The Soul Catcher (Harry Styles)

10 - A Day Off

"It is love, not reason, that is stronger than death."

― Thomas Mann, The Magic Mountain

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My trip back to Shimmerland felt worse and longer than stepping on glass or running for so long that your lungs felt like they were about to burst and your throat ached and desperately begged for water.

It was worse than catching your girlfriend cheating on you - with your best friend.

It felt longer than waiting for class to end.

On and on it went. These fresh memories I had made on earth kept replaying in my head as if someone had pressed "repeat."

I would never forget the sad look on my mum's face. My sister basically had her heart in her eyes; it was broken.

We have always been close. I knew how they felt. After all, I lost them, too.

I expected for someone to wait for me to come back, but once I crossed the bridge back to Shimmerland, no one stood there.

Looking around in confusion, I once again regarded the variety of flowers. How could I have thought they were beautiful?

The multicoloured fields just made me want to purge. The abyss in front of me only reflected my endless sadness.

I was alone. I had no friends, I had no family. Not even my grandparents were detectable.

Waiting for my next assignment was the only thing I could do.

But I didn't want to have another assignment. I needed some time off.

A beer, that was another thing I needed.

With a tasty beer in mind, I settled off to find some kind of bar. It was ridiculous how everyone pretended to live a true life.

In their sweet little world, they acted like everything was normal and nothing could harm them.

Well, surprise; we were all dead.

I scolded myself for my negative thoughts but in the end, I couldn't help it.

Making my way downtown, I looked left and right for anything that came even remotely close a bar.

One upside to Shimmerland was the time zone. Or rather, the missing one. This way, it was never too early nor too late for a beer.

After walking around aimlessly for a bit, I found a promising sign.

"Sugar Bar." Well, it was as promising as it could get in Shimmerland.

The outside looked like a bar in one of these old western movies with cowboys and beggars.

Unsurprisingly, the inside was just the same. It could have been taken right out of Pitbull's Timber music video.

The only difference was normal dressed people framing the bar and the tables on the floor.

I walked over to the bartender. The young woman eyed me up and down before she gifted me with a smile.

"What can I do for you?" She asked, flirtingly throwing her hair over one shoulder.

"A lot of things," I answered, winking at her, "but for now I'd only like a beer."

She followed my request, grabbed a huge beer glass and filled it with the yellowish liquid.

"Just let me know when you need something else." Her eyes were covered heavily with mascara and eyeliner.