The thick smell of the puddle of blood where I lay fills the air.
My vision is spinning, everything appears blurry.
I can hear the voices of peo–
Ah– I can't hear anything anymore, I can only hear a loud ringing sound inside my ear that threatens to destroy my eardrums.
The murmurs I heard were probably passersby who were shocked by this accident. They might have even tried to call an ambulance.
But it's too late for me. I know, my breath is getting shorter and shorter, each breath I draw sends a jolt of pain, like electricity around my body.
I don't even know what caused this accident. I was driving smoothly on the road when it happened.
Something heavy fell on my car, causing a loud and destructive impact that flattened the car and everything inside– including me.
It destroyed windows, the front seat I was in, and the windshield of the car. Everything.
I'm lying down, the crumpled roof of the car pressing on my body, I can't even move.
From where I lie, shards of window glasses prick my skin and my face.
The blood on my forehead mixes with the sweat of anxiety that keeps dripping.
Enduring the pain... I keep trying to move myself, but I'm trapped and pressed down.
I try to move my legs, but I can't feel it anymore. I hope it's not what I think...
My heart is heavy, the weight of the fear of my incoming death pressing on it.
I clench my fists tightly, preparing to endure the pain it'll take to confirm my thoughts.
Splaaat~
I cough out thick blood from my mouth, it's filled with pieces of my intestines, and the disgust I feel makes me retch more blood out.
Enduring the brain-tearing pain, I move my neck down slowly, groaning and panting.
Although I can't see clearly, I can identify things.
I look at my legs or the area where my legs are supposed to have been.
My body has been chopped into two, from my waist down. The sharp metal from the car roof that chopped it off is lying in the corner, filled with blood.
I see thick liters of blood coming out of the opening of my split upper body.
Tears well up in my eyes as I look at my cut lower half, it's a few inches away from where it's supposed to be.
Glistening tears roll down my eyes, mixing with the blood on my cheek.
Why? Why does fate have to be so cruel to me? Why do I have to suffer so? What wrong did I commit? Why am I dying this way? At this time?
Honestly, with just a little more time I would have been there, I'd have been home with Marcelle! I'd have been able to see my family!!
"Arrgh"
I let out a guttural groan as I felt an ache of pain around my chest.
I grip my locket tightly, the picture of my wife and my two children is in the locket, I take it with me everywhere I go, it's my lucky charm and it always reminds me of home, I never take it off my neck.
In my right hand, I hold my locket tightly, and in my left hand, I hold tightly the Orchid that I bought from a flower shop to gift my wife.
Haha.
Who would have known that it'd end up like this? If I had known I'd die like this then I'd have given her lots of kisses, and hugs and at least told my children goodbye before I left for my business trip.
My face contorts with a sad expression. It's painful, not just the pain I'm enduring, trying to stubbornly hold onto my life, but the pain I feel in my heart, it's strikingly painful.
Marcelle, Dustin, Margie, I'm sorry for leaving you all too soon, for leaving my wife without a husband and my children without a father.
My eyes are half closed, honestly, it's a miracle that I've lasted this long, my lungs have already been pierced by pieces of my shattered ribs making every breath I take draw feel like a battle.
But even as I feel my consciousness slowly fade away, even as my eyes slowly close, even as my thoughts melt away, I still hold onto my locket and my love's flower tightly.
The time I spent with you was too short, but it was meaningful and I loved every moment of it. If... If there's a next life, I hope to spend it with...
And that was my death.
____________________
#"It's a boy! It's a boy!"# (# shows words that he can't understand)
I can hear noises, they sound like people.
Wait... People? Didn't I just die?
Confusion washes over me as I struggle to understand the situation.
#"Praise be the gods! They have blessed us with a male child!"#
No, they're voices of people, and their language sounds like Chinese.
I start to ponder.
But why is everywhere dark? I cannot see, is this the afterlife? How dreary, to think the afterlife is a dark place where you can only hear voices.
But no matter how I try to put it, it doesn't sound right, the afterlife can't be dark like this, and they definitely can't be speaking Chinese here.
I try to move my hands, but I can't, it's as if I don't have hands at all, or legs. Are my legs gone even in the afterlife?
I feel something holding my body, I don't know what it is, it's rough and firm like hands.
I gulp, fear envelopes me and sweat starts to form on my face at the thought of something or someone holding me in this dark room.
#"Huh? But why isn't he crying?"#
#"You think we should slap him?"#
#"B–but, that'll be improper, he's the young master."#
#"That's how people born of this blood are, they don't cry when they're born unless we slap them, speaking of blood, let me see his eyes."#
Suddenly, I felt a hand on my eyes and then my eyes, which I didn't even know were closed.. open.
Ah
I stare at the face of the person who opened my eyes. It's a woman, she looks to be an old woman in at least her sixties.
I turn my face to look around the room, trying to make sense of the situation.
I can see four women, apart from the one that opened my eyes, they all look young and they seem to be in their twenties.
I look around the room, there's an air of dreariness in the atmosphere of the room, the room looks like the type of room you'll see in an old, vintage type of house.
The only source of light in the room is the window on the wall at the far end of the room, it's a window that was made by carving out a square-shaped opening that overlooks... I can't see what's outside from this distance.
I call it a room, but it's very lacking for a room, only one small mattress that can hardly fit the body of a grown adult is in the middle of the small room, and the walls of the room are without painting.
This is not the afterlife.
I turn my head to look at the old woman, and I notice one strange fact that my brain didn't seem to notice before.
Why is she so gigantic? Is she human? Or a giant? Even the other girls are giants too, and come to think of it– she's carrying me!
I notice her firm hands cradling around me, and I'm relaxing in her arms.
I try to tell her to unhand me, but I notice something.
I can't talk! What the hell is this?
I force myself to talk but it feels like something is purposely blocking my mouth from talking and only a cry escapes my mouth.
#"Ah finally!"#
#"Looks like we didn't have to slap him after all."#
I can hear her saying something, but I can't understand her, I can understand Mandarin and a couple of other languages, but this language isn't Mandarin, it sounds like it, but it's different.
#"He has their red eyes, he indeed carries their blood."#
I ignore her words and the words of the other girls as I can't understand it, but I'm still curious about something.
Why do they dress like this? Like some kind of maids?
Indeed, the four girls and even the old woman are all dressed in maid-like outfits that give off medieval vibes, their hairs are tied back and in a white cap, and they wear thick white aprons over their long and black long-sleeve gowns.
Something feels wrong.
I turn my head to look at my body which I've not done since I opened my eyes.
This must be a bad joke.
I have small legs and small arms, I'm a baby, and the fact that they all appeared like giants to me makes more sense to me now.
Does this mean... I was reborn? Ha! That makes no sense! What the hell? Why? I'm a baby now? No wonder I couldn't talk or move my arms! What the hell is this, universe?? Fate, why do you play games with me?!
My heart stirs with anger, grief and sorrow at the same time as I realize my despair.
I can't live like this, I can't live a life without Marcelle. No I won't!
As I force myself to shout out loud, another cry, this time louder, erupts in the room.
#"The baby is crying again, I wish lady Alicia didn't die and lived to see her son."#
#"Truly, it's very unfortunate, tsk tsk"#
The women are still talking to each other as I silently watch them, a wave of ideas splashes over me, I'd either kill myself or run away from here to find Marcelle.
Yes, it doesn't matter if I'm still a baby or if I've been reborn, I'd find Marcelle and my children!
The old woman had a bitter smile on her face as she looked at me, I could see pity in her eyes. I don't know why.
She then proceeds to clean the stains of blood and feces on my body with a rag.