Random one off stories

A walk in the graveyard

Mark Stewart stepped past the looming gate of the graveyard. It's shadow towering over him as he made his way past it. His boots crunched in the thick autumn foliage that lined the floor like wounded soldiers. Crumbling to dust with a soft crackle under his feet. The night was dark and the haunting glow of the moon cast menacing shadows over the stony figures that stood motionless all around. An exhale escaped his lips, sending fourth a mist that melted away like an ice cream on a summer's day. His eyes weaved among his stony audience. His eyes scanning the engravings that marked the departed. His gaze passed back to the winding path ahead. The shadows danced tauntingly ahead of him as he trudged onwards through the field of despair. His mind turned then to the ones he'd lost, the ones he'd left behind and the sacrifices he'd made. He stopped dead in his tracks as his gaze fell upon the figure he had been looking for. He approached it slowly, his legs turning to lead as he grew ever closer. His legs gave way and he fell to his knees. tears fell from his eyes like silent rain as he read the inscription "Katie Stewart - died 2013 beloved daughter and sister". He gently sat the bunch of flowers he had been carrying down. He sat motionless in the cold august night, thinking of the girl he'd loved all those years ago. He sat for hours in the glare of the moon's rays. Eventually he rose from his slumber and turned and made his way out past the gate. Leaving the graveyard silent and still once more.