Roaming Of The Afterlife

Fern

"What happened?" Dakota asks, breaking the silence. I part my lips as I peek at the back to see Aurei with a hurt look on her face.

"Aurei.....had to shoot someone." I said quietly, Aurei forms her lips into a straight line, then she just relaxes.

"I warned him....it wasn't enough." Aurei said, her eyes showing a slight glint of sadness, something told me that Aurei didn't tell me everything she's been through.

"People get stuck in their own damn pride. Then once those motherfuckers get their asses handed to them, that's when you feel bad....you shouldn't." Dakota said, I turn to face him. I couldn't have said it any better.

"I know I had to." Aurei said.

"But I can tell you're upset about it." I said, Dakota glares at me.

"Smartass." Dakota mutters. I hid my glare because he's just mad that I said it first.

"At least it proves I'm still strong." Aurei said matter-of-factly. She's definitely like Dad, I envy her.

Dakota makes the car come to a complete stop, I give him a confused look, raising my eyebrows at him.

A woman, her skin is peachy, her hands carried bags, she's covered in blood. Her black curls are pulled back in a ponytail and she had a wide gash on her neck.

She immediately stops, holding her hands up.

"Who are you?" I shout, holding out my revolver, she trembles.

"I-I have food." She says, dropping the bags and kicking them towards us.

"How dumb do you think we are?" Dakota barks, Aurei steps out.

"Please....I need a place to rest....I haven't slept in days." She pleads, Aurei walks past me. I shoot her a look but Aurei furrows her eyebrows at me.

"She might be telling the truth." Aurei said, Dakota stands in front of Aurei but she manages to walk around him.

"I am! Who wouldn't?" The woman shouts, I could tell that she's our age.

"You'd be surprised." I said, furrowing my eyebrows at her. Sometimes I just have to appear heartless.

"There's only one way to prove that you're trustworthy." Aurei said, Dakota looks down at her then at me then at the woman who still held her hands up.

"Eat the food." Aurei finishes, sometimes I want to kick myself for not thinking of these things.

The woman hesitates, Dakota crosses his arms, he didn't need a gun to kill you...just his bare hands. And Aurei is pretty clever with this.

The woman pulls out a bottle of water, then she begun to drink it and I watched as she took big gulps. She puts the cap back on then continued to hold her hands up.

"What's your name?" I ask her.

"Fern Thompson.....and you are?" She asks me.

"I'm Avery, this is Aurei, my sister and that's Dakota." I said, Dakota gives me a blank stare, as if he's trying to figure me out.

"I have been on the move for days...please....I'll do anything just to get a moment of sleep." She pleads, Dakota looks at me, and so does Aurei.

"I promise I didn't do anything to the food.....they're all canned up." She said, nodding her head down at the bag, Dakota steps forward then grabs her bag.

"I don't have anything." She said.

Aurei gives Dakota a worried look, she grabs his arm.

"That's her stuff, if she were to have a gun or something she would've already had it out." Aurei said, Dakota looks down at her.

"Please listen to the little girl." Fern pleads.

"Aurei, go back in the car." I snap, Aurei refuses, looking me straight in the eye.

"We can't just take everything she's got. What if that was me?" Aurei asks, I close my eyes, cringing at the thought of taking food and water from a helpless woman. I know better than that.

"Fine." I said, walking towards Fern.

"I'm only telling you once. Try anything, and I mean anything....you're going down." I warn, Fern stares at me, her eyes are bloodshot red, she nods.

"I don't know what kind of woman you think I am, but I'm cool so there's nothing to worry about." Fern adds.

"Just know I can smell bullshit when it's said." Dakota said, handing her back her bag. Fern raises a eyebrow.

"But the question is....can I trust you?" Fern asks.

"We may not be heavenly angels or anything but I'm not the type to beat you up for asking a question." I said. Fern smiles.

I turn around, walking into the car and sitting in the backseat, Fern sits in the passenger's seat and Dakota sits in the drivers seat, Aurei leans on my shoulder.

"Thanks for listening." Aurei said quietly, without a smile on her face, I look down to see deep cuts up Aurei's arm, she rolls her sleeve over them.

"Hey." I chirp.

"Yeah?" Aurei asks.

"Love you." I said quietly.

"Love you too." Aurei said quietly.

I really envy her....she's still loving deep down but hardened. There are days when she sounds just like Dad...but she has Mom's sass and anger.

My thoughts go back on the day of the funeral of my Dad.

Aurei stood there, her eyes wide. I shook her but she didn't move. I didn't know exactly how Dad died....he was walking home with Aurei.....

But it just didn't make sense...Aurei walked out of a police car when she reached the hospital. The police told me he had blood all over him and Aurei hovered over him until they came, Dad's co-worker took her inside his car and drove her here.

Mom couldn't, she stayed at the back room comforting others but she's all over the place herself.

Dad's dark skin shone within the light, he just laid there in the casket, his hands folded together.

I gripped my fingers onto the casket as people hugged me from behind and apologized, some patted my shoulder. Aurei grazed her thumb over Dad's cold fingers.

This was the second week since he been in the hospital. Aurei turns around, a complete hurt look in her hands, I reached out to hug her but she jerked away from me like I was insane, she stopped me then she sat down beside her friend, she used to be playful but now she just didn't smile, if she did it was fake and only to make other people feel better.

I felt somebody try to back me away from the casket, but my ice cold fingers remained in place.

"We have to go." Someone said.

Someone else grabs my by the arm, as he used his other hand to pry off my fingers from the casket, trying to rip me away from Dad. I couldn't.

I couldn't speak, I couldn't move. Dad often got disrespected because he was black but clearly he didn't care. He still had a soft spot and he had seen good in almost everyone.

I kept replaying his last words.

Someone scoops me up from the ground, I let the raw tears fall. Mom hovered over the chair, leaving out faint sobs, she looked up then glared at me, I wanted to scream, I wanted to sleep, I wanted to die for a moment.

But Dad wouldn't be proud.

I blink then looked down to see Aurei sleeping on my shoulder.

She has changed, and I still hadn't found out why.