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AFI - Spoken Word

CRACK

Death wasn't a stranger to Kenny McCormick. He had died many times in his life and come back each time reborn anew. However, all of his constant dying throughout pretty much all his life, had started to wear on him. It almost started to feel like a chore to him, dying, coming back, then dying again. Like a never ending cycle stuck on repeat. It wore him down. Which is why after his most recent death, he came up with a suggestion for Death to break the cycle and stop feeling the pain of it.

"What if instead of sending me back again, you just let me help you?"

Death doesn't say anything though, because Death never speaks. But regardless, Kenny continues on.

"Look, we both know this cycle isn't going to end anytime soon. And you've got to be just as tired as having to deal with constantly seeing me every other day, as I am you. So why don't we make a deal?"

Despite Death not speaking, Kenny could tell he had the being's interest.

"Why don't I help you? Like, as an assistant or something? I'm sure it would help you out a lot, and I wouldn't be totally useless to you. It could help make up for all the times you could've been after another's soul, instead of dealing with me again."

For a long silence afterwards, neither one moves. And Kenny starts to think that it didn't go through or work. But in the next second, Death raises up a skeletal hand and extends bony fingers towards him. A cloud of shrouded darkness consumes Kenny, and he instantly thinks that he's going to be sent back. But the cloud dissipates just as fast as it had appeared. Kenny cautiously looks around. The color around him was gone and instead left behind a grayscale world. And his body no longer had his usual orange clothing anymore, instead it was replaced by a very long black cloak, that's ends seemed almost mist-like, similar to Death's very own.

For a few seconds, Kenny is not sure what is happening, until he looks up at Death to see a bony finger pointing to something. When Kenny glances in the direction of it, he spots some sort of small glowing yellowish light off in the distance. When he looks back, Death is gone. And he now stood alone in this colorless world. Colorless except for that light that was still visible off in the distance. With no other clear direction, he makes his way towards the light.

When he eventually reaches it, any lingering questions he may have had left are answered when he sees the body of a man who had seemed to have been involved in a hit and run lying on the street. He had indeed gotten what he asked of Death as he saw the light around the dying man's body, start to glow brighter.

And so, time begins to pass by. From days, to weeks, to months.

And Kenny is content with his position of not having to worry it whether he'll live or die each day anymore. No one even seemed to notice when he wasn't around anymore anyways. Maybe one or two people had asked it, but most just simply seemed not to care. And time seemed to erase him from people's minds. Not that he cared much, there wasn't anything left for him anyways.

Sometimes Kenny would wait for those to die when their light started to show, other times, he'd show up when their light was at it's brightest. He kept up this daily routine for a year and a half, until he came across something he did not think of before.

Seeing a familiar face.

It was midday when he saw the start of another new light start to appear. So he went along like usual towards it. However, when he got to it this time, he froze. This light belonged to someone he knew from his living life, someone who he had talked to while attending school on many different occasions.

Craig Tucker.

This had been the first time he came across someone who he knew first hand. Craig was lying in a bed, coughing harshly until someone came to check on him, his mother. Kenny watched in silence as things started to unravel before him. It didn't take him long to figure out why Craig had a light starting to form around him.

...

Craig's death wasn't going to be a quick one. It was going to be slow and probably very painful. He was sick, and sickness was always slow. Kenny had thought it best to just come for Craig when it was his time, but however much he tried, he couldn't stop himself from always wandering back to Craig's bedside, or thinking of him. Which Kenny found to be a bit strange, considering they weren't even that close in life, were they? Sure they got along well enough, but they weren't super close to one another, at least he didn't think they were.

He also wondered how Craig, for the tough guy persona he had in front of everyone all the time, was able to keep his sickness hidden for so long. Although it seemed like it may have taken a turn for the worse on the day he found him.

For a while, Craig still tried going to school, until eventually having to be forced to stay home. In the time that passed by, Kenny stood by and silently observed him. He started to learn all these things about Craig and an array of emotions he had never known him to possess. Anger, sadness, fear, despair, concern, but mostly, frustration. Frustration from being sick all the time, frustration from wanting to just get better already and frustration from the constant pain.

There were also tears, many of them. Both of his own and those close to him.

At one point, Kenny watched as Craig got in to an argument with his family and later that night, he watched as he saw him force himself to get up and move, sneaking out of the house. Kenny wanted to tell him to stop, and go back. That doing this would only make thing worse for him. And when Craig went through the door and left his house, he wanted to grab him. But he couldn't, the things that the living did was up to them. He wasn't allowed to interfere and change the events of things set in place by fate. All he could do was watch as Craig took off running down the street.

When Craig eventually comes to a stop, it's from his legs giving way and him falling to the ground. He coughs, and it takes Kenny a moment to realize that they sound wet and heavy. As he looks more closely at Craig, through the darkness around him, he sees that tears were now falling down his face in a constant stream. Craig sits up onto his knees and holds a hand to his chest, from the pain of his coughing. It calms down after a few minutes and he leans forward until his head touches the ground.

