Luna's Reckoning

1

Helen

It happened when Johnny and I were still in the dark abyss, the chains that burnt and pierced our flesh still shackled around our wrists and ankles, when it happened.

We were sitting there, still trying to reach for each other, when the worst pain imaginable, even worse than the chains and the torment we felt the night we died, coursed through me, causing me to cry out and collapse to the floor. I curled into myself as the pain caused me to gasp for air. I heard Johnny cry out and collapse to the floor across from me.

I didn't know how to describe the pain other than a fire lit inside of me and was burning me from the inside out.

I cried out as it suddenly went from fire to feeling like something was literally ripping me in half. My cry turned into a blood curdling scream as I felt like everything inside of me was being torn in two.

The pain didn't seem to last more than seconds, but it felt like an eternity before it finally vanished.

I cautiously opened my eyes, my heart racing -

Wait, what?

I could feel grass underneath me, tickling my skin. I was gasping for air, sweat coating my skin.

For the first time, in decades, I actually felt the world around me. I'd obviously been able to feel whenever I was in a spiritual plane or when spirits put their hands on me, but I'd never been able to feel or touch anything in the living world.

I'd felt pain before, but it would go away in an instant. I'd hadn't had or felt my heartbeat since the day I entered the spirit realm or had to take a breath of air. I had never felt the sensations since I died and never in a million years thought I would ever experience them again.

This brought about a variety of different emotions inside of me. I was shocked, obviously, because there was no way I was able to be alive again. I was frightened because I had no idea what was going on. And there was a part of me that was also. . .excited.

I'd never admitted this to Johnny before, and never would, but I always felt like I was robbed of my life. It was no one's fault but my own, but I'd always felt this great sadness that I was only seventeen when I died. I remember having my whole life planned out: going to college and becoming an English teacher, my lifelong dream; marrying Johnny (despite my parents disapproval); eventually move with Johnny to Los Angeles (I was always determined to move to Los Angeles at some point); having children, watching them grow up, and have more children of their own; growing old with Johnny.

These were all things I'd wanted but never had the chance to get.

But I had to find out what was going on first.

I cautiously sat up and looked around. I was in front of a cornfield, a small

farmhouse several yards away from me.

I blinked in confusion as I climbed to my feet. How in the world did I get here? Where was here? And why a farmhouse?

I heard someone grunt from behind me. I stepped back as I saw the stalks of corn tremble as footsteps stomped in my direction, my eyes widening in fear as the steps were growing closer and closer.

Then Johnny fell out of the rows of corn and fell at my feet, gasping for air.

I let out a happy cry, relieved to see him, and dropped down to my knees in front of him to embrace him.

"Oh, Johnny!" I cried.

He wrapped his arms around me and hugged me back. "Hey," he said weakly and gave me his signature cocky grin. "How's it going?"