My eyes open, but I see nothing. Bright lights shine in my eyes and I wince back at them. I have no idea where I am or what's going on.

All I know is that something feels different. 

I hear someone say something, but I can’t quite make it out. My ears eventually adjust and a booming voice calls out a name.

“Tao.”

I start making out shapes. Two shorter figures stand close to one another, and a very tall figure stands at a farther distance.

Are those people? Where am I? I can’t remember anything. Who am I? Tao? Is that me?

Out of nowhere, I felt memories flow back into my mind that filled some empty areas.

~

“Pull the plug.”

“Excuse me?”

“I said, pull the plug. He’s not going to make it. It’s not worth it anymore. If he was lucky, he’d last a few more months only to be in agonizing pain. We’ve had our time with him, it’s not right to put him through this anymore. That’s what you told us, is it not?”

“Well, yes… But Ma’am, are you sure about this? If we pull the plug, he’ll only live a few more hours…”

“GODDAMMIT I SAID PULL THE PLUG! Do it before I change my mind!”

“Alright then. Please sign this…”

~

Memories of my poor mother were all I could feel. I’m glad she chose to let me go, for I put her through trouble my entire life. But what about my name? Do I not have one? Am I dead? Or am I almost dead? Is this what heaven is? Or am I in hell? Or am I nowhere at all?

“TAO!”

Suddenly, I could see. I was lying down, and the ceiling and walls were a pale blue color. Looking to my left I could see a large window where sunlight shined in; it looked like there was a sunrise outside. To my right, I could see the three figures clearly. Two young men stood close together. One of them looked immensely excited; the other avoided eye contact and showed no sign of emotion. The tall man was making his way to my side with a mysterious smirk on his face.

“Tao, welcome to the After Life.”

After Life? So I was dead…

“What is this, heaven or something? Who are you? What the hell is going on? Is my name really Tao?” I wanted to sit up but I felt too weak to do so.

The man let a light smile cross his face and turned his gaze out the window.

“Let me explain all of this as simply as I can. There is no religion out there in that world that fits who I am. I am no “God” of sorts. Here, I am known as The Creator. I created the Earth from hence you came, and that’s all. I let the humans do as they please, and I most definitely didn’t send any people there from my so called “Heaven”. There is no Heaven, there is no Hell. There is the After Life. People who lived there lives accordingly are put in their rightful place, as you have now. I did not tell anyone to create a religion worshiping me, those people were just making themselves believe they heard some “God” talk to them. Ridiculous, is it not? Humans adapted in a way that I didn’t perceive, but what can I do? Anyway, you are now what is called a Guardian Angel. At least the humans got that right. However, you are not just any Guardian Angel. You are a member of my council. It is rare that I do this, but those who lived a short, humble, pure life can usually find their way into my council, as you have. Most angels never see me up close, for they did not make it to the level where you are now. As for your memories, they are gone. All angels are allowed to keep the last memory they experienced in order to remind them that they did exist. “

I stared at the wall trying to let everything sink in. I was dead, I remembered nothing of my past, and because of the “pure” life I lived that I do not remember, I was now a goddamn Guardian Angel.

I remembered the other two men standing near me.

“And who are they?”

The man looked over his shoulder as if he didn’t know who I was talking about.

“Ah, yes, those are two members of my council, Xiumin and Lu Han. They are to show you around the facility and answer your questions until you find yourself comfortable here. Now, as for the rules of a high-level Guardian Angel, such as yourself, I will try to explain my best. Guardian Angels are here to try and protect humanity, and also observe changes in the abilities of humans. Most Guardian Angels have several human beings to watch over at a time, but you and my other council members only have one at a time. My council members have other things to attend to, so you only have time to look after one person. The person is not any different than any other humans and will be given to you randomly. Now, for the real rules involving you and your human:

1. Keep your distance.

2. You are to observe and protect you specimen, but not involve yourself.

3. Expression of emotion is forbidden.

4. Be alert at all times.

5. Inappropriate actions will end in termination.”

Inside, I felt a bit disgusted. He called human beings “specimens”. Knowing I used to be one, apparently, it made me feel upset. This was going to take some getting used to. I had to absorb so much information in so little time, and I would probably be watching over some human being like a pet in no time at all.

“What do you mean by termination?”

The Creator chuckled in reply. “Termination, as in you will no longer be a member of my council. You’ll be lucky if you make it below the average Angels. You are not to involve yourself with the human, and show no affection towards them, whether they can sense it or not.”

“They can sense it?”

“Some humans are able to sense the presence of their Guardian Angel; it just depends on how alert they are naturally.”

I nodded. I laid my head back and closed my eyes for a moment. From this day forward I had a job to attend to, and messing up was not an option.

~

WOOPWOOP finally decided to write this. xD I don't think it's going to be a very longs story, but please do be patient. :P Thank you so much for reading and subscribing! It's very much appreciated!