"I'm so sick of this. Why can't it just end already."

Kenny hears through quiet sobs. It's almost enough to make him want to reach out and touch him, but he resists the urge to do so, knowing full well what the consequences of such an action would cause. If he were to try touching him... things would have the opposite effect of what he wanted. He learned that the hard way once. All he could do was offer a somber expression and words to the boy who couldn't see or hear him.

"Because it's not time yet."

Craig's father eventually found him and needless to say, that after that event, Craig's family kept an even closer watch on him.

...

The more time that went by and Kenny watched him, the more conflicted he grew about when that inevitable day would arrive. Each day that passed, the light around Craig grew brighter. Despite his family's efforts for trying different treatments. When the light around Craig began to shine really brightly and his body had become frail and weak, leaving him now bed ridden. He asked to be left alone. His family wanted to drag him to the hospital, but Craig refused, they had gone many times before to it and nothing changed. All he wanted now was to be alone in silence and peace.

He sat on his bed and looked out the window at a bleak gray sky. Staring at it for a good some minutes as rain started to fall from it.

"I never got to tell him..." he thinks aloud to himself and looks away.

Him? Kenny wonders curiously as Craig turns over and lies down. He watches as Craig lulls off into a sleep, the last words he said replaying in his mind for some reason.

Throughout that night, the light around Craig shone brighter and brighter. His time was fast approaching. Kenny though, even knowing this was coming, didn't want for Craig to die. Maybe it was from being around him for such a long time, but he grew to be quite attached to him by this point. He wasn't sure if he would be able to do this. And maybe it was because of this uncertainty in which Death appeared that night next to him after so long.

"Does he have to die?" Kenny asks, keeping his eyes trained on Craig. "Is there really nothing we can do to stop it? Or help him?"

Even though Kenny very well knew the answer to those questions, he still asked them. As the night came to it's close, with the sun now starting to rise. Craig's room started to fill with sunlight, as the light around his body was nearing it's completion. Just as the first rays of sunlight started to touch the surface of Craig's skin and spread across it, it was time.

But Kenny stood in place unmoving. He didn't want to do it. So Death instead moved, causing Kenny to comeback.

"W-wait!" he quickly says, "I can do it, I just... needed a second."

With that, Kenny slowly walks past Death and towards Craig. He stands next to his bedside, and reaches a hand forward.

"I'm sorry," he whispers to him, "but at least you won't have to suffer anymore."

Kenny carefully lowers his hand down onto Craig's and touches it. The moment it does, the light around Craig's body explodes into a blinding light. Kenny grabs Craig's hand and starts to lift it up. As he does, the light from around Craig's hand separates from his body, staying in Kenny's hand as he lift's it up higher. It continues to separate as it moves down along his arm, shoulders, neck, head, and the rest of his body. Eventually the light completely separates from Craig and hovers just above his body.

The light then starts to shape and mold into the form from beneath it. Kenny then guides Craig's form away from his flesh and let's go of his hand. As Craig's eyes start to open, his form turns up right, allowing him to now stand. He looks around, almost dazed-like, and his eyes open even wider when they land on Death. For a second there's fear on his face at the cloaked skeletal figure, until his gaze lands on another cloaked figure and his expression changes to confused.

"...Kenny?"

For a moment, Kenny is the surprised one, before he offers a small smile. "Uh... yeah, it's me."

"You're alive still?"

"Not exactly," Kenny chuckles and points to his outfit, and Craig gives a confused look again. "But wait, you remember me?"

"Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?"

"Oh, it's just that... I didn't think anyone would anymore."

Craig falls quiet for a long moment afterwards, before looking around his room some more. His gaze falling onto his body. "I'm dead aren't I?"

"Yeah," Kenny says somber.

"Guess that means you are as well then?" Craig asks looking back, and Kenny nods. "But why are you here?"

"It's a long story but, I'm here to guide you."

"Guide me? To what? The afterlife or something?" Craig asks and Kenny nods again, "Oh..." he looks back at his body on the bed. "What if I don't want to go though? Then what?"

"You'd be stuck here," Kenny tells him.

"And where's here? Purgatory?"

"Something like that."

"That's not so bad..." Craig mumbles.

Kenny's brows knit together in concern at that, "Craig, you can't stay here. Your soul will get corrupted if you do."

"You're here aren't you? And you seem fine," Craig says looking back at Kenny again.

"Yeah but, it's different."

"How?"

Kenny shakes his head, "I don't- why would you want to stay here? This place isn't exactly pleasant." at that, Craig's gaze falls and he goes silent. "Is it because you want to stay with your family and friends and watch over them or something?"

"No."

Kenny just gives a confused look, not sure as to why Craig would want to stay in such an awful place as this. "Then why?"

For a long while, Craig just stands there, not saying anything. He glances up after some time and looks at Kenny. He stares at him long enough for Kenny to want to say something, because it was growing a bit uncomfortable.

"Why did you choose to stay here?" Craig asks, cutting him off before he can speak.

