The In Between

Chapter two

• A plant tries to eat me • 

Ricky 

• October 25th - 26th •

"James?" I asked. He dropped his scythe.

"No. Nononono. This is a mistake. You're a mistake."

"James what the hell? You were dead! What's going on!?"

"I am dead, you idiot. You're dead too--"

"Oh my god, my mom's going to kill me,"

"Looks like someone already beat her to it," he said. I gaped. "I'm your-- dammit-- your guide."

"You're my guide? What the hell is a guide? Why am i still alive if i'm dead?"

"You're not alive you wet sock, you're dead and I'm dead and EVERYONES FREAKING DEAD." he picked up his scythe again. "Grab my hand."

"No, I'm not grabbing your hand," I said, backing up.

"Listen here buddy, I don't want to hold your hand either, but if you want to get to the 'dead world'-"

"The 'dead world'?"

"You need to stop asking questions." he deadpanned, looking at me with so much distaste it hurt my fragile heart. "It's self explanatory you-- you-- spam email, we're going to the dead world. You're dead. We need to go there."

"I'm not--"

"YOU'RE DEAD. HOLD MY FREAKING HAND AND NO-ONE GETS HURT." he shouted. I heard him mumble something along the lines of "stupid bad person", under his breath. I held his hand, reluctantly, mostly because I was scared that he'd slice me in half with his scythe. And maybe his sword, really. But at least I had Dave for good luck.

In another flash of light we were in a field surrounded by woods.

"This is the dead world?" I asked. He let go of my hand, somehow pointedly.

"No, easy bake oven, this is the In Between,"

"Look, I get that you're mad at me, but can you just stop being mean for a sec?" His eyes flashed dangerously and I knew almost immediately that I shouldn't have said that.

"You want to talk about 'mean'? Alright, how about the time when your friends beat me up so much that I couldn't walk home? How about when they almost killed me with a switchblade? How about when I killed myself because they gave me depression and they still made fun of me? Sure let's talk about those times." i didn't say anything. "And for what? The possibility I might be gay?"

"You're not g--?"

"I am gay, stupid. I'm glad that you died. Ecstatic, even." he started walking without waiting for me to catch up. "C'mon you uomo poco virile,"

We made camp, not talking to each other. James made a fire, moving his hands in weird directions and bringing down light from the sun. also he could do that. I didn't want to ask but, how could he do that? And why couldn't I do that?

It was getting dark, and i could just make out the first stars when james said:

"I'm an angel." he threw some sticks into the fire. I didn't see any wings or a halo around him but I guess, sure. There have honestly been weirder things today.

"Why are you..?"

"I'm telling you this because if I dont I have to stay here forever. Just... don't ask any questions.'' I nodded, bringing my knees in closer to me. "I'm an angel. I control light. You're dead. Im dead. Were going through the In Between to get to tamir--" i opened my mouth but he cut me off. He brought some of the light out of the fire, and played with it, lacing it in between his fingers. "The dead world. it's going to take us two weeks to get to the dead world, and if i don't follow any of the strict rules, then i have to die."