Die For You (Mithross) DISCONTINUED

Chapter Fifteen

Welcome Home Bud

..The deed has been done.

He's here. He's actually here. My best friend isn't dead.

Ross lies on the grass, the rise and fall of his chest the only sign that he is alive. He wears the same suit he wore to his own funeral. He is peaceful, until his hand twitches. Then he opens his eyes, his deep blue eyes. They look around, as curious as they had been before. He sits up slowly, processing his surroundings. His gaze lands on me.

"..What day is it?"

I throw my arms around him. He makes a small squeak of surprise. I hug him like a mother would with a lost child that had finally been found. "H-Hey, you're crushing me!" He complains. I only laugh.

"You don't realize how much it hurt while you were gone." I blurt. He gives me a blank stare. Then, the remembrance registers on his face. "Oh.. Yeah.." I only hug him tighter, burying my head into his shoulder like I did in the dream world. "Max, I- OUCH!"

Ross quickly straightens up, irritated. He slips his hand into his back pocket, looking for the cause of his mild discomfort. He does find it, and pulls it out. It's a small pair of carved, wooden of wings. The set is painted white, and detailed as well. The feathers are too large to belong to a bird, plus they're carved uniquely. Ross looks up at me, confused. "Do you have something in your pocket too?" He asks tentatively.

I reach into my front pocket, since I don't have any back pockets. I find something solid, the texture smooth. I take the set of wings out, and find that it's identical to Ross'. It's the same general idea, most of the details just like the one Ross has, except mine is painted black. The feathers are more pointed, and the wings are slightly larger. Something about the two pairs of wings nags at the back of my mind.

"..What do you think about this?" I ask Ross. He shrugs. "I don't really know.. Maybe it doesn't really mean anything. It could be a simple gift, yours black because you wear black a lot of the time." He suggests. I shake my head in doubt. "If what you say is true.. Then who gave them? And why? Why'd we both get a 'gift'? No offense, but I didn't die." I say. The both of us were only more puzzled than when we found the wings.

"..Well.. Where are we?" Ross asks. My eyes widen in realization. "Oh shit, we're at the cemetery. We gotta get you out of here before anyone knows you're here, they think you're dead, and if they see you-"

"Okay okay, calm down, Max. We'll go to the apartment, then decide what to do. Sound cool?" Ross says. I nod, my mild panic vanishing. "Yeah, sounds cool." We get up and dust ourselves off. Ross' back and legs are noticeably covered in grass, thanks to his white suit.

"Come here" I say. "The grass on your back is bugging me." He does, and I brush the grass off his back. His suit is stained with dirt, but I don't mind. "Neat freak." Ross mutters. I resist the urge to laugh.

We walk to my car, and I take out my keys. We, well Ross especially, try to keep out of sight. Nobody can know Ross is alive. Not just yet, anyways. For once I wish for the shadows of the night to keep us hidden. Then again, everyone probably left.. It takes a while for me to notice my phone buzzing. I reach for it to see that Tim is calling me. I accept and press the speaker option like I always do when I'm not in a crowd.