I woke up, sweat running down my back. My breath came in short gasps and terror coursed through my veins. I lifted a hand to my head to immediately pull it away, surprised by the heat that it was immediately met with. Thankfully, after a few moments, the fear slipped away, and I was left a panting, drenched mess.
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I looked out the window at the light-tinged sky, watching the moon as it hovered in place. Its reflection in the Hudson River rippled and dipped, matching the swaying trees that framed it. When I looked closer, I could see pieces of trash floating on the surface, oblivious to the boats that had already started to make their way down the river. A few lonely birds flew overhead, swooping down occasionally to look for fish that didn’t exist.
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I was getting a headache.
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As I kicked my blanket off and sat up, I glanced at my clock. Huge red block numbers proudly proclaimed that it was 5:56 in the morning. Oh well. Sleep wasn’t the most important thing in life. When I stood up, I quickly changed into a t-shirt and jeans. I opened the bedroom door and crept down the stairs, pausing only momentarily at my parents’ room to check if they were asleep. Judging from my dad’s loud snoring, I knew they were.
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I strode out the front door into the humid summer air. Automatically, I swiveled my head left to right, checking for any signs of danger. Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw a shadow dart away from me. It could easily have been any old animal making its daily morning trek across the streets, or a plastic bag, or just a trick of the eye. Or an early-bird psychopath who stabs teddy bears for fun and murders teens in their free time.
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I wasn’t worried. Immortal (or close to it) life has taught me a thing or two, such as fist-fighting, karate, and swordfighting. On one occasion, pirates attacked my ship and I was forced to use a dead man’s cutlass. Arr.
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Anyway, I could deal with whatever would come. It was just a matter of being careful and—
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“Hey, watch it!”
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Oof! I bounced painfully off of a stranger who was sprinting towards me at full speed, landing not so gracefully on my butt. When I staggered into a standing position, I saw a girl, wearing all black, rubbing a spot on her arm resentfully. From her face, she looked about the same age I was, but her build was slight and she was shorter. She was extremely out of breath. Her hair was a brown tangle half-hidden by her black hoodie, and I noticed that her hands were fists at her side. She glared at me through green eyes.
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“What’s the matter with you? Can’t you see people when they’re right in front of you? Are you blind or something, you little piece of—”
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“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold it,” I said. I crossed my arms in front of me and stared at the girl incredulously. “First off, you’re dressed entirely in black, so I can hardly be blamed for running into you! Actually, you ran into me, not the other way around. And it’s only six in the morning. So what were you doing, anyway? Trying to rob a bank?”
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“None of your business.”
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So she was stubborn. “Okay then. Just answer one question. Who are you?”
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“What makes you think I’m going to tell you?”
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I sighed. “Well, if you don’t, I will call the police.” I proceeded to take a cell phone out of my jacket pocket.
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A look of fear crossed the girl’s face, showing her clear desire for me not to call the cops. She began to back away slowly, hands up. “Fine! Fine, just don’t. My name is Kasha. If you want to know more, come back here at nine tonight. I promise I’ll tell you anything. But don’t call the police, please.” She turned around and ran, and I stood there, confused and not only a little bit suspicious.
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“So you came.”
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I looked up from the rocky dirt. Kasha, now wearing jeans and baggy jacket, was standing near a tree that lined the road. She had a grim expression on her face, though I couldn’t imagine why. I had only come here out of sheer curiosity, and besides, I had nothing to lose.
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“And?” I said in what I knew was a condescending tone. “You going to talk?”
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At this she scowled slightly. “Obviously. But first I have to warn you—”
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“Just get to it.”
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She shrugged. “Okay. You asked for it, Matt Kaunhun.”
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Wait. “How did you know my name?” I asked.
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“I have my ways. Anyway, you wanted to know why I was here, and I am going to tell you, on one condition: don’t interrupt me.”
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“Fair enough,” I said warily.
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“Okay then. To begin with, I am not the person you think I am. I had no intention of robbing a bank, or murdering anyone that early in the morning. In fact, I was looking for you. If you’re the person I think you are.”
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“Why me?” I wondered.
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“Well, for one thing, you were born, in the same city and right at the moment of a death I witnessed in Central Park. ”
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“So I was born. And?” My tone was sarcastic, though my heart was pounding. This was about me and Kaylee, I knew it.
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“And it’s strange because the person who died was named Matt, too. He was with someone named Kaylee Mitchell before he had a stroke—”
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“Heart attack,” I corrected automatically. “It was a heart attack, not a stroke.”
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Kasha looked sideways at me, amused. “My point is, I know about you, Matt. I know you. I know how you live, over and over again, and your lives, everything. You reincarnate, but you remember everything, don’t you?”
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I froze. It took a few moments for my brain to digest what she had just said, but eventually the information set in and I yelped and stumbled backwards like a startled dog. Kasha knew. She knew about my lives, and what I was.
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“How do you know?” I gasped. “Who are you?”
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“You know me, Matt. You just forgot. Somehow, sometime, you forgot, but you know me,” said Kasha quietly. “And I know what you go through because I go through the same thing, too.”
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It took a few moments for me to regain my composure, but I did. Kind of.
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“O-okay. Fine. You are like me. I get it.” I took a deep breath. “But maybe there are some things that you don’t know. Do you ever die at the worst moments possible? Right when you are happiest?”
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Her eyes grew unbearably sad. I could see memories behind them, and pain. I guessed that something ugly had happened that had caused her look like this, something that was so bad that no mortal could even try to guess at it. Something even worse than the worst of my experiences, which is saying a lot.
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“Yes. I-I have that too,” she affirmed. “And it’s so unfair, which is why I’ve come here. See, I I know how to help you. I have a way to stop this.”
