I'm Richard | Johnny Depp [Complete]

Chapter Eleven | The Garden

Violet's POV:

"I think we're all set. Obviously we'll have to make some changes to your schedule if you happen to fail one of your classes, but I doubt that will happen. You have good grades in every single class." My advisor said. Mrs. Karsh is basically in charge of make sure I'm passing all of my classes and stuff. She oversees my class scheduling as well; every student has an advisor kinda like her. "That's good. Thanks for the help by the way." I said as I stood up and put my backpack straps on my shoulders. "No problem, it's what I'm here for." She replied with a small smile. After we said our goodbyes I walked out of her office and into the hallway. I was happy that I had everything set for spring semester, but I wished so was able to have Richard as my English teacher. I couldn't find his name on the lengthy list of classes. 'You're forgetting that he said he might go on vacation over the spring semester.' I said to myself as I made my way towards the library. Deep down I just wished he would have told me he wasn't gonna be teaching during the spring. It would have saved me a bunch of time; I wouldn't have had to scroll through billions of different pages of class options. I pressed my thoughts out of my mind as I walked down the hallway leading towards the library. 'Maybe I should just go for a walk around campus. I can't go outside, but I could just walk inside of the college.' I thought, and that's exactly what I decided to do. For the past few weeks I've been busy studying for my upcoming final exams. I deserved a little time to myself. Eventually I found myself in a part of the school I've never been before. White lights filtered through a window from down the hallway. There was a lovely bench sitting in front of the window with a little bronze plate on the top of the back rest. My curiosity got the best of me, so I kept walking towards the bench. I stopped and sat down before turning to read the little bronze colored plate.

