2. The Fourth Dimension

We spent most of the morning sobbing and cursing our fates, and later we visited him.

“Wow, you look like you are going to wake up any moment now and start walking and talking,” I couldn’t help exclaiming, looking at his well-maintained body.

“Yes, my mother doesn’t like me in hospital clothes.” I recognized custom-tailoring when I saw it.

“So, who else visits you?” I changed the topic.

“My father visits weekly because he finds it too difficult to see me like this every day.” My heart turned over at this. Which parent could bear to see his child in such condition?

“No friends?” I prodded further.

He gave a rueful smile. “The only thing that this coma has given me is an understanding of who my real friends are. You wouldn’t believe people have come in and cursed me for the crash – you know why? Because they can’t have fun anymore and miss the free booze that I provided earlier.” His words didn’t surprise me; I had researched him thoroughly during my assignment on his father.

“And so many girls have come in and spoken how I was good, you know in bed, and how they are ‘fake’ sorry and how they will ‘fake’ miss me,” I had heard this too, but I really enjoyed the way he quoted the word ‘fake’.

“So, you have been with many women. And on both sides, no one was ever serious?” I asked gingerly.

“Yeah, I was never…” he dismissed casually.

“Hey, you don’t have to be proud of it,” I scolded.

He grinned, chastised. “I am honestly not. These three months have been an eye-opening experience for me. There were, in fact, two very nice girls who loved me but I never cared about them after that first night.”

I couldn’t help but be judgemental about his casual ways.

“But I am a changed man now,” he finished off.

“Well, it won’t matter. You would wake up and forget everything you have learned here and will be back to the mean, selfish playboy,” I snapped, and ignored his hurt expression.

“I know I will remember this,” he spoke softly, and it felt he was trying to convince himself this time.

*

Tired and bored with nothing to do, I started playing around. To start with, I entered or at least pretended to enter various people and climbed up and down the stairs with them - it was fun!

“Hey, I have a question,” I asked Jai.

“Yes?”

“What is this place?” I asked as I hopped out of an oblivious nurse. He was extremely fascinated with all my playing.

“You mean the hospital?” He looked around curiously.

“I know what this building is, I meant the place – the limbo – we are in. We are definitely not in the human world, as we can’t touch them,” I paused to run my hand through a wall, “And they can’t see us either. So, what is this place?”

Jai thought about it. “Honestly, I don’t know either. But from a little tidbit I remember from my living days, it looks like we are in the fourth dimension.”

“Fourth dimension of what?” I gawked at him, surprised.

“Of the world.” Sensing I didn’t understand, he elaborated. “You see, it is believed that there are various dimensions that exist in this world. Humans, who are living and moving, are in two dimensions, they can touch and feel in the third dimension. However, we, as ghosts, who can’t live with them, are in the fourth dimension, which exists in this world but is in the whole other plane.” His enthusiasm on this nerd-talk went over my head.

“So, you are saying that in a way we are stuck between worlds because I don’t see any dead people ghosts.” He considered my point for a moment and spoke, “Yes, you can say so and that this place is the fourth dimension.”

“Or so you name it,” I replied casually, and he smiled.

“Ok, so next one – how come I can’t touch anything, but still I can walk on the floor or climb the stairs?” I asked, bouncing on the stairs.

“Interesting question! Well, I don’t have a PhD in this but as far as I understand, it’s the way your mind works; it is your belief that makes you walk on the floor or climb stairs…”

He would have made a nice professor, I thought amusedly.

“Really, so if I don’t climb stairs and walk ahead what will happen?” I asked curiously, and he replied with the crankiest smile, “Try….”

“Ok,” and instead of raising my foot, I moved it forward hoping the stair would stop it, but instead, I went right through it, falling two floors down! Seriously, I had to try this on the highest stair, damn. I heard him laugh two floors above me. I stood up and raised my hand to curse him, but instead, I saw my hand fluctuate… I could swear, it kind of disappeared and reappeared. He came down laughing his heart out, and I waited for that fluctuation to happen again but it didn’t, so I let go. Maybe it was because of the fall, although it didn’t hurt me.

