Invisible String

PROLOGUE

Life is a little fragile yet precious thing we have and every person has four lives: one that sows, one that waters, one that reaps and one that consumes.

But life is a funny thing. It is filled with mystery and it doesn't take any humors at all. One second you're here and next thing you know...

You're dead.

Gone.

Disappear like a dust only to live with people's memories.

My sister once told me that whenever something weird or bad may happened to me, I'm not supposed to follow the white light. Well guess what, there's no white light. I just floated and drifted away like falling asleep.

I can't remember what I did before I came here into this place.

Maybe that's what it is for someone like me who is stuck here in "Wonder Place".

We only wonder for something - something we had, something we never had and something we want to have.

Now there's only one thing for me to do here into this weird place.

I'll just wait for my time to come.

For me to be alive again.

CHAPTER 1 - Wonder Place

I opened my eyes and there was a blue sky above me. I felt some wonder as I admired the view in front of me. The cirrus clouds were delicate in its own form and I remember instantly the moment when I went hiking with my friends when I was in high school. We climb this small mountain and the strong breeze were brushing my face and the smell of the mixture of sugarcane, wet leaves and dirt never leave my nose that day. The sun was high up and even though I was so tired from walking and I was about to regret my decision to come to this trip – it only took me one glace of the whole view in front of me and I completely change my mind. It was all worth it. And that was the first time I fell in love with the sunrise.

My thoughts were distracted when all of a sudden, I saw three birds passed by and it occurred to me that I wasn't outside. I was inside of a small white room laying down on the white soft bed. The roof was covered in a transparent glass above me and everything was all clean and white.

I slowly sat up and roamed around the small room. It doesn't have a window or a table, only a bed and a door that has a golden door knob. I frowned as I try to remember what my dream was or what I was doing before I came here but something was blocking me. It felt like it was on the tip of my tongue but I can't fathom what it was.

What is this place anyway?

"Good day and welcome to Wonder Place" a woman's voice startled me as I looked around but there was no one here in the small room.

What the-

"It is time to go outside" she said at the same time the white door started to glow.

Um, okay. Weird.

I looked down and I'm wearing a white dress and a white flats. I also noticed that I was wearing my favorite necklace that my boyfriend gave to me when we were first started dating. I touched the gold shaped heart while roaming around the whole room.

Seriously, what is happening?

"Your question will be answered if you go outside" the woman's voice said.

I jumped, surprised by how she can read my mind.

"Um okay," I muttered.

Seriously, how did she do that?

I went to the glowing door and twisted the door knob. The moment I went out of the room, it was like I was transformed into another place. It looked like a train station where there was a mixture of light mist and cloudy vapor all around the railings up to the white cream walls of the whole place. The ground that I was stepping into looked like it was made from an expensive marble floor with the mixture of shade gold but then I noticed that some of the people who were wearing white clothes around me were following this glowing line in front of them.

Murmurs of the people echoed all around – some were hanging out by the coffee shop nearby while others were just wondering around. I turned around to go back to the room that I was in but the room disappeared. It was now placed with another hallway and by the end of the station only had one booth that says, WAITING AREA.

I looked around the whole station, trying to find the exit but as I was about to take my first step, a short pixie woman came up to me. She may looked young and naïve but as I looked at her closely, she got this big grey eyes that was very intimidating to look at.

"Good day! I am Luna! Please follow the line," she said, pointing to the ground where glowing arrows signaling me to follow the glowing line that leads me to this service booth not far from where I was standing.

"What is this line for?" I asked.

There were people on the line to the service booth too, looking confused while waiting and their heads either looking around or looking up at the ceiling to admire the blue sky.

"This line will give you your access to the train when it arrive," she said while smiling. "The woman over there will give you your stub" she pointed from my right and there I looked ahead and there not that far was a desk with a woman giving some stub to the people. Saying thank you to Luna, I followed the man who was ahead of me on the line.

“Calling the attention of Maximillian Jones. Your train will arrive in 30 minutes. I repeat your train will arrive in 30 minutes. If you know Maximillian Jones, inform her immediately,” the man voice was coming from the speaker not so far from us.

“That poor woman. She already decided that it is time but I guess not,” I overheard a blonde woman said with her brunette friend sitting not far from us in one of the bench here in the train station.

“Why? What happened?”

“Well, she's been waiting for who knows how many years here for her lover to arrive. Poor old thing. But guess what? I heard through Nicole that Maxi escape the Wonder Place," I heard her whisper to her brunette friend who was leaning over to her side. The newspaper in front of them as a props didn't due its justice.

