Well, I had to start from scratch- My laptop crashed and I lost ALL my data. I know there is no excuse for waiting so long to post, so now I really regret it. I hope you enjoy anyway!
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Jack sat in the kitchen, completely unaware of the drama taking place upstairs; the drama that he himself had caused. He was wrapped up in his own thoughts about the murder, the story of which was now being broadcast on the television he was barely watching.
The newscaster's face was somber as she said, "Five lives were taken in this violent and shocking murder. Committed in broad daylight in the busiest square of town, it is surprising to hear that there were no witnesses of the event. While the police have informed us that there is not yet an identifiable pattern between these victims to determine whether a serial killer was involved, the public is warned to take extra caution on the streets." The camera panned to a spot over the reporter's shoulder, zooming in on three men wheeling a gurney away, a white sheet draped over its occupant. The sheets didn't disguise the drips of red that followed the gurney all the way to the ambulance.
"The murderer," she continued, pushing her black hair from her eyes, "was identified as being human through a system set up by Amity's ghost hunting department- a grid that monitors the ectomplasmic activity in Center Square."
Jack looked up to see his own design for the "Ecto-deteco" flashing on the screen.
"At the time of the murders, there were only mild traces of ectoplasmic activity, the norm for our city's streets. According to experts, these amounts of ectoplasm would not have allowed for a fully formed spectral being."
"This just in," she said, holding a headset closer to her ear. She took a breath before continuing. "The victims have been identified as Jared Shumway, Allie Peterson, Cara Kwong, Giselle Valdez, and Gary Swift." She read the names slowly, pausing after each one. "Our hearts go out to the families of these five."
Jack shook his head. He had known Gary Swift- he was his professor of Mythology in college. And Cara Kwong; hadn't she been a friend of Maddie's?
"The strange lack of witnesses is being investigated further by police. We can only hope that the killer will be caught by Amity's finest soon. Back to you, Ted."
Jack turned off the television.
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Up in the bedroom, Maddie had finished her crying jag. She knew Jack didn't mean anything by it. She knew Jack was just absent-minded.
She wiped her face, telling herself how silly it was to cry. Crying never solved anything. Action did. Pulling herself off Jack's pillow, she made up her mind to go wish him a happy anniversary, whether he had remembered or not.
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Maddie passed Jazz in the hallway. Jazz had a first aid kit under her arm and Maddie wondered for a moment how badly Danny had hurt his arm falling down... the stairs, most likely. Her mother instinct told her to go check on him, but it seemed like Jazz was already helping out so…
She continued down the stairs to her husband in the kitchen.
Jack was sitting at the table, munching some toast and staring into space. Thinking. Maddie gave a small smile and walked up behind him to place her hands on his shoulders. He looked up. "Hey, sweetie," he said softly, turning to kiss her hand.
"Hey," she breathed, knowing she had lost the will to scold, yell, cry, or whatever she had been planning to do to get him to remember. She just wanted to sit there, safe and loved.
Jack glanced down at the table where the newspaper and package had been dropped. He stared at it and few moments. "OH!" he suddenly exclaimed. Maddie started, quickly releasing Jack's arms. "I didn't… Annivers-…oh!" He snatched up the package from the table. "I didn't forget! I didn't forget!" he sounded excited now. Maddie stood bewildered as he got to his feet and handed her the small white box.
"Happy anniversary, Madelyn." (*)
Maddie was shocked. He… remembered? At least, he had remembered most of the day and had forgotten for a short while, distracted by… something. Maddie felt even sillier for crying now. She accepted the package now, her heart light and her eyes watering with happiness. She looked into her husband's eyes and was met with the same delight, the pure feeling of mutual devotion and love.
Setting the package behind her, she rushed into her husband's arms and pressed her lips to his.
The package lay on the counter for the remainder of the day, quite forgotten as the couple blissfully celebrated their love.
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(*) I don't know Maddie's full name, but I think it's either Madelyn or Madison and Madison just didn't feel right in this situation. Correct me if I'm wrong, please!