I woke up.

            If that’s what you would even call it. 

    The dead were just that…dead, but I wasn’t even that. I was an immortal being that ushered souls into the afterlife, where judgment would be bestowed upon them for the deeds they did in their short existence on earth. I don’t know how I even got this job in the first place. Yet, here I was in this dark black cloak that frightened more people than anything.

 I tried to change my appearance once. Ya know, make it more friendly for people who just passed away, but what can a reaper do? It’s not like they had shopping malls in the underworld. The only reason I had a scythe was because some poor farmer died with it in his fields, and I couldn’t get it out of his cold dead grip, and his spirit was insistent he needed it for the afterlife…something about working the fields in his new home. I don’t think he quite understood how the afterlife worked. Anyways, an earthquake just happened in some part of the world, and my time was cut short. So, I transformed his scythe into spiritual matter and brought the grain tool and him along with me to transfer the poor souls who just lost their lives to the earthquake. Then he had the audacity to leave it on my longboat when I brought him to the golden gates. 

Well, he never came back to retrieve it, and I figured it went well with my dark appearance anyway, so I kept it. It also cut down on souls that would argue with me when I had to take them across the dark river.

Complaints were constant until I had the scythe in my hands. I thought the cloak would be enough to keep them at bay, but I guess I just looked destitute.  Now, I just ushered in pure blissful silence. Until this morning…

  I felt a tug on my robes as I was waiting for all the souls to make their way down the dark tunnel to my skiff, where I would usher them across. I looked down and noticed a little girl with pigtails wearing a jumper and a white shirt underneath. I was surprised to see someone so small waiting to be taken across the river. Usually, they were people who lived a full life and died of old age. It was times like these that I felt an emotion that was foreign to me. I’ve seen it many times before when I would have to visit hospitals or cemeteries.

  I believe it was called sadness. 

  I shook my thoughts and stared down at her, wondering why she was even interacting with me. Weren’t children usually afraid of beings like me?

  “Excuse me, sir, where are we going?” She looked at me with confusion. I was also confused. No one has talked to me in ages, and I didn’t know how to respond, so I just turned away from her and pretended I didn’t hear.

  Then she tugged on my robe again. Maybe she would go away if I ignored her long enough. I didn’t have time to entertain a child. I had work to do. It wasn’t much, but at least it was something.

  “Excuse me sir? Do you talk? I asked you where we are going?” Her persistence was grating on my nerves, but I reminded myself it was all part of the job.

  I let out a sigh, turned back around and knelt in front of her, holding my scythe out to the side. Maybe my closeness would frighten her, and she would leave me alone.

  “Well?” Her big blue eyes wide with anticipation as she stared at me, waiting for an answer. When I didn’t respond right away, she tilted her head to the side and raised her brows.

Did parents not teach their children what happened after you passed on?

A huge oversight that needed to be mended, but alas, here we were.

  “I’m taking you into the afterlife,” I said in my deep and darkest voice. If my figure didn’t scare her, maybe my voice would.

  “The what? I’m supposed to go to my friend’s birthday party. I don’t want to go to the afterlife. Can you take me back, please?”

  At least she had manners. If anyone did yell at me, it wasn’t with please and thank you.

  “No.” I stood up and turned away from her. I would need to start ushering the souls onto the boat soon since the line was beginning to pile up.

  A little hand slipped into mine, and I froze. No one ever touched me. I looked down to find she had come up beside me and was looking up at me with a big smile.

  “You seem nice. Can I stay with you? I don’t know where my parents are, but maybe you could help me find them.”

  I didn’t have the heart to tell her anything. I’d leave that to the big guys on the other side of the gate. I was just the transportation.

  “Sure.” I stated with no emotion.

  Then I moved us to the skiff and ushered people on, motioning with my scythe since the little girl still had a firm grip on my other hand. Most looked frightened as they scanned the large dark cavern before them. The only light was coming from the glowing blue river we crossed. Once the last person was on, I lifted the little girl into the boat, and stepped in lightly, before making my way to the front with my head held high, as the little girl trailed behind me. She waved to everyone we passed and once I reached the front, I tapped the boat twice with my scythe and it started to move across the river. It was about a thirty-minute ride there, but I was used to it.

