BREATHING

This dark story should remind you to always take more care of the people you love.

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Breathing.

A person’s necessity has always been and will forever be surviving.

Inhaling air into your lungs. The beat of your heart, the blood through your veins. Exhaling to free the pain.

But when you cannot do that anymore, you only have one option: letting go to the Unknown.

UNKNOWN VOICE, sarcastic tone:

“Just breathe, or you might leave Earth.

But you can’t breathe no more, hah, all because I’m about to take your life… maybe it is time then? To die?

Maybe the mistakes of your past and everything I went through because of you are the cause of your death. Wise men used to say ‘it all happens for a reason’, right? Ain’t you the reason?”

NARRATOR: Doctor Joseph Parker. It all started with this great man who discovered an infamy that no one should have ever been aware of. All because he was doing his job right, and mostly because he was the most curious and smart person one could ever meet, and for that everyone who knew about him; everyone adored him and every single part of his pretty self.

He had decided to move to Florida with his best friend right after they were done studying the human anatomy and graduating to become the doctors they had always dreamed they would be.

“Greg: What do we need to do today again?

Joseph: Checking the last Covid vaccines! And then I think I have a few patients before we do the autopsy.

Greg: Alright let’s do it, then!”

But the day did not go as planned. Life changed forever that day and it would never be the same: anytime one would try to live normally the memories would come back, the thoughts would take away any form of happiness. The type of change in your existence that makes you a different human forever. The kind of fear that modifies the way you perceive everything that happens in your "after-trauma-life". People typically use this term, and think it does exist, as if you could “just live normally”, because “c'mon, why don't you just forget”.

I don't think it does exist. I don't think there is an "after-trauma-life". Trauma will always come after you, it will follow every single one of your steps, sarcastically laugh when you think you are "finally healed". No matter what.

In this case, no one should ever experience what everyone involved went through that day, and everything that followed.

It all went down like this: after finishing with his patients, Joseph was given the body for the autopsy. He was very surprised and shocked by its youth.

“Greg: Her name was Sky. We gotta do this real quick, get our stuff ready please.

Joseph: She looks so young…

Greg: We don’t have the time for that, the patients are waiting.

Joseph: What happened to her?

Greg: It is your job to find that out, you’re a doctor, Joseph, not a prophet or a therapist. You’re not in charge of the world’s well-being.

Joseph: I know, I’m, I’m just asking.

Greg: Please, Joseph, let’s just open the body, like we always do, and check it out. It’s a dead body, man, her mental health ain’t the point right now.

Joseph: You’re wrong.

Greg: Excuse me?!

Joseph: Her mental health absolutely does matter, Greg. If we don’t know what she went through we aren’t going to know how and why she died. Perhaps you should mature a bit and question yourself about it.

Greg: I-

Joseph: Did you even ask someone close to her what they think happened? Did you even do your research?

G: She had no family, except a twin sister who probably doesn’t even know her sister died yet. It was only a week ago. The court brought her here for a possible trial if murder is the cause of deaths. I don’t know much, but you don’t either. Sanitise the scissors and shut it, Joseph.”

It wasn’t an easy job. But Joseph wanted joy for everyone around him, and sometimes when your job is to open dead people, you feel extremely powerless and almost useless, because “the damage was already done”.

Greg was so rude and impatient. He couldn’t care less, about anything, really. Not even human beings whose lives were taken away from them.

Before cutting the body, Greg had to go check the girl’s information; blood flow, possible heart or lung disease, and oxygen levels.

They were alone now, Joseph and the body.

Two humans.

One alive, one dead. It is crazy how this world is unfair.

How one is allowed to be on Earth, and how the other one has to leave.

During the autopsy, Joseph saw she had been killed with a knife.

Joseph therefore decided to invite Sky’s twin, Earth. He had found her on an old Facebook account, and she lived not too far away. He wanted to know who had killed Sky.

A few days later, Earth came to the hospital. She was going through a violent breakup, still bruised from her ex-husband beating her up. She immediately saw her twin sister on the gurney. She fell on the floor, and cried for hours.

We never realize what Death means until it comes to us. We never understand the pain. We will never truly know. Until it all comes down. Until we are killed by Death itself, until we lose our other half, a friend, a loved one, or even this neighbour we used to know who got away way too soon.

We never say goodbye. We will never get to. One last kiss, one more touch? Gone forever. But we remain here. We get to breathe, to build a life, we get to smile, or even to cry, but we cry because we are alive. They will never get to feel again. Ever.

“Earth: What happened?

Jospeh: She was stabbed with a knife, multiple times. We still don’t know who murdered her.

Earth: Dear Lord.

Joseph: Was she close to anyone besides you?

Earth: No, not really, she was a very solitary person. She would only come visit us sometimes on Sundays. We stopped seeing her regularly, due to Covid.

Joseph: Are you living alone with your children?

Earth: And until a week ago, with my now ex-husband…

Joseph: They can all come too, if they want to say goodbye.

Earth: My ex and I got in a fight, a physical fight, and I’m lucky to still be alive. I fear seeing him again.

Joseph: Where is he right now?

Earth: Probably at our house.

J: And when was the last time you saw your twin?

E: Well, she was supposed to come on Sunday, which is the day right after I left, so I didn’t see her.”

Joseph asked Earth to take him to her house for more information, he felt he was missing something out.

Unsure, Earth drove Joseph to her house, but stayed in the car.

When Joseph first stepped into the house, he saw it was full of old documents, books, papers on the floor, a bag, a coat, there was a dark red liquid on a broken mirror, where Joseph saw a man’s shadow suddenly appear. The man started running towards him, with a bloody knife in his hand.

There are moments in life where time freezes. Where the human body just remains still. Fear is stronger than anything. Fear strikes before the thunder does.

Joseph could not breathe, he was paralysed.

He knew what had happened to Sky. He understood the whole story in just a few seconds. It was all so clear now, the ex-husband, Zaac, thinking Sky was his ex-wife coming back the day after the breakup, killed her. It was so unfair. The man was crazy.

But is knowing the truth worth the price we pay for it?

Through the window, Earth watched the entire confrontation. The same knife which took her twin sister’s life was now in this brave doctor’s chest. She couldn’t believe it.

Zaac then started running towards the car, screaming.

Earth drove as fast as she could and arrived to the police office and told the whole story.

The police arrested Zaac, who was later condemned to spend the rest of his life in jail for the murders of a woman and a man, as well as for domestic violence.

Joseph was transported to the hospital, half-dead, and was laid on the gurney right next to Sky’s.

Once again, two bodies.

One half-alive, and one half-dead.

“Joseph: I really wonder what you loved here, and I hope you’ll be fulfilled with what is yet to come for you, Sky.

Sky slightly opened her eyes, a smile appeared on her face.

Sky: I loved life. I worshipped being alive. Existence was a blessing.

Joseph turned his face towards her beautiful soul, crying.

Joseph: Sky?…

Sky, quietly:

Sky, indeed. Now, I remember my name. Dark, deep, sad nights blueberry skies.

I don’t remember the last time I said my name or even spoke, really. It seemed like I had lost control over my own body for the last week; but I could hear you, even though I couldn’t see, feel or breathe? I guess I couldn’t breathe anymore, I didn’t have the ability to be alive, actually, I was dead for a while.

I forgot what it was like to be loved, but you gave me hope, Joseph, you made me believe. Thank you”.

Sky closed her eyes, one last time.

Joseph died a few days later and joined Sky, they rested in peace together, forever.