A Little Piece of Heaven

"Tonight's the night, Coop!" Dain told his best friend after he passed him the basketball. The cool and crisp October air made it possible for them to see their breath. It ached in their lungs with every breath they took.

Coop rolled his eyes at his friends enthusiasm. "You know what's gonna happen right?" He looked at his friend with a serious expression across his childlike face.

"What?" Dain asks excitedly. He ran his hand through his chestnut curls in anxiousness.

"She'll go out with you, realize what a doorknob you are, and never speak to you again." He shot the ball at the basket and missed for the third time in a row.

"Bull!" Dain said indignantly. "I think she might actually like me. Why else would she agree to go out with me?"

"Maybe she said yes just to get you to stop following her around like a puppy?" Coop chuckled.

Dain picked the basketball up from the ground and aimed it at his best friends blonde head.

"Whoa! I was only kidding! I overheard Sam telling Leigh-Anne the other day that she's actually pretty excited!"

"Really?" Dain remarked happily.

"Yep. Now either pass the ball or go home."

Dain grinned cheerily and passed the ball back to friend one more time. He smiled to himself and thought of her. Sam. Beautiful Sam with her auburn hair and grey diamond eyes that light up whenever she laughed. She paid attention to you no matter who you were. She looked you in the eyes and truly listened to every word you said. It was rare, and Dain loved that about her.

Just the mention of her name brought a smile to his handsome features. He'd had feelings for Sam since the third grade. He took a moment to remember back to the day that he met her.

***

It was a sunny September morning as all of the third grade boys crowded around Jimmy Young; the young boys fighting over who would get to sign his cast first. However, none of the adolescent boys knew that there was a new student in their midst. A pretty little girl named Sam Deaken.

Mrs. Kirkland, a cruel and callous woman barged into the crowd of children. "How dare you boys be so rude!" she remarked. The boys gave each other confused looks and gawked up at their teacher. Dain subconsciously stood a little closer to Coop.

A quiet sneeze sounded from the classroom door. The boys all turned to look in the direction from which the sound had originated. There stood Sam. She had a small frame, tight auburn curls, and porcelain skin that seemed to glimmer in the fluorescent lighting.

"Class, this is Samantha. Make her feel welcome."

"Please call me Sam," spoke the small frightened girl. A beautiful smiled played on her pink cupids bow lips and that was when Dain knew. He knew that one day she would be his; he wanted her. She was an angel.

***

"Mom! I need your help," Dain called to his mother from the mirror in his bedroom.

She appeared only moments later. ready to help. "What do you need, Honey?" She peeked her head through the open door. Her black hair was pulled back into a bun and her pretty brown eyes were worried as she peered at her son.

"I need help tying this stupid thing!" Dain pulled the untied tie from his neck and huffed in frustration. His anger was evident on his face; his brow was furrowed and a frown was etched upon his tan features.

"Here, like this," Mrs. Kingston demonstrated to her son with her skilled hands how to tie the silver tie. "You really like her, huh?" she asked him, studying his chocolate brown eyes.

"Yes, I really do. Ever since the third grade... I think this might be my one chance. I don't want to mess this up." Dain's worried eyes were met by his mothers that were full of reassurance.

"I know she'll love you. I wouldn't worry if I were you. You are kind, caring, smart, funny, and a gentleman," she told her son with a wide smile. "I'm not just saying this because you're my son; I'm saying it because it's true."

His mother's words warmed his heart. A slight blush crept onto his cheeks and he could feel a smile tugging on the corners of his lips. A mixture of excitement and nervousness coursed through his blood.

"Thanks. I have to go now, I don't want to be late. I love you and I'll see you later!" He hugged his mother with a sudden burst of enthusiasm and practically flew down the stairs to the front door.

He had just made it to the door when his father stopped him.

"You going out tonight?" A dishevelled Mr. Kingston asked. Dain could smell the liquor from nearly three feet away.

"Uh, yes. I told you about it yesterday after school." Dain replied nervously, although he knew his dad wouldn't have remembered, the whiskey had gotten to his dad first. To avoid eye contact, Dain stared aimlessly at a spot on the clean white walls of the front entrance.