  “What’s your name?” the little girl asked as she tugged by hand. I’ve seen descriptions of me in the mortal realm where I was all bones, but flesh is what I was made of, which probably was another reason I didn’t frighten her.

  “Grim.”

  “Grim? Hmmm…I like it! My name is Isabella, but my mommy calls me Izzy for short.

  I gave her a curt nod but nothing more. Could she not get a hint?

  “I’m eight years old, how old are you?”

  Ancient to her standards.

  “Why do you carry that big knife? What do you do with it? Are you going to hurt anyone?

  “No.”

“Can I hold it?”

“No.”

  “Please, I won’t break it. I just want to…”

  “No.”

  “Okay.” She sighed.

  “My mommy says I shouldn’t trust strangers, but you seem a decent fellow.”

  If she only knew.

  “You don’t talk much, do you?”

  “Why are you asking so many questions? Don’t I frighten you little girl?” I finally gruffed out.

  “Well, at first when I was walking down the dark path towards the boat, I saw you all by yourself and you did frighten me at first, but my mommy said you should never judge a person, and since no one else was talking to me I thought I’d see if you knew where I was.”

Hmph. 

“You shouldn’t talk to strangers.” I told her pointedly.

“You’re not a stranger, Grim. I know your name!”

I shook my head. This was the longest thirty minutes of my existence.

  Then,  shock overcame me when she hugged my legs.

  “I like you.” She smiled up at me. I patted her head awkwardly, then stepped away from her.

  I saw a small golden light coming into view. The gates were coming close, so I walked back down the aisle to the back of the boat. I heard little footsteps behind me that indicated she was following me.

  I turned, and she came up beside me again and grabbed my hand. I wanted to shake it off but I looked down and could tell she was scared, so instead, I squeezed it trying to give her as much comfort as an immortal being like me could. She leaned towards me, and we stayed like that for the rest of the ride.

  As the gates came closer, I saw two angels who guarded the gate standing right next to the right. That usually meant one of my passengers had to go back, since they were not quite finished with their mortal existence.

  I tapped the bottom of the boat twice again, and it started to slow. The passengers made their way off and walked past the angels and to the beautiful golden gates in the distance. The glowing path leading their way.

  I was surprised when none of them were stopped.

Had they made a mistake, or was there something they needed to tell me?

Ugh! I hated conversation. I’ve had enough the last thirty minutes to last me a century!

After everyone had passed, the only one left was the little girl, who had a firm grip on my hand. 

I looked down at her and she was staring up at me with worried eyes as she looked to the angels and back to me.

Something in my chest stirred at how worried she looked.

“Don’t worry, they are here to help you.” I tried to assure her.

  “Will you come with me?”

I sighed. “Sure.”

  Then we walked towards the glowing figures waiting for us on the shore. They were both male and wore long white robes. The shorter of the two spoke first.

  “Is this Isabella Porter?” They said, motioning to the girl who hid herself behind me.

  “Yes.” I stated.

  “She needs to return to the mortal realm. She got in a car accident on the way to a birthday party, but they have life flighted her to a nearby hospital, and she’s going to be okay now.”

  I turned and looked to the little girl who scooted behind me, then back to the angels before me.

  “Alright.” I nodded.

  They nodded in return, then left back towards the glowing gates.

  I turned and bent down towards her and softly touched one of her shoulders so that she could look at me.

  “It seems you can go to that birthday party after all.” She smiled at me and put her arms around my neck and squeezed me. I patted her back awkwardly and stood up to release her from the hug.

  “Oh, thank you, Grim.” I nodded and tapped the boat once again.

  On the way back she talked about all her stuffed animals and how her favorite color was pink. Pink unicorns, pink flowers, pink hearts and how she owned lots of pink dresses. By the time we reached the end I almost grew fond of the little thing.

         I walked her to the edge of the tunnel and told her to follow the light. She hugged me once more, and I returned the embrace.

         “I’ll never forget you Grim.”

Then she was gone.

 

-15 years later-

         Here I was day after day ushering souls into the afterlife. They finally got me some assistance after a plague hit the southern part of the mortal realm. It spread like fire throughout the continents, and I couldn’t keep up with the flow of souls that came rushing in.

