EXIT

The day was dark and cloudy. Amy stood in front of a window, looking at the cars passing by. Except for cars, the street was absolutely still. Not a single person outside. Amy’s phone vibrated. She went to the kitchen table to check it. A text message from an unknown number: “I am waiting outside”. Amy came up to the window again. Still not a single person. Another text: “You won’t see me until you are outside”.

Amy didn’t like to be stalked. Any other day she would get angry. But today she was bored and felt adventurous. Her neighborhood was safe and Amy decided to check out the strange messenger. She put on her shoes, threw on her coat and came down to the street, holding her phone in her hand.

At the end of the street a teenage boy was walking towards her with a large fluffy dog. When he was close Amy looked at the boy intently.

“What are you staring at?!” the boy grudged and continued walking. Amy felt a little embarrassed and a little angry because she was embarrassed. But then her phone vibrated again. “Follow the guy with the dog.”

It was a tough choice. Any other day Amy would turn back and go home, cursing the stupid adventure. Moreover, Amy didn’t want to be humiliated again by the teenager. “Oh, whatever.” She thought to herself, and she walked after the boy who was about to turn to another street.

When Amy turned around the corner the boy and the dog were no longer there. Instead, a bunch of school kids were cheering and talking loudly amongst themselves. Amy squeezed through the group of kids and continued walking, looking around in the hope to find the guy and his dog.

The phone vibrated again. “Stop here!”. Amy stopped, looking around. Another message “Enter the most unusual place on the street.”

Even though Amy lived next block she realized she had never paid attention to what was on this street. It was on the opposite end of her bus stop, so Amy hardly walked here before. She started walking slowly, looking at the signs around her.

First she saw what looked like a fast food place. “Horseburgers and more”. That was kind of unusual. Should she enter? Amy decided to keep walking. Next was a store with lots of phones on display. A big sign next to the phones: “SWAP YOUR PHONE - LIVE A NEW LIFE!” Woah, that’s an interesting idea! But somehow Amy didn’t feel like giving away her phone or living someone else’s life, so she kept walking.
“Happy kids ice cream palace”. Nothing unusual about that. Amy peeked inside. A huge hall, elderly people sitting at round tables and playing some kind of a board game. Hmmm….

“Fishing and Art supplies. ADULTS ONLY!”...
A brown building with a sign “EXIT” on the door …
“H.E.L.L Industries, incorporated”...
“Make Your Own Baby” shop...
“Hair Styling and Performance Arts Center”...
“Heads and Tails. Organ Donation Clinic”...

Amy walked back and forth bemused at how she could have missed a street with so many weird and ridiculous places. At some point she found herself standing next to the door with an “EXIT” sign on it. It belonged to a 3-4 story brown building with no windows. Amy couldn’t quite tell why she chose this door and this building. It seemed like it was calling her. There was something really absurd about a building with no windows where the only entrance has an “EXIT” sign on it. Amy opened the door and entered a hallway lit with bright lights.

It seemed she was alone. Amy closed the door behind her and stood there, fascinated by the abundance of lights and mirrors. High ceiling with chandeliers, a wide curved staircase leading upstairs… Somebody was coming down the staircase… A young woman in a beautiful red dress, her face beaming with joy.

“Amy! Amy is here!” the woman happily cried and rushed towards Amy. Amy heard footsteps and live chatter. Men, women of different ages, even children were coming down the stairs to greet her. Everybody seemed truly happy to see her, as if they all knew her. Some would give her a hug. Some would say something about how wonderful it is that Amy came. Some just stood there, happy smiles on their faces.

As much as it was confusing, Amy felt loved and welcomed and gradually a smile appeared on her face as well.

A girl came up to her, took her hand and gently pulled her towards the curved staircase. Everybody followed them.

The space upstairs was very different. Dimmed lights, soft cushioned floor, sitting pillows and bean bags everywhere.

Everybody started sitting down on the floor. So did Amy. She somehow found herself in the center of a big circle of people. The sounds quieted down. Everybody was sitting with peaceful happy smiles on their faces, looking at Amy.

It started to become really uncomfortable. The silence felt heavier and heavier. Amy kept readjusting her position, the leftover of a smile still on her face.

“What?!” - she couldn’t take it anymore. “What am I supposed to do?!”

“Just be with us, Amy,” an elderly man said peacefully. His voice was so calming and reassuring that Amy exhaled, her anxiety leaving with her breath.

She was sitting there, relaxed, looking at people around her, allowing in their gazes. Supposedly strangers, but somehow they seemed the opposite of strangers. They felt closer than friends, closer than relatives.

Amy sat there, looking into the eyes of each one of them, experiencing the world of each person, experiencing the love and connection.

Then something happened inside her. First she felt a knot in her throat. Then an overpowering emotion started rising from the bottom of her soul, up and outside. It was impossible to contain, it was bigger than her. It came out violently and burst Amy into tears.

She couldn’t stop crying. And she didn’t want to stop. She knew it was the right thing to do.
“Thank you” she whispered, tears running down her cheeks. “And thank you. And you…”

A girl got up, came up to Amy and hugged her. The others started getting up too, moving closer to Amy, hugging her, holding her hands, touching her shoulders, her hair… Somebody put their head on her knees.

It felt so good! It felt so right! It was a moment to die for. It was a moment to live for!

It got very quiet. Amy was lying on the floor without any sense of where her body ends and other bodies begin. It felt like they were one big creature made of many bodies, resting peacefully on the floor. She lost a sense of herself. She lost track of time. And yet, she felt at home, more at home than she ever felt in her life.

Somewhere below, as if in another universe there was a sound of a door opening and closing. Amy heard somebody getting up and going downstairs.

“Jamie! Jamie is here!” - she heard a voice full of joy.
“Jamie, Jamie came!” - everybody whispered happily, getting up.

Amy got up too and rushed downstairs following others. She couldn’t wait to meet Jamie, to look at Jamie, to be with Jamie, to be part of Jamie…