A very grim idea of mine based on a prompt I saw tonight. Sorry for the multiple updates but I'm really feeling the JC love today!
As usual, reviews and critique are welcome!
He was restless all night. His mind had chained him indefinitely to the torture of memory.
And he knew that every hour he stayed awake thinking of her would be an hour he would have to swallow down the tears and pretend like he was ready for tomorrow…
Jimmy had been conducting experiments using icicles in the park. As he came up the path that lead back to his neighborhood, he noticed that Cindy was sitting in the cold on a wet bench, rubbing her hands together frantically to generate some warmth. She was clothed in a thin full-sleeved shirt and jeans.
He walked up to her. He called her name a few times to no avail. She was too preoccupied with her thoughts. Finally, he brushed some of the snow off of the bench and sat beside her.
"Do you want my gloves?"
She nodded her head no.
He slipped them off anyways and left them on her lap. She looked indignant for a moment before she snatched them up. On closer examination, he saw tears forming in her eyes…but before he had a chance to offer her a warm sanctuary in his lab or even his coat, she pushed him off the bench and in the most hoarse voice he'd ever heard her use, commanded him to leave her alone to her misery. He'd gotten up, dusted the snow and water from his pants and offered her a hand. She motioned to him to leave once more and he'd left her there…and when he turned back to look at her, she could see her sporting his gloves and clasping her hands to her mouth, her lips kissing the knit fabric quietly…
"Cindy, I got you a present…" His voice had been shy, anxious even. He remembered feeling strangely scared, as if he was being put on trial by a panel of judges and not the girl he'd loathed (and who loathed him) until very recently…
"A mollusk?" Her disappointment shone through even though she pronounced it charming.
"You're supposed to open it." He sounded much more confident than he felt.
She delicately pried the shell open to find a shining pearl. She let out a gasp and fingered the jewel carefully. "Oh Jimmy…it's beautiful."
His heart quickened. He'd impressed her…perhaps even made her happy.
"It was nothing really…I looked through a couple of oysters…a hundred and thirty seven actually…" He was rambling. You buffoon! She doesn't care how many oysters you looked through! Way to look like even more of a show off…
But Cindy ate it up. She moved closer to him and held out her hand for him to take. "That's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me…"
You can't have very had many nice things then, dear…
She looked absolutely radiant under the lamplight. Her skin glowed, her hair was neatly pulled into a bun, with only a few strands of hair falling over her emerald eyes. He'd found it difficult to keep himself away from her…
"Everything turned out alright in the end, huh?" He didn't know what possessed him but he took her hand and kissed her soft pink lips for what seemed like a long minute before he pulled away and walked ahead of her. She stood shell-shocked in the same spot for a second before she ran up to him and linked her hands in his. "Everything turned out perfectly." She affirmed.
Jimmy tossed and turned in his bed. One night of peace was all he asked, one night…he had to wake up early tomorrow…
There she was, beautiful as ever, even in death. She was contained in a black coffin carved with flowers. Her straight blond hair laid out behind her. Her eyes were closed, her eyelashes casting shadows across her cheekbone, which was touched with a hint of blush. Her lips were pursed, her pale body dressed in a form fitting dress…
He reached inside the coffin to touch her one last time…but they pulled the lid shut, slapping his hand away.
He woke up gasping. Before he even had time to orient himself to reality…a figure appeared in his doorway. It was his mother. "Jimmy, it's time to go to the funeral."