, the end or no longer alive. Thea is not dead, because she is doing what she is ment to do just in a new life. So, is there really even an after to life?
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