Someone I'm Not

5. Wake up, Way Back

"Mom! Lil bro!" He calls out, hoping they could hear him, even though he knew they wouldn't even listen to him. He sighs, a part relieved that he had a glance at his family but disappointed at some point because he couldn't do anything to warn them.

The Goddess snaps her finger as his eyes didn't leave the image of his mother and little brother. Even if he wanted to stare at it a bit more longer, he knew that he couldn't until it completely disappears right in front of his eyes. He closes his eyes intently and purses his lips, trying to stop his tears and moan of sadness. He tries his best to collect the emotion and gulp it in one go before opening his eyes again to meet the goddess's gaze.

"I see passion and determination, Mister Oasis. I see the burning desire in those eyes the moment you saw them. And from that, I have already got my answer. . . and that is, you haven't given up yet. That's the most important thing to me. And that, for me, is enough to give you a second chance for change in the living world. Though you have said it yourself that you don't deserve a second chance, that already proves that you're doubting. What I expected for my clients when I see them here in my place, they burst too much confidence that they needed to get back because they haven't made the most of their lives, and yet, here you are, telling me that you don't deserve it?"

"I'm sorry if it upsets you, Goddess. But I cannot tell myself I deserve something when I know I've been doing way too much wrong since the beginning."

"Don't be sorry, Mister Oasis. I wanted to give you a second chance because I want you to prove something to me. But that is for you to find out. . . what should I prove myself off?"

Eduardus and Houdini look at each other as they try to communicate. It wasn't the first time they have shared glances, though this is the first time that they couldn't seem to read what the goddess is planning.

"Can't you at least give me a hint?" Phoenix tries to ask, hoping he could get a clue to make things a bit easier for him, but all he gets is a shake of ahead.

"Justice is more fun and worth it if you know how to work for it. Justice is food served right in front of you, but it's only up to you if you're willing to eat that perfect dish. . . Will you be willing to taste it without knowing if you're going to chew a sweet one or a bitter one?"

He is hesitant. He is full of doubt. He doesn't even trust himself with it. But he knew he's got to fight the fear of not testing himself anymore.

"If. . . If I get to see them and say the things I wanted to say before I go, then I'll do whatever it takes just to fulfill it. I don't want to leave them all thinking about what happened to me or why it happened to me. I just. . ."

'I just wanted to tell them I'll be fine.' He mumbles the last few words, keeping the thought to himself. Houdini slowly claps his hand in an almost faint noise, still not pleased with the Goddess's decision. His eyes narrow to Phoenix as if he's eyeing a transparent thing that he could easily read. But then, disappointment lingers around Houdini.

"Then that will be our deal, Mister Oasis."

"Thank you so much, Goddess Genre—"

"Don't be too happy yet, Mister Oasis. The deal doesn't end there. . . yet."

Houdini, Eduardus, and Phoenix glue their worried look to the Goddess as her smile turns into a bigger grin. It quickly sends something chilly, but at some point, he is ready for it.

'For my family.' He thought to himself.

"You, Phoenix Oasis, will be sent back to Earth with a mission. Since you didn't get a clear glimpse at who your killer is, I'll be giving you this opportunity to look for that person. But that is not it because you're only be doing this in a month—"

"What!?"

"Goddess!" Eduardus and Houdini surprisingly raise their voice as they talked in a chorus, only to receive nothing from the goddess. She treated them as invisible.

"But, I don't know if that will be enough, goddess." Phoenix starts to shake again. He's starting to lose confidence, too, as he feels his knees beginning to wobble in fear.

"That's not my problem to solve, Mister Oasis."

"But—"

"Remember, I am the goddess of Justice, Mister Oasis, and I always want Justice to taste so worth it. Are you up for this challenge? Or are you backing out now?" She straightforwardly asks, showing only a blank expression. Phoenix gulps as he looks at Eduardus, who is looking back at him, concern fills his eyes.

"My goddess—" Eduardus was interrupted shortly when Phoenix decided to answer.

"For my family, I'm not backing out." He says, even if he's not too confident of himself. The grin grew even more prominent as The Goddess's eyes shine with excitement.

"Tremendous! This is the personality I wanted!" But then, her smiley face quickly drops off. "I hope you don't disappoint me, Mister Oasis."

She then turns her gaze to Eduardus. "You know what to do, my loyal one. I'll be expecting a lot from you both."

'I can sense something between these two that I haven't encountered before. What could it be?' She raises the question within herself, trying to figure out what it could be. Although it's still too early to think about it, she is sure that it would have a considerable outcome. Eduardus sighs before replying.

"Yes, my goddess."

"Then the meeting is done." She turns her back to them, followed by Houdini as they both disappear in front of them like magic. The ground merges back and falls back down, leaving them both alone in the vast space. Phoenix releases a long sigh, realizing he's been holding his breath for a while. He starts to freak out as he walks back and forth, trying to assess what happened for a second. But then, he halts as he sees Eduardus, starting down on his shoes.

