The Lake (Short Story)

Chapter 15

Chapter 15

August 14 2002

Echo looked at the things surrounding her. Family, friends, neighbors . . . et cetera, but with all of them there . . . it was still so empty. Echo had been so empty ever since the death of Jeremy.

Now they were having the funeral for him. His pictures surrounded the outside area. One of his pictures was taken with Jeremy and Echo herself. They had gone to visit New York, Jeremy’s first airplane trip and he had been so excited.

His eyes lit up as he took in the extraordinary sights that were before him. Echo had lifted him and twirled him in the air, as he shrieked.

He had been only three.

That was four years ago. Four years. But it felt like a million to Echo. The happiness was gone from their life. Grant barely looked up when he came home. Gen rarely got out of bed. Angel would go out, come back and avoid everyone.

Nothing was right anymore. It would never be.

Now as Echo stood by his closed coffin she thought of all those times when they had spent hours talking and playing; the hours she had patiently helped him in a situation. Times when she sat beside him, teaching him the piano.

Days when there was just the two of them alone; the happiness that was always present.

The jokes.

The laughter.

The joy.

The companionship.

It was all gone now. There was no happiness, no jokes, no laughter, no nothing! Everything just disappeared.

Seth had tried many times to lighten her mood, but nothing changed. Seth came back every day; trying to break her sorrow, but nothing happened.

She’d ignore him, tried to avoid him.

But he’d always end up coming back. He’d beg her to get back into a normal routine, to just go out with him for dinner or a walk, or hang out. But it all just connected with Jeremy; and it hurt so much.

After the ceremony everyone exited slowly. Expressing their condolences, but Echo thought they really didn’t know what type of pain this was.

Jeremy had been her best friend. He was only seven. What made him become victim to that Lake? Jeremy was a . . . Echo’s heart swelled, it ached. To hear Jeremy’s voice again.

It was just too much. Echo saw Seth coming her way and hurriedly she got up and left. Seth watched after her, his eyes glazed with unshed tears as he realized that he’d lost his love.