The ocean raged as the ship started to go down. All around the girl, people were screaming and crying, desperately praying to gods that wouldn’t answer their calls. The smoky air was billowing around her as she felt the heat of the ship ignite stronger. She watched as one of the masts of the ship crashed into the sea, leaving a hole in its wake. She thought that it looked awfully similar to the tree outside her cabin that had gotten removed only days prior. For some reason, this thought comforted her. The swaying of the ship caused the emerald pendant around the girl’s neck to bounce against her, a reminder that even in death the gods were always with her, weighing her every action with a tally or strike. She felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned to see him, his black hair always contrasting her golden locks, and his midnight eyes infecting her turquoise ones.
“Hey,” the boy said.
“Hey,” she said back, staring straight into his endless eyes after all this time.
“Funny how things turn out, isn’t it?” He asked her. She contemplated this for a moment. After all they had been through, this did seem like a fitting way for them to go.
“Yeah,” the girl responded. “It is.”
She locked hands with the boy, and felt him shifting his position to protect her from whatever was coming their way. For the first time in what felt like years, the girl had a sense of peace wash over her. The ship started to tilt forward, and the girl held onto the boy as he held onto her. People started jumping off the ship, but the two of them were standing as still as they could be, gazing into the murky clouds and who lay behind them. A crack of thunder seemed to shake the sky, the gods enraged by the last mistake the girl will ever make. She had always been a fixer, never wanting to disappoint anyone, but something about knowing there was no way she could repair her biggest mistake yet made her feel lighter than she had ever been.
The girl turned to the boy, but instead found him gazing up towards the sky, lips moving silently in prayer. “They won’t answer this time, you know,” she said. His lips stopped moving, and she could feel his voice slide into her mind.
“I know. I just wanted to tell them one last thing,” he stated. She didn’t ask what that meant, and gave up trying to figure him out years ago. No matter how dedicated he said he was to her, there was always that hint of something deeper under his skin that he never revealed to her. The barrier he kept up never ceased, even in near death.
The girl focused on the port side of the ship which was almost completely submerged under the waves. Water poured around her, and she felt herself slipping toward the rail of the ship, her eyes matching the gray of the moment. The pendant glowed silently, and she felt the weight of it against her chest. She knew she couldn’t go with it still attached to her like a fetter. So, the girl reached around her neck and dared to take it off. As soon as it became loose in her hand, the girl handed the pendant to her companion. He looked sideways at her, confused as to why it finally came off. Almost as if it were a sign.
The ocean loomed around her, and the girl finally decided to stop fighting. She looked at the boy one last time, slipping into his mind to say, “Until next time.” He nodded at her, but still held her hand, not ready to let go. But the girl had made up her mind. She never had a say in how her life went, so she wanted a say in how it ended. Please, she willed at him silently. Give me this one thing. So he did. It was at this moment that both of them stopped fighting their inevitable fates. Even in death, the girl looked like art, falling down to the ocean like an angel banished from heaven. Her long hair whipped around her face, golden strands of it catching in between the folds of her dress. The ocean enveloped her, and she felt whole.
“Hey,” the boy said.
“Hey,” she said back, staring straight into his endless eyes after all this time.
“Funny how things turn out, isn’t it?” He asked her. She contemplated this for a moment. After all they had been through, this did seem like a fitting way for them to go.
“Yeah,” the girl responded. “It is.”
She locked hands with the boy, and felt him shifting his position to protect her from whatever was coming their way. For the first time in what felt like years, the girl had a sense of peace wash over her. The ship started to tilt forward, and the girl held onto the boy as he held onto her. People started jumping off the ship, but the two of them were standing as still as they could be, gazing into the murky clouds and who lay behind them. A crack of thunder seemed to shake the sky, the gods enraged by the last mistake the girl will ever make. She had always been a fixer, never wanting to disappoint anyone, but something about knowing there was no way she could repair her biggest mistake yet made her feel lighter than she had ever been.
The girl turned to the boy, but instead found him gazing up towards the sky, lips moving silently in prayer. “They won’t answer this time, you know,” she said. His lips stopped moving, and she could feel his voice slide into her mind.
“I know. I just wanted to tell them one last thing,” he stated. She didn’t ask what that meant, and gave up trying to figure him out years ago. No matter how dedicated he said he was to her, there was always that hint of something deeper under his skin that he never revealed to her. The barrier he kept up never ceased, even in near death.
The girl focused on the port side of the ship which was almost completely submerged under the waves. Water poured around her, and she felt herself slipping toward the rail of the ship, her eyes matching the gray of the moment. The pendant glowed silently, and she felt the weight of it against her chest. She knew she couldn’t go with it still attached to her like a fetter. So, the girl reached around her neck and dared to take it off. As soon as it became loose in her hand, the girl handed the pendant to her companion. He looked sideways at her, confused as to why it finally came off. Almost as if it were a sign.
The ocean loomed around her, and the girl finally decided to stop fighting. She looked at the boy one last time, slipping into his mind to say, “Until next time.” He nodded at her, but still held her hand, not ready to let go. But the girl had made up her mind. She never had a say in how her life went, so she wanted a say in how it ended. Please, she willed at him silently. Give me this one thing. So he did. It was at this moment that both of them stopped fighting their inevitable fates. Even in death, the girl looked like art, falling down to the ocean like an angel banished from heaven. Her long hair whipped around her face, golden strands of it catching in between the folds of her dress. The ocean enveloped her, and she felt whole.