"Eduardus?" He calmly calls, hoping that the man in front of him would flinch back to where they are right now. "Mister Eduardus?"

"Can you please shut your mouth for a second? I am TRYING to concentrate here!" Eduardus complains as he shoots him a death glare that made Phoenix quickly raises both of his hands in surrender. He waited for Eduardus for a couple of seconds more before talking again.

"So, what should we do now, Eduardus?"

"Perhaps we should start by you addressing me properly, hmm?" He suggests, but at the same time, he is distracted.

"What should I call you then?" That question made him snap his finger.

"Aha! Now I know what happens next!" He jumps in joy like a first-grader who just got a star for a recitation. Phoenix keeps silent as he watches what he's about to do next. Eduardus soon realizes that he's acting a bit childish, making him blush from embarrassment, leaving both of them in awkward silence.

"Ahem!" Phoenix clears his throat to catch his attention, making Eduardus clear his throat back.

"I'm sorry. . . I just got a bit flustered there."

"It's okay but, I just want to see my parents now. Perhaps we can do something about it by telling you what is should address you first?" He raises the question again, just in case he forgot.

"Ah, yes!" And indeed, Phoenix had predicted that he forgot. "Oh about that, since we are going to start this journey, from this day onwards as you go down from the living world. . . you know what? I'm going to tell you when we are there so."

He pulls Phoenix close as he freezes to what Eduardus did. "Brace yourself, kid."

"Excuse me, but what— Ahhhhhh!!!" He screams as a portal lying on the ground opens, revealing a hundred feet away from the ground. He immediately screams on top of his lungs must be seeing it. And without second thought or words to just motivate him, Eduardus pushes both of them as they made a Skyfall.

"I'm gonna die. . . I'm gonna die. . . I'm gonna f*cking DIEEEEEE—"

"AAAHHHHHH!!!!" His scream suddenly wakes him up as he harshly opens his eyes as he quickly jumps out of bed. But just when he's about to run for another mile, he realizes that something is off. He looks down to see that he's standing on a wooden floor that made squeezes his eyes for assurance. When he did, he quickly kneels to touch the floor, knocking it and even pressing his ears into it.

"I'm alive. . ." he mumbles to himself as he stands up, slowly touching every part of him, feeling so alive. Although he still feels a little weird, he even pinches himself. "Ow!"

His eyes grew wide open as he realizes why is happening. "It was just a dream. . . yeah, just a f*cking dream. . . Dream! Hah!"

He sits back in his bed as he tries to sink it all in. He covers his 'O' shaped mouth with both of his hands. 'I've been just in a dream! None of those ever happened!'

"Mom? Lil bro! Mom, Lil bro, I've got to tell you something!" He stands back up as he rushes through the doors to meet his parents. "Mom!? Lil bro! I've got a bizarre dream, and it felt so fun— Ahh!" He flinches to see a woman in front of him. Brown and blonde hair tied up in a messy bun, green eyes that shows feminism, a tan brown skin that complements her personality. She's tall, which would turn every guy on.

"Oh, finally! Someone decided to wake up. . . Good morning, my queen, have you had enough rest? Did you have a wonderful sleep? Is the mattress too smooth that you almost NOT want to get up?" She mimics a British accent that made him roll his eyes. He stands there, trying to figure out who the woman is standing right in front of him.

"Excuse me but, who the f*ck are you— sh*t!" He suddenly realizes something that makes him quickly turn around and decided to walk away when the woman follows her.

"Excuse me, did you just curse a bad word at me, huh? Since when did you learn to say that!?" The woman seems too eager to know the truth, but even Phoenix doesn't know what is happening. He's only facing the door to his room when the woman talks again.

"SOROYA KYLE GREENE!" she calls out a name that he wasn't familiar with. . . for a few seconds. He intently closes his eyes, having an assurance that he knew who the woman is talking to him.

Vianne Sky Greene.

"Sh*t." He mumbles to himself again, puzzled as to what is happening right now. He turns to face Vianne with a fake smile. When he's fully facing him, Vianne's hands are crossed into her chest, waiting for an explanation.

But before he could do that, Phoenix quickly rushes out of her sight, instantly closing the door from behind him.

"Soroya, open this door! You know how I HATE closed doors when there's an argument!" He could still hear Vianne from the outside as she continues to nag the door. "SOROYA!"

'Sh*t, sh*t, sh*t!!!!' He screams inside him as he feels like his heart is about to explode. Immediately he looks for a mirror to see his face, hoping that he'll be disappointing his thoughts this time.

"Soroya, open this f*cking door, you brat!"

"Just wait a minute! I'm just going to look for. . ." His voice trails as he looks for the surrounding. "THE PHONE!"

"What!?"

"JUST HOLD ON A MINUTE, CAN YOU!?" He asks as he shortly scans the phone that he can access. He's relieved that the phone has no password, or the pin would have taken them any longer. He slides the unlock button upwards. A sudden photo reveals right on the home screen that makes him a bit puzzled for a moment before he could already assess what is happening.

"Holy—"