Director's Cut of Chapter ?
Just a few minor changes and some extra interaction between the narrator and his dead ex-girlfriend. I absolutely love this chapter and want to make it even better. The dead girl might be one of my favorite characters to write for.
I used to hear people say that there's no such thing as a perfect moment.
Back to the present.
We're in some other town. In some other state. I couldn't tell you where, because I honestly don't care where we are at this point. It's not the destination, it's the journey. I'm not looking forward to this trip ending. I'm actually starting to get my smile back. I'm finally starting to move on.
I'm outside on some street, smoking some brand of cigarette I've never seen before. I'm a little drunk from drinking Vodka/Club Sodas for the past few hours, so the nicotine buzz only makes this sweeter.
Did I mention it was two in the afternoon?
When I woke up, she wasn't there. I ordered room service breakfast for two, and I sat and watched as her scrambled eggs got cold.
So I attacked the mini-fridge.
Here I am, several hours later, and I still have no idea where she ran off too. I just finished lunch in a deli nearby, hoping I'd see her walk past. But to no avail. I consider filing a missing persons report, but I'm too drunk to do so.
I give up waiting and head back up to our room. Her bags are still there, clothes strewn about the room. What the hell?
So I passed out on a chair while watching something on the Food Network.
I think I had a dream.
But it felt so real.
In the dream, I awoke to hear someone coming through the door. I open my eyes and see her coming through the door. Not the current her, but the her from my past. I'm confused.
She stands in the doorway. Looking more beautiful than I remembered. She looks at me and shakes her head.
"You've really let yourself go, baby."
She walks over and sits on my lap.
A kiss.
I can't fathom what's going on. I break my silence.
"I thought you were dead?"
"I am. You might consider this a haunting. Am I a scary ghost?"
"What....."
"I'm still dead. I wanted to come here and tell you something. Don't blame yourself for what happened."
"But...no..."
"There was nothing you could have done to prevent it."
"..."
I'm stunned. I think I'm dreaming, but whenever I tell myself to wake up I just can't do it. Am I awake? Is this really happening?
We talk for what seems like hours. The Food Network instructing us on how to make a perfect Baked Potato in the background.
I begin to tell her about how distraught I was after she died, but she stops me; "I know. I was watching. I wanted to show up and comfort you, but you needed to do this the hard way. Now that you're almost better, I knew it was time for me to show up."
I almost feel betrayed. There I had been, suffering by myself and she wanted me to do things the HARD WAY. She put her hand on my chin and looked me in the eyes. Suddenly, I knew why she had done that.
I put her hand in mine. I apologized.
A tear welled up in her eyes and she started to cry. I put my arms around here and we sat in silence for a few minutes. Finally, she spoke up.
"I want you to start moving on."
"I can't. This girl is great, but she isn't you."
"Please. Let go of us. As much as I hate to say it, we're over. Besides, it hurts me to see you unhappy."
"...."
"Please."
"....ok."
A smile appeared on her face. Another kiss.
She stood up, grabbed me by the hand and led me to the bed.
"Don't you think that we're going to have sex. I'm dead, so that would be necrophilia!"
I missed her laugh. She motioned for me to lay down. She curled up next to me.
"Wait a minute. We need to make this last."
What? I didn't know what she meant.
She hopped up off the bed and dug through my bags until she found my camera. No way. This wasn't going to mean anything. I'm dreaming.
She climbed back next to me on the bed and held the camera up above us.
"Smile!"
As she went to take the picture, we both turned to kiss each other on the cheek. Instead, we ended up in a passionate kiss. Captured on my dream camera.
She put the camera back and laid down for the last time.
"Go back to sleep. I'll wait for her with you."
She wrapped her arms around me, and I stared into her eyes as I feel asleep.
I don't know how long passed, but I heard the door start opening again.
The arms around me started to fade and I heard a whisper in my ear
"I will always love you."
A kiss on my cheek, and it was over.
I opened my eyes, expecting to still be in the chair.
I wasn't.
I was on the bed. I sat up, and in she walked. She was holding shopping bags from all sorts of shops. She looked happy as ever.
"Hey you! Did you get my note?"
I looked over at the table next to the bed and saw it. Now I felt like an idiot. So I lied about it.
"Yeah, I did. How was your shopping?"
She launched into an exciting rant about how great of a day she had. I sat and watched as she glowed with enthusiasm.
"It was such a great day," she continued, "but the best part of my day was knowing that I'd see you when I got back here."
I smiled. Time to move on, champ.
I stood up and walked over to her. Looking her in the eyes, I did something I thought I wasn't capable of anymore.
I put my arms around her. "I love you."
"I love you, too."
We celebrated by ordering champagne and having sex all night.
When all was said and done, she passed out with her arm draped across me. I lit up a cigarette and took another drink. Life was good.