"Oh. You and that retarded Edward kid?" His father snorted into the air at his own humour.

Edward was Coop's real first name, but he hated it. Edward Eugene Cooper was his full name, needless to say, he preferred to be called Cooper. Dain stared blankly at his father before he responded. "He'd rather be called Cooper, but no. I'm not hanging out with him tonight. I have to go before I'm late, I'll see you later."

"No!" Mr. Kingston moved to stand between Dain and the door. "Tell who you're going out with," he demanded.

Dain sighed. He knew the only way to get what he wanted was to obey his fathers demands. "Her name is Sam and it's our first date. Can I go now?"

A smile broke across his fathers drunk face. "Aw, well that's cute." He attempted to playfully ruffle Dain's brown curls. Dain quickly stepped out of his reach. Mr. Kingston's face fell. "Fine. Go. But be careful on the roads, you wouldn't wanna get in an accident or anything." His words began to slur.

"Yeah, whatever you say." Dain was out of his house in seconds after his fathers harsh words.

***

"This place is really fancy...Are you sure about this?" Sam whispered to Dain as they walked through the French restaurant to their table. Her grey eyes shone through the dim candlelight to meet Dain's. A shy smile decorated her flawless face. He smiled back at her sweetly.

"It's fine, really. Have I told you how beautiful you look?"

She giggled quietly into her hands. "Yes you have, I'd say about four or fives times now for sure."

"Oh... it's true though. You're always beautiful, but today you're perfect." His cheeks turned crimson when he realised he sounded like a desperate fool.

A bright smile illuminated her face. She squeezed her eyes closed, looked down at the table in embarrassment and tucked a loose strand of her wavy auburn hair behind her ear.

"You're too sweet," she told him when she finally regained the courage to look back up at him again.

Their romantic candlelit dinner carried on in quiet conversation for what had only felt like minutes to the two, but really had been hours. Dain felt his heart swell at every sweet word that left Sam's pretty mouth. He thought of all of her exes. The boys who had come and gone. All of those guys had only seen her for her looks, not for her brains or for her kind heart. None of them had experienced the burning fire in the pit of their stomach just from looking at her. His soul was awakened that night. He finally felt alive, sitting in that restaurant talking the night away with an angel.

***

Sam stood on the corner of the street waiting in the snow, bundled up with a warm jacket, white fuzzy mitts with a matching scarf, and a brown hat that was pulled down to cover her cold ears. Her brownish red curls were blowing in the soft winter winds that had caused her cheeks to turn a bright pink.

Dain admired the way she stood, shivering from the cold February air. He walked swiftly and quietly on the icy sidewalk until he stood mere inches behind her. He took in a deep breath of the chilly air and wrapped his arms around his girlfriend's small waist. He leaned down and inhaled her scent. She smelt of the jasmine and honey perfume he bought her for her birthday weeks earlier.

"Mmm, you're warm," Sam muttered quietly as she turned in his arms to wrap hers around his midsection and rest her small head on his broad chest. He held his whole world tightly in his arms and smiled. He held the embrace for as long as he could before he couldn't stand to not see her face any longer.

He shifted slightly so he could look down at his love. She stared longingly up at him. Snowflakes caught in her long lashes and a smile spread across her pink lips. She looked angelic.

Dain inched his face closer to hers and pressed his lips lightly to hers. His body instantly came alive under her spell. She smiled against his lips and pulled away to look back up at him.

"I'm glad I agreed to go out with you last fall," she blurted out suddenly. He looked down at her and grinned from ear to ear.

"Even though I was a blubbering idiot?"

She laughed at his remark. Dain could always manage to make her laugh, and he hardly ever had to try.

"I thought you were cute. And you're my blubbering idiot." She touched her finger to the tip of his nose in a teasing gesture. He reached up and caught her hand before she could pull away.

