Lovers in Death

The Now

Aspen POV-

    Since the age of 5, I've been in foster care. Bouncing from house to house, from family to family, school to school. The one thing that has always remained constant was Theo. He's my best friend. 

    And my only friend. He's the only one who knows about my secret, yes, in case you're wondering. The dead people one.

We met at my first families house. We were foster siblings for a little while. Until the state found out about the drug lab in their basement. Then we got separated. After a few years, when i was 7 and he was 8, we were put into the same family again and since then, we've been inseparable. He has deep hazel eyes, slightly curly brown hair. He was tall and well built, he loved working out, helped him deal with his anger and distract him from his problems. He had a straight pearly white smile, yet had never had braces. For 30$, and their wedding rings, his parents were murdered. The police ended up catching the guy, but he was deemed insane so now he gets to live his life comfortably in a psychiatric hospital eating delicious food, instead of in a concrete cell eating slop like he should be. I think that's where a lot of Theo's anger stems from. His parents not getting their rightful justice. 

        I mean who can blame him, I'd be angry too. I don't get to be angry though, the driver who took my parents also died in the crash. And it wasn't his fault, his brakes locked up, he couldn't do anything. I feel bad for his family that he left behind as well.

            And now here we are. Theo and I walking side by side into the depths of hell called High school.It's the start of senior year for us, and strangely, we were excited but not at the same time. Excited to be done with this place, but nervous cause we had no idea what to do afterwards. 

            I had calculus for my first period, Theo walked me there and we sat outside the door talking for a few minutes before he had to go to his first period. 

    "ugh, I cannot believe they gave me CALCULUS for my first period of the day. Of all things!? Calculus!" I said to Theo in disbelief while making a disgusted face. 

    Theo laughed a bit and replied, "Don't even, I have History for mine," 

"mmm.... yeah I think I still win. For a multitude of reasons." I said and laughed. 

    Theo looked at me for a second, "whatever you say kiddo." he finally said then took his hand and scuffled up my wavy blonde hair. "I gotta get to class, I'll see you at the end of the day. Please stay out of trouble." he made a pouty face and put his hands in the basic prayer position. Then he walked off towards his class.

    You might be wondering what he meant by, "Please stay out of trouble.", well it's not like I go searching for it. It happens to find me, picture trouble as the shape of a brunette cheerleader, dating the star football player, who preys on the lesser and weak. Then  picture me, punching her square in the mouth after she said my parents intentionally wrecked cause they didn't want to be my parents. 

        As Marie once said, with her snowy white fur and sapphire blue eyes, "I don't start fights, but I can finish them." damn straight little lady. Damn straight.

           I won't even try to lie, I was high. A while back, I was in this foster home where my foster parents were heavy drug addicts and well, I wanted to have some fun, which soon turned to an addiction of my own. I walk around seeing dead people all day, the cocaine helps me a bit. I probably wouldn't have punched her but I hadn't slept in a few days due to the cocaine. Sometimes it's just like that. 

            I'm high right now honestly, I snorted a bump or two in the bathroom before Theo and I walked to school. He knows that I do drugs sometimes, I'm not sure if he's noticed the severity of my addiction, and honestly, I don't want him to. 

               The day at school flew by and then it was time for lunch. I went to the bathroom to get high again and my reflection in the mirror caught my attention. I stopped to look at myself. My wavy light blonde hair, my green eyes with specks of blue that came from my fathers eyes. My small upturned nose, my sunken in cheeks. My shirt hung loosely off my body, my collar bones stuck out like a thorn on a rose. Except, I resembled nothing of a rose. I was definitely wearing my addiction and I was ugly. oh well, let's do some cocaine about it. I don't have time to cry. 

        I walked into a stall and locked the door, I dug out my little baggie, and my house key. I dipped my key in and shoveled out a bit of the fine white powder and held it to my nostril and inhaled. I looked up toward the ceiling as to inhale all of it, wouldn't want to lose any, can't chance it. Gotta have it all. 

        Due to my wonderful friend Cocaine, the rest of the day flew by just as quickly as the first half. I met up with Theo outside the school doors, and we started walking home together. I had shades on as to conceal my pupils. Though it wasn't very sunny outside, it wasn't dark either, there was a nice breeze blowing my hair all around. I probably looked weird wearing my shades all the time, but I didn't care. I liked them, they made me feel secure and they hid my secret. 

        "How was school kiddo?" Theo asked me.

"It was fine." I replied. "I think I'm gonna go to the park for a bit." I said before walking off. 

    I could sense Theo just stop, and stare at me. I knew i probably hurt his feelings, and that he wouldn't know what he did wrong but, I just wanted to be alone right now. 

 Theo POV- 

        "I think I'm gonna go to the park for a bit." Aspen said, then just walked off.

