Read Notes and Credits for story. Credit to me for the writing Credit to Enya for the song, "Only Time" It's an open-ended story.
I wandered through the rain and sat down in a spot that seemed comfortable. I sat there for hours, letting the rain splash against my face and run down my neck. I sat there motionless until my family called, "Amy, come back inside! You're going to catch a cold! Did you hear me, Amy? Amy! AMY!" I didn't respond. I wanted to be alone. I wanted to be alone, with myself in the rain. Eventually it got to the point where they teased, "Amy, are you dead? Did you die of the cold?"But I stayed put. I wasn't going anywhere. A droplet of water dripped into my eye, making it sting, but I stayed. I began to sneeze, and cough. I shivered until I thought my bones would crack and fall into a fine powder on the lawn. Now I wanted to go in, to sit by the fire with my family. But I couldn't move. I couldn't cry. All I could do was sit and bear the torture. "Amy, do you want to come in now?" they teased. "You look like you're being electrocuted, by the way you're shaking." I'm sure I did. And I felt like it, too. I felt as if a lightning bolt kept shocking me, over and over. I was cold. So cold I could not move, or make a sound, any sound that I was suffering. And what did they do? They teased me ever more. "Amy, did Elsa strike you with her oh-so magical powers? Is your heart frozen in Disney-land ice?" I would've snapped their necks. But no, oh no. I was frozen to the spot. I was stuck there motionless. And soon i'll be dead! I added bitterly. Now I was so cold I didn't shiver. I didn't shed a tear, or move a muscle. Something was wrong here. I was sitting in a tree, watching my body, with them shouting at it. I was deathly cold. My fingers had long ago turned blue. I turned away, not able to bear watching my corpse being laughed at. But now what? I did not want to go back, but there wasn't a giant gateway to heaven as I had always imagined there would be when I died. Instead I found a signpost, with paths leading in two ways: "Those who died peaceful deaths" and "Those who died horrible, torturous deaths". I took the second one. A booming voice stopped me. It was cold and harsh, and sounded as though the speaker were Old Man Winter himself. "WHO ARE YOU?" It inquired. "I'm Amy." "WHAT ARE YOU DOIN' HERE, AMY?" "I died a harsh, painful death. The sign told me to come this way." I was handling this surprisingly calmly. "OH YEAH? HOW DID YOU DIE?" "I froze to death in the rain. I sat there for hours until I died from the icy water." "WHY D'YOU DO SUCH A THING?" I shrugged. "I wanted to be alone in the rain. By myself." "WHY?" "They were teasing me." "WHO?" "The Voices. In my head." "BUT THEY KEPT TEASING YOU WHEN YOU WERE OUTSIDE, DIDN'T THEY?" "Yes, they did." "SO WHY'D YOU STAY OUT IF THEY TEASED YOU EITHER WAY?" The harsh voice had a point. I had been careless, and, well, stupid, to go and freeze myself in the cold."I don't know. I was upset."The loud voice softened. "Now why were you upset?" "They were teasing me." I could tell that I had completely lost him. It was actually quite simple, now. I sat outside because they were teasing me. I stayed because I wanted to prove that they could not control me. I didn't go back because they would tease me. It made so much sense, to me, at least. "I TELL YOU WHAT."the harsh voice said."I'LL GIVE YOU ANOTHER CHANCE. BUT YOU'D BETTER NOT COME BACK AND CONFUZZLE ME AGAIN OR ELSE YOU'RE NOT GOIN' BACK." I shook my head. "No, sir. I don't want to go back. It would be too painful." "YOU HAVE TO. TO PROVE TO THE VOICES THAT THEY CANNOT DESTROY YOU WITH WORDS. GO." As I walked back to the signpost, the softer voice reminded me, "Make the most of it. This is the only time i'll accept this. Only time." I nodded confidently. "Only time."
