Author's Note: So this is an idea I've had in my head for a while. I'm rather proud of myself for actually writing it out. Hope you enjoy.
In other news…I finished writing Facing today. You guys still have about another third of it to read, but…yeah. I'm not sure whether to celebrate or cry.
Fate
The sand was perfect, white and glittering and free of any pollutants but for the occasional piece of sun-bleached shell that had washed ashore. The water was perfectly clear and yet somehow tinted in the sun, sometimes sapphire and sometimes emerald. The sun was perpetually rising, hanging just on the horizon in the perfect spot to turn the sky every color of peach, pink, and blue. It was a perfect day. But then, every day was perfect in heaven.
Chas had never seen the beach before. He'd always wanted to, of course, but coming from his family and living where he lived…well, it just wasn't an option, as he'd heard time and time again. The first thing that struck his attention was vastness of the water. He'd always had a fear of drowning, but somehow the temptation of dipping his toes into the water was irresistible now.
Cautiously, he took a step closer and stopped, mesmerized by the sight of the sand on the bottom. It formed little ripples under the current of the water, and any time a wave lapped against the shore, some of it swirled into a little whirlpool, only to settle again in that same pattern when the tide went back out. Curiously, he stretched out a toe to disturb the motion, then drew back abruptly when a wave surprised him, soaking him up to his ankles. It took a moment for him to get his wits back enough to realize that the laughter ringing in his ears wasn't coming from the ocean. Chas turned to see a curly-haired woman standing a few feet off, giggling like she'd never seen anything so funny before.
"What?" he snapped, then thought better of it. She was easily the most beautiful person he'd ever seen, living or dead. Her hair fell all the way to her waist and somehow never seemed completely still though there was no wind. "You an angel?" he asked lamely. This sent the beautiful stranger into fresh peals of laughter.
"What do you think you are?" she asked at last. Her voice was oddly familiar, he thought, though he couldn't put his finger on the how.
"Well…I dunno. I just thought…Do I know you?" He couldn't resist asking. Suddenly he wanted to know everything about her, anything to make her keep talking.
She tilted her head to one side, letting her hair spill fluidly over one shoulder, and smiled serenely. "You know my sister."
"Isabel," said Chas, remembering the newspaper article suddenly. "But that means you…you're not anything…" She had to be a good ten years older than he was, thought Chas, but there was something eternally young about her face. The way her eyes still sparkled in the sunlight.
"I'm the crazy one, right? Of course I'm not normal." She sounded proud of the fact. "You made it all the way here, Chas. Lighten up. Have a little fun."
"Fun?" Chas had never been very good at the whole conversation thing. No matter how many books he read, his own articulacy never managed to increase. "How?"
"You're at the beach!" Isabel seemed forever on the verge of laughter.
"Yeah, but the water…" Chas trailed off, suddenly aware that his fear wasn't entirely gone. The ocean might be clear, but it was still far too deep for him to see the bottom. There could be all sorts of things waiting just under the surface to pull him down.
"Is wet?" finished Isabel, and giggled again.
"Well, yeah," said Chas, a little stung. "That's not what I meant. It's just…I've never…I don't like this whole being new thing!" He knew this last sounded like a temper tantrum, and in a way it was. Heaven had turned out to be anything but a walk in the park. It was pretty, yes, but lonely if you weren't particularly close with your relatives.
"Never what? Been swimming before?"
"Been swimming. Been away from…the city. Been dead." He laughed bitterly. "Take your pick."
"Swimming," said Isabel matter-of-factly.
"Huh?" Chas kicked at a piece of shell, surprised when it didn't hurt his bare toe.
"I pick swimming. I hated the city. And I've never been dead before either. So I can't help you there. So I pick swimming. That's something I can be useful in. I don't do that very often."
"Swimming?" Chas squinted at her in the early morning light. She was making his head spin.
"Being useful." Isabel took a step forward and grabbed his hands, lacing her fingers warmly with his and pulling him toward her as she walked backward.
"Oh…so…you are good at swimming…" Chas swallowed as the water lapped at her heels. "Aren't you?"
