-- The Beginning --
"Once upon a time," Baine began, looking out into the empty, dark crowd. Death was sitting at one of the tattered tables near the front at the edge of their seat. "I fell in love. And this love nearly killed me." She wasn't good at stand-up comedy, but Death laughed at the pun, clapping their hands together and the spotlight transitioned sharply from a soft orange to a blinding white that was unbearably hot on Baine's back.
"It all started at Andrea's Diner. It's fitting, trust me, you're going to want to hear this." Death leaned in to pick up each fluctuation of each word that tumbled out of Baine's mouth. The girl was amusing and, they assumed, the story would be too.