"I think we both know who the cute one is here, and it's not me." He intertwined their fingers when he spoke. The white of her gloves contrasted the dark tan of his bare hands. He leaned down and kissed the tip of her nose softly. She giggled softly as they walked the short walk to her house.

The two lovers were sitting on the worn black couch in the basement of Sam's house when her mother busted through the door holding a large envelope in her hand.

"Sam! This came for you this morning; I think it's from Berkeley!" A wide smile was spread across the face of Mrs. Deaken. She stopped when she saw that Sam wasn't alone in the basement. "Oh, I'm sorry guys. I didn't mean to interrupt."

"That's okay Mrs. Deaken!" Dain said to her. She gave Dain a warm smile and waved to him. He was happy that she liked him.

"Here Sam, open it!" She handed tha large envelope to Sam and rested against the arm of the couch to watch her daughter.

Sam slowly stuck her finger in the corner of the envelope and stopped her movements. She looked up nervously at Dain; her grey eyes were wide with fear.

"What if-" she started to speak, but Dain cut her off with a kiss.

"You got in; we all know it. Now open the letter, Love." She smiled widely, animated with excitement once again.

She continued her actions to open the letter. She pulled the white papers from the top of the envelope and dropped them into her lap.

Her eyes were wide and her pink lips parted in shock. Tears started to form in her eyes and she quickly covered her face with her smooth hands.

"What? Honey? What's wrong?" Her mother asked her in a worry.

Sam looked up from her hands. First she looked at her mother, then she looked at Dain.

"I got in," she whispered. She suddenly lurched forward onto Dain's lap and wrapped her arms around him. He shouted his congratulations in her ear as she sobbed into his shoulder. He stood from the couch and swung around with her in his arms. She shook with tears of excitement after finding out her dream had come true.

Mrs. Deaken quietly got up from the sofa and left the room. Sam pulled away from the tight embrace she was caught in in Dain's arms and kissed him firmly.

"I am so happy for you Sammie!" He exclaimed to her.

"Thank you!" she repeated multiple times as she pecked kisses across his face.

"I'm so proud of you." He wrapped his arms around her again and listened when she talked about her future plans. He only had one plan in mind for his life, Sam.

***

Dain looked at Sam from the drivers seat of his dad's old work truck. It wasn't much of a truck, but he was able to have Sam in it with him, and that was enough for him. Her auburn curls were blown back in the wind coming through the open window.

"I love June," she said to him. "It's my favourite month. Summer starts and so does our freedom. Just imagine we get to spend everyday together if we want!" she rambled on excitedly.

"Every minute of every day, and even that might not be enough for time for me." Dain looked at Sam passionately as she studied his serious face.



"Stop! We're here!" Sam announced. She proceeded to give the directions to Dain. He finally stopped the truck at a picnic table in the middle of no where.

"Where are we?" He asked her, while he took in his surrounding. The table was directly in the middle of a meadow surrounded by large oak trees, their leaves the perfect shade of green.

"The forest!" Sam turned to look back at Dain and skipped through the grass until she reached the wooden table. He didn't even care where he was, as long as he was with her. He ran behind her until he was caught up to her. He swept her off her feet and carried her, bridal style, to one of the largest trees in the clearing. She shrieked and giggled as he jostled her around.

"Can you put me down please?" She smiled up at him sweetly. He was under her spell and put her down obediently.

Dain pulled his pocket knife from his pocket and motioned for her to chose a spot on the tree.

"Are you really carving our names into the tree?" she asked him sceptically.

"Yes, now where do you want your name?" She rolled her eyes at him; she hated clichés.

"Right here," she said and pointed to the location on the bark that was level with her heart.

"Alright then," Dain whispered into her ear softly.

It took him less than ten minutes to carve a heart containing their initials into the bark of the tree. Sam's lips parted when she saw the finished product.

"I love it!" she shrieked. "It's perfect."

"I love you," Dain proclaimed.

"Oh Dain! I love you too!" She smiled up at Dain and wrapped her small arms around his neck. He quickly obliged to her by picking her up by her waist and pressing her to the tree. She closed the distance between their lips. The innocent kiss lasted for a few moments before Dain broke it.

