RE-ENTER

The room was ice cold. Darkness settled in, blocking out the moon. Shadows circled around the bed. Tremors ran through silk sheets, and sweat lingered against skin. And silent screams traced open lips, and tears kissed the tightly held pillow. And eyes flashed open, pools of fear.

"No!"

A pale hand reached for the empty space next to him. It lingered over her absence. Fingers dug into the sheets. His fists struck the air, and slowly he sat up. And he rested his head in hands that still shook, and if only she were here could his nightmares leave him be. But even they had pushed her away.

Justin grabbed the cordless phone out of its cradle. Its bed came crashing down along the wooden floor. Its black frame mocked him against the darkness, but it did not break. And his eyes held to the abyss, where the phone had stood, and his fingers wrapped tightly over its plastic surface, trying to snap back to reality.

"Hey. It's me."

"Justin? Do you know what time it is?"

"A little after four, Al."

"You can't keep doing this, bro. Janice even told you that."

"I know." He leaned against the wall. "If you can't talk, then I understand."

"No. No, I can talk. I can talk." A stifled yawn chased after his words. "What about that doctor I referred you to?"

"That quack? I don't need my head examined."

"Justin, you're calling me up every single night, and it keeps getting earlier and earlier. They won't let you back into the program, if you don't get any help, and I can't vouch for you."

"Would you go back? After everything that happened, would you?"

"Yes. It's my life, bro. I hate what happened, but it's who I am."

"But they're dead."

"I know."

"Don't you care about that?" He bit his lip. "We walked away. You and me, and the rest of them... They died."

"I know. I was there like you, and we were the lucky ones."

"The lucky ones." He ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't feel so lucky. How come I'm having nightmares, and you're not?"

"I wasn't in a coma for a few weeks, but my leg was broken. Remember?"

"Yeah. You're superman."

"Look, it's too early to fight about this. Do you want to get breakfast?"

"No." His eyes drifted across the walls around him. "I haven't been hungry lately. Maybe I did die up there."

"Justin, don't."

"Maybe we didn't make it."

"I'm coming over."

"No! No. I'm fine, but I just need to know something."

"What? I'm worried about you, and so is Janice. But she won't come back, if you don't get any help."

"I know, Al. I know."

"What do you want to know?"

"Did you see anything when it happened?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Anything?"

"I saw a lot of smoke, fire. We're falling so fast, and the shuttle was breaking apart. I could hear screams, but I was struggling to remain in control. And you were in the back, trying to keep the engines working, and it was a mess. And it was a miracle that we crashed into the ocean in one piece, and it was a miracle that we survived. And I'm trying to put that behind me, and you should do the same. And you need to get help."

"I saw something." He licked his lips. "I saw a man floating out to space. He was reaching to me. I could hear him screaming, and then it all went dark. And then I woke up in the hospital."

"There was no man, Justin. They all died in the shuttle."

"There was a man, Al, and I knew him. But I don't know who he was or how he got there, but I see him every night when I close my eyes. And he won't leave me alone."

"Justin. Do you want me to come over?"

"No."

"Do you want me to call the doctor?" Tears rolled down Justin's cheek, and he refused to answer. "Justin?"

"Yes. Call the doctor."

"I'm stopping by later. You know that, right?"

"Yeah."

"I'm worried about you."

"You're a good friend, Al. You always have been." His eyes held to the darkness. "I'll see you later." He disconnected the call before his friend could say anything else. "You just can't help me," he whispered.

His breath curled out of his lips and slipped into little, white clouds. His skin was ice cold. Tremors raced along his spine, and the scent of death lingered across the air. And he knew that he was not alone, but there was nobody else inside this room.

"Leave me alone!" The darkness swayed before him. "Leave me alone!"

Jumping out of the bed, Justin ran out into the hallway. Shadows fell against pictures of family and friends. Those good times felt like decades ago, and those memories were now left cold. And the darkness followed him over to the thermostat, where he found the temperature at seventy, but how could that be? He was freezing to the bone.

"Justin."

The hair rose on his arms. Clouds of breath exited his lips. His hands shook, and fear sliced through him. And he slapped himself across the face, trying to snap out of it, but someone was there. And he lingered by the bedroom door.

"Justin. Why don't you come back inside?"

"No." He could see a sliver of a man standing in the room. "What do you want from me?"

"I need for you to come back inside."

"I didn't survive, did I?"

"You did." His words hung in the air. "You were one of the lucky ones."

"Who are you?"

"You know."

"No, I don't know. How the hell did you get into my house?" He received no response. "What are you? Some kind of stalker?" No response. "Answer me!"

"Come inside."

Cautiously, Justin re-entered his bedroom. The darkness fell back to reveal a ghost of a man standing in the corner. The bitter chill of space surrounded him. The stars outside seemed to slip in and find home on the ceiling above, and the floor hummed under his feet. And he felt like he was drifting, falling away.

"I don't want to go."

"You won't, Justin."

"Then, why are you here?" He tried to focus on his face, but it was blurred. "How do I know you?"

"How could you not?" The man stepped closer.

"No. No!" He stumbled back. "I lived. You said I lived!"

"You lived." The man stood before him. "And you died."

Justin stared at the man before him. There was no mistake. It was him, but how could that be? How could there be two of them?

"I don't know," he answered. "I was working on the engines when the wall came apart, and I got sucked outside."

"But the wall never came apart."

"In my reality, it did, and I saw you looking back at me. And my last thought was how was I still on the shuttle when I was about to die."

"I don't know," Justin mumbled. "If you died, then why are you here now?"

"Because you won't let go."

"They're dead because of me. I screwed up."

"We screwed up, and I paid the price for it. But you get to live. Instead, you want to die."

"No, I don't."

"Don't lie to yourself." Justin fell quiet. "You're wasting away, and you know it. And you have to let go. You can't hold on to the what ifs, and I can't remain like this. Stuck in limbo. You have to let go."

"How?"

"By forgiving yourself. You did all that you could, and you still have a life to live. You got a second chance. Don't let us die in vain."

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it, Justin. Let us go." Tears streamed down his face. "Please. Let me go."

The darkness closed in. Icy hands ran over his chest, reaching for his heart. Cold tears lingered across his cheeks. If he were to die in space, then this would be what it would feel like, and he had to let go. Or he would remain stuck, trapped between two lives.

Closing his eyes, he focused on Janice. Her love chased the chill away. A fire ignited in his heart, and his hands reached for her and held her tight. And his love silenced his fear, and he knew that he was right. He was lucky to be alive, and he tried to save them. But he had to let go.

Sunlight filtered in through his bedroom window. Warmth fell across his skin. He savored its touch, never wanting to be cold again. His eyes drifted across the lit walls, and a smile touched his lips. He was alone, and a heavy burden no longer pressed against him. And the birds outside sung, calling to him, and his life was waiting to begin. And he would call his love back home.