To Meet the Reaper Early

That moment seemed to last for an eon. The moment where everything flashed before my eyes. I saw every up and down in my life. Every bump in the long, uncertain end. I could see the giant cut in the seemingly endless road coming closer now. It wouldn't be long before this journey through memory road had to come to a stop. It's closer now. Ever closer. Though as I near it, I see the moment just prior. The moment where this lifeless fate was chosen for me. I suppose it's only fair to start at the end, it's only fair to reflect on what tore me down and not fixate on what built me up. It may have only just happened seconds prior in real-time. But for me… it might as well have been centuries ago by now.

The chilly, crisp air of a cold December night in New York square nipped at the small segments of exposed skin I had left. It was a painful tingle of a sensation. Like little critters were biting at every inch of the milky skin I had woefully ignored in my haste to leave this morning. A mistake I promised myself I'd never make again, but I knew it'd only be a matter of time before this scenario played out once more. That was almost as objective a fact as gravity itself. Or at least, it would have been. My glasses had it worse though. The poor lenses fog up with each icy cold breath I took, the steam like puff of hot breath bellowing up into them, worsening the situation to new heights of irritation. Figuring it was a pointless endeavor to continue, I carefully removed them from their perch upon my nose and ears, folding them before slipping them into my coat's upper front pocket. They slipped in nice and snuggly, just where they ought to be in this weather. Not that they would make much of a difference with the icy flakes that would soon begin to fall.

Though the world was blurrier than before, I knew these streets better than my own home… well, apartment. Same difference. Soon I'm navigating through the sparse crowd. It may be New York, but the streets I take are the ones tourists don't even know go somewhere. It's taken over twelve years, but one could say I've mastered the skill of avoiding the ever-existing crowds that this city attracts. Not that this ended up mattering. I had just a block to go now, planning on surprising my girlfriend with an early Christmas present when it happened.

I heard the squealing of tires along with the loud crunching of fresh snow being compacted. Then, I was sent hurtling through the air. My life was over halfway through the quick trip through the air.

All of which brings us back to where I am now. The cut off line to my life. It was mere inches away, metaphorically of course. It wasn't long now before my fleeting conscious flapped its mental wings once more, and then dropped from the sky into the endless, silent void. I can feel the familiar icy feeling, this time it's all consuming…

Suddenly there's nothing but darkness. Yet my mind remains. In the distance, a man stands, his features shrouded in a veil of foggy darkness. A checkboard in hand, he sighs and walks towards me. Within the blink of an eye, he seemed to just manifest before me. Then he spoke a single sentence in a cold, raspy voice riddled with disappointment. "You're early" How to even begin unpacking that single sentence escaped my mind. For what was I early to? Who was this man? What even was this land of darkness? Those are answers I shall not receive however as the man faded off into the distance with a faint smile and one last sentence. "Make sure to arrive on time next time, Mr. Smith."

With that, the world fell into motion. The darkness seemed to move, or was I the one moving? It was an impossible task to tell them apart as the sensation of both falling and floating rushed throughout my body. Faster, higher. Faster, higher. I fell and rose simultaneously at ever-increasing speeds until suddenly… I saw white, gray, black. So many colors that seemed so dull only this morning, yet now seemed so beautiful. It was the city I knew so very well, yet it felt like an eternity has passed since I last set eyes upon her. In the distant below was my body. Faster I fell, or maybe higher the city rose? The distinction doesn't matter as I finally collide with my body, still meters in the air and falling. Then, the world resumes. I fly off into a pile of fluffy white snow. Sure I had some bruises, but I was better than ever. For the first time in a long time, the world was clear and beautiful like never before.

The driver ran out to check on me, but all I could do was thank him profusely before running off to find my girlfriend. I had to make the most of the long path I saw laid out before me. I cannot take any side roads, and I cannot blindly trudge along in hopes of fate guiding me towards a happy ending. It's time for me to live, that is what my brief death taught me.