He set her down on the ground again and reached into his pocket once more. He turned away from her for a moment to take a deep breath. He knew what he wanted to say, he only needed the courage to say the words.

He felt the warmth of her small hand pressed to his shoulder.

"Dain?" she asked nervously.

Just do it, he thought to himself. He turned to face her once again, but this time he had a small box in his hand.

Sam gasped when she saw the box. Her eyes switched nervously from the box to Dain's eyes and back again.

"Sam, this is a promise. I promise to love you forever and for always. You are my everything. I have adored you since that warm day in September when you started school with us and had ringlets tighter than my fist. You stood there and stole my heart, it's yours and always will be." Tears filled Sam's eyes while she listened to Dain speak. He wiped away the small tear that had escaped with the pad of his thumb. "You are my world. Would you wear this ring as a promise to love me? I'm not asking you to marry me...yet. But I want you to have this because it will remind you that I promise to love you until the end of my days."

"Oh." Sam's eyes had widened at each of his words. "Of course I will Dain! I love you and I would be honoured to wear it. I'll be yours for as long as you'll have me. And forever sounds pretty good to me." She smiled and tears freely fell from her eyes.

Tears stung in the elated eyes of Dain. He looked down at his love one more time and slipped the small diamond ring onto her finger. After the ring was fitted to her finger, Dain pressed a light kiss to her delicate hand and smiled at her once again.

"Perfect fit."

"I love you."

Dain felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He said it! He told her he loved her, and she felt the same way. A euphoria took over him. He had never felt so happy in his life. And would never feel the same way again.

***

Dain sighed as he drove his truck back home from the meadow. Sam's small fingers rubbed circles onto his hand between their interlocked fingers.

"I would say this has been the best date ever," Sam broke the relaxed silence of the vehicle.

"I would say so," Dain agreed with her. A smile spread across his face for the hundredth time that night. "Can I call you my angel?" He asked her.

She brought her eyes up from her lap to meet his. "Why?"

"Because you are my angel."

"Of course you can, but only because I love you." Dain's heart swelled with the knowledge that she reciprocated his feelings.

"I love you, my angel." Dain took a moment to appreciate Sam's natural beauty.

Sam hardly ever wore makeup, she didn't need to in Dain's eyes. There was nothing that could be done to make her any more beautiful. Her lips were already a beautiful rose colour, her skin was always clear, and her eyes were always large and attentive. She had long lashes that were dark and framed her grey crystal eyes perfectly.

"Why are you staring at me? You should pay attention to the road." Sam attempted to scold him, but failed. She couldn't even pretend to be angry with him.

"I'm sorry, but you're so beautiful. My angel-" Dain's words were cut off when a pair of headlights flashed in his eyes. He tried to blink the flash out of his vision, but before he could he heard his angel scream. He turned to look at her, she was frozen with fear, staring blankly ahead.

The truck with the lights continued to approach them. Dain assumed the truck would move back to his side of the road, but it kept coming. It was mere seconds before the vehicles collided, the old truck that contained Dain and Sam rolled into the ditch that was nearly full of flood water. The sound of metal screeching nearly deafened Dain. His head ached from the impact.

He hung upside down, held to his seat by the old seatbelt. His eyes moved to look at Sam. She hung limply from her belt. Blood dripped from the open wound on the side of her beautiful face. Water began to pour in through the open window.

Instinct kicked in. Dain unbuckled himself from his seat and reached for Sam. He struggled with her seatbelt for a minute before he finally decided to cut it. He reached for his knife and took notice of just how fast the water was seeping into the truck. He needed to get her out.

After cutting her belt, he used his jacket to wipe the blood from her eyes. He carried her through the water and up to the top of the road. The other truck was no where to be seen. He pulled out his phone and dialled for an ambulance. Sam was hurt and she needed help, that was all Dain could think about.

