Michael "Mike" Chin had a life under the free sun once. His last hours living that life was vivid as if he was reliving it in real time.

The less important parts were a bit of a blur, which involved a car and foot chase ending with a shootout, but his last moments after that were memorable.

"Good work, Mike," his partner said, watching as two uniformed policemen escorted the beaten up fugitive from the asphalt floor of the hot Seattle street. Mike stared at the young man, Hispanic, bald, in his twenties and already with a criminal record, the blood from the cuts and scrapes he went through covering the massive amount of tattoos covering his body. It was a stark contrast to Mike's matching navy blue sports jacket and slacks. The lifelong partners watched as the police car drove off, carrying their catch.

"That guy is going to have a hell of a story to tell his cellmates," Mike chuckled as the two men walked to their unmarked police cars. Another day, another takedown meant another round of beers and hooking up with attractive women at the bar… for one of them at least

"Still not going to enjoy yourself for once? I'll buy all your booze!" Mike's partner asked.

"Sorry, I really want to go home with the wife and boys," Mike answered.

"Suit yourself. Catch you later, bro!" His partner said as he drove off in his hot red sports car.

Unlike his partner's taste in fast cars, faster women, and alcohol until it made things blurry. Mike was more traditional, preferring his sedan, wife, and children. From Downtown Seattle he endured the rush hour traffic to his modest two-story bayside home in a sleepy town called Yarrow Point that included a pool and a small dock for his small pleasure boat they used in the summers. When he pulled into the driveway, the front door swung open. His two sons, ran out to greet him. They were hyper, and they were asking about what happened earlier that day.

I guess it made good television.

He looked to the doorway of his house and his heart skipped a beat. Ever since the day they met, his heart would flutter every time he would see her. Her name was April Quong… well, April Chin now. They met at church when they were in college, and it ended up with them getting married and having children years after. She had long, flowing hair that reached to her lower back, her soft, pale skin made mike happy to come home to every night.

"Dinner's ready," April said as they shared a quick kiss. He ignored his son's "Yuck" sounds and went in.

Wait until you get puberty, guys.

His house was modest as well, a simple living room decorated with everyone's achievements, whether being his service awards, April's former decathlon photos and awards, and his son's soccer photos and medals. The food, which was pork chops, rice, and steamed vegetables were waiting for him in the dining room. Their dinner was uneventful, save for a few laughs from the dinner conversations and stories. He had to tell the story of his takedown earlier, the shootout, the car chase, the downside of the chase being he had to miss lunch, which was why he had a rare second helping of dinner.

The after dinner cleaning also became a family event. April and Mike washing the dishes while the boys took the newly clean dishes and placed them where they needed to be in the dishwasher for an extra clean. April would talk about her day there. Although being a stay at home mother was not what she expected in life, she found the joys of it, especially seeing two other women at the local market nearly get in a fist fight over the last premium brand cereal.

April was dumbfounded "I still don't get it! Why can't you just get the regular brand? It's the same thing!"

"One of the mysteries in life," Mike chuckled.

The leftover food was put away for everyone's lunch the next day and came the next thing: homework.

The boys were on their knees next to the coffee table, using it as their desk. His older son, John was in the fourth grade and was working on his multiplication while Adrian, the third grader was doing state history. Mike and April would sit on the couch behind them, watching over them and making sure they were on track. The news was on the television, which would bore the boys enough to keep their head in the schoolwork.

The world seemed to be marching to war over the middle east, an election involving the two most disliked candidates in history, protests, and riots over police-involved shootings in the streets, news of an upcoming financial crisis from Europe that might plunge the world into another great recession. The boys were uninterested since it wasn't cartoons or the Seattle Sounders game, but their parents were.

"The World is going to you know where in a handbasket," April sighed.

"Yea, but at least we have each other, and that's all that matters," Mike said as they shared a kiss. Mike was on the front lines of fighting the chaos as a detective, so he knew he was doing his part.

"Speaking of that," April said as she reached up to his ear. "Tonight… this time it better be a girl."

"Really?" he whispered.

"I don't mind," she said with a seductive grin.

"Alright, but you know how teen girls are in their rebellious years."

"My grandmother knew how to handle my mom in her rebellious years, it made the belt look like a walk in the park."

"Kinky" he quickly whispered in her ear

"Shush!" she laughed as she playfully hit him with a throw pillow.

It was still sunny out, so everyone went to the backyard to enjoy the warm sunset, right after Mike changed to a collared shirt and shorts. As Mike looked out to the Puget Sound, other leisure boats sailing in the bay, and his family joining him outside, he knew he had the life. It wasn't the millions or billions he set out to do when he was a young man studying criminal justice, but he was happy. When you are happy, the economic sedan was a Porsche or a Rolls-Royce, the simple four bedrooms, three bathroom family home was a multi-billion dollar mansion.

"Hey, dad! Catch!" John cried as he threw the football at him. He turned around and caught it as the boys charged at him to tackle him in the grass. April chose to have a glass of iced tea and watched on at the patio. It wasn't a real football game, just 'tackle dad and fail'. They ran around the grass, missing him or grabbing on, only to have their finger slip and watch as their dad continue to dodge them. The boys were relentless, and mike still had plenty of stamina left in the tank.

Mike knew something was up when the boys suddenly let go and waltzed next to the pool. He turned around in a smile but saw that his family were jaw dropped.

"Mike… you're starting to glow," April said as she got up.

Mike looked down and saw that he was glowing, and he started to lose the feel to his extremities.

He was disappearing.

"Dad!" the boys cried out to him as he started to go.

His wife ran out to him, crying in fear "Whats going on! Don't go! Don't leave us!"

He tried to reach out to her, but realized he had no hands, whatever was dematerializing him was already to his neck, which only gives him time to say only last thing to his perfect family, and the woman he loved so dearly.

"April! I love you!"

Author's Note

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