Immortality

Part 1: Me, Myself, and I

When I thought I was blessed with immortality, I could have never been so wrong in the entirety of my mortal life... immortality is a curse.

Do not believe anything that anyone tells you about immortality. I will tell you the truth about it through all of my life stories. Immortality is a curse. I shouldn't have to repeat it twice but, somehow, I think I do.

I never should have believed those stupid winged bastards that promised me a life full of joy. Sure, I got joy, but it all ended in despair. It always did.

I forgot how short the human life was...

And I only say it like that because I'm not human anymore, I'm an immortal Fox God, and I'm tired of living forever. I thought I was blessed so many times... the food was great... the praise was overwhelming in a fantastic way... and the relationships that I've created (in my three lifetimes) with human companions, could not make me more happy in the entire world...

But all of that is over.

Why does this keep happening to me?

What did I do to get myself cursed?

I'm done with this life!

Can't I just end it now?

"Tatsuoki-kun,"

I opened my eyes, recognizing that old, fading voice. It was my wife. My dying wife. I still looked 17, and here she was, a 84 year old woman, lying on her death bed, in the hospital.

I lifted my head from on top of the covers near her legs. I looked at her wrinkly face. Her eyes were so sad, but she was smiling at me. Her dull, blue eyes sparkled when I looked back at her.

"Good morning, Rin-chan," I couldn't help but smile back.

"Did I wake you?" She asked weakly.

I shook my head, "Of course not. I would stay awake for you forever." Because I could, I thought a little bitterly.

We waited in the silence for a little bit until a nurse came in.

"Hello, Fujioka-san. I have the report back on your condition," she looked down at her paper before handing it to me. "We can't find out what's wrong with you."

I felt like I had been stabbed in the chest, "Y-you can't...?!"

"Indeed," she replied bluntly.

I stood up sharply, "What do you mean 'you can't'? ! This is my...!" I couldn't finish what I was going to say. No one would believe that a 17-year old-looking boy married the woman that was dying on the hospital bed. But I did! And in reality I'm 277 years old! A 277-year old immortal son of a bitch! And I couldn't do anything about it! There was nothing I could do about it as far as I was concerned. This immortality "blessing" was all just a curse! It really is!

I clenched my fists, "I want to speak with the head doctor here,"

Rin, my dying wife, put a hand on my shoulder, "No, Tatsu-chan, it'll be--"

"No! No, it won't be okay!" I screamed at her legs. I didn't dare look her in the face, "Don't you see what's happening to you?! You're going to die, and then I'll be all alone! There will be no one to take care of me or love me for who I am or cry with me when I can't handle the pain anymore!" I felt hot tears running down my cheeks and I took a deep breath before continuing, my voice sounding like something had been shredded. Maybe it was my heart... "No, Rin-chan, it's not going to be okay. You have to let me take care of you for once." I looked up at her with a sad smile.

She weakly smiled back in sympathy.

The nurse chimed in, "Do you still want the doctor?"

I diverted my eyes to the floor and replied sharply, "Yes."

She left.

I got up and sat right next to Rin who leaned on me. I could feel her heartbeat through her wrinkly skin. I watched her chest heave up and down, not knowing when her last breath was going to be.

Then I closed my eyes, I was with her now, and that was all I could do for her at the moment. And I fell asleep with her.

I suddenly woke up to raging alarms in the hospital. Several nurses and doctors rushed into my room all at once.

"You need to get off the bed, sir!" They commanded me. I did as I was told and got off. I took a quick glance at Rin and noticed that she wasn't moving at all. I, then, looked at the monitor with all her stats on it and it read that she didn't have a heartbeat! She was dying!

"Rin! Rin!" I yelled as a more muscular doctor pushed me out of the room.

"Keep him out of here!" He shouted at the nearby nurses.

Two female nurses swarmed me, trying to keep me out of the room.

"Get off of me!" I yelled at them. "Rin! Rin, you need to wake up! Rin! Wake up!"

"Back up, sir! Let the professionals handle this!" One of them shoved me back. I stumbled back towards the wall and just gave up. I crumpled to the floor and started balling like a child.

You would think that after watching so many other people die, that it would just get easier for you to handle, but it doesn't. It just gets a hell of a lot worse.

I heard all the commotion stop suddenly.

"Time of death?" One of the doctors asked.

"January, 23rd, 12:03 pm," a nurse answered sadly.

The doctor sighed, "Good work, everyone."

I stood up and walked calmly to the door, the nurses still blocked me.

"Let him in," the doctor told them. They backed away.

I walked to the side of the bed, and grabbed her hand. It was cold. There was no life left in her. I collapsed by the side of the bed and cried. Another love of my life was gone, and I could do nothing about it.

Footsteps echoed down the hallway and stopped at the door. I didn't look up to see who it was. I knew.

"Mom!" Cried out a girl voice. It was my 60-year old daughter, Inari. I heard her come around the bed to me. She knew not to call me "dad" in public. That would freak people out too much that a 17-year old looking boy had fathered a 60-year old woman. The twin boy, Masayuki, my son, cried silently. He grabbed his mother's hand like he had done many times when he was a child. He didn't say anything. He just cried. So did my daughter. So did I.

The doctors left us alone for 20 minutes and then insisted that they take the body away. I let them. I had no strength to argue. My twins left shortly after saying goodbye to me and their mother.

So, there I was. Alone again.

Thanks, immortality.

Wait, there's one thing that I never got to do...

I never got to say goodbye...