I woke with a start. My eyes snapped wide open. My body turned to the side as I heard my phone ringing.

One glance at the notification bar showed other missed calls, another glance at the time showed that it would be well into rush hour. But it was my day off.

I sighed as I accepted Dottie's call. "It's my day off."

There was a long pause. I would've figured the call had been disconnected if I couldn't hear the people in the background. "No... it's not. That was yesterday."

I frowned. "No way. Today is my day off." I slowly say up.

"Yesterday... was your day off. You have to come into work now, you have some mad customers."

"What..." I pulled my phone away from my cheek, to take a few seconds to check the day and the date. I felt my jaw drop open and my stomach sink. She was right. "I... I..." I stuttered as I reattached the phone to my face. "I didn't realise. Sorry. I'll be there as soon as I can."

Dottie sighed softly. "Listen, if you've taken a day off after informing Carl then I-"

"I'm not taking an extra day. I only remember passing out an entire day ago." I'd been asleep an entire day?

"That's impossible. I think."

"I-I..." I screwed my eyes shut. "Never mind. I think I'm still screwed up from sleep."

"Sounds like it. Are you..." She lowered her voice to a whisper. "... high?"

"No!" I hadn't touched my stash of weed in ages.

"Hungover?"

"No. I'm not drinking right now."

"Right, right... your thing."

"Yes." Rubbing my face, I finally forced myself off the bed. There was a surprising spring in my body as I hopped to my feet. "I'll be there in a while."

"Nah, fuck it." Dottie replied casually. "Come in the evening. I'll tell the lunch rush you had a doctor's appointment."

"You don't need to, Dottie. I ca-"

"It's chill, Ryleigh." I'd concerned her again. "Come in a few hours. Sleep a little more, you sound like you need it."

"I..." I let myself trail off as I caught sight of myself in the mirror. "Okay. I'll see y'all later."

"Not very later. Be here by six."

"Gotcha."

"Bye, Ryleigh. Take some meds or something."

"Yeah. Sure."

I threw my phone back to my bed before I walked towards my mirror. I was still dressed in my bloody clothes, so I was right. I hadn't woken up even once since Lou and Mike had left me here.

Looking down at my shirt, I grabbed the edge and squeezed. It made a disgusting crunching sound, some red flakes shed themselves from the fabric. This shirt was done was for. I could see the reflection of the bed in the mirror, it was completed covered in similar red flakes. They had rubbed all over sheets and given them a rusty colour where I'd been sleeping.

I turned to look at the bed. The sheets were ruined. I wondered if the flakes would come off or they would stain. Carrying something to be dry cleaned with what's very obviously blood on it would also seem rather suspicious. These clothes also have to be thrown out.

The clothes itched as I walked back over to the bed, grabbed the sheets and ripped them off in one swift movement. The red flakes of dried blood hung in the air like a confused mist before they scattered to the floor. That's better. The sheets don't look as bad as I thought. I'll drop them off on the way to work.

I cleaned up a bit more, and ran the vacuum through the carpet in my room before I headed in for a shower. I didn't remove my clothes, didn't check the temperature— just walked right into the shower stream.

The cool water soaked my clothes, and soothed the itch from the dried blood. My eyes were glued to the floor as I watched the pink water flow down my feet. The colour didn't change until quite a while later. My shirt set off a fresh flow of old watery blood as I wrung it out. I did the same with the jeans before I dropped them on the bathroom floor. The colour wouldn't be restored in the blue denim. There was a hole in the left thigh along with a huge stain down the knee. The stains had carried over to the other thigh and part of the crotch. That was definitely done for. And it's entire backside from when I'd soaked in my own blood on my kitchen floor.

My underwear went in the same pile. It already had its own puddle of pink water forming around it. The water turned slightly warm as I sat down in the bathtub, leaned back and relaxed against the wall. I plugged up the drain to let the water rise till it covered my shoulders.

