It was such a horrible evening for anyone to be outside. Water poured down from the heavens like if someone had knocked down a gigantic tub. Streets were flooded by the relentless rain. Most people were staying inside, hiding in their homes from the tears of the sky. But not Sally. She was walking along the road, feeling so wet and cold, and no wonder, the rain had completely soaked her. She had wrapped her arms around her fragile body, as if that would give her warmth. Having nothing to wear but her dress and pretty shoes, she was on the mercy of the weather conditions. The growing puddles infiltrated into her shoes, freezing her feet. Her dress was nothing but a drenched rag at this point, and whatever she had done to her hair was a waste now as the rain had ruined it. She was such a miserable sight as she slowly walked forward.
But why was she here? She had trouble to remember that. Her mind felt really hazy, as if the corners of it was veiled by impenetrable fog. There were bits here and there that she could grab onto, but Sally couldn't really piece them together that well. She remembered that she had been in the party with her best friends, Rebecca and Emily. The party had been hosted in this one David's place… But why wasn't she there? What had caused her to leave? And where was Rebecca and Emily? Why hadn't she just called her mother if she had wanted to get out of there? So many questions, but she had answers for none.
However, Sally had a strange feeling she couldn't explain. It was like that everything felt so oddly familiar. As if she had done this before, walking in the rain alone. But one thing was for sure: she wanted to get home as soon as possible. It was her priority number one.
The road she was treading on wasn't recognizable to her. That rose even more questions and confusion. What had caused her to come here? Where she had been heading to? Was this the path to home? All of this was so strange. But she knew that she had to get away from here, from the unbearable weather. Sally had only seen a couple of cars that had driven by, and she had tried to hitchhike, but the cars had just mercilessly gone past her, not even slowing down. But who knew what their story was. Maybe they were in a rush because of something, having no time for a stranger girl. Sally didn't judge them. She wasn't part of their story, just like they didn't belong to hers. Though, she couldn't deny that the thought of a warm car seat was really tempting… Shivering intensely, she continued her travel to home.
Oh, how Sally longed to meet her mother again. It felt like that she hadn't seen her in ages. The mother was her favorite person in the whole world, she loved her so dearly. Sally tried to imagine the warmness that would welcome her in home. First her mother would prepare a hot bath for her. And when Sally would be ready, mother would make her some warm cocoa. Then they would conquer the couch together, wrapping a blanket around each other and watch some action movies. Yes… That was what Sally yearned to happen. With this wish close to her heart, she tried to absorb strength from it so she could find a way to her home.
She almost tripped at one point. Her shoes weren't really ideal for long walks. That once more made her ponder why was she traveling here in the first place. However, Sally stopped dwelling on her questions as she heard another car approaching. Desperately, she lifted her thumb up as a signal for the driver. But to her amazement, this time the vehicle did stop. The car looked old and its tailpipe was coughing a little, but Sally wasn't picky. She opened the door to a back seat and slipped in, the driver immediately giving some gas for the vehicle and continued the trip.
“Thank you, sir”, Sally said as she had settled down comfortably at the center of back seats.
“No problem”, the driver replied, giving her a friendly smile through a rear-view mirror.
Well, judging by the first sight, he didn't seem to be a creeper. He was an older man, so that probably explained the age of the car as well. There was lingering a bit stale scent in the vehicle, and there were few patches on the seats. But it was oddly comfy, even though Sally couldn't really explain why.
“Could you please drive me home?” Sally asked politely.
“Sure thing, I'll take you where you belong”, the man answered.
That was a bit strange choice of words in Sally's opinion, but regardless, the girl gave him the address. After that, they both went silent. Sally felt a bit relieved for finally getting out of the rain and that she was heading home.
Only a short moment had passed when Sally started to suddenly feel very tired. But she was also freezing. The man noticed her shivering.
“Feeling cold?” he asked, a mild concern in his voice.
“Yeah”, Sally answered.
The man grabbed something from the front seat: it was a coat. He threw it to the girl, who gladly took it and put it on. It indeed brought some warmth, and the girl expressed her gratitude.
“You're welcome. I'm sorry I couldn't get to fetch you sooner”, the man said.
This made Sally a little confused.
“What do you mean?” she asked, feeling a bit alert.
“I know you've been roaming in these parts for a quite some time already”, answered the man.
“I don't… don't really understand what you're saying”, the girl spoke.
The man gave her a serious look in the rear-view mirror.
“You're dead, Sally.”
The girl froze. The reality around her seemed to shatter into thousands of pieces. How could this be…? And how could this man know about her?
“Wh-what…?”
That was the only thing she could let out of her mouth.
“You got run over by a car in these parts”, the man told. “You've been haunting this road ever since. Haven't you noticed that you've been stuck… how should I say it… stuck in some kind of loop?”
Sally was paralyzed. This did explain her memory problems… But could this really be possible? And what's even worse… Did this mean she couldn't see her mother ever again? This thought caused her to be overwhelmed by sadness, tears starting to form in her eyes.
“How do you know about these things?” the girl asked.
“It's because I'm a humble servant of souls”, the driver said. “It's my job to give a ride to lost souls to the afterlife.”
“I'm not sure do I want to go to afterlife”, Sally muttered, grasping the coat tightly.
“Then you'll be stuck on this road forever”, the man pointed out. “That would be such a tragic fate, I'd hate to see a pretty girl like yourself being condemned to it. It would make your mother sad, too.”
The last part really touched Sally's heart. Her mother probably was grieving so much after losing her daughter… Maybe the least she could do to ease her pain was to move on. Who knows, maybe there was a way to meet again someday.
“Could you… could you tell my mother that I'm okay?” Sally let out a plea, almost whispering the words.
“Of course”, the man promised. “Now, let's take you to a better place.”
One more lost soul was saved that night. In the back seat of the gentle man's car, Sally drifted to sleep, perhaps waiting to be awaken in a realm with no pain.
