A memoir of hellish venture

My name is Soyemi, let me tell you the story of how I managed to maintain my body but get this dual citizenship of two worlds. one is either here or there but I am the exception I am both here and there.

     It was late one friday night we had all returned from lectures, I stepped into the shower to wash off all of the week's stress. In a bid to sweat out every course that had gotten under our skin, my roommates and I went over for a typical college party, all management sophomores were invited.

 Different groups had come with their drinks and various contraband In all shapes and colours.

The loud music swallowed our screams while we did some shots, each glass reduced our ability to make good decisions. I've never been much of a drinker but I have always been fascinated with forming clouds of smoke from my breath, it had always made me feel like a god, creating something that had motion even if for only a second, it never mattered to me that I was not the only one capable of this ability.

 The rhythm of the beats from the speakers were persuasive, it had this command over our bodies, it pulled everyone along I had little control, I knew how little it was when "daddy yo" by wizkid one of the biggest Nigerian artiste came on. ahh! I lost it..... it pulled me back across the wide ocean and many countries to something that spoke my language, something that could properly command ladies hips to move, this felt like home so I acted at home I wanted to take the lead I didn't know any cool dance moves but that was not a strong enough to reason to stop me. I climbed onto a table and sang along. Dipping my body in and out of the rhythm.

 Being unable to bust any skillful move I decide to jump from couch to table, feeling the vibe grow into a monster . In order to make the jump more impressive we flip the table on it's side so it's taller I had to carefully balance on it and push my weight down but it tilts slightly backward and alters my trajectory. All my lift off force launches me straight down, gravity does not need to stretch it's hands to the sky to grab me, i fly straight into her embrace landing headfirst on the tiles, the thump of my head's collision with the floor is louder than the kick in the song, it generates a shock wave that sends ripples through everyone's rhythm, that is, all but the music, I was mad that instant, mad that my own did not acknowledge my predicament, it remained steady with it's vibe not breaking it's stride not even for a second and at that moment I burned with contempt, I know it was a petty thing to do in that moment dangling between life and death. But I had felt betrayed.

Hot red liquid hurry out of my nose in a frenzy to see what all the noise outside is about.

 The world starts losing light my brain starts shutting down; I forget how to breathe, I'm trying but I don't remember how. My mouth is open but I have to choose between breathing and speaking. I choose breathing, I should stay alive long enough to talk to God, I heard he hears the prayers of our heart. I hopefully check if the saying has a pulse.

 I lament my foolishness so far, I pray for my family. Sadness also finds a way around the pain and malfunctions of my body's system to get his point across - that I have managed to purchase a free visa to a country where I am no longer constrainedby rules.

   Slosh! A pale of water is emptied on my face. Was it supposed to scare the red hot hands of hellish demons from collecting my soul, I don't know? or was it meant to sweep me back to the shores of the living I can't tell.

The last rays of light fades and I sink into the depths of darkness I will experience the finality of death before my parents.

   I feared hell all the more because i can neither crossover with the shield of my mother's prayers nor the influence of my father's wealth, I will now know this independence my father always talks about.

I feel lighter, my souls connection to my body gradually weakens. I struggle against the hands of death with all my being-it translates on my body as only a twitch in my fingers.

  Fear is more powerful than you were told. I felt it do some last minute editing to my beliefs and in that split-second before transcription from body to soul... I felt it, I felt my heart reach out. My voice an echo. A desperate distress signal outside the walls that frame the land of the living, there in the corridors of divinity. I feel something else, an emptiness, a knowing that God was not there. It wasn't a surprise that I ended up outside the jurisdiction of heavens mercy and grace.

The confirmation comes in fiendish cackles that threatens to rip through the fabrics of my consciousness. Three creatures stand in front of me, skinny and ancient. Their wings are speckled with burnholes.

   I can tell they are demons but these bastards look like smigo from the lord of the rings, I always knew there was more to God not letting his former-angels back in heaven, they were bad for public relations if one of these paid me a visit as an angel I would definitely run! Ahhh! My sense of humour followed me here. Somehow they heard my thought and waste no time in expressing their displeasure they packaged it in the series of pain ringing in my back.

The three bald creatures carry me to their cave.

The question is inevitable. Can you die after death, before you are completely dead?