Cassie Garcia is a young woman living in San Diego who lives to party. Her best friend Lisa, however, just got hired at a paleontology museum, and the two spend less time with each other every week. On a night about a week from her 25th birthday, Cassie plans and attends several parties with her friends. On her way to her second, though, she and Lisa have a falling out, putting an end to their friendship. After arriving home, Cassie ends up lamenting her loss instead of mulling over her satisfaction, not even bothering to change before she goes to bed. But the morning after, she ends up slipping on her bathroom floor, and dies as she cracks her neck on her toilet bowl.
Afterwards, Cassie wakes up in a mysterious place called the "In-Between" and meets her temporary guardian angel, Val. After Cassie realizes what just happened, Val gives her a list of people she needs to reconcile and tie things up with on earth in five days, all with her not being able to interact with anyone or anything and a year having passed on earth. If she succeeds in doing so with everyone on the list, she'll be allowed entry in "The Above", but if not, she'll get sent to "The Below".
Tropes
- And Starring: "...and introducing Spencer Sutherland.
- Beard of Sorrow: Howard has been growing a stubble in the year since Cassie died. He gets rid of it after Cassie makes him get back into yoga.
- Calling Parents by Their Name: Cassie says she's called her mom "Sofia" since the day she left her childhood home.
- Celestial Bureaucracy: The In-Between turns out to be this, with many angels working the cases of people who go there and books for handling everything that could happen on earth with interactions between the living and the dead. Val gets promoted to the angel committee in the ending because of how well she handled Cassie's case.
- Missing Mom: Cassie's mom left when she was little. She was raised by her dad mostly, and they had little contact. Cassie finds it hard to forgive her when it's a task she's given in the afterlife, nearly risking her eternal destination over it. She does manage to once her mom expresses great regret for abandoning her though.
- Parents as People: Cassie has to see her Dad, and especially her Mom, this way in order to come to terms with her relationships to them. This, along with her mom's apology, is what ultimately leads her to forgive her mom.
- Reactive Continuous Scream: Lisa's reaction to Cassie becoming visible to her is to scream, causing Val to scream back, repeating several times.
- Take That!: When Cassie asks Val if she can Text, Tweet, or TikTok to complete the list, Val responds with "No, no, and definitely negatory".
- Unfinished Business: In order to enter "The Above", Cassie has five days to reconcile with the people she wronged.
- Unlimited Wardrobe: Cassie had one on earth and in death as well.Lisa: Okay, hey now, we don't all have your never-ending supply of brand-new clothes.
- You Can See Me?: Cassie asks this when Lisa and Morgan talk to her for the first time while she's dead.
