'Welcome to the after life, Mr Morrison.'

A smiling man in a white suit opened his arms. He had grey hair and a bright warmth in his blue-green eyes. He reminded Adam of a Hollywood actor whose name he couldn't recall. Adam looked around. He was standing in what appeared to be the foyer of a top-end hotel. A grand staircase swept majestically up to the floors beyond. Classical music carried gently on the breeze.

The man in the suit paused, allowing Adam to take in his surroundings fully.

'This is the After Life?'

'That's right.'

'Are you Him?'

'I'm the one and only.' The man nodded.

'Wow. I mean, I don't know what to say.'

'It's okay, I get that a lot.'

'It's not everyday you meet your maker.'

'Quite.' He laughed.

Adam tried to take it all in.

'You mean I'm dead?'

'I'm afraid so yes. Try not to worry. That particular chapter of your life is over. I always recommend that our new arrivals think of it as moving house or changing job. You were there, and now you're here. The next chapter, so to speak.'

He paused for a moment, giving Adam time to think. Then he continued.

'I want you to relax and enjoy your stay here. You will find everything you need and could possibly desire, within the hotel grounds.'

'Everything?'

'Indeed. And of course, if you do have any questions just come to reception.'

'If this is the After Life, why does it resemble a hotel?'

'We found the layout and routine of a hotel makes the transition easier to take in.'

'Less of a culture shock than Angels playing harps sitting on clouds?'

'Precisely.'

'Where is everyone else?'

'This complex is yours, sir. Our guests have a complex to themselves so then can take full advantage of our extensive facilities.'

Adam looked around again at the plush grandeur of the hotel. It certainly was impressive. He'd never stayed anywhere like this. He tried to forget that this was the After Life so he could enjoy the experiences that were on offer. He turned to speak to his maker. He gasped. He was alone.

He wandered along the corridors. His echoing footsteps were the only sound. He paused at a set of double doors.

A thought occurred to him, he wouldn’t mind something to eat. He pushed open the doors and went in. He found himself standing in a restaurant. Soothing jazz music played in the background. The fancy restaurant was dimly, seductively lit. The tables were empty. A waiter suddenly appeared in front of him. Adam was startled by his sudden appearance. He wore a tuxedo and had a smile that would melt chocolate at a hundred paces.

'Good day, sir. Table for one?'

'Erm, yes please.'

'Of course, sir. If you would care to follow me..'

He showed Adam to a table. As he handed him a menu, Adam had the urge for a curry. He glanced at the menu. The selection was a wide variety of Indian dishes. It was the most extensive and mouth- watering menu he'd ever seen. He ordered several of the starters, and a spicy chicken dish to follow. He noticed the jazz tunes had given way to stirring sitar music.

'I'll have to watch my weight, wont I?' Adam laughed.

'There are no calories here, sir, just the finest cuisine.'

The waiter gave a little chuckle before leaving.

He returned moments later carrying his starter. Adam turned to thank him but found he was alone.

He shrugged. He took a swig of the cold lager and got stuck into his starter. The food was the best he's ever tasted. Each fresh mouthful was more delicious than the last. And when the main course was brought out, that was even more wonderful than the starter. He laughed to himself, I really am in Heaven.

Feeling perfectly satisfied, just the ideal amount of fullness, he pushed through double doors and emerged on a poolside patio. The sun beat down from a perfect blue sky. The pool water rippled, seductive and inviting. He glanced down. He was now wearing swimming shorts. There was a sun lounger by the side of the pool. The hot sun felt so good on his skin. He smiled to himself as he flopped down on the lounger. He stretched out and closed his eyes.

Later.

Adam went through a set of doors. He was in a bustling, busy nightclub Dance music pulsed and the lights flashed and swept in time with the beat. The dancefloor was packed with people. He sensed that the revellers were not actual people, but were part of the place he now found himself. He went to the bar. The barmaid smiled at him. She slid a pint of beer across the bar to him. He thanked her and turned to watch the dancers on the floor. After a few more drinks, he joined the throng on the dancefloor. The music was fantastic. The beating tunes, the laser show, this club had it all. He bounced around and waved his arms. It was like the best night of his life. The music was perfect, the atmosphere in the smoky, sweaty room was fantastic.

A while later he found himself in a casino, wearing a smart expensive suit. The casino was full of players. He moved through the seductive hustle and bustle of gamblers at play. The men were all wearing suits and the women wore flowing gowns. The atmosphere was so glamorous. He found a spot at a table. The roulette wheel rattle was almost a purring sound. Adam looked around at the others at the table. They had a far-away almost robotic look in their eyes. He knew they were not real people. They were part of this thing, whatever this was. The moment he decided he wanted to place a bet, he looked down to find a stack of poker chips in front of him. He placed his chips on red seventeen. His lucky number. The woman at the roulette wheel smiled as she gave the wheel a spin. The wheel whirred around, the tiny white ball bouncing along. A moment later the wheel slowed and came to a stop.

‘Red seventeen.’ she announced.

Adam punched the air in delight. She slid across a stack of poker chips. That was the first time his so-called lucky number had won anything. He felt like the hero in a film.

After the club and the casino Adam decided it was time for bed. He suspected that as this was the After Life he would probably not suffer tiredness and fatigue in the same way but his real-life domestic habits were still with him. Yes, he sighed, definitely time for bed, even if the After Life had no time aside from his own imagining. He went through a door.

He was now standing in a luxurious hotel bedroom and wearing thick pyjamas. The large bed looked wonderful. The crisp white sheets and thick pillows beckoned him. He crawled under the duvet and sighed in satisfaction. The bed was amazingly comfortable. He was so comfy, he felt like never leaving the bed.

