CHAPTER 5: CLEAN SLATE, THEN TRAGEDY
After reuniting with Charlie Brown, Peppermint Patty was happier than she had been in years. She made a promise never to take him for granted ever again. And he promised her that when he was back in Leeville that he would make it a point to spend some time with her. Patty was hopeful. She never thought she'd have a second chance with Charlie Brown, but this time around, she would play it slow and see where things went. No more mind games and reverse psychology, she would share her feelings with him. And hopefully he would be hers. But if not, she was just glad to be his friend again.
As she was getting ready for her night at the bar, her phone rang. She went to answer it.
"Hello?"
"Sir, it's me." There was only one person who called Patty "sir".
"Marcie, how are you?"
"Not good. You may want to hear it from me first before anyone else. There was an accident on a freeway not too far from where you are. A car clipped a big rig truck and it rolled down an embankment catching on fire." Patty shuddered.
"No!" she gasped. "It couldn't have been!"
"I'm sorry, sir," said Marcie, starting to cry herself. "I'm afraid the man in the truck that caught on fire was Charles!" Patty dropped the phone. Her dreams of a second chance went up in flames, literally. She picked the phone back up.
"I'll have to call you back, Marcie," she finally said, after gathering herself.
"Of course, sir." And Patty hung up. She couldn't believe it. She had finally made peace with Charlie Brown and now he was dead from an accident. Patty slouched down to the floor and sobbed heavily.
Nine Days Later, Orlando, Florida…
The funeral for Charlie Brown was nearing the end. They had made it to the cemetery. Linus, Lucy, Sally (of course), Frieda, Pig Pen, Schroeder, Marcie, Franklin, and Roy were all there. Violet was a no-show. In fact, one post on her Facebook page had a picture of Charlie Brown when he was a kid that read "Good riddance, blockhead!", which many of his friends thought was in bad taste, even for her. Peppermint Patty was inconsolable all day. As the funeral came to an end, all were leaving, except for Patty. Marcie walked up to her best friend.
"You need company, sir?" she asked.
"I'd like that, Marcie," said a tearful Patty. And both friends went to the repass for Charlie Brown. There she would catch up with everyone. Though he was gone, she was glad to finally clear the air with Charlie Brown and at least make peace before his tragic accident that took his life. And she knew he would be watching down on her from afar. And that one day they would be reunited together.
THE END
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry for the dark ending, but I felt like doing something different for this story. Hopefully you enjoyed this alternate story. More Next Chapter coming soon.