TITLE: Dying flowers and withering leaves
AUTHOR: CCke (aka Aset) – Eponine (underscore) Aset (at) hotmail (dot) com
RATING: PG-13 - T
CLASSIFICATION: drama
PAIRING: Scotty/ Lily friendship (for now)
SPOILERS: Set after Season 2 Blank Generation
DISCLAIMER: Not mine, lol.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Meimei Tanni wanted a comfort-fic after seeing Blank Generation, so she gets one . Hope you like it!
And thank you to my wonderful beta Guinevere!
The leaves of autumn wither and fall to the ground, just like the petals of the prettiest flower will too. Flowers die the moment they're cut, a sad reminder that nothing lasts forever and that even beauty will fade eventually. And yet, that same dead flower leaves the sweetest smell behind, filling up a room for days. Just like the memories will haunt your dreams, and leave you alone and crying in an empty bed.
It hurts and sometimes you wonder how to move on.
They said it was suicide. She jumped into the river leaving you with nothing but a short letter… Some hastily scribbled words on virgin white paper, blurry in places where your tears have landed… Memories that will keep you up at night and leave you with nothing but a gnawing emptiness deep inside.
You couldn't believe it right away. It didn't sound like her, just jumping. She was getting better, and she was scared of heights. But seeing the mahogany coffin standing there made you come crashing down, a slap in the face to make you see the reality in front of you.
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The trees rustled with a little breeze as Lily watched the service from a distance. She couldn't make out all of the preacher's comforting words, but that was fine by her. She was at a far enough distance to give the family some privacy, and yet still close enough to see the tears run down Scotty's cheeks. She didn't come for the service, just wanted to be there for Scotty when he needed her.
She'd been there more than once, waiting on the sidelines with Vera or Jeffries – most of all with Scotty though – ready to corner a possible suspect, trying to pry something out of him in a moment of weakness. She didn't like it, waiting like that. Hated it even more now, watching as one of her closest friends suffered like that.
A sad smile graced her pretty features as Lily pondered on her choice of words. A close friend. She had often wondered about that, whether if Scotty Valens really was just that. The sharp tug at her heart she had felt when she had met Alyssa for the first time, at the coffee bar downtown one morning, made her realise he was much more than just a friend and work partner. She'd never admit it though, and tried to forget it by falling into someone else's arms. But Lily had learnt yet again that those arms wouldn't always catch you… And now it was just her again.
She sighed as she watched the people leave one by one, greeting the mahogany coffin one final time as they passed, until it was only Scotty there.
She wished she could just go over there and hold him, tell him he wasn't alone, that she was there for him, but she wouldn't dare to cross that line just yet.
She took a tentative step towards him as she observed him caress the polished wooden surface of the coffin with his hand before pressing a kiss on top of it. Next he touched the lilywhite petals of a single rose on top of the dark wood one by one as if it were a faint reminder of how he used to press soft butterfly kisses on each of her fingertips, then he broke down in tears.
Five steps were all it took for her to reach him. She let out a deep breath, then put her hand on his shoulder.
"Scotty…" She started, but was brought to silence as he fell into her embrace – heartbreaking sobs against her shoulder.
"Lil," he croaked through his tears.
"It'll be okay," she whispered, caressing his back until his cries had subdued. "You'll be okay," she continued as he finally pulled away, looking into her steel blue eyes.
He flashed her a watery smile and nodded slowly. "Let's go home," he said, taking her hand in his as they walked towards the car in silence.
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Leaves fall, and flowers die. Days go by without so much as a blink of an eye, and yet so much can change in just those few days. Your world can collapse one moment, and with just one glimpse of a soft smile you can start rebuilding, knowing everything will be okay, just like she said.
Blue eyes shining brighter than you ever knew. And they're pretty.
You'll be fine. You're not alone.