1-2

I come to in front of a house and I am holding an envelope. I stand up and fight the wave of feeling that came over me. I was alive. I feel the heat of the sun on my back, I feel hunger, thirst and I feel my heart beating in my chest.

I smile.

I laugh.

I take a deep breath.

I am alive.

I look around, looking for the demon woman but she was nowhere to be found. Remembering the envelope I held, I opened it and reached inside and pulled out a set of keys, a deed to the house, a wad of cash and a note.
Olaf, it’s not much but this should be enough to get you started. Bringing you back to life proved to be a little more difficult than I expected, so you will find some time has passed since we made our deal. Iris is married now, I didn’t get you back in time to stop the wedding. However, our deal still stands. I gave you life and I will be back to collect my debt. In the meantime, live your life. If you ask me, love is overrated anyways. -Demona

I sank to the ground, I had my life back but there was no life without Iris. My vision blurred, I was confused as I reached up and wiped my eyes. I was crying. It felt odd as did the pain searing through my chest.

I am alive.

I was breathing and that was the most important thing. As long as I am alive I can win her back. That’s it! She didn’t know I was alive but once she did she would come back to me. With a new lease on life things were starting to look up. I took the keys and walked into the little house and looked around. I could see Iris and me living here. I would need to build her a studio but that would come later. I was smiling, actually smiling. Then out of nowhere it hit me. How would I explain being alive?

I suddenly felt like my world was being pulled out from under me. How many times can a person experience this pain before they go mad? How many times would I die before I find peace?

My stomach rumbled reminding me that I haven’t eaten in…well, God only knows how long. I walked over to the fridge that came with the house and opened it. There were a few items that I guessed Demona bought, for a demon she wasn’t that bad. I took a box of juice out and drank it before fixing a jam sandwich.

As long as it had been since I consumed actual food one would think the experience would be delightful but my mind was trying to process too much to even taste the raspberry jam. I didn’t know what to do with myself or about Iris. The only thing I knew for certain was life wasn’t worth much without the love of Iris. I decided to give into the slumber than came over me hoping that once I woke up my head would be clearer.

I was startled from my sleep by a knocking sound. It took me a few minutes to realize someone was knocking on my door. I slowly opened the door, gasping at the sight. There was a woman and a ghost on my porch. I wasn’t certain if the woman could see the ghost so I waited for her to speak while I eyed the ghost cautiously.

“Hello, I’m Gundrun Beaker and this is Oskar Olsen. Yes, I can see him. Anyways, I’m your neighbor and I just wanted to welcome you, or rather re-welcome you to the neighborhood. See, it’s my job to keep up with ghosts and the supernatural. I am a paranormal expert. So you must be pretty special to get a second chance like this. I’ve only known of a few other’s to get this chance. So are you going to invite us in, or what?”

I stood there speechless. Never in my life or beyond had I met someone who could talk so much without ever taking a breath. I was intrigued by her, more so the fact that she dealt with people like me. I stepped aside and motioned toward the door, “Uh, sure. Please come in.”

I watched as Oskar floated by, he never said a word. Gundrun on the other hand went right in and took in my meager surroundings. “So, who brought you back? I’m guessing a crossroads demon since you haven’t been turned into a creature of the night yet? I’m also guessing it was Gen or Demona that brought you back, they like the hot guys and you are pretty hot. How long are you going to be here? Do you have a job? I need some coffee. Want to go grab a cup?”

My head spun like I was on a merry-go-round. This lady was too much. I couldn’t process my thoughts yet alone keep up with her rapid fire questions. I mostly just stood there dumbfounded.

“I’m sorry. I guess you still have a lot to adjust to. It’s a good thing I came over when I did. I can help you.”

“How can you help me?” I asked, not sure what kind of help I needed.

“I can help you get a job, help you adjust to your new life and anything else you need.”

“A job?” I hadn’t even considered that. Of course I needed money and I also needed to catch up on current events. “I’m an artist.” I blurted out.

“Good, good. You can register with city hall as a painter and sell your paintings. That’s perfect. Ok, well there is a consignment shop that has a huge selection of art supplies if you want me to take you or I can give you directions, your choice.”

“I’ll stop by on my way to city hall tomorrow. Thank you. Do you know Iris Ingberg?” I held my breath waiting for her response. I knew I was asking a loaded question but the more information I received, the better I could prepare to win Iris back.

“I know her well, actually I just attended her baby shower yesterday.”

“Baby shower?” I asked as my heart broke, my ears filling with the sound of glass shattering as it felt like I was dying, yet again.

“Yeah silly, you know, where people lavish gifts upon a pregnant woman? I bought her a baby swing and some diapers because you can never have enough diapers, or so I hear. Hey, are you ok? You don’t look so good.”

I didn’t feel good. I felt like my world had been snatched away from me. My dear, sweet Iris was having a baby; another man’s baby. This wasn’t the way it was suppose to work. It was suppose to be my baby, my seed she’s carrying, not another man’s. It was suppose to be me she married, me she experienced life’s adventures with, me she grew old with. It was suppose to be me.

“I hate to be rude but I need to get my rest. I think I am catching a cold. If you could please leave, I would appreciate it.” I said, not wanting to be rude but at the same time wanting to punch my hand through the wall.

“Sure, I understand. If you need anything I live right around the corner. Come on Oskar.” She called the ghost.

Oskar hovered in front of me whispering softly. “Iris is happy. Don’t destroy her happiness. She’s not yours any more. Let her go, it’s the only way you’ll find peace.”

I watched as they left, Oskar’s words ringing in my ears. “Let her go. I repeated before slamming my fist into the wall.