When Uncle Somnath's spirit left his body, he found himself hovering over the hospital bed where his earthly remnants were. His first thought was, "Wow, is this death?" Where are the background music and the large golden gates? But, instead of soaring or sinking, he was imprisoned there, forced to observe his own family's reactions.

"Okay, Uncle Somnath," he said to himself. "Let's see how much they loved you."

In the hospital waiting area, his relatives gathered. Uncle Somnath could see everyone with his ethereal eyesight. His nieces, nephews, and cousins—all dressed in dark black—were whispering. The rumours quickly escalated into accusations. 

"I'm telling you, I deserve the house," Cousin Richa said, passionately blotting her eyes with a tissue. "I was the one who visited him every week."

Nephew Kesari exclaimed, "Visited him?!" "You mean you came over to use his pool and complain about your Wi-Fi!"

"Oh, please!" Richa fired back. "You just showed up because he wanted his gutters cleaned. And don't forget the time you 'borrowed' his lawnmower and never returned it!"

Uncle Somnath's spirit drifted closer, interested. Are they already fighting over my belongings? I have yet to experience my 'go-towards-the-light' moment! 

Then the lawyer arrived, bearing the much-anticipated will. Everyone leaned forward, and the room became silent. Uncle Somnath's soul hovered exactly above the lawyer's shoulder, reading the document as he opened it.

"To my beloved family," the bequest stated. "If you're reading this, it means I passed away. First and foremost, do not be sorry; death is only life's way of saying, 'Take a vacation.' Second, I will leave my riches to...

The entire room held their breath. 

"…the one family member who truly loved me unconditionally."

"Yes! That's me!" Richa burst out, elbowing Kesari.

The lawyer added, "My cat, Whiskers."

A startled stillness engulfed the room. Uncle Somnath, floating above, broke out laughing. Oh, I got that one!

Richa's cheeks grew red. "A cat?! "He left everything to a stupid cat?"

"Yes," the attorney acknowledged. "Whiskers will get the whole inheritance, including the house, car, and funds. I shall function as trustee to preserve Whiskers' luxurious lifestyle."

Nephew Kesari threw his arms up. "This is ridiculous!" What does a cat require from a house?!" 

Uncle Somnath's spirit bent down and murmured into Kesari's ear, but nobody could hear him. The same thing you'd do with it: snooze and snack!

Richa was not done. "So, how about the rest of us? "Surely he left us something!"

The attorney flicked a page. "To my family members, I leave the following heartfelt items."

Richa leaned forward, eagerly. "See? He could not leave us out!"

"To Richa, I leave my collection of mismatched socks, as she always claimed to have a use for everything."

Richa's jaw dropped. 

"I give Kesari my assortment of 1980s cassette tapes. On the cassette player I didn't own, I hope he likes listening to them.

Kesari's expression twisted in anger.

Somnath, Uncle, laughed. This is better than I thought it would be.

The lawyer continued incoherently, recounting each relative's similarly pointless possessions. Everyone was fighting about who had received the worst present, and the room was in disarray by the time he was done.

As Uncle Somnath watched the chaos, he at last sensed a pull in the direction of a distant, bright light. Well, he thought, that's my cue. He couldn't help but take one final stab as he drifted away.

He knocked over a vase with a ghostly flick of his finger. Everyone stared at the broken glass as they froze.

"Did you experience that?" Richa muttered.

Uncle Somnath is here! Kesari took a sharp breath. "He is haunting us!"

Uncle Somnath vanished into the hereafter, leaving behind a faint echo of his laughter. Richa, enjoy the socks.