CHAPTER 19: "Does it Have to Be This Way?"

PEATER'S PERSPECTIVE

I could only watch as Ash tore Elyssia's stem right open, leaving her to fall down onto the dusty floor of the attic. I couldn't believe that anybody could be so evil. I had made the same mistake that I made not very long ago, and I was going to pay a heavy price. Absent was the miracle that occurred when Elyssia tried to kill herself, and absent was that special part of me. I feel as if part of my soul had been ripped out, and I was left alone, in the ghost town of heartbreak.

"Jeez . . . we better run. Right, Martin?" Temi whimpered.

Martin nodded, and the two Chompers had jumped right out the window. I shook my head and kneeled by Elyssia's body. The colour was slowly draining from her face, and the pendant around her stem had lost its glow. Permanently. Then, I could have sworn that I saw some kind of spirit rise right out of Elyssia's body. It gave me a cold stare, and disappeared in the blink of an eye. I sighed. It was horrible that the poor girl died, feeling angry at me.

ELYSSIA'S PERSPECTIVE

I woke up. I was in an odd room, with a veil a few metres to my right.

"What happened? Am I all right?" I asked.

"Of course you are! Welcome to our world!" a female voice behind me replied.

I looked behind me, and I saw that unusual Peashooter Adria running towards me.

"Adria! Adria!" I screamed as I was swept into one of her killer hugs.

"Remember me?" yet another voice whispered.

"It's me, Alana!"

And surely enough, I saw the Flaming Pea behind Alana.

"It's so good to see you two!" I exclaimed as I looked from twin to twin.

Then I realized that my suspicion was confirmed: I was dead.

"So . . . I guess I'm . . . in heaven?" I asked.

"Yep!" Alana answered.

Then I looked at the veil to my right.

"What is that veil for?" I asked.

Not waiting for an answer, I walked towards the veil, and I saw Peater kneeling over my body with Ash looking satisfied and regretful. It was hard to tell.

PEATER'S PERSPECTIVE

I sighed as I looked over Elyssia's broken body. Annika came out, and gasped when she saw the pool of blood around Elyssia and I.

"Ash!" she growled as she came running over to him.

"Hold your fire, Spitfire! It's a long story . . ." Ash sputtered.

He held onto her leaves firmly in order to restrain her. Turning away, I looked back at Elyssia's corpse. It made tears spring into my eyes as I remembered the last time her eyes were open. Her eyes were filled with hatred and anger, just waiting to burst out of her leaves in a blast of ice. Not a single word of friendship and benevolence had been exchanged. My own mistakes had come back to haunt me. Miserably. As I remembered the good times we had, the last hug we shared, my tears had fallen out of my eyes. I let them fall on the girl's body, not giving a crap. I didn't care if I looked like a coward. I had lost the love of my life.

ELYSSIA'S PERSPECTIVE

I sighed as I saw Peater kneeling over my body, sobbing uncontrollably. I reached out to touch the veil, and I felt a bolt of pain come to me. I screamed out in surprise as I drew my leaf away.

"What the hell just happened?" I asked frantically.

"We've tried that, and . . . it hurt." Adria whispered.

I could visibly see her "A1" tattoo on her cheek as she held my leaf.

"Yeah. If you wanna go back, then you just have to run right through. We never tried that though . . ." Alana whispered.

"Hey ― have you noticed that we have these weird tattoos on our faces?" Adria asked.

Then it hit me ― I had to tell them the truth before I went back into the world of the living souls.

"You two aren't really my blood relatives. You were in . . . a box with a note saying that your mother didn't want to take care of you. So . . . you had tattoos printed on your faces to distinguish you. That's pretty much it." I explained.

"Thanks for the truth, Elsi. Do you wanna go back?" Adria whispered.

"Yeah. It's not really my time. I mean, I gotta fight. Plants need me. Though I know them not, they need me." I replied.

Taking a deep breath, I walked towards the veil, remembering the sharp bit of pain that I experienced.

"Go on." I muttered to myself, and I was running right through the veil, pain threatening to kill me.

But I didn't care. Next thing I knew, I was on the dusty floor of an attic.

PEATER'S PERSPECTIVE

I gasped as I felt a presence return to the room. My soul had finally found its lost part, and I felt truly happy once more. Elyssia seemed to be coming alive, for a warmth had drifted back into her body. Even Ash and Annika looked surprised, for the next sight made us all catch our breaths. We all saw a beautiful spirit descend from the ceiling. I gasped as I recognized Elyssia's beautiful blue eyes. Then it was over. Elyssia opened one eye, and groaned.

ELYSSIA'S PERSPECTIVE

I opened the other eye, and I could clearly see Peater looking down at me, his face grimy and tear stained.

"What the . . ." I mumbled as I went into a sitting position.

"Elyssia! You're alive!" Peater exclaimed as he pulled me into a tight hug.

I smiled, remembering our friendship. Then, just like a stone, it hit me. Peater not jumping to my defence, our argument, me calling him a bitch . . .

It brought too many memories.

I pushed Peater away, and I finally managed to get the stubborn necklace off of me. I dropped it into Peater's leaf.

"We're finished! We've made way too many mistakes!" I screeched.

"Hey ― it'll be all right; don't lose faith!" Peater protested.

"THERE'S NO HOPE!" I screamed.

"No hope left for me . . ."

My sobs had taken over my voice. I could see Annika and Ash staring at us silently. Finally, Ash had officially given up.

"SHOOT!" he screamed before he jumped out of the window that had served as the escape route for what seemed like a million plants and people, as the window was smashed before Mary had decided to make a run for it.

Damn, this is a crazy world.

Annika ran over to my side and started comforting me. I buried my face in my leaves as I said in a muffled voice,

"Go away. You don't need to share in my grief." Peater knelt down beside me and tried to make me feel better.

"It's fine!" he whispered.

"It's NOT!" I roared as I wiped away my tears, fury taking over me.

I was shaking violently, trying not to kill anybody today. I turned around, and I ran right out of there. But my own demeaning problems had started taking their toll. I fell down, and I had blacked out.

I woke up in an infirmary, and I could see Peater beside me.

"Always sticking to me like a leech . . ." I muttered angrily.

"Remember our promise?" Peater asked.

"It's FINISHED. We're FINISHED. It's . . . it's not gonna work out! I'm . . . just another dirty piece of scum." I whispered, my tears falling down.

"Does it have to be this way?" he murmured.

I couldn't answer that question. Did it have to be this way?

Did it?