I stared at the rose in awe; wiping the recently formed dew off its alluring petals. The beautiful white flower stood alone. The last survivor from a whole garden. Even though it stood alone, the small flower captured my attention. Only letting me touch its petals. If I were to touch anything else, I would be pricked by its sharp thorns.
I looked up at the sky, it looked exactly the same as to when I first met him. The one that helped me stand up when I was pushed by the person I thought understood me. He was my partner in crime, the only one who held out his hand for me when I wasn't able to get up. His name was Seth...
(Flashback Sequence.)
"You're stupid, Iris." He scoffs, "You actually believed I'd stay with you? I just played with you. I only let our relationship drag because I pitied you. This was just a game I played to pass time. You really are pathetic."
I stared right into his eyes, looking for a sign. A sign to tell me he was just joking around, that none of this was true. But I couldn't. My once best friend as well as significant other... I couldn't find a trace of him. He seemed so different. Almost as if he was a whole other person. The glimmer in his brown orbs replaced by emptiness, not even a single light reflected in his eyes. His words firing holes through my heart like a man shooting a round of bullets for the first time. I fell to the ground, unable to organize the thoughts creating itself in my mind. Tears crept down my face, my vision blurry. The only thing I could make out was him walking past me, drowned by the darkness at the end of the hallway. Not uttering another word, just leaving. As if it was that easy for him, which I knew it was no matter how much I tried to deny it. I felt like a ballerina with a broken bone, a trapeze artist without an act and an unheard cry of help.
My next few days felt like a routine. Alcohol in the morning followed by a few unidentified drugs. Maybe if I felt especially great that day, a few scribbles on my wrist with a fine-tipped pen. It made me feel better, feel far from the confusion. It was like art but with pain, scars and dried out ink. All my focus seemed to be only on the negatives. Chaos between two parts of me that I wish would just calm down. I wanted it to stop, no more war within myself. No more tears, heart sores, and moments where I felt like I was about to die but I barely make it. It felt as if I was obliged to continue on because I had to. Rather than having a purpose and try to work on career, hobbies and people. I was falling into the trap. Wishing I could just touch it already so it'd snap.
My eyes opened, the light tearing its way into my iris. I didn't want to get up, but you know what they say. The early bird gets the worm. I didn't bother with how I looked or the impression I would give to people. They'll all just criticize me anyway, no matter how hard I try. No matter how much I try to give myself a voice, they'll always shut it down with cruel words and mischievous snickers.
I arrived to my destination. It was dark, soft light escaping from the small cracks of each surface. The lockers still where they were, the hallway still the same since that day. I felt warm liquid drip down my cheek. Outlining my jaw and slowly making its way to the dusty floor. Still crying on the same spot. Everything still the same. I was tired of it. You know, I'm not even sure anymore if I was crying tears or blood. My eyes strained every time it came out of my eyes. It felt so tiring. I never knew a task as simple as crying can hurt you so much.
I smashed the window. The sharp wind drying my face, soon turning into a warm embrace. The sound of cracks filling my ears. I stepped on each piece of glass, until pain wasn't even a feeling anymore, but a part of me. I let the blood travel, letting it free for I knew that it was task that was impossible for me. I pitied it, always trapped in confined space, only able to go so far. I wanted it to be free. Putting one foot out of the window, I was pulled.
I was pulled back. Away from the window, away from freedom. My eyes widened, realizing what just happened. I wanted to go, I wanted to leave. A warm pair of arms embraced my pale body. Then moving to pat my head, ruffling my hair. All I could do was cry, scream and was urged to take the glass and get through it the hard way.
"Take care of yourself, Iris." His voice was stern but with a sense of reassurance, "Don't let anything put you down like this. You're a lot more valuable than what other people say or think about you. I'll help you. I'll save you when you're about to fall. But only if you try."
My eyes widened, the tears froze. I felt tranquil. I felt my heart beat again, I felt my body trying so hard to fix what I had broken. I didn't realize how much I've ruined myself, emotionally and physically. The sound of my breathing made me happy, looking at my fingers made me feel like a newborn baby seeing the world for the first time. I looked at the window, a group of birds creating art on the beautiful canvas. The sky was dim, the sun hiding behind the clouds. A rainbow had appeared. Everything was so much more colorful. Everything felt so much more alive.
"I'm Seth." He introduced himself. I nodded. The tears weren't the same as earlier, it felt softer and lightweight. From a nearing tsunami to an innocent sun shower. I smiled for the first time. For the first time in so long that it felt like centuries had passed.
But how did he know?
(End of Flashback.)
Ever since that day, he'd help me with everything. He helped me recover and taught me so many things. We eventually fell in love and he was always there for me. We were known as that one pair: Seth and Iris. The inseparable kids who did everything together. We would never be apart from each other for too long. Whenever a person talked to us for the first time, they'd always mention how they envied us. Seth saved my life. If he were to not appear that one day, I probably wouldn't have been here now, where I am. My life would have ended earlier. I wouldn't of thought that this could have happened. But I always wonder how he knew or why his timing was so perfect. I always asked him, but he'd always say he would tell me the story next time.
Seth was shot a year ago. A pair of teenagers wielded a stolen gun and in panic, they had shot randomly. The silver bullet was to hit me but Seth jumped at the right time. I remember the dark blood imprinting his white shirt, staining his face. His last words being "I love you. I'm glad you're alive." until his eyes closed itself, a small smile. He had saved me again. We promised we'd be together forever and that we'd run away from this corrupt society. That he'd tell me the story he saved for next time and that nothing will keep us apart. Oh how I love him so much. I looked up at the sky, a rainbow had formed. My gaze moved to the white rose. I stared at it for an unbelievably long time.
"Seth, we promised." A soft smile appeared on my face.
I held the white rose by its sharp stem. The thorns pricking its way through my skin. The white rose glimmering once again with the beauty from the rain drops. It was so breathtaking yet so dark. Directly facing the rose, I pulled it. The rose no longer attached to the rich soil it was growing from. Bang. Blotches of ink.
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that's it ;v; thanks for reading and stuff ~
