Ghost Me

Ghost Me

I’m a little disoriented; I think I’m a ghost, not sure. I’m at work. Or where I used to work. The gray cubicles and the sound of sales pitches over the phone are still there.I see Chuck, Mike and Ken still plugging away. Do they miss me? How long have I been here? A ghost.

I try to eat Jello in the break room, but it falls right through my bottom. Not the worst thing to fall out of me. I can’t seem to get a breath in me. I don’t think I’m breathing anymore to tell ya the truth. Getting through walls is convenient, though painful. Maybe I can try to eat cool whip or meringue cookies? Something light and airy, like me.

What am I supposed to do with this endless time I have? Check up on family and friends; their lives are mostly boring. Sorry, but they are. Wait a minute, what’s that sound? I hear a hum, with a noticeable clanking sound. I better duck behind this wall. Oh, dog shit. Almost step in it—except I can’t. I don’t even smell it. Here comes that hum again. Oh, no, crap! What is that thing? There is some kind of…Creature. It’s floating across the room toward Ken. Wow! Smacked him hard. He’s down. It looks like a heart attack to the others nearby. Ken is on the ground; Karen is trying to revive him. Mike is on the phone calling 911. My boss, Steve, comes around the corner to see what’s the commotion.

The creature is dashing across room to an outside wall, searching around. Maybe onto its next victim? I can’t describe the creature in detail. It’s like a large black cloud…shimmering and shapeshifting. Maybe ten feet of blob. There was a transient red glow right as it met Ken, just inside the cubicle. It didn’t see me, thank God.

I needed to head to my house and check on everyone. How do I get there? Maybe I can float a ride with someone. I see a car heading north. I’ll mingle into it. Hey, it’s working, I’m moving with the car! Oh crap, she’s turning. I better get out of here. Here comes another car. I’m off again. This could take a while.

Finally, home. Vicki and Joni are both home from school. Carol is in the kitchen. Everything seems normal. But why? I’m dead. Shouldn’t they be sad or mourning or something? Crazy, why does or how can life go on without me? What happened to me? How did I die? How long have I been gone? I need to find out more.

I will try the internet. Oh, damn, the keys aren’t moving, it’s like eating Jello!I better get down to the print archives at the Kearney Library. I can float through the pages in a whiff.

Strange, I don’t have an Obit. Has it been too soon? Maybe I’ve gone missing. I’ll check the crime logs. Nothing! Did I exist? Maybe my life was a dream? Maybe, I’m someone’s imagination. Oh, God, what about my family, did I or did someone dream that up? Am I looking at an authored creation or AI manipulation? Damn!

Maybe there are more clues at home. Time to get back. Out of the way; floating hitchhiker approaching!

As I hopscotch my way back home, I keep wrestling with my existence. All the events that made up my life. Birth of my girls, the car wreck, the promotions at work, holding Carols hand for the first time. The electric shock of that first touch still thrills. The sorrow over losing a father and mother. Are the biggest moments the sum of our lives or the small tender moments with loved ones? What does it all mean? Did I die in that car crash like the Sixth Sense?

Finally, home again. My wife is on the phone. Hospital? St. Mary’s? The girls exit the table and head toward the car. Carol grabs her purse and keys. I better hop aboard.

When we arrive at the hospital, we are met by my brother, Paul and Carol’s sister Gwen. What is the commotion? I float ahead to room 213 and am shocked to see—ME! There I am, lying in a coma. As I stare, Carol and the others enter the room. Carol stops short of the gadget-filled bed. The beeping noises unleash tormented looks from my girls. My doctor steps into the room and motions to Carol, pointing to a private area next to the room. I drift over to Carol, hovering above her right shoulder, to listen.

“I’m afraid it’s bad news, Carol,” said the doctor. “I don’t know when…or if, he’ll recover.”

Carol looks down as her hands fly up to meet her twisting face. She pulls herself together for a moment. That’s my Carol.

“What can we do?” she asks, lips quivering. “Can he hear us; feel our presence?”

“I don’t know how to answer that, Carol,” he says, putting his hand on her shoulder. “Just pray and keep your girls close. Explain to them what is happening.” He said.

Now I’m wondering what the hell happened! What did this? A stroke, an accident, poor diet? My gut clenched and my mind raced. 

Just then, I hear the sound of the changeling black cloud approaching. I pull back into a darkened corner. It’s approaching my twilight body in the bed. What can I do? I rise above and circle the cloud, then with all my ecto-energy, I launch into the black cloud, just as its red glow appears. The cloud starts to dissipate, then regathers. I swoop in again, this time on its right side. More dissipation. Before it can start to regather. I swooped up from below. More disruption. It starts to turn to mist. I take one more try as a dust devil and push it aside. God no! it hits my brother Paul as he reenters the room. He’s dead before hitting the ground! Gwen screams. A nurse shouts code blue. Suddenly, my coma body starts to twitch. The girls squeal, “Mom, look! He’s moving!” As two attendants work on Paul, Carol and Gwen crowd around the bed. Joni and Vicki squeeze my cold hand. Noisy monitor alarms go off. The body starts a slow movement. Just then, I feel a rush. I can’t move. I start to flutter toward the bed. I can’t control what is happening now as I inch closer to my former body on the bed. My eyes flash open, and I see the faces of my loved ones surrounding me. I have no recollection as to what happened or of the out of body experience.

The nurse removes the breathing equipment and I cough out, “I love you; I love you.” Carol chokes, “You’re back, we’re so glad you’re back.”