In loving memory of
English Professor, Richard Brown

My breath caught in my throat, almost making me cough. There was a strange feeling that came over me; it felt like someone had dropped a thousand pound weight into my stomach. 'Maybe it's a different professor Brown.' I said inside of my head. I was just trying to convince myself that they couldn't be the same person. I didn't want the man I've been talking to for the past few months to be a dead man. Especially since he and I just started a secret relationship not too long ago. My mind was swimming with questions and fears. The sound of a near by door opening made me jump slightly. When I looked up I saw a man with a square shaped head and snow white hair. "Hello, my name is Peter." He said with a kind smile. "Hi." I replied in a shy sounding voice. "Most students don't come down here, but I expect you're looking for a quiet place to study; I'll leave you to it." He said kindly. He started to walk away, but I called for him. I needed to ask someone something of my brain might explode from keeping everything inside. "Who's Professor Brown?" I asked him with slightly furrowed brows. He looked at me and a mix of emotions flashed in his eyes as he did so. After letting out a deep sigh he invited me into his office. I followed him inside and was stunned at how beautiful his office looked. The entire wall behind his desk was basically made out of windows. It looked like an office a Hogwarts professor would have, but the entire place looked as if it came out of the Harry Potter books. He offered me a seat, and I sat in the chair that was facing his desk. "No one has asked me about Richard in a very long time. Sometimes I feel like everyone has forgotten about him. But... there's no way I can forget him... he was my best friend." He said as he sat down at his desk and ran a hand down his face. "What happened to him?" I asked after a few minutes of silence. Peter told me that he and Richard became friends the first time they met. Over the years they were almost like brothers in his mind at least. Then Richard got diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. "I'm so sorry." I said as my heart broke. The white haired man in front of me was crying and I was finding it hard not to cry with him. A lot of my relatives have died from cancer. Watching your loved ones battle something so evil and merciless isn't something you'll ever forget, and it never gets any easier the more you see it happen. Cancer eats away at a person until they're someone you don't even recognize; it's like they become a shell who's life line becomes the pain medication in their I.V. "He passed away three years ago." Peter said as he attempted to dry his face. I stood up and walked over to comfort him the best I could. Once he settled down he blew his nose into a tissue and tossed it into the nearby trashcan. "Here's a picture of all of us before he got sick. That's him on my left." Peter said as he picked up a framed picture that was on his desk. When I saw Richard's face my chest tightened. There he was with his handsome face, adorable smile, curly hair, and big brown eyes. It felt like everything I knew was a lie for some reason. 'Why didn't he tell me he was a ghost?' I wondered. Peter told me many different stories about their friendship, and most of them made me laugh. "I better get going or I'm going to be late for my class. I'm sorry if I took up too much of your time." I said after I checked my phone. "No, it's fine. It... it felt nice getting to talk about the good days." He replied with a smile as we walked towards the office door together. "I wish you could have gotten to meet him. I'm sure he would have liked you." Peter said with a smile as we stepped out into the hallway together. "I would have loved to have met him." I replied before we said our goodbyes. A part of me wanted to tell him that I had met Richard, but he probably would have thought I was crazy. It was best if I kept the fact that Richard's spirit still roamed the campus a secret. I still felt sad and upset. I couldn't really understand a couple of things to be honest. I mean... why hasn't anyone else seen Richard wandering around? Why did he chose to reveal himself to me when he obviously hasn't shown himself to anyone else? Or maybe he has and they've all stayed silent about just like me. My brain was on overdrive, and I wasn't sure if I could pay attention to professor Till today. I just hoped I could focus enough to take notes on the chapter on my own. I tried to press my thoughts to the back of my mind as I met up with Arrow in the hallway. He smiled and I smiled back even though I wasn't in a happy mood. I felt like I was holding a massive weight on my shoulders all of a sudden. American History seemed to drag by forever. I had a sneaking suspicion that professor Till was talking extra slow just for the hell of it. But eventually we were dismissed to go to our creative writing class. "Hey, are you alright? You seem kinda down in the dumps." Arrow whispered after class had started. "It's a long story." I replied with a deep sigh. "Tell me after class if you want to." He said with a sympathetic look in his eyes. I nodded before I attempted to continue writing the final story of the year. But as I stared at the computer screen I felt like I was trying to fight gravity. There wasn't a creative flare or anything inside of my today. I think anyone would feel like I was feeling if they were in my situation. 