Pagan lifted her awed gaze to meet mine. “Then when... when...” she trailed off shaking her head in frustration. The memory was there. I knew it was and I wanted her to recall it without my help. It was one I’d waited patiently for her to remember since she’d discovered exactly who I was.
Her expressive green eyes showcased so many different emotions. Finally, she opened her mouth and whispered, “ohmygod,” and I knew she’d remembered.
“Then you, Dank, YOU came to talk to me. To tell me that I was going to die but I’d get another life. My body was sick. That when you came back I was to go where you sent me and I’d come back again. Ohmygod,” Pagan stopped and took a deep breath. “I gave you this brooch. I told you that I wanted to take it with me. You said that could be arranged and you slipped it into your pocket...but--”
“But you never saw me again. Because your soul was erased off the charts. The only reason I remembered you was because of this brooch. I knew there had been a soul that had been spared. Sometimes that happens. It’s rare but sometimes the Creator changes his mind. I thought that had happened to you. So, I held onto that brooch given to me by a little girl who wanted to take something from this life on to her next. I figured once your name appeared on the books again I’d make sure you got your brooch just like you requested. But your name appeared so much sooner than I expected. It intrigued me. I couldn’t understand why the Creator would stop your death as a child to take it only a few years later on the brink of adulthood. So, I came to watch you. To see what about this soul was so unique. Why it had broken all the molds I’d grown accustomed to over my existence.”
Pagan’s hand covered her mouth as a small sob escaped. I hadn’t meant to make her cry. I’d just wanted to give her something she’d once held very dear.
“Oh, Dank,” she cried flinging herself into my arms. “I can’t believe I didn’t remember you.”
She was crying because she’d forgotten she’d met Death as a child?
Holding her in my arms I was at a loss for words. How did I comfort her about something like this?
“This is the most precious perfect gift anyone has ever received. You gave me back a memory that I will cherish forever. You gave me something from my grandma I didn’t know I had. And you kept it and it led you back to me. It gave me you.”
I felt a wetness in my eyes and I blinked confused from the strange sensation. A small trickle of water ran down my cheek. I stared into the darkness as I held Pagan in my arms in amazement. Death had just shed a tear.
Chapter Fifteen
Pagan
The little yellow daisy I’d picked out of momma’s bouquet from her boyfriend looked kind of pitiful without all its petals. I twirled the remaining stem between my fingers and scowled at it. Stupid flowers. Stupid candy. Stupid stuffed bunnies with stupid purple fur. Oh and stupid, stupid heart-shaped balloons. It was all just stupid. I flung the stem in my hand into the creek behind my house.
The damaged daisy floated for a moment as the fast stream washed it away until I saw it slowly sink to the shallow muddy floor. Serves it right for being stupid, I thought with a huff. Crossing my now empty arms I glared at the water as it ran by. I didn’t have anything else to do. So I’d just stand here and count all the stupid things about today.
“Not having a good day?” a familiar voice asked from behind me. I spun around and saw a blond boy with friendly blue eyes smiling at me. He seemed like someone I should know but I couldn’t figure out where I’d seen him before. Maybe he played on one of the other teams we‘d played in baseball this year. It’s hard to recognize people when they don’t have on their baseball cap and uniform. Out there they all look the same. I started to respond until I noticed the fluffy white stuffed puppy dog in his hand. The stuffed animal even had a red heart full of chocolate candy in its paws. Even he got a stupid Valentine’s present. I decided I didn’t want to talk to him and turned back around to glare out at the water. Maybe he’d realize I was rude and he’d go away.
“You have something against stuffed animals and chocolate?” he asked in an amused tone. I didn’t think he was funny. Not one bit. Stupid boy with his stupid Valentine’s present. From some stupid girl.
“Yeah, what if I do?,” I replied in a sour tone.
“Well, just seems like that’s a funny thing to have a problem with. I mean there are lots of things to dislike. Snakes, for example, or spiders.” He shuddered making me roll my eyes.
“I can dislike what I want,can’t I? It’s a free country.”
He cleared his throat and it sounded suspiciously like he was covering up a laugh. I had a good mind to slug him one and see if he thought that was funny. Cause I knew for a fact I could throw a right hook better than most boys on my street. Nope, he wouldn’t be laughing at all after I decked him.
“I guess you can. I’m just curious as to why you have a hatred against those items. Most girls like them,” the fact he no longer sounded amused but actually confused saved him from my fist.
“You wanna know why?” I asked, shifting my angry glare his way. “I’ll tell you why.” I frowned, swallowing the knot in my throat. I hated that this actually made me want to cry. Stupid tears were for sissies.
“I’m listening,” the boy coaxed.
“Because that’s all everybody talked about today. They all flashed their chocolate hearts around and teddy bears and even stupid bunny rabbits as they walked down the halls. Balloons were tied on their chairs with those dumb cheesy lines ‘I love you’ on them. I mean, really, we are nine, people. We don’t love anybody yet. At least not THAT way. And to make matters worse, stupid butt Jeff gave Miranda, my best friend, a purple bunny with a big ‘ol balloon attached and a big box of chocolate. And did she share one piece of her candy with me? NOPE! She didn’t. Said it wouldn’t be romantic to give away a piece of her Valentine’s candy. Then when I asked to feel the soft fur on her rabbit she shook her head and cuddled it up against her like I had a disease I could pass on to it. How absurd is that? Huh? Ridiculous right. Then I come home and my mom even has a big bouquet of flowers and a heart shaped box sitting on the table from her boyfriend. I thought for sure I’d get a piece of candy then. BUT NO! The box was already empty. She’d eaten it all. Why keep a stupid empty box?”
I stopped my angry tirade long enough to peek over at the boy through my hair and see if he was looking at me like a whiny baby. But he had that dumb smile on his face again. I guess since he got chocolate today then he thought it was funny I didn’t.
I turned around thinking I could either slug him or tell him off then go back inside. But he held the puppy dog whose fur looked actually softer than that of the purple bunny Miranda had gotten from Jeff and the box of chocolates out toward me. Confused, I lifted my eyes from them to look at him.
“This is for you. You can feel the fur all you want and eat every one of those chocolates all by yourself. I brought it to you... that is if you want it.”
“Me? But, why me? You don’t even know me,” I stammered, wanting desperately to reach out and take the gifts. I really wanted that chocolate.
“It’s Valentine’s Day and well, I’ve been watching you a long time and you’re the only person I want to be my Valentine.”