Tears filled his eyes very time he looked down at his beautiful love. She had to be okay. He couldn't live without her. He wouldn't live without her. She was his angel and he would not be able to go a day with hearing her laughter or seeing her smile. He couldn't go a day without holding her small hand in his, he needed that. She was his everything, he was nothing without her. She had to be okay, she was eighteen! She had just been accepted into Berkeley for God's sake!

It's just a cut, Dain told himself. But why is there so much blood? Hurry up, please hurry up.

Dain prayed. He prayed that his Sam would be okay. He prayed that she wouldn't leave him, that she'd be with him forever. She needed to be with him forever, surely God knew that? How could he not know? Everyone knew. Everyone around town saw the way the two looked into each others eyes. They would all see them walking hand in hand through the park, no matter what the weather. All of the kids at school saw the way they desperately clung to each other. They needed one another. Why didn't God know that? He had to.

Dain sobbed into Sam's ruined shirt. He held her tightly and prayed for her. He sat like that for what seemed like years. Finally, an ambulance came.

Upon their arrival, Dain looked up. His eyes were finally dry. He was all cried out. "My Angel," he whispered before he lost consciousness and fell to ground.



***

Dain stared at their tree. "I miss you Sammie."

His quiet sobs grew louder. They told him that as time went on, his heart would hurt less. He wouldn't feel the need to cry every time he thought of her. He wouldn't feel so empty. It had been three months since her death, and he had still never felt so numb or so empty. There was nothing left of him anymore. The heaviness in his chest hadn't left him yet. The ache in his heart was constant. He was numb to the world. Nothing could change what had happened that fateful night.

Sam was dead. She was gone. That drunk driver had taken her life that night.

The world would no longer experience her kindness or her warm heart. Dain could no longer love her. He ached for her every minute of every day. He needed to feel her warmth again. He needed to feel her heart beat underneath his touch. He needed to have her again. No one knew his pain. They all thought they did.

Coop would try to call him, comfort him, tell him everything would be alright. He would try to tell him that he would be alright. He would get over her. But he wouldn't, he couldn't. She was his world. She was his everything. He couldn't handle it anymore.

Dain had only left his house two times since the funeral. The first time was to see Mr and Mrs Deaken. He made it to the front steps of her house and broke down right there. Mrs Deaken found him sitting on her steps crying and attempted to comfort him. She wrapped her arms around him and whispered that he would be alright, saying those words caused her to break into a fit of tears. Dain and Sam's mother sat on those steps and cried for hours, neither one able to control the tears.

Since that day, Dain had stayed in his room, only leaving for his basic needs. Although, he had hardly eaten a thing in weeks. Why should he? He couldn't carry on with out her, why even try?

This time was different. Dain left the house to honour the ten year anniversary of the day he and Sam first met. It had been ten full years since the day he laid eyes on her. Ten full years since he fell in love with his angel. His angel.

His sobs continued to grow until they overtook him completely. He rocked back and forth like a small child.

Why her? Did heaven really need another angel? Earth needed the angels, and Sam was a living angel. How was it fair?

"Why? Why you Sammie? Why you my angel?" Dain wretched from his tears. He clutched onto the ring he had given her. Her mother gave it back to him the day of the funeral and told him to hold onto it. It was a constant reminder of what he had lost. He couldn't handle having it in his grasp anymore. He stood shakily and put all of his strength into throwing the ring as far as he could into the trees.

He walked over to the tree that wore their initials. He leaned against it and called out for her in pain. Why wouldn't the ache leave him already? Surely he couldn't feel like this forever... He'd give anything to have his little piece of heaven staring back at him again.

***

A hand touching his shoulder woke Dain.

"Dain," a familiar voice called out.

Dain gasped when he realised who was speaking. He would never forget that voice, or the face that went along with it. He was dreaming, he had to be.

"Stand up, Dain. Look at me." He obeyed the command he was given.

He tore his eyes from the ground, his mouth tasted sour from the tears and his eyes were pained from the crying. In front of him, stood Sam.

"Sammie?" he cried out. He rushed to hug her, but he walked right through her. The realisation hit him like a ton of bricks, she wasn't real. She was a figment of his imagination. This was as good as it would get for him. This was as close to having her again as he would ever be.

