Life after Death: The Afterlife of Hezekiah Chamblee

Chapter Thirty-Five: Separation

Hezekiah's POV

Back in the Nexus, Winterhaven...

"Thorn, what a surprise," I said as Chance, Landon, and I came from an afternoon of skiing lessons to see my designated therapist waiting for us. "What brings you by?"

The handsome seraphim smiled widely, not feeling cold despite wearing a pastel-colored outfit that could be fitting for a visit in Pacifica Vista. "Figured that I come and stop by to check in on you," he replied. "That, and I wanted to see if you're down for a therapy session."

"Well, come on in," Landon replied as he led us to his chalet-themed home. "I'll put on some cocoa and gather some snack for all of us to share."

"Capital idea," Chance commented as he and I followed our host and the seraphim up the walk.

Since arriving in Winterhaven, Chance and I took every opportunity to enjoy the winter-themed neighborhood and had lots of moments that we would have never enjoyed back on Earth: visiting various shops to grab some gifts for our friends, enjoyed a couple of parties held by Landon's friends (all of them insisting that I come back and attend some future events after everything blew over), and even took in the wildlife with a guided tour from a cherubim. Lucifer stopped by alongside the arch-demons, none of them having enough experience to practice skating while God and the archangels took to snowboarding as if they were born to be athletes. I guess that happens when one brother is used to the heat while the other is used to the cold since they respectively ruled hell and heaven.

Of course, we made sure to keep on guard when it came to Rosalia Domingue since no one sure what she was planning to do next. Since learning about her past and what she might be capable of, there was no guarantee that Chance and I were truly safe. We couldn't take any risks until the Convergence was completed, so we had to stay in Winterhaven.

After Chance and I changed into some comfortable clothes and met with Landon and Thorn in the living room, we sat down as a roaring fire burned in the fireplace while we enjoyed cups of hot cocoa and paninis. "So, Hezekiah, I want to discuss the moment when you and Chance were fully kept separated from each other by the headmistress of your school and your family," Thorn said, sitting back in his chair. "Do you remember that day?"

I inhaled sharply before Chance's gentle hand caressed my upper back. "I do, and I might as well talk about it now," I replied. "As you know, Thorn, neither my parents, Chance's, nor anyone at school took too kindly of  a bookworm like me being friends with a jock like Chance over here. In everyone's mind, people should stick to their own cliques while loners like myself have to fend for themselves. The day that we met surprised me since I knew that I had little hopes of making any established friendships with everyone since they all thought I was too much of a mouse. When Chance came, it surprised me."

Chance nodded. "I felt like 'Kiah needed someone to talk to other than those teachers who saw him as a perfect guinea pig," he commented. "That, and something drew me to him like a moth to a flame. He had this personality that seemed hidden thanks to everyone who saw him as old furniture. I introduced myself to him and we clicked right away. And like he said, our families and the entire student body and faculty saw that as a threat to their beliefs. They did everything to keep us apart, but I still sat with him during lunch every chance that I get right until that day."

"It was when the second semester of our sophomore year when it happened," I told the therapist as he was writing his notes down on his notepad. "I had just finished my quiz when I was called to Headmistress Berkmar's office for an early lunch..."

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FLASHBACK (The Separation)...

"Mom, Dad, what are you guys doing here?" I asked uneasily upon my arrival at Headmistress Berkmar's office to find my parents and the principal waiting for me. "What's going on?"