The blade stung, but Michael was braver now. He closed his eyes against the pain. “This has to work,” he muttered.
Streaks of warm blood ran down his hand over his fingers. He sunk back into the bathtub watching the warm water shallow him up.
Michael knew what to expect. He’d seen it before a few years ago when he and Crystal went driving down in the canyon. Michael had been showing off when he took the curve too fast. The steering wheel pulled against his grip. The tires yelled, and Michael saw the rocks coming at him.
It was like stepping out of a dim, narrow room into the light. The impact pushed him from one world to another. Everything exploded with color and he felt better than he’d ever remembered feeling before.
They’d sent him back then. They’d sent him to fumble around in this clumsy world, but he couldn’t let go of his experience there. He’d spent so much time waiting for death to happen again. He was tired of waiting.
Michael sunk down in the water a little more. It tickled his chin. His eyelids were growing heavier now. He thought of Crystal. He wondered if she’d be waiting for him there.
Michael blinked slowly a few times before closing his eyes completely. They sent him back last time, but this time he wasn’t going back.
Photo by Lucas Hoyos