sweetserenity

'Til Death Do Us Part

Brooklyn had to look away to keep herself from telling him It's me, I'm here. Revealing herself would be a terrible mistake. She had to reassure herself that Sam would be alright without knowing she was around. He was strong and capable. But right now, as she looked at him, he seemed petrified. "It'll be alright," she spoke aloud, reaching over to cup his cheek. "Two more months, my love. Then we will reunite.... hopefully."

Brooklyn still wasn't positive about what would happen now that her body was gone. Her hand solemnly lowered and she stepped out to check on her son. There he was- sitting on his play mat like he normally was. He looked cheerful with his rosy cheeks and little grin lighting up his whole face. "Your dad is doing great," she told him, "he's trying his best to be strong for you. For you, Louie. You helped save him. Keep being a source of sunshine for him, alright? Help him continue to see the light through all this darkness."

The baby cooed, and to Brooklyn's surprise, he said, "Mama."

"That's right," Brooklyn spoke, "Mama's here. Mommy loves you very much, Louie."

The baby didn't say anything. Instead, he picked up his purple rattle and shook it. A smile graced Brooklyn's lips as she watched her son play with his toys. He truly appeared gleeful. As long as he was happy, Brooklyn was happy. Even if the three months ended and she was unable to return to earth, she would likely be able to check on him to see what he was up to. Dog didn't seem like someone who would prevent her from doing that. She hoped Louis would be a kind man, similar to his father. Someone who was mindful of others, loyal, and was musically talented.

'Til Death Do Us Part

The message was adorable. It made Brooklyn, who had been strolling alongside Sam as he pushed the stroller, smile. "I love you two so much," she spoke, looking between her lover and her son. They were her greatest blessings. When they arrived back home, Sam even took out his guitar to sing. That surprised Brooklyn. It felt like it had been forever since Sam last played. The chords were incredibly lovely. She watched Sam with adoration in her eyes, the same way she did when they were still children falling in love.

But then a minor chord was played, and suddenly Brooklyn's mind went back to that one fateful night.

~

The headlights hadn't caused any alarm at first. Brooklyn happily drove along, excited to spend some time with her beloved friend. Her heart was still beating and her cheeks were rosy with color. It wasn't until the headlights grew closer when she started panicking.

But she was struck before she could defend herself.

Those last few moments were now in vivid slow motion after previously being vague. As the headlights approached, they suddenly swerved to hit Brooklyn's car. There was a silhouette of a man in that other vehicle. Whoever he was, he intended to hit the young woman's car. He was the one to blame for her death.

~

The angel's jaw had dropped and her eyes went wide as if she had seen a ghost. Who hit her, and why? Closing her mouth, she looked at Sam. He needed to know. "It wasn't an accident," she told him through their mental link.

The Hunt For Roleplay Partners Begins... [CLOSED]

Bump.

'Til Death Do Us Part

Life goes on.

No matter how much one person may want to rewind it or halt it, it always goes on.

Sometimes it speeds by like a jet plane.

Sometimes it crawls by like a tortoise.

The weeks after the funeral were definitely the latter. Brooklyn was constantly anxious, wondering what would happen once the three months end. One was already over. Would she be rebirthed as an entirely new person? Would she be stuck as a talking urn? Would she go to heaven? The answer was unclear. More than ever, she wished she had some way to contact Dog. Surely he would know the answer?

The meetings with Sawyer stopped. Brooklyn lost the will to expand her flying powers to the maximum. Being an angel was fun and games at first, but now it was plain depressing. She lost her body, and along with that, her will to carry on. The only reasons she stayed were to know what her family was up to and to avoid going to hell.

She was glad Sam hadn't given her trouble with that yet. He was being a great person despite these difficult times. Perhaps that would be different if he knew that his fiancée had failed her one mission: to rescue her body. Right now, her corpse was nothing but a pile of ashes. Brooklyn's hopes and dreams for the future had been severely compromised, and Sam was clueless.

Louis started talking more and more, although it came out in babbles. 'Mama' was a common one due to Sam's ritual of showing him pictures of her, 'Dada' appeared occasionally, and at some point he said something that sounded either like light or sight. There were nights when Brooklyn considered revealing herself to her son before remembering that that would still result in hell.

