Two years. Two long years.
Chest tight and eyes on the verge of caving, she looked away. She couldn't do this. Not again.
Not again.
But she couldn't stop. She couldn't keep her eyes off him. Off his name.
Jack Morrison.
He died too young. He wasn't even forty and yet life stole him up to the heavens. Heaven must have liked his soft smile. The gentle way his lips would part to form a heart-melting smile. The subtle, sweet look in his baby blues. The look of empathy. Of compassion.
Cheek stinging, she touched it.
A tear. A tear had made its way past the dams and slithered down her face. I told myself I wouldn't cry; that I'd be strong. But two years. It wasn't enough. And yet, it had to be.
It had to be for she needed to move on.
Mind playing memories from the night they first fell into each other, her hand twisted around the fabric that shielded her heart. Oh god, it was torture. The bittersweet kind of torture. The memories were raw, pure. Flawless. But the reality of it all, his passing, it tore into her. It tormented her...
Looking at his face, she couldn't help but blush. He was perfection. He knew how to touch her, hold her. He knew every inch of her. And not just her body, but her mind and soul too. He could reach past the ghosts and climb over the walls of doubt. He could find her and love her. And honestly, that was all she ever wanted.
When their relationship took a twist from friendship to something more, she couldn't say no. He was everything she needed. She had a hopeless heart. She was like a teenager with a crush. She longed for something more. For someone more. And he? He filled that void so effortlessly. He was her dream come true.
Catching her reflection in his eyes, Angela felt her cheeks glow red again.
Where they... where they really going to do this?
She felt it in her chest. Felt it in her breath. Felt it everywhere. Those sleepless nights would finally have their redemption.
Chewing her lip, Angela consented. She swore to herself that she'd never give him up. And that even after midnight faded, she'd still be waiting. Still be loving him. Forever loyal and by his side.
It would be a night to remember. The rain was pouring down the bathroom window. A soft, subtle lullaby that amplified everything she'd been feeling.
Jack reached out across the sheets to touch her like a scene in slow-motion. It was so surreal. It felt like a fantasy book come to life. She was the pretty princess and he the hero that would save her from all her nightmares.
It was a night to remember. The way he kissed her. So soft, so pure. There was no steamy lust. It was just innocence and sweet compassion. He was going slow, at her pace.
Angela felt like she was floating on cloud nine. He was so warm. So smooth. So controlled, calm.
Everything she knew told her it would be hard, rough. Painful. That there would be blood and a sting of pain. But Jack? Oh, she honestly couldn't feel a damn thing. He captivated her. Kept her mind melting over the pleasant nips and coos. The way he let his lips dance up her shoulder and around her neck was seducing. She could barely keep her lips from groaning.
So this was what it was like to love.
The pressure of his hands around her hips caused her to smile. This was really going to happen.
The pitter-patter of the rain lulled her. It gave her strength.
"I'm," Angela bit her lip. Flicking her eyes forward, she found a light so warm and genuine in his blue eyed stare. It confirmed all she needed to know. Would spend forever with this man. "I'm ready."
Wiping away the tears that rolled down her face, Angela turned her head to the heavens above. "It was a night to remember," she choked.
She recalled the morning after too. The way he called her name. The way he was stroking her forearm while cradling a cup of coffee in the other one. He looked so at peace. So in love. And she could tell from the reflection in his eyes that she too was just as happy. Just as in love.
"I swore I'd never give you up," Angela bit her lip. She forced back the urge to cry. To scream. To break. "But, Jack, I've been wanting more of you." Holding her chest, she sniffed. "I... I can't keep doing this. I can't..."
Setting down the single rose she hold, she placed a kiss upon his tombstone. "Jack," she fought through the tears and the cracking, quivering voice, "I will always love you. And I know I swore I'd never give you up but... it's been two years. And you haven't come back to me."
Clearing away the tears again, she blinked her eyes dry. "You were the one that told me heroes never die. For so long, I clung to that believe. To that promise. But, Jack, you're not coming back. And I can't do this. Not anymore. If I keep clinging to you, to this, I-"
She silenced the dark thoughts.
Blinking back the tears again, she grit her teeth. "I always thought that I would see your face again." Her words were slurred, broken. She was losing her grip. Her strength. "Jack," she could barely find the will to speak to his grave, "I think... I think it's time I." She winced. The painful words were going to kill her. "It's time I give you up."
Dropping the rose, she fled from the scene. Fled from him. From his grave. From their past.
Running over the rolling hills of the cemetery, images kept flashing through her mind. His touch. His kiss. His smile. The way she lost herself to him back then. The way his place looked. The smell of coffee in the morning. Waking up beside his naked form. Everything.
It was truly a night to remember. And she was sad to give it up. To move on...