Accidents Made Right 1: Pistanthrophobia

Meanwhile

I peered at the transparent body above the bed, nothing remaining in my heart… as usual.

“Ugh… I-I should’ve died… what g-good have I ever done?”

“I-I’ve lied to the only p-person who’s a-always cared about me for y-years… I’ve helped put my f-father turn into an u-unstoppable conquerer… everybody hates me except for S-Steve. E-Even my own mother hasn’t t-talked to or even looked at me for y-years…”

You can still make up for some mistakes you’ve made… starting with this one, Raen said.

“W-What does it matter? I-I’ve tried. I don’t know enough about m-magic to control my o-own powers, and e-even then… it’s filled with c-conditions. I-I might… make t-things worse…”

Bap. Bap. Bap.

Oh shit… someone’s there. Please don’t let it be Steve. Anybody but him…

I hesitantly stood up, took a step forward to open it, but then remembered.

“Y-You can come in.”

The door flew open, and Rose stood in the doorway.

“H-Hello…”

“Hey, uh… I’m throwing a party at the bar to… celebrate our victory. You coming?”

“I-I h-hate to be a d-dissapointment, b-but… I don’t think any of us a-are in t-the mood for a p-party.”

Rose walked over, wrapped her arm around my elbow, and tugged, saying “That’s exactly why we need a party! To lift our spirits!”

I ripped my arm away, dropped my butt onto the bed, and crossed my arms like the whiny bitch I am.

“Oh, c’mon! What else are you gonna do? Pout yourself to sleep?”

“…Probably.”

Rose bent down, and sat on her legs.

“Did you know I’m a therapist, at least technically?”

“N-No.”

“Well… I can tell you’re hurting. Hurting because of your love… for Steve.”

I perked up.

“Y-Yeah… W-Wait. How do you…”

“But he’s in denial about his feelings. You know it too… which means he’ll need help to be set straight.”

“B-But… I thought y-you had a crush on him…”

“I crush on everybody. I’ve done it with Isabelle and Luke too,” she said with a wink.

“And besides… I’ve already felt the feeling of someone’s lips. You haven’t. It’s only fair you get him, and not me.”

“T-That… feels kinda s-selfish.”

“It’s okay to be selfish sometimes. It’s part of what makes us human.”

“B-But I’m not human… not r-really.”

Rose sighed, and sat down next to me.

“Can you keep a secret,” she whispered into my ear.

“I-I guess… all I seem t-to be good f-for is hiding.”

After a bit of silence, she inevitably said “There are more Grim Reapers in this universe than you think.”

…

“You’re a G-Grim Reaper?!”

“Shh. I told you it’s a secret!”

“S-Still… w-why didn’t you tell me e-earlier?”

“Because the entire reason I’m here involves me being as unseen as possible.”

“S-So… you liking S-Steve… that was all a l-lie?”

“I love everybody. That’s my thing.” She pulled down the left side of her buttoned-up shirt, revealing a red rose birthmark on her shoulder, stretching out just barely onto her neck.

Red rose… does she control love?

“A-Are… y-you a reincarnation too?”

“Think so…” Rose grabbed my shoulders, looking dead in my eyes, “look, you gotta promise not to tell anyone. Not even that I exist. Not your father, not Steve, and especially not *******”

“I-I’m sorry, what was that l-last one?” I asked, unclogging my ears by digging out wax with my index fingers.

“Dammit… at least spend some time grieving me…” Rose mumbled to herself.

“I… w-wha?”

Rose groaned, closed her eyes, and let her head hang low for several minutes.

When the silence started getting unbearably awkward, I shook her, but nothing happened.

“R-Rose…? You… okay?”

About another minute later, her head jerked up, accidentally hitting my jaw.

“Shit! You okay?”

“Y-Yeah… w-what… were you doing?”

Her eyes changed color, still green, but a little lighter.

“Alright… look. We have 2 hours, at best. We need to throw the party I mentioned earlier, now.”

“W-Why? W-What’s happening?” I asked, my heart racing.

“As cliche as this is, I have no time to explain. Just make sure Steve goes. That’s all that matters right now.”

Rose stood up to walk away, but I sprung up and asked loudly “W-What’s going on?!”

Rose stopped, turned her head to see me, and her legs started shaking.

“Do you trust me?”

“I-I…”

“Do. You. Trust. Me.”

Remembering time was of the essence, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, and remembered something Steve told me, long ago.

“The only ones deserving our trust are those willing to make risks for us.”

I slowly opened my eyes, seeing Rose’s pleading expression, and nodded.

With a relieved smile, Rose ran out of the room. I took another deep breath, walked to the doorframe… and started walking to Steve’s room.

One thing I love about being a writer. Even a simple change can completely shift your plans for the overall story.