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''How you holding up?''
Devin Greene shakes her head. ''Just leave me alone, Matthew.''
Matthew Greene was absolutely struck. He's never seen his older sister like this before. Even when she was mad, he knew it was temporary and she'd be back to smiling and cracking all sorts of jokes.
But he knew he wouldn't be seeing that side of Devin for a very long time.
He backs out of her room, closing her bedroom door shut. It was Monday morning, also known to be the last week of school. She sneers at the thought. He didn't even get to end the school, much less graduate.
She looks over at the velvet box. That damn box. It only brings her memories of the worst mistake of her life.
She spent the rest of her weekend at home, lying in bed. She was completely and utterly numb. She didn't even know to get the thoughts of him out of her head. Every waking moment, she thinks of a moment that happened between them. And the second she remembers that moment, the memory of the accident would just flash in her thoughts. Then she was back to crying.
It was an emotional cycle on repeat.
Except she couldn't find the forward button. She wish she did. She wanted to skip this, this pain in her chest that doesn't want to leave. The ball in her throat that aches her from holding back her tears, she wanted it all to be over.
She reaches for the box and opens it up.
It was clean.
There were no dents, no diamonds missing, no scratches. No blood.
Her eyes darted for the scripted engraving, forever and always.
A sudden realization came to mind. She grabs her phone resting beside her on the bed and unlocks it, going straight to his Instagram account. She's been going through it all weekend. It was only physical memory she had of him.
She went to his New Years post, scrolling straight to the comments.
The last comment listed was hers.
She was the one to tell him forever and always.
Little did she know there was never going to be a forever and always for Devin Greene and Jeffery Atkins.
Maybe it was because he was too good for this world that he had to die young? Or, who knows.
