Immortal

"Darsy, what are you talking about? We didn't!" Mickey pretended to pout. "And even if we did, we had a lot of fun. Come on, Darsy. Don't be stubborn. Let's go to the party. When will we have another chance to party? Later on we'll have classes, work, and everything else."

"No, don't even coax me into that! By the way, have you found some job?" I sat at the table and made a sip of hot coffee.

"Oh! Just thinking about work makes me feel tired!" my friend overacted with her comic grimace, put the back of her hand to the forehead, and closed her eyes. The only thing left to be done was to roll my eyes in affirmation of her poor acting. "And how was your interview?"

"I'm still waiting for the results. They promised to call next week. There's another interview today. I told you about it…"

"Is that the cashier's position at the supermarket?" Rosy asked.

"Yes," I nodded, putting pancakes into my mouth, a specialty of Jackson's. He prepared them every Saturday for six years in a row.

Mickey snorted. It was no surprise; she was from a very wealthy family and didn't have to work for life, and their maid always went for groceries for them. So she did not need to go to places where I was supposed to work. Once Mickey had to go to the supermarket herself… After this, she was visiting a psychoanalyst for three months because of the shock. The only shopping she did not faint from and even enjoyed was exploring the clothing boutiques. But even there she behaved like a real princess, ignoring and humiliating the sellers as if they were plague-stricken. Rosy was absolutely obsessed with Mickey. They were inseparable since the age of five, and even their houses were nearby. That's why they behaved almost the same way as if they were not friends but sisters.

We became friends five years ago when I joined the team of cheerleaders. In order to fit in at a prestigious college, I had to pretend to be another person for a long time, imitate all these glamorous ladies and act as if I was rolling in money when in fact I was not. In the end, everything was revealed, but Mickey and Rosy forgave me, and we continued to be friends, despite the fact that I was not from their circle. I admired these two daredevils like crazy, but oftentimes I was the one to get backfired by their tricks, just like it happened the last time.

I quickly finished the first cup of coffee, and I needed an extra one of the invigorating drink. Thank god there was enough coffee in the coffee maker for another cup. But before reaching it, all of a sudden the world froze again. I got surprised and dropped the cup. The image of a teenager emerged before my eyes and then I felt the lingering pain in my arm. The guy committed suicide, but the strange thing was that it was not the pain in his arm but in his heart. I felt it as if it was mine. He was betrayed. For a brief moment, I myself wanted to end the life.

It was not a mere betrayal of a girlfriend. His parents abandoned him because of one strange incident with the joint. It was not even his weed. They recklessly accused their son and left to serve the punishment instead of trying to figure things out and help him to get out of prison. The only thing they bothered to do was to pay the judge to keep it all a secret. His father was a well-known lawyer in Boston, and publicity could damage his reputation. His mother was comforted in the arms of a young lover. It was shocking how cynical people could be and how pure was the guy with his soul and spirits, even having such parents.

He was translucent. But this time I didn't get scared, nor I thought it was a joke of my friends. I knew it was a soul to be guided and that it would not rest until the Balance was restored and the Force was returned to the new Carrier.

Looking at the guy, who desperately was in need of peace, I realized how important this job was.

I used to think there was nothing after death. There was only emptiness. But it turned out that everything was just starting after death. The soul was eternal, as well as its suffering. Only Charon could stop the aimless wandering. This guy needed Charon this very moment, but, unfortunately, Charon did not bother much about this.

"Hi!" he spoke sadly. "I knew I'd be met. Are you taking me somewhere now?"

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that. I'd love to, though it's impossible any time soon. But as soon as there is a chance, I'll come back for you and take you to the other side. I promise!" I thought that a promise that would be kept was important to the guy right now.

"All right," he shrugged. "Do I have to wander the Earth until then?"

"Yes. I'll find you."

He smiled sadly and disappeared. Everything unfroze again. I heard the cheerful chatter of my friends and Jackson's witty answers. But all I could feel was bitterness and awkwardness. I was worried that I could not help every soul appearing in front of me. I had no answers and no suitable words because I knew nothing and could not convince them that soon everything would be fine and they would find peace. It was not my fault but only my duty, all other thoughts and desires were secondary. Perhaps, Eugene was wrong about my role. I did not feel myself the way I used to. I was changing, and it was faster than I expected. My priorities and feelings were changing. I felt the Force inside me better and better with every hour, as if it was becoming a part of me, not just a guest. This world was becoming less real than the one I was in just a few hours ago.

"Hey! Are you ok?" Jackson put his hand on my shoulder. I listened to my feelings and sighed with relief. His touch, as usually, seemed warm, dear, and delicate.

"Yeah! I'm still sleepy," I smiled and bent down to gather the shards of the broken cup. "Ow!" one of the fragments was too sharp and cut my palm until it bled. A few crimson drops fell on the tile.

"You need to wash it immediately!" Jackson began to fuss.

"It's okay! Leave it! It's just a little scratch!", but Jackson ignored me and stubbornly held my hand under the flowing water.

"I'll bring bandages!" Jackson said and rushed to the bedroom.

"No, it's all right!" I shouted, but nobody was listening.

As soon as I pulled my hand out of the water, I saw that there was no trace of a cut on it. In fact, that's what I expected, and that's why I convinced Jackson that everything was fine. But now I had to explain this miraculous healing, given the fact that the cut was bleeding just a few seconds ago, and now there's no trace of the incident.

I could not think of anything else but cutting my hand once again right before Jackson took the antiseptic to disinfect the wound. But the new cut healed right in front of my eyes, my hands were shaking, and my disturbed boyfriend was even more worried and did not notice anything until the bandage was applied.

By that time, Rosy was lying in a subconscious state because she could not stand the sight and smell of blood. It seemed to me completely illogical that she went to the medical faculty having such a phobia. Mickey vigorously fa

"And who's interviewing on Saturdays?" Jackson murmured since he would love to spend the day otherwise rather than to drive across half of the city for a five-minute interview at the local supermarket.

"I didn't have a chance to choose, because my classes start on Monday, and yesterday I had the interview in the INC company. I had no choice but agree for an interview on Saturday," I shrugged and hugged Jackson.