Chapter 1.1 - Reincarnation

Swallowing the lump on his throat he prepared himself for impact. Millimeter by millimeter a completely new view was revealed. One more overwhelming than the last. 

The planet Earth. 

"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!" 

Once again kicking and screaming Adam had really lost his mind. He was looking at Earth from space. The round thing he lived his whole life on was right there in front of him surrounded by darkness and stars. 

"WHAT THE FUCK!?" 

Startled, he began to wiggle his hands and feet, looking for stability but instead it he started to slowly turn upside down. While flipping around in slow motion he saw a human figure levitating in front of him. 

"HELP!" He was desperately trying to grab on to something but no matter how hard he tried he wouldn't stop spinning.

"Hey! You!" He was completing the turn and the face of a man was being revealed. "Please help me, I beg of you!" 

Standing in front of the enormous thing that was our planet, was an old man. He had a long grey beard and was wearing a blue tunic. His eyes were the deepest shade of natural indigo blue. Adam could've sworn he heard waves while he stared at the man's eyes. 

"Please, calm down or you'll keep spinning and it makes me sick." The man did a casual gesture, like he was telling a naughty kid to sit down. 

"Who are you?" Once Adam stopped moving, he tried uselessly to organize all the questions in his head. "Where am I?"

"I am Calder." Said the man with a very ceremonial tone. 

Adam chuckled.

"Damn, I'm really tripping. What kind of name is that?" Carefree, he face-palmed frustrated with himself. 

"You're not tripping." Mister Calder sounded annoyed which made Adam lookup to check him out again. 

"You are…" 

A freezing chill ran down the Playboy's spine. The old man leaned forward and his shadow was so big it swallowed Adam. He was feeling so small and helpless for no apparent reason. With the mouth right next to his ear, the mysterious man continued.

"Dead." 

Adam watched the bearded grandpa step back. They kept their expressions and let the silence of space settle between them. Puzzled, the younger man waited for the punchline that never came.

"Right… How did I die again?" 

"What is the last thing you remember?" 

The question triggered something in Adam. 

He woke up in that dark place but he didn't know how he got home last night. Thinking back, he was sure he was at a party. Excited with the clear memory of something real, the young man continued to follow the trail of crumbs. 

The party was in Jake's house to celebrate his birthday. It was a pool party, he even threw Jake in the pool with the help of some other guys. They laughed because he was still using his clothes and phone. Everyone was drinking and Adam kept pushing people in the pool. Later after all his friends got separated from him, he went out looking for them to find them in Jake's office. 

Quiet, he was lurking to prank them and ended up overhearing a conversation. A group of his best friends were in a circle drinking and complaining about Adam's behavior. They were also making fun of the fact that he thought they were all "BFF's" when they were only friends because their father's forced them to. Turns out, Adam was the heir of a company and all his friends' dads were investors of the company. 

The excitement he first felt had vanished, giving space to a bitter regret accompanied by anger, the same feelings he had when he left the party in a hurry. It was late, the streets were empty just the way he liked it. 

Speeding in his Bugatti was one of his favorite hobbies. Way past the speed and alcohol limit, Adam was heading home. He chose that particular route because after going down a curvy hill there was a long straight road he loved to race on. 

Many times he went down that hill drunk laughing out loud with the adrenaline. That night wouldn't be different. The Playboy needed some adventure to get his mind off the things he heard. Shouting curses at his old friends under loud music, Adam was drifting down the ghost road. 

On the last curve, a rainy cloud passed by, wetting the floor and creating invisible puddles on the road. As he entered one curve, the tires lost traction leading Adam to lose control of the car.

"But…" 

It was like waking up scared from a nightmare in the middle of the night. All the memories and sensations coming back at once. The sound of tires on the asphalt. The wheel not responding. The last thing he remembered was the impact. 

"How…" 

Air was not flowing down to his lungs. His blood pressure was off the roof, making his hands shake.

"Why…"

"You died in that car accident, Adam."

The old wizard approached the guy to offer some comfort, he put a hand on his shoulder and felt the irregular breathing.

"So, am I in heaven?" 

Everything that was said, along with the memories repeating themselves were conflicting. Physically Adam felt fine, great even. His mind was confused but it didn't feel different at all. Still, a weird impression on his chest agreed with what Calder said. 

"There is no heaven, son. There's either life or death."

"Then where am I?" Fluctuating in space, with only stars under his feat and the planet Earth as their witness, Adam had no idea what was going to happen. 

"You have been chosen to reincarnate." 

Growing up, the Cross family was not religious or even spiritual. Adam only knew what was common sense to the majority of people. The concept of reincarnation was new to him. Noticing the boy's confusion, Calder continued.

"In other words, you get to live a new life. If you choose to." The wizard-looking-guy raised a finger to point out the last part. 

"Yes! Please God, let me go back."

"I'm not the god you think I am." Calder stepped away again to avoid being touched by an over excited dead guy. "I am only here as an intermediary. This is between you and the Universe."