Too Broke For Afterlife

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Dreams are a crazy concept. Am I right?

And no, I'm not talking about  I want to be a millionaire with five wives and a football field full of Lamborghinis one day. Not those kind of dreams. Although having more money than braincells does sound tempting. And a hot woman is always a winning argument.

No, I'm of course talking about the places your mind wanders to when you are asleep and cut off from reality.

Stuff like flying on a magic carpet or marrying your celebrity crush. And sometimes dreams can be recurring.

Ever since I was little I have been having weird dreams about a man with blue skin and flaming red eyes. Not like an alien, he looked very much human and despite his constantly strong, sharp gaze I never was scared of him.

Every time he appeared in my dreams, I felt like I was hanging out with my uncle.

The weird thing is: I've never had an uncle and therefore shouldn't know what it feels like to have one. My dad is a single child and my mom only has one older sister whom I've never met. 

So where did this familiarity come from? 

I had once looked up Blue Man  on websites that offer dream interpretations but of course the results were sparse.

Blue in general seems to stand for prosperity and the fulfillment of wishes. And men, depending on their age, can either stand for advice or unrest.

I don't think I have to point out that I don't believe in shit like this. Unless one day a man would approach me and tell me the winning lottery numbers which would lead to me becoming a millionaire, these interpretations were more entertainment than helpful.

So why am I bringing this up, you may ask?

Because tonight, for the first time in years, I have had such a dream again.

I was sitting at a table inside a very red, big room and the blue skinned man was smiling at me.

But what made this dream so much different from the ones I was used to, was that for the first time ever I heard his voice. He was speaking to me.

"Don't fear, Parker. I am looking over you."

To that my dream self replied: "I died and you didn't save me. Your words mean nothing."

I know, very edgy for someone like me. 

But hey, I had a point.

The man nodded and simply folded his big hands.

"Your death was part of the plan, Parker. Soon we will be reunited and you will follow your fate."

Then he got up and as he walked away, the room faded out into black.

That's it.

I woke up from Isabella shaking my shoulders and whispering my name. And now she is staring at me in the dim moonlight shining through the opened door.

"Come on," she whispers and quickly pulls me up from the air mattress.

"Dude," I grumble and take a few seconds to regain my orientation. "What time is it?"

"Shh! Do you have your phone?" 

"Yeah?" I rub my eyes.

"Good." She pulls me out of the room and carefully closes the door so as to not wake up the others.

Her eyes are anxious as they jump around the room and I think that this is the first time I've ever seen Isabella without make up. She looks tired.

I probably do as well. This dream really threw me off my balance. What was my brain trying to tell me?

"What are you staring at?" she mumbles.

"Nothing, chill. What are we doing? Something illegal?"

"Not quite, come on." Outside the gas station she sits down on the ground behind one of the pumps and pulls me with her. 

The cold stone hits my naked legs like fire.

"F*ck!"

"Shh. Give me your phone." She looks at me impatiently.

"Okay?" I hand her the unlocked MePhone and watch as Isabella opens the call list to type in a number. Then she gives it back to me.

"Who are we calling?"

I recognize that it's an American number but that's about it.

"Judy."

"Wait, what? Why can't you do that on your own?"

"Shh!" Isabella holds a hand in front of my mouth and my nose fills with the smell of soap.

"Nat- Nox confiscated my phone, I'm not allowed to talk to Judy. But even if I tried, she wouldn't answer my call. We had a fight and she...well, she broke up with me. But she won't recognize your number so this is my only chance to talk to her." 

The information hits me like a rock.

"You guys broke up? Why? Is that why you've been so quiet?" 

Isabella looks down at her hands, avoiding my eyes. "It's a long story. You have to call her and then hand me the phone. Okay?"

I nod. "Yeah. Fine." I click the Call button and turn on the speaker. 

Usually I'm not up for drama like this, especially not when I'd rather be sleeping but for some reason I do want to help her. 

Isabella and I listen as the call connects.

Sooner than expected, somebody picks up.

"Hello?"

Isabella's eyes widen when she hears Judy's voice and she grabs my arm nervously.

"Hi," I simply reply.

"Who is this?"

"This is Parker."

Silence.

"What?"

"Parker, from-"

"Yeah, I know who you are. Who gave you my number and why are you calling me?"

I look at Isabella for help but she seems frozen, just staring at the phone.

This is not what we had planned.

"Isabella wanted to talk to you."

"She is with you?"

"Yes." 

A short silence.

"Well, tell her that I don't want to talk to her."

Suddenly, Isabella rips the phone out of my hands and turns away slightly. 

"Judy, please listen. I did not cheat, that woman was not a date. She is a robot from Afterlife, she kidnapped us!"

A loud groan on the other end. "Oh no, not this shit again! Dating you is like being stuck inside a horror movie!"

The words hit Isabella and I can see the pain in her eyes. She struggles to find the right words.

"That is how you feel?"

Judy sighs. "No, I didn't mean it like that. But you have to admit that your life is not normal. It's too much for me."

"Yes." 

A tear is rolling down her cheek and I feel compelled to wipe it away. But are we really that close yet? 

"But what do you mean you got kidnapped? Are you serious? Are you okay?" Judy sounds worried.

I look at Isabella but she just shakes her head so I take the phone.

"We're in Peru right now. It's a group of three ghosts in Afterlife robots and some mission to stop Satan. I don't know how to explain it. We are sort of a team now so it's not like we are in danger but we can't leave either."

"You're in Peru?" Judy hesitates.

"Isa?"

"Yes?" she answers quietly.

Another silence.

"We need to talk. The way I broke up with you wasn't good. I didn't explain myself properly."

Staring at the phone, her eyes intensify. 

"You mean that you didn't want to break up? Are we still together?"

"No, I meant what I said."

Before I know it, Isabella has gotten up and is now rushing away. I can hear her crying. But apparently Judy does not. She keeps talking.

"I didn't name all of my reasons and I'm sorry about that. Let's have a proper conversation."

I look after Isabella. This must have hurt. This must have really hurt.

She needs someone to calm her down. But am I the one who should be doing that?

"Hello?"

"She is gone."

"What? Where did she go?"

"I think she is crying."

Judy doesn't answer.

"I think you hurt her."

"But I had no other choice."

"Whatever."

Without saying goodbye I hang up and lean back against the pump.

This was intense.

"What are you doing here?"

My head shoots up and to my horror I stare right into the face of Nox.

"Give me your phone. What did you tell her?"

She grabs the MePhone and inspects the screen. 

"What? Nothing!"

"Liar, you mentioned Peru and told her our plan. Are you demented?"

I get up from the ground and dust off my pants.

"So? Judy won't do anything. I didn't give her any details."

Nox shakes her head. "You're even more stupid than you look. This could jeopardise everything. Did you not understand that the world is ending?"

"Cool."

"Cool?"

She pulls out a silver device. 

"I'll have to get her now before she spreads the information."

A glaring flash. And then she is gone. 

I turn around but can't spot Nox anywhere. 

What kind of magic trick is this?

Whatever, I should go look for Isabella now.

Let's hope there is something I can do to help.