For One More Day
This will mostly be told from Keith's POV but there may be a few others whose POV's I might use. But they will be few and far in-between.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill, or any of the characters, except the ones I make up. It belongs to Mark Schwahn and the CW.
Chapter 1-Alive
My name is Keith Scott and if you're reading this than I would think that you know my story. But if not than I guess I will explain to you what you missed. I have a younger brother, Dan Scott, who was so consumed with hatred and darkness that he shot me. He thought that I had tried to kill him so as payback he actually killed me. At first no one knew that it was really him they all blamed it on the boy, Jimmy Edwards. It wasn't until my nephew, Lucas, who just happens to be Dan's son, figured it out and the truth was revealed. It would seem that I now have received justice and can move on with my life. Or should I say life after death. But I can't help but want to go back and change things so that I might have lived.
Today is a special ceremony. It's the day where people like me, or angles as you might call us, receive our wings. For the good deeds that we performed we have now earned the right to become a full fledged angel. But this means we have to leave the old world behind. We have to leave it and everyone who is in it behind too. I should be excited about this day but I can't help thinking that this one of the worst days of my life.
No longer can I interfere with the lives of the people I love. As an angel I can still watch them and help them if they need it. But I can't go down and help them like I did with Lucas in the hospital, or when Karen was having our baby. I have to stay as you say it, in the clouds, and I can never come down again.
(At the Ceremony)
I'm sitting here waiting for them to call my name so I can receive my "wings". Let's see they go past Jack, Jill, Jo, Jodie, John, and Judy. Now it should be my turn. But just like that I hear them call Laura, Lindsay, Logan, and Luke. I know I said that I didn't want to get my wings but I am really wondering why they aren't calling my name. So not to interrupt everyone else getting their wings I keep quiet waiting till the end of the ceremony to find out what is going on.
Zach, and Zoey, are the last and now finally I can get an answer for the reason that they skip me. As soon as I walk up it's like they knew that I would come.
"Aw. . . Keith it's good to see you," Gabriel welcomes me.
"Gabriel it's good to see you too," I answer looking up at him.
Before I can speak to ask him, Gabriel beats me to what I want to know.
"You are wondering why I didn't give you're wings. Even though you don't want to be taken away from the one's you love," he begins to explain.
"I have already been taken away from the one's I love," I interrupted him.
Instead of giving Gabriel time to chastise me for talking back I decided to push forward.
"I know that I shouldn't even be asking about me not receiving my wings since you usually have a reason for everything. I know that I don't want to leave my family behind but isn't that what everyone one of us is supposed to do at one time or another?" I asked.
Gabriel looked at me like he wanted to say something but he didn't know if he should.
"Keith you are right there is a reason for you not receiving your wings today," Gabriel began.
"And," I hedged trying to get him to continue.
I was just about to ask again when finally Gabriel replied.
"Do you feel like you have received justice?" Gabriel asked me.
"What do you mean?"
"Do you feel like Dan being in jail for your murder was justice?" Gabriel explained.
"I don't think that him getting out is justice but at least someone finally found out that he did it," I answered him.
"What would you do if I gave you the chance to go back?" Gabriel asked me.
This caught me completely by surprise.
"I can't go back, so there really isn't any reason for me to consider that," I answered him.
"What if I gave you a choice?" Gabriel asked.
"Why would you do something like that?" I asked wondering if this really was happening.
"Keith when you lived on Earth you did some things that have been reviewed. There were bad things that were done in your life also but mostly it was the good that we looked at. A long time ago when you first came here I didn't think that you should be here. It didn't seem right that your life was cut short and you had to miss so much in the lives of the people you loved. This gift is rarely offered and it is only offered once. So if you refuse this than there will not be a second chance to take it again. So I will give you some time to think about this and then I am going to need your answer," Gabriel explained and then he was gone.
I had no idea how long I was going to get to think this over so I started right away. After weighing all the ups and downs I realized that there was really only one answer. Right when I figured out what I was doing Gabriel reappeared.
"So Keith I believe that you have made up your mind. So which will it be?" he asked me.
I looked at him for a moment and then I told him what I had decided,
"I'm going back."
"Are you sure?" he asked me.
"Yes," I replied.
"Alright then," he said and then everything went dark.
The next thing I knew it was the day of the school shooting again. Karen and I were standing outside and I realized that I was back. Except this time around I wasn't going to die. This time around I was going to do things right and make sure that I would spend the rest of my life with Karen and Lucas. And this time nothing was going to stop me.
