Between Life and Death

An empty diner

It was raining as I stepped out of the hospital. It had been a week since I'd seen the outside world. Chained to a hospital bed being questioned by psychiatrists about my mental health wasn't what I call relaxing. Of course, I had lied myself out of the place as soon as possible.

It had only been about two weeks since he had died, looking them straight in the eyes and telling them I had only felt a bit depressed because of it and that I wouldn't try to kill myself again was one of the biggest lies I had ever told someone.

How they believed that, well, I honestly didn't know. I didn't care much either. After his death, I forgot the meaning of what I was doing. I don't remember how being happy felt either, I just felt like nothing. No passion, no love. But a whole lot of regrets.

My parents told me I'd get over it, saying that as long as I took my meds and just stayed in school I'd find what I was looking for again, I'd make new friends. They didn't take the attempt I'd made on my own life very serious, only seeing it as an attempt to gain their attention.

I looked up at the sky, seeing the dark grey storm clouds swirl and flashes of lightning zapping through them. It really had started to become worse as I'd been in the hospital. 

I had seen some news reports that it wasn't just local either, it was apparently going on globally, which was a phenomenon in the eyes of every weather reporter in the tri-state area. Honestly, I didn't care much about the weather, the rising death rate from bizarre accidents or any of that.

I could feel the eyes of someone watching me as I walked, But as I turned I saw nothing, except for a shadow that disappeared in a nearby alley.
"Probably just a dog..." I mumbled. A small spike of pain erupted from my stomach, but I brushed it off as I continued walking.
The streets were empty except for a few trees and puddles. An ambulance rushed past me with sirens blazing, stopping in front of the hospital.

I walked on towards the inner city. Looking around at the somber trees and garbage-filled streets. Something really was changing around here, Normally there were cleaners on the streets every other day to pick up the litter.

It had been a citywide project to keep the city clean. Every citizen had to help out one day a year to clean up, the city even made it so that you got paid leave for that day. My parents hadn't been so fond of it nevertheless, calling it "peasant work" among other things.

They had better things to do in life, including ignoring their son when he stole something from a random store nearby. They just paid his bail and told me not to do it anymore and returned to their jobs. The babysitter had been more of a mother than my actual mother had been.

Anyway, I had loved doing the cleaning. I'd done it with him, and we had laughed and messed around as we were doing the job. My heart performed an empty beat as I thought back to that moment and realized I wouldn't have another one like it.

I sighed as I passed an electronic store, seeing weather reports about the bizarre lightning storms in the dozens of televisions that were in the display case. I stood there for a bit, seeing that several towns had started to get flooded and that the death counter from the freak storms was rising with the second.

"Guess it's just one of those weeks." I mumbled as I walked along. It seemed as if the world was changing according to what I wanted in some way. I loved rain, loved to see thunder too.

As I walked into one of the busiest shopping streets of the city I realized there really wasn't anyone outside at the moment. Maybe there had been a house arrest in the city after all the weather-related accidents. Barely any cars were driving and I only saw some street cats mile about in alleyways.

It wasn't weekend either, just an ordinary Tuesday. I kept walking. the worst thing that could happen is I could die to a lightning strike. I noticed a lit up diner on the other side of the street. I had grown hungry.

The hospital food never was that amazing, I usually just didn't eat all that much and ate myself into a coma when I arrived back home. I checked my pockets for my wallet, finding the grocery bill my dad had given me for if I wanted something to eat in it.

I remembered the moment he gave it I had asked for some money to get some bread from the bakery. He pushed a 50 dollar bill in my hands and said: "Keep the change." Not looking up a second from his newspaper. I stood there looking at the bill in my hand for a few seconds.

"As good a time as any to use it." I mumbled as I crossed the street and entered the diner. The place was empty. Nobody behind the counter, nobody in the booths, no music playing through the speakers.
"Anyone here?" I called out.

I heard a faint reply coming from the kitchen and sat down in a booth with a good view of the street. I loved the sound of rain clattering on the windows. The streetlights lighting up raindrops falling past it. It calmed me down in a way nothing else ever did.

Suddenly someone slid into my booth, sitting straight across me. He snapped his fingers and a waitress quickly ran out of the kitchen to take our orders. "I'll take a coffee," He said, his voice deep and rich in tone. "And he'll take a bacon burger with extra fries and a chocolate milkshake." He looked at me.

I had no clue how he knew that was what I was going to order. But I just nodded at the waitress in confirmation.
"Yes sir, it'll be right up!"She hurried into the kitchen.

"Hello Edward, Nice to finally meet you." He said to me, looking me straight in the eyes. He looked different from anyone else I had ever met. Pale white skin that almost glowed, Eyes devoid of any color and lips that were a strange mix of blue and pink. His hair was Dark black. As if it swallowed up any other color.

"How do you know my name?" I blinked once to see if he was actually real. It looked a bit as if he was see through.
"You've been looking for me, Edward." He said to me. I didn't remember looking for someone who looked like he'd die any second now. So I ignored the question.

"Who are you?" I asked. He grabbed a toothpick from the holder in the middle of the table. Fiddling with it in his hands.
"I am Death..."