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TAISHI AND I DON'T have a chance to explain what's going on. Before we can utter a single word to Alroy, Jophiel and Amber appear. There's an exchange of sneers between Taishi and Jophiel that has me rolling my eyes.
Amber launches into a familiar speech. “I'm Amber. The angel, Amber. I'm here to take you Home. Before you ask about my wings, let me just say... they're large and cumbersome and I don't prefer to have them out.”
“Angel?” Alroy whispers. He's not looking at us. He's paying more attention to his sobbing wife. “So... when I was dying... I really did see an angel?”
“Nope,” I speak up, timidly raising my hand. “You saw me. I'm just a spirit guide. Well... I'm a spirit guide student, actually. I—”
Amber interrupts me. “Not anymore, Leigh. You completed your final mission. As of this moment, you're no longer a student. Well done.” She quickly turns her attention back to Alroy. “Anyway... it's time to take you Home, Alroy O'Brien. You have a lot to learn about the afterlife. Actually...” Amber addresses Jophiel, who hasn't stopped scowling at Taishi since the moment he arrived. “Jophiel, why don't you take him Home? As I understand it, there was a minor kerfuffle between you and Taishi Nakamura. You caused trouble during their mission?”
When Jophiel answers, there isn't even a tiny hint of shame in his voice. “Maybe. So what?”
Amber can't admonish him. I wish she could, but she can't. As an Archangel, Jophiel outranks almost everyone.
That doesn't stop Amber from sharing her opinion. “Well... that's bad. It's a good thing Leigh succeeded, huh? If she failed, and you played a part in her failure, I would have had to file an incident report with Archangel Michael.”
Jophiel responds to Amber's remark with an indifferent snort, then he grabs Alroy's arm and whisks him away. A few seconds later, Amber grabs me and Taishi and takes us Home.
As soon as we arrive, Amber exclaims, “Honestly, well done, Miss Riley! Not many students complete all five missions.”
“Well... I had Taishi. It was kind of impossible to fail.” When I smile at my instructor, he timidly averts his gaze. “Still, that's not to say we didn't struggle. Sometimes, we came really close to failing!” Maybe I shouldn't have admitted that?
“The important thing is, you didn't fail.” Amber wraps an arm around my shoulders and steers me away from Taishi. She doesn't even give me a chance to say goodbye, to thank him, or anything. Oh well. I'm sure I'll see him soon enough.
“Now...” Amber continues. “If you recall, there was supposed to be a final test for students who successfully completed all five missions. As always, there are very few of you.”
“How many?” I ask.
“Two. Only you and Chandak Sood completed all five missions. Six students have yet to return from their fifth mission, however, none have a perfect score, so we can proceed to the final test.”
As we head to the classroom, I study Amber's profile. She's back to looking young again, which is a relief. It was kind of strange to suddenly see her looking like an old lady.
“Actually...” Amber continues, “I don't want you to get panicky about the word test. Test is probably a poor description. It's more like an oral exam or... or a choice.”
I'm not even going to try to guess what that might mean.
“After your first mission, do you remember what I said?” Amber asks. “I said there was a special reward for students who successfully completed every mission.”
“Yeah. That sounds vaguely familiar.” We enter the castle—which I affectionately refer to as Disney Castle with Alyx—and head to the classroom. Chandak Sood is already inside and sitting at his desk. I wonder how long he's been waiting for us?
“Today, you'll both find out what your special reward entails,” Amber says, motioning toward an empty desk. “Sit down, Miss Riley. Sit next to Mr. Sood. There's no one else here, so you needn't sit in the back of the classroom like you always do.”
I can hear Mr. Sood muttering under his breath, “she only got through because of her instructor...”
I don't know if he meant for me to hear that, or maybe he doesn't care, but it's really hurtful. I know I was lucky to get a high-ranking instructor, but I worked really hard to get here. Chandak shouldn't make assumptions. I bet he can't warp and heal and do all the things I can do. He can kiss my—
Amber's singsong voice interrupts my thoughts, “Okay, now that you're both here, I have a question for you.” Our smiling teacher sits behind her desk and studies our faces with interest in her eyes. “What if I said... you could be resurrected?”
