The Splendor of a New Life

I launched myself out of my bed and ran toward my balcony door. With every step I took, my present and my past merged more and more within me. I slid the glass door open and ran outside.

“No way.”

It was a beautiful morning. The sun was warm, and the breeze was gentle. In the distance, beyond many rows of houses, was a blue, glass-like ocean.

“I’m on an island,” I muttered, letting my new world past inform my consciousness from the old world. I heard someone laughing and looked over at one of the streets. There was a human girl and a woman, with wings jutting out from her arms, walking together.

“A human and a harpy… Walking together.” Tears came to my eyes, and I looked up at the sky. “We did it. We’re in the new world—a world where the Collision became a Merge, and the people came together… We did it, everyone…”

Suddenly, my nose seemed to finally wake up and connect to my awareness, and I was greeted by a smell I never thought I would ever experience again.

“No way! But of course!”

I went to my bedroom door and tore out of my room. I had never been in this house, but my new world memories guided my steps.

“Stairs. Landing. Hall. And then, the kitchen is right here—”

I ran through the doorway and saw her.

“Hmm? Ven?”

My mother, Stella. My mother was alive. That innocent-looking woman with long and wavy brown hair. She was standing in the kitchen wearing a pink sundress with an apron over it, cooking up some of her awesome scrambled eggs.

“Mom,” I said, my voice breaking.

She put down her wooden spoon. “Ven, is something the matter? You look pale.” She walked toward me, and the moment she did, I took that as permission to approach her.

“Mom!” I cried as I hugged her.

“Ven?! Sweetie, what’s the matter?”

“I missed you, Mom!”

My mother, Stella Kamen. In the old world, she was a professor at a well-renowned university, who had been published many times. Her field was Physics… I think Quantum Physics and some other areas. She was an impressive woman in the old world… When the Collision happened… We lived in a different area that got hit hard. She died at her university. What was she now in the new world? My brain was telling me she was still a professor, but she was important on this island.

“Ven? But I saw you last night,” she joked. “We even had dinner together! You were kind of mopey though…”

I pulled away from her and smiled. She responded with confusion.

“Ven? Are you crying?”

“Ahh.” I rubbed my eyes. “Sorry, I just…” My grin grew wider. “I had the worst dream.”

“Oh, Sweetie! Well, good thing you’re up now—”

“Stella! Is something wrong with Ven!”

That loud guy came barreling into the room from the same entry I had come in through—my dad. I wish I could say I handled it well but when this black-haired, thin guy came in—

“Dad…”

—I was teary-eyed again. I walked up to him and put my hand on his face clean-shaven face.

“Ven?” he replied, weirded out. His bushy brow was arched and his thin lips were raised on one side. His eyes were brown and without injury, too.

“You’re handsome again.”

My father, Jack Kamen. In the old world, he was a mechanical engineer. He seemed to still be that here according to my new world memories. Really accomplished… Back in the old world he had survived for a long time, but he picked up a critical injury that wounded his head and impaired his motor functions. Seeing him so full of life and with mom…

I clutched my chest and sucked in all my sadness and tears. I said something I never believed I would say again.

“Good morning, guys… I love you both.”

“Hah?” Dad replied. “You okay, Ven?”

“Honey, he had a bad dream!” Mom said as she put her hand around me. “Be nice!”

He eyed me. “Weird…” Then he smiled. “But alright! Must have been pretty traumatizing, ‘ey, Ven?”

I chuckled. “You have no idea, Old Man.”

“Oh, haha.” Dad shadow-boxed playfully. “There’s the bite. This old man can still take you, young buck.”

“Boys, not in the kitchen.”

Dad pulled me in and put his arm across my shoulder. “Heard that, Ven? No fighting in the kitchen.”

“Haha, yeah… Mom, when is breakfast going to be ready?”

She smiled. “I would say… Maybe twenty minutes.”

I nodded. “Okay!” I pulled away from dad and walked to the door. “I’m gonna go to my room to write some stuff down. You know, get my head in order.”

Dad walked over to mom and tilted his head at me. Mom, however, got excited. “Oh!” she chirped. “Are you going to keep a dream journal? I’ve read about the benefits of that! It works best if you have a journal set aside for it.” Mom twiddled her fingers as her eyes darted around nervously. “Maybe I could buy you one? I could keep one too…”

I smiled. “Yeah, sure. Why not?” Mom brightened up immediately. “Really? Yes, okay! I’ll do that!” Mom looked at Dad excitedly and then went back to cooking with a giant smile on her face.

“We’ll call you when breakfast is done…” Dad shot me a gentle smile. “I… I think I’ll stay for breakfast too.”

“Oh?” I replied. I shrugged. “Yeah, sure, okay. See you in a bit.”

I, with a smile on my face, ran up the stairs. Halfway up though, I heard something—

“Honey! Ven’s talking to us! And he’s so clear! He hugged me this morning!”

Huh?

Mom’s voice made me stop and made me listen in. She sounded so happy. Why was she so happy?

“I know! What happened overnight? I thought we were stuck with our Ven until he was out of this phase.”

“I don’t know, but we can’t ruin this! He said he’d let me buy him a journal! Oh, I’m so happy!”

“I believe you, Mom…” I whispered to myself. “You sound happy.” I put my fingers on my head as it started throbbing. “I see… I better write stuff down and get my thoughts organized.”

I walked back to my room quietly.