Read Second Chance Online

Authors: Shaun Dowdall

Second Chance (3 page)

The sky above was grey, threatening to spill its contents at any moment. The soft rumble of thunder sounded somewhere in the distance, the sound of a storm drawing closer.

The pair walked through the dull, metal gates and into the churchyard. James couldn’t help but shudder as his eyes fell on the graveyard to his right, a mismatch of headstones marking the final resting place of the deceased.
 

He stopped dead in his tracks as he looked to the looming church doors ahead. For the first time, he noticed one of his closest friends and colleagues, Ben, waiting outside, dressed in a stylish suit.

The man was in his early thirties, receding blond hair cut short, and his green eyes red from emotion. He was medium height and stocky, but today, he stood as though he held the weight of the world on his shoulders.

As James watched Hannah approach his friend, he finally realized where the girl had taken him—to his own funeral.
 

The whirlwind of emotions that struck him were overwhelming. He staggered towards the church doors, not wanting to enter the building, scared that if he did he would be forced to move on. He watched as Ben embraced Hannah, thanking her for attending, begging her not to blame herself. For the first time ever, James saw Ben cry, his barriers breaking down under the strain.

James stood by helplessly, wanting nothing more than to tell his friend he was okay, that everything would work out for the best, but he couldn’t. All he could do was watch, unable to partake in the world around him.

Hannah broke away from Ben, entering through the dark oak doors of the church and into the cold, stone building beyond. James was quick to follow her, stopping for a brief moment in front of his friend to place a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
 

For a moment, he could have sworn that Ben saw him, his friend’s eyes fixing on his own, but that moment had been over as fast as it had come.
 

Entering the church, James found Hannah seated as far away from the front as possible, nestled in one of the left-hand pews. As he moved to sit beside her, he looked out over the mass that had gathered, crowding in the front rows, talking to one another. Some remained silent while others openly sobbed.
 

“I’m sorry,” Hannah whispered as James sat beside her. “I feel awful for bringing you here.”

James looked at the girl and saw that she was still crying, her makeup smudged by her tears. Even in her sorrow, the girl still looked beautiful, her freckles standing out against her pale skin, her deep brown eyes staring at him.
 

James smiled, trying to force away the fear he felt. “It’s ok,” he choked. “Ben’s right you know? This isn’t your fault.”

Hannah nodded, not truly believing what he said, but clearly refusing to argue with him.
 

The pair sat in silence, watching as the last few people joined the congregation, waiting until the priest took his position. James watched the man, dreading his words, fighting the urge to scream. No matter what he did, he couldn’t change what had already happened. All he could do was wait, watching as the crowd fell silent when the priest said his first words…

“Let us begin.”

Chapter Six

~Hannah~

The pair stood beside each other, staring down at the headstone that marked James’ final resting place. Well, at least, his body’s final resting place. The silence was eerie as they stood together, his friends having left thirty minutes earlier.

Now they were alone, with nothing but the occasional rumble of thunder for company. Hannah looked up into the tumultuous sky, staring at the dark clouds that raced towards them. She could smell the rain, the cold blast of air washing over her as the storm approached. In the distance, she saw a flash of brilliant white light as the sky split, followed by a roar of thunder.
 

She had always loved storms, enjoying the patter of rain against her window growing up. She remembered staring out into the night, watching as the clouds crashed together, unleashing their contents onto the world below.

Turning to look at James, she, for the first time, saw his true emotions. The man had been so casual ever since he appeared, refusing to show her how he really felt, but now, everything had clearly caught up with him.

He stood as still as a statue, his hand pressed against the cold stone where his name was engraved. Since arriving at the church, he had hardly said a word, watching in horror as the coffin was carried down the aisle and finally lowered into the ground.

James had been stunned into silence, unable to find the words to express himself. He had watched through haunted eyes as those he had once known mourned his passing, unable to make even the slightest impact.

As she watched him, she had desperately longed to hold his hand in hers, to squeeze his fingers, to let him know that she was there for him, but she couldn’t. Nothing she could do would help him. Either he was a figment of her deluded mind, or he was something else, something unexplainable.
 

She had hoped by attending the funeral that she could begin to come to terms with what had happened, helping her to move on and forget these visions. If she wasn’t crazy, then she had hoped the funeral would help James to move on, but he was still here.

She was out of her depth. She had always been so logical, clinging to science to give her the answers she so desperately craved, but there were no facts to help her now.
 

Whatever was happening to her was unexplainable. She didn’t want to accept the truth, but deep down, she was beginning to believe that the man who stood before her was somehow real.

There was something about him, an energy, a sensation she felt that screamed at her he existed, despite what common sense told her.

The first drops of rain began to fall, splashing against the grass. Hannah looked up into the foreboding clouds, feeling the cold water spray against her soft cheeks. All around her, the torrent began to fall, drenching her white top, and soaking her to the skin. Her dark hair was soon dripping wet, plastered to her face.

Her breath misted before her eyes as she stared up into the heavens, letting the rain run over her, hoping the water would disguise the tears that escaped. Emotion wracked her body, causing her to shiver. Her skin broke out in goose bumps, a slight jolt of electricity running down her spine.
 

“I can’t even feel that,” she heard James say, glad to hear his voice for the first time in over an hour. “Something as simple as rain and it passes right through me.”

Hannah looked at James, blinking the drops from her eyes. She could see him as clear as day, but the rain passed straight through him, as though he wasn’t even there.
 

“I don’t understand how this is possible,” Hannah said. “I’ll admit—I still don’t even know if you’re real or if I’m just imagining things.”