One day, Brooklyn realized that perhaps she didn't need to make herself visible to comfort her family. As long as everything she did was subtle, she doubted it would result in hell. And if it did... well, it would be worth it. She found Sam in the bathroom. It appeared that he had stuck her shampoo in a bag but stopped due to a breakdown. "Oh Sam," she murmured aloud. Suddenly, that gave her an idea for her first subtle act: sending those words to his mind. If she remembered correctly, the contract stated she was able to send brief thoughts or ideas into creature's minds. This would be her first time trying that out. Looking at him lovingly, she gently placed her hand on his head and willed herself to send her previous words into his mind: "Oh Sam." He would hear it in her voice.

'Til Death Do Us Part

Nothing could ever impact Brooklyn as much as Sam's eulogy did. Not even Louis' first word- Mama. She had been sitting next to Patty as that happened. "It's only 'dada' right now," the young mother cooed sadly. However, there was still a light in his words, because it further inspired Brooklyn to complete her goal. She was going to save her body from cremation. There was already a plan in mind for it. Her attention shifted from Louis to the speaker once the ceremony began.

It was surreal to hear people talk about her being dead when she was sitting amongst them. A prayer was spoken for her soul, and she could only remain silent. Right now, she was her soul. She was sitting among her family and friends as they mourned for her.

When the eulogy began, Brooklyn immediately knew Sam wouldn't be able to use his notes. They wouldn't be of much use in his current state. She knew she was correct when he folded up the notes and started speaking from the heart. "There we go," she whispered proudly. It was much more natural for Sam to speak to a crowd like this rather than from a script.

The passion and sorrow he spoke about her with made her grieve not for herself, but for her family and friends. Highlighting how important Brooklyn was also emphasized how big of a loss she was. Of course, the speaker was biased. Brooklyn wasn't perfect, she knew that. Yet somebody doesn't need to be perfect to be adored. As Sam spoke, she looked over at her parent's and Patty's faces. All three of them were sobbing. Even Atumm and Rick, who had been a source of strength only a couple weeks ago, were now weak.

Soon, as Sam reached the end of the eulogy, Brooklyn's angelic form found itself crying, too. The one she loved most was in pain, and she was the cause of it. Never before had she heard him talk about exactly what she meant to him- what she meant to everyone. "I love you so much, Samuel Hanson," she choked out between sobs. "Someday I'll return the favor and tell you exactly what you mean to me. When that happens, we'll be standing at the altar. I'm going to marry you someday, Sam. I'm going to marry you."

All too fast, the funeral soon ended. It was almost time to do the most daring thing she would ever have to do. She stood far away from her body as the visitors made their rounds to say goodbye to Brooklyn. The line filed past rather quickly, with the exception of the grandparents and Sam. Although Brooklyn didn't know exactly what they were saying, she had a decent idea of what it was. She was thankful that they were taking the time to say goodbye to her for what they thought was the one last time.

After everybody else had left, a couple morticians entered the room to wheel the coffin into the back. Nervously, Brooklyn followed them. This was her one shot at saving her body, so there was a lot on her shoulders right now. One worker turned on the cremation chamber to heat it up, while the other worker lifted the lid of the coffin to make sure the body was still in tact. Sure enough, Brooklyn's lifeless corpse was there. The scratches and bruises were evident against her ghostly white skin.

"Oh shit," he commented, "How did she die, again?"

The other worker turned to him. "Car accident. Hit and run, tumbled into a ditch."

"Damn. Poor girl."

As the chamber heated up and the morticians chatted, Brooklyn tried to pry open the electric panel. It was stuck. "Come on, come on, come on!" She whimpered.

The worker who turned on the chamber looked over, "William, what's going on over there? The panel is shaking."

Crap! Brooklyn immediately let go of it. Okay, okay, I need to calm down. Time for plan B. Her hand traveled through the door, blindly flipping switches. The light in the room turned off, then a light in the hallway, but not the chamber.

"Okay- Will, hang on- I need to check this out," the aforementioned worker spoke, blindly walking over to the panel. He kept a hand on the wall as he trailed over to it. No, no, no! Brooklyn thought, quickly flipping off some more switches. Success finally came when the chamber was turned off, allowing her to breathe a sigh of relief.

