Still Here [Fillie]

The Book

Millie's POV

I flutter my eyes open to the sudden brightness. I open my eyes and the sun shines on my face from the huge window, blinding me. I squint my eyes and hold up my hand to protect them as I sit up and look around the room.

Yep, still in this studio apartment where everything is black. I notice Winona isn't lying next to me anymore and the place smells like coffee.
I look over my shoulder and see her sitting at the table reading a book while drinking out of a mug.

"Morning, honey bunny." She says without looking directly at me. I stretch my arms over my head and roll out of bed. I shuffle towards the table and sit across from Winona. I take a look at the title of the book she's reading. 'Tips On How To Be A Good Mother To Your Daughter' was on the cover.

She slammed the book shut startling me a bit. Winona threw the book across the floor and smiled up at me. "So, was the bed comfortable enough?" She asks as she takes another sip of her coffee.
I shrug my shoulders effortlessly and rest my arms on the table with a sigh.

"Yeah. Thank you for letting me sleep on your bed. I hope I'm not a burden to you." I replied. Winona choked on her coffee and set her mug down with a shake of her head. "No, definitely not a burden. Hell, I begged council to hand you over to me." She chuckles.

I knit my brows together. "Council?" I question genuinely confused. Winona nods. "The Spirit Council are these people who control what goes on in the spirit world. You can even request a change in this world and if council agrees with your ideas then they pass it, which means they'll go with it."

I was stuck on the whole spirit world part. "Spirit world?" I question a little more. Winona stood up from her chair and walked towards a door from across the room. She opened it and it wasn't all dark, it was bright and beautiful. It was like we were living in the clouds. I think we are in the clouds.

There's a whole town filled with people and moving cars too. Everyone wore white, unlike Winona and I. In fact, the whole town was white, not one speck of color stands out, not even trees. "Why is everyone here wearing white? Also why does your house look like a studio apartment up in the skies, but we're down on the ground?" I rambled.

Winona chuckles at my curiosity. "I designed my house myself. Everyone here wears white because it's what your eyes want you to see. Not everyone is actually wearing white, they could be wearing blue or pink or whatever they chose to wear. This world is filtered is what I'm trying to say." She explains.

I try to process all of this information. "So we're wearing black, but they see us in white clothes?" I ask looking up at the older woman. She nods and shuts the door. I'm still confused about a lot of things. Being dead is hard. I thought it would all be sad and miserable, but this place is anything but.

"This world is mysterious, Noni." I sigh out and slump back towards my seat at the table. Winona only giggles. "You should have seen me when I first passed on. I didn't have a guardian angel to help me, the council only gave me a book." She explains.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up and she jogged towards a shelf of books against the wall beside the couch. She dragged her fingers over the covers until they landed on a certain book. Noni gasped and pulled it off the shelf. She hands it to me and I read the title. "So you're dead and new to the spirit world?" I read the title aloud.

"Interesting name for a book if you ask me." I mumble. Noni grinned at my comment. "That book answered all of my questions. I learned a lot from it and now you can too!" She exclaims. I groan in frustration. I hate reading.

Noni raised a single eyebrow at me and I turn my frown upside down. She smiles back at me and gestures for me to sit on the couch. I follow orders and she sits next to me.

"Go ahead and read the first page." She whispers. I nod and open the book to the first page titled 'Why Am I Hear'. I clear my throat and begin to read aloud.

"The good and innocent from the real world transition to the spirit world after they die. Children under the age of eighteen who pass are sent to camp where they will be monitored by angels if they are not assigned to a relative over eighteen or a guardian angel."

I quickly smile up at Winona who grins back at me. I continue to read the book. "If you're reading this, then you're eighteen or older and don't need a guardian angel to guide you through this world. This book will be your guide, your tool to being a spirit."

I glance up at the older woman and she furrows her eyebrows at the page. "I'll still help you if you need it. You're not alone, Millie." She informs me causing my lips to curve into a smile. I gaze back down at the book and read a little more.

"In the spirit world there are obvious rules. No violence, crime, or nudity. There are of course more rules that you will find out as you read this book. If you have a child to look after or are responsible for someone under eighteen, you can set up personal rules as a parent or legal guardian would do in the real world." I glance back up at Winona.

"Do I have any rules that you've set for me?" I ask the older lady. She thinks for a moment. Noni shakes her head. "You're a good kid, Millie. I'm sure you know right from wrong." She smiled. I smile a little too. "So how did you get a hold of this book?" I ask as I softly close it and hold the book up for display.

Noni tilts her head with a grin as she crossed her leg over the other. "The Spirit Council gave it to me. If you become a spirit as an adult, the council sends a member down that will bring you to your new home that you design and a book along with a cool tablet to help design your lifestyle." She casually explained.

Tablet? She never mentioned a tablet, or the fact that it can control something. Looks like I have a lot to learn about being a spirit.

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So I'm very busy tomorrow, which is why I'm updating tonight (it's 2am on the east coast and I'm exhausted).

I love this already because I love the idea of Winona and Millie teaming up and becoming a sort of mother daughter duo.

What did you think of this chapter?

What are some interesting things you'd like to see in this book?
Share your opinion.❤️