Unfortunate

Chapter 4

   "The fate of the people is so of the king; tragic things happen when lights are set dim.."

   Black hair rustled in the wind, disturbed by the bobbing of his head. John repeatedly shook Paul roughly by the shoulders while George and Ringo attempted to pull him away. His glazed over, open eyes kept on staring in the same direction, never twitching, not a sign of life to them. The deep browns of his eyes provided a soft warmth, creating an unsettling contradiction to the unfortunate scenario playing out. "Get up, please Paul come on, fuck, don't do this" John shouted hysterically, his breathing almost eratic. "John get a hold of yourself, we have to think about Paul, he.." Ringo trailed off, his words caught in his throat unable to continue.

   As Ringo busied himself with John, George crept quietly around the slowly growing pool of blood and approached his friend's body. He slowly dropped down to his knees, reaching out with a straight hand to touch what didn't seem like reality. Just as his hand was in reach of Paul's chest, the smallest gasp was heard from him. Paul's eyes blinked repeatedly, tears spilling from both of them from the long moments they were open. He gasped stronger, choking on his own blood in the process. "Georgie, c-come 'ere" he grunted, the strain of speaking too much for him to bear.

   "Guys!" George called and they instantly stopped bickering, their eyes snapping back to the image of a now conscience Paul. John quickly wiped at his tears with the back of his hand, pulling bravado to his features in an attempt to look tough. Both George and Ringo rolled their eyes at this, and followed after John slowly. "Come 'ere.. please" Paul repeated, his mouth set in a tight line, eyes constantly rolling towards the open sky from jolts of pain. Surprisingly, he managed to prop himself on one elbow and grabbed a fistful of John's shirt menacingly. "Listen to me you bastard; you don't stop trying, you don't lock yourself up for hours like I did, y-you" Paul stopped to regain his strength, breathing noticeably heavier.

   "This has been our dream-he paused, looking at the other two-OUR dream; don't think you can give up because of me. Don't let me be the reason that the rest of the world doesn't know we are" he finished, dropping back down, unable to hold himself up any longer. His fingers uncurled from John's shirt, but he caught them as they fell, grasping them tightly, as if his life depended on it. Paul let out an agonized groan, clenching John's hand with the remaining strength that he could muster. "Don't talk like that, Paul" George muttered automatically, not believing his own words. But the younger man's strength had now diminished to a painful low, his eyelids fluttering dreamily.

   Nobody spoke after George, the only sound heard being Paul's shallow breathing. Not even John could speak; his face uncharacteristically hard to decipher. It was as if the solemn, morbid truth was beginning to set itself among the three boys' heads. The feeling of this truth colder than the weather around them, cold as ice in their veins. None of them moved, not daring to break the unbearable silence. They were glued to their spots like marble statues, as if they'd done this all of their lives; as if anything they'd ever done was leading to this moment. The three of them couldn't think, couldn't breathe, couldn't function.

   Ambulance sirens broke the silence, stirring the boys from their brooding thoughts. Still, it was as if nothing mattered anymore. It didn't matter that it was below freezing. It didn't matter that Paul's hand had gone slack in John's now clammy hand. It didn't matter that his head was tilted to the side, that his eyes were now closed, that his shallow breathing had ceased. The panic that had settled moments ago was replaced by an empty, timeless feeling; one they could not understand, one they could not register in the now most quiet of nights in the cold of England.

AN/ I'm so sorry for the short chapter, promise it'll be longer next time! I was rushing till' the last minute but I made it for you guys. Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear all of your wonderful opinions. (How do you like the fancy quote I came up with at the beginning of this chapter? Only for you of course)