Nine Lives

San Diego. Truth of my youth. I hate it. Dead-beat job, dead-beat life. Why did I ever decide that going into accounting would be a good idea? Really it was the worst idea I’ve ever had. I’m twenty-three and regret every decision I’ve made up to this day of my life.
“Kellin, you coming out for a smoke?” my friend Jesse, also my colleague, asked.
“Yeah, sure. Be up in two.” I quickly typed in the rest of a client’s financial info into a spread sheet and saved it before grabbing my lighter off the side of the desk and running up the stairs to the roof.
The cool air hit my face and I breathed it in deep as I walked over to where Jesse and a few others stood talking and smoking. Jesse passed me a cigarette without a word and I sparked it up trying to engage in conversation, but couldn’t seem to. In all honesty, I didn’t get along with most of the people I worked with. The only person I ever seemed to talk to was Jesse but that’s only because he made it out like it was priority to get to know me. I didn’t mind, but if he was trying something he was out of luck. I didn’t swing that way and I had a girlfriend. Katelynne.
Speaking of, I should call her.
I dug my phone out of my blazer pocket and pressed speed-dial one for her number. It rang exactly two times before she picked up.
“Kells!” I could hear the smile in her voice.
“Hey Katie. How’s it going?” I wandered over the skirts of the roof and sat down, dangling my legs over the edge.
“Ugh, dragging. Remind me why I decided to go to Uni?”
“To get a degree in fashion?” I wrinkled my nose “Why does fashion need a degree? Seems pointless.”
Katelynne’s two years younger than me and in her third year of getting a fashion degree.
“Because it opens a lot of doors.” She replied “Babe I got to go, the bells going to go in a few.”
“Alright. I’ll see you at home. Love you.”
“Love you too. Bye.” She hung up and the line went dead.
I put my phone back into my pocket and looked up, taking a drag from my neglected cigarette which had burned halfway already.
“What’s got you down?” Jesse appeared next to me.
I shook my head “Nothing. I was just speaking to Katelynne is all.”
“Oh, how’s she?”
“Good, good.”
He nodded and patted my shoulder getting up. “I’ll see you inside.”
“Alright.” I heard his footsteps grow quieter and the door bang shut. I sighed and threw my cigarette off the edge not really caring for it right now.
“What the-“a pair of hands covered my eyes and my mouth. I squirmed slightly but remembered that I was at the fringe and didn’t want to fall off. I felt someone’s breath on my neck as I went ridged and started to breathe harder.
“Have fun.” I felt them place a hard foot on my lower back before the shoved me forwards. My balance was of course completely off and it took me a minute before I realised that the air hitting my face wasn’t just from the breeze, but the fact that I was falling.
Well it looked like I was fucked. I’m going to die before I even hit the floor. Hopefully I came back as a ghost and could haunt whoever did this to me. Who would want me dead?
I closed my eyes just before I hit the ground, letting the blackness consume me.

Beep…Beep…Beep…
I stirred slightly, flinching at the pain I could feel in my shoulder. I blinked my eyes opened and looked at my surroundings only to identify the place I was in as a hospital. The only thing I couldn’t place was the guy standing over me. His arms were crossed and he had shoulder length brown hair tucked under a beanie.
“Who the hell are you?” I croaked.
“Someone sent to help.”
“Sent to help? What?”
“The Higher Arches sent me.”
“High Arches? What the- do you even have a name?”
“Vic. Vic Fuentes.”
“Vic… Right.”
“Kellin look, I don’t have time for pleasant introdu-“
“How do you know my name?”
“I’ve read your life file. Not to mention it’s written on your chart and bracelet.” I looked down at my wrist to see the plastic band around it.
“What are you talking about? High Arches and life file?”
“Well in basic human words, I’m what you people would call, and I quote, a Guardian Angel.”
“How th-“
“Ah, Mr.Quinn. You’re awake I see.” A man with caramel blonde hair stepped into the room. He wore a white hospital coat.
“Dr.Lester.” he introduced himself “I see you met Vic. He’s the one that found you.” He picked up my chart and checked off a few things as he checked my monitor and vitals.
“Found me? What happened?”
“You fell. From a twenty story building.”
“I what?!”
“You’re very lucky to be alive Mr.Quinn, and with just a broken arm and a few cuts and bruises. A fall like that should have killed you.” Dr.Lester flipped through my chart once more before returning it to its place at the end of the bed, the dull beep of the monitor filling the silence. “A nurse should be round soon for another shot of morphine.”
“Thank you.”
He exited the room, closing the door behind him, sensing that me and Vic wanted privacy.
“Spit it out.” I sharply turned towards Vic and automatically regretted it as I hissed in pain.
“Maybe I should explain when you’re better…”
“No. Don’t avoid it. Tell me. Or am I too… human to get it?” For lack of better words
He sighed and sat in the plastic chair near the bed “Where do you want me to start?”
“How about why am I still alive and not on a slab in the morgue?”
“I saved you.”
“How?! It’s a little hard to save someone whose falling from a twenty story building.”
“You’ve been blessed. I’ve given you a – let’s call it a gift.”
“A gift?”
“Incarnation. The ability to come back to life, but only nine times.”
“So now I’m a cat?” I retorted.
“Hey, I don’t make up the rules.” Vic spat back.
“Okay.” I breathed in “I don’t get it. What’s the gag?”
“Death has a… an eye out for you. To have you dead. He knows you’ve got a good future lined up with the Higher Arches and he’s trying to prevent it.”
“Future-I…” I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head “I barely knew who JFK was and now you’re telling me about Death and High Arches and incarnation! For all I know, the next thing you’re going to tell me is that Lestat and Gandalf are real!”
Vic laughed “Gandalf? No. Lestat. In a way.”
“What?!”
“So called ‘vampires’ or Death Eaters don’t suck blood. They have agreements with Death Dealers to slowly suck the life out of people.”
“Oh my…” I put my hand to my forehead feeling faint.
“Look, let’s stop and wait until they discharge you and I can explain everything.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose “Mmhmm”
As if on cue, the door opened and a nurse walked in with a needle in hand. She injected the morphine in my I.V. stream and turned to Vic “I’m sorry Sir, visiting hours are over now.”
“And just in time.” I said under my breath.
Vic nodded politely in her direction “I’ll be back tomorrow.” He said, intended for me as he exited behind the nurse, leaving me alone.
It was late and I was too tired to try and process even a quarter of what Vic had told me already.
“I should be dead.” I whispered to myself as I closed my eyes concentrating on the constant beep of the monitor and I was asleep in a matter of minutes