Hey dPosse!
Look, I know that this idea has been done to death entirely, but when I read this prompt I really enjoyed thinking about it. Also this might be a little bit longer than usual, because I’m really getting into this.
The prompt issss: “You’ve died and gone to heaven, only it’s nothing like you’ve imagined. You’re greeted by a guide who gives you a tour and explains what you can expect out of the afterlife. There’s one question you’ve been dying to know and, at the end of the tour, you decide to ask.”
I’m slumped over in my car when I come to, my forehead resting on the deflated airbag slung over the steering wheel. I lift my head the tiniest bit, surveying the damage all around me: a smashed windshield that scattered powdery glass everywhere, my seat belt twisted and stretched across my chest at an uncomfortable angle, and various pieces of the front of my car littered across the roadway in front of me. And a bit of the guardrail. Oh dear. It all comes back to me now, how I had been cruising along this twisty back road, and screeching around the corners like it was my job. On one particularly sharp corner, one known for its frequency of hosting bad accidents. And here I am, sitting in my car accordion-smashed into the guardrail. It’s a shame really, that I had to die in the same way so many other irresponsible drivers had.
I had died. I’m dead?? I don’t know how I know that I’m dead, but I thought the words just now as easily as I’d think “I am blonde” or “I have blue eyes”. ”I am dead”.
I instantly look down at myself and see all of the blood droplets peppering the dashboard, I touch my forehead and feel the wet stickiness of more blood in my hair. I hurry to unbuckle my seat belt, and push the remnants of the car door away, stumbling out of the seat onto pavement littered with debris. This very action confuses me. How am I walking-or stumbling, rather- if I’m dead? I turn around and look back at my car. Ah. That’s how. A woman sits at the wheel of the car, slumped over the steering wheel and covered with glass shards, blond hair wet with blood eclipsing her face. My face. Oddly enough, despite the fact that I’m looking at my own dead body lying in my car, I’m really not all that fazed. Things are weird that way sometimes.
All of a sudden, I see the trees to my right light up gold. I recognize that gold as the color of headlights and realize a car is coming around the corner, and I’m standing in the middle of the road! What happens now? Can you die twice?? The headlights are now around the corner and I shut my eyes tight and throw my hands up over my face. But I never feel an impact. And when I open my eyes again, I’m in a very small room, with gray walls and a gray floor and a gray ceiling and a little white door.
“Welcome, ” A voice to my left says. I turn quickly to find the speaker, but there’s no one in sight. My face must reflect my confusion, as the voice continues to speak.
“Oh, gosh, I’m sorry! I completely forgot that newcomers’ eyes aren’t quite up to par. Is this a little bit better?” As I continue to stare in the direction of the invisible speaker, a vague outline of a tall, thin man appeared, a slightly darker gray in color than the surrounding area. I’m speechless, and still awful confused. What is this guy, some sort of human chameleon? The man-or lack thereof- doesn’t seem to be at all put off by my lack of response, as he carries on speaking most casually.
“Well, my dear, my name is Evan, and I’ll be giving you your brief introductory tour of heaven this evening! Yes, I know what you’re thinking: ‘I’m dead, this is terrible, I had so much to live for, I was so young, what about my family?’ Well, try not to worry just now. We all have those questions at first, and answers will come, with time. Now follow me.” I’m still befuddled as can be, but I do my best to follow this vague outline of a person as he pushes through the white door. We end up what I assume would be outdoors, but everything looks all funny. Black and white and gray everywhere, not a color in sight. And not another person in sight. I’m looking at what seems to be a generic main street, downtown kind of area in your average small town. I see a sign for a breakfast place, a laundromat, convenience store, bank, all empty. Very, very quiet. I want to ask Evan about it, but I can’t seem to find my voice. Despite this, Evan still seems to understand my concern.
“Colors will come,” He tells me. ”Your voice will too. ” He mentions nothing about the lack of company, and I don’t push the issue. Well, I can’t anyway. Evan leads me down the sidewalk, walking slowly but with a definite purpose. Finally he stops in front of a library. It, like everything else, is in various shades of black, white, and gray, and is empty aside from shelves and shelves of books, and a few comfy chairs, from what I can see from the windows. ”Here’s where you’ll be spending most of your time,” Evan informs me. ”All of the newcomers do. A little solitude and a lot of knowledge can go a long way in helping someone come to peace. I know that you’ll like it.” I have to agree with Evan on this one. It looks full of incredible literature, and I don’t see a nosy librarian in sight. I guess things are looking up in heaven, after all. Evan assures me that there will be plenty of time to read after my tour, and leads me down the sidewalk some more, until suddenly the small down dissipates into gray nothingness in the corners of my vision, and Evan and I are now standing on a gray beach.
“We bring souls here to calm them at first,” Evan informs me. ”This is when they usually start to panic. Are you afraid at all, young one?” I nod a little. I am afraid. It’s so…different here. I’m worried. I don’t want this to be all there is. Evan seems to hear me, and assures me that it is not. I lay down on my side in the sand and stare out at the waves. I am tired; I just want to sleep.
“You shall sleep. The first sleep in heaven is as short as a minute, and as long as an eternity. It is during this sleep that you will learn, and so will we. We will learn to make our heaven your heaven.” I nod, suddenly very relieved, and snuggle into the sand a little, until I finally fall asleep.
Ok guys so I know I haven’t finished the prompt yet, but I’m running out of time tonight and I want to leave you with something, so prompt shenanigans (8) 2.0 will be coming soon!
As always, like and comment it up!
danielle
