SHORTS

OUT OF BODY

OUT OF BODY

            ‘She must’ve meant a lot to a lot of people’ I thought to myself as I stepped into the building. Everyone was still walking around greeting each other, asking how they knew the girl who had passed away. ‘I guess I came a little early.’ I laugh uneasily just thinking about how awkward it’s going to be since I don’t really recognize anyone here. I look to my left and see a mirror above a wall table with flowers on it. I see my reflection and smile. My perfectly brown curly hair and my summer green dress fit me just right. I usually don’t wear make up but I was now. I felt pretty today. Unlike most days. I looked around just to keep my mind off of how out of place I probably look. Most had a smile on their face but you could see the pain in their eyes but near the coffin, there was a couple, probably in their 40’s, some part of me felt like I had seen them before, the woman was crying a water fall. My heart broke just looking at her as the man comforted the woman by holding her and rubbing her back.

            ‘They must be the parents.’ I thought as I walk towards them. The clock strikes 6 O’clock. The noise startled me and I freeze. Everyone begins to walk in front of me as they all get seated. All the people block my view of the couple and I give up on talking to them as I find a seat. A guy who also looks familiar, stands up in front of the coffin. He looks like he may be her older brother or something. He looked like he was going to talk but just wipes his eyes and takes a deep breath.

            I hear a lady in the front row begin the cry so loud, it drowns out any other noise. I look over and see that it is the woman from before. The man puts his arm around her shoulder as he dabs his own eyes with a tissue. What I found strange was, besides the woman’s cry. Everything seemed silent, distant. I know it isn’t that big of a deal but it was peculiar to me. I was brought back to reality by the melancholy sound of the man up front.

“I just want to start off by thanking you all for coming today. I know Melanie would’ve appreciated it.--” ‘That name’ I thought.’ I know that name.’ For a second I thought about it but chuckled to myself. ‘ Of course I know that name, why would I be here if I didn’t’ I went back to listening but as he continued to talk more about how amazing Melanie was, Something began to feel very off. I looked around and everyone was glued to the man, nodding their head when he said something about Melanie that they remembered.

            The women’s crying seemed to get louder and louder. It got so loud in fact, I could no longer hear the man up front. It got so loud that I couldn’t take it anymore. I ran up to the woman and I knelt in front of her grabbing her hand. She didn’t seem to take notice and kept on crying. ‘It’ll be okay. She is in a better place, now.” A tear rolls down my face, I couldn’t take how much this was effecting her. My heart was breaking for her.

            Suddenly the crying stopped. I look at the woman but she is still crying. ‘Why can’t I hear her’ I look out at the people in their seats and it is as if everything was in black and white. My heart started racing as I realized that something is really off. ‘Am I dreaming?’ I ask myself. Then I begin to hear the man in the front talk about. “I wish she hadn’t been hit by that car but I know she is in a better place now.” He says and looks down to hide the pain in his eyes. ‘ a car crash?’ All of a sudden, I’m in a car in the middle of night singing to some over played song on the radio. I reach over to change the station but it doesn’t change. I begin to get frustrated with the car and hit every button I see but the station never changed. “ say goodbye” the radio repeated over and over again. My heart began to pound. Out of nowhere two blinding lights shine in front of me and the last thing I hear was the honk of the horn from the car in front of me. I’m back at the funeral. The sudden realization hits me like a ton of bricks and I turn around to face the coffin. Everything is still black and white but the auburn coffin. I walk towards it with an urgency in my step. Once I make it to the coffin I look at the girl and I freeze. Perfect brown curly hair, summer green dress, Make up to make the person look beautiful even in death. I couldn’t believe it. I was looking at my own body in the coffin. I looked so peaceful. I didn’t even look dead.

Then it hit me. I turned to the couple I saw before. I knew now why they looked so familiar. They were my parents and the man near my coffin; he was my brother. My heart is beating faster now, that’s all I can hear. “mom! Dad!” I shout. “ What is going on? Am I really dead?” they didn’t seem to hear me. “Mom?” I called out again. Another tear began to fall down my cheek. I was crying because I remember the fight we had, had before the car crash. It was a stupid fight. Now all I could think was ‘I never got to say, I love you, or I’m sorry for being a brat right before I died.’ I ran towards my mother and grabber her hand. “ Mom, please, answer me!” I shook her hand but she still didn’t look at me. The tears began to pour just as hard as my mothers. I rest my head on her hands. “ I’m so sorry” I repeat over and over again.

I felt my mothers’ body tense up and I looked up at her. My parents looked startled as they looked towards my coffin. I could hear things now, for instance, the shock of everyone in the room. I look towards my coffin and hear something moaning from inside. Everything went black and when I opened my eyes again, I was in a really small cushioned box and above I could see my baffled parents shouting my name. I smile at them. I can feel the life being pulled from my body again. I knew this was going to be my only chance to say what I need to say. I reach my hand out towards my mothers’ face and I feel a tear roll down my face. It takes everything I have to force the words out. “I’m so sorry” I crock. My mothers’ face softens and she grabs my hand and kisses it. “Darling, you’ve done nothing wrong” Her voice warms my dying heart. I take one last breath. “ I love you” I say and everything begins to blur. “The last thing I hear before things go black is my mother squeezing my hand and saying. “We love you too, Darling, always and forever.

I could feel myself being pulled from my body. I was looking down at my body now, My mom was crying frantically as my father pulls her away from my lifeless body. I lifted higher and higher, my eyes don’t leave my parents but from the corner of my eyes I see my brother look up, right at me and smile. “Goodbye” I hear him say. I wave as I’m pulled further and further away and everything fades.

THE END