Death stood in my doorway looking more than a little handsome despite being drenched with rain. He calmly brushed the water from his black overcoat as he explained that his car had broken down in front my house and he was in need of a phone and a place to dry off. I responded by simply nodding and moving aside to allow him entry. I mean, what does one say to Death? If Death were to suddenly appear at your door wouldn’t you assume that he had arrived with the intent of taking your life? I did and was left speechless as he walked into my small but adequate suburban home, eyeing my furniture, my belongings, my cats with what appeared to be disdain. He looked upon me with unnaturally colored eyes that seemed to shift from violet to blue to green and back again. It was his eyes that told me who he was, told me that he was Death. Those eerie soul-searing eyes with irises that glowed with an inner light and pupils that looked so cold and bleak that no light would ever have survived their depths.
Death draped his wet coat over the back of my couch before looking at me again. “Nice place you have here,” he commented with some amusement. “Nice and…cozy.” I ignored his obviously derisive remark and pointed him in the direction of the kitchen and the phone. He disappeared into the next room and I reached over to hang his coat near the door, angry that Death couldn’t at least be polite enough not to ruin the furniture of his victims. I might not need it after he’s done with me, but I’m sure someone else could make use of it. As I wiped the rain from my couch, I seem to remember hearing the sounds of an argument coming from my kitchen, and yet I don’t ever remember Death raising voice or showing even a touch of annoyance. He seemed rather amused instead. However, I do remember feeling pity for the poor fool that had the misfortune of angering Death.
“The tow truck can’t be here for a few hours yet,” he stated upon his return. “Would you mind if I stayed here until they arrived? It’d much rather be inside then out in the rain.” He smiled at me then, a smile that would have been warm and friendly if it had reached his eyes. Instead, it did nothing except make me very uncomfortable. Oh, yes, Death smiles on me, just what I always wanted to be able to tell my friends.
I nodded, watching him with a calm exterior as he seated himself on my couch, while inside I was becoming increasingly wary of the stunning creature before me. Yes, Death was a fine specimen of the male form, tall, muscular, and well dressed with chestnut hair that occasionally fell into those haunting eyes of his. As gorgeous as he was, I wasn’t fooled. I was, however, extremely puzzled by his actions. Why would Death go to such elaborate lengths in order to possess the soul of someone as insignificant as myself? I was prepared and more then ready for this untimely demise and found myself wishing he would simply make his move and be done with it.
As I curled up in the oversized chair across from him, my two cats strolled toward me, keeping a wide distance from the couch and the man seated there. They knew better than to mess with him. I merely watched him then and waited for an excuse to break the awkward silence that had descended upon us. I was still confused when it came to conversational topics and Death, and I was giving myself a severe headache just thinking about it. What was I supposed to say, “So you kill people, huh? How’s that working out for you?” Fortunately, Death took it upon himself to start up the conversation.
“I’m really, very sorry for this inconvenience” he began. His voice was surprisingly pleasant, a soft, smooth tenor. “Car’s always breaking down, I really should get a new one.” I didn’t understand the pleasantries.
“It’s all right,” I replied hesitantly. “Lucky for you that I happened to be home tonight, but then again I guess you could have appeared at any of the other doorsteps on this block and been just as welcome.” Sarcasm is a wonderful thing.
Looking at me with a slightly suspicious expression, he responded, “I don’t know, not too many people would invite a complete stranger into their home. You are certainly a…unique person.”
Right, not too many people would willingly allow Death to walk in their front door. “Well, I try.” I continued, voice still laced with sarcasm, “but I guess you’re right. I could’ve let in some kind of criminal or murderer. That’d be like letting Death into my own house”
He blinked at me then, looking a little surprised and mildly amused, one side of his mouth twitching upward. He let out an abrupt laugh before saying, “you know who I am, don’t you?”
“Yes, I know who you are.”
“How do you know?” He leaned forward and smiled at me again, but this time he seemed excited and it almost showed in his eyes. “No one ever figures it out, not even the ones that I come to at death. Well, wait, they do figure it out but not until that very last second, you know?”
“Well, I guess it was…” I paused, thinking over what he had just said. “Wait, you mean you’re not here to kill me?”
“Kill you? What, you think a busy guy like myself personally attends every death in the world?” I knew it. “You still believe in Santa Claus, don’t you?”
He was mocking me; Death was making fun of me, and I ignored it. “Ok, so if you’re not here to kill me, then why the hell are you here?”
“I told you…my car broke down in front of your house. I needed a tow truck, so I figured I’d take a chance and knock on the door.” He laughed and looked down at his hands. “Had no idea you’d know who I was.” He paused and I thought I heard him sigh. “How did you know?”
I hardly heard his question as I was still thinking over his story. I didn’t believe him in the least. Something was wrong and it wasn’t just the fact that I was sitting in my living room giving new meaning to the term near death experience. “I thought it was your eyes,” I answered at last, “they’re not human, but now…I’m not sure. I just…knew who you were.”
