Unnatural// 5SOS & 1D

O' Death// part eight

l.p: Deaths Cold Embrace

Natalie hadn't been around in a while. I was beginning to think she had found someone else to bug or had lost interest in me. Or, God forbid, I wasn't actually going to die and was having a psychotic break this entire time. Natalie always seemed to be able to sense when I was having doubts though because she made a guest appearance the next morning at breakfast.

"Missed me?"

"Barely." I murmured, rubbing my eyes. I was tired, had been losing sleep ever since I found out I was dying. I didn't see the point in sleeping. I had the rest of my life to do that. I had so far been staying up doing all the things I wanted to do. Read all the books I could, catch up on all my shows. It would never be enough though.

"Aw, I think you did." Natalie said ruffling my hair. I moved away from her but didn't try to fix my hair. I had just woken up. I would have to brush it out later. It didn't matter how it looked now. She laughed as I sat down at the table with my coffee.

"Something funny?"

"Just you. I think you look really cute in the morning." She laughed again. "Even more so now that I've messed up your hair." I didn't know how to respond to that. Cute? A reaper thought I was cute? Did they even know what that meant? Did I have to compliment her back? I stared at her sitting across from me, she held the sleeves of her maroon sweater against the palms of her hands. Her hair moved lightly in the breeze from the window and she was smiling still, her pink lips arching up. I had never really thought about it before but here was a really beautiful girl. A reaper but still a girl. I think. 

"You said you can change form right?" Natalie nodded, smiling.

"So are you really a girl or are you coming to me as a women because my sister died and like you said, your form is around her age.." Natalie nodded.

"I'm a girl yeah. My form is really just me but like varies in age." I frowned arching an eyebrow in confusion. "So say if a kid was dying. Adults can be scary so sometimes we appear as children or maybe preteens, teenagers, like we're their older siblings." Made sense I guess.

"But you're around my sisters age."

"Like I said, it varies. You're at like this weird middle ground. I can't come as a kid or you wouldn't believe a word I said. I could come as an older version of myself, like your moms age but you might just think I was some crazy old lady. You're at the point in your life where the last of your innocence is gone and you're moving more toward reality but you're not quite there yet."

"Wow. Thanks." She laughed.

"You wanted to know." She stood up smiling. "You gotta get ready for work, come on."

"I was thinking about not going in." I murmured, lifting my coffee mug to my lips. She frowned.

"You've missed a lot of work days."

"So what? I'm dying. I deserve to live my life."

"Good point." She frowned, sitting back down. We were quiet.

"You really want me to go to work don't you. Is that where I'm got in to die."

"No. You do what you want it's fine. I wouldn't want to go to work either if I was dying." She shrugged, leaning back in her chair. I was going to die today. I could hear it in the tone of her voice. I sighed and stood up.

"Alright fine I'll go."

"What? I didn't say you had to." Natalie said arching an eyebrow at me.

"No if I'm going to die today, might as well accept deaths cold embrace." She didn't smile.

"Your funeral." She murmured with a shrug.

"Damn right it is."

----

Natalie rode with me in my car to work. We talked the entire time about nothing in particular. Turns out she was more up to date on current events and music than I thought she would be. "This is the 21st century and just because I'm a reaper doesn't mean I don't know what's going on in the world. Do you think I would talk like this? I died in like the 1800's Liam." I had laughed at that. I didn't think about that. What did reapers do in their spare time?

She was with me all through work, which I didn't do much of since I was going to die. We even had lunch together, though she didn't eat. You don't need to eat when you're dead. I had to have my phone to my ear practically the entire meal but that was okay.

I knew I was going to die. I just didn't know when. She had been with me the entire day and nothing had happened yet. When was it going to happen? I wish she would just tell me. As we were heading back to the car, I stopped as we got in. "Yeah?" She could probably tell I wanted to ask her something.

"You'll be there when I die right? I don't want.. I don't want to die alone." She smiled sadly.

"Of course Liam. I'll be there." I nodded my head slowly as I got in the car and started the engine.

It happened on the way to the hospital. I was moving out onto the road after the light had turned green for me when this truck appeared out of nowhere. "Natalie!" I shouted but she barely reacted as the truck hit the passenger side head on. Glass shattered as the car flipped over and there was the terrible crunching of metal and bone. I think it was my bones that were breaking because Natalie looked fine.

We were sitting upside down, strapped to our seats and blood was dripping down my face and into my eyes. I groaned. Everything hurt. People were shouting, saying to call 911. "Natalie." I whispered again, reaching for her hand. She smiled and took it. "Death.. It doesn't hurt right?" She smiled and shook her head.

"No Liam. Just go to sleep." She whispered and so I closed my eyes and obeyed.