To her dismay, the worker found the electric panel. He opened it with ease and used his phone's flashlight to inspect it. "Everything was switched off," he announced to his coworker. "That's odd." Casually, he switched everything back on. The chamber started to heat up once more. "I'll stay here in case it happens again," he told his coworker. The other man nodded.

Brooklyn bit her lip. What should she do now? There was no Plan C. She started thinking of a new plan. If only she could reveal herself or take human form. Should she try to act like a ghost to frighten the workers away? Should she try attacking them? God damn it, time was running out!

The chamber beeped, indicating it was ready for the casket.

The casket!

It was laying on a track which would soon roll it into the chamber. If she could move the casket, there would be no body, which meant no cremation. But how would she move it? She didn't want to push it over and damage the coffin. That was still her body in there.

Suddenly, the track began moving.

There was no more time to think.

Brooklyn dived onto the track, traveling into the chamber with her body. The metal door slid shut behind them.

The heat was intense. Although it wouldn't hurt the angel, she could sense it was wretchedly hot in there. Space was tight. She opened the casket slightly to pull her corpse out as carefully as possible. The foul stench of her dead body was strong, piercing her senses. How long had it been since she died? Two weeks? It felt like an eternity until she would be able to return. That is, if she could save her body.

The angel started to wiggle towards the door. The coffin was on fire, which caught onto the clothes of Brooklyn's body. Almost there...!

Bump.

The body was unable to pass through the door with the angel.

As the body went up in flames,

the angel left the chamber,

screaming and crying hysterically.

Her body had been reduced to ashes.

'Til Death Do Us Part

"Classic Brooklyn," Was all Mr. Jones could say. His pink eyes showed that he was close to tears, yet a little smile still remained on his face.

Mrs. Jones nodded in agreement. She, too, looked as if she could cry soon. Her skinny hands wrung together as she processed everything. Losing her daughter wasn't easy. Sam losing his fiancée wasn't easy. Louis losing his mom wasn't easy. One person could mean so much to a variety of people, and in some cases, not even realize it.

After a couple minutes of silence, Mrs. Autumn Jones and Mr. Rick Jones decided it was time to go. First they hugged Patty goodbye, then Mr. Jones settled to give Sam a handshake since the former was still sitting with the baby on his lap. Mrs. Jones waved to her grandson before exiting the house hand in hand with her husband. Brooklyn watched all of this, feeling upset because she couldn't say farewell to her parents. But after they were gone, it was clear that the atmosphere had become lighter. Things weren't as gloomy as they were earlier that day.

Day by day for the next few days, that trend continued. The atmosphere was lifting. The biggest challenge was organizing Brooklyn's funeral. As Sam would be looking up funeral homes, his fiancée would be right there with him. This was difficult for her, too. But nothing was harder than hearing that the plans had been finalized: Brooklyn's funeral was set for January 2nd. Afterwards, her body would be cremated because it was all that could be afforded. What should I do? I don't think I can return to earth if my body is burned, Brooklyn thought to herself nervously. But the excitement of tomorrow helped soothe her fears.

Christmas occurred the day after the plans were finalized. From Brooklyn's perspective, it was an attempt at having fun. Patty returned, although Brooklyn's parents couldn't make it. Presents were opened and music was played, although there was an unspoken damper on everything. When the presents were opened, Brooklyn wasn't there to open hers. Yet Louis was able to receive the gifts she and Sam had planned for him: a few baby books, a stuffed elephant, and, of course, the rocking horse Sam had made for him.

It was the day of the funeral. Between Christmas and now, Brooklyn had met up with Sawyer a small handful of times. Those meetings were always something to pass the time with. During one particular practice flying session, Sawyer opened up about his own story: he had been married to the love of his life. Her name was Cecelia. She was his rock, Sawyer said, the one person that could always make him smile. And he was her caregiver. At a young age, Cecelia got in an accident which paralyzed her waist-down. She was stuck in a wheelchair and required assistance to shower, change clothes, etc. When Sawyer laid eyes on her for the first time, he knew he was in love. She had beautiful blonde hair and blue eyes which shone with pure hope. All Cecelia ever wanted was the best for everybody else. After meeting Sawyer, they knew they were destined for each other. Cecelia was able to fire her old caregiver, who was always cranky and demanded an unfair amount of money. Sawyer genuinely wanted to take care of her, all for free. Cecelia offered payment, but it was quickly rejected. Everything felt so right between them. They married, and Sawyer recalled that she looked like an angel as she rolled herself down the aisle.