“That was not funny,” I complained, but eventually joined in.

“Oh, it was…” he was still chuckling.

“So, this happened with you too?” I asked once my laughter was in control.

“Worse. This thought occurred to me in the elevator. Imagine falling into the elevator shaft, filled with dust that has not been cleared since the stone-age….” he cursed dramatically.

“Wow. You deserved it, you know,” I teased.

“I know,” he laughed again.

“So how did you come back? Can we fly?” Flying could be interesting.

“Maybe we can fly, but I am not sure. At that time, I walked in the Earth for don’t know how long, came to the underground subway and came back to the surface. It was terrifying, I swear I would like to forget that soon….” he replied with a shiver.

“So that bad, huh?” I asked, sincerely. But before he could respond, I almost yelled, “Did you see that?” I asked, shocked, “Did you see my hand?”

“It’s not just your hand, it’s your whole body,” he replied scared. His face was dead white now.

“What is happening to me?” I was panicking.

“You are sinking. Quick, we have to go!” And he ran to my room.

“Hey, what do you mean by sinking?” I asked as I followed him, but my question didn’t need an answer. Looking at the scene at present, I understood what he meant by sinking - I was dying.

Doctors and nurses had surrounded me; my mother and Priya were sobbing from the small window in the door. I could see my heart-rate fall rapidly, and my lifeline beeped insanely. The more it dropped, the faster I fluctuated.

“No, no, no! You cannot!” Jai shouted, holding me tightly in both arms. “Please don’t go… please…” he shouted in tears.

“At least give her a chance,” he screamed angrily at the ceiling. Talking to God! I wondered.

Despite myself, I asked, “What chance?”

“Most people are given chances to come back to life.”

“Did you get one?”

“Yes, but I missed it. I didn’t know what it was and I was scared, but you didn’t even have one,” he replied, putting his forehead against mine. Although I was dying, I felt so complete in the moment that I could have stayed there forever. But there was no forever for me. Only death!

“We are losing her! Charge up the EPR,” the doctor announced to the nurse.

I knew my time was up. I could now barely feel alive or happy. We were holding hands, but his touch felt very feeble.

“On the count of 3 - 1…2…3….” The doctor gave me a shock, and my lumpy body shook with a huge jerk. I waited for something, but nothing happened.

“Again! 1…2...3….” and again, nothing happened. It was so pathetic to see yourself die.

“Again….” All other words subsided in the background as a small silver ball appeared in front of me, it felt like it was calling for me.

“Jai, what the hell is this? Please tell me it is the door to heaven and not to hell?” I asked, holding on to him tightly.

Jai, who was hiding his face in my hair, looked up suddenly and jumped with excitement, “This is it, this is your chance, take the ball, it’s the ball of life; it will take you back to life!”

“What?” this was the best news ever.

“Yes, and in your case, it is very small, take it now or you’ll miss it,” and he pushed me towards it. Wow, this is it, I can now finally be alive. I was about to take it, but a thought stopped me.

“You missed taking this ball?” I asked, facing him.

“Yes,” I could see the pain in his eyes, but I could also see the happiness that I was coming back to life.

“I am not going alone.”

“What? Are you crazy?” He asked as though I was mental.

“You are coming with me.” I held out my hand for him.

“What? I missed my chance. You have to take it else you’ll miss it too. Anyways I am going to be there around you always now,” he replied with an assuring smile. How perfectly he could mask his pain.

“Well, this even forces me to take you with me. I don’t want you to haunt me invisibly,” my words made him smile.

“It will not help, it’s for you.”

“How do you know, maybe it will bring life to both of us. Please Jai, what is the worst that could happen?” and I forcibly took his hand. He hesitated, but as the ball was about to disappear, he grabbed my hand, and I grabbed the ball, but nothing happened; it just gently disappeared in my palm.

I saw my heartbeat sink to almost zero and heard the doctor shout hopelessly. “Last time, 3…2…1...” and suddenly I felt a jerk, like there was a hook in my belly, pulling me back very hard, darkening everything, and I woke up in my own body gasping for breath with a sudden surge of life.