A green aisha sat on the swings at the park, swaying gently. She was all alone, and it was dusk. She looked up at the moon revealing itself and smiled a little. Then there was a soft whisper in her ear.
"Close your eyes." The teenage boy behind her said. Lily obliged, with a shy grin. She felt a necklace clasp around her neck. She looked down to see a merged sun and moon emblem on the chain. "Because you light my life, day and night." He explained, whispering still. Lily blushed, and that blush darkened as Iniunie swept her into a kiss. When they pulled away from each other, Ini grinned playfully. "Where to, ma'am?"
Lily giggled. "To the moon!" she declared. Iniunie nodded and began to push Lily on the swing, all the while laughing. Their happy life all came crashing down in only a matter of hours.
When Ini woke up the morning and came down for breakfast, everyone was unnaturally silent. Usually they were bustling and shoving for food, and yelling about how their evening went. His mother set his food in front of him at the table and took her seat. There was sadness in her eyes.
"What's wrong mum?" he asked, curious as to why everyone was so quiet.
"Your girlfriend….Lily…" she choked out. A tear rolled down her cheek. "She was kidnapped last night. This was found outside her house." She daintily held out her hand, to which Ini cupped his hands under. His mother looked away and slowly unclasped her hand. The necklace fell as if in slow motion into Iniunie's hands.
Iniunie choked back a sob. Only a few hours ago he was with her, laughing and loving. His whole world was turned upside down.
"We're sorry…" his brother, Fusion, started, but Ini ran out of the room before he could hear anymore. Sorry didn't fix anything, especially not a broken heart. He grabbed his old school backpack and shoved things into it. He took a deep breath, and then ran down the stairs and outside as fast as his legs would take him.
He looked up at the clear sky, the sky that he'd sent Lily to just last night. How could the sky stay so blue when the earth was shattering beneath his feet? He thought bitterly. He shook the thoughts out of his head. He'd find her, and it'd all be okay.
Ini dashed off for oblivion, tears flowing freely down his cheeks. He must have hope. When he could run no longer, he dragged himself on. Endurance and determination would keep him going. He hadn't a clue how far he'd gone when he made it to a town. He wandered through until he got to a park.
He walked, slouching, over to the swing set and looked at it forlornly. His tears were all dried up, and he could cry no longer.
To nobody he said quietly, "I was going to ask her to marry me…." He hung his head. After he'd raised money, he would have asked Lily to marry him. He already had the ring, but he wanted to make sure he could support a wife before going into debt.
"If I had known…" he mumbled to himself. "I could've asked her sooner. Then at least I would have known if she loved me or not."
One Year Later….
Iniunie got dressed, and though his other accessories weren't on yet, he wore Lily's necklace. Ever since she was kidnapped, he hadn't taken it off. Even in the shower and during the night. He finished tying his canvas hightops and pulled his nearly elbow-length fingerless gloves over the bandages on his hands, which covered up scars and wounds. He'd gotten into fights with people who just laughed when he talked about Lily and said that she was dead, that she didn't love him at all, that he was just a puppet, and all sorts of other things.
Somehow, Ini knew that Lily was out there somewhere, still alive and breathing. He went downstairs to the kitchen and ate his cereal, ignoring his mother telling him to have some decent breakfast. He rinsed his dish and left. Nobody told him to do his chores first, nobody told him to take his petpet with him. He was going for his daily walk to the park to think and reminisce.
After an hour or so he arrived back at the house. He sat on the couch and observed his father and twin brother watching Yooyuball. He was glad to have a "supportive" family, but they just let him go. It also irritated him that they pretended to know what he was going through. They'd never lost the most important person in their life. They'd never lost their world.
The phone rang, much to Ini's annoyance. Iniunie ignored it, as usual. His mother rushed in to answer it, and had seemingly normal conversation. Ini watched her with a lack of interest, having nothing better to do. His mother looked up and stared straight at Ini, then hurried to hang up the phone.
Ini walked over to his mother, knowing full well her phoned conversation involved him. "Alright Mum, what's up? You looked right at me."
She took a deep breath. "They think there's been another sighting of Lily….but they're not sure it's her. Somewhere west of Kiko Lake, they think."
Without another word Ini dashed out the door. This had happened several times. Sometimes he just missed it, or the girl wasn't even Lily. Something told him to take this chance; but then again, he'd taken every chance so far. He skidded on the pavement and waved for a ride. He didn't have long to wait before he got to hitchhike to Kiko Lake.
He got to his destination just as a covered truck was pulling away. At this point, he should've leaped onto said truck; but he was too dumbfounded by this final leap to save Lily. He's regretted it ever since. As soon as he regained his wits he chased after that truck like nothing else in the world mattered. That said, nothing else did matter to him; he didn't care if he died, so long as he saved Lily. But his body disagreed, and he had to rest.
When he came to, he took a moment to remember which way the truck was headed, and dashed off that way. He came to an abandoned warehouse, among many ruins. He hoped that Lily wouldn't join the ashes of whoever lived here. He marched in cautiously, and came to a locked room. Ini took a deep breath and kicked the door off its hinges.
Lily, scrawny and weak, was lying half dead in the corner; she was propped against the wall. Iniunie rushed to her. "Lily!" he choked out, stroking her face.
She smiled weakly and rasped, "Ini…Stay alive. Be happy and don't linger on the past." She was starved, almost nothing but bones. "You…I love you Ini. Remember that."
Iniunie shook his head. "Don't say goodbye to me now. You'll live, I know you will!" he said. A tear rolled down his cheek. He knew she didn't have a chance. She could live for another day or two at best, and they would be long, terrible, and painful. She also had several bruises on her body, possibly from abuse. Her breaths were short and choppy, and she never seemed to be able to get enough air. He feigned a smile. "I'll remember you always Lily." He said, taking the necklace off and putting it around Lily's neck.
Iniunie gave the phrase "Taking your breath away" a new meaning. He wrapped his arms around Lily and he kissed Lily until she couldn't breathe, and she fell limp in his arms. He hung his head for a moment, then gazed up at the ceiling and cried out in anguish. Then, after a long silence that seemed like hours, he broke into sobs that quickly evaporated. He looked up with new determination as he carried Lily outside. Anyone there would have said he looked like Superman when Supergirl died, but would probably be too scared to actually tell him that.
He set her down gently and placed a slab of wall down. Then he laid Lily's body on the slab, and etched into it with his knife.
Lily NivandraDied July 9th, 2006
Much loved, much needed.
The world to one, and friend to many.
May she rest in peace.
He stood at the foot of her new "resting place" and said a silent prayer. He began his walk towards home, towards revenge. If it was the last thing he did, he would avenge Lily. He would at least live to see that day, and of that he was sure. If anyone dared take that away from him, may the devil take their soul.
Another Year Passes: What It Has Become
Iniunie had dyed one streak of his shoulder-length black hair to white. People asked him why, and he only told them that it was the purity that he still had, and the black was the darkness and evils surrounding him. He now wore dark eyeliner, which he claimed was to represent the evils he had witnessed. He never explained his tattoo, nor did he try to date another girl, though his old friends urged him to. He just told them that if they lost their world, than they couldn't be expected to get a new one. And then, he'd walk away humming one of those tunes that you remember, but just can't place in your mind. Fin