Things were going great, until a few months down the road, Sawyer suddenly got a heart attack. He passed away in front of his poor wife. Sawyer went to Levin, where he did as Brooklyn later did and begged to go back to earth. But then Dog broke the news to him: his wife committed suicide almost immediately after Sawyer's own death. The man was devastated. However, to Dog's surprise, he still desired to be sent to earth. So a deal was made: if Sawyer could save five different people's lives, he could go straight to heaven to reunite with his wife. If he never saved five lives, he would remain on earth forever.

The story touched Brooklyn. She then told him about her own story- being engaged to her childhood lover, currently having an infant at home, driving to a friend's house one night and getting hit. Sawyer empathized. Sharing their stories helped them grow closer as friends. Throughout their various meetings, Brooklyn was gradually able to fly higher and higher. Now she really felt like an angel.

Currently, Brooklyn sat by Louis' crib. The funeral was set to start in three hours.

'Til Death Do Us Part

Brooklyn could still remember the story he told as if it were just yesterday. With every new sentence he started, she knew how it was going to end. Hearing him recite the lyrics he used to officially propose her filled her with an indescribable warmth. All she had to do was close her eyes and it was like she was at the club again. After she had delivered her teary-eyed 'yes', she and Sam shared an affectionate kiss as the other people cheered. It was perfect. Later, as they fell asleep in each other's arms that night, there was a new bond between them with their child growing in Brooklyn and a wedding ceremony ahead of them. Everything was falling into place.

"That's so precious," Mrs. Jones commented. "I'll always remember how Brooklyn called me the next day when you were at work to tell me the news. I could hardly tell what she was saying because she was crying so many tears of joy. But when I finally understood what she was telling me, I almost demanded that she immediately drive down to visit me so I could give her a big hug!" She chuckled at the memory before turning to her husband. "When she and Sam did get around to visiting us and they announced she was pregnant, I still remember how you ruffled Sam's hair and congratulated him. What was that about?"

"What else was I supposed to do?" Mr. Jones shot back playfully. "Change my mind about letting him marry my daughter and excommunicate him from our lives?" At this, Brooklyn laughed. She was now casually sitting next to Sam with her head resting against his shoulder. Things were starting to look up, thankfully. She was glad her parents wanted to talk about some pleasant memories. Doing this had helped Sam achieve a smile, which was all she could ask for. That was the first time she had seen him grin since the car accident.

She really wished she could chime in on the conversation. But for now, listening would have to do.

"Oh, you," Mrs. Jones replied, amused at her husband's response. She turned back to Sam. "Anyways, this is proving to be a fun topic. When did you realize you were in love with Brooklyn?"

'Til Death Do Us Part

"We will find them," the officer confirmed. "Somehow, someway, we will find the person responsible and bring them to justice. But for now... it would be a good idea to start looking into funeral homes." He tipped his hat before offering a small yet hopeful smile. "May Ms. Jones rest in peace. Good day to you all." With that, he exited the room and walked out of the house.

Brooklyn had organized a meeting with Sawyer that she was supposed to be leaving to right now. But now, looking at her devastated fiancé sitting among his mother and would-be wife's family, she decided it was best to stay. It was times like this when one was prone to irrational thinking and mortal sin.

Mr. Jones cradled Louie as if to shield him from Sam's profane screams. His eyes were filled with sorrow; for he, along with everybody else in the room, had overheard the officer's dreadful news. There was a long silence. A new weight had filled the air and any spoken words would crash into it. Carefully, Brooklyn sat beside Sam and rubbed his back soothingly. There was only the ticking of a nearby clock to occupy the quiet space.

