My 8 E-books written over the years by Alina Udrea - HTML preview

Chapter 1: A different kind of trip

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Dave was hurrying home to his future wife. He would

propose tonight. He checked the small bump on his chest to make sure the tiny box containing the ring was there. He had just bought it. He had paid all his savings to buy her the most beautiful ring he could afford. Yep, that was it, the most beautiful ring he could ever afford, not the most beautiful ring there was in store. But he hoped it would be good enough for her. The love of his life, Jasmin. They had been together for three years and he felt it was the right time to propose.

Tonight, on Christmas Eve, he would do it. Aftertheir

annoying relatives would leave, when he would have her for himself, he would kneel before her and pop the question. It would be perfect. He would first make her think he didn’t get her anything this Christmas and then he would propose to her and put the ring on her finger.

Dave could almost see it, how she would cry with joy and

hug him and everything would be perfect. And by this time next year she would be Mrs. Rogers. Jasmin Rogers. Yup. Perfect. His heart was beating so fast that he had to focus to calm down. He was a strong man, but his heart was racing in anticipation. He searched his pockets for his car keys as he was slowly walking down a dark alley as it was the only place where he had found a parking spot for his car. There were street lights everywhere but the ones on this alley were flickering until they stopped doing even that. Just a few more meters and he would start his car and go home.

Finally, he found his car keys in the back of his right

pocket of his blue-jeans. Then things took a turn for the worse. Everything he had dreamed of, everything he had hoped for, all

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his life raced in his head in jumbled blurry images when he felt the cold steel of a gun pointed at him and a hoarse male voice telling him to give him his wallet. Somehow, he knew this wouldn’t end well. He just couldn’t have that perfect life he had dreamed of, could he?

- Wait, please, it's Christmas Eve. I just want to get home to my future wife, Dave said with a pleading voice.- Give me your wallet and your phone or you won't be getting anywhere, got that? Came the answer and the man nudged him towards his car, putting the gun to his head now.

- And don't turn around, hurry up!, the man went on, nervous now and waiting for him to give him his money.- I can give you my wallet, but it's empty! And so are my credit cards!

- Damn! I don't believe you, just give it to me, give me your damned wallet man if you want to live for Christmas!- Here, take it, and Dave gave him his empty wallet. If he had money, he would have given him. It wasn't worth to die for coins. And he treasured his life. Since he met Jasmin three years ago, his life meant something. It was worth living and it was good to be him only for having met her.

The man grabbed his wallet and when he saw that it

was indeed empty, he spit on it and threw it on the wet pavement. Then Dave turned around but he could only see the man's dirty clothes and a glimpse of his face. Then it all went dark.

- Damn, why did you have to turn? I am not going back to

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jail!! Then he shot him in his head and ran away. The bullet went through his left arcade, just a little above his eye.

As he was falling to the pavement, Dave saw him ditch

the gun in a trash can next to an empty diner. Then everything went black.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, but when he

woke up he was blinded bya white light that at first he couldn’t see anything. He felt disoriented and dizzy and at first, he couldn’t remember anything. Then little by little he began to distinguish and to remember. He remembered everything, how he was eager to get home to Jasmin, how he was attacked and killed. Shot to death. But then, where was he? Was he still alive?

He took a few steps towards an elderly woman who

was coming his way. He looked around and he didn’t recognize the place. When he was next to her, he stopped and cleared his throat to make her look at him.- Hi, excuse me, do you know where we are?

She just smiled at him and went on without answering.

He thought it was odd but he didn’t want to panic even more so he decided to ask someone else. He looked around one more time but no one was coming his way. His head hurt and he was sure he had been shot in his head. But why wasn’t he in the hospital? And where was the wound? He touched his head where the wound should have been but there was nothing there. Then it dawned on him: he was in Heaven!! Which meant he was dead!!- Damn! Oops, sorry for the language, he immediately thought! This sucks! Is this heaven? God, where are you?

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Why did I have to die on Christmas Eve? I was going to propose to Jasmin tonight! We were supposed to get married next year and now nothing will be the way I imagined! Why?? And he began to cry like a helpless baby thinking of everything that could have been but wouldn’t be, of the life he could have lived with Jasmin, of the children they could have had.

He sat on a bench and tried to recollect himself.

There was no point in crying over spilled milk. He would have to find God and see if there was anything he could do to help him. Or at least tell him why he let him die and did not save him. But which way to go?

He wiped his tears and waited on the bench till he saw

someone coming. It was a little girl. As she got near him, he saw that she was limping. He felt sorry for her and thought that maybe she could tell him something about this place.

- Hey little girl, he shyly said, could you tell me what is this place? Is this Heaven? Because I can't see any other explanation. I mean someone just shot me and then next thing I know is that I got to this place.

- It must be. I was crossing the street when a car hit me. Mom was there too but she must have survived. Because I can’t find her here. I am scared.

- That makes two of us. Come, let's go this way and find God. He must have a plan for us.

- By the way, my name is Amy, the little girl said with sorrow in her voice.

- I'm Dave, he simply answered and smiled at her.

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