"This is exhausting..." I sighed to myself as I looked at the clock on the wall. It was nearly 3 AM and my head was throbbing due to the combined effects of the alcohol and the grating noise of my coworkers singing. Every so often our section chief conducted these mandatory drinking sessions, and everyone had to attend. Part of our so-called "team building". It was a massive drag for all involved. Or maybe it was just me, I could tell some idiots were enjoying themselves. I, on the other hand just wanted to go home and go straight to bed. Thankfully I see some people getting up, it looks like this party's finally coming to an end. I get up and shuffle with them to the door bowing and apologizing to our seniors for leaving early. When it comes to these things you can't just leave by yourself, it's only possible to leave in groups and that's why I had to wait till nearly 3 AM to be able to leave. 

We go outside and everyone splits up into groups to hail taxis because the last train stopped hours ago. I say my farewells to them and walk ahead on my own. My apartment is about 10 minutes away and I don't want to waste money on a taxi. As the chill hits my face, I start to reconsider but decide to man up and go on. I hear my footsteps and thank god I'm just the IT guy. We can wear casual clothes and sneakers. My feet are killing me, but it would be far worse if I were wearing dress shoes. 

I stumble along shakily, this is bad, the cool air is making me lightheaded. If I'm not careful I could pass out, so I try to concentrate and think about various things, so my mind doesn't blank out. I reflect on my life up to this point. I'm over 30 years old and I realize how mediocre I am. I was praised a lot for being smart when I was a kid and I guess I let it get to my head. I always thought I'd be some kind of big shot but now I realize it takes a lot of hard work to be a big shot. Hard work which I haven't put in. I wasted the intelligence I was praised for. It was both a blessing and a curse for me because I realized that I could coast through school, doing just the bare minimum to get above average grades.  

I could've studied more and gotten excellent grades, but I was lazy, I just wanted to play soccer after school with my friends and watch movies, read books and play video games at home. I liked being comfortable more than being excellent. That followed me to college, I originally got in as an Economics major but changed it midway to Network Engineering much to my parents' disappointment. Economics was boring and required too much studying, Network Engineering and IT stuff in general was interesting and came easy to me. I didn't have to study I just knew all of it intuitively. That's how I ended up here a mediocre 30 something IT guy. People are initially impressed when I tell them which company, I work for but for some reason that goes away quickly when I tell them I'm just the IT guy. 

Being good at it isn't the only reason I became an IT guy. As good as I am with computers I'm just as bad with people. I get nervous and self-conscious when I speak with people and start stuttering. The little mean things they say stay with me and years after it happened, I recall what they said, and they hurt me all over again and again. I mean I can be normal when talking to people, act confident and cool and not stutter. But it takes enormous effort. I basically have to act like I'm in a movie. Eventually I gave up and just stopped acting and ended up becoming this awkward person. I read once that people put on masks when out in society and they take it off when they're by themselves. If that's true then I think my mask is damaged, there are holes in my mask which people can look through and see my true face. That's what makes me so nervous around people, I can tell when they're seeing through me and it's really unpleasant.  

It's the same with girls. I'm not an incel or anything. I'm not a bad looking guy so if I put on the mask and act enough to make up for the holes in it, I can manage to get myself a girlfriend. But again, that takes too much effort and eventually I give up trying. Which is why I've never had a relationship that lasted more than 3 months. That seems to be the limit of my endurance. It all adds up and I become encumbered and end up ghosting them. It's awful and I regret doing that to them but if I'm honest that's bullshit. If I regretted, it so much then I wouldn't do it over and over again. Because only a few months after a breakup my libido overwhelms me, and I end up putting the mask on again only to end up ghosting another girl. I'm the worst. 

I look up and realize that I'm nearly outside my apartment building. All that self-pity was enough to get me here without passing out. I'm at an intersection shivering and waiting for the light to turn green so I can cross it. "beep beep", I hear the hourly beep from my watch and light it up to see that it's exactly 3 AM. I look around and see no one around me, I guess it's because of this damn cold. “But wait that's weird where are the cars?" I thought. "Maybe I should just go ahead and cross if there aren't even cars around" I think and take a step forward only to stop. I realize I'm not alone, there's someone looking at me. I feel a shiver pass through my body. Not the kind of shiver like I was experiencing before but a shiver like someone just stepped on my grave. 

