The Noble War// Tate Langdon

Pictures Part 2

Tate's POV

I watched Violet reading and going through my things. And nothing really bothered me until she found the pictures of Lylah and I. It was hard to believe we were that happy. Her mom called her upstairs when she saw my gun. She grabbed the bag of coke and shoved it in her pants. I laughed a little and She turned around. She looked right through me and ran upstairs.

She left the pictures scattered around the floor. I slowly went to my knees.

It was everything I had for me not to break into sobs. I read a stack of love letters is written to Lylah. And the lot she'd written me.

Saying we could face the world together, and it couldn't effect our relationship in the slightest. How we could through anything together. It would always be us.

I'd return those letters by saying I was hers, always. She'd return by saying she was mine forever.

Forever is longer than she'd expected. Longer than she wanted.

It's you're fault.

The voice in the back of my mind told me. I nodded softly, feeling the tears flow down my cheeks. I picked up our prom picture. My arms wrapped gently around her shoulders. We both had these ridiculous grins. Our dimples were deeper than a trench.

We were genuinely happy. And then I fucked up.

Where did I go wrong?

I guess I was always screwed up in my mind, to begin with, but with her... It was different. I was different.

I couldn't have been anything else but a murderous psycho? Why couldn't I just have a weird flaw? Like a collection of beanie babies or some shit? Why do I have to be insane. Why do I have to be crazy?

"Why do I have to be crazy?" I whispered.

"A secret? All the best people are." Lylah said. She came into view at the bottom of the stairs. She smiled to herself.

God I've missed that smile.

"I can't believe you kept all this." She muttered. She plopped down to her knees. She picked up a picture of Addy and I.

"I wonder how she is now..." She sighed.

"Yeah, me too." I looked at her deeply. She snapped her head back to the pictures, reading the backs of some. She picked up the black rose.

"I never did like normal things." She said.

"You have that right" I let out a little laugh. She did too. We realized we were laughing together and stopped at an instant.

She picked up our pile of pictures. Flipping through them and reading the backs. She smiled at some, teared up at the others. She reached one that caught my eye.

It was a picture of her in one of my white button up dress shirts. It was after a party I'd taken her to, and after we'd had sex. She modelled for me. She said it was a gross picture at the time but it was a beautiful picture to me. I took it for her softly and turned it over to the back.

Tate,

I'm sure you already now this, but I love you, and I will always. And I need you, and I will always. And even if there comes a day were we aren't as close as we are now. Don't give up on me. I will always always always need you and love you. And nothing can change that.

More than the stars,
Lylah

"Hey Tate?" She asked.

"Yeah?" I replied, smiling at the note.

"Can we talk?" She asked.