Wonder Place?

“WHAT?!” Her friend gasped then all of a sudden looked around to see if someone notice her but everybody was minding their own business.

"Shh!"

"But that's impossible. How did she escape?"

The blonde flipped her golden hair back as another train passes us, “That’s the problem. Nobody know, she just did it. The guardians are now looking for her. She didn’t come back last night and her helper, Jane is in the interrogation room as we speak”

"What will happen if she didn't cross over?"

The blonde one sigh in worry, "She become a lost soul"

Lost soul?

Wait, what?

"Oh my,"

“Next, please!” said the woman from the desk that distracted me from the next thing that the woman was about to say.

I blushed as I walked hastily in front of the desk and I can see clearly that the woman’s name was Portia and she got short brown hair and big cat style glasses. She was chewing gum as she waited impatiently for me.

"Look here," she said lazily, pointing at the web cam in front of me.

She clicked something and she typed few words to the computer before handling me the gold stub.

"Don't lose the stub. It's your ticket when you board the train." she said in a monotone voice.

"But when will-"

"Next!" she shouted, ignoring me. I blinked a few times and passed through what looks like a detector.

As I passed by through the detector, I saw that there were a lot of white benches by the side with two people talking – most of the people were covering their faces and some looked devastated.

Two silver trains were passing through but oddly it doesn’t have a sound – it was supposed to sound like a screeching sound on the rails but the only sound here was the people talking to each other.

Seriously, this is very long hallway for a train station.

Some dude from the line almost bumped me as he passed me while he was meeting up with the man who was wearing a white suit. Should I go look for someone too?

Oh great, now I don't know what is going on.

I looked down at my stub and it said, ONE WAY TICKET. So I'm supposed to wait for the train to arrive?

I walked through the railings and waited to the train when all of a sudden a high pitch voice came up to me.

"Hi there!"

I jumped as I turned around and found again the girl name Luna looking up at me. She's wearing what looks like a white corporate attire and she's holding an iPad. I’m a bit taller than her but that didn’t stop her to look confident – it must because she was wearing a corporate attire.

"I am Luna and I'll be your assistant into your journey here in Wonder Place! It is my first time to be on duty so I am honored to serve you" she said, shaking my hand.

“Hi, I’m Cecilia,”

“Pleasure to meet you, Cecilia! Come with me,” she directed me in the middle and the line between our shoes glowed up as well while we walked side by side.

"Nice to meet you too. Um, where am I? What is happening? Why am I wearing white dress? I don’t remember wearing this?" I asked as I looked around.

Different people were in their seats and murmuring, others stood up – facing back and forth near their seats and some were hiding their faces into their hands that looked like they were crying.

“Good question, Cecilia. Let’s take a seat over there,” she said, pointing to the white bench not far from us.

We walked to the white bench and our line that we supposed to follow dim as we sat there. I hugged myself as another silver train passes us.

"Well, everything is fine but what I’m about to tell you will overwhelm you. Are you ready?”

I nodded.

“You, Cecilia Andrews, age 23 years old, born on 13th of February 1997, are dead," she said.

I turned to her, "I'm sorry I didn't get that?"

"You are dead, Cecilia." she said slowly. Her grey eyes looking at me with pity. “Your heart stopped beating at exactly 7:00 pm,”

I laughed.

"Am I on a TV show? Is Ellen here?" I chuckled as I teased her.

But Luna didn't laugh instead she just squeezed my hand for a comfort before letting it go.

"I understand that the information surprised you and that you are still in denial but unfortunately there’s no TV show here. You are dead, Cecilia."

“No that's impossible.” I scoffed while looking around. I fidgeted my hands and fixed my skirt – a habit where I’m uncomfortable, “I’m very careful. I was doing some -” I paused in mid-sentence.

What did I do before I came here? I know I was doing something earlier…I remember I wore my favorite white sweatshirt and I grab something on the counter and I left the house but something was blocking me from remembering the rest.

“I was doing some…”

She looked at me with her grey eyes, waiting for me to continue but I just couldn’t remember what it was. It was like I dreamt of something really important but when I woke up, it disappeared – leaving only small bits of scene but couldn’t understand any of it.

“Okay, I just don't remember what happened to me before I came here but I know I'm careful" I assured her. “Why I can’t remember what I did?” I complained, looking at the ground.

I wore my white sweatshirt and grab something then I opened the door and sunlight hit me. And what did I do next?

“But I’m not dead.” I told her again.

She pursed her lips, "I’m sorry, Cecilia."

