Part 3

The train seemed alarmingly close now. The earth shook violently. He almost felt like the earth beneath him was cracking up. The ballast stones went berserk as the train hurtled towards him. He broke into a cold sweat and clenched his fists harder. He opened his eyes and looked at the train, the light was almost blinding now. He shut his eyes tight. A voice from within asked him to get up and run. He refused to listen.

Was this the way to end his life? Was death the answer to problems? What about those few moments that he spent with his few loved ones. Was it worth living for? Maybe, yes, but then what about his perennial problems? That last question made him feel that his decision was right. This was the only way out. He had to die.This was his destiny and it was his choice. A script that he penned and executed.

A ear shattering sound was the last he heard after which he went blank. He was engulfed in fumes. A few trying seconds later, it was all over. The ear shattering noise, the weird dancing of the ballast stones and reverberation of the earth. This was it, he was history.

As he opened his eyes hoping to find the angels that legends taught him, he was caught by surprise.

It was dark. Very dark. There was no St. Peter waiting for him in a flowing white robe. In fact it was deserted. He struggled to his feet and looked around. It was far from what he had expected.

A queer little red light and a familiar noise now faded into the darkness. A few befuddled seconds passed before reality dawned. The train had actually gone past him on the adjacent track. He looked around in disbelief. He pinched himself to see if he was still alive.

He had failed. Once more. Another decision gone kaput. Even death had cheated him.

Or was it the other way round? Did he cheat death? Could it have been that destiny wanted him to live? Was this a fresh lease of life that was given to him? Could it be that this was life’s way of saying that he did not have the right to decide when to die? Does life actually dictate terms?
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Well for me it has. On numerous occasions. My life has not been too different from my character’s. True, thankfully I haven’t been too much in debt, but there have been times when I have been driven to the brink of depression. Life, with its twists and turns has always sprung surprises. Some good and some not so good. Clichéd as it may seem, when one door closes, another one always opens somewhere…

So back to the story, what happens to the guy next? I don’t really know. Maybe he went home. Maybe he waited for the next train to try his luck again. Logically, there could have been no other possibility. I leave it up to you to decide what would have happened to him. How would you have reacted if you were in his shoes? Would you have gone back to an unwelcome world, where foes outnumber friends or would you have said Hasta La Vista? Over to you!!!

Cut!!!!Credits, please ;-)