"I told you, it's a long-"

"Just say it in short than."

Kenny sighs, "I... I chose to stay, because there was nothing left for me in the living world."

"Nothing?" Craig's expression falters for a moment, "What made you think that?"

Kenny just looks at him, a bit confused by this bizarre turn of a conversation. "Because to most everyone, I was already nonexistent. I didn't see a point to go back or stick around, so I chose to stay here through a deal."

Craig's gaze falls, "You weren't nonexistent to me..."

The words, although quiet and small, catch Kenny off-guard, "What do you mean?"

Before Craig can reply, the door to his room opens and his mother walks in. They both watch her walk over to Craig's body and try to wake him up for the day. Her face going from a small smile to one of horror when she starts to realize what's happened. She kneels down beside the bed as tears start to fall from her eyes.

"Mom..." Craig says quietly to himself as he watches her get up and rush out of the room, calling for his father. "Will they be okay?"

"Yes," Kenny tells him, "with time."

"Guess I can't say goodbye huh?" Craig asks.

Kenny gives a somber smile. "We should start going before you become corrupted in this place."

"I'll go, but on one condition." Craig states.

"What is it?"

Craig looks back at him, "You have to come with me."

Kenny's eyes widen, "Why?"

"You said yourself, that this is no place for souls to wander or be, so that means that you shouldn't stay here either."

"I mean, that's true but I-"

"I want you to come with me."

Kenny continues to look at him stunned. "Are you worried about going alone? Because if so-"

"I'm not worried about going alone."

"Then what are you-"

"I'm worried about you." Craig says, irritated.

"Me? But I'll be fine."

Craig let's out a sigh of frustration, "Look, if you come with me to the other side then..." Craig's gaze drifts away from Kenny's and to his shoulder, "I'll tell you why I want you with me."

Although still confused about all that was happening, those words differently piqued interest. Kenny looks away, mulling it over. He had never been asked this before, and was still somewhat amazed it was by someone who remembered him. Maybe it was because this was being asked by someone he knew, or rather, someone who he grew more fond of as time went by, that was really making him consider it.

"Kenny," Craig interrupts his thoughts, "Do you really want to stay here for the rest of eternity and collect and guide souls or whatever, all alone?"

It had been the first time that someone had asked him what he wanted and he wasn't quite sure how to react. He looks back at Craig, to see him waiting for a response.

Was this really something he wanted to keep on doing forever? What would happen if he was asked this again? Would he be? What if it was by someone else he knew? Would be be okay with seeing another person he knew here again? What if they forgot about him? How would he take it then? There were to many questions running through his head at once. But there was one thought that was rising to the surface in his mind.

"No," Kenny finally says in tune with the thought. "But even if I go, there's no guarantee that I'll be able to stay there."

"Why?" Craig asks confused. "Does it relate to what you said before about not seeing a point in going back?"

"Yeah," Kenny nods.

"What does that even mean exactly?"

"It means that I can't die." Kenny replies, "Not like other souls anyways."

"Can't die?" Craig repeats sounding even more confused.

"I've died many times before but always am sent back, because my soul isn't like others." Kenny explains and Craig gives a look as if trying to understand what he's talking about. "So I can't go with you because of that," he adds then looks at Death. "Unless you can do something, so that I won't have to return?" there's a pause as Death slowly nods and Kenny's eyes widen, "How?"

Death walks towards Kenny then, and places a hand on his head. The moment it touches him, a wave of visions run through his mind. All with meaning of words unspoken. When Death eventually moves the hand away, Kenny's body begins to glow and the cloak around him starts to fade away.

He looks at Craig with a new knowledge and smiles, "I can go."

"Really?" Craig says somewhat surprised.

"Yeah, and I don't need to worry about coming back anymore." he says sounding almost astonished by it. "My soul was in two halves before, but when I chose to help Death, my soul was no longer fully human, but it still retained it's human elements. And with what Death did just now, my soul has completely wavered to being fully human."

"Which means?" Craig asks trying to follow along with what he was being told.

"Which means, I can now go with you if you want me to." Kenny smiles.

Craig gives a nod, although not fully comprehending everything Kenny was saying, but getting enough of the gist of it.

"I do," he says and grabs Kenny's hand into his own.

The gesture surprises Kenny, but he grabs back into Craig's hand and smiles again. The light around him growing stronger. "Alright then, let's get going shall we?" he then turns to Death and nods.

Death then places a hand on his shoulder and raises up the other with the scythe in it and a bright white light starts to shine around them all. Kenny glances back once more at Craig to see him look around his room one more time with a distant expression on his face before his gaze lands back on Kenny and a smile slowly spreads across it, as his hand squeezes Kenny's.

And it's only then does Kenny start to realize something behind Craig's words from earlier, only when the light starts to engulf them whole and they start to leave this world behind, does he understand why Craig wanted him to go with him. It's only after their gone and have moved on, does he realize what Craig is going to tell him when they arrive on the other side.

END