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

I see right in the middle of the intersection of this crossroad a little girl looking at me. Can't be more than 5 or 6 years old. Not only that though, what struck me was what she looked like. She had blonde curly hair and was dressed in what can only be described as something out of a French period drama. In fact, it looked like there were more frills and laces than there was little girl. I blink hard and open my eyes again to make sure I'm not seeing some sort of apparition. Nope, she's still standing there looking right at me. "Oy, little girl are you alright?" I yelled to her. It doesn't even get a stir out of her. "Oy, what are you doing standing there? Get off the road!" I yell again more forcefully. Immediately I see her light up and look right towards the source of the lights. I see a white truck coming towards her. I begin to run and wave my arms over my head all the while yelling at the little girl to get off the road. She doesn’t move and just stands there looking right at me. I try to run faster but I’m stumbling because I’m drunk. I’m panicking now as I realize the truck’s going to hit her. Those lights are blinding and coming way too fast. I’m not going to make it in time, so I jump to push her out of the way, only for my hands to go straight through her while I feel a massive impact from my side. 

I open my eyes and see nothing but black. I’m lying on my back. I push up and see the little girl staring at me with a smile on her face. “Am I alive?” I asked her. That seems to amuse her, her eyes narrow and she replies with a cheerful “Yes”.  “Wait, as I expected, did I black out?” I exclaim. The girl again replies with a cheerful “Yes”. I stand up and look around “Where are we? What is this place?” I ask. We’re standing in what seems to be a black void, I can see nothing around us. The little girl smiles and shyly says, “Just before I lied to you except I didn’t really”. See... what happened was you ran in front of a truck and died, but I saved you and brought you here so you’re alive. I can see her sharp teeth as her lips curl into a smile.   

I scowl and ask her “Is this some sort of joke?”. She scowls right back and her attitude changes, “Hurry and get with the program, we don’t have time for your cliché questions, I’ve already told you what happened so let me tell you what’s going to happen next”. You’re going to be reborn in my world, I’m like a god there so I’m sending you there to make up for getting you killed. Although being reborn should be enough, a life for a life and all that... but since I’m such a nice and kind god I’ll even throw in three wishes to sweeten the deal, so what do you say? 

Huh? first of all cliché? You kill me with a white truck and say I’m going to be reborn in another world, talk about cliches! Second I need to wake up because I’m going to freeze out there passed out on the street, this must be some sort of lucid dream so how do I wake up? 

Like I said you’re making me repeat myself, you died get over it, now do you want to be reborn with three wishes or do you want to go back and stay dead? 

Wait, wait, wait even if you say all of that so matter of factly, you’re being totally unreasonable, how am I supposed to believe all this? 

“Last chance, are you in or out? Reborn and three wishes or die” she says condescendingly and folds her arms and looks away. 

Wait, wait, wait what do you mean by three wishes? Like a genie? 

Exactly, so what do you want? 

What are the conditions? 

No conditions, whatever you want. I’ll grant it. 

Alright then, I want to wake up in my own bed and not be dead. 

Don’t be stupid, I already told you, you’ll be reborn in my world, if you want to go back to your world, you’re dead. 

But you just said no conditions, whatever you want! 

“Alright this is a waste of time, bye.” She turns around and starts walking away. 

WAIT! Ok, ok, three wishes, right? 

She turns back and looks at me with her green eyes like cat looking at a mouse and says sternly “Yes, you’ve got 10 seconds, hurry!” 

I think frantically and yell “I want to be immortal!”, she smiles and says “Done, 7!, 6!”. 

“I want to be invincible!”, she smiles and says “Done, 5!”. 

My mind goes blank as I think for what to ask for next, while she counts down “4! 3! …" 

My OCD kicks in and I think “Immortal, Invincible, what else starts with I?”, my dumb brain comes up with “Idiotic? No! Incestuous? God no! … What about Idol? No! I don’t want to dance in front of a bunch of teenagers in another world!” 

She counts down “2!, 1!” 

Finally I stutter “Irr... Irresistible!” 

She gives me an evil grin and says “Done!”.