DreadfulStar here just to thank a wonderful Beta. Thank you Melody Syper Carston! I am very thankful. I hope this story sounds alright.
"Aster! Stop your barking!'' Ludwig turned to yell at his dog. She turned around, and he started to yell again. Aster wagged her tail and jumped back up towards the door.
Ludwig flipped around the knife he was using around in his hands so the blade was now facing downward. He gripped the handle and sighed.
He walked over to the dog, shoving her away. Looking through the eyehole, he sighed once more.
"Aster, no one is there." He turned around sharply, exciting his young Dalmatian.
The pup lodged itself between his legs and kept moving. Fearing he'd hurt the poor thing, he quickly stepped over it. When he did, he lost balance.
He gripped the handle of the knife tighter as he put out his arms to stop his fall. He should have let go of it; he just wasn't thinking.
But, he didn't, and it plunged deep in his chest. He coughed as blood spurted out around the wooden handle. Gripping the handle where it met his body, he slowly turned over onto his back. His hands loosely thumped to the floor, his breathing laboured.
It must have pierced a lung—and nicked something as well—because he couldn't catch a full breath and there was just so much blood. The stab wound bled profusely, blood pulsing out with every painful heartbeat.
Blackie ran into the room first, attracted by all the commotion, followed soonafter by Berlitz. Aster dropped low to the floor, whimpering and scooting closer. The small pup, confused at the sight, snuck under Blackie's legs to see what had happened. All of the dogs were whimpering now, jumping and skittering around. Their master choked back a cough, and the horrendous sound of his gasps went mute.
The sudden change in atmosphere caused the dogs to freak. One howled and another frantically nudged him on the cheek. Aster started to knead his arm with her honey paws. In a final attempt to get his attention, she sank once more to the ground and eased her muzzle underneath her master's hand. She flicked her nose upwards causing his hand to rise slightly into the air. Yet, unlike the pat she was looking for, it plopped back down on her snout limply.
Berlitz resumed frantically licking Ludwig's face. His eyes were open: blank, unfocused, and empty. The dogs' paws were now matted with crimson blood.
Aster tried again. Nothing happened. When she did this, it was obvious it meant 'pet me'. Of all the years that had lived with Ludwig, she was never deprived of an asked-for pat on her soft, fuzzy head. Even when he was sick, he'd spare a second to pet her. The days when he rushed through the house in a hurry he seemed to always have time to give a little acknowledging pat. Yet now... He did not do anything. Was something her fault? She could not quite remember doing anything but barking.
A movement outside the door caught her attention and she assumed it was her master's close friend. If it was, she should tell him he had arrived. She saw someone else and began barking at the strange man now peering in through the small window in the door.
When her master hadcome, he had simply disappeared. He had seemed very displeased with her. Was that his last thought of her? Disappointment? She laid her head down and waited to be taken away like her master. Nothing happened. Blackie started anxiously looking at the door, probably waiting for their master's friend to come like he did every day. The dogs all went silent.
What now?
Feli dialed the number again. His boyfriend still had not answered! He was halfway to his Ludwig's house when he got his answering machine again. The last time he had left a message was five minutes ago. He figured Ludwig would not be too happy with another one. (a lesson he learned from an earlier experience). He pulled up to the driveway after narrowly missing both the curb and a mailbox. The lights were still on, so he must be home. He hesitated briefly before getting off his Vespa.
From inside the home, Berlitz jumped up to the window in the door, barking ecstatically. The lights were still on, so Feli continued on his way up while pondering, 'Did he do something to make Ludwig mad? He sounded happy—er—normal on the phone.' That had been almost an hour ago. Ludwig had been cutting potatoes when he had hung up.
Feli knocked on the door slowly, half expecting his boyfriend to appear suddenly. The moment he knocked, a dog jumped full force on the door, causing it to jar violently.
The dogs were acting strange, the stranger aspect being Ludwig not yelling at the dogs from the door.
After knocking again, Feli found the door unlocked. He pushed the door open to be struck with a pang of a sharp, metallic scent. It was something Feli had only smelled once before: a few months ago when he had sliced his wrist open by accident washing dishes. The cut had required many, many stitched. But the scent hadn't been as powerful then as it was now.
Oh, Dio!Was Ludwig hurt‽
He swung the door open to a traumatizing sight. Ludwig lay on the floor, the scent coming from the same spot in the middle of the room.
Tears started dripping down Feli's face as he put the scene together. A knife stuck out of his lover's chest—that was clearly the source of the blood. Feli gently touched his boyfriend's face, jerking briefly from the coldness of his skin. His skin, Feli determined in his observation, was near translucent and ashen. He looked so... dead.
DEAD? OH, NO, NO, NO! He cannot be dead! Feli frantically pressed his fingers to Ludwig's neck. He could not feel anything. He threw himself to the ground, so his face was level with Ludwig's chest. He did not see a single movement. He held his hand over his friend's mouth, under his nose: Nothing.
Throughout the entire time, the dogs had kept their distance from Feli. They all felt... guilty. No matter how one would want to argue, the dogs understood death. They knew exactly what had happened. There was nothing they could do as Feli whimpered with his shattered grasp of hope blowing away from him.
Feliciano's eyes darted around. He kept looking for movement (out of denial, sadly) When he suddenly realized his love was dead, he fell backwards with a dull thump.
Feli had fainted and would not wake up for hours.
A door slammed as Gilbert laughed and said goodbye to his friend who had drove him home.
"Bye!" He laughed as he walked up the stairs. Looking to his right he noticed Feli's scooter still in the driveway. Which made sense; Feli had only arrived about 30 minutes ago. (He had gathered what time he was coming over from secretly listening to his little brother on the phone.)
He knocked, and then pushed the door open. Before he could arrogantly announce, 'Awesome is here!' he saw what was inside.
And gasped.