Harsh Realm

Part 5

“You better trust that voice in your head, that your world is not what it seems.” –Up 2 U, Walk The Moon

Part 5

        I jumped up from my position on the floor of the kitchen and ran my hands through my hair furiously, about to pull the hair out from how hard I was pulling. I refused to believe what just happened, and tried desperately to come up with possibilities to explain it.

        I let out an exasperated sigh, and felt like I was about to cry. There was no logical explanation. I couldn’t believe it. I put both of my hands behind my neck and interlocked them as I bent down to try to slow my breathing.

        After multiple deep breaths I gathered the courage to look at Sage. She was still sitting at the breakfast bar staring at me wide eyed, too shocked to say anything.

        “Does that –” I paused, pointing helplessly at the floor where I’d just appeared moments ago.  “Does that mean I’m –” I stopped again, feeling like I might lose it if I said the word out loud.

        “Dead?” She finished.

        “Yeah,” I whispered.

        She sighed, looked away, and then stared right into my eyes. I gazed back into hers, searching for any sign that I was mistaken, that I had just jumped to conclusions.

        “You weren’t supposed to find out like that.”

        I gaped at her in amazement. Never in my life had I felt such a big slap in the face as I did when she said that to me. I felt like she'd been betraying me all of that time, tricking me, toying with me.

        “You knew?” I asked venomously.

      Sage looked taken aback by the rage that spewed from my vocal chords at her subtle confession. She hadn’t expected me to react this way. But she had been hiding the fact that I was dead for I don’t know how long. Maybe she’d known since the moment she showed up. That thought alone only served to fuel my fire.

        “I can’t believe this!” I yelled, making her jump slightly.

        I left the kitchen because being in there was starting to make me nauseous. Sage followed right behind me down the hall and then through the foyer as I entered into the living room.

        “Nate,” She tried to reason.

        “No! How could you keep this from me?” I inquired, betrayal evident in my voice, turning around to face her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

     She scoffed and tried to contain the anger that was visibly radiating from her before she answered. It didn’t work.

        “Like you would have believed me!” Sage shouted.

        “What?”

        “Nate, you didn’t believe me when I told you I was dead,” She explained, “There’s no way in hell you would have believed me if I told you that you are too!”

        I opened my mouth to speak, but then shut it, completely losing my train of thought.

        “Don’t deny it, either. You know I’m right. You wouldn’t have believed me. That’s why I didn’t tell you.”

        “You’re right,” I confessed.

        She smiled smugly at my confession as I purposely fell backwards onto the couch, sinking into it. I was dead. But I felt normal… I still felt alive. My heart was beating in my chest, and my blood was running through my veins. So what was different?