Being Mortal For Once

The Eyes of a Mortal

I was on my travels on a gloomy morning when the sun had just cracked open like an egg revealing its warm nature. The egg-white mist settled on the shell of the mountains when all of a sudden, I heard a tear drop.

I was intrigued because tears usually have a common pattern. There are different ways tears drop: a single tear, two small drops and lastly, a continuous flow of heavy tears, each due to different scenarios. Everyone has a distinct tear, like a finger print therefore; you can count how many tears each individual has cried. The one I heard just moments ago was from one person alone, a single tear drop but with the consistency of two.

"This is not possible."

As I ventured further, curious as to what or who defied the commonality of crying, I stumbled upon a young girl, Shauna Scarlet. She was 16 years, two months, 11 days, eight hours, 24 minutes and 37 seconds old from the time I encountered her.

She tied her chocolate hair neatly in a bun leaving two strands that ran down her jaw-line. Adorned with a fuchsia rose and tainted with blush lipstick, her beauty was beyond any I've seen, even in my time. Her right harlequin eye glistened as the light refracted from her tear droplets but the left eye was deterred due to something...

Absorbing the moment, I watched from above as Shauna played her keyboard; each note soothing the mind and soul. I'm usually quite impatient and skip everything to the part I wanted to watch which was when she would sing. Despite my eagerness to hear her voice, I waited, as all mortals should. At long last, she began.

"Old Mr. Time makes the clocks tick, Old Mr. Time, never gets sick." "He has with him, everything he needs, is he ambitious? Oh yes indeed." A second tear trickled down...

I grasped at her soul, trying to solve why she cries out of one eye instead of the usual two. I pulled it apart, expanding the memories to broaden my view. I dug deeper, trying to piece the puzzle but no matter how well I played my cards, I couldn't achieve the royal flush I so desperately wanted. Instead, I had to bluff; it was a long shot but then, I finally found it.

She hurt her eye a while back when she was a toddler which disabled her from crying from both eyes. Solving one mystery, I was now on the hunt for my next. I implanted a character into her mind by the name of Emit Time who will be her best friend. I descended down into the avatar Emit Time and resumed the time stream where I took a seat beside her. The next question I wanted to know was why she directed her anger towards me.

"Because Old Mr. Time takes away all existence; just close your eyes, it's not worth the resistance," Shauna sobbed.

"Are you okay Shauna?" I asked.

"Oh, Emit ... what are you doing here?" she smiled as she tried to cover for her tears.

"Why are you mad at time?" I questioned in curiosity.

"I'm not mad at time, I'm disappointed that he would take my parents away from me," Shauna replied, "If it weren't for time, I'd still have my parents here, I'd still be able to smile."

"I hate people dying, I hate it how it takes our memories, every single one," Shauna wept.

"Time results in death. Death is horrible and brings pain and misery to us all. Accepting death is hard, I know, we've all been there. We live neither to die nor to live, but to remember. Remembering is what keeps us alive; it is our fuel to live every day. Without this ability, could you imagine a world with no family and friends?" I explained, "Remembering them is what matters most."

Removing myself by erasing Emit from her mind, I showed Shauna all her memorable moments with her friends but most importantly, her parents. Her melancholic expression turned into a smile and then into a giggle. It was a little contagious as I caught it as well. Shauna has given up entirely on life, I am merely enlightening her.

"I have severely wounded this vulnerable girl and cannot do anymore to please her." Joyously, she cried from both eyes as she once did. Always Remember ... Shauna Scarlet.