My brown hair floated around me, half of it looked black because of the congealed blood in it. I worked shampoo into the clots and tangles to free them from themselves before I moved on to the rest. A body wash helped get rid of blood in odd crevices of my body. The water was a darker shade of pink by the time I let it drain out, only to take another shower to wash away the remaining vestiges.

I dumped the clothes back in the tub. They soaked in clean, fresh water as I cleaned the bathroom floor. I scrubbed down every inch of the surface till it shone. Down on my knees to get the last bit of pink anything off the beautiful tiles.

My body was mostly dry by the time I stepped out. I wrapped my damp hair in a towel, and stopped in front of the mirror to look at my body.

Not a scratch on me.

Not a mark.

Not a single piece of evidence that I'd been shot with five bullets last night.

I could still remember the pain in my upper arm, the intense burning sensation through my abdomen and leg. The feeling of not being able to get in a full breath as my lungs drowned in my own blood. I could still remember the blood. All the blood that had flown out of me, in the bar, and where I'd finally bled out and breathed my last in the kitchen.

But the blood was gone.

Last night... no, the night before that, when Mike and Lou had teleported me or whatever that is, back to my place, the blood was gone. There had been no trace of anything left on the floor.

"I must admit." Lou whistled lowly as the three of us stared at the floor. "You angels do a good job of cleaning up."

"Of course we do." Mike scoffed. He turned away from the kitchen first. "We've been cleaning up demon messes since we could remember."

"You're welcome then." Lou snickered. An arm was placed around my shoulder to turn me around right in time to see Mike tense up in irritation. "Come on, Ryleigh." I could hear the smug tone in his voice. "Let's get you in bed."

Mike led the way, Lou dragged me along beside him. I had barely spoken in the bar. The shock of all that had happened had kicked in as we sat there for a while. The other two sipped their drinks, and I started blankly at the glass Lou had handed to me. My mind was empty, all I could do was follow along with their instructions.

The lights in my room switched on by themselves as Mike walked in. He boredly looked around as the two of us came to a stop behind him.

"Nice room, Ryleigh." Lou nodded. "Nice view from your room too. You have a surprisingly nice apartment for being just a bartender."

"I don't own it." I mumbled. My eye on the city lights visible through the glass walls of my bedroom.

"Of course you do. You wouldn't be here otherwise." Mike replied matter-of-factly, turning to face me. "Let go of her, demon."

"Hmm... you should leave, feathers. I need to help her undress." I could hear that seductive whisper, but my body didn't respond to it like it normally did.

"Shut up." I mumbled. I shifted out from under his arm. Before I turned to him and wrapped my arms around his body. I felt surprise pass through him.

My nose was buried in his shoulder, my eyes stared out past his ear with my arms wrapped around his chest. "Thank you." I spoke softly. "Thank you for not letting me die."

"Uh, okay." He sounded awkward. But the arm wrapped around my shoulders and patted my back was familiar. "Glad to have you back, Ryleigh."

I stayed there for a few moments before I pulled away without meeting his eyes.

Mike gave a tired sigh. He ran a hand through his hair. "If you two of you are done, I'm leaving."

"Wait." He turned to me, brows furrowed in confusion right before I walked into him and hugged him too. My face was pressed against his chest because I had rushed it. My arms had somehow slipped under his jacket, wrapped around his back. He had a heartbeat. "Thank you, Mike. Thank you for letting me live."

Mike didn't move. He didn't move for a few moments. I almost pulled away before I felt his arms wrap around me. It was warm in his embrace. He was warmer than Lou.

One hand pressed against the back of my head to smooth down my sticky hair. "It really wasn't my choice." He sounded irritated.

"Thank you, anyway." I pulled back a little to meet his eyes. "You could have stopped Lou, but you didn't.

"It... It's nothing." He replied in his usual disinterested manner. He pulled away completely. Now get some rest. The mess in your bar will be gone in a few hours."