'Come on, Violet. Just try to write a few more pages and you'll be finished with your final story.' I said inside of my head, but it didn't help. That class seemed to drag by as well but it seemed to go by quicker that American History. Arrow lingered behind as he waited on me to pack my stuff up, then we went to the library. "We should get a study room. I don't want anyone overhearing our conversation." I said as we walked up to the librarian's desk. After we go settled in the study room I basically spilled my guts to him. I told him that I've been seeing Richard in the garden almost every day since I started college here. Then I mentioned how he followed my uncle and I home the night of them play. I even confessed to Richard kissing me on my birthday when I was home alone. "Look, as long as you two have a mutual love for each other I'm fine with it. Just don't let anyone else find out." He said seriously. "Thanks, I appreciate that. But... that's not what's bothering me." I replied and a curious look filled his eyes. "Then what is bothering you?" He asked. I told him about the bench and everything Peter had told me. That tight feeling in my chest returned, and it suddenly got hard to breath. "I know it sounds crazy, but I've been talking to a ghost for the past... what? Three and a half months! We even kissed and admitted we have feelings for each other!!" I said before I ran my hands down my face. "What am I going to do?" I said mostly to myself, but I knew Arrow had heard me. "Let's talk to him." He replied after a moment of silence. "I'm not sure he'll show himself if you're with me." I said as I ran a hand through my hair. "Then we'll just have to convince him to." He said. Within a few minutes Arrow and I were walking outside in the pouring snow. The flakes were so thick they literally looked like feathers falling from the sky. Our breath turned into little clouds of smoke as we breathed. As I walked into the frozen and snow covered garden I was shocked to see Richard already there. When he turned to face me he looked as if he knew I knew everything he never told me about him. "Richard..." I said, trailing off as I walked towards him. The footsteps behind me let me know that Arrow was right there with me. "I... I know you're a ghost. I talked to your friend Peter today after finding the bench that's dedicated to you." I said, swallowing thickly. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close to his warm body. I wasn't sure how he could feel so real when he isn't really alive. "I know... and that means I have to go. I can't stay here anymore, Violet. It's time for me to leave... it's time for me to go home." He said softly as he gently tightened his arms around me. My eyes quickly filled with tears before spilling over and streaming down my face. "What do you mean?" I whispered as I snuggled closer to him. I felt if I let him go that he might disappear. "I was able to stay because no one knew my spirit was still here. When I showed myself to you it sort of... changed things. I was able to appear where you were without consciousness. But now that you know that I'm a ghost, well... I can't stay here anymore." He said as he tangled one of his hands in my hair and pulled me closer. "But... you can't go! I love you!" I sobbed as I tightly shut my eyes and hoped all of this was just horrible dream. 'I'll wake up and find myself in bed, or maybe I fell asleep in professor Till's class.' I thought as I held onto Richard like he was my lifeline. "I know, sweetheart. I love you too; I love you more than words can describe. None of what's happening makes sense and most of all... it just isn't fair." He whispered, and his voice cracked. We broke the hug slightly and I opened my eyes to find that what was happening wasn't a dream as I had hoped. There were tears streaming down his face as well. "Don't go." I said as more tears poured out of my eyes. "I wish I didn't have to." He replied as he moved my hair out of my face. We slowly closed the distance between us and our lips met in a tender kiss I never wanted to end. "I'll always be with you. Maybe we'll meet in another life." He whispered in my ear once we stopped kissing. All of a sudden there was a bright white flash that nearly blinded me. When it dispersed I found myself in the garden. The only trace of Richard left behind was that shape of his shoes in the snow. I felt to my knees from the pain that I was feeling. My heart felt like it was being ripped out and my soul felt it was being broken into a million pieces. If I was screaming I couldn't hear it. I couldn't even feel the cold anymore. All I was aware of was the pain that was flowing through my body. I was suddenly aware that someone was trying to help me up, so I decided to make their efforts easier by slowly standing. "It's okay, Violet. It's okay. Come here." Arrow's voice said, bringing me back to some strange form of reality. He pulled me into a tight hug before he helped me walk out of the garden we had been standing in. Eventually we ended up in his dorm room. I let my backpack fall onto the floor as I took it off. Then I sat down on the floor and rested my back on Arrow's bed. I wiped the remaining tears off of my face with my long sleeves. The pain had dulled down and I was starting to feel a bit numb as I hugged my knees to my chest. A few minutes passed before Arrow handed me a hot cup of tea to calm my nerves, which actually helped. "I'm gonna call your uncle in a little bit. I don't want you driving home beeping in the emotional state that you're in." He said as he gently rubbed my back, and I nodded. I honestly didn't blame him. I really didn't have the energy or motivation to do anything besides drink the tea he had made for me. I told Arrow how much I appreciate having him in my life after he kindly wrapped a soft blanket around me. He told me not to mention it and I thought I saw tears in his eyes before he turned around and washed the mugs we drank from. There was a knock on the door, and I figured it was Joe. When Arrow opened it I seen that I was right. "What happened?" My uncle asked with a worried look in his eyes. Arrow had a whispered conversation with him; I couldn't hear what they said, but I didn't really care. All I wanted to do was go to bed and sleep until I felt better. They walked outside to Joe's truck with me and they hand another whispered conversation together before we left campus. The entire ride was drowning in silence, but he eventually turned the radio on. Sign of the Times by Harry Styles came on and I started crying again. When he noticed he quickly turned the radio station. Once we got home Joe started cooking dinner and I went upstairs to take a long bath. It helped my relax a little, but I still felt like shit. At dinner I just ate a little bit of the food my uncle had made, and I was thankful when he didn't force me to eat any more. I went to bed early but ended up crying myself to sleep, hoping I'd get to see at least a glimpse of Richard in my dreams.

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A/N: Thanks for reading!! I actually cried while I wrote this, I'm not kidding. Remember to vote, comment, share, etc. :) <3