"Does it matter?" Isabel smiled serenely and let go of his hands, leaving Chas standing just at the edge of the water. She ran out until she was up to her knees, then spread her arms and fell back into the water. She floated perfectly, her hair fanning out around her. Eerily reminiscent of the picture in the paper. She had no way of knowing that of course.
"Well yeah! I mean, what if—"
"We're dead, Chas. You said it yourself. Now you get to take all the risks you couldn't afford to in life. Maybe that's our reward."
For a moment all he could do was stare at her. He couldn't help noticing the way her wet clothes clung to her body, how the water seemed to make her skin sparkle even more. Suddenly he wondered why it hadn't occurred to him before. Of course there was no reason to be afraid. Naturally, he was the last person to catch on.
"Don't make me come and get you," teased Isabel, sitting up.
Chas took a deep breath and waded into the water, pausing to take in a breath of relief when nothing but cool water lapped against his ankles several feet in. Isabel giggled, and he kicked water at her.
"Hey!" she yelped, and flailed to her feet, splashing as much water at him as possible.
Chas gasped as the cold kicked in, but it wasn't an altogether unpleasant sensation. "Hey, hey, I'm getting there! I just want to take this slowly." He realized how corny it sounded, had almost intended it, but the devilish smile on her face just grew tenfold.
"Not allowed. I don't go for men who do that." She grabbed him by the wrists, and Chas flinched at the both wetness of her hands and the sensation of sudden contact.
"I'm your man now?" Chas could feel his heart beating in his throat. He hadn't given much thought to this possibility, hadn't thought it even existed. Did relationships have to be good in Heaven?
"Maybe," said Isabel. "Depending."
"On what?" Chas narrowed his eyes at her, suddenly afraid. He known her only a few minutes, but everything about her was at once familiar.
Slowly, Isabel walked in a circle around him. Chas turned with her, his eyes never leaving her face. Coming to a stop, she smiles sweetly, then pushes him backwards into the water. He lands hard on his backside, but it is only cold in a tingling, excited sort of way.
"If you still want to be now that I did that."
Chas laughed, grabbed her around the waist and pulled her down into the water, surprising himself. He'd come here because he thought he wanted to be alone, but somehow it seemed that in the back of his mind he'd known she'd be here as well. Love was something he'd never really dealt with in life. He was the shy guy who hid in books and dreamed about fighting demons if he ever managed not to be too damn scared. Not exactly boyfriend material.
"I can read your mind, you know," said Isabel, grinning and shaking water out of her hair at him.
"You can?" Chas flinched and blinked as little salty droplets hit him in the face. Suddenly he wondered why ocean water should sting when tears didn't.
"No," she said, starting to laugh again. "But you might as well tell me what you're thinking."
"I'm thinking…you're crazy to like me?"
"Oh. Well we'd already established the crazy part. But why does liking you make me crazy? Maybe it's fate." Isabel stood up in the water and hooked one finger under his chin. The little water droplets beaded on her face and sparkled in the sun like sequins.
"I don't believe in fate," said Chas, though he was starting to think that maybe he did. How else could he possibly explain the events of the past few days?
"Oh come on. You're in Heaven! How can you not believe in fate?"
"I don't…know what to believe. I hate being confused."
"Then how about," Isabel took him by the shoulders, "you stop thinking so much?" She leaned in and kissed him, and suddenly Chas thought not thinking sounded like a very good idea.
"Can I ask you something?" he said after a very long moment.
"Why'd you do it?" It didn't really matter now, but he had to know.
Isabel shrugged. "It felt right. I always do what feels right. Try it sometime. Everyone'll tell you you're nuts."
"Good advice," said Chas thoughtfully. "Then…I should…" He trailed off and kissed her again.
"Good start," said Isabel. "How about now…you stop talking." Her fingers were playing with the buttons of his shirt now, and he realized just how empty the beach was.
"Okay," said Chas. They had all the time in the world. And nobody around for miles.
Suddenly he thought Heaven just might live up to its name.
So that was…fluffy. It's not exactly how I originally imagined it, but I like it. Please let me know what you think.