“And who am I?”
He looked at me, eyes penetrating deep into my soul, and I was frozen. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t even breathe. All I could do was stare into his eyes, watching the constant swirling color of his irises and seeing strange shadows moving in the darkness of his pupils. I knew who and what he was, so how could he have been affecting me in that way? I was never sure whether time passed while I stared at him or simply stopped, but when I could breathe again, a long gasping breath, I answered with a voice barely above a whisper, “Death.”
“You surprise me again. No one ever gets it right.” He smiled at me and with every time he did, a warmth seemed to reach his eyes just a little more. “I’ve been called so many things but I don’t think anyone has ever gotten it right before. You are a very intriguing and special woman.”
Now that it was all out in the open, I figured that I might as well speak my mind, which always manages to get me in trouble, but I didn’t really see how it could get much worse. After all, it wasn’t like he could kill me; he already said he wasn’t here to do that. “Why, thank you. I guess it must be really something to get a compliment like that from Death.” I flashed him a smile and batted my eyes at him. So, maybe I was a bit harsh with him, but you let me know how you like it next time Death pays you a visit and you’re stuck entertaining him for hours. “Now, since I did agree to let you stay here for a few hours and it looks like you actually want to spend that time in conversation, I’m going to need to know your name unless you want me to refer to you as Death?”
“Well, I have many names, but none that I want you to call me.” He replied.
“But what do your…friends…” I paused. Who would make friends with Death? “…call you?”
“I have no friends.” My expression softened when I saw the faint look of sadness in his eyes. That emotion made them look more human. He simply shrugged. “What can I say? Death is a lonely occupation,”
“Well, I didn’t imagine you to be the most popular person around, but…ok, so what do you do with all your time? Do you just wander from place to place and show up at random peoples deaths? Don’t you know people or have a home?” I became conscious of the fact that I was talking at an almost frenzied pace, as if I actually cared about him, as if I actually cared about Death.
He laughed, but it seemed forced. “Yes, I wander. I know everyone, when they will die, how they will die, and where they will die. I don’t have to be there for it to happen because death is the end result to life. However, I do have the power to take a life before its time. I don’t do it very often, but I could.” He sighed and looked down. Even though I couldn’t see his face, I felt the intense sadness there. “I have been in this world since man first existed, because wherever there is life, death will always follow. I have seen many lives lost. For me to be close to someone is impossible because with that comes the realization that they will die and I will live on, forever.”
Then it dawned on me… “That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?” I said softly.
He glanced up at me, visibly startled. “What?”
“You’re here,” I began slowly, “looking for companionship. You were feeling lonesome and decided to look for a friend. For some…strange, unknown reason, you came here hoping to strike up some kind of camaraderie with me, but I don’t think you expected me to know who you really were.”
Three times now I had taken Death by surprise. He shook his head. “How do you do that?”
“Do what?” I replied.
“Know precisely what’s going on.” He laughed again, but this time for real. He leaned back on the couch with a brilliant smile on his face, but this time I could see it in his eyes. I could see the smile and the laughter shining in those formerly dead eyes. “You’re exactly right, and it was incredibly stupid of me to think I’d ever be able to get anything past you. I never could.”
I was startled yet again by this strange man that I knew to be Death. I shook my head as if to clear my mind, but there was something wrong. Something in the back of mind protested. I put my hand to my forehead in order to calm whatever it was that wanted to break through. “You said that is if we talked before, as if we’ve met before.”
“Maybe we have…” I looked at him sharply, but again my head objected. I saw Death looking at me under his veil of chestnut hair. I saw his eyes, filled with warmth and laughter and…hope? Once more they pierced my very soul, and at that moment whatever it was that was buried deep inside my head, whatever it was that suddenly crept up on me and protested so loudly to this man, broke free and blinded me.
My head was flooded with images that seemed to float just before my eyes. I felt dizzy and nauseated, but at the same time unexpectedly at ease. As the images cleared and my mind settled down, one phrase echoed constantly in the back of my head…“Wherever there is Life, Death will always follow…”
I gasped and stood abruptly, bringing my hand to my mouth. My eyes became clouded with tears as I began to remember, as everything I had forgotten, buried deep in my mind, suddenly became clear. I felt free and reborn. It was as if I had come out of a near death experience and realized what it was like to be alive again, or rather, to be Life again.
The tears began to flow freely, as my eyes focused on Death, who now stood before me. “Why didn’t you just tell me?”
He smiled. “I couldn’t. You would never have believed me. If I had told you, I would have lost you again, and you have no idea how long it took me to find you. You had to remember on your own.” He stepped forward and held his arms open, but I didn’t need that invitation. I rushed forward and embraced him warmly, amazed that I could’ve forgotten something so wonderful. I stepped back and looked expectantly up at him. He bent his head and laid a gentle kiss upon my lips, a kiss of death, or rather, a kiss from Death.
“Well,” he said, gazing down upon with nothing but love in his immortal eyes, “shall we be on our way?”