The Axis Tower was the tallest building in the district. It was forty stories of abandoned concrete and shattered glass, a monument to a construction project that ran out of money halfway through.
It was perfect. No cameras. No guards. No one to ask Elian why he was climbing the stairs at 11:00 PM on a Tuesday.
Elian reached the roof, his legs burning from the climb. He pushed open the heavy steel door. The wind hit him instantly. It was violent up here, whipping his hair into his eyes and chilling the sweat on his back. The city lights stretched out below him like a sea of electric stars, gold, white, and red.
It was beautiful. It was the first beautiful thing he had really looked at in months.
Elian walked to the ledge. He didn't look down. Looking down would make it scary. Instead, he looked up at the moon. It looked cold and indifferent. Just like everything else.
"I'm sorry," Elian whispered to the wind. He thought about his parents screaming in the kitchen. "You can be free now."
He took a deep breath, filling his lungs with the cold air one last time. He closed his eyes. He leaned forward, letting gravity take the wheel. The silence was perfect.
CRUNCH.
The sound was loud, wet, and decidedly not atmospheric. Elian's eyes snapped open. He flailed his arms, catching his balance just before he tipped over. He stumbled back from the ledge, heart hammering against his ribs.
He wasn't alone.
Sitting on the concrete parapet, legs dangling over the forty-story drop, was a girl. She looked about his age. She wore a strange, over sized black coat that rippled in the wind like smoke. She was holding a bright red apple.
CRUNCH.
She took another bite, chewing loudly. She didn't look at Elian. She looked bored. "Hmm?" She swallowed. "Don't mind me. Continue."
Elian stared at her. His brain, which had been ready for death, was now scrambling to process this new data. "Who... who are you?"
"I'm no one," the girl said, swinging her legs over the abyss. "Just pretend I'm not here."
Elian looked at her, then at the drop, then back at her. The "tragic atmosphere" was completely ruined.
"You... you shouldn't be here," Elian stammered. "It's dangerous. You could fall."
The girl turned to look at him properly for the first time. Her eyes were strange, too bright, almost glowing in the dark. "You're telling me it's dangerous?" She raised an eyebrow. "Weren't you about to jump?"
Elian flinched. "That's... different." "How is it different?"
"Because I want to leave!"
"Okay," the girl shrugged, taking another bite. "Then leave. I'm waiting."
"Waiting?"
"For you to jump," she said, munching on the apple. "I can't do my job until you're actually dead. It's a paperwork thing."
Elian took a step back. The wind suddenly felt colder. "What do you mean? Who are you?"
"Aish, you humans are so noisy," the girl sighed. She tossed the apple core over her shoulder. It fell forty stories down into the dark. She wiped her hands on her coat. "I told you. I'm no one. But if you need a title... I am Lyra the Prettiest Grim Reaper."
Elian stared at her. Silence stretched between them.
Then, Elian let out a nervous, incredulous laugh. "A Grim Reaper? Seriously?" He looked around the roof. "Is this a prank? Where's the camera? Is Jason putting you up to this?"
"Camera?" The girl frowned. "You mean that weird box that flashes light? I don't have that. And I don't know who Jason is. I'm here for you, Elian."
Elian froze. He hadn't told her his name.
"You're... you're crazy," Elian whispered. He backed away toward the door. "You're just some mentally unstable girl who broke in here. Someone left you here to die, just like me."
"Hey!" The girl stood up on the narrow ledge, balancing perfectly on her toes. She looked offended. "Who are you calling mentally unstable? I am the most beautiful, most intelligent Reaper in the Division! I passed the exams with flying colors!"
"Yeah, yeah, sure," Elian said, his hand finding the door handle behind him. "Look, I'm just going to go..."
"Go?" The girl tilted her head. "But you came here to die. You're early, you know."
Elian stopped. "Early?"
"Your file says you have thirty days left," she said casually, pulling a small black notebook out of thin air. "Technically, 29 days, and 50 minutes. But since you climbed all the way up here, I figured I could make an exception. I have holidays coming up, and finishing you early would really clear my schedule."
She smiled. It was a nice smile, but it didn't reach her eyes. Her eyes were ancient.
"So?" she asked, stepping off the ledge onto the roof. "Are we doing this? Jump, or should I push you?"
Elian looked at her. He looked at the book that appeared from nowhere. He looked at the way her coat didn't seem to move with the wind, but against it.
Terror, cold and sharp, pierced through his depression. He didn't want to die. Not like this. Not with her.
"You're a ghost," he whispered.
"I prefer 'Celestial Civil Servant'," she corrected.
"WHAT THE HELL!" Elian screamed.
He didn't jump. He didn't check his watch. Elian, the boy who had come to the roof to end his life, ripped the door open and sprinted down the stairs.
"Hey!" the girl shouted after him. "Where are you going?! You're making this harder than it needs to be!"
Elian didn't answer. He took the stairs three at a time, stumbling, gasping, running for his life. He ran all the way to the bottom. He ran out of the building. He ran down the street, past the park, past the school.
He didn't stop until he reached his house. He fumbled with his keys, unlocked the door, threw himself inside, and bolted it shut.
He slid down against the door, his heart pounding like a drum in his chest. He was alive. He was terrified.
"Crazy," he panted, clutching his chest. "She was just crazy. Just a crazy girl on a roof." He squeezed his eyes shut. "I need to sleep. Just sleep. It was a hallucination. Just stress."
He pushed himself up and walked into the living room, heading for the kitchen to get a glass of water. He stopped.
The light in the kitchen was on. The fridge door was open.
"Hmm?" a voice came from behind the fridge door. "Why do you have nothing good to eat here? I hate instant noodles."
The girl peeked out from behind the fridge door. She was holding his carton of milk. She waved.
Elian screamed.
AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!