That sweet smell of Chanel perfume wakes me up early in the morning. With curtains wide open, the sun lighting the entire room, feels like a beautiful day. I sat at the edge of the bed, shirtless, staring at the floor, contemplating the morning, just deep thought on TODAY. I realized there was a lot of movement in the background, I hesitated to get up, but curiosity got the best of me. “Lizette?” I called my girlfriend at the entrance of the bedroom door. No response. Getting out the bedroom, the hallway seemed long, as if it were extending within every step I took. It seemed like there were more room doors than there should. I still smelled the Chanel perfume I gave her for her birthday, the smell kept getting stronger, and heavier. Every deep breath I took of the perfume, memories of her and I being in those special places, would come to my mind. They seemed vivid, as if I went back to those specific moments. Finally, getting to the end of the hallway, the noise started getting louder. It sounded like metal, as if they’ve been shuffling pots in the kitchen. At the end of the hallway, I turned left. The kitchen was filled with the light. I heard a pot fall to the ground. Loud clashing of metals made me jump, and honestly, it woke me up from my drowsiness. “Lizette, sweetheart? Are you ok?” I asked. For a moment, I stood there as the smell of perfume became even sweeter. I heard this cute giggle. I cracked a smile. She stood up from behind the kitchen counter, time felt like it started going slower. Her dark brown hair waving so beautifully in the sunlight. She gave me this smile that made me melt. I couldn’t help but to give her this great huge smile in return. I thought of the time when I took her to the mountains and there was this little picnic table where we sat down. I remember how the wind blew her hair, and how the sun would hit her eyes. As I stared down into her eyes, she would give me this smile that blended perfectly with the sunlight. Time felt infinite. Her eyes made me feel like all my problems went away. It was just her and I, nothing else. “Do you want some breakfast?” Lizette asked. Mostly every morning I wake up really hungry and make breakfast for everyone, though, this morning I wasn’t really hungry at all. “No thanks babe. I’m not really that hungry. Have you and the kids eaten breakfast yet?” I asked. She took some pots and tip toed to put them on the top shelf where we normally put them. Struggling to put the pots on the shelf, I went to help her. “No, not yet babe. We were actually waiting for you to get up from so we could eat breakfast together.” she responded. I left the kitchen to get the kids, so they can help me make breakfast, though as I walked down the same hallway of the house, this time it didn’t seem like a never ending hallway. I could hear the laughter of children; I could even hear the voice of Bugs Bunny. I didn’t know whether it was my imagination or literally the television. I turned to the room where the children were in, but as I looked into the room, there was blood dripping down the walls. The children were laughing and running around as the blood kept filling up the room. I kept hearing the voice of Bugs Bunny, but this time, it sounded demonic. My heart started racing, it felt like it was going to jump out my chest. The scene terrified the hell of me. I yelled the kids’ names. “Bonny! Johnny!” As I yelled their names, the room kept filling up with blood, to a point that I was drowning. The blood was too thick to swim in, no way of moving in the ocean of blood. Struggling to breathe, I felt like I was sinking into an abyss of pure darkness, not knowing when I was going to reach the bottom of the ocean of blood. While sinking, my life flashed beyond my eyes. I could remember when my girlfriend and I moved into our first apartment. The kids were running around, playing in the yard, smiling, having this great feeling of joy. So many memories coming back to me, felt like my last moments were near. I’ve reached the bottom of ocean of blood. I could only see pure darkness, everything around me was pitched black. There was a pulse on my chest, it would hurt a lot, pulse after pulse. At that moment I didn’t know what it was, though it felt like eels were shocking me, one at a time. My lungs felt like they were being squeezed by someone with their bare hands. Suffocating in the ocean of blood, I couldn’t help but to let go of the breath I had left. Vaguely opening my eyes, I noticed something. Opening my eyes, everything seemed blurry at the time, I could only hear the people around me. There was crying, whispers, undistinctive voices or noises that I couldn’t recognize. “Is this the end of the road for me?” thinking to myself. My vision started getting better; many family members gathered around me. Though, all I could see was my girlfriend and the kids, their eyes were watery, as if I was about to leave. My breath was getting shorter and shorter. I could feel my heart getting slower by the minute. I was fading away to pure darkness again. Struggling to speak I said “I want to thank everyone… I want to thank you Lizette, and you too Bonny and Johnny… You’ve made my life complete…” I struggled to hold onto my breath for a moment again. “…I want to thank you all for completing my life… I… I love you…” My eyes closed like curtains, the sound of many screams, whimpering, started fading away… sinking into the abyss of pure darkness again… Once I reached the bottom of the abyss of darkness, there was a bright light. I blocked some of the light with my hand. Walking towards it, I could see clouds, and on the other side, I could see a pit of flames. Coming to a full stop at the light, there was a sign that read, “Those who have seen the ocean of blood, will only have one chance to redeem themselves.” The sign was a bit disturbing, though, I kept walking towards it. A set of stairs led to a man, a man with a long white beard, sitting on a golden chair; the place was bright and cloudy. As I walked up the set of stairs, it was like a palace of clouds. Though, I could only think of Lizette, Bonny and Johnny. My heart started racing again, I couldn’t help but to grab my chest as if it were to slow it down, but it was useless. Reaching the top of the stairs, where the man in the golden chair was, fear started kicking in. Sweating from my hands and forehead, I tried to dry them off… but it was an endless river of sweat… Reaching the final steps of stairs, the man staring me down with his old eyes. The man said “You’ve done well on Earth… Though, it’s time for you to come back to me, my son.” Tears started sliding down my cheeks. Not knowing whether I should be happy or sad… so many mixed feelings overwhelmed me… forcing me to sit on the steps and look at the ground, speechless. Once again, the man spoke “My son, it was time for you to leave, your family will be able to be happy again, as long as they know you’re looking after them.” “Lizette, Bonny, Johnny… I’m going to miss you… a lot…” I got on my knees “Forgive me for my sins, please I want to redeem myself.” Pleading, with tears running down my cheeks, the man got close to me and laid his hand on my shoulder. “You’re forgiven, now walk through the golden gates, and be free.” he says proudly. The golden gates opened, people I knew and met before, were there to greet me. Though, their happiness wasn’t enough to fill the pit emptiness I was feeling inside; a feeling that I may not recover for quite some time. The feeling of pain was intolerable. It ached from the bottom of my heart. Sitting on the edge of the palace of clouds, I got this feeling of relieve which was laid on my back. I could see my family, but I don’t know if they can see me. Strangely, Johnny looked up, smiling, as if he knew I was looking him. Couldn’t help but to smile back at him. I only know I have one job here, and it’s to protect my family from any evil or harm in any way. “In time, I will return to you again to Earth again.” I said, looking out the distance.