 Maybe she had a rough day, or maybe I did something? I have no idea, but what I did know what that she was high. Still? I knew she was high this morning, but how did it last throughout the whole school day? She wouldn't have her shades on during a day this dark unless she was hiding her eyes. She doesn't need to bring that s**t to school, It our last year of high school, can't she just chill out?

Aspen POV- 

    I walked to the park and went straight to the bench that sat in front of the pond. There were usually ducks, I liked to feed them. There was a feed bucket hug on a post beside the bench that you could open and grab some to feed to the ducks and geese. I didn't like feeding the geese as much as the ducks, they were angry some days, and some days they weren't. You never knew until you tried to feed them. I didn't like to take the risk.  

        I was feeding the ducks, throwing little bits of food to each one when I saw a woman start to walk into the lake. She had long dark hair, and she was wearing a very fancy cream colored wedding dress, she was covered in blood and her eyes were empty.Her skin was deathly grey, and her veins were popping out and dark, almost black. 

        "Hey wait-" she turned to look at me when I screamed out to her, then I saw it. The cause of the blood all over her, the cause for her empty eyes, and why she was just aimlessly walking into the lake. A gunshot wound, to the head. 

    She looked familiar, I think I saw her on the news. She married the man of her dreams, only to find out that he was a serial killer, and she was his cover up. Seeing as how he would viciously rape and molest his victims, making them scream him name and telling them to act like they liked it or he'd kill them, having a wife was the perfect cover. Why would he need s****l release from captives when he was married? Even though he said he'd let his victims live if they acted like they enjoyed it, he didn't. They met their doom regardless, sooner if they refused. We'll never know why he did it. On the night of their wedding, he was taking a shower and she was going to get dressed into some lingerie for their wedding night, until she mistakenly opened his bedside and saw all the photographs of the girls. They were all crying, all bloody, and all having intercourse with him at the same time. He exited the shower in time to see her looking at the photos. He walked up behind her with his gun, and shot her. Then shot himself. A perfect murder suicide.

        I looked at her sad face, I can't imagine what must have been going through her head. To find out the man you loved so much that you married him, was such a cruel human being capable of such things, and then for him to blow your brains out. I don't think I'd be able to peacefully pass on either. 

        "I grant you release, may your spirit be restful and free." I said to her while making eye contact. All of her color returned to her body, her eyes went back to the beautiful shade of brown that they were when she was alive, "thank you.." I saw her mouth form the words before she evaporated into the air. 

                "What a normal day in the life of Aspen Winters" I said to no one in particular, mostly myself. I have no idea why I see dead people, or why those words pass them on, but what I do know is some people deserve the peace. 

        I threw a bit more food to the ducks then got up and started walking through the park, there was a little path that branched off from the park and went through the woods to the river and I felt like swimming. I had it memorized, three benches down from the duck pond bench, to the right, was the river trail. I started walking, when I saw a girl sitting on the final bench, crying. 

        She was beautiful, but she was crying. She looked to be a Latina, she had black wavy/ curly hair that looked so soft I wanted to touch it. Her skin was a beautiful olive tan, it was so smooth and her cheeks were so chubby I just wanted to place my hands on them and wipe away the tears that were running through those dark, luxuriant eyelashes of hers. Her nose was small and slightly upturned, with a slight bump in the bridge of her nose. I sat down beside her, she didn't seem to notice me yet, which was good seeing as I had no idea what to say. 

            "everything okay?" I asked her.

She stopped crying and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her jacket and looked at me. Oh god, her eyes were the dark most cavernous shade of brown I had ever seen, the sun hit a tiny speck of her eye just right allowing me to see the actual color or I'd have thought they were black.I could stare into them forever if she'd let me. What am I thinking? She's over here crying while I'm developing a crush, chill the f**k out Aspen.

"Are you talking to me?" she asked, and looked around. 

        "Yeah?" I said quizzically "who else is there?" I said and laughed a little. Her eyes widened in surprise, then she quickly shook her head and said 

" Not really, but I don't know how to explain it without sounding like a lunatic." 

    She could never sound like a lunatic to me, even if she tried. "Oh yeah? Try me." I said. Just then someone walked past me and looked at me like I was insane, I was used to getting looks like that but he could've been giving that look to her, and that was not fixing to fly. 

        "Do you have a problem bud!?" I stood up and asked with my arms out to either side. Okay, in hindsight, maybe I should cut back on the cocaine, but at this point I couldn't change anything. 

        "Not at all, leave me alone you psycho!" he said before jogging off.

"Whatever, " I muttered before looking back to the girl on the bench who looked amused yet slightly surprised."Anyways, I'm Aspen, and you are?" I said and held my hand out for hers.

    She giggled while she placed her hand in mine, "I'm Gianna, it's very nice to meet you Aspen."