I nodded dumbly and sat down on my bed facing them. They stood there for a few short awkward moments. Maybe it had been a bad idea to hug th-

"See ya, Ryleigh." Was all Lou said followed by a cold breeze. Mike growled in irritation before he followed.

I let my eyes fall to the floor before they fell shut. My back hit the bed. There's no way I can fall asleep after...

But I had. I'd passed out like the... dead. I should've been dead. I did die.

I tried to shove the thought out of my head yet again. The bag I was to carry with my sheets stuffed in it was dug into my fingers. Blood had rushed to their tips as I raised my hand to hand the bag over the counter. We exchanged pleasantries, they gave me a pickup date and I left. Nothing more to it. Nothing less.

But it felt... off. Did I look weird?

I'd stared at myself in the mirror for a long time to try and figure out who I was. I was me. However, I had also just died. But I was alive again. Then... had I really died?

I shook my head and smoothed down my shirt as I tried to calm my thoughts. The cool wind on the street brushed against my legs, and grounded me as I made my way through the people towards the restaurant. I hadn't been able to sit still since I woke up. I'd made lunch for myself to do something, but then I'd just left it on the counter as I paced my entire damn apartment. I couldn't sit, I couldn't think about anything else. I couldn't focus on anything... I'd barely managed to stop the food from burning.

I ran a hand over my shirt. I was dressed normal. Because I was normal. Nothing had happened. Nothing had happened as far the people outside knew. Nothing. I was fine. I'd just over slept, and I was going into work late. Nothing had happened. I didn't know about demons or angels. I hadn't died and been brought back to life. And I hadn't been shot full of holes. And I... And I hadn't bled out in the bar and the kitchen floor. I... I don't have anything to worry about. No one knows anything. No one sees anything.

I looked up as I pushed the door to the restaurant open. Dottie and Sasha looked up from their food, surprise crossed through both their faces as they realised it was me, and not a customer.

I felt the knot in my chest loosen a bit as I spotted their faces. That's right. They're my friends. They don't know what happened. They're normal. They're the only normal thing in my life.

"Hey, guys." I forced on a sheepish smile. "Sorry I'm late."

Dottie immediately slid off her stool. She walked over to me as she continued to chew and placed her hand on my forehead. A frown formed on her face as I stared  at her. "You don't have a fever. That's good."

"Uh, thanks?" I replied slowly. My hand reached up to grab her wrist and pull it away. "I never said I did."

"You look kind of pale."

"I do?" No. No, I look normal. I'm fine. I'm normal.

"No, she doesn't, Dottie." Sasha spoke up from the bar. "She looks good though."

"I do?" I repeated dumbly and caught Sasha's eyes. He held up a thumb and nodded confidently. "Oh, thanks."

"Huh." Dottie frowned. She tapped her lip with a finger. "I could have sworn... Anyway, how are you feeling?"

"Fine, Dottie." I moved forward to wrap her in a hug. "Don't worry about me. Nothing happened." That's right. Nothing.

"I think something did." She mumbled against my chest. Dottie, the sweet thing that she is, let me hold her for a few moments before she pulled away. "You sounded off on the phone, and now you're hugging me. Something definitely happened."

Turning away from her penetrating gray gaze, I rolled my eyes. "Nothing is wrong. You're overreaching."

"Am I really?" I could hear her start to follow after me. "I know when something is off with you, Ryleigh. You're like a child. Your entire look changes."

"My look is fine." Nothing's wrong. Nothing's wrong. N-

"Yes. You said you slept two days straight. You're not okay."

"I was mistaken." Just get behind the bar, nothing is wrong. "I remember waking up to go workout."

"You're lying." Please, Dottie. Stop. "I could hear the fear in your voice."

"What fear?" I looked down at the floor. My feet hesitated to move towards the register. There was no blood here. Nothing's wrong.

"Even now. You're acting weird."

"I thought I saw a cockroach." I replied casually. I looked back up and forced my feet to move towards the register. She's mistaken. Nothing's wrong. There's no blood here. Nothing's wrong.