  Lyra and Leo were siblings, and they made my work much easier, especially when I had a stubborn soul who just would not let go of their mortal life, and I had to go down and nudge them along. Usually, one look at me sent them over the edge, but sometimes I had to pry their fingers from their greedy grips. I never understood some of the things these people coveted. You could not take it with you in the next life anyway, just your deeds, so why bother with stuff and just leave the world a better place instead?

  I was on one of those missions now, to get a man from the hospital who was hanging on by a thread, but wouldn’t move on until he knew all his assets were safe and that no one could touch them once he passed into the next life.

  I made my way through the halls. No one could see me, but they could sense me. I went through the doors and saw the man laying in his hospital bed, hooked up to all the machines and oxygen.

  “See Grandpa, I told you he would come.”

  I turned and if I had a beating heart, it would have stopped, and my lungs would no longer have had any air in them. I saw the same blue eyes and face, only it was more mature, and the little girl was no longer little, but a grown young woman stood before me.

  “Who, Isabella?”

  “Grim. He is my friend I told you about so long ago.”

  “Here to take me away, huh? Well, let him try. No one is taking my money until I have settled everything with my lawyer!” Then he coughed and wheezed. He was at death's door.

Literally. I was standing right in it.

  “It’s okay, grandpa, you have lived a good life and my friend will take good care of you. Just like he took good care of me.” Then she turned to me and smiled.

  “It’s a new adventure that awaits you. Don’t worry about money, you can’t take it with you anyway. Plus, you’ll get to see grandma again.”

  “Oh, yes, Darlene.” The man sighed and closed his eyes with a smile on his face.

  I looked at her and the old man before me.

  “Hello, Grim.” I looked back up. Though her eyes were red from crying, her smile pierced my soul. Her long brown hair was pulled into a ponytail, and she was wearing a pink shirt.

Pink.

  The memories sparked from so long ago. My eyes roamed her features and I noticed a small scar above her right eyebrow, but it did not take away from her beauty. I was shocked at what I thought. It was the number one rule. You can never, ever, fall in love…wait, I wasn’t in love with her, just admiring her presence. 

Anyway, the rule is you can never fall in love with the souls you have to usher on to the next life. Of course, I never had someone take such an interest in me before and remember my name with a smile on their face. They never went over that situation in, “Welcome to the Underworld 101” class or “What happens if the soul you are ushering falls in love with you or vice versa” course. Not that they existed, but it would have helped since I couldn’t take my eyes off of her.

  “Always so quiet.” She laughed, and my heart started beating again. It was such a joyous sound and I knew I wanted to hear it again. It brought life back to my dreary existence, which was saying something since I only worked with the dead.

  She stood up, and brought a chair next to her and motioned for me to sit.

  “He’s been so sick for the last couple months but I fear this may be his last day on earth. He took such great care of me, and he is the only thing I have left since my parents died in the car accident all those years ago.”

  Tears ran down her cheeks as she grabbed the dying man’s hand. I made my way to sit next to her, I wanted to comfort her but didn’t know how, so I just stayed silent. For the first time in my long existence, I hated my occupation and what it did to this young woman before me.

  I placed my scythe across my lap and listened as she reminisced about the good times she had with the man who had raised her. She cried and leaned on my shoulder as she told me about the time he taught her how to drive. I was surprised I didn’t see her in the underworld then. Then she grabbed my hand and I turned to look at her, as a tingle went up my arm.

  “Thank you, Grim. You being here has helped me more than you know.”

   Then she did something no one has ever done before. That seemed to be a record with her though, since I also have never held any mortals hand before, at least like this. The only time was when I had to drag their stubborn souls down to the underworld.

  She pulled down the hood of my cloak that continually covered my face. Her eyes went wide and I feared what she thought of me, then she smiled and kissed my cheek. Relief rushed through me along with a feeling in my soul that stirred an emotion I could not name.

  “You aren’t what I thought you’d look like.”

  She was right. Most people thought I was a skeleton underneath, but my immortal body was that of a man. I had white skin and short black hair with piercing gray eyes.

  I raised my eyebrows at her, daring her to finish her thought.

  “Don’t worry, I think you are handsome.” Then her skin flushed red, so different from the pale I usually dealt with. It brought a smile to my face, and I squeezed her hand and got up from the chair.

