The Day Death Died

The Day Death Died - Chapter 37

Restore their lives and remain a reaper forever. Or regain my mortality and leave them behind.

Edwin stood beside me, silent for the first time since this whole nightmare had begun. I could feel his tension, the weight of the decision pressing on him just as heavily as it pressed on me. He didn't look at me. His gaze was fixed on the students, his jaw tight, his hands gripping his scythe as though it might anchor him to the ground.

"I..." I began, my voice trembling. The words caught in my throat, the enormity of what I was about to do twisting inside me like a knife.

Edwin finally turned, his crimson eyes locking onto mine. "Maddison, you can't let this opportunity go by. You have the chance to be human again."

I flinched at the raw emotion in his voice. He was never one to plead or beg. But there was something desperate in his expression now, something vulnerable that cut me deeper than anything else could have.

"This is my choice," I whispered, swallowing hard, trying to steady myself. "It has to be."

"No, it doesn't." His voice was harsh, almost angry, but I knew it wasn't aimed at me. "You don't owe anyone anything. You didn't ask for this, Maddison. You didn't ask to become a reaper, and you sure as hell didn't ask for the Keres to attack. You deserve to live your life. You deserve to be mortal again."

"I did ask for this," I said quietly, stepping closer to him, my heart heavy but certain. "When I died, when I accepted this scythe, I knew what I was giving up. I knew it came with a price. And now... this is part of that price. I kind of like what we do now. You know? I actually have a purpose now."

His eyes flashed with frustration, his grip tightening on his weapon. "You can't tell me that you want this. To be a reaper forever? For what, Maddison? For them?" He gestured to the fallen students, his voice rising. "Do you think any of them would give up the chance to be alive again if given it?"

I opened my mouth, but the words wouldn't come. He was right, in a way. I hadn't known all of these kids very well. Not really. I might have passed them in the hallways once, but they were just faces, part of the background of my old life. But now... they were more than that. They were innocent lives, cut short by something they never saw coming. They had futures ahead of them, dreams, families. They didn't deserve to die. And no matter what their decision would have been if they were alive, that didn't matter.

But it wasn't just about them. I knew that now. My decision was bigger than just saving these students. It was about accepting who I was—who I had become.

"I did know them. Well, I knew most of them," I said softly, looking down at my hands, my fingers tracing the cold steel of my scythe. "But that's not why I'm doing this."

Edwin's eyes narrowed. "Then why?"

I took a deep breath, feeling the familiar weight of my scythe in my hand, the cold certainty of my decision settling over me. "Because this is who I am now. A reaper. It's what I've become. I can't turn my back on that just because Zeus is offering me a way out."

"You don't have to be a reaper, Maddison," Edwin argued, his voice raw. "You can go back. You can live. You can be Maddison again. You don't have to keep doing this."

I shook my head slowly, meeting his gaze. "It's not just about being a reaper. It's about what I've learned from being one. I thought, for a long time, that being alive—being human—was all that mattered. I thought... I thought that maybe if I could just go back, I could fix things. That maybe Alex—" I faltered, my throat tightening as I said his name.

Edwin's face darkened at the mention of Alex. I knew he hated hearing about him, the boy I had loved when I was alive. The boy I couldn't save.

"I thought Alex was my only chance at... at love," I continued, my voice softer now, more vulnerable. "But I was wrong. I cared about Alex, yes. I'll always carry that part of me with him. But I've changed. I'm not the girl who loved Alex anymore."