No…

It can’t be…

Mom… Dad…Caryl…Aussie… John …

Oh no… John !

John!

I stood up but I stopped myself. Where will I go? Where will I go? Where. Will. I. Go?

I don’t know this place or these people. I don’t even know if this is all real or I’m just dreaming. I waited for my anxiety to attack me but in my surprise, my fear downsizes. But then, my thoughts were still scrambled.

I grabbed both of her hands, “No…No, this can’t be. Please Luna. I beg of you. I want to go home alright? Where is the way out here?”

“I understand what you are feeling right now but that just it, Cecilia,” she pursed her lips.

“No, you have to understand – I need to go back. I have to talk to my family. My family! And John! Oh my God, John…” I touched my gold necklace and then I just sat down on the bench, feeling nothing but cold.

Now what?

“You are not allowed to go back anymore. If you do, you’re going to become a lost soul. As your helper and guardian, I’m not going to let that happen.” She said.

"Well... I-," I blinked, looking far away, seeing lot of people following their own lines, confusion plastered into their faces and by the side of hallways of benches I saw some of the people talking to their helpers and it all made sense to me now why their faces and body language were devastated.

"That’s it?"

I sat down again in the bench and felt like someone poured a bucket of ice down my back. I shuddered. I wrapped my arms around me.

“But I’m not done yet.” I muttered, defeated and lost.

I feel like a whirlwind of questions and lost moments flashing through me in one grasp. Even though I can’t feel my heart beating, everything is choking me – the people, the white environment… Everything. It’s like I was five years old and I was stuck in the roundabout and couldn’t get out.

Maybe I’m just dreaming. This isn’t real. I’m not done yet with my life.

“No, no…Maybe I’m just dreaming – I’m only dreaming."

I closed my eyes and pinched my arm.

"Wake up. Wake up. Wake up."

I opened my eyes and nothing changes. Luna was still here and we’re still in the train station.

All of a sudden I felt invisible - I could feel that slowly my existence on Earth is fading and soon they all forget about me and that the only memory I had left was based on the pictures on our living area or a random shot that I posted on facebook and my silly random things I did on Instagram. A lot of people will bid their condolences to my family, a lot will pour a tear or two but then... after few more days, months and years... They will forget about me.

The universe is mean. I don’t deserve this at all. 

All too soon, tears starting fall and everything overwhelms me. I feel lot of emotions right now and mostly it was pain.

I don't know if I've been crying for an hour or two but it felt like it.

After I'm done crying, I looked at Luna again who thankfully have the patience to wait for me and comforted me.

“So if this is all real… The people like me… are no longer human? What are we then?” I asked, looking around the train station where people with their gold stub passing us by. I wipe my last tears with the handkerchief that Luna gave me.

"The rest of you are souls now wondering and waiting here on Wonder Place. Some souls waited longer than the others – it depends when their soulmates will arrive or not. Other people just decide on their own but most souls are curious who their soulmates are. Once their soulmate arrives, then they can decide when it is time to board the train to their next life.” She explained. “You may feel like your own self but there’s a lot of changes. For example, you can no longer bleed when you get cut or get injured.”

“And you?” I probed.

“Oh, I’m not a human. I’m just your helper. We, the helpers are just part of your journey. Soon, your number will arrive so while waiting for your number, the community got bunch of activities that you will love."

This is all confusing.

“But soulmate? Another life?” I’m confused. Obviously, I wasn’t prepared for all of this. “Wait, I don’t get it. I have a soulmate and there’s no afterlife? My religion got it all wrong? From the books, from the stories – all the teachings, Sunday masses? No heaven? Is there even a God?”

“Calm down, Cecilia,” she muttered, tapping my hand for comfort, “All the religion got it right – like 5%. And we are all connected with everything. There’s always a good thing and a bad thing but it’s not like what you’re thinking – we don’t do that here.”

“And my soulmate?” I frowned as I think of John . Ever since I met him, all I keep thinking was he is the one that I will marry but then the accident happened. Anger started to build up but then my emotions started to change to neutral.

“You all have your own soulmates or in other term twin flames or in other culture called this the invisible string. All humans have invisible red cord around their finger and the other part of their thread is their other half that connects the two souls regardless of place, time or circumstances and it can never break.

“Come with me, I’m going to show you something,” she smiled at me.

