20th Of October (Preface)
Alice raised her head upwards, watching as the storm clouds flooded the clear sky and emptied their content on the open field. She looked at the limp body beneath her, her face curling into a snarl as she spat on the ground next to it, smothering it with the soul of her knee long boot, the ones she had met him in. Her face contorted with pain as she recalled this and she felt a stab of pain deep in her chest. She fell to the ground, throwing her head back and howling, sobbing in grief, in anger, in hatred, in regret. Regret that she'd ever met him, regret that she'd answered the phone call, regret that she'd agreed with the stranger, regret that a thick red liquid was running down her arms, staining her pale creme wedding dress, seeping into the intricate sleeve patterns. She threw down the bottle she held in her hand and reached into the box at her feet for another, wrenching off the lid and taking a large gulp, cringing as the burning liquid ran down her throat, warming her insides and making her head spin. She dragged the bottle away from her swollen lips reluctantly, throwing the remaining half bottle to the floor and watching as it smashed into a million tiny pieces. The clear liquid spilt out and ran in a small river to the man laying at her feet, reminding herself of the terrible deed she had agreed to, but when she leaned down and put her head to his cold chest, feeling shallow unconscious breaths, she was reminded of the reason and allowed the tears to fall. She fell to the ground, into the sea of alcohol and unfinished business. She rolled onto her side, talking his hand and kissing it lightly, resting it across his chest, drowning in tears. She took the other hand and placed it in the same place, over his heart, the heart that loved just a little too much. She moved his hair so that it covered the gash on his forehead, covering his body with a blanket and resting her head against it, willing herself to finish it, to stop his heart and cover his face, to never see him again. To never face that much heartbreak ever again, something, anything, to start a new, to fully erase the past. To well and truly end it.
She finally did it, covered his face. The only thing separating them was a thin sheet, her hand fluttered to his covered face, stroking his cheek with the thumb of her left hand, leaning her forehead on his, breathing steadily. Saying the least words he would ever hear, if he was still capable of doing so.
"Goodbye"
And she did what she had promised herself she would. She drew the dagger from the leather sheet on her belt and ended it. Forever.