I used to hear people say that there's no such thing as a perfect moment. Those people were wrong.
I used to hear people say that there's no such thing as a perfect moment.
Back to the present.
We're in some other town. In some other state. I couldn't tell you where, because I honestly don't care where we are at this point. It's not the destination, it's the journey. I'm not looking forward to this trip ending. I'm actually starting to get my smile back. I'm finally starting to move on.
I'm outside on some street, smoking some brand of cigarette I've never seen before. I'm a little drunk from drinking Vodka/Club Sodas for the past few hours, so the nicotine buzz only makes this sweeter.
Did I mention it was two in the afternoon?
When I woke up, she wasn't there. I ordered room service breakfast for two, and I sat and watched as her scrambled eggs got cold.
So I attacked the mini-fridge.
Here I am, several hours later, and I still have no idea where she ran off too. I just finished lunch in a deli nearby, hoping I'd see her walk past. But to no avail. I consider filing a missing persons report, but I'm too drunk to do so.
I give up waiting and head back up to our room. Her bags are still there, clothes strewn about the room. What the hell?
So I passed out on a chair while watching something on the Food Network.
I think I had a dream.
But it felt so real.
In the dream, I awoke to hear someone coming through the door. I open my eyes and see her coming through the door. Not the current her, but the her from my past. I'm confused.
She stands in the doorway. Looking more beautiful than I remembered. She looks at me and shakes her head.
"You've really let yourself go, baby."
She walks over and sits on my lap.
A kiss.
I can't fathom what's going on. I break my silence.
"I thought you were dead?"
"I am. You might consider this a haunting. Am I a scary ghost?"
"What....."
"I'm still dead. I wanted to come here and tell you something. Don't blame yourself for what happened."
"But...no..."
"There was nothing you could have done to prevent it."
"..."
I'm stunned. I think I'm dreaming, but whenever I tell myself to wake up I just can't do it. Am I awake? Is this really happening?
We talk for what seems like hours. The Food Network instructing us on how to make a perfect Baked Potato in the background.
I begin to tell her about how distraught I was after she died, but she stops me; "I know. I was watching. I wanted to show up and comfort you, but you needed to do this the hard way. Now that you're almost better, I knew it was time for me to show up."
I almost feel betrayed. There I had been, suffering by myself and she wanted me to do things the HARD WAY. She put her hand on my chin and looked me in the eyes. Suddenly, I knew why she had done that.
I put her hand in mine. I apologized.
A tear welled up in her eyes and she started to cry. I put my arms around here and we sat in silence for a few minutes. Finally, she spoke up.
"I want you to start moving on."
"I can't. This girl is great, but she isn't you."
"Please. Let go of us. As much as I hate to say it, we're over. Besides, it hurts me to see you unhappy."
"...."
"Please."
"....ok."
A smile appeared on her face. Another kiss.
She stood up, grabbed me by the hand and led me to the bed.
"Don't you think that we're going to have sex. I'm dead, so that would be necrophilia!"
I missed her laugh. She motioned for me to lay down. She curled up next to me.
"Wait a minute. We need to make this last."
What? I didn't know what she meant.
She hopped up off the bed and dug through my bags until she found my camera. No way. This wasn't going to mean anything. I'm dreaming.
She climbed back next to me on the bed and held the camera up above us.
"Smile!"
As she went to take the picture, we both turned to kiss each other on the cheek. Instead, we ended up in a passionate kiss. Captured on my dream camera.
She put the camera back and laid down for the last time.
"Go back to sleep. I'll wait for her with you."
She wrapped her arms around me, and I stared into her eyes as I feel asleep.
I don't know how long passed, but I heard the door start opening again.
The arms around me started to fade and I heard a whisper in my ear
"I will always love you."
A kiss on my cheek, and it was over.
I opened my eyes, expecting to still be in the chair.
I wasn't.
I was on the bed. I sat up, and in she walked. She was holding shopping bags from all sorts of shops. She looked happy as ever.
"Hey you! Did you get my note?"
I looked over at the table next to the bed and saw it. Now I felt like an idiot. So I lied about it.
"Yeah, I did. How was your shopping?"
She launched into an exciting rant about how great of a day she had. I sat and watched as she glowed with enthusiasm.
"It was such a great day," she continued, "but the best part of my day was knowing that I'd see you when I got back here."
I smiled. Time to move on, champ.
I stood up and walked over to her. Looking her in the eyes, I did something I thought I wasn't capable of anymore.
I put my arms around her. "I love you."
"I love you, too."
We celebrated by ordering champagne and having sex all night.
When all was said and done, she passed out with her arm draped across me. I lit up a cigarette and took another drink. Life was good.
I used to hear people say that there's no such thing as a perfect moment. Those people were wrong.