***
"IRE!" Max screamed and rushed forward. Theo was a second behind her. Max cradled Ire in her arms like she did Ben and Theo just kneeled and stared at his sister.
"Why?" Max asked, crying. "Why?"
"I don't know." Theo said.
"This only proves there is no God." Max said.
"No, it only proves that God makes mistakes." Theo said.
"What do you mean?" Max said. "Look at her!"
"God made a mistake! He let her get captured! God wasn't paying attention!" Theo said.
"She's gone... why? She can't really be gone... things weren't supposed to happen this way!" Max cried.
"I know." Theo said. He had begun to cry himself. "She was supposed to live forever. Not this way."
Max and Theo elapsed into silence. The only sounds were Max's escaping sobs. Theo was crying silently. Max looked down at ire and Ire opened her eyes.
"You didn't save me Max." Ire said. "I blame you. I hate you."
***
"No!" Max screamed and bolted upright. Max was breathing heavily and she was in a cold sweat. Max shook off the nightmare and walked into the living room. She sat on the couch with her head in her hands.
It was almost dawn. Max liked not having to sleep for this exact reason. The nightmares would always get to her. Especially the ones like that one.
"Boo."
Max looked up.
"Hey."
"Boo, what happened?" Cindy asked and sat down next to Max.
"A nightmare." Max said.
"Everyone's got nightmares, boo."
"Not like this." Max said.
"What happened?" Cindy asked.
"You know how I told you about Ire and... and everything?" Max said. Cindy nodded. "Well, I relived her death exactly as it was, but the end. The end changed. She opened her dead eyes and looked straight at me. She blamed me, then she said she hated me."
"Boo, from the stories you told Original Cindy, Original Cindy knows that Ire would never say that."
"Yeah, but it seemed so real." Max said.
"Boo, the funeral is in a couple of hours, so I suggest you make peace with yourself, your dreams, and her." Original Cindy said. "Something will happen to prove that dream wrong."
Max only smiled and Original Cindy smiled back. Original Cindy touched the back of Max's head in a reassuring way, then went back to bed. Max sat on the couch, thinking.
***
"Ire was the kind of person who let everybody inside." Theo said to the small crowd. "No matter what, she would let you become a part of her life. Sister, brother, or friend, she would let you in."
Theo paused and looked around the small crowd. Max only recognized a few people there. She figured the rest must have been her family or friends Ire had made along the way.
"Bad things happen to good people." Theo continued. "Never has that been more true to me. Ire was one of the best people I knew and something terrible happened to her for no reason whatsoever. Ire was my sister. I know she never said it, or even said 'I love you', but in her heart... it was in her heart. Ire, I love you and I miss you."
Theo stepped back into the crowd and Max took a breath. Logan gave her an encouraging look and Max stepped forward.
"Ire helped me more than once." Max said. "The first thoughts I had were 'Why couldn't I help her?' It didn't seem right. I had cheated death so many times, so why couldn't she? Everything happens for a reason. That bothers me, because there was no reason for this. I know many people say that, but truly, there was no reason. Ire was one of the good ones. There are so many things I want and need to say, but I couldn't possibly put them all into words. Ire, you're in the Good Place now, and I hope you're free from pain and happy."
Max walked back over to Logan and a blonde girl walked up next. Max zoned out and wasn't even listening. She vaguely heard the girl speak, but the emotion that was building up inside of her was too much for her to take, so she blocked a lot of it out. Max came out of her stupor when she heard the girl say she was going to let Theo recite something. Theo walked up and Max paid close attention.
"Ire had given me a one song CD a few months ago and I knew what it meant to her." Theo said. "The song touched her soul and it frankly touched mine as well. It goes back to the childhood that we never had. I'm going to read the part that really touched me and I'm sure, touched Ire."
Theo reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He unfolded it and cleared his throat. Then he read:
"I thought I could hear your cold words
After all, they were just words
I thought I could see your sad eyes
After all, eyes won't lie
I thought that I could just take this hatred in
Let it back out and see love again
But know I'm giving up
But I'm never giving in
So you can take my life
And you can keep this heart
But you never can take my soul
No never can take my soul."
Theo folded the paper back up and put it in his pocket. Theo walked sadly over to the blonde girl and a priest walked in front of the cloud. He did the ending ceremony, but Max wasn't listening. She was replaying Theo's words in her head.
The thing that pulled her out of her trance was Logan gently tugging on her arm and telling her it was over.
