The Crown

Hello and Goodbye

The loud, booming music of the club enveloped Ben like a protective parent would hold their child. The man was grateful because it made him lose himself for a mere few hours. He took another long gulp from the bitter cup of nameless alcohol. Ben grimaced slightly.

The liquid in the cup swirled as his hand trembled subtly, much like his thoughts.

He saw the golden flicker of candlelight illuminate the golden hair of an angel. He saw the angel's wings being cut off right in front of his eyes. He saw her. Ben remembered the look of the silent horror plastered on his wife's face, one unbecoming of an angel. Sometimes, her shrill scream rings in his ear when the world is too quiet.

Ben had cried during Erin's funeral, cried when he saw her limp corpse just lay there in its coffin, waiting to be placed in its eternal resting place, as if her leaving this world hadn't made him crumble to his very core.

His daughter was much in the same position her late mother had taken so long ago just recently. He hadn't cried then; not for his daughter. Months of crying, screaming and sleepless nights had left him numb and hollow. He had found that he rather liked it this way.

Ben felt a gentle tap on his shoulder and looked up. A big, warm smile greeted him. The dark-haired man couldn't help but smile back. With one last grip on Ben's shoulder, Marcus moved to sit on the stool next to said man.

"Hello, Ben," Marcus said kindly. Ben gulped the rest of his drink, placing the glass with a hard thump on the bar table before responding in kind.

"How many?"

"Dunno." Muttered Ben, looking down at his empty glass. "Maybe the third... or forth."

Marcus let out a slight sigh, but he nodded. Without any words, the man with chestnut-colored hair took out two twenty-dollar bills, leaving them in the care of a nearby waiter. Ben looked at the other man for a few seconds, knowing that it was useless to argue.

"C'mon. It's time to go home." Marcus said softly, taking hold of Ben's hands.

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Antonia looked at the dark sky of the night that lay behind the window. It painted itself as a murky blue sea above, full of mysteries and dotted with twinkling lights.

Her eyes darted to the left. From the corner of her vision, the woman could see the wonky shape of an urn that stood eerily silent on the mantle of the fireplace. The dark-haired woman forced herself to look back at the sky. Before, it had presented itself as beautiful. And it still was, but now it was menacing and terrifying. It was an equal mix of the three, Antonia supposed.

There's no time like the present. Antonia reassured herself as she took the first step towards the mantle. The next thing she knew was the weight of the urn in her hands as she placed it on the waiting windowsill.

Antonia gently took off the lid, careful not to spill anything. With a deep breath, the woman collected herself. Antonia gathered in her open palms two handfuls of ashes that in the silver glow of the moon appeared skeleton white. She tried to forget who the ashes in her hands used to be.

The dark-haired woman gently blew air down upon the ashes, watching as the little specks were being picked up by the wind, appearing to fly out the window.

As the last, thin speck of ash melted into the murky blue of the outside sky, Antonia shut her eyes tightly, trembling bottom lip struggling to hold back screams of agony. A few hot tears burned her cheeks as they traveled down and left a few wet spots on the skirt of her dress.

Her breath came out in ragged, quiet gasps. She did her best to calm down.

"Goodbye, brother." Antonia's voice was more of a whisper than she would've liked, but she'll take what she can get. "I hope your spirit will be well."

A warm hand was suddenly on Antoina's own. She turned to look at the body attached to the hand. Victoria's face was clearly illuminated by the presence of the moon. It showed tear-stricken cheeks and puffy, red-rimmed eyes.

"What are you doing?" The blonde asked quietly, slight concern lacing her voice. Antonia smiled sadly at her love.

"Just... saying goodbye."

Victoria nodded understandingly. The slightly shorter woman scooted closer to her dark-haired lover. Antonia huffed fondly, laying h hand on Victoria's shoulders.

Little did the women know, two curious, almost identical, girls were watching and observing from the safety of a corner.