Metamorphosis

'Confused' that's what my mind was able to register at the moment. Confused and alone. The world around me didn't make sense, neither did my body. My hands and feet felt numb in this incomprehensible universe I found myself in. Everything was a murky purple shade; the sky and the

ground. I was standing on absolute nothingness. I tried to remember where I was. I tried to understand where I was but all that came to mind were distant jagged thoughts. Why can't I remember anything? I tried, desperately to cling onto faded memories that seemed foreign and forgotten but they slid as easily as air past me. My mind was wrapped in a hazy fog of thick, swirling smoke making my head throb painfully.

"Jason", a disembodied voice echoed, spreading a low grumble through the air. A small earthquake spread beneath my feet. Was that my name? I thought to myself. White light exploded in my eyes forcing me to my knees, a weak whimper escaped my lips. Dull pain spread throughout my body. I groaned slightly and looked around me. A slight wind had started blowing, caressing my face with its icy fingers. Cold goosebumps erupted on the back of my neck. A tingling sensation that something was watching me made me shiver. Something was coming.

In the distance, the horizon which was an empty canvas a few minutes ago now had strokes of fat dark clouds painted on it. Thunder roared as a deep grumble resonated in the air. A fork of lightning split the sky, zigzagging through the air, illuminating everything in a dark blue hue. The thunder that followed was soul shatteringly enormous. A tear slid down my face, my body went completely limp. I tried to collect my thoughts. I had never felt so helplessly afraid in my life. It must be a dream I thought to myself, please let it be a dream. But somehow in the back of my head, I knew this wasn't a dream. Somehow I knew I was about to die.

I tried to run but my legs didn't want to obey the electrical impulses my brain fired at it. Adrenaline pumped through my veins, but all it did was to make me aware of the horrible fate I was about to suffer. The storm seemed to grow bigger and bigger, swirling to form a hurricane-like shape. My body shivered uncontrollably. Pure terror rumbled through my bones making my teeth chatter. My body was paralyzed and I was at the mercy of a threat that was incomprehensible to my primitive brain.

"Jason", the voice said again.

And suddenly everything went quiet, the howling of the wind and the claps of thunder stopped immediately. It was as if somebody turned the mute button on. Every little sound ceased to exist. I could only hear my frantic heart beating through my chest wildly.

"Jason, I want you to come back"

Suddenly I found my purpose, the one goal I had, the one objective I was preordained to complete in my life. Nothing else mattered. I needed, no I was destined to come back. I glanced towards the storm but it had mysteriously vanished. Everything was calm and peaceful again.

"Please Jason".

And that's when I realized. The storm hadn't disappeared. It was above me. I opened my mouth to scream as a white, blinding bolt of lightning pierced through the clouds. Time slowed down. I could see the bolt shimmering like a mirage as it came towards me. It reeked of anger and rage. It wanted me to die. It wanted me to feel its wrath, the millions of joules of pure energy yearned to spread through my body. I shut my eyes.

The lightning struck me. A surge of memories flooded my bewildered mind. the memories seemed corrupted and broken somehow. I was in a tulip-filled field, eating a sweet juicy apple but maggots were crawling through it. And then I was in a dark room, someone was sleeping beside me, snoring softly but the room was on crimson fire. The memories kept on flashing like an old film. A girl laughing but with blood on her face, the sound weirdly spreading a warm feeling through my body. The memory changed and a pang of sadness hit my heart. My heart craved to see her again but instead, I was rewarded with another foreign memory. I somehow knew they were mine. The girl kept on appearing in my eyes, filling me with euphoria. I wanted to touch her face, I wanted to feel her against my chest. Tears flowed down my face. I love her dearly I thought to myself. Even though I didn't know her, I fell deeply in love with her.

"Open your eyes"

My eyes blinked open. I was no longer in the bottomless world. Instead, I was in a familiar street. Everything, including the buildings and the sky, was now a grey colour. The street seemed to be abandoned as not a single person or animal was in sight. A slight wind blew across the tarmac, picking up debris and dirt with it. In the distance, a red car, the only thing which had colour, was lying on the ground, turned over. Grey smoke was billowing out of the engine. I made my way towards the car cautiously. Upon reaching it, I bent down on my knees and peeked inside the car, a vision exploded in my mind. I was behind the wheels, listening to an 80's classic. The weather was sunny and the sky was a beautiful blue. I felt happy. Today was a special day. It was her birthday. My phone ringed, I smiled as I knew who the caller was, I reached into my pocket and suddenly my hands jerked, an ear-shattering crash rocked the car violently and my whole world started spinning. The vision stopped, I gasped and shuffled backwards on my hands. Am I dead? I thought to myself. Is this the afterlife? I put my face in my cupped hands and started sobbing quietly. Something landed on my hand. I looked up, my vision blurry as a butterfly fluttered in my hands. It was a beautiful blue colour with black and white patterns across its majestic wings. The butterfly looked at me with huge black eyes. I felt as if it was talking to me. I sat down cross-legged on the road and cradled the butterfly in my hands. The wind was picking up speed. " Hey there buddy," I say, wiping my face with my other hand.

"You scared of the wind, huh?"

The butterfly spread its wings and flapped them gently. The answer was clear. I chuckled softly.

"What is this place?" I whimpered.

Another butterfly perched on my hand. I looked at it with curiosity. The newcomer was a dark yellow colour. As soon as the butterfly appeared, the blue butterfly spread its wings and took off. The yellow butterfly took off after it.

I stood up and watched them dance in the sky. I understood what was happening. I closed my eyes.

"Jason, please wake up, wake up for me."

I obeyed.

My eyes blinked open.

A gorgeous face of a girl with dark hair came into focus. The ocean blue eyes were filled with tears.

"Oh my god"

The girl put her hand on her mouth. She smelled of flowers and honey.

"Oh my god Jason, you came back" she whispered, with gasping breaths.

"Help! somebody come here" she yelled behind her.

"Jason.." she looked at me with attractive and loving eyes. "..you were in a coma and you woke up," she sounded as if she was witnessing a miracle.

She was the girl I saw in my memories. She was my girl.

I smiled. I came back.

A picture behind, Jane, my wife, caught my attention. It was a blue butterfly emerging from its cocoon. I smiled, everything was alright.