"God, I miss you Sammie! Why? Why you? Why did you leave me?" He begged her to answer him. He fell to his knees in front of her. Sobs shook through him once more.

He felt her hand on him again. How could he feel her touch, but not be able to actually touch her? This was a cruel dream and he pleaded with himself to wake up from this beautiful nightmare.

"I am not a dream, Dain. I can hear what you're thinking where I am. I am allowed one chance or opportunity to speak to a loved one again. I chose you. I don't know how long I have, but I need to tell you some things. And you need to listen to me, okay?" Sam waited for him to stand once again. She looked him in the eyes and began talking.

"You can and you will carry on without me. You've made it these four months without me, you can keep going. You are the strongest man I've ever known. I love you, I always have, Dain." She stepped forward, her hand reached out to cradle Dain's face. His empty eyes looked up at her. He couldn't help but to lean his face into her. He could feel her now, a warm tingle on his face. She was touching him again.

"I knew there was something special about you ever since that day when you carried me to the office of the school when I broke my ankle. Do you remember that? I tried to do a cartwheel, to impress you I might add, and I fell and broke my ankle. You carried me all that way, we were only nine!" He nodded into her hand. How could he forget that day? That was the first time he held her in his arms.

"Of course I remember, how could I forget?"

"I knew I would love you someday. From that moment on, I knew it would be us. We would love each other, and I'm sorry it took me so long to realise it. I want you to remember that no one out there is as perfect as you. Someday...someone else, another woman will find her way into your life. She'll fall for you like I did. She'll love you, you have to love her back. You hear me? You need to let love back into your heart. For me. I know now that we were never meant to be; I was just a phase in your life. Our fates don't match up, Dain. You're meant to carry on living, find love again, have children and live a happy life. I was meant to die that night, you're meant to live. Do you hear me?" Tears were streaming down Sam's face.

Dain looked back up at her, the ache in his chest grew larger, if that was even possible. He loved her so much it hurt him. She was wrong, he could never get over her. She would always be his angel, she would always be his love. How would he ever let anyone into his heart if she took it with her? She owned his heart and his soul.

"I can't. Sammie, I love you so much. I miss you every second. How will I love someone else when I'm so broken inside? My heart is in pieces. Without you, I am nothing. I can't do this anymore. I'm sorry, I don't want to let you down." Dain stood up. He rested his hands gently on her small shoulders.

She shook her head at him.

"You listen to me, and listen good. We were meant to find each other, meant to love each other, but we were not meant to be together forever. We don't get to chose our fates, Dain. You were my fate, but I am not yours. You will find someone else. I promise you that. Please, I'm your angel now. I'll always be with you, in your heart. I'll be with you every step of the way, until the day when your clock runs out too. When that happens, we can be together again, but until then, you have to carry on. Carry on for me, please?"

He looked down into her grey diamond eyes. He knew what she was saying was true. They were never meant to be.

"Okay," he whispered. "Promise me you'll wait for me?"

She smiled up at him through her tears. "I'd wait forever for you."

"Good, I love you, my angel," Dain leaned down to kiss his love one last time. She welcomed his kiss. The sensation sent chills through Dain's body. The warmth of her lips on his was nearly enough to erase all of the pain and regret he had lived with. She broke the kiss and put her hands in his.

"And I love you. Repeat after me, I'll be okay." Sam intertwined their fingers.

"I'll be okay." She rubbed circles onto his hand. Dain closed his eyes and sighed.

"Again."

"I'll be okay." After saying the words again, Dain felt her hand slip from his. His eyes shot open to see that he was alone again in the meadow. He turned and looked for her in all directions, but she was gone. Forever. He clenched his hands into fists, but there was something in his grasp that caused him to stop.

Dain looked down into his palm and saw the ring. Her ring. She brought it back to him, just as she had brought life back into him. Even in death, only Sam had that ability. He sat back down against their tree. He smiled up at the stars, knowing she was up there somewhere.

"I'll be okay," he whispered one last time.