"IRE!" Max screamed and rushed forward. Theo was a second behind her. Max cradled Ire in her arms like she did Ben and Theo just kneeled and stared at his sister.
"Why?" Max asked, crying. "Why?"
"I don't know." Theo said.
"This only proves there is no God." Max said.
"No, it only proves that God makes mistakes." Theo said.
"What do you mean?" Max said. "Look at her!"
"God made a mistake! He let her get captured! God wasn't paying attention!" Theo said.
"She's gone... why? She can't really be gone... things weren't supposed to happen this way!" Max cried.
"I know." Theo said. He had begun to cry himself. "She was supposed to live forever. Not this way."
Max and Theo elapsed into silence. The only sounds were Max's escaping sobs. Theo was crying silently. Max looked down at ire and Ire opened her eyes.
"You didn't save me Max." Ire said. "I blame you. I hate you."
***
"No!" Max screamed and bolted upright. Max was breathing heavily and she was in a cold sweat. Max shook off the nightmare and walked into the living room. She sat on the couch with her head in her hands.
It was almost dawn. Max liked not having to sleep for this exact reason. The nightmares would always get to her. Especially the ones like that one.
"Boo."
Max looked up.
"Hey."
"Boo, what happened?" Cindy asked and sat down next to Max.
"A nightmare." Max said.
"Everyone's got nightmares, boo."
"Not like this." Max said.
"What happened?" Cindy asked.
"You know how I told you about Ire and... and everything?" Max said. Cindy nodded. "Well, I relived her death exactly as it was, but the end. The end changed. She opened her dead eyes and looked straight at me. She blamed me, then she said she hated me."
"Boo, from the stories you told Original Cindy, Original Cindy knows that Ire would never say that."
"Yeah, but it seemed so real." Max said.
"Boo, the funeral is in a couple of hours, so I suggest you make peace with yourself, your dreams, and her." Original Cindy said. "Something will happen to prove that dream wrong."
Max only smiled and Original Cindy smiled back. Original Cindy touched the back of Max's head in a reassuring way, then went back to bed. Max sat on the couch, thinking.
***
"Ire was the kind of person who let everybody inside." Theo said to the small crowd. "No matter what, she would let you become a part of her life. Sister, brother, or friend, she would let you in."
Theo paused and looked around the small crowd. Max only recognized a few people there. She figured the rest must have been her family or friends Ire had made along the way.
"Bad things happen to good people." Theo continued. "Never has that been more true to me. Ire was one of the best people I knew and something terrible happened to her for no reason whatsoever. Ire was my sister. I know she never said it, or even said 'I love you', but in her heart... it was in her heart. Ire, I love you and I miss you."
Theo stepped back into the crowd and Max took a breath. Logan gave her an encouraging look and Max stepped forward.
"Ire helped me more than once." Max said. "The first thoughts I had were 'Why couldn't I help her?' It didn't seem right. I had cheated death so many times, so why couldn't she? Everything happens for a reason. That bothers me, because there was no reason for this. I know many people say that, but truly, there was no reason. Ire was one of the good ones. There are so many things I want and need to say, but I couldn't possibly put them all into words. Ire, you're in the Good Place now, and I hope you're free from pain and happy."
Max walked back over to Logan and a blonde girl walked up next. Max zoned out and wasn't even listening. She vaguely heard the girl speak, but the emotion that was building up inside of her was too much for her to take, so she blocked a lot of it out. Max came out of her stupor when she heard the girl say she was going to let Theo recite something. Theo walked up and Max paid close attention.
"Ire had given me a one song CD a few months ago and I knew what it meant to her." Theo said. "The song touched her soul and it frankly touched mine as well. It goes back to the childhood that we never had. I'm going to read the part that really touched me and I'm sure, touched Ire."
Theo reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He unfolded it and cleared his throat. Then he read:
"I thought I could hear your cold words
After all, they were just words
I thought I could see your sad eyes
After all, eyes won't lie
I thought that I could just take this hatred in
Let it back out and see love again
But know I'm giving up
But I'm never giving in
So you can take my life
And you can keep this heart
But you never can take my soul
No never can take my soul."
Theo folded the paper back up and put it in his pocket. Theo walked sadly over to the blonde girl and a priest walked in front of the cloud. He did the ending ceremony, but Max wasn't listening. She was replaying Theo's words in her head.
The thing that pulled her out of her trance was Logan gently tugging on her arm and telling her it was over.