  “Is it time to go?” She questioned me with panic in her eyes. She frantically looked at her grandfather, and tears started to spill onto her cheeks again. I wished I could take away her pain, but I was the one who caused it.

“I’m sorry.” I told her. She looked at me and nodded, then I reached for her grandfather’s hand.

“Wait.”

I stopped and looked up to see her staring at me.

  “Will I see you again?” desperation in her voice.

  I was confused. Why was she asking me such a question? Most people were scared to die, and here she wanted to see the man who ushered it in.

  “I…don’t know?” I didn’t want her to get any ideas. “Live your life to the fullest Isabella, then when you have completed your task on earth, you’ll see me again.”

  “Okay. You promise?”

  “Promise.”

  Then she came around the bed and gave me a hug. I pulled her in tightly, not wanting to let go. I hesitated, at first then leaned back and kissed her gently above her eye, right on her scar.

The first kiss I’ve ever given anyone.

It felt…nice.

  “Be safe, Isabella.” Hoping she got my meaning. Then I released her and she turned to  reach for her grandpa’s hand one last time before I fulfilled my mission.

  Then her grandpa’s spirit was now standing next to me and we started to leave the room.

  “I’ll see you, Grim.” She called out.

  I turned to her and gave her one more smile.

  “Until next time.”

 

- 40 YEARS LATER-

         Isabella haunted my thoughts. Which was ironic since I was the one who usually haunted everyone else’s. Work continued and with every new soul born, a new one passed. The way of life going on before me.

         I had Lyra and Leo keep tabs on Isabella over the years in case there was a chance of her passing before her time. I wanted her to live a full life that so many were not granted to live. She was a wild one, though and kept me on my toes. Skydiving, cave exploring, and there was a time when she was into freestyle rock climbing. I hid in the distance in case I needed to break her from a fall. I think she saw me during one particular climb that had her horizontal to the ground.  My body froze, waiting for her to need my assistance.  When she finally put her feet on solid ground and I could breathe again, she looked in my direction and gave me a thumbs up. I rolled my eyes at her and left, only to hear her laughing in the distance.  

         Now, here I was, going to a funeral.

         “Thanks for coming, Grim, I knew you would.”

         She turned to me, age taking over her once young features. She was still beautiful to me, and my heart swelled. Her gray hair was showing through her faded brown, but her eyes still shone that beautiful blue.

         She leaned on my shoulder, and I wrapped my arm around her. She talked about the adventures her and Charlotte had over the years and how she was going to miss her friend. Then we sat in silence until it was my time to go.

         She turned to me with a mischievous smile and said, “I’ll see you soon.”

-17 years later-

         Lyra came rushing to me as I was ushering souls onto the boat to take them to the golden gates. I turned to her, waiting for the urgent news she had. She stopped right in front of me.

         “It’s time.”

         I’ve never fled so fast from my realm, and I made my way to her hospital bed where she lay.

         She was barely breathing, but still gave me a small smile. I reached my hand out to her and she took it.

         “I did it, Grim. I lived my life to the fullest, just like you asked me to.”

         “Yes, you did.” I shook my head with a smile, knowing I watched most of her life on the edge of my seat.

         “But there is one thing I still want to do…”

I thought back on her life, wondering what she missed out on. She was always trying something new.

What could she possibly have missed?

  Then she closed her eyes, not finishing her statement that I was eager to learn, hoping life wasn’t so cruel to not let her finish her journey here on earth.

         Then someone grabbed my hand from beside me and I turned to see a beautiful young woman before me, with luscious brown hair that waved down to her waist, and vibrant blue eyes that pierced my soul. I dropped my scythe and cupped her face with my hands and rubbed my thumbs along her cheeks.

         “What is it, Isabella? What did you not do?” I asked her softly. She placed her hands over mine and leaned into me.

         “I never married.” 

My heart sank, but it was true. She never had children or enjoyed that part of existence that I know so many mortals enjoyed, and I always wondered why.”

         Then she looked deep into my eyes.

         “Do you want to know why, Grim?”

         I shook my head.

         “Because I was waiting for you.”

         Then I pulled her in and kissed her softly on the lips, which she eagerly returned. Then we returned to my realm as King and Queen of the Underworld, never to be apart again.

 

 

-THE END-

 

 

 

I hope you enjoyed this short story about the Grim Reaper, check out my other books!