If Shel had known what was going to happen next she would have stayed inside the cabin of the ferry, but as she did not have any fore-warning and because the cabin was hot and stale she gladly stepped carefully over the oversize door seal and onto the deck.
The powerfully fragrant bay air pressed her sweaty top to her chest as she tried to shift the baby sling gently. Her second daughter was nestled in the sling across her belly half under her left arm, sleeping. Her first child was asleep in the backpack on her back, her head resting on Shel’s shoulder, tiny snores sounding in her ear. It had been a long day of visiting her in-laws and the return trip on the rocking ferry had quickly put both of the kids asleep.
The ferry was trundling along through the evening waves as it crossed the bay, this was a fairly regular trip for the young mother and her two daughters as she tried to visit her late husband James’ parents as often as she could, she would avoid booking any customers for a day every few weeks and make the passage.
Shel stepped to the side of the ship, leaning on the rail and angling herself so the breeze forced its way through the few gaps in the various straps and bands holding the babies tight to her body. The backpack and sling were both a blessing and a curse, she could carry them both easily across all sorts of terrain and man made obstacles like stairs and gangways, however they were heavy and it was difficult to get the kids in and out of the contraption, so she usually just sweated it out in a single run.
Shel watched the city slide by as the ferry approached the Bay Bridge, about fifteen more minutes and the ferry would dock at the Blue-Water Dock, which was only five minutes walk from home. Shel tried to stretch her shoulders slowly to avoid waking up the babies, she was tired and ready to put the children to bed and take a long soaking bath.
It was a good day overall, her visit went well, the in-laws were looking better now that the summer heat had started. Her mother in law was so nice and supportive, she had been a constant in Shel’s shattered life after James had died, Shel was not sure how she would have made it through the last year without her strong shoulder to cry on.
James’ father was also a huge help in his own stoic manner, he had quietly slipped a thick envelope in the baby bag when he thought she was not looking, it was probably money. He did not have much to say, but his actions always spoke volumes.
Shel closed her eyes, holding the rail, and enjoyed the breeze blowing her dress about her legs, as the shadow of the Bridge passed over the ship.
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Troy quickly skated along the walkway along the Bay bridge, he blithely ignored the no skateboard signs. He was popping the nose of the board over each of the grates in the sidewalk, if he timed it right he could see saw over the grates and not even slow down. He was running late and his stepfather was going to be upset if he did not get back to the shop soon.
The address on the last delivery was not correct and it had taken him an extra ten minutes to figure out where the large order of tacos was supposed to be delivered. They had given him a nice tip though so it would totally be worth it, as long as he could make it back quickly, orders were surely piling up.
He crested the hill and picked up speed on the downhill slope. The double grate was coming up fast, he needed to Ollie over the extra wide gap between the steel or his wheels would get stuck.
As Troy hopped his board the back wheel caught a pebble and the skateboard hesitated for a second, he lost his balance and slammed the board down hard, the front wheels dropped right into the wide gap with a loud crunch.
Troy stumbled and rolled as the skateboard stopped suddenly. Tony continued rolling back onto to his feet like a pro, at least his backpack was empty, it would have been a disaster if he had rolled over a delivery, again.
Tony reached down and grabbed his skateboard, oh man his front wheels were torn right out of the board, just a bunch of raggedy holes remaining.
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He glanced down through the grate to the blue waters below, “Crap, my big tip, spent” he growled, starting to jog down the sidewalk, at least he had a good excuse for his stepfather.
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The Captain of the ferry checked the buoys again, making sure he was in the center of the lane, he was confident of his placement as they slid under the bridge, he looked again at the pretty young girl standing along the side-rail of his ship.
She was a regular, and each time he saw her he was reminded of his grand daughter, she would have been about that age by now.
The wind swept back her long hair as she closed her eyes and smiled, he unconsciously smiled along with her.
Something dark dropped out of the sky, off the bridge, and struck her in the side of the head. He watched in helpless horror as she went boneless and collapsed, the weight of her backpack carrying her over the railing into the bay.
He grabbed the horn cable and pulled it repeatedly in the man overboard signal, while frantically throwing the ship into neutral and turning the rudder.
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Shel opened her eyes, confused, what happened? Everything had suddenly changed, The sounds of the wind, waves, and ship had just cut off, and she was no longer sweaty, or sore. She was sitting in a comfortable chair in a silent room.
Shel patted her belly, where are Arla and Kenzie? She looked around in a panic, the quiet room was empty, just a chair and simple desk across from her.
White walls, nothing else, no doors, or windows. Shel jumped up, she did not have her backpack or the baby sling, she quickly circled the room, and shouted.
“Hey?” she paced the walls, “Where the hell is the door?” she growled.
“Welcome weary Traveler!” Shel heard a smooth voice talking from the previously empty chair, she snapped around and stared, there in the chair was a woman, smiling gently.
“What is going on? Where are my children?” Shel asked.
“Sit,” the smiling woman said, gesturing towards the first chair, “I will explain”.
Shel glanced around at the still empty room warily and perched on the front edge of the chair.
“I am Josephine, I am here to help you with the next steps of your transition, what do you remember happening last?” the woman asked.
“Transition? Um…” She shook her head, “I was standing on the deck of the ship, enjoying the breeze, and then here I am.” Shel answered.
“Interesting, so no screeching of tires or honking horns?” Josephine asked, “Wait, you were on a ship?”
“Yes, with my children, we were heading home across the bay. Do you know where my children are?” Shel asked leaning forward in her chair.
“How unusual, my files show that you are supposed to receive the Isekai special, and this is only available to souls who were killed by a truck, while unaware or distracted.” Josephine opened a crisp manila folder and started flipping pages. “Your name is Shelly Hollinday?”
“Killed? What do you mean killed?” Shel stood up again.
“Peace, calm.” Josephine made a complicated gesture with her hand towards Shel, a shiver ran down Shel's spine and a cool calm feeling settled over her heart. Shel gently sat back down in the chair, ‘Everything is fine, nothing to be worried about’ she thought to herself. ‘I will just talk to this nice lady for a minute and then we will find the babies and everything will be fine.’
“What is your name?”
“Shel Hollinday, I mean Shelly, Shelly Hollinday, I usually go by Shel”
“Good, so I have the right paperwork, and you say you were on a ship, were there any trucks on the ship with you?” Josephine asked, her smile was starting to get a little strained.
“No” answered Shel, “this was a passenger ferry, no cars or trucks just a few bikes and strollers, oh and that really heavy guy with the wheelchair. Anyway, we were hundreds of feet out in the water, its not like a truck is going to just fall from the sky.”
“Just a moment, I will review your case” Josephine closed her eyes and flickered.
Shel stared at the opposite chair seat cover through Josephine’s body as her entire being seemed to stutter for a few seconds. She opened her eyes and gave Shel a bright smile. The weirdness of the situation was starting to overcome the calm feeling in Shel’s heart.
Josephine opened her eyes and with a delighted look on her face said, “I can confirm that you were indeed struck by a truck, and this resulted in your untimely demise, isn't that wonderful!”