I Fell For You At The Cemetery

08.

08

Sarah rarely joined the other teachers in the staffroom during lunch. She would instead wander out onto the school grounds, occasionally smoking in the shadows before disposing of it.

Mammy hadn't said anything to her about her smoking on school property but Sarah wasn't an idiot. She knew that not only her but Mammy could get in trouble as well. It was one thing losing her job because of her own behavior but it was another thing if she was responsible for destroying someone else's career as well.

She knew that Mammy took her work very seriously and had spent almost a lifetime in this school. She had developed an affection for the old building with its white washed walls. So much so that sometimes, Mammy would come visit the building in the summer vacations. And taking that away from Mammy was the last thing that Sarah wanted to do.

She was extinguishing the cigarette quietly with her shoe when her phone beeped. She took it out of her jeans pocket and found a text from an unknown number, which read:

Are you a magician?

Sarah frowned at the text before deleting it. Probably a wrong number or something. She was about to put her phone away, when it beeped again, indicating another text from the same number.

Because whenever I look at you, everyone else disappears.

Rolling her eyes at possibly the most cheesiest pick up line ever, she texted the person back, saying:

Wow. How long did it take you to come up with such shit?

She had her suspicion about who was texting her but she couldn't be sure. The reply to her text came almost a minute later.

I'm ashamed to admit that I actually Googled it.

An eye roll and a few seconds later, she replied:

Google hates you. And stop texting me. I told you that you can only use my number in case of emergencies.

She put her phone back in her pocket, ignoring the beep that came a few seconds later. Sighing, she wondered if giving Joey her number was the best decision. Apparently not.

He was present in class this morning, though and Sarah couldn't help but feel a bit relieved to see that he was well enough to get out of the house. But now he was texting her and she wasn't sure how to feel about that.

Her phone beeped for the second time and sighing, she pulled it out, ready to give him a piece of her mind. Again.

You had specifically written to 'call' you in case of emergencies. You never mentioned texting.

And then,  a few minutes later, he had texted:

You okay?

The question was sudden and caught Sarah completely by surprise. She stared at the two words on her screen, somehow being able to feel Joey's genuine concern for her. She looked up at the blue sky and sighed, closing her eyes. It was starting to get cold again.

She never replied to Joey's question.

----

It was a restless night for Sarah. She knew that she should get a few hours of sleep before work the next day but she'd finished her pack of cigarettes and she couldn't stop pacing in her room.

She knew this was bad. Hell, she would probably have lung cancer by the age of thirty at this rate but she didn't care at the moment. Her addiction made her focus on one thing only and she was unable to think about the bigger picture. She needed to smoke. She could probably get a pack even at this late hour but Chelsea would hear her leave. Chel wasn't a light sleeper but lately she's been sleeping with one eye open, in case Sarah ever needed her.

After a few more minutes of pacing, she opened her door as quietly as she could and peeked out. Chel's door was shut and Sarah tiptoed into the hall. Grabbing her jacket from the hook near the front door, she turned back once to see if Chel had heard her. Her door remained closed so Sarah slipped in the key and pulled the door open. She hastily locked it behind her and slipped on her jacket, shivering. She could really use some sunshine about now. The cold weather just seemed to dull her even more.

Half an hour later, she was standing over Steve's grave. There was a marble headstone now that read:

Steve Martin

1989 - 2015

An avid fan of The Fast and Furious movies.

She chuckled dryly when she read that. It had actually been Steve's own idea. He was watching the second Fast and Furious movie and it had dawned upon him just how obsessed he was with the franchise. He had turned his head and had nudged her knee with his and had jokingly said, "If I die, I'd want this to be on my headstone."

Sarah's stomach turned over now as she recalled herself rolling her eyes at him. "Your wish is my command," she had said to him, sarcastically. "I'll have a line on your headstone that says 'an avid fan of the Fast and Furious movies'. Happy?"

He had nodded and kissed her then.

Sarah's lower lip trembled. What was she doing here anyway?

She'd left to get a pack of cigarettes and instead found her way here. Almost like it was Steve's doing. Like he was somehow watching over her and stopped her from making a wrong choice. That would be something he'd really do.

He was the one with the better table manners and the better 'people manners' really. He was the one who smiled and was polite and always there for her. But there was one thing about him that irritated Sarah. It was the one thing that cost him his life. The one thing that she had always warned him about. But he hadn't listened. And he was dead.

Sarah wasn't sure what to feel anymore. She was angry at him, furious even, but she was heartbroken too. She was lonely.

And all those emotions bottled up inside of her, confused her. And this confusion frustrated her and when this frustration was in its full swing, she became angry.

She was angry now. She just wasn't sure at what exactly.

At Steve? For not being careful on the road? For always driving without his seatbelt on and driving well above the speed limit? For being careless enough to get himself killed in a car accident?

Or was she angry at the other driver for killing Steve?

Or at fate? For taking Steve away from her? For giving her that happiness before snatching it away from her?

Or at herself? For being such a mess that she couldn't properly pick up all her pieces?

"YOU MOTHERFUCKER!"

She screamed into the night and her voice echoed among the dead whose remains were present but they weren't of this world anymore. She screamed again but this time it came out as an agonized sob. Like a person who's been hurting on the inside.

Her head started spinning and she found no energy to keep herself standing. She sank to her knees on the cold ground and her vision went blank. The last thing she saw was Steve's headstone.

Chapter 08 to be continued...