Remains

Waterfall / Caroline Dare

"It was awful, seeing him die for me. We had only met minutes before, I don't know why he did it."

Liam was silent. 
His face was pale, all of the colour had drained from him and he looked like he had seen a ghost. His breaths were shallow, and his Adam's apple jolted every time he weakly attempted to swallow his saliva. 

"Can you describe this boy to me again?" He stuttered, his eyes glassy, reminiscent. 

Isabelle tried to think why, but she quickly shook it off and began recalling the memory of him. "His hair was sandy brown, and his jawline was pretty sharp, I guess. He was quite skinny, and he had the eyes of a boy. His body was grown but in reality he was far too young to die. Far too young to die for someone else." 

Liam put his notebook on the coffee table, his hand shaking.

"You said you hid in the wine aisle and that's where he died?"

She nodded at his question, growing more apprehensive at what he was going to say next. She studied his face for a moment, and she noticed a tear rolling down his cheek, something she didn't expect.

"Isabelle, I think that was my brother." 

Isabelle's heart skipped a beat. A sick feeling bled into her stomach and her bottom lip quavered. 

"I'm so sorry, Liam, I didn't know, I shouldn't have let him, I-" 

"No, it wasn't your fault." Liam started, but Isabelle's rambling wasn't over.

"-I should have died there. It should have been me." She finished.

Liam was silent for a moment, before he decided what to say. "It's something he would do, it was just the way he was. His name was Elijah, in case you wanted to know. He was the nicest kid at school, and would defend his friends and family to the ends of the Earth. He should have had nothing coming his way. Good grades, best attitude, good at sports, he was kind of an all-rounder kind of kid. No wonder he saved your life, it's just the sort of guy he was." 

Isabelle knew he was trying to convince her it wasn't his fault, and that it was also good for him to remember the good about his brother. 

All she could manage was "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologise, please," he begged, "I know what you've been going through. My little brother was like my best friend. You can't blame yourself for what Elijah did for you."

"I just feel so guilty," she whimpered, "he sounded like a great guy, and I can't help but wonder what would have happened if I wasn't there that day." 

"You were the only survivor. There was a high chance he would have been killed anyway, but I'm glad it was his choice rather than the choice of a murderer." 

Isabelle furrowed her eyebrows. "His choice? The killer could have not pulled the trigger. He could have left the world alone instead of killing 25 innocent people and then himself. Elijah could still be alive right now, but it was the selfishness of another that was responsible for his death." 

Liam shrugged, his tears now soaking into his skin, his composure regained. "Sometimes, the circumstances aren't that easy. It's the things that are out of our hands that take us. There would have been no survivors if it weren't for him. You and I both know that terrorist would have killed him after he shot you. One survivor is better than none." 

"How can you stand even saying that? You're talking as if it's not a big deal, for Christ's sake! How do you not crave justice for what he did to Elijah?" Isabelle scolded.

"There was no justice to be done. The man killed himself before the police could get him, so how do you further condemn a dead man? I've learned to accept that there was nothing I could do to save him, and I had to move on."

Isabelle had no comeback this time. They both sat in silence for a few minutes, each other's words still registering, playing over and over in their minds. 

"I understand if you want to leave." Isabelle muttered, loud enough to break the silence and reach Liam's ears. 

He looked up, meeting her disappointed gaze. 

"Leave? I told you, I want to know your story. I know how to deal with the outbursts and the pain, and a little argument won't deter me. I will always be ready when you are." Liam announced.  

Isabelle nodded quietly, biting her lip. "Okay, here we go again, I suppose."