When we go outside, it looked like I still live in the city and it looks like it was part of London somewhere – the only difference was that there were no cars, just people on their normal clothes walking around and talking. Others mostly kids were playing in the park, others were hanging around talking to other people and smiling. Good thing for them they already surpassed the idea that they’re already dead. There was a color changing to the environment – inside the train station, it was all white and clean but in the outside, it was colorful. Different colors of buildings and houses, the grass were greener, the trees has apples on them and things that I only see in books.

“How come they are not in their white clothes?” I wondered, looking around the whole place.

“The white clothes are for your outfit when you enter and exit the Wonder Place but don’t worry, your normal clothes are here,”

Maybe I’m just dreaming because this feel so surreal. Maybe I’m still in denial stage – or maybe just maybe somebody just pranking me to the next level. Is this all real? If I’m actually dead, should I feel relieved that my time on Earth is done? I thought of everything I left behind and I feel nothing but in my mind, I’m supposed to feel bad about them – my mother, my sister, my friends… or if someone bother to come to my funeral.

My thoughts got distracted as we went to the less crowded place, we went to the nearest small mountain where we see everything in the Wonder Place. We followed the stone paths that lead us up to the mountain as we were climbing, the birds were chirping and I’ve never seen the grass so green and how the droplets of the water shines. It’s a beautiful sight to see. The more I climb up, the more breathtaking it was. There were no words to describe it.

The moment we reached the top, there was a brown bench waiting for us and ahead, we see the whole wonder place. Aside from the city from above, up on the north side – there were long fields of different varieties, and by the east – we could see the bluest ocean there is and on the west side, were mini cottages and forest.

"Amazing, huh?"

I sat by the brown bench and looked ahead – ahead from the fields where the sun would shine and think.

"Luna, how did I die?” I asked quietly, not looking at her but I could tell that she was searching on her iPad. Good thing, they are advanced here. “And how come, I can’t remember what I did before I came here?”

"Well that is because for your soul to easy to accept and move on to your next life and also we have cases of traumatic deaths that we don't want the people to carry on. We want you all to be comfortable here in "Wonder Place" that is why we erase all the memory to allow for your peaceful transition. But you have a choice if you want it so badly,"

"It's okay. I wan't to know,"

She looked down again in her iPad and type something then she turned to me. "Well you were driving on your way home in Santa Barbara Avenue when a drunk driver hit your car. You were still alive when the medics came to rescue you but with the loss of blood from your head, you were pronounced dead when they arrived in the hospital,"

I blinked a few times, letting the information sink in, "And my… My family? Can I see them? How are they?"

"The only information we can provide is that soon they're going to be okay,"

I looked down, surprisingly I felt nothing but in my head, I wanted to cry again, to feel something strong than to feel nothing.

But I can’t just leave them. I don’t want to. I need to go back to Earth… If there’s a way out of here. I would.

"It's fine if you want some alone time. I'm sorry about what happened to you," Luna muttered, holding my hand for comfort.

"But is there any way I could see them one last time? My Family? I'll do anything,"

Luna looked at me with pity. I know that look. That means I can't.

"I'm sorry, Cecilia. It is forbidden for the soul to go back to Earth."

“I understand."

"So, are we in heaven? Is this it?" I asked, blinking rapidly - a habit whenever I feel like I'm about to cry again.

"Not really, this is not the heaven or hell that you were raised on,"

"But this whole Wonder Place thing, um is it like in the middle?" I asked, wavering my hand all around.

"Not really. Let’s just say that this is a different and only place after your death. You are here because you're going to wait again for you to be back on Earth again for you to complete your four lives and to learn the most important lesson of all. After you complete all your four lives that’s when your existence will rest.”

I frowned, "What lesson?"

She slightly smiled, "Only you can know that and when the time comes, you will know what it is. But, the challenge of it was that after you reborn again, you will forget everything about your past life and your moment here on Wonder Place," 

"Why can't it just put the whole lesson in one lifetime? Why I have to reborn 4 times?"

"Because that's what it takes for your soul to grow," she answered. 

"If there’s no heaven and hell. What about the bad guys?"

She smiled as she wondered the wonderful scenery in front of us, "Hmm.You see the black door over there?" she asked, pointing down.

I squinted my eyes and there I saw a black door - just a black door placed near the train station. One soul opened the door and entered inside.

"Where does it lead?"