"What?!" Sasha snapped. The genuine panic in his voice cut through our tension. He leaned over the counter and glared down at the floor. "Where? What did you see? Are you sure it's roach?"

"Might be?" I replied, equally confused as I turned to look at the floor again. "There's a bit of stain, might be wrong." Okay. Okay. It's all okay.

"There's no cockroach. She's changing the subject." Dottie sighed, exasperated.

"How do you know?" Sasha growled, practically lying on the counter. "Did you see a cockroach?"

"No, but-"

"Then do you not trust Ryleigh?"

"I-I-" Dottie turned red. "I do, bu-"

"Then, let it go. She don't wanna talk. And I wanna look for roach." Sasha now lay flat on the counter. "Where was it, Ryleigh? Dottie, get my own pest spray."

"Sasha that thing will stink up the place."

"A COCKROACH WILL GET THE KITCHEN SHUT DOWN!" Sasha boomed as he crawled to my side of the bar. "GET THE SPRAY, ITS CODE ROACH!" Code roach? "There is a cockroach! And I will find it!"

I took a step back as Sasha fell to his knees. "Uh, hey, I'm not seeing things too well today so maybe-"

"I will look! Shut your mouth, I can't see."

I frowned at that, and took another step back. "Uh, okay." I pulled the stool to me and leaned on it as I watched Sasha scramble about on the floor. Kitchen operations were suspended for a few hours as he looked through every nook and cranny of the place as Dottie whined and followed after him. It was a good enough distraction to get my mind off of my death. There was a lot to unravel here, and I needed answers tonight.

"Wrap it up, Sasha." I yelled through the little window by the kitchen doors. "We have customers."

The man who'd just pushed the door open, smiled at me in reply as he walked up to the bar. I smiled back at him, approaching the register. "Good evening, sir. How may I help you?"

"I'll just have a Jack, on the rock."

"Yes, sir. Take a seat."

He nodded, choose a barstool and exhaled softly as he sat down. "Kind of empty for the day after your day off." He looked around the bar. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. It's fine." I reached for the ice bucket. "Kitchen operations were suspended for a few hours so we had to turn customers away, but we just got done-uh... cleaning."

"Oh, did something happen?" The man looked up at me with genuine curiosity.

"Oh, no. Nothing really." My eyes went to the door as the bell dinged once again. "Just some routine stuff- Yes, hello, how may I help you?"

"I'll have a Cosmo." The lady smiled at me.

"Sure, ma'am. Please take a seat. If you want to order something to eat, you'll have to wait a few minutes- our waitress and cook are sorting something out in the back."

"Oh, sure. I'll wait." She doddled over to a booth by the window.

I looked up a few minutes later as the kitchen doors opened and Dottie stepped out. Luckily enough, the stinky spray wasn't in her hand anymore. "Time to work."

"Sounds about right." I smiled reassuringly at her.

She smiled back at me and walked over to the counter. "Prepare a shot of vodka for me."

I laughed and met her grey eyes as she said that. "Already?"

"Yes." She groaned. Her hand tugged out her notebook from under the counter. "You just saved my life. He wanted to triple check."

A chuckle shook me and the bottle of vodka as I poured out a shot. I turned to face her, confusion crossed through me as I held the glass out to her. My smile flickered as she took it from me, turned her back to the customers and took it one gulp.

Dottie was... blurry.

She turned to face me again, colour already high in her cheeks as she hissed. "Whoo! That's one way to wake up!"

"Uh... yeah." I replied absently as I stared at her. She didn't notice the change in my attitude and hurried off to the lady seated by the window.

I couldn't see her outline. It was cloudy.

I rubbed my eyes and reopened them to see the blurry outline get stronger. I could... I could see colours in it too. Did I rub my eyes too hard?

Bending over the sink, I splashed some water in my eyes. And used a clean towel from my bag to wipe them down. I couldn't see clearly all of a sudden... but I've always had 20/20 vision, and now this?

