AN- Sorry for the wait! I, uh, got a little caught up in the Christmas holiday. Heh (gotst mah own li'l laptop. Yeah, be jealous!) hehehe

Well...here's the final chapter...this is gonna be SO sad. T_T (to end this.)

~UxieSweetie

Chapter 26

Raven's body twitched lightly and fell backwards into Johnny, his arms wrapping around her to keep her upright. He could feel the blood seep through his shirt as he buried his face into the crook of her neck and cried. It was for the best, he told himself, though his heart nearly died when he pulled the trigger. His breath was ragged and appeared as a ghost before him before fading away. Johnny trembled and lifted the gun to his own temple, clutching Raven close to him, and sighed once before closing his eyes. "I'll be there in a minute. Wait for me, I want to go over the stars...with you." His voice shook as he pulled the trigger on himself.

Click.

"What?" Click. Click. "F-f-fuck! NO! FUCK NO!" He sobbed and looked in the cartridge of the gun. He had thought there were at least two bullets; there was only one, and he'd used it on the only woman he loved. Throwing the gun over the edge of the cliff, he knelt down with Raven's body against his. Her expression was serene and calm, as if she were only sleeping. Johnny tried to convince himself that she was asleep, but no amount of calling her name woke her. So, for hours, he sat there with her and cried tears he hadn't cried in years. His lips often found their ways to hers.

The funeral was three days later. Johnny didn't go; he couldn't face her or anyone else knowing that he wae one who killed her. Instead, he stayed at home and listened to only one song on repeat, "Hello" by Evanescence, curled up in a ball on his floor as his fingers flitted through the pages of his die-ary. The last ten, it seemed, were all about Raven. "I need to forget..." he whispered to himself. He tore the pages from the book and, with the painting he'd done previously, and locked them away in a vacant room in his basement four stories down. The days went by, but Johnny could not forget what he'd done. It was a record that skipped but had no pause, stop, forward, or rewind functions.

Johnny reached for his Happy Noodle Boy model and threw it at the glass case, freeing his spare gun. He took the weapon in his hands and stuffed it into his coat pocket and walked outside. Next door, Squee and his only friend, Pepito, also the Anti-Christ, played. Pepito's fiery eyes caught Johnny's and pinned him where he stood. Squee waved happily and walked over to him.

"What's wrong, Nny? You haven't been the same for a week." Squee squeaked. Johnny looked over at Pepito, who only lowered his head, still keeping eye contact. He didn't feel the need to say 'I told you so.' Why should he? The consequence was already so apparent.

"I...I have to go. Squee...I...I'll see you later." He turned quickly and walked away. Todd turned to Pepito with a confused look.

Pepito took one step closer to his friend. "Psycho man lies. We must follow him, otherwise his future is bleak. Let us go, Amigo!" Pepito gripped Todd's wrist and followed Johnny.

Nny sat next to Raven's grave stone and plucked the grass. "I'm sorry, Raven. I know...you trusted me but I had to do it. They were going to lock you up. I couldn't allow that to happen. I..I loved you too much, damn it! Fuck...I wish I never would have met you. I wish...I would have killed you from the start! Things would have turned out better!" He looked up to a couple with two twin girls walking towards him.

"Hello." The man said. "I'm Morton Macbeth. We're Raven's parents...You are?"

"Johnny."

"Johnny." The woman smiled with tear-filled eyes. "She told us a lot about you! These are my daughters and Raven's sisters, Seraph and Angela. They're seven. Anyways, I want to personally thank yuo for taking care of my daughter. Johnny stood and placed a hand on Raven's tombstone.

"Please. Don't." He turned and walked away.

Johnny looked in the window of the cafe and sighed. No way would he ever think about entering that damned place again. Never again. He passed the alley where he found Raven after she was raped. That was off limits for him. He passed the gas station where they always walked; he'd never go into that one again.

"Never again." He spoke softly, a few strands of hair falling in his face. He walked up the cement steps of the canyon and stood where he had when he shot Raven. He inhaled and lifted the gun from his pocket to his temple. He knew there was a bullet in this one; he'd loaded it when he bought it and didn't use it once. "I'm joining you, Raven...I hope. If not, I hope heaven is a good place. You belong there." He closed his eyes and counted to five.

One.

Two.

Three.

Squee and Pepito stumbled up to where Johnny stood. Squee's eyes widened as he saw his first ever friend holding a gun to his head.

"NO! Johnny! Stop! PLEASE!" Squee screeched.

Four.

Johnny lowered his head, but ignored his plea.

Five.

Johnny felt small arms wrap around his waist. He looked down and saw Squee's face buried in his shirt. "Don't leave me, Nny. Please, I don't want to be alone." Todd's tears seeped through the fabric and Johnny felt his own eyes filling with fluid. Todd heard a thunk sound near is feet. He looked up at Johnny's sombre expression. Johnny knelt town and peered Todd dead in the eyes and wrapped his arms around the tiny boy.

"I'm so sorry, Squee. I didn't mean for you to see that. I completely forgot. You need me more than anything."

"Let's go home...please?" Johnny smiled coldly and nodded. The three walked back to the homes, safe and unharmed.

The next morning, Johnny took a little break from life to take a trip to his favorite bookstore. He inhaled the scent of paper. He loved that scent. Almost as much as he loved Rav...No. He wouldn't go there. Not today. He picked a few Stephen King books from the shelves and proceeded to the cash out.

"This is for ya?" The cashier asked.

"Yep." Nny responded. He rummaged through his pockets and pulled out the money and handed it to her. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it. You know, I see you in here at least once a week. What's your name?" Johnny looked up at her and noticed her eyes immediately; they were a deep oceanic blue. They were accented well with her purple hair pulled up into two pig tails.

Johnny scratched his head and smiled. "I'm Johnny. Yours?"

"Johnny! Nice name! I'm Devi! What brings you here?"

"I'm just trying to forget things right now. I recently...lost my girlfriend of eight months. She was killed."

Devi blinked. "That's...that's terrible! I'm so sorry, Johnny. I know it's a little strange of me to ask, but is there anything I can do to help?"

Johnny thought a moment. "Well...I really need to talk to someone, just to get my mind off of her."

"Of course! My shift ends in ten minutes. Do you think you could wait that long?" Johnny nodded. "Great! I'll be done as soon as I can, Johnny!"

Johnny smiled and took the books from the counter. "Please. Call me Nny."

End.

AN- SO! Whatcha thiiiiiinnnnnnkkkkkk?

TELL ME!

Well this was REALLY fun to write! I loved it so much (except for the previous chapter) but I think it was worth it! Thanks to ALL of those who stuck through this the entire time! I appreciate your dedication! I love you! Now I shall commence writing the sister book that takes place ten years into da future! YAY!

(UPDATE, 1-4-11) It's called "Bittersweet Incubus."

~UxieS.

PS. Any questions? PM me anytime! ^o^