The Next Gatekeeper

It's so soft. Wait, why is the floor so comfy?    My brain tried to process the newfound information when I suddenly remembered that I died. The mall was on fire. Everyone was screaming, and I could smell the rotten stench of burning flesh coming from the left side of the building.  For sure, everyone's safe, right?   I remembered being locked up in one of the bathroom stalls inside the mall after some kid pulled a prank on me. I should have known in the first place. Mom was right. I should have kept myself from peeing until we got home.  Now, look where it got me!?   I tried prying my eyes open when I heard footsteps nearing my bed with some muffled arguments in the background. By pure instinct, I closed my eyes to act as if I'm asleep when someone snapped their fingers in front of my face making my whole system flinch.      "How nice, the Sleeping Beauty is now finally awake!" some blonde declared with his amber eyes scrutinizing my appearance.         "Hey! It's rude to stare, you know? "    I said before propping myself into a sitting position with my head resting on the bed frame.     "You see, kitty, you're a big problem right now. So, could you do me a favor? I just need to check whether your body is still intact in the right places, and after that, I'll get going. I still have a lot of work to do. "    He said before smiling at me. He could be my type, but at some point, he's rude, so, I'll pass for now.   While the blonde examines me, I glanced around the room to inhale all the information I could get when two figures standing in the doorway caught my attention.          "Hi!"    One of them greeted me with a welcoming smile while the other just stared at me.      I remembered that I'm not familiar with this place so, I asked,  "Where am I?" the three stared at me for a moment before answering my question.      "By now, you're aware that you died, am I correct?" the girl with the stoic face asked.      "I'm aware that I died in a fire because of some kid pulling a shitty prank on me. Psyche's the name, by the way," I said before extending my hand in their direction.        "You're weird." one of them said before leaving the room. Yes, I know that I'm weird, but it's kinda rude, you know. Not introducing themselves and just leaving me here hanging as if I know where I am.   I'm not inside a clinic so, does that mean that I'm in heaven? I do have a religion, but, I don't believe in God, nor do I believe in the afterlife. I gently removed the sheets off me before taking a step around the room. My eye spotted some clothes that were gently laid at the edge of my bed. I examined the clothes that were given to me. It was a black cloak made of silk, a pair of black flared pants with some long white sleeves.   I did not expect this kind of scenario to greet me after some stupid death, like, come on, who would expect something like this when they woke up from death? I walked inside the bathroom while mumbling things to myself. I took a shower and wore the clothes they provided for me.   After doing my own thing, I tried peeking out the door to see a never-ending hallway. When the coast is already clear, I took a step outside and headed towards the right, where I spotted the stairs. While walking through the long corridors, I can't help but be fascinated by how luxurious and elegant the place is.   I was about to walk downstairs when the cheery girl spotted me. She waved her hand in my direction before running towards me with a smile plastered on her face. With her hands laced on my left arm, we started walking downstairs to be greeted by people. Some of them are looking at me with pure curiosity, while the others are amazed.   We stopped in front of a door, which was mentioned to be the dining area. The door opened itself, letting the two of us in. A lot of unfamiliar faces greeted me. Some of them looked in our direction, while others don't care. I looked for a table to sit on when the cheery girl grabbed my arm and started walking into one of the tables.     "The name's Licht." The blonde from before said with a creepy smile plastered on his face.  Julia, the person who led me here, nudged him before snickering and pushing the food in my direction.     "You have to eat Psyche. You'll have to meet with the headmistress without us," she said before patting my back and continuing with her previous topic.   When I finished eating my food, a girl approached me saying that the headmistress is calling for me. I looked around the table to see their reactions, but they just shrugged at me. I feel the sweat building in my forehead right now, like hell dude, help me, your headmistress is about to roast me dead, and you guys just... Shrugged me off like that? The girl just left me in front of the room. I can hear the loud banging in my chest. I can feel my nervousness eating me alive.   The door opened itself, revealing a woman in her mid-thirties with both of her hands intertwined, her eyes scrutinizing my appearance from head to toe. "Step forward, my dear. I won't eat you alive," she said, making me shiver.     "Are you aware of your situation? To be honest, I'm shocked that after centuries of not allowing anyone across the borders, the gate opened itself for you? A mere human being who died without the characteristics of a reaper. So tell me, Miss... De Vera? What kind of sorcery allowed you to enter the gates of the in-between?."   I tried to hide my panic-stricken face as I try to think of words to answer her. She taps her fingers repeatedly on her desk while she waits patiently for my response. I haven't experienced this kind of fear because my mom has been never this strict. I wish the floor would eat me alive right now.    "I'm sorry, but even I'm not aware of how I got here in the first place," I said, now meeting her gaze.     "I see, you're trouble indeed. If someone asked you where you came from, shut yourself up and just shrugged that person off. If he's too persistent, then tell him that you were handpicked by Hydra. You can go back to your quarters, and if possible, refrain from roaming the corridors by the time the bell of death chimes."   Is that it? She just asked me how I got here, but didn't explain what I have to do. I walked around the hallways trying to familiarize myself with the place when I bumped into someone. I recognize her instantly after I saw her stoic face. It was the strawberry blonde girl from before.      She stared at me before asking, "What are you doing roaming the hallways?"      I gave her a worried smile before answering, "Sorry, but I have to familiarize myself with the place, and at some point, I'm kind of loss."  Right now, I'm scared, she's staring at me coldly, and it feels as if the room temperature went down.  I was about to go back to where I came from when she started leading the way.       "You have to be careful and ask someone to lead the way to prevent getting lost like this. You don't want to get thrown into the abyss like the other delinquents. Just to tell you this, but anyone can read your expression. If you're curious about the in-between, then long story, short. It's the world between the three main worlds which in human knowledge are called Heaven, Earth, and Hell. In short, terms were called the reapers, or should I say welcome to Mortem's lair."  She gave me a smile before handing me a piece of paper. She answered all the lingering questions in my mind. It shocked me at some point because she's not the approachable type of person. Her name's Neviah, and it sounds heavenly if you ask me. I locked my door as she instructed, tied the white cloth in the doorknobs, and voila! It's been a hectic after-death experience, but I guess it's not that bad. After all, at least I get to experience being a reaper rather than spending my life as an empty soul wandering the vast emptiness forever.   The Sun doesn't exist in this world, and that is one of the most interesting facts I have found out so far. Maybe someday I would like to try punching Mortem in the face if ever I saw him. It's now part of my bucket lists, but first, I need to sleep early cause tomorrow's the day that I have to go through the reaper introduction and its intensive training. And If this is a dream, I think I don't want to wake up anymore.