The Death's Job

Amy was pulled out of her deep slumber by the same noise again just like the past few days. She was just about to wake up her husband, but was not at all surprised when she found him awake too, just like she did every day for the past nine days. The constant banging on Tim’s bedroom door at night always made them feel guilty. It had been more than a week since they decided to give up on Tim and accepted the doctor’s advice of ending his life through Euthanasia. They were tired of waiting for him but he never woke up from his deep slumber. Doctors were sure that he will never wake up. Now, they spent their nights looking at each other, trying to control their tears, regretting their decision; however, they were unaware of the presence of two other people standing next to their bed. They knew, deep down, that it was their own son banging the door, but they always blamed it on the wind. 

“It’s been more than a week, Tim. Will you ever forgive them?”

“They allowed them to kill me. Do you think I can move on that easily? They are my parents. They weren’t supposed to give up on me that easily.”

“That easily? You had been in a coma for more than a year. Besides, if souls don’t ascend for twelve days, you know what happens on the thirteenth one.”

“Of course, I know. You never let me forget.”

“You don’t seem to be bothered about it.”

“And you seem way too bothered about it. You are Death, in case you forgot. You aren’t supposed to care.” He continued, “Come on, I thought you were cool, free from all this sentimental stuff. That’s one of the reasons I thought I’ll stay a little longer. I liked you. Seems like I was wrong.”

“Well, says a sarcastic teen who just can’t stop caring.” She gave an amused smile, and continued, “I am older than you think. I’ve been in this business longer than your whole family line. Clock’s ticking, Tim.”

“I know.”

And soon, the sun started giving hints of its arrival, and they both left the weeping couple alone. 

The next day, it happened again, and the day after that, too. That is one stubborn soul, bad for business, Death thought. But deep down, she knew she was scared of the quickly approaching reality. She had never really feared the gory end that souls of grown-ups met in the underworld when they refused to let go. Well, many of them were murderers, thieves, or just simply evil; but she never really cared as older souls were tainted: fabricated by the sly nature of her dear friend, Life. But the first soul she had to collect after her promotion had to be a young one. She was happy at first, that she was able to reach the same post her mother did before she retired, but now, she wished she didn’t. No wonder maa is scary, she mused. Watching children being tortured in the devil’s lair, or rather, taking them to get tortured is bound to make you heartless. Suddenly, her lips upturned in a small smile, as she answered her question herself. Heart’s the key, isn’t it?

She hurriedly called her mother, an action she dreaded: but she had to, for the sake of Tim. She asked her to pull some ties, use connections, and call up some friends of the devil, in exchange for all of her mother’s years of service. She knew it would work, and it did. It took about an hour to pull everything together, owing to all the paperwork included. But it was worth a shot, as she didn’t want to turn into her mother.

Tim was about to visit his house again, leaving the temporary refuge he had taken in an abandoned mansion. Today is the last day, he thought, pressing down the persistent feelings of letting go of everything. As he walked out of the mansion, he found death standing at the doorstep, smiling eerily.

“Stop doing that. That’s scary. Also, you need a toothbrush.”

“I can’t believe I’m trying to help you.”

“Whatever”.

“Anyways, to celebrate your last free day, I’m taking you dancing.”

“I know what you’re doing. You know, I won’t go with you. You can’t take me against my will.”

“I know, Tim, I swear I won’t force you. I have arranged something for you. Had to call my scary maa for that, but, anyway, thought it was worth the effort. You are worth the effort.”

“I want to go to my house first. I’ll stop banging on the door early today, just because of your sweet effort. Well, I never thought I’ll be saying that to death herself, but life, I guess.”

“Life it is.”

They both kept their promise. Death didn’t take him against his will, and he stopped banging on the door after only twenty minutes, which was a sharp contrast to his actions of the past 12 days. Quietly, death led the way, taking him to a huge open ground with a small stage-like structure, not far from Tim’s choice of refuge.

She didn’t ask him to ascend even once, which surprised him. They just danced, laughed, and smiled to the music played by the devil’s orchestra, played especially for them.

“Your smile is getting less frightening every moment.” He beamed. “Thank you for this. But we should leave now, I know, it’s almost time.” He continued, “I know I have been bothering you, not letting you do your job. I’m sorry.”

“Let’s talk for a moment? Let me do my job one last time?”

“Fine. Give it your best shot. You’ve granted me a huge favour. I’ll let you persuade me one last time. But you are well aware of the outcome.” He smiled.

As a sweet melody was played by the orchestra, Death spoke, “I know, it’s hard to let go. You see, when I was little, long ago, I always thought my job won’t be that difficult. Then I grew up, and I’ll be honest, it wasn’t that hard till now.” She continued, “My maa had always been very famous in the business, ever since she got the same position as I have now. She always fulfilled her duties, never faltering. But it made her cold and distant. I thought she was a workaholic, but now I realized why she turned into this merciless, cold personality.” She smiled again, but weirdly; Tim found it comforting.

She continued, “One day, a few months after I started working, I fought with maa. I screamed at her and told her that I worked at the same place, too, and it wasn’t as affecting as she acted. And she just told me, ‘You’ll understand when you reach where I am.’ I did not believe her until I met you.”

“Anyway, enough about me. I know it’s been hard for you, and it has been the same way for me. I know what they do to souls like you, who deny to let go and believe me, it is bad. It never scared me before as I always dealt with adult souls. They were mean, their intentions adulterated by life. But I know you don’t deserve to go there.” She said, on the verge of crying. “Believe me, and please ascend. I know it has been a hard life, and that we can’t control it. But these past twelve days taught me something I never thought I will come across. You taught me humanity, Tim. You can’t let go of your parents, and I can’t let go of you. Please, Tim.”

Tim found himself in tears, at a loss for words. He never realized that he could make death herself care for him. He just stared at her, smiling almost as widely as he did when he was alive. Almost. He went to see his parents one last time, but not to bother them. Instead, he left them a note, explaining everything, and thanking them for his short, yet happy life.

Standing at the edge of the human world, he held death’s hand, and gave her a warm hug, thanking her for everything. It was the warmest feeling death had ever felt. They both smiled at each other, and death said, “I know you probably won’t remember this, but try.” She smiled, “We cannot always choose the music life plays, but we can choose how we dance to it.” They both hugged each other one last time.

“I never thought I’ll say this, but you are far better than most humans I’ve met. You are correct, but this is just something I have to do. You can’t let go of me, and I, can’t stop caring. I might've written the note and thanked them for my life, but deep down, I'll never be able to forgive them. That’s what makes me human, I guess.” And with that, he saw two darkly-cloaked figures approaching and dragging him by arms. 

Two days later, death found herself at the headquarters, resigning from her post. She knew her mother would be angry, she was a failure, after all. But as she left the office, she found her waiting at the door, smiling at her. “Let’s go on a vacation, shall we?” she asked, her lips turned in a small smile.