I looked around the bar again, but it seemed worse. Now the old man at the bar was blurry, the woman was blurry, and Dottie was still blurry.

"Are you okay, Ryleigh?" The old man asked.

"Uh, yeah. My eyes are burning." I lied as I squinted at him. My vision wouldn't clear up.

"You might have a fever. You should go get checked."

"No... no, my temperature is fine. It's probably just..." I paused to rub my eyes again. "...less sleep."

He sighed and shook his head to himself. "You kids nowadays always stay up watching screens. It's bound to take a toll."

"I wasn't up late."

"Sure, you weren't." He continued to shake his head. The blurry outline flickered, sharp streaks of yellow and green passed through the fog surrounding him. "My grandson is always on about that instant grams, and snapping. It never ends."

Another sharp flash of yellow. What was going on?

"Ryleigh?" I turned to look at Dottie. "That lady's Cosmo ready?"

"Uh, yeah." I replied blankly as I turned to her. Her fog was tinged blue. "Right. The Cosmo."

I reached for the delicate stemmed glass behind the counter and placed it on her tray as my eyes roamed around her form. Blue. She was so blue.

"You know..." Dottie looked me over worriedly. "You still don't seem okay to me." She turned purple. "And what's that about your eyes?"

"Nothing." Nothing's wrong. "I'm fine now."

She raised an eyebrow and turned away. One hand on the base of the stem to stabilize the glass. "Doesn't seem like it." Orange? "I'll talk to you about this tomorrow."

"Sure, yeah." I tore my eyes away from her cloud to stare at the register. I could see it clearly. The outline, every number, the shading on it from the ambient overhead lights. Even the names on all the bottles behind me were clearly visible. Names, dates, rum, whiskey, vodka, single malt, aged, distilled, 30 years, 20 years, 12 years, green cap, blue cap, frosted glass, white logo, shiny silver outline...

I turned again to face the rest of the restaurant and the customers. Two more had walked in and taken a booth. They also had their own clouds. Blue, with lines of silver, and red, with streaks of pink. The old man at the bar had a brown cloud, light grey patches moved around it and phased in and out. The woman who ordered the Cosmo stirred her drink with a bright orange cloud around her. I could see small bubbles of black.

"Uh, Dottie." I called out slowly as she passed by me.

She paused in her steps to face me. "What?"

"Come here a second."

"Yeah." She moved to the bar and placed her elbows atop it. Her voice was lowered as she leaned towards me. "What is it?"

Her grey eyes were wide open, clear, without any worries. Her posture relaxed and trusting, slightly tensed with the work that had to be done. The blue cloud around her shifted as she frowned at me. "Is everything okay?" She asked for the umpteenth time since I'd set foot in here.

I ignored her question as I reached out hesitantly towards the cloud. My fingers twitched as they touched it, but passed right through. The blue cloud swirled around my skin and formed a gap for my hand to pass through.

"You..." A sense of warmth passed through. All of a sudden, I felt as if I'd been hugged. My chest filled up with a foreign sensation, but one I knew well. "I... love you."

Dottie raised the other eyebrow. She looked around the bar and at the eavesdropping old man. "Uh, sure, Ryleigh." She reached out to pat my shoulder before she turned away to resume work. "I love you too, okay? Now get back to work.

She moved away from me. My hand was left in the air as the blue cloud moved with her. The warmth surrounding me vanished. The overwhelming feeling of love in my chest emptied out, and left me feeling hollow.

"What the fuck..." I whispered to myself as I stared down at my hand.

The bell dinged again. More people, more colourful clouds.

Just for good measure, I rubbed my eyes again. But nothing changed. Colours. Clouds. People in the centre of the clouds. People outside the window had clouds too.

"Excuse me?" I turned to look at the man by the register. "Can I get a drink?"

"Uh, yeah, sure." I replied. I had to force my eyes away from his dark gray cloud. The man looked like he was in the middle of a storm cloud.

What was this? What was going on?