This is the story of how I began a new life after Fight Club. Let's start with a recap of what happened at the end of last time I told this story.
I wake up with a start, after being knocked out by Tyler rolling down the stairs. My head jerks up and I see Tyler's hand holds a handgun with barrel lodged in my mouth. I am sitting on a chair and we are both sweating and disheveled.
"Three minutes, this is it, the beginning, Ground zero!" Tyler says. "Would you like to say a few words to mark the occasion?".
"i...ann...iinn...ff...nnyin..." I sputter out. With a gun barrel between your teeth, you speak only in vowels.
Tyler removed the gun from my mouth.
"I'm sorry?" asked Tyler, interested in what I had to say.
"I still can't think of anything." I say, words unable to comprehend what I am feeling right now.
"Ah, flashback humour." Tyler says while chuckling before walking over to the window and looking out of it.
"It's getting exciting now." Tyler said while checking his watch. "Two and a half minutes left. Think of everything we've accomplished, man!"
Tyler than walks over to me. I feel too weak and tried to resist as he pushes the wheelie chair I am sat on and it slammed into the window! I look down and see Marla being dragged out of a bus while struggling and screaming because six space monkeys are dragging her into the building me and Tyler are in.
I turn to Tyler; angrier than ever because he has kidnapped the woman I love. I was too afraid to tell Marla that the last time I saw her because I had commitment phobia at the time. But now, I am not afraid anymore and I vowed to myself that I would tell her that I loved her the next time I saw her and try to salvage our relationship after I acted like such an asshole.
But what is she doing here? Last time I saw her she got on a bus and left the city, so what is she doing here? I have to find out but first, I have to get rid of Tyler forever!
"Why is she here?" I ask my voice as full of panic as possible.
"Timing lose ends." Tyler says in the calmest voice possible. I wonder what he means before realising the horrifying truth, he wants to kill Marla!
I look out the window and see the space monkeys drag Marla into the building entrance.
I look back at Tyler. "I'm begging you, don't do this." I say, doing as much as I could to save Marla. It was too late to prevent the buildings from blowing up.
"I'm not doing this. We are doing this. This is what we won't." Tyler says, reminding me that is just a hallucination I created after Marla pointed out I was living a lie. I silently curse myself for ever creating Tyler.
"No, I don't want this." I say, hoping it would make Tyler disappear.
"Right, except "you", is meaningless now. We have to forget about you." Tyler quickly responds, I realise that he is determined to take over my body and become the only personality!
"You're a voice in my head."
"You're a voice in mine!"
"You're a fucking hallucination, why I can't get rid of you!?" I say, more desperate than ever to get rid of Tyler.
"You need me." Tyler says, confident he will win.
"No, I don't. I really don't anymore—"I start to say before Tyler cuts me off.
"Hey, you created me. I didn't create some loser alter-ego to make myself feel better. Take some responsibility!" Tyler shouted at me!
I sighed. I realized Tyler was right. "I do. I am responsible for all of it and I accept that. So, please, I'm begging you, please call this off." I say, hoping to convince Tyler to do so.
"Have I ever let us down? How far you come because of me? I will bring us through this. As always, I will carry you kicking and screaming and in the end, you'll thank me." Tyler responds.
I just decided to be honest. "Tyler, I'm grateful to you, for everything you've done for me. But this is too much. I don't want this."
"What do you want?! Want to go back to the shit job, fucking condo world? Watching horrible sitcoms like Friends? Fuck you! I don't do it." Tyler shouts back, stubborn as ever.
"This can't be happening." I accidentally say out loud. I decide not to tell Tyler about my love for Marla because if Tyler won, he would kill Marla!
"It's already done, so shut up. Sixty seconds, can you see alright?" Tyler asks be while smoking a cigarette.
I decide I have had enough of this! "I can figure this out. I can figure this out. This is not for real. The gun is not in your hand. The gun is in my hand!" I burst out, wanting it to become a reality.
The gun then disappears from Tyler's hands before reappearing in mine.
Tyler doesn't seem phased by this though. "Hey, good for you, it doesn't change a thing." He says, confidence filling his voice.
I stare at the gun before remembering something I read on the internet before aiming the gun at my lower jaw.
"Why do you want to put a gun in your head?" asks Tyler, forgetting we were the same person.
"Not my head, Tyler. Our head." I reply, reminding him.
"Interesting" a forgetful Tyler said.
I stand up. "Tyler, I want you to really listen to me." I say quietly.
"Okay" a nervous Tyler said.
"My eyes are open.
Before Tyler can respond, I put the gun in my mouth and fire! My check inflates with gas, my eyes bulge, blood pours down my neck and smoke pours out of my head! The resultant force causes me to fall down and back onto the chair.
I see Tyler drift from side to side before falling down flat on his face, with a large bullet wound on the back of his head. I realize that I won and I would never have to see Tyler again! I watched in happiness as Tyler's body slowly disintegrates into nothing!
But I can't relax yet because I hear the elevator doors open and the six space monkeys step out, while dragging Marla along. I stand up to talk to them as they share confused and concerned faces with each other.
"Sir, are you alright?" asked the short space monkey, dropping the beer bottles on the floor. I remember that just because I got rid of Tyler, doesn't mean that I won't have to mention his again. I would have to mention him a lot, especially if I was going to salvage my relationship with Marla.
"Oh, yeah, I'm OK." I say in the most convincing voice possible, which isn't easy when a bullet has just traveled through your throat which is now pouring with blood! I look around the room and see the two space monkeys that restrain Marla.
"Let her go" I commanded and the space monkeys let go of Marla. As Marla walks towards me, I give another command to the space monkeys. "Leave her with me, get your stuff, I'll meet you downstairs." They obey without question.
I turn to Marla, "Hi Marla" I say, happy now that she's back.
Marla on the other hand was very, very angry "You fucker! What kind of sick fucking game are you playing at n—"She stops when she sees the condition of my face! "Oh, my God! You're face!" she says in a worried tone.
"Yeah, I know." I reply, solemnly.
"What happened?"
"Don't ask."
"You're shot!
"Yes, I know I'm shot!" I say as loud as possible as the elevator with the space monkeys goes downstairs.
"Who did this?" Marla asked while she was putting tissues to my cheek and stopped the bleeding for the time being.
Before I could answer, the buildings which were rigged to blow up started to explode! I and Marla could only watch in awe as the buildings blew up within seconds of each other! Very slowly, I took Marla's hand and held it with mine. She looked at me with a confused look.
"You met me at a very strange time in my life." I say as we turn our heads back towards the buildings as they continued to explode!