What a place he was in. Everything was just perfection. His needs, wants and desires were just so perfectly catered for.

He opened his eyes feeling perfectly refreshed. He decided he would like nothing more than to play a few rounds of golf. He stepped through the bedroom door and found himself on the deep green luxury of a golf course. He was wearing designer golfing clothes and the set of clubs up ahead would have suited a world champion. The blue skies overhead were ideal conditions for the sport. He selected a club and swung at the tiny white golf-ball. The thwacking sound was followed by the ball following a perfect trajectory, up into the air and out across the course. The small white ball landed gently on the green and rolled towards the hole. As Adam walked onto the green the ball rolled away and into the hole. He punched the air. A hole in one! He’d never achieved that in life. How astonishing!

With a new-found confidence in his golfing skills, he made his way to the next hole. To his absolute delight he managed a hole in one on second hole. And the third. In fact, he completed the course in the same way. As he headed for the club house for a well-deserved pint of lager he whistled to himself. What a place this was.

That evening he dined on the best Chinese food he’d ever tasted. The hot and sour soup was just right, and the chicken dish with rice was divine.

The next day he decided to fulfil another of his ambitions. He smiled at the irony of completing his life-long ambitions in the after life. He had always had this dream of writing a novel. He wasn’t a writer, he didn’t have the time or the patience, but he’d always harboured a desire to write a novel. Well, he grinned, here was his chance. And like the authors of old, he would like to do it on an old-fashioned typewriter. He wanted to write a classic novel, a work of genius. He went through a door. He found himself in a small room. There was a writing desk and chair in front of a large window. Outside the window was a bay. He recognised the view instantly. It was the beach in North Wales where he’d holidayed as a boy. He took a seat at the desk. He gently placed his fingertips on the typewriter keys and stared at the blank page in front of him. The ideas came to him like a flood. He tapped away at the keys, thrilled to be finally writing a novel.

Moments later a woman came in. She wore a thick cardigan and had reading glasses perched on the end of her nose. She smiled at Adam and handed him a cardboard box. As she left the room he pulled open the flaps of the box. He stared in wonder at the contents.

He picked up a copy of the hardback version of the novel he’d just written and flicked through it. It was just marvellous to see the words he had typed in a printed volume.

The next day he played football alongside the current Manchester United squad in the awe-inspiring surroundings of Old Trafford. The crowd roared as he smashed the ball into the top corner. While he knew it was not real and was part of the illusion of the whole place, it still gave him a little satisfaction.

Sometime later he decided to learn how to play the saxophone. A heavy-set man in dark glasses and a suit handed him a gleaming gold sax. He had previously tried to learn and had found it impossible. Now, though, he found the skill came to him as easily as breathing. He half-smiled in mild amusement as he played complicated jazz pieces with the ease of a musician at the top of their game.

He raced expensive sports cars around famous race tracks. The speed he was driving pinned him back in his seat. In the real world this would have been exhilarating and he would have been risking his life. Now, here in the after life, there was no danger, no threat and as such, little excitement.

He went through a door and into a Karate dojo. In life he had been obsessed with martial arts. He would spend hours watching films where the hero would defeat the bad guys thanks to his fast hands and flying feet. He was dressed in the white Karate uniform known as a Gi. An instructor walked over and bowed to him. He was in his fifties and looked like he’d walked off the set of a 1980s action film. The sensei went through the techniques, the kicks, punches and blocks. After being shown once or twice Adam had mastered the techniques. The sensei said he was the best student he had ever seen. He went through a range of complicated forms, called Kata. Again, Adam quickly knew the intricate patterns. He moved like he had been training for years. At the end of the session the sensei presented Adam with a black belt and said he now held the rank of 1st Dan. Adam simply shrugged and left the room.

As he paced the long hotel corridors he thought about things. The magic just seemed to have worn off. He was sick of it. There just wasn't any fun in anything. Everything was too easy, too perfect. He wondered if part what made life enjoyable was working hard for the rewards that eventually came along. Maybe if things came too easily then it didn't mean as much.

He stopped pacing the corridor. He shook his head. He had had enough. He couldn't stand another minute in the five-star perfection. Nothing actually meant anything. There was agony and pain in the ideal world he now inhabited.

He opened a door and emerged in a casino. He shook his head. This had to stop.

He ran through the casino. He punched a gambling machine as he passed. The dials on the display glowing whirred and span before flashing WIN and spilling thousands of coins into the tray at the bottom of the machine. As his winning spilled out onto the carpeted floor, he swore and marched on.

He knew what to do. He would speak to the boss. He would explain that he wanted to leave. He just had to get away. This place was too much. It was too perfect.

He found the reception desk. He slapped an impatient hand on the bell. A second later, from nowhere, the man in the white suit, who had welcomed him, appeared beside him. He gave a smile that asked how he could help.

‘I can't take this any more.’ Adam explained. ‘It's not for me. I'm sure other people are very happy here but I have had enough. I want to leave.’

‘I am afraid, sir, that you can't leave just like that.’ He smiled politely.

‘I have to. Even if it means going to, you know, the bad place. I don't mind. I'll go there. I'll take my chances in the bad place no matter how horrid it is.’

The man's face was suddenly serious. His eyes flickered, burning a deep red for a second. His suit was now made of a shiny black silk. When he spoke his voice was a deep, monstrous growl.

‘What makes you think you're not there already?’

By Chris Platt

From: United Kingdom