"Where, am I?" I pondered, my mind a daze as I opened my eyes, a white plain surrounded me, my body nothing but a mist in a flat plain of a common shade.

"Well, you're dead." A voice answered within the mist, an angelic sound, music that calmed the soul.

"Dead?"

A figure made itself known to me, a woman with white hair that draped down her figure, angelic blue eyes that stared back at me through long lashes with a confident yet humble smile. Her body adorned with the attire of a nun, the sleeves of her bestowment touching the floor that rippled with her movements.

"Yup." She announces, her hands on her hips in childish playfulness.

"You've been dead for some time now."

"Huh?! Died?! From what?"

"Overwork."

"Figures-"

The nun smiled, pointing at me with a challenging spark in her eyes.

"Fear not oh lost one! I'm here to give you a second chance!"

"A second chance?" I repeated, confused to what she meant.

"A second chance at what?"

"At life of course!" She lowered her arm.

"You had something you longed for that you never got, even during death, it was the only thing on your mind." Her smile faded slightly in favor for a more serious look, her hand reaching for her heart, a form of sincerity as she spoke her words to spark hope in my tired soul.

"It was heart warming, and sad to see you go like that." Tears pricked her eyes but she quickly dispelled of them in hopes that i didn't notice. Her actions more rash in an attempts to play it off.

"That's why, I, the all might goddess will grant you your wish! A second chance with your family!"

My mouth feel agape, I couldn't believe my ears, the woman before me- no the goddess before me is about to grant me my one and only wish in this world. I gritted my teeth as I tried not to cry, my hands instinctively reaching for my eyes to dispel the tears. My breath hitched under the weight of my sorrows as I fell to my knees. Balling my eyes out before the goddess that stood before me.

"Thank you!" I cried, my head to the floor, hand grabbing at my chest.

The goddess just looked down upon me, a mere mortal to her, with kind eyes. She didn't have to do this but she did, out of the kindness of her heart, and I'm grateful. I couldn't dare ask for more.

"Oh by the way, you'll be in a different body." She stated out of the blue.

....

...

"Huh?"

_______________

"Hey! Hey dad! Look!" A young Masao ran to my side, her hands up in the air, holding a cup made by her, the ridges were not well done and the cup was dented in the side, my name lazily written across the cup and the line best dad written by it.

My wife walked by her side with a proud grin.

"Look at what she made in class for father's day. She says it's a gift for you." She reached down to run her finger's through her daughter's hair.

"Yeah! I did it all for you!" She announced, reaffirming my wife's words.

I laughed taking the cup from her with a soft smile on my face.

"Thank you, Masao, it means a lot. I'll treasure it forever." I said as I turned the cup in my hands, a proud look in my eyes.

"Woah you're so good! you're gonna become a great potter someday I'm sure of it." I reassured with a grin. Masao smiled back at me, she could hardly contain her excitement at my affirmation, jumping up and down with a burst of dopamine.

"You heard that Masao?" My wife asked, "He really likes it!"

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"Masao?"

"Earth to Masao."

"Hey, Masao. You ok?" My wife- no Masao's mom knocked on her door, she was dressed in all black, her face wearing it's fourth set of makeup for the hour. My funeral had just concluded and everyone was locked in their rooms, wanting time to themselves after all that had happened.

"Yeah," Masao murmured, her hands fiddling with the broken cup that I refused to throw away even though it broke, tears welled up in her eyes at the mere sight of it. Her voice carried cracks that couldn't be filled, ones that mimicked the shattered clay in her hands. Eyes welled with with tears that had yet to be shed, trying to stay strong for a someone who isn't even here, full privacy yet still trying to keep it in, crying herself to sleep.

The sound of an alarm woke her from her slumber, dead eyes panning up to the ceiling. A soft sigh escaped her lips.

"Oh yeah, school." She muttered, getting out of bed in a sluggish mumble. Another day, another reminder, another long wait for the train, another boring class, another minute of regret, another minute of-

"Disappointment..."

"Hey, you ok?" Someone tapped her shoulder, a girl with short brown hair, brown eyes and a beauty spot near her lips. She sat next to Masao, her eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"My dad died recently." She muttered, her hand idly playing with a pencil she had in her hand.

"Oh, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. It's not like i had a close relationship with him or anything...Just disappointed I couldn't get him to notice me-"

The girl opened her mouth to say something, her voice interrupted by someone calling out to her.

"Hey Konami! Have you seen Tanaka anywhere?"

Konami looked over to a group of boys waiting for a response, a sigh escaping her lips.

"No, why'd you think I'd know anything about Tanaka?"

"You two are dating aren't you?"

"Like hell we are!"

Masao laughed softly at the misunderstanding, her head leaned against her hand, cupping her face ever so slightly.

"What's so funny all of a sudden-" Konami muttered, looking at her once gloomy friend.

"Nothing." Masao smiled.

_________________________

"Mom! I'm heading for school!" A boy with yellow hair spoke, a brown patch in the center of it.

"Be home early this time Tanaka, we need you for packing!"

His blue eyes were filled with loathing and annoyance, slamming the door with all his might before storming off.

"They don't get it at all." He muttered, his hands reached to scratch his head to dispel his frustrations, taking his usual trip to the subway.

"She could've at least told me that they were thinking of moving."

"Though I'd probably react the same regardless-" He muttered on the way, kicking rocks idly as he thought about his predicament.

"I should've seen it coming- mom has been wanting to get away from dad a while now but- I don't know." He stopped at the crosswalk, standing near a woman and her child with a balloon, waiting for the light to turn green, his gaze staring to the blue sky that loamed over him, the clouds flying by without a care in the world.

"Six months to say goodbye to everyone-"

"What I would give right now, to just have everything stay the same."

"Hey- no wait!" The sound of the mother's muffled cry caught his attention, a truck coming at full speed and the child running for the balloon that fell on the road.

Time slowed for Tanaka, his gaze set to the child, his body moving without thinking, the strap of his bag sliding off his arms from the sudden speed, hand's reaching out for the boy, but he couldn't quite reach. His feet dig into the granite road, lunging at the child, pushing him out of the way, and for a mere moment, there was silence, all the screams and adrenaline dissipated in an instant for complete serenity and bliss.