Maggie was suddenly jolted awake but the quick jolt that slammed her face against the window. Blinking away the slight pain, she remembered where she was. She was on bus number 17, which had departed from it's usual stop in her tiny home town at five this morning, and was headed to who knows where, but she could care less. Her mindset this morning when she boarded was just to get somewhere new where no one knew her. She'd carefully planned her departure time so that her parents wouldn't realize she was gone until she was halfway to her mystery point B. Two days before, she told them she would be spending this weekend at her best friend's cabin as a last fling before graduation next week, and would go straight there after school, but this morning she told her friend she was sick and couldn't go. So, her parents thought her to be at a cabin with zero cell reception, and her friends thought her home sick, the perfect plan, at least until Monday. "Attention passengers, we will be arriving at the Chicago stop in fifteen minutes." The sickly sweet voice chimed over the loudspeakers. "Chicago, huh? Why not?" She muttered to herself as she began to gather what little belongings she brought with her: A backpack full of clothes and snacks, her kindle-with all of her favorite books-, and her purse; containing a new cell phone she'd traded from a boy at school, some chapstick, pens, notepads, random nicknacks it'd collected over time, and her wallet- full of her driver's licence and three hundred dollars cash she'd withdrawn from her mom's account this morning. Pulling her earbuds out, she stashed her ipod back into her pocket and stood as the bus approached it's stop. "Now arriving at Chicago stop 9. Have a nice day." Then woman announced with vomit-worthy cheer. Maggie sighed as she stood, pushing her way into the line of people eagerly trying to exit the bus. "Excuse me, ma'am? Can you come here for a moment?" She glanced up as someone grabbed her arm. "Umm.." but the strange man was already pulling her towards the back of the bus. She glanced wearily towards the last few people filing out onto the streets. No one left to notice anything that could happen. She opened her mouth to say that she really needed to get off, but he spoke before she could. "Maggie Elizabeth Halten, age eighteen. You departed this morning at five oh-two a.m.. The current time is three forty-four p.m.. End Time was approximately eleven sixteen." She stared at him like he had four eyes and bird crap on his face. "How do you know my name? And when I left? What do you mean End Time?" She asked. "Maggie Elizabeth, I've known your name since I was assigned to you before you were born. I have followed you in everything you do since you breathed your first breath. My name is Jaeden Amicha, I am your guider." he said. "Guider? What are you guiding me through?" "The afterlife. I am in charge of making sure you understand the laws you must abide by, and helping you hone your abilities. End Time? That means time of death. Around four hours and thirty minutes ago, you were murdered by the council. Living will see your death as natural causes. By order of the council, you are to spend two hundred years riding this bus, I hope you brought entertainment."
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