Free Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin Page A

getting used to the idea of being dead."
    Aldous nods. "Perfectly natural," he says, and nods again. Liz can see his nods are meant to conceal his disappointment.
    "I don't have to decide today, do I?" Liz asks.
    "No," Aldous says. "No, you don't have to decide today. We'll talk again next week. Of course, the position may be filled by then."
    "I understand," she says.
    "I must caution you, Elizabeth. The longer you wait to start your new life, the harder it may become."
    "My new life? What new life?" Liz's voice is suddenly hard, her eyes cold.
    "Why, this one," says Aldous, "this new life."
    Liz laughs. "That's just words, isn't it? You can call it life, but it's really just death."
    "If this isn't life, then what is it?" Aldous asks.
    "My life is on Earth. My life is not here," Liz says. "My life is with my parents and my friends. My life is over."
    "No, Elizabeth, you are completely, absolutely, totally wrong."
    "I'm dead," she says. "I'M DEAD!" she yells.
    "Dead," Aldous says, "is little more than a state of mind. Many people on Earth spend their whole lives dead, but you're probably too young to understand what I mean."
    Yes, Liz thinks, exactly my point. She hears a clock strike five. "I have to go. My grandmother's waiting for me."
    Watching Liz run off, Aldous calls after her, "Promise you'll think about the position!"
    Liz doesn't answer. She finds Betty's car parked in front of the Registry. Liz opens the door and gets in. Before Betty can say a single word, Liz asks, "Would it be okay if we went to one of the Observation Decks?"
    "Oh, Liz, it's your first real night here. Wouldn't you prefer to do something else? We can do whatever you want."
    "What I'd really like to do is see Mom and Dad and Alvy. And my best friend, Zooey. And some other people, too. Is that okay?"
    Betty sighs. "Are you sure, doll?"
    "I really, really want to go."
    "All right," Betty says finally, "there's one near the house."

Sightseeing
    I could come with you," Betty says. She stops her car on the narrow strip of road that runs parallel to the beach. "I haven't seen Olivia in the longest time."
    "Mom's old now," says Liz. "She's older than you."
    "It's hard to believe. Where does the time go?" Betty sighs. "I've always hated that phrase. It makes it sound like time went on holiday, and is expected back any day now. 'Time flies' is another one I hate. Apparently, time does quite a bit of traveling, though." Betty sighs again. "So, do you want me to come with you?"
    Liz would like nothing less than for Betty to accompany her. "I might be a while," Liz says.
    "These places. They can be dangerous, doll."
    "Why?"
    "People get obsessed. It's like a drug."
    Liz looks at the red lighthouse, which has a row of brightlylit glass windows at the top. The windows remind Liz of teeth. She can't decide if the lighthouse looks like it's smiling or snarling.
    "How do I get inside?" Liz asks.
    "Follow the path until you reach the entrance." Betty points out the car window: a wooden boardwalk, gray with water and time, joins the red lighthouse tenuously to the land. "Then take the elevator to the top floor. That's where you'll find the Observation Deck."
    Betty takes her wallet out of the glove compartment. She removes five eternims from her change purse and places them in Liz's hand. "These will buy you twentyfive minutes of time. Is that enough?"
    Liz thinks, I have no idea what enough time would be. How long does it take to say goodbye to everything and everyone you've ever known? Does it take twentyfive minutes, a little longer than a sitcom without the commercials? Who knows? "Yes, thank you," she says, closing her hand around the coins.
    In the elevator, Liz stands next to a willowy blonde in a black shift dress. The woman sobs quiedy, but in a way that is meant to attract attention.
    "Are you all right?" Liz asks her.
    "No, I most certainly am not." The woman stares at Liz with bloodshot eyes.
    "Did you die just recently?"
    "I don't know," the woman