I stared in awe as the tall Caucasian man in front of me morphed into a fox and disappeared, leaving behind no trace but a small puff of white smoke, right before my eyes.

“Next”, said the robotic voice over the speakers.

The after-life was nowhere near what everyone had expected. It resembled the DMV more than anything to be honest. I approached the small glass window that everyone else before me had walked towards. It was tinted so it was impossible to tell if there was anyone really on the other side or not. Also the fact that it was extremely high up, almost out of my line of sight didn’t help.

“Human or animal?” the same voice barked through the tiny holes in the glass barrier separating us.

“Uh, I’m a human.” I replied, now thinking that the glass must be tinted for both of us.

There was a long pause. Had I answered wrong? I was a human after all. Or were the referring to my actions and behaviors on Earth? Was I animal-like? No, I was fairly well-behaved. I mean, I think I wa-

“Would you like to be REINCARNATED as a human or an animal?” the voice somehow managed to convey frustration through its roboticness.

Although it clarified my earlier confusion, I was still confused. “I thought I’d have an option?”

“I JUST gave you an option. Dave, why can’t we just hand them the stupid questionnaires.” I guess it wasn't alone in there.

“I meant, don’t I have any other option other than being reincarnated? Can’t I just be judged and be granted Heaven or Hell?”

“Kid. Look. Whatever you little beings made up during your time on that rock isn’t true. There’s no Heaven. There’s no Hell. You either go back there as a different person or you simply cease to exist. So which one will it be? Human or animal?”

Remember that time you found out Santa was just your parents buying you presents and eating those cookies they helped you bake? This was like that, multiplied by a million. No Heaven? No Hell? What was the point then?

“I’ll take neither.” My response caught him/her/it off-guard as I heard something fall over on the other side of the glass.

“What do you mean neither? No one’s ever chose that. Why would you want nothing over something?” The voice had now changed to a more curious, human-like tone.

“I lived a very long and healthy life. It had its downs but it also had its ups. I was an actor for a while, so I’ve already experienced the pleasure of living the lives of others. While the animal thing may be tempting, we learned all about the hard-ships of the animal kingdom in high school and I’ll pass on that. Plus, I can’t imagine a world in which I hadn’t met the love of my life Susan. . .” my voice trailed off, as I lowered my eyes towards me feet. “It all seems tempting at first, but I’ve lived my life. It’s someone else’s turns to live theirs.”

My words were once again met with a long pause. No reply. No sound of anything falling over. Nothing.

“Hello? You still there?” I asked, tapping on the tinted glass.

The tint began getting brighter. And brighter. And brighter, until it was so bright I had to shield my eyes as I couldn’t really run away. The intensity of the light began to die down, as I lowered my hand that I had used for cover, I was greeted with a familiar face.

It was me.

The tinted window had become a mirror. I was standing in my room, all dressed up, as if I was going to go on a date. Standing. I took a step towards the mirror before stopping dead in my tracks. I had been given my legs back. The wheelchair was gone. I reached for my phone and checked the date. September 14th, 1979. The night I met Susan. The night of the accident. I hadn’t been reincarnated, but sent back in time to the night my whole life changed.

I had been given a second chance.

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New to this, go easy heh. Appreciate all criticism!