This is a two-part story. See Part 1 here.
When Peter saw Alan, he felt something that he hadn't felt since his own death. Not something on a physical level, but more on an emotional one. In one sudden burst, he realized that he still had his ties with the world of the living.
Peter tried to avoid him, and just wandered away purposely from his usual spot. But Alan noticed him.
"Peter ?"
"Oh, Alan ! I didn't see you there…"
"Did you die today too ?"
"Oh, no, I've been here for a while."
Alan was a bit relieved, but had no incentive to continue the conversation. It was getting a bit awkward between the two, but Peter finally broke the silence.
"So, what do you think of this place ?"
"Peter, I don't want to be here. I want to go back."
"You know you can't, right ?"
"Man, I don't care. I can't stay here. I have to see my wife."
"I'm sorry, but it's-"
"Dude, if you can't help me, just go away. I don't have time for this."
Peter was a bit shook. He really expected to have a heartwarming reunion with one of his dearest childhood friends, but he didn't expect to meet him under these circumstances.
"Hey, no need to be like that, okay ? I'll see if someone can help."
Alan didn't answer, but manifested a slight hint of curiosity towards the offer. Peter immediately went to ask one of the higher-ups at the afterlife office, Victor.
Victor was an old-timer here, but just like everyone in this world, he kept his appearance from the time he died, so he looked like a man in his thirties. Victor died in World War One, and just like Peter today, came to find the world of the dead fascinating, so he stayed to see the evolution of the world. Despite not having experienced the world of the living for more than a century, he was simply a mountain of knowledge, always fascinating to speak to.
"Victor, I have something to ask you." said Peter, after barging in Victor's office.
"Ask away, my friend. What story do you want to hear ?"
"Not a story this time. I want to know something about this world."
"Oh. Well, what is it ?"
"It's not possible to come back to the world of the living, right ?"
"No one ever succeeded, no."
"I see… but is it possible to simply SEE the world of the living ?"
Victor was hesitant for a moment. Clearly, Peter asked a good question there, and even the most knowledgeable man in the area had trouble answering it.
"Have you ever heard about the Last View ?"
"No. What is it ?"
"Well, with the Last View, you can have a vision of the current living world. Usually, the vision will be about something you have deep ties to, in their current state."
"Like a love interest ?"
"For example, yes."
"That's amazing ! Why did I never hear about this ?"
"Because it only happens once, just before you get flushed."
"Flushed ??"
"Yes… not to mention, it's not guaranteed to show you something you need, or want to see. It's just usually related to your past life."
"That is still interesting… But it's a secret, right ?"
"Sort of. Some people are aware, but we don't want deliberately wanting to disturb the peace, for the sole purpose of getting flushed."
"But is it that bad if people are flushed ? I mean, there are a lot more people who come here every day."
"Flushing is a very complicated process. And dangerous for those who do it, too. We try to minimize the amount of people flushed."
Peter and Victor continued their discussion, but this time on more trivial subjects. Victor loved to share stories he heard from other dead people. This time, he mentioned the time of the second World War, where there was such an influence at the office that he was always keeping himself busy. After a bit, Peter realized he had to hurry and get back to Alan, whose turn was soon coming up.
As he got back into the hall of the afterlife office, Alan was nowhere to be seen. Immediately, he asked the lady behind the table.
"Hey, have you seen a guy named Alan go through here ?"
"Do I look like I memorize the names of those people ? I don't even read them most of the time."
"Oh, that's true…"
"Come to think of it, I saw you talk with that guy before."
"That guy ?"
"Yes, the same guy who ran away not so long ago. He was about to do something stupid, I'm telling you."
Immediately, Peter ran outside. He looked everywhere around the office, but found no one. The area had changed a lot since he first arrived, at the beginning of the year. What was initially an empty space at first, was a city by itself now. And in this vast and populated city, Alan was nowhere to be seen. He asked many people about a man who ran away, got a lot of confused 'I don't know' or shrugs, and sometimes vague answers about something they thought they saw or heard, but nothing very interesting.
After several hours, Peter finally found him. Alan was sitting there, his back against the wall, crying. Peter already knew the reason why he was crying, and he also knew that words were meaningless in that situation. He knew he had something important to say, but at the same time, he considered the costs. He wanted to fulfill his friend's wish, but it implied sending him to disappear forever. Peter didn't want to make that horrible choice.
"I'm sorry, man… I just… want to go back…" said Alan, trying his best not to sob in front of his friend.
"Oh, trust me, I've seen worse. Some guys even try to start fights because of that."
Alan laughed a little. But he was still as sad as before.
