Death's Kat

Death had eaten lunch with me before disappearing to go to work. In a way I know what working he was talking about, dying people. Left alone in the room, my stomach starts to hurt. Thoughts of family rush into sight causing the pain to get worse. Tears flow down my face as sobs rip from my mouth.

“Everything is going to get better I promise.” Jett’s voice says. Turning to him I break down. “It’s alright.”

“How is it alright? I’ve been turned into some kind of thing and now I can never see my family.” The sobs come again. Even if my family doesn’t want to do much with me, I still miss them. Yes it is bad that my parents only care about Mark and what he does with his life. I am fine by that. As long as they still know I am there that’s good enough for me. Sad to say.

“You don’t know until you have tried. Yes it is sad that you can’t see your family anymore but I have a question for you. Why go back to them? All they do is treat you like dirt, never the way they should. Your parents always put your brother before you.”

“How do you know that?” Whirling around to face the dog boy with horror written across my face. “Have you been watching me?”

“Yes for some time now. The Lord wanted someone to watch out for you until the accident.”

“He really is Death isn’t he?” He knew that I was going to die any ways.

“Yes. I did not believe him the first time after waking up here, but over time I started too. If it helps you at all I will tell you how I ended up here.”

“Maybe,” a small smile forms.

We sit on the floor in front of the warm fire, letting the heat soak in.

“I was twenty-two when I died and yes I look the same. I lived with my parents, younger sister, and an older one. Amy is older than me by two year which is fine. But Emily, she is just a baby only ten at the time. I love Emily with all my heart and did everything for her. My parents would fight all the time yelling at each other and saying how much they hate being under the same roof. They would even beat each other once in a while. This would cause Emily to cry all the time; she thought that it was her fault. One night she overheard our parents saying nasty things about us kids. Mother said the only reason why she stayed in the house was so that she could rid Emily from her body. But ten years she stayed with us. After that Emily changed in ways that I didn’t like.” He looks off into the fire. “One day after college I came home to a scared Amy. She quickly told me that she couldn’t find Emily anywhere and all she found was a note from her. I had to reread the note a few times before my brain finally understood what it meant. She was going to kill herself that day. Amy had called our parents asking if there had seen Emily, but the answer was no. The four of us started searching the whole town from top to bottom with no luck.”

“Then that’s when it hit me, the woods. She had always wanted to go into the woods. Our house was at the end of town allowing us to be the closest to the woods. A few feet into the trees I found her. Leaning against a tree turning a sickly color, she was dead. Slowly like it was a dream Death came from the shadows with a grim look upon his face. ‘Such a shame to see one so young die.’ Those were the first words I heard him say. I had asked him what he wanted here and just got a smile. Death asked me if that was my sister and from his look he knew that it was. When he told me who he was I started begging him to bring her back. ‘Why should I?’ Was all that he asked me after the begging. So that she can live and be happy.”

“He said fine, that’s it nothing else. Within seconds Emily was gasping for air as her skin started to glow with life. Amy and our parents came rushes through the trees yelling out to her. The three of them got down on the ground around her crying and thanking God for leading them to her. No one saw or heard me screaming at them. Then all Death said to me was ‘a life for a life’ and we came here.”

Jett gazes into the fire still lost in the past.

“So he took your life and gave your sister back hers. But why?” I started playing with my new ears.

“To keep order in the way of death that is all he ever told me. But in a way I am happy that it happened that way.” He turns to me.

“You let her have a life,” I say. I can feel the pain for him.

“Yes I let her have a life and for that I am truly happy. Besides now I can do what I want,” a wide smile pulls at his lips. “Let’s just say that I am happy because now my parents don’t fight anymore. I do miss them more than everything about that life, but my death brought the family close together. I go watch them from time to time, just to see how everything is. But it finally hit me; if I keep watching them the harder it is to say good-bye to them.”

“Wait you can go see them?” Does this mean that I can do the same?

“Yea but it is something that the Lord doesn’t like me doing. Don’t tell him that I told you about that.” Worry forms quickly on his face.

“Don’t worry I won’t?”

“I know you don’t really want to hear this but I am glad you are here. Now I have someone to hang out with.”

“I’m guessing that person is me.”

“Yup,” the neon blue eyes shine from joy. “It was started to get lonely around here.”

For hours we sat and talked about nothing and everything. It felt nice to have someone that has already got through the shock of becoming something strange. The clock on the wall read nine o’clock.

“Well I shall go so you can get some sleep. See ya tomorrow.” The smile is the last thing that I see of Jett reminding me of the Cheshire cat from Alice in Wonderland. Alone in the room a chill travels up my spine as if eyes are on me. Turning to the couch I gasp at the sight before me, the Lord. He sits that smiling.

“Hello my little Kat. How are you tonight?”