Daytrip To The Coast

And just like that, I appeared out of nothing. On the sand of the beach, in the middle of the day, at the mercy of the sun. Right by me there was an improvised fireplace with a crimson kettle on it. I even felt the warmth of the November evening, pretty neat for this side of the world. Nothing compared to where I was before, in the misty nothingness of the afterlife, and - poof! - I am here.

Coming back from the dead is not that scary as people believe. In fact, this is not scary at all. It is just very rare - you need to contact the right people, you have to be useful to these people. These guys came up to and said - Ellie, we need you to talk to Max. Honestly, it is just unfair. We all die, low key hoping for some reset, but once you flip over the other side, it is the same game as ever before.

The waves of the ocean were subtly caressing the grains of sand. I half-sat on my elbows. Beside the fireplace there was some kind of clothes and a backpack. The white wave scallops were shuffling with the clouds on the horizon. In between them, there was Max, somewhat in his fifties, and still playing with the tide.

Max would recognize me. He probably would. Ever since we broke up, I knew it was taking a toll on him, and that’s why I was dead sure he would recognize his little Ellie. Yes, it would probably amount to half a life since we last talked, but he would. After all, you would not normally meet your ex-girlfriend from the student era back on your special beach spot, especially when she’d been dead for a decade or so.

Now, he was coming back. First in a steady pace, but the moment he had a change of step, for a split second, I knew he noticed. He always told me: first reaction is always emotional, so never accept anything at face value. I could tell that Max, if one would put it in a mild manner of words, was shocked. His heart became a grenade that exploded the very moment after; his legs abandoned any connection to the brain as tripping over an invisible wire. The scuffed gasp, more of the squeak alike, left his numbing throat. I did my best and put up a smile; and with some effort, I raised my hands in waving hello and, with all the joy in the pockets, I shouted:

-Max! It’s me, Ellie!

Little did I know that introducing myself would not only fail to cheer Max, but in fact spin up the swirl of his continued collapse, as he fell into the salutary abyss of the unconsciousness.

I rushed to him, hoping for the best. Luckily, no sign of the physical damage, no open wounds on the poor Max. He, as a true gentleman, couldn’t afford making a lady wait for too long, and in a span of a minute, came back to his senses.

Eyes rapidly opened, scarred with the recent fear; they immediately noted that I am still here, and more so, that I am waiting for him. The last chance of some truly bizarre imagination issues was slipping through the tremor of his fingers.

So, naturally, I tried to console him:

-Don’t worry, Max! We… I am not mad. Just in case.

Max was panting. The fragments of the heart grenade in his chest began to feel unpleasantly hot.

-Oh, you are probably wondering what… and how… how I am here, - Ellie continued. -To be honest, I don’t really know exactly. Listen, I know it is hard to believe, but I am also a bit confused on everything, but I honestly, totally not mad or came to settle whatever…

-Aren’t you… dead? - Max managed to squeeze out some words out of himself.

-I guess I am, Max! And that is totally not a nice thing to happen, but this is like, a decade ago, okay? Please, please don’t worry! -Ellie began to wave her hands in a stalling motion, as she noticed that Max was turning nervous again. - Yes, I am dead. Well, let’s put it this way: I guess, my past life ended. I am here now, not really alive, but all I know, is that it is not a new thing or anything. I don’t think I can be here for long. So let’s just talk, okay?

Max’s breathing began to stabilize. His pupils began to gain its normal diameter in the nominal sign of things returning to a more conventional manner. He managed to sit up.

-Are you drinking tea here, Max? You have always been such a romantic soul, haven’t you? - asked Ellie.

-Yes, I… I picked it up in… in the last years.

He moisturized his lips, as the latter were drought to the point that it was hard to talk, and let out:

-Do you want to have a cup of tea with me?

Ellie smiled again; every time she did that there was a burst of excitement visible on her face.

-Totally! Do you have some additives too?

-Yes, of course, - Max smiled in return, defenseless against the sheer power of this star of an energy.

I stood up and ran back to the fireplace. Max recollected himself step by step, and carefully walked after. By the time he managed to crawl back, I counted the entirety of his bag - some book, tea bags, some smaller plastic bags, and a bottle of the Riga balsam. The water was already staring to evaporate, to Max’s great relief I could sense - he could use some tea with a sip of spirit. Sun was slowly tumbling over the zenith.

-Black currant! This is premier cru, monsier Max! Did you pay a visit to your old friends?

-Yes, I did. Premier is not the best, by the way, it is grand cru.

Some people! And I thought that nothing would bore me again after the afterlife…

-Who cares, sweetbread? Judging from where I come from, you don’t really need to make sure that everything is, you know, thought out by you. If you can make a girl happy, you are good in my book.

Max chuckled. He sipped tea from his cup - what a refreshing tea that was! Max sipped a bit more, and then some more again. The taste of the drink was deeper than a rain forest and tantalizing as something that Max still was looking for words to describe.

