Love Lies Bleeding

Dear Readers,

This the first ever story written by me. I've been working on it all night and I hope you enjoy reading it! If you liked it even a little bit, please leave a comment!

Regards,

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PART I

I was staring out the window, watching snowflakes swirl lazily in the sky. A pile of freshly plowed snow sparkled from the light of a nearby lamppost. I was waiting for the arrival of my little sister and her husband with their daughter, Angelica. I promised to look after her while the couple went off to their second honeymoon. Soon enough, I heard the sound of a rumbling engine and a grayish-silver truck rolled into my driveway. The doorbell rang and my beagle, Daisy, ran past my legs and barked at the door. I commanded her to sit still and then swung open the door. 

"Hello Courtney! Hello David!" I greeted my sister and my brother-in-law. They smiled in return. "This must be Angelica." I said as I looked down at my little niece standing between her mom and dad. She resembled her mother the most; she had her baby blue eyes, reddish blonde hair and a slightly pointed nose. But she was also her father's daughter. She had his curly hair and longish fingers while Courtney (and also I) had straight hair and not-so-long fingers. 

"Sorry we can't stay, even for a few minutes," said Courtney, correctly predicting the question I was about to ask her. "We have a plane to catch."

"Here’s Angelica's luggage," said David, handing me a small brown suitcase. I took it.

"Angelica, honey," Courtney addressed her ten-year-old daughter. “While you're here, I want you to behave like a good little girl. Don't give Aunt Carolyn any trouble, is that clear?"

"Yes, Mommy." Angelica replied in a small sweet voice.

"And we'll try and call you when we get there," added her father. After some hurried hugs and ‘I love you’s David and Courtney got into the truck and drove off into the wintry night.

"Well, Angelica," I said to my niece. "Let's get into the warm. I know you had dinner before you got here but if you're still hungry there are cookies in the cookie jar." With that I took the small suitcase and started upstairs. I paused for only a moment to see Angelica patting Daisy on the head and munching an oatmeal cookie. I continued carrying the suitcase up and placed it on the bed in the spare room that I prepared for Angelica. As I came walking down the stairs, my dark green blouse blending in with the surrounding wallpaper, I noticed my niece glancing through an old leather-bound photo album.

"You were pretty when you were younger, Aunt Carolyn," Angelica said. She was definitely as sweet as her voice.

"Why, thank you, dear. Only a few people have actually told me I was pretty." I replied with a slight smile. That was true. Everybody just seemed to adore Courtney, even more so since she never wore glasses and always let her hair down and put on tight clothing and high heels, unlike me. Besides my parents, the only person who had told me I was pretty was-

"Aunt Carol, who is this?" Angelica pointed at a particularly old photograph.

I glanced at the photo. Suddenly, my heart skipped a beat. I stared at face of the only other person who had called me pretty.

"His name was Richard Fox. He was my old boyfriend," I answered with a little difficulty. A lump started forming in my throat. 

"You had a boyfriend?"

"Yes, I did." My voice and my hands trembled slightly.

"What happened to him?"

Tires screeched, police sirens blared, a woman screamed, there was a horrific thud of metal hitting flesh. 

"He... passed away." My voice broke.

"Oh," She looked down at the photo once more then closed the album. "I'm really sorry Aunt Carol," Angelica whispered timidly. "I didn't mean to-"

I cut in, "its okay, honey. Don't worry about it. Look at the time! You need to go to bed."

With that, I turned off all the living room lights, went upstairs, helped Angelica unpack, and kissed her goodnight. 

I strode across the hall and entered my room, Daisy trotting along at my heels. I undressed and put on my nightgown, then went to the bathroom to brush my teeth. My reflection in the mirror had numerous wrinkles around the eyes and a few dark spots on the right cheek. Age spots…all 38-year-olds have them, I thought to myself. I laid Daisy down in her basket and sat down in my bed.

My hands were still shaking and pains from an old heartache grew so agonizing I couldn't breathe. When the ache didn't go away, I put on a robe and, with the help of a flashlight, padded quietly down the dark staircase and searched for the old album. I flipped through it's mildewed pages until I found what I was looking for. It was the picture of me and Richard, holding hands and smiling radiantly. I gazed at my blonde, blue-eyed, eighteen-year-old self, without a spot or wrinkle on my blissful face, and not a care in the world (or, at least, not yet). Beside me sat my extremely good-looking boyfriend. He had curly brown hair, fair skin, a straight, perfectly shaped nose, and the most wonderful, bright, bottle-green eyes. As I fixed my eyes on that angelic face, I lost myself in the aching memories that I had buried for twenty long years.