Deals and Chances – 365 Flash Fiction #35

“Let us toss the coin” She said

“what?” He asked
“Heads you win, Tails I win” She said “And I will give you three choices”
“OK” He said still unsure
“You can choose to toss with your coin, or you can choose to toss with my coin” She said and looked at him.
“And what is the third choice?” He asked
“For the third choice you will need to first reject these two choices” She said smiling “Do you want to bypass these two choices and go for the third?”
He thought for a while and said “Yes let us go for the third”

She laughed “So human, you always think that what is hidden is always better that what you can see, never satisfied with what you have”
“No, I am taking my chances” He said
“But you understand that by rejecting the first two choices you are now left with no choice. you have to take the deal I give you” She said
“I never had three choices, I always had only two, or I should say only one” He said “You might have planned to cheat me with a weighted coin who knows”
She thought for a moment then said “You always think I cheat people to their own downfall when I am only trying to bring justice to an unjust world”
“What Justice? You are here to take my life and I am sure you will do anything to get it, hook or crook” He said
“Your literary fools have created such a bad image of me” She came closer to him “Do I look anything like what you have read

He looked at her sparkling eyes which was not dark but full of life bubbling every bit of it into him.
“You are much different” he said “I agree, but that does not change your reason being here”
“Aha so it is not how I look, but what my purpose is that bothers you” She smiled
“Yes, No one here wants to die and we don’t want you in our lives?” he said “You are the evil that makes us do things in this world to increase its misery”
“Great now you blame me for all you have done?” She asked. She then looked around and continued “You have done pretty well for a guy of your age”
“Yes” He said. If it was any other day he would have felt happy but at this time it did not seem to matter any more.

“I don’t really make deals, I only give generous chances” She said “And I am here to give you your chance”
“I don’t understand” He said
“You are right, you can’t understand the justice that death brings to every form of life on earth” She said
“You mean I can live?”
“I did not say that, I said this is your chance, but I am not sure you will take it” She said
“I will take anything for life, any day anytime” He cried out
“What will you give me for giving you your life back?” She asked
“Anything you ask, money, riches, my house, everything I own” He said now with a smile seeing that there is a slight hope to live
“I don’t need anything of that, because once you go back to your life, you will anyway not need it yourself” She said
“What do you want?”He asked

“I want you to work for me” She said
“And do what” He asked now a bit unsure about what she might ask
“I have a list of people and just like you I want to give them one chance” She said “And I want you to represent me and talk to them”
She kept her hand on his shoulder. I want you to be my trusted servant and take orders from me and help me bring justice in this world”
“I will be yours, all yours, just give me a chance to live” he said. Now happy that his job will be more similar to the on he has with the Big consulting company he works for. Just that now he has a boss who is much more powerful than his current boss.
“You will not be alone” She said and then pointed her hand to a large crowd standing outside his window.
“Who are they?” He asked

“They are your new friends, people like you who have been working for me”
He looked at the crowd to see if he could recognize any face. Slowly from behind the crowd a familiar face became visible. A face that looked just like his.
He looked around but she had gone. He turned back to the window, the crowd had also disappeared. He got up from the bed unsure if he was dreaming.
He did not know if good and evil existed as written in the book, but he knew one thing for sure, he knew the difference between good and evil and what he met or dreamt was definitely not the evil, it was judgement and justice that gave every man more chances to change and live.
He had his chance and he is not going to let it go waste

3 thoughts on “Deals and Chances – 365 Flash Fiction #35

  1. Great story! I can’t remember when I have read a better play on morality; this is really quite good.

    The line that did it for me in this story…

    “I never had three choices, I always had only two, or I should say only one”

    Is there ever really more than the one choice?

  2. I really enjoyed your story. It shows several sides of the character, of human nature in general. Strongly, it shows the will to survive. The cost matters not, as long as life is the prize. He was willing to do anything for the chance to continue living, even being in a position of servitude. But then, aren’t we all anyway, to someone or some entity? The best part of it all was his decision at the end. So many are given second, maybe even more, chances to change the path they’re on, and they let them slip away. But your character? He recognizes the value of what he has been given and he isn’t going to waste his ‘second chance’. Very well done.

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