“Uhhh…” Daniel squinted and rubbed his forehead. “Kind of a jerk?” There was no question about it. He remembered how he spent his time in high school: hanging out with jocks and preps, chasing girls who played hard to get, sleeping with their friends, crashing his graduation car accidentally-on-purpose. Later, in college, mellowing out with too much pot and the sudden, remarkably shallow realization that everybody was his friend and deserved an equal amount of using. Not long after flunking out as a sixth year senior, he met his maker, so to speak. Karma was a vampire. It hadn’t escaped Daniel’s notice that he went out in a shockingly justified way.

Was it possible that dying made him a murderer who was also nicer to people?

“You would’ve gotten a whole lot more of this.” Daniel put his fingers on either side of her face. He gently combed a lock of hair behind her ear and murmured, “Hey baby… Do you believe in love at first sight, or do I have to walk by you again?”