Finally, Mrs. Jones spoke, "Sam and Patty... I feel like I should tell you how excited Brooklyn was to join your family. When she, Ella, and I went out to search for dresses last month, the both of you were all she could talk about." The aging woman smiled sadly at the memory. "Patty, she talked about how well you always cared for Louis. When you held him for the first time with Brooklyn and Sam watching, she thought you were made to be a Grandma. It was such a precious sight, she said, to see you holding him. Even before that, when she met you for the first time, she later told me that you were the most welcoming person she had ever met." Mrs. Jones turned to Sam. "And you... Brooklyn has been talking about you for as long as I can remember. It was so adorable finding that heart-shaped note in her backpack one morning many years ago and seeing her get so flustered when I asked her about it. To think that now, a decade later, you two were planning to marry.... that's so heart warming. Brooklyn loved you more than anything, Sam. She wanted to build a bigger family with you and have the honor of being called your wife."

Mr. Jones gently set Louie down on his play mat. "Remind us the story of how you proposed, Sam," he softly suggested. "Let us focus on the good times right now before looking into what the cop had said."

'Til Death Do Us Part

Throughout her family's conversation, Brooklyn stayed nearby and gazed out of the window. Every now and then she would glance over at her parents, half-expecting them to see her. After all, she was their daughter. Why didn't that permit them to sense her any more than a stranger would? If they saw her, Brooklyn imagined that there would be a jovial reunion and everything would be splendid again. The only tears shed would be of happiness. Brooklyn would get to hug her parents and assure them that everything was alright now. Then she would hold Louis in her arms as she walked over to the love of her life and kiss his worries away.

Only three more months.

Waiting three months unfortunately meant that she would be missing Christmas. That saddened Brooklyn greatly; for not only was it her favorite holiday, but it would also be her and Louis' first Christmas. She had been wanting to buy Louis a bib or a onesie that said Santa's Elf-in-Training. But now that was highly unlikely to happen, unless if Sam had the same idea.

Louis was a really good baby. He hardly cried, he wasn't wetting his diaper every five minutes, and he was really healthy. Almost without thinking, Brooklyn drifted away from the window over to her child. Just imagining how she would feel if he died gave her an idea of how her parents currently felt. It was heart-wrenching. "Hey Louie," she cooed as if he could hear her, "You've been really awesome since the world first greeted you. Stay like that, okay? Don't start throwing tantrums or anything of the like." She rubbed one of his tiny hands. "Keep an eye on daddy, too. Make sure that he soon resumes his normal eating habits. Also make him shower daily. He needs to do this so he can take care of you excellently and set a good example for you. Daddy's a good man, Louie. I'm really glad he asked me to marry him."

There was suddenly a knock at the door. Sam stood up to open it, and Brooklyn felt compelled to follow. Something told her that this was important. After making his straightforward greeting, the cop continued, "We, the police force, just got a considerable amount of details on Brooklyn's passing." The angel's eyes widened. "...the rear bumper showed signs of indentation. At first we presumed that was from tumbling down the hill, but it was so deep and sharp, not to mention in such a unique spot, that we have come to the conclusion that all of this was caused by another person."

The cop paused as he let that sink in. Brooklyn wrapped her arms around Sam protectively, willing him to not shed any more tears. He had already spilled far more than she ever thought was possible. After a few moments, the cop continued, "The collision is what caused the car to fly off the road. If you remember, that was a freezing night. Some roads, including the one she had been driving on, was covered with thin ice. After getting hit, she likely spun around in circles on the road before the vehicle lost it's balance. That's when it tumbled down into the ditch, still maintaining circular rotations. The roof of the car was almost completely smashed in."

Another pause. He checked his watch before continuing, "Her body has been examined and we have deduced some frightening results. Firstly, tumbling down the ditch caused her to obtain severe whiplash. Not enough to snap her neck, but close. Definitely would have required surgery and bed rest if she had survived. Next, as you may have noticed when you verified the body, her skin was covered in cuts from the glass of the windshield and windows. It has been discovered that some of those cuts were so deep that they would have required stitches. Having cuts that deep meant that she was bleeding a significant amount, which explains the blood on the seats. Lastly, there was overall some soft tissue damage and minor spinal cord damage. With all of these elements combined...." the cop hesitated. The next part would be news that nobody would ever want to hear about a loved one. "....there is no doubt that Ms. Brooklyn Mae Jones died a prolonged, painful death."

