The first time I had seen Alexander was at his parents' funeral. I was eleven at the time. Orphaned when I was barely five, my father's brother, my uncle, had taken me home. The years that followed brought me nothing but misery.

My uncle was a sick man. He liked his prey young, very young. I endured; I didn't know any better. Then one day, six years since I had started staying with him, he pulled me out of school and told me that we were moving towns as he had found a lucrative job elsewhere. Naturally, I believed him. I found out much later that he was actually running from the law.

As luck would have it, the plane we were on crashed. Had it not been for a woman who had shielded me with her body, I would have died that day. This woman had the kindest eyes I had ever seen; they looked like molten dark chocolate.

I have heard that when one is breathing their last, they can see their life flash before their eyes. All I can see is Alexander. His eyes.

His eyes, which are a replica of his mother's, look at me with concern. "Look at me. Don't close your eyes." He says, putting pressure on my chest.

Oh, yes. I remember now. David had shot me.

The pain in my chest, which was a soft hum just moments ago, amplifies. I try to speak. There is so much that I want to tell him.

"Just hold on. Janice, can you hear me? Can someone please call the ambulance?" Alexander yells before lowering his eyes to look at me.

I try to speak, but he sashes me. "Conserve your energy. Keep looking at me, okay?" He instructs calmy, but I can see the turmoil within him.

His eyes.

The woman on the plane, my savior, was called Lian Reed. Both she and her husband had died instantly. Meanwhile, I had survived with a bump on the back of my head and a few minor bruises.

I had insisted on attending Mrs. Reed's funeral. I don't know why, but my uncle had agreed and taken me there. At that time, I had thought wistfully that maybe the incident had changed him, alas...

That night, when we returned to the hotel assigned to us by the disaster management team, I saw things before they actually happened, for the first time. First, there was light. Then as it faded, I saw uncle getting undressed and pulling me in his lap. When I opened my eyes, however, he was still getting undressed. Before he could get to me, I screamed and ran into the bathroom. I locked the door and kept on yelling. It was the first time I had stood up for myself.

The next day, uncle was sent to prison. I thought my woes had ended; I was wrong. My bad days were far from over.

I was transferred from one foster home to another. I learned to hide my feelings. I had realized that showing vulnerability would make me a target for bullies. Thankfully, the light looked out for me when no one else did. Then one day, just before I turned sixteen, I killed a man. I slit his throat and watched as the blood pooled around him. In my defense, he had it coming.

"Janice, the ambulance is on the way. Hang on. Just hang on." I hear Alexander's voice. It sounds like it is coming from afar. That couldn't be right, I conclude. I try to focus on his eyes; they were swimming with tears.

Alexander was crying. Was it because he was worried about me?

No one has ever cried for me or with me. You are the first one to do that, Alexander.

"Janice, won't you join us for lunch." Those were Alexander's first words to me.

After getting out of prison, I had studied hard and entered a nursing institute. I had found out that Alexander was planning on becoming a doctor. All I wanted was to help him, serve next to him. That's how I had ended up in Mercy. I had a debt to pay, after all.

One day, almost a year ago, I jumped bodies for the first time. It was during one of my routine rounds. A patient had suddenly gone into cardiac arrest. I pressed the code red button and was about to leave when he held my hand. A sharp pain shot through my limbs, and I closed my eyes, and there it was: the light.

When I opened my eyes, I was surrounded by doctors. I blinked and caught sight of myself standing at the foot of the bed, looking lost.

I was filled with dread. I closed my eyes yet again, and when I opened them, I was back in my body.

The old man died a few minutes later.

After much observation, I realized that I had somehow acquired the ability to jump bodies. But there was a catch, I could only enter into bodies with weekend brain activity. Possessed with the knowledge, I started honing my skills. I learned a lot at Mercy. I made many friends too, and for the first time in life, I was happy.

However, one thing that had not gone according to plan. I had fallen in love with Alexander without even intending to. It was unfortunate, for I knew he could never be mine.

I blame my fall on his eyes: his beautiful, dark orbs.

"Janice!" I hear Alexander's voice; it sounds strained.

I try to smile; I gather my strength and point towards the bed. I needed Alexander to take me to Mellisa.

"I don't think it's a good idea to move you, Janice." He states. I shake my head and point at Melissa's still form again.

He relents. He asks one of the officers to help me to the bed. I scan the room. It's swarming with men in uniform.

"They took David away," Alexander informs, laying me down next to Mellisa.

Mellisa. Alexander's soulmate, Melissa.

I thank my gifts; without them, I would never have succeeded in trapping David. Without them, I would never have known that he had been an eye on me. So, before Alexander had arrived, I had called the police and asked them to be on standby in case things went south. It was not easy to convince them, but when I had wired them our conversation of the night before, they had agreed. Unfortunately, I hadn't expected David to barge in armed with a gun.

I look at the innocent freckled face and copper curls. It was like I was seeing her for the first time. The night when David had attempted to kill her, I was there. I had seen it in my vision, and luckily, I had reached just in time to save her. I knew it was her husband who had tried to kill her, but I had no proof. David had been through. He had not left behind any evidence that could link him to the attempted murder of his wife.

I knew what Mellisa meant to Alexander. I knew what I could do with my gifts. I was sure that in exchange for what I was offering, Alexander would be willing to give me anything I asked for. I approached him, and we struck a deal. In exchange for my gifts, I had asked for his love, companionship, and a permanent place in his life.

Now standing at death's door, I can finally admit that I was deluding myself. Alexander was never meant to be mine.

My mind floods with images of a dark-haired thirteen-year-old boy clinging to a girl with copper curls lining her freckled face. She has her arms wrapped around his middle, rubbing soothing circles on his back. "I am here for you, Alex. I will always be here for you." She says, refusing to let go even as her parents try to pry them apart gently.

I reach for Melissa's hand. I intertwine our fingers. I needed her to live and keep the promise she had made to Alexander all those years ago.

I look within myself and find what I am looking for: the light. I know now what it is. It's the life force that we all have.

It is this force that had enabled me to jump bodies and to have visions. Now with my dying breath, I call for it one more time, for the last time. It comes to me like always, and I give it its final order.

As my life force slowly abandons me and flows into Melissa, I search for dark eyes. I find them. They are as beautiful as ever, albeit a little sad.

I want to ask him to smile, but words fail me. I was happy, nonetheless, and I knew he would be too. I had made sure of it.

I had repaid my debt. I was content. I was ready to let my soul rest.