Runnin' with the Devil

Don't Fear the Reaper

[1169 words]
~
"What's wrong?"

"Nothing it's just—it's nothing, I don't know why I did that."

You laughed it off and moved back to kiss him again. That odd sensation didn't go away. It seemed to get stronger the longer you kissed him. Finally, after a few more moments of kissing him, you broke it again. You relaxed back into your original position and allowed your confused expression to fade.

"Do you wanna try to go to sleep?"

"Not yet."

"Okay. What can I do to entertain that pretty little mind of yours in the meantime?"

You laughed at his comment and rolled your eyes. Then you thought for a moment. You shifted over onto your back, keeping your head laid on his arm. The hand on your hip slid away and grabbed one of yours gently. You pressed your clasped hands to your chest and he began running his thumb along the top of your hand.

"Why don't we just go back and forth asking questions until we get sick of hearing each other's voices?"

"Baby bat, that would take me decades."

"Don't try to flatter me."

"It's true."

"Sure it is."

Silence fell between the two of you for a moment. Eddie then cleared his throat and let out a light sigh as if preparing questions in his head. You took this moment to do the same. One question began aching at the back of your head as you turned your head to look at him.

"Okay, I'll start. I'll keep it simple. What's your favorite movie?"

"Have you ever seen The Shining?"

"I haven't seen the movie, no, but I have read the book."

"Well we should watch it sometime."

"Deal."

~

You had been asking questions back and forth for about an hour and you were starting to nod off. You were fighting to stay awake and it was very apparent. As you continued, each question strayed deeper and deeper into more thought provoking ones. It had finally gotten to a point where you weren't able to give fully thought-out answers but you were still trying even in your tired state. Eddie was practically carrying the entire conversation but he didn't seem to mind it.

"Alright, here's one, do you know what soul bindings are?"

"Like...marriage?"

"Close."

"So like...soulmates?"

"Kind of. They're like..."

Eddie's voice trailed off as your eyes slowly shut and drifted into sleep once more. Seemingly immediately, a loud, unfamiliar voice echoed in the darkness behind your eyes.

"What do you think happens after death?"

The voice was dark, gentle, yet dark. Your vision fell into that of a blurred concrete cell with rusted metal bars. You saw a few blurry lights illuminating what you believed to be a hallway. A cloaked looking figure stood on the other side of the bars. As your vision cleared, you could see the lanterns darting the hallway and the figure reaching out an arm to you. You shot up from the cold ground and walked toward the figure.

"Who are you?"

The words flew from your mouth and you knew you had no control over them. You hardly had control of your body for the moment.

"Who or what I am is not what matters."

"Why am I here?"

"So full of questions yet you have disregarded my own."

The figure's arm retreated back to its side as it spoke. You then stepped closer to the bars, grabbing onto the cold, rusted metal. You attempted to find the figure's face but the lighting wouldn't allow it.

"I suppose it is foolish of me to ask such a question to a human."

"A human? Are you not—"

You were interrupted by the figure laughing. You recognized it as the laugh Eddie had given in your dream but without any trace of Eddie's voice. It sounded like the dark presence that lingered in his laugh before, just isolated.

"Where are my manners? I suppose I should give you something to call me. You may refer to me as...The Reaper."

"The Reaper? So you're...death?"

"Not at all. That is simply one of my many aliases. You will find my true identity...in time...but we haven't much time for that now."

"Why am I here? What do you want from me?"

"Again with the questions. My dear, you must learn to listen before asking such foolish things."

Suddenly, the scenery changed. The bars fell from your grip and the familiar, chilling scene of your red lit room appeared before you. The figure was no where in sight...you were alone, or so it seemed. The same candle circle was now laid out in the middle of the room, yet none of the candles were lit. You knelt down just out side of the circle and leaned over to grab the candle in the center. As you were reaching out to it, it disappeared.

"That is not what you should be concerned about, my dear. Turn around."

You quickly stood up and turned as the voice commanded you to and a strange sight befell you. Half of your room was gone and replaced with half of Eddie's. You quickly looked back behind you. The other half of your room was still there. Then the sound of a drawer slowly opening caught your attention. Small noises came from the drawer, like that of glasses tapping against each other. You walked over to the drawer and saw multiple small, corked, and labeled jars set inside.

"What is this?"

The laugh of the figure appeared again but this time it came from behind you. You quickly spun around and saw the figure holding one of the jars. You stepped closer to the figure, keeping your eyes fixed to the jar, attempting to read the label placed on the cork.

"How sweet."

The figure commented before disappearing from your view. The jar stayed behind and fell to the floor. Strangely, it didn't shatter. You quickly knelt down and picked it up. You turned it upright to read the label but it was gone. The room the disappeared and you were left in darkness. You attempted to study the contents of the jar but you couldn't make out what anything in it could be.

"Why are you showing me this?"

"Now you're asking the right question. Unfortunately for you, you will not be receiving the answer quite yet. You're a smart one though, you'll figure it out."

"What is all of this supposed to mean?"

You were met with silence. You dropped the jar and looked upward into more darkness.

"Hello?"

You called out and were still met with silence. A small flicking noise echoed in the distance and you snapped your head back down. A small flame appeared a little ways in front of you. Another small flicking noise and another small flame appeared next to it. You stepped closer and the flames grew. The tips of the flames connected for a moment before you were plunged back into complete darkness.