Chapter One

It's been exactly 39 hours since I died. My watch stayed with my spirit when I left the world of the living. 

This entire time, I've thought of my family. My ignorant father, my grieving mother and sister. Do they miss me? Dad clearly doesn't. Faith, I can tell, is heart broken. I spent about a day searching for another soul. I can't find anyone. Am I just a spirit? Waiting, searching, forever? I don't want to be alone, I don't want to be dead. But then again, not many go willingly. 

As I walk along a misty path, my foot lands on something hard. I bend down, and wave the vapor away. It's a window. Before, when I watched the wreck, I was floating about my family, desperate, trying to call out, but I couldn't. My voice traveled back to me when I arrived here, in the never-ending mist. I can see them now, Dad driving off to work in a new car, the old one probably carried too many memories. Despite my father's behavior, I know, deep down, that he is broken beyond repair. 

As he pulls out of the driveway, like the other four men on our street do every morning at eight, he brushes away a tear. I lived on Jameson Street. In each age group in Euphoria, there are five new factory workers. My father was one in his age group. These factory workers all live on one street per age group. My mother was one of the five teachers in her age group, but that didn't matter, it went according to the male job. 

I see my sister, grabbing her backpack, opening the door to head to school, then collapsing, a sobbing heap in my mother's arms. My mother tells her something, hugs her once more, then sends her off to school. When Faith is out of sight, my mother looks up at the sky, and blows a kiss. If only she knew I was watching her.