"Does anyone ever think of... back then?" Jake asked quietly.
Danielle paused, her grief beginning to rise up to the surface. She pushed it down. She would not allow herself to appear in pain. She couldn't let them know how much Josh's death still affected her.
"Be strong," she told herself. "Don't let them see the cracks. They can never know the cracks."
"Sometimes..." Josie said, pulling Danielle from her concentration. "I can't help but wonder where we would all be if not for that funeral."
A tear seemed to roll down Josie's face, and Danielle's heart ached for the younger girl. She did not want Josie to hurt like she was, but how could Danielle help relieve her of the pain when she couldn't even confront her own grief? Instead, Danielle sat there, silently burying the pain, determined to bring healing to the other two who had been affected by their friend's passing.
"We'd certainly all be somewhere else," Danielle replied, a melancholy tone leaking into her voice. "I'm sure there would be a lot less worry and anxiety coursing through out veins..."
"Not that anyone here is at fault, of course." Jake added quietly, "We all dealt with things the best way we could have in the moment, and we can't go back to change our minds. We can only change how we view our actions."
"You can go to Hell," Danielle's text had read. "You don't deserve me."
She had done the one thing that had felt right in the moment, and it had been a huge mistake. Danielle's heart thumped loudly in her chest, her breathing feeling more and more restricted. If only she had understood her boyfriend's pure intentions, she might not feel as guilty as she did.
Danielle nodded along with what Jake said, desperately wishing she truly believed that she could change her view, erase the pain. She watched as Josie looked up at her husband, eyes wide and teary. Danielle's heart throbbed in sympathy toward the younger girl- she must have felt incredibly guilty during the funeral. For what, Danielle did not know, but something happened, something Danielle had not been aware of.
Silently cursing her obliviousness, Danielle opened her mouth to speak. "Nobody could have known what would happen. I think it's a really unforgiving choice to assume anyone here could be guilty of anything. I think we each made the best decision we could have made in the moment. I know we did."
Jake looked at Danielle and smiled. "Exactly," he told her. His eyes told her that he had been hoping someone would say those things. He had wanted those words in the open.
As Danielle took another glance at Josie, the girl met her eyes, holding her gaze. Danielle looked toward her with sympathy, hoping Josie knew that she was not at fault for anything that could have happened. Josie looked back at her, her eyes seeming hollow and empty of all emotion.
"She's been drained," Danielle thought. "It looks as if she's cried all of her tears, and even though she wants to, she cannot let anymore out. She's... numb."
What happened five years ago to cause this much pain to such a kindhearted girl?
YOU ARE READING
A Life Rewritten
De TodoJosie is haunted by her past, and the memory of a boy she used to know. Jake is scared for his wife, trying his best to help her through the painful memories that have forced their way back to the surface. Danielle wants closure, after the mysteriou...