"Some place for the soul to learn their lesson and to reflect. Us, helpers are not allowed to go there. Only souls can but once the soul enter inside, they could stay there for weeks, months or even years. So you really need to think about it. Kinda scary if you ask me." She paused. “Oh by the way. Rule 1: Don't go to the black ocean over the east,” she pointed it to me. “You see the blue ocean by the east - near to the 3 pink buildings? Not far from there was the mark of the war between good and evil that happened hundred years ago but it is not clear why it was still there but we are all not allowed to past that boundary. It is forbidden. Once the soul or helpers went there to the black ocean – their existence will perish in instant”

I looked over and aside from the blue ocean over the east, I could see by the distance the black ocean beside the blue ocean. The only difference was that both oceans meet but never mix – It got like a boundary line floating in the middle and a huge wall by the shore that separate the land.

"But what's going to happen to the driver who hit my car and killed me?"

"We let the Karma Department do that kind of work every day – tough work they got but I still respect their team.”

“Karma Department?”

“Oh, the Karma Department is responsible for the balance of good and evil on Earth. They are the one who gives the human good fortune and bad fortune but it is always depend on the human’s action if they deserve it or not.” She answered easily.

"I hope the Karma Department punish him because he did not just kill me – he killed all my loved ones as well by losing me" I can’t control my voice for sounding angry and bitter. Who doesn’t? He killed me. He’s the reason why I’m here. Dead.

"Well, he's not here yet and based on our information, he's still in a coma in the hospital," she said calmly while looking in her piece of glass that looks like an iPad. “Once the driver arrived here, you can talk to him and say whatever you want to say to him.”

I sighed in disappointment and stood up. I don’t want to talk about him yet. I just want to go home. The line glows immediately pointing it down the small mountain back to the city like.

“I want to rest, Luna. Where am I going to stay here?” I asked.

“You will stay in your own house here in Wonder Place.” I looked at her in disbelieved as we walked down to the same path we took earlier. Even though the sun was up, I couldn't feel the heat of the sun.

“Yes, you have your own house. All souls do,”

We were now in some kind of street where every house is different. I looked to my right and there was a beautiful lake placed in the middle of the street and for the first time, I stopped walking.

"What's the name of the lake?" I asked, looking directly at it. I felt some connection with it.

"That's Midsummer Lake. It's a center park for the Unicus Community – your community now. You can also come here to exercise or do some yoga. Other people would come here to play basketball, tennis and you could put your canvas here and paint the lake!" she said excitedly, “You love to paint right?”

I nodded. I looked at the lake and I immediately thought, "Lakes and sunsets are not the same without you". There is something familiar with that line. I just can't pointed it out. Like I'm supposed to feel happy yet something was blocking me again. Like I'm not allowed to remember what that was. And this place looks familiar.

I sighed as I continue walking again while looking at the lake. The trees were far away but it reflected the beauty of it on the lake and it was beautiful. But there is something about this lake. I just don't know what that is.

All of a sudden, my line went dim and soon disappeared.

"Congratulations and welcome to your new home," Luna said excitedly, raising up her two hands in glee.

I looked into my right and there was a 2 story house that got a balcony in front. I gasped as I admire my new home. It was a modern big modern house but not big enough to call it a mansion and it got this porch light that I really wanted and a bike in front along with different plants placed in the front yard. I noticed one of the plants were aloe vera plant. And I noticed that there’s was a front bench in front that I really like.

"We based the structure of the house on your character and of course on the things that you didn't have when you were on Earth. “

I smiled, "Thank you so much,"

I was surprised that I have an actual house here. No wonder there were other houses that were too big or simple ones. But as much as I love the house, realization kicks in knowing that I’ll be all alone in my own house.

"Okay, this is where I leave you. I'll be right back tomorrow to check up on you and if you want I’ll give you a tour here in the Wonder Place.” She looked down and gave me an iPad that was same as hers. The only problem was that it doesn’t have a circular home button – it’s like a piece of glass.

“This is yours. “You’re the only one who can open it – it can view your memories when you were on Earth. Also, there’s a button there where you can message me in case you need my help,” she smiled.

“Hey Luna?”

“Yes Cecilia?”

“Can I hug you for comfort?” I asked in a low voice, feeling shy but then again – I need something for me to calm myself even though it’s impossible, even if it’s from a stranger – I need it.

“Sure,”

I hugged her and I remember my sister all of a sudden.

“I know it’s hard right now but if you need me, I’m only one call away.” She said in a gentle voice as she rocked me back and forth and to be honest, that helped me to calm down.

“Thank you,” I smiled before letting go.

She then walked away, following the line back to the train station while I leave here in front of my so called house.

As soon as I went inside my house and closed the door, I just sat down and let it all consumed me. The pain, the sadness - everything. And finally, tears starting to fell down my face.

And there by the nearest window, I saw under my tears, the rain pouring down outside my house - reflecting my emotion.