James smiled, clearly taking some kind of bizarre comfort in her words. As she looked at him, she found herself wondering how she had passed him by almost every day without ever summoning the courage to talk to him. He was tall, well built, and extremely attractive, his eyes so deep that she felt she could drown in them.
 

She had been so engrossed in her studies that she had never taken the time to just stop and notice everything around her. She had been so intent on preparing for her future, to save lives, that she hadn’t taken the time to save her own. Now that she could finally see him, it was already too late.
 

“I’m here,” he said, his voice hardly louder than a whisper. “But I don’t understand why.”

“You need to move on,” Hannah said. “Maybe there’s a light? They always talk about going into the light in films.”

She felt foolish as she looked at James, seeing how he looked at her. Once again, he wore his mischievous smile, laughing as though she had told the funniest joke in the world. She had missed that smile, a feeling that troubled her even more than anything else did.

“There is no light,” James explained. “But there is a lot of rain and if we don’t get you someplace dry, you’re going to catch a cold.”

Hannah smiled, warmed by the concern James felt for her. For the first time in years, she felt as though she weren’t alone.
 

As the pair walked from the graveyard, Hannah found herself hoping she wasn’t losing her mind. As selfish as it was, she desperately wanted James to be real, knowing that the emotions she felt were dangerous, risking nothing but heartache and pain.

Chapter Seven

~Hannah~

The pair sat together in the corner of a warm cafe, hidden away from the storm outside. Hannah held the burning cup in her hands, letting the scent of the coffee fill her nostrils as she sat looking at James.

The man was dry, from head to toe, not a single drop of water on him, unlike her. She was soaked, her clothes clinging to her body, her dark hair a disheveled mess. As she shivered, the bite of the cold making its way through her, she took a sip, the coffee doing little to chase away the feeling.

She felt awkward, embarrassed by how messy she looked. As James looked across the table at her, she couldn’t help but blush, wishing she could disappear for a moment to make herself more presentable.
 

What really worried her about how she was feeling was how foreign her emotions were. Never before had she suffered from this childish behavior. At least, not in years. Perhaps not since she had left primary school. Now she sat across from a man she barely knew, hoping that he wasn’t scared off by how she looked.

It didn’t matter that he had bigger problems to worry about; all Hannah could focus on was what he might be feeling about her.
 

She found herself thinking about how James saw her. Did he just see a neurotic mess or a childish girl? She was desperate to know. Every time their eyes met, she felt her heart beginning to race.

They had chosen a spot that hid them from prying eyes, a place where they could talk in relative safety without anyone judging her. It had been the first thing Hannah had considered upon entering the small cafe, what people might think when she suddenly started talking to herself.

The fact that no one else could see James presented quite a problem. If she walked around talking to him, it was only a matter of time before she ended up facing some very difficult questions. Combined with the recent trauma she had faced, people would think she had lost it completely, something she wasn’t so sure about herself.

“Is anyone looking?” she whispered, peeking over her cup at James.

He shook his head gently, smiling as he did. He was so casual about everything, as though the world was a joke to him. The way he managed to take everything in stride irked Hannah, who had always been so serious, considering every action before making it in the past.
 

James was her opposite, so laid back, down to earth, acting before thinking. She found herself envying him, wishing she could be more like him. From such a young age, her father had taught her to think first, to consider every action and its consequences before moving ahead.

“I feel like I’m cracking up,” she said, looking over her shoulder to make sure no one was staring at her. “You can’t possibly be real!”

“Well, I am,” James answered, as though his statement made everything okay. “I can prove it if you like.”

Hannah looked at James as though it were he who had gone mad. She knew there was no way he could prove he existed, but she was willing to let him continue.

“Go on then,” she prompted, a part of her desperately longing to know the truth.
 

James stood up from the table and disappeared for a moment, leaving Hannah waiting patiently, sipping her coffee, wondering what the man had planned.

A minute later, he returned, slumping back into the chair opposite Hannah, smiling victoriously at her.

“The man by the sugar table across the room… the title of the book he is reading is ‘Death and Magic,’” James explained. “You haven’t seen it yet as he has his back to you. Go grab some sugar and try to get a glance of his book.”

Hannah looked skeptically at James, but curiosity got the better of her. She had to know if he were real or not.

She stood up, walking slowly across the cafe. The lights were dim, a soft music playing in the background. She could hear the storm raging outside, the rain hammering against the glass windows, drowning out the hushed murmur of voices, couples and friends lost in conversation with one another.
 

Soon, she found herself by the selection of sugars and stirrers, the man with his book just to her left. She reached out, grabbing a small, white packet and turned slowly, stealing a look at the book the man held in his hands. The title was indeed, ‘Death and Magic’.

Her heart racing, she returned to the table, hands shaking as she sat back down. She looked into James’ eyes, struggling to keep her breathing under control as the man looked expectantly at her.

“Well?” he asked.

Hannah didn’t know what to say; she didn’t even know if this proved anything. It could have been her mind playing tricks on her once again, but it all felt too real. Even without this evidence, she knew what she felt, and what she felt was that James was there with her.

“Okay,” she whispered. “Maybe you are real, but what do we do about it?”

“No idea. I haven’t really thought that far ahead,” he admitted. “After all, I have just left my own funeral. Kind of have a lot on my mind.”

Hannah nodded, suddenly struck by how insensitive she had been. The man was right. He had just left his own funeral, something no one should have to go through, and all she could think about was getting him to prove that he really existed.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “Not just for dragging you to your funeral but for everything. It’s my fault you are here in the first place. I’ve been a horrible person.”

James shook his head, reaching his hands across the table and holding them out to her. Hannah smiled, reaching to take his hands in hers, shocked for a moment as they passed right through hers.

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