Goal

Becca picking up her son after school.

 

Conflict

Running late so she sped pass a red light.

 

Disaster

Ran into a truck and died.

 

Emotion

Shock and confused.

 

Thought

Wondering who’s going to pick up her son from school. And who will take care of her husband and son.

 

Decision

Not to move onto the spirit world but to stay in the living world.

 

Action

Possessing Rose.

 

Becca is running late again; the school doesn’t like it when she’s late. The teachers always have a dirty stare when she runs late to pick up Josh from school. Josh just turned 10 last month, he’s growing up so quickly. Becca sometime would take out one of Josh’s old baby onesie and smell it. She can still smell the baby milk smell on it from all those years ago. Becca anxiously looks up at the traffic light as it turns from green to yellow. She knows she will not make it across the intersection before it turns red. What to do? Becca still has to get home to put the chicken in the oven. It needs to roast so that it will cook in time for when Josh comes home from work. Tonight, its Roast Chicken Tuesday with Brownie for dessert and Monopoly after dinner. This is the Walter’s thing, they do the same thing every Tuesday night. Roast chicken, brownie and Monopoly.

Becca step down on the gas, praying that she doesn’t get a flash by the traffic camera. Out of the corner of her eye she sees it. The truck is three times bigger than her corolla, it was making a turn and she will not stop in time. She held her breath and braced for impact. Everything seem to be happening in slow motion not the 80km per hours her car is really moving at. She hears the deafening noises of metal impact against metal and closed her eyes hoping that everything would be ok by the time she opened them. Glasses shattered and were flying in all directions; she could feel many of them grazing her skins. She felt heavy metals pushed up against her chest. She can’t breathe.

Snippets of her life flashes before her eyes. Becca see herself as a child with her parents at the park. She sees herself graduating from university. Becca see herself and Dale on their first date at the beach, and again at the same beach when he proposed. She see’s their wedding day at the church, where she was dressed in all white and Dale was stunning in his black tux with all their family around. And then it was the day Josh was born. The love she felt for him overwhelmed her. And she opened her eyes.

She was no longer in her car but standing outside staring at the wreckage that was once her car. She looks around and people were getting out of their car and running towards her. There were also people who just look stunned and just stood there staring. A bald man looking to be in his 40 ran towards her car door and to open it. She tried to call out to him, to let him know that she’s ok and not in the car but he didn’t seem to hear her. He manages to open the car door after some pulling and yanking. More people joined in to help. Before long they pulled someone out of the car. Becca moved closer to see what is going on. She leaned over some of the people who’s trying to administer CPR to see who it was. She sees the bloodied and bruise face of someone familiar. She sees the blue T-shirt with doggy in the centre that Josh got for her at Christmas and the grey trackpants that has become a staple in her closet. Becca remember putting that outfit on this morning before she dropped Josh off at school. She realised the person on the floor that’s bloodied and bruise is her.

Becca tried to reach out to the person in front of her but her hand just passed right through them. She called and yelled and screamed but no body heard her.

Becca doesn’t understand how this could happen, she’s heard about it in the News but never thought it could ever happen to her. Who would pick up Josh from school today? Who would cook the roast chicken, brownie and play monopoly with Josh and Dale?

While all this thought was still circling her mind she see’s something come out of the shadow. She feels like she should be scare but she just doesn’t have the energy to be scare. The shadow moves towards her. The shadow explains to her that her time in the world of the living is over and that she should take its hand. It will lead her to the spirit world where she will know eternal peace. The shadow doesn’t exactly speak in human words, it just projects these thoughts into Becca’s mind and she knows that’s what it wants from her.

Becca contemplated taking the shadow’s hand but then remembered Josh at school. He’s still so young and innocent, how would he be able to cope without her. Becca pulled herself away from the shadow as she hears the whining sound from the ambulance. The red and blue light flashing before her eyes as hope well up in her chest. Maybe the paramedics will be able to bring her back to life. One of the paramedics running towards Becca already has a defibrillator in her hand. Becca feels uncomfortable as the paramedics cut open her shirt to put the defibrillator on her chest and side. She sees them pressing buttons and monitoring something but nothing happens. After a few minutes the same paramedics said there was nothing else they could do so they just stopped. Deflated, Becca just sat down by the side walk as she wait for the coroner’s van to collect her body.

Becca rode with the coroner’s van to the local hospital where she sees Dale and Josh come into the hospital and were told that she had passed. They broke down and cried. She tried to put her arm around them but it just when through their body. She tried to tell them that she’s right there with them but they cannot hear her. Becca spent the next few days following Dale around as he organised her funeral. She also spent a lot of time sitting in Josh’s room with him as he cried.

And then the day of her funeral came around. Everyone was there; her parents, some of the mothers from Josh’s school even the beautiful Rose that lived across the street. Becca always has a resentment towards Rose. Rose was everything like her name; she’s beautiful with her straight blond hair, bright blue eyes and body of every women’s envy. Rose also has a comfortable job as a receptionist in a doctor’s office. Becca has never had a job, she’s married Dale not long after finishing university and has been a stay at home wife and mother every since. Becca has also noticed the endless stream of handsome men coming and going from Rose’s place, however that has never stopped Rose from flirting with Dale whenever they happen to cross path at the front of the house. Becca doesn’t even know why Rose came to her funeral, it’s not like they’re friends.

After the funeral service at the church, most people left but some went to the gravesite with her family. They lay her body in a lovely spot under a tree that has little yellow flowers. Then everyone went back to her house to commemorate what a wonderful person Becca was when she was alive. Becca felt nauseated when she heard some of the comments as she doesn’t remember any of these people every being that nice to her when she was alive.

Becca looked around and realised Josh is not around, he must be in his room. Becca when to Josh’s room and walked through the close door. She sees Josh curled up in his bed in the foetal position crying. In his hands Josh was holding tight to a family photograph of their last holiday to the zoo. Becca stayed and cried with Josh until he was so tired that he fell asleep.

As Becca walked out of Josh’s room, she sees Rose walking out of the toilet. Why is this woman still at her place? Becca walked up to Rose to slap her but when her hand would have slip through Rose’s cheek it felt static. All the tiny hair on the back of Becca’s hand stood up. Becca can tell that Rose also felt it as well. Rose was looking around confused as to what had just happen, but shake her head and kept walking. Becca went after Rose and stepped into her body to see what happen. She felt that electricity again, the static and all her hair felt like it was standing up on ends. And then she heard Dale’s voice, she turned around and he was talking to her. He was thanking her for being there. Becca walked out of her house and into the sunlight outside. She could feel the warm afternoon sun on her skin as she walked across the street to Rose’s house.