The Garden of What Once Was

CHAPTER THIRTY

The wide windows in Reed's bedroom allowed for the all-too-bright moon to pour its light into his dark room. As he sat in a chair near his bed, watching Ember toss and turn in her sleep, the moon seemed to only annoy him with the way it shone so brilliantly. Before, it had been cast aside by the ominous clouds cluttering the night sky, but now it was the centerpiece of the sky, like a fully bloomed flower in a field of grass. One single thought kept swimming around his head each time his eyes strayed from Ember and to where the moon peeked out from the corner of his window. How can something shine so brightly after so much destruction? All he could think about was the deaths that had occurred, the blood that had been spilled, and the endless suffering Ember had endured and was still enduring even in her dreams. Because of that, the moon he once associated with Ember, the girl who he might even love, was something he despised. It made him angry, so angry that he had to roughly pull the curtains to cover his large windows. Even so, the white light pouring from the sky managed to seep through parts of the thick curtains. This large rock that was so far away from this world seemed to be intent on tormenting him. But, as he nodded off to sleep, the moon slipped behind a lonesome cloud, allowing him to find solace for a moment.

His solace wasn't shared with Ember, though, as once the moon dipped behind that cloud, she jolted awake. Her hair was still damp from the shower she had almost no relocation of taking. The beads of water lingering on her hair dripped onto the sheets she was unknowingly crumpling with her fists. Seeing the dark splotches of discoloration on the gray sheets reminded her of the blood that had dripped onto the street. As soon as she made the comparison in her head, she frantically threw herself out of bed, almost falling as she did so. Bile clogged her throat, preventing her from breathing as she ungracefully stumbled toward the windows. Once she was close enough, she reached out one shaky hand and ripped one side of the curtains to the right. The rings of the curtain slid to her will, making a soft clanging noise as they hit the end of the curtain holder. Ember then turned the latch of the window, eager to fill the silence with something other than the sound of her own pounding heart and unrelenting thoughts. Yet, there was nothing to hear from outside. Everything was quiet. It was as if the world had died along with Aisha and the beast. She sucked in a deep breath of the cold air that slightly stung her aching lungs. Eventually, that air came out of her throat in a broken sob. Tears followed soon after, falling to the ground below. This view, one of the distant lights and the tiny tips of the buildings in the city was something she would never see again. Knowing that made her cry, as deep down she didn't want to leave the High-tiers. She wanted to continue being selfish, to stay with them and naively hope that everything would work in their favor. But what she saw only a few hours ago told her that she could no longer be selfish. Her selfishness would only bring harm to the very High-tiers she cared for and the one High-tier she was close to loving. If she truly held any ounce of care for them, she had to leave them. Though it may hurt them all, it would be nothing compared to the pain they would inevitably feel from their friendship continuing. And so, she took three steps back from the window, tears smeared down her face and an aching heart beating in her chest. She told herself she would get over this eventually, that the times they had together would be forgotten soon enough. But she didn't want to forget them, not then or even in the following years to come.

She turned her back to the view she would never see again to gaze upon a view she wanted to engrave in her brain. "Reed..."

His name came out of her mouth as an airy whisper as she walked toward him. Not once did he rouse from his sleep, even when she stood in front of him, secretly hoping he might wake up and tell her not to go. Still, those purple eyes of his remained shut, only fluttering once in a while as he dreamed of Ember dating Cohen. This dream caused a scowl to appear on his face that made Ember smile. It wasn't a happy smile, as it would be wrong to describe it in any positive manner. For, not all smiles are of happiness. The one Ember was currently wearing on her face was of yearning, the yearning for the happiness she wasn't able to have with Reed or the other High-tiers. And, as she stood there, taking in every detail of Reed, she started to think about how different things would have been if there wasn't a divide between vampires and humans. That was only wishful thinking, though. This was the world they were trapped in. The natural laws that hold this world together made their friendship wrong in every way. Unfortunately, there is no way for anyone to alter the laws that nature has left in the traces of humans and vampires alike. The prey feeds the predator and the predator feeds on the prey. There is no law that states 'the prey befriends the predator and the predator befriends the prey'. Life doesn't work that way. It's cruel and unfair to those that have less power like Ember. Her hands balled into fists at her sides as she walked toward the door.