'Til Death Do Us Part

When Brooklyn arrived back inside, her would-be mother in law was soothing Sam. She leaned on the doorway as Mrs. Hanson explained how she called Mr. Jones and Mrs. Jones parents yesterday. That intruiged Brooklyn, although also struck her with a pang of guilt. Her parents had always been talkative, lively people.... but now, with their daughter dead, they were probably different. For all Brooklyn knew, they could be hunched over the bed in her old bedroom sobbing their hearts out.

Brooklyn wanted to go to them.

Sourly, Sam exited the room as he mumbled an excuse about feeding Louis. Mrs. Hanson opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again right after. There was no confronting Sam as long as he was in this state. She looked down at her fingernails and lingered a moment before heading out to Sam. Brooklyn followed. True to his word, Sam was found feeding Louis.

Brooklyn lovingly cradled her son's cheek before Mrs. Hanson stated that she would call Brooklyn's parents and ask them to visit. The young woman's head shot up, her eyes filled with worry and delight. The worry was for seeing how distressed her parents may be. There was no question that the death of their daughter impacted them. The delight was for simply seeing her parents again. They didn't get the chance to come around as often as Mrs. Hanson did because they lived farther away. Seeing them was always a treat.

Sam left to go get ready for the day. Honestly, Brooklyn had hardly noticed how messy he had become through not showering and not changing clothes. She had been far too focused on his emotions. Sam would always be Sam, even if he didn't shave for three months and decided to get a septum piercing. Nothing in the world could physically impact Sam enough to make Brooklyn turn away from him forever.

~

Valentine's Day: 9th grade.

Brooklyn paraded down the hallway with a heart-shaped card in her hand. Written in the card was a handwritten confession of Brooklyn's feelings toward her crush: Samuel Hanson. Ella strolled beside her with a bounce in her step. It had been her idea for Brooklyn to finally confess to Sam. Ella had been there since the beginning; having been at the same birthday party that Sam and Brooklyn met at five years ago. The time had flown by.

Brooklyn stopped in front of Sam's locker. Looking around hesitantly, she really didn't want to be seen by anyone while she was doing this. In early high school, nothing was more embarrassing than having pure emotions.

"I don't know if I can do this," Brooklyn confessed nervously. Her hands fidgeted with the homemade card. "There's no way Sam could like me back. He's so... amazing. He's perfect. He's everything I'm not. Have you heard him okay the guitar?"

Ella shook her head. "You're the only one he's played the guitar for! Trust me when I say he likes you back. I've seen the way he looks at you. And don't talk about yourself like that! You're amazing, Brooklyn. Any guy would be lucky to have you."

Biting her lip, Brooklyn nodded in acknowledgement of her friend's words before cautiously sliding the card into Sam's locker. Then she blushed deeply and scurried away, hand in hand with her best friend.

The note read:

Sam,
Ever since we first met, we've clicked. I can crack funny jokes with you, pass you pointless notes in class, and ride around on your back. But I can also rely on you for anything, trust you with my deepest secrets, and be comforted by your presence the way I am by no one else's. You make me happy, Samuel Hanson. You're strong, you're handsome, you're smart, you're perfect.

I love you.

I hope this note doesn't end things between us. You don't have to like me back, I'll completely understand. At the very least, just have a great Valentine's Day, okay? Your happiness makes me happy.

-

~

Only a couple minutes after Mrs. Hanson went to go fetch Sam, the front door opened. Brooklyn's parents entered. Brooklyn had heard the door open and walked over to them. The last time they were here, they had been staying as their house got remodeled. Now, they were visiting as their daughter's corpse lay elsewhere. The somber expression on their faces was striking. Yet there was still hope beneath their eyes. Hope for a better future. Hope that their daughter had gone to Heaven. Hope that the man their daughter loved most would be able to move on someday.

Mrs. Autumn Jones had bobbed brown hair that looked freshly washed but uncombed. Her blue eyes bore the aforementioned hope, yet still appeared quite tired. Her husband's hair was considerably gray and there was evidence of scratch lines on his face. Similar to how Sam was devastated that he couldn't save his fiancé, Mr. Rick Jones was devastated that he couldn't save his baby girl. Brooklyn bit her lip. He must have been clawing at his face in the midst of his distress.

The grieving couple walked over to the living room. Laying down in his crib was Louis. Mr. Jones lovingly picked up the young boy and walked over to sit on the couch. His wife remained standing as she called out, "Hello, Sam or Patty, are you home?"