[ WP ] '' Death Insurance '' is a paid subscription service that brings a loved one back to life for the next 24 hours after their death in order to say goodbye . You awake after your death to discover you were a recipient of a gift subscription from an unknown benefactor .

I awoke to the smell of blood. My heartbeat pulsed in my head in a deafening rhythm. I could feel my eyes roll forward as I opened them, their focus wildly adjusting. Shapes and colors blurred and cleared and blurred again. I sat up and fought gravity as it shifted from wall to floor to ceiling. As everything finally reached a familiar semblance of balance I found myself in my apartment bedroom. My sheets were stained red about where my stomach would lie. I nervously brought my hand to my abdomen. It passed over the handle of a knife, wet with blood. Dazed, I looked back down to my bed and found a business card sitting on the pillow, which read: 
 
 *Morrigan and Creed* 
 
 *Revival and Life Insurance* 
 
 *888 Valkyrie St.* 
 
 My mind fit together the pieces and I realized what must have happened. I looked back down at the knife protruding from my gut and tried not to vomit. Bracing myself, I gripped and pulled. It slid free without protest and clattered to the floor. It did n't even hurt. Still dizzy, I stumbled down the hall and into the kitchen, desperate for something to drink. 
 
 I downed three glasses of water before I heard sniffling from the living room. Quietly, I stole to the doorway. Marie was sitting on the couch, her face in her hands. 
 
 `` Hey,'' I said, my nervousness more apparent than I'd have liked. 
 
 Marie jumped, looked at me, then at my stomach, and began sobbing. I hobbled to the armchair opposite her. We sat like that for a long time. 
 
 `` Well, I've known couples who have been through worse,'' I tried to grin, but got the feeling it was more of a grimace. Marie looked at me, bewildered. 
 
 `` That's just like you,'' she replied, out of breath. `` I stab you three times and you make jokes.'' 
 
 `` Three?'' I looked about, unable to find the other two wounds. 
 
 `` Y-you're back,'' she stammered. 
 
 `` Oh. I guess I better not sit back, then, Huh? I'd ruin your mom's chair.'' 
 
 `` Jason!'' 
 
 `` Sorry. I guess I just do n't know how to deal with... being murdered.'' 
 
 `` Jesus. Do you have to say it like that?'' 
 
 `` Well what else is this, Marie? It's a bit more than a couple's fight.'' 
 
 She looked up at me, her face blotchy and her beautiful brown eyes reddened with tears. Somehow, I could n't be angry. Somehow I knew I deserved it after what I'd put her through. None of this was fair for either of us. 
 
 `` How long do I have?'' I asked quietly. 
 
 `` Twenty-four hours. That's all I could afford.'' She brushed more tears away with the back of her hand. 
 
 `` You emptied the account?'' 
 
 She nodded. 
 
 `` Call my parents. They'll reimburse you.'' 
 
 `` Oh, right. Hi Mrs. Lawson! I killed your son! Give me some cash!'' 
 
 `` Marie, please.'' 
 
 `` I know. I'm sorry.'' 
 
 We sat there, across from each other and worlds apart. I did n't know how to feel, or if I felt at all. I had fucked up and now it had caught up to me. I just never thought it would come in the form of my fiance and a steak knife. 
 
 `` Jason?'' She looked at me, her eyes pleading and lips quivering. 
 
 `` Yeah?'' 
 
 `` I love you.'' 
 
 The world flipped and my heart spun. I ca n't remember now if I said it back. 
 