"Do you know… if there's a way ?" he said, looking at Peter.
"There's no way you can go back, but…"
"But ? But what ?"
"Alan. How much do you want to see your family ?"
"I want it more than anything else ! Just tell me !"
"There is a way, but you can only do it once, and you'll disappear forever afterwards."
"Just once, yes ! That will be enough ! Tell me what it is !"
"Okay, just follow me then."
Alan and Peter got up and walked. Alan was in a hurry, so he forced Peter to go faster. In the end, they could run without worrying about being tired, so they did it, even though Peter preferred the calm of simply walking.
Eventually, they arrived at some sort of outpost. Those outposts all had a handful of people who were always here, and they acted like the police of this world. Peter simply got to the first officer and said :
"He's a clandestine."
Immediately, the officers grabbed Alan, and brought him inside the station.
"What are you doing ??" shouted Alan, trying to fight back.
"That's what you wanted, right ? You'll see them again."
"I will ?"
"Trust me, you will. Now go."
Peter was about to go away, but he stopped.
"It was nice to meet you again, Alan. I doubt this will make you leave this world happier, but I hope so." he said, just before going back to the afterlife office. Alan didn't say anything in response.
For some time, this incident with one of his former friends made him quite depressive, but he eventually got back in the mood, mostly thanks to his habits of meeting newly dead people. He never asked anyone about how it went for Alan. Deep inside, he never wanted to know the answer. But he was always haunted by the most important question of mankind : "Did I do the right thing ?". Every day, a lot of people came to the office. Some shared their stories, some preferred to remain silent. Some then went on to enjoy the communal life of this world, but some became more like hermits. Everyone was different, even in death. Peter always found this fascinating, as if death was the hidden beauty of life.
2017 was coming to an end. As the next year was coming up, Peter decided to spend the last day with Victor. Together, they shared many stories. This time, Victor talked about the events he actuallly lived. It was way more depressing than the usual, because ironically, Victor's life got way better after he died. The conversation went on for hours, always with a good vibe, but Peter was a bit worried about the new year, and ended up asking about matters on his mind.
"If I understand correctly… Everyone here will disappear before 2018 ?"
"That's the idea, yes."
"But where do all these people go ? They get flushed ?"
"Oh, it's more complicated than that. They stay forever in their own separate world, which is made of the current version of this world."
"What ? Like, they live in a copy of the world ?"
"Pretty much. I find that absolutely boring. But that's the only way we managed to not overload the world with the people who died since the beginning of time."
"I see… and only employees stay here indefinitely, yeah ?"
"Most of them stay forever, yeah. That's their punishment for leading a 'bad life', so they say."
Talking with Victor, Peter realized that he didn't want to live in a copy of the current world for eternity. He needed to see the world evolve. He still wanted to discover new things, even indirectly, through the stories of the dead.
"Is there a way to get employed here, even if you didn't have a bad life ?"
Victor had the biggest smile on his face.
"I knew you would say that, sooner or later. Well, there is a way, but you have to take someone's spot."
"Someone's spot ?"
"Normally, it's a more complicated process, but I knew you would accept so… You can enter !" he shouted in the direction of the door.
The door opened. And Peter saw something he didn't expect to see, even a year after witnessing the unbelievable. It was Todd. The very first person he met in this new world was there.
"I knew you could get a day off !" said Peter, all very excited to see Todd.
"It's not really a day off, but it counts." he replied.
"I heard I could get your spot, what does that mean for you ?"
"Well, I told you about my mother, right ? And there's this thing called Last View…"
Immediately, Peter understood what Todd meant, and became sad. He looked in the direction of Victor, who was pretending to be oblivious to the touching scene between the two.
"Listen." Todd said, bringing Peter back to his senses. "I know what I'm doing. And you will do a much better job than me. Okay ? Don't think about me."
They hugged each other. They still had time before midnight, so they talked as much as they could. Until, unfortunately, Todd had to leave. For the second time now, they parted, but this time was the last. With a bittersweet wave, they said goodbye to each other. Dying after you're dead… still today, this was a very strange concept to Peter.
January 1st, 2018. A car is driving on an empty road, in the middle of an abandoned city. Bit by bit, the car is getting closer to a woman, standing there on the empty road. She looks completely alone, disoriented, and lost. Instinctively, the woman gets on the sidewalk, after noticing the car arriving. While the car is pulling over next to her, she looks at the logo on the side. 'Death Cab'.
"So I'm really dead, huh ?" she asked, almost rhetorically.
The driver grinned.
"Don't worry. It's only the beginning."
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