Library of Life

"Good evening madam." The librarian behind the desk said with a smile as Betty walked in. Betty smiled back wondering how the girl with the pink hair had managed to smile around so much metal.

"Deposits to the left. Loans to the right." she shouted cheerily over as Betty headed to the stacks.

She had intended to pick up a couple of romances on her way home from the grocery store, but left and rights were never her strong suit, her driving instructor had taken to writing a little L and R on her hand when she was driving. Heading down the left aisle and rubbing her hip that was giving her jip again, it would probably rain later, the paperbacks turned into dusty old tommes that she would never be able to lift. Betty made to turn around but a strange light in the gloom ahead made her stop.

"Hi Betty." 

The voice made Betty's blood run cold. She had not heard it in such a long time.

"Am I dying? Have you come to get me? Is this how it works at the end?" she panicked.

A booming laughter came from the gloom, "no my love. Come closer and then I can explain."

Betty took a few tentative steps and then the form of her first love took shape in the strange blue light and she couldn't go any further. "How?" Was all she could whisper.

"I came across this place a few years back now and I made an exchange for a new lease on life. Don't panic there is nothing devilish going on here, I am a virtual avatar. Wherever possible I try to take the form of someone you recognise, it makes the process so much easier. With you two it's such a dream as your memories cross-referenced."

Betty touched her head, had she bumped it? How could this thing that looked like Bill know her memories?

"Again please try not to panic, it is a simple memory scan to see if you are viable for download. You are currently in the Library of Life. It is our mission to try and record as much of history as it happens from the memories of the times older population. In return we can give you years back to live again."

"I'm sorry, I've never heard of any of this hoo-ha or download doohickies. You sound worse than all these youngsters that wander around with their machines pinned to their ears." Betty turned to leave and started down the stacks.

"You should know, " the avatar began, "he always regretted it."

"What?" Betty paused.

"Not kissing you when he had the chance."

Betty paused and touched her lips, she knew the moment he was talking about. The moment that could have been, save for it being the right people at the wrong time.

"You could have that chance again."

"What do I do? Will I be a baby again?"

A chuckle came from the not-Bill, "No, our standard is to return you to your twenties, memories intact. All we do is make a copy for the archive."

"Oh what the hell. It's nearly the end any way, let's give it a whirl." She had no idea how she would find Bill if this worked, but it was worth a shot.

What seemed like only moments later Betty staggered down the aisle looking slightly like she was wearing her grandma's old dress. Out in the sunshine everything was so bright, colours seemed to pop everywhere.

"Quite something, ain't it?" said a perfectly familiar voice.#