Life After Death

Chapter 14

The woods was nice, in an eerie sort of way. The sun peaked at us over the horizon of tall trees; the sunset welcomed the evening with its red and gold hue of colors that bled together. The sun was sinking behind the trees giving the stark trees some color.

Roman and I tramped through the ferns and dirty clumps of snow with dejection. The air was cold and bit at the exposed skin of my cheeks. Roman didn't seem affected by the coldness that seeped straight through to the bone. The wind whipped his golden hair every which way until he had enough and raked a hand through his hair before pulling a hood over his head that I didn't know he had.

"It's getting dark-where did you say this cabin is?" Roman asked, looking around the trees, it all looked the same.

"I didn't say," I answer. "But, Val did say that we should follow the salt trail." I dig out a handful of salt and show it to him. The sun had disappeared leaving us in the glow of the moonbeams and brightly twinkling stars.

"Salt? You have a pocket full of salt?" We stood under the the heavy moon that was playing hide-and-seek with the thick, ominous gray clouds.

"Yeah; Val said it gets rid of the trolls," I mumbled. "We have to look for the salt trail." But Roman was already looking for the salt trail.

"This one?"

I turned to him and noticed the thick trail of white surrounding some area. It must be it. We passed over the threshold of salt and the darkness began enfold us. "I think this is it," I told him. "It must be in this periphery."

"I can hear them."

I followed Roman as he listened to the thoughts of Val and her friend "that was just like us." Roman called out to me and his strong hand closed around my wrist. There was a wooden cabin that was surrounded by tall bare trees.

"Thats it." Roman nodded his head toward the cabin. "There's a light on."

"Let's go." With that said I followed in foot with him, his hand still securely around my wrist.

Before I could knock the door was thrown open. Roman and I were faced with a pretty, slender girl with long dark, brown dreadlocks. She had green eyes that sparkled, but were hidden behind thick rimmed glasses. She had caramel-colored skin and freckles dotting from cheek-to-cheek.

"Oh, my-you must be Meredith Gray!" The girl said with so much enthusiasm it made me cringe slightly.

"Yeah, did Val tell you?" I laughed, entering the cabin dragging Roman in tow behind me.

"No; I'm psychic." The girl said, causing both Roman and I to look at her with wide eyes.

"She's not lying," Roman informed me in a hushed tone.

"What?" I hissed.

"Yeah, and I'm Kassima. I'm human, too. Since I'm psychic I can, um, see the dead." She pulled her dreadlocks into a ponytail with a hair tie, and she added, "Topher and Val are in the living room drinking hot cocoa. I'll make you two a cup." Kassima was about to leave when she turned to smile at Roman, she held out her hand and Roman shook it. "Nice to meet you, Roman Godfrey. Ohmygod! I am totally fangirling, right now. It just feels so weird to be shaking hands with Death."

Kassima tattered off to the kitchen leaving Roman and I in utter shock. I was standing there, gaping like a friggin' fish! Roman's last name was Godfrey. I looked at him but he wouldn't meet my eye line.

Without one word being said we entered the living room. The cabin was actually really nice. It had this sense of comfort and safety. There was dark mahogany furniture everywhere that contrasted well with the beige walls. There was a TV on playing How To Get Away With Murder and Val was so engrossed with Analise Keating reprimanding Max-or whatever his name is-to even notice our entrance. But the cute redheaded guy in swimtrunks did. He looked up and smiled.

"You must be Meredith," he said, "I'm Topher." And then he nudged Val in the ribs and she smiled when she saw me in the doorway.

"Merri!" She exclaimed, "Is this Roman?" I nodded, and she added, "He's hot! Why didn't you tell me!" Val jumped to her feet and hugged me, reluctantly, I hugged her back. When she retracted from my embrace she moved to Roman. "I am Valerie, don't worry I'm, like, thirteen. Just FYI."

"Nice to meet you," Roman said, accepting Val's hug.

"Topher this is Roman!" Val exclaimed.

"Yeah, I got that, Val." Topher rolled his eyes and nodded in greeting to Roman.

"I got hot cocoa!" Kassima said, enthusiastically, entering the living room with a tray of hot chocolate.

"Watch out-it probably has bourbon in it," Topher commented.

"His not wrong," Val added.

"I don't mind," Roman said, taking the cup.

"Neither do I." I sipped and I could taste the alcohol. "How can we drink this? Since we're, like, not alive?"

"Anything the dead touches slips into our realm," Val said, glancing over at Kassima. "Right?"

Kassima nodded. "Yeah. Anything you touch immediately slips into your realm. And the awesome thing about drinking and eating in this realm is that you can taste it-like you're alive." Kassima toned down the enthusiasm and leaned back. "Or at least that's what I heard."

She was right. Or whoever told Kassima that was right. I could taste the chocolate-y goodness merging into one with the strong alcohol. It slid down my throat, leaving its mark there. After another sip, I smiled lazily.

"And you can get drunk, so slow down." Val warned, curling up into a ball on the sofa, pulling her ugly jersey over her short legs up against her chest.

"Yeah, you would now," Topher commented. "Remember when you took those shots, thinking you couldn't get drunk and you threw up this weird type of powder shit?"

"No, I don't remember Topher!" Val said sarcastically. "Of course I do, you dipshit! I felt like I was dying all over again!" Val pouted.

"Well, now you know not to drink tequila and brandy, or smoking weed." Topher mumbled, sitting with his legs propped up on the mahogany coffee table.

Kassima rammed her foot into his shin-I was surprised when he winced in pain. "Don't put your feet on my coffee table, dimwit!"

"Sorry, jeez," Topher grumbled.

"So, what brought you hear?" Kassima asked Roman and I. "More especially, you," she pointed a black-painted finger nail at Roman, "the Angel of Death?"

"I'm on an hiatus, basically. I messed up, and they 'excused' me until farther notice." Roman spoke, I heard him mumble something about idiot "cocksuckers" and I couldnt help but giggle. I guessed the alcohol was really beginning to kick in.

Before I knew it I was entwined with Topher and we were talking animatesly about our before life after death. Topher told me he was a surfer from the west coast back in the late nineties-I sort of found that hard to believe since he was very pale and I couldn't imagine him spending hours under the sun catching some waves and giving the shaka sign to his surfer buddies. I told him my story, too. Topher listened to me.

And then somehow he brought up the inevitable: how he died. "I drowned," he said. "I won a championship, and that night I wanted to celebrate. I didn't hear the announcement over the radio about the oncoming storm. I vanished under the waves, and no one found my body. I doubt anyone will."

I gasped. "So you're stuck here?"

Topher gave me the saddest smile I had ever seen and nodded, saying, "Forever and always."

Even though I had no heart, I felt it break into a million pieces until the shards dug into me and I felt like I was internally bleeding. I hurt, so much. Not only for myself but more for Topher. He had these bright blue eyes. They had this spark that warmed me. I have never seen it in any dead person before-it made him special.

So I just had to say the next words, "Topher, I will help you. I don't know how. But I promise that I will." I hugged him, and fell asleep in the crook of his arm.

The alcohol knocked me out, and an hour or two later I heard the blood-curdling screams.