Mr. Sood reacts first. “Resurrected? You mean... back in the mortal world?”
Amber's smile grows as she nods. “Yes.”
“I could be with my wife and kids again?”
She nods again. “Yes.”
“Are you serious?” Mr. Sood is so thrilled, his butt is sliding off the seat. He looks like he's about to fall out of his chair and hit the floor.
“However...” Amber holds up a finger. “There is a downside. Well... a couple of downsides. To begin with, you'll have to enter an alternate reality, one where you never died. You'll notice some changes, of course... everything from minor changes to major changes. In your case, Chandak, never getting cancer would be a huge change. But you might notice smaller, subtler changes as well... like movies with different titles, or famous quotes that have changed a bit. Things like that. If you do decide to reenter the mortals' realm, we'll try to get you to a reality that's as close to yours as we possibly can. Don't worry.”
My heart is racing at the thought of this. What if I could see my parents again? What if I could hug my sister again? It almost sounds too good to be true.
Of course, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
“Additionally,” Amber continues, “you will have no recollection of anything you did in the spirit realm. When you wake up in the mortals' world, all of this will be like a hazy dream, and you will eventually forget everything.”
Amber's words put a dagger in my hope. I need to be clear about this, so I slowly raise my hand.
“Yes, Leigh?”
“Umm...” In the corner of my eye, I can see Mr. Sood glaring at me. For some reason, he really doesn't like me. “Does that mean I'll forget about Taishi and Alyx?”
When Amber nods, her black curls bounce. “Yes.”
“I'll forget about everything we did together?”
“Unfortunately... yes.”
Great. In other words, I have to choose between Taishi and my family. That's great. In a perfect world, I could have both.
Why can't anything be perfect? I want to scream. I need to scream. This isn't a “reward,” it's torture. I'd rather be oblivious to this. If Amber wasn't in here, I would punch the desk and scream at the top of my lungs.
“I'll ask Chandak first,” Amber shifts her attention to my classmate. “Mr. Sood, what do you think you—”
He doesn't give her a chance to finish. “Take me back!” he cries. “Let me go back to my wife, please! This is the easiest decision I've ever made!”
I wish it was easy for me.
“Are you absolutely sure?” Amber asks. “Remember, we're taking away memories of your illness as well. When you wake up next to Riya, you won't remember being sick, and you won't remember the spirit world.”
“Yes!” Chandak repeats himself, sounding a bit annoyed. “I want to go back more than anything in the world. You don't have to ask me again, Amber! My answer will always be yes!”
“Very well. And what about you, Leigh Riley?”
Oh great. Now it's my turn. Do I have to answer right now? This seems like an important decision that I'll need more than a few minutes to make.
On one hand, I love my family more than anything in the world. If I could be a part of their lives again, how could I pass that up?
On the other hand, I've bonded with people here. I would miss spending time with Alyx, and the thought of never seeing Taishi makes me physically ill. On top of that, I would forget all about him. He's become someone important to me. Leaving him, forgetting him, losing him—it's too much to fathom.
All of a sudden, I hear Taishi's voice in my head, and it's so clear, I check my ears for a thoughtshare.
I want you to do what makes you happy, Riley-chan... Leigh. Don't worry about me.
Taishi? Is he really speaking in my mind right now, or am I imagining it?
You're not imagining it.
There! I heard him again. How is that even possible?
Once again, I hear his voice in my head. If two spirits have bonded, and their need is great, they can communicate without a thoughtshare. I've... never been able to do with this anyone before. Only you.
Only me. Taishi's words are crushing my heart. How can I choose my family now?
Choose them if you want to, Riley-chan. I won't resent you if you do. Your happiness matters more to me than anything in the world, so if you choose to go back to them, I'll understand.
But will he really understand? Or am I going to make him eternally depressed?
Oh, I'll be sad, Taishi answers me. I'll be sad, but I'll accept it. Make the choice that makes you happy, Riley-chan. Either way... I love you.
A tingle scurries along my back when I hear the words.
I love you.
Taishi Nakamura loves me.
And now I have to make a choice.