ThreyaMidnight

"So this is what they mean when they say your life flashes before your eyes when you die."

Betrayed. Battered. Broken. 

Evangeline Vermillion has had enough of her pathetic life. She was young—only in her early 20s—and she had planned to end it all by setting herself on fire. 

That was how she met Death—cold, dark, tall, and...handsome? Huh. Who knew the Grim Reaper could look like that? He takes her hand and guides her through the In-Between, the sacred realm between the Land of the Living and the Afterlife. Together, they revisit her most important memories. From the misfortunes of her childhood, to the chaos and bloodshed of the wrong kinds of love, Evangeline must confront the demons of her past to get to The Other Side.

Through all of the pain and anguish, Death stands with her, an enigmatic companion and unlikely confidant. And in their brief waltz between realms, Evangeline finally finds what she always wanted but never had: to belong and to be loved.

Waltz with Death

The couple slowly disintegrated from view, yet Death and I remained in the Ferris wheel, alone together as we watched the In-Between created setting sun in this memory.

My eyes shifted to Death, realizing that this memory might've upset him. But he kept a straight face, asking me as if I was the one who needed checking up on, "How are you feeling?"

And then, as I struggled to piece my thoughts together, I realized that I really do need it.

Death was silent, waiting patiently for me to gather my bearings.

It made me think: How odd. I was so used to getting shouted at for thinking carefully before speaking that the idea of someone waiting for me to be ready was such a refreshing feeling.

If this were Dante (the one later in my memories, not the current one I'm witnessing again), I would've been called a slow dumbass.

The One That Got Away