The Story

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I'm the guardian at the door. I was given one task, and one alone: No one comes in... no matter what. This is my only task, and it's one that I'm good at. But this one day... this one particular day... was much different.

This day was the most important day to stand guard. Five people were in the room that I was guarding; they were the only ones allowed to be in there. They were my superiors, and they were the ones that gave me this task. This day was an important day, and they did not want to be disturbed. It was their request, and it was my job to fulfill that request by guarding the door and preventing others from entering.

The sun outside the window shined bright. The air felt lukewarm in temperature. I stood still, with my hands interlocked in front of me, watching the hands on the clock slowly tick. The seconds felt like minutes, and the minutes felt like hours. Nevertheless, I had a task to fulfill. I was going to keep guarding the door; this day was much too important to rest.

10:05 a.m.

The clock stopped ticking, frozen in time itself. The air felt cooler around me; so cold that i could see my own breath crystallize right before me. I felt uneasy about all of it. I quickly stood at attention, ready for whatever was coming my way. As I stood, a bright light shone through the windows, and a smooth fog began to form from underneath my feet and from the ceiling above.

A figure began to float down from the ceiling, landing on the foggy floor. It was a haunting, yet beautiful figure of a woman dressed in a white gown. Her golden hair was glistening to the point where it was nearly mistaken for white in color. Her pale skin brought out the dark grey pigments in her jewel eyes. As mesmerized as I was, I knew I still had a task to uphold.

"Who are you?!" I demanded.

"May I come in?" she asked.

Even her voice was mellifluous. It was calming, yet haunting; reassuring, yet disturbing. I had no idea what to feel, so I kept my posture and stayed focus on the task at hand.

"No one goes through this door!" I asserted. "I was given the task to let no one inside!"

The woman gently glided across the floor, inching closer towards me. As she neared me, the air got colder, and my vision seemed more blurry. While this happened, her face stayed calm and serene.

"Do you recognize me?" She whispered.

As I fought the blurry vision to gaze upon her face, I soon realized exactly who I was talking to. This was the woman that my superiors were waiting for. I've seen her so many times, and I knew what she was here for.

"I do," I answered. "Shall I get the door for you?"

"No," she responded. "You are doing well at your job. I know my way in."

She gently stepped at my side as I stood still in frozen shock. She then vanished through the wall next to me. Once she did, the air grew warmer again, and the blinding light dimmed down. My vision regained strength, and the fog quickly disappeared. Once all was done, the clock began ticking again, and I heard calm weeping on the other side of the door.

This was the day that my grandmother passed away.

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