-So, how did your study go? Did you discover something that kicked all your colleagues out of the socks?

-Well, I guess… I lead a research group, for one of the companies… in the defense industry.

-I always knew that you would make it, Max. Crap, I fell for you because of that. So much inside, to show the world.

-I remember that.

She sipped some tea and extended a loud thcua, something both animal and hedonistic.

-How… did you, well?

-I did what?

-You know… how did you find yourself here?

-Ooh, you mean how did I become a ghost? I don’t know. It’s just… when you die, you are in this weird place. It’s like… nothing. Not scary, not cold, not bad - it’s just nothing. Like really, really deep sleep, and you see this very realistic dream.

For a second, I thought maybe it would not be wise to share everything with Max just yet.

-And then I thought - I really want to see Max. And then you are pulled into something, like falling but not down, rather to the side, and then I woke up, but without a sleepy head, just woke up, here. And there’s that.

-Oh… okay, - said Max. Not every ghost was absolutely tangible, fully opaque, without a trace of gooey liquid they typically lead - which was, on all accounts, a great improvement.

We were slowly drinking our tea. I only started to realize that it wasn’t that hot - maybe feeling something after a decade of feeling nothing comes at some perception cost. Yet this was their spot: a slight detour from the highway, down by the rocks, and a bit off the coast, closer to the bridge. Here, nobody would normally go for a swim or sunbath - too distant. But for the student couple, it was the luxurious resort.

I closed my eyes. The trembling sensation, covered by years of rubble - or as some call it, life experience, - was excavating itself. The whole day is waiting, and there is nothing that could prevent this day from becoming yet another great day. Everything was tiling itself into the exact spot it was supposed to be.

-Why did we come here, Max? Do you remember? - I asked him.

-You wanted to be off the network. No cellphone is catching here properly. I mean, it used to be: with all the new towers it works as well.

-Are you sure?

-Of course. I switch it off manually to keep things as they were.

I looked into his eyes.

-Why would you come here, Max?

He shrugged his shoulder.

-Sometimes, I just like to remind myself that things used be different. No chasing, no regret. We had no dreams, and we just lived that dream. These times would never happen again, Ellie. Too few people need so little to be happy, as I was at that time.

He stopped. And then - he repeated:

-Too few people need so little to be happy.

I reached out to him, to weave into his fingers.

-We always believed that the best times were ahead of us. And trust me, there is always a chance. Even in the afterlife, things are not that bad.

He smiled. I smiled in return.

Yet, it was time.

-Max, there is something else that I need to tell you. I… know something that you might not like, but it may help you.

-Oh no, here comes the gossip ghost!

We both laughed. Of course, I was always like this.

-It is not really a gossip. Or, well, it is a global kind of gossip. Something that you might discuss when I am not around.

He kept on laughing, in a kinder tone.

-Well, let me into these secrets!

I closed my eyes again. The guys who sent me here told me that to send the message, I’d need just to think of it. I focused, and the word just flew off the tongue, as a flock of chirping birds.

-The Vessel would leave for the Horizon Port this November. After it would depart, they would come for you. There is nothing you can do to prevent it. Leave for Norway site, and get into the submarine with the erased numbers. It is programmed to drift in the Arctic, and then would land in Greenland. Climate warfare is probable. Refrain from any actions outside of this course. You are very precious.

The rush of the message left me breathless; I even felt my throat collapse a bit.

-Ellie, are you alrigh? - Max looked at me nervous. - What was all that? How… you can’t know about the Vessel.

I looked back at him. The deafening volume of this soundless thunder only began to cut into. Something gigantic, and sharp, was pushing inside me.

-Listen, Max… I loved you. You were my best day. Please, take care of yourself.

-What? What are you even talking about?

I closed my eyes. I wish I could burst into tears, but apparently, ghosts lack the capacity of even dreaming about that.

The guys warned me that if I needed an evac, they could help. All you need is to think about it. So I thought. And when I opened them back, I was sitting on the bench in the park. Max was not with me, and I checked myself by pinching. I was in the afterlife.

A gentleman would appear in front of me. He stretched his hand out and continued in a colorless voice:

-We are thankful, Ellie. You saved a very precious life, and hopefully, Max would be able to save even more.

I didn’t shake his hand.

-What was that about?

-Oh, you mean the message? Nothing to worry about, not for you, no no. Let’s say that you have already passed this line - and fortunately for you, you even had the chance to come back, and walk among the living, and even see your loved one. This is, indeed, a rare opportunity.

-Why would you not just let people back, if you can?

-We simply cannot. And besides, Ellie, people rarely want back. In the afterlife, there is no joy, but there is no sadness even. There is nothing, as you have clearly said it to Max. People taste life only while they have it. And when they do, oh, they never have enough. Few people need so little to be happy. And you have won the lottery three times on my count!

The gentleman shrugged his shoulder.

-Again, Ellie, we appreciate your help. And who knows, maybe we would need you… once more.

I looked up. The gentleman vanished, as they always did.