Valarie

To end the world,
we need not fire nor ice.
If only the hope burned
the demons shall rise.

“Aria Reid was not only a beautiful young girl, but also an adored daughter, sister and friend. She was taken from us long before she was supposed to.” finishes an old woman I have never seen before in my life.

I suppose she wasn't in Aria's life either, else she would have noticed how her own brother hasn't graced us with his presence.
Javier decided not to join me and a couple other of our friends in the front, instead he walked out a couple minutes ago. I hope he is alright. He is trying to hang on to hope that Aria didn't die for nothing, but she did. And neither of us are willing to believe it. His theory about the game did exactly what it was supposed to do, it made him seem like someone who has truly lost their mind.

Even if I want that string of hope which refuses to believe that she died for nothing, even if I want to believe Javier like my life depended on it, it just seems absurd. Then why have you installed that game? Why is it one of your hidden apps? Why are you ashamed of it?

I suppose I'm hanging onto the same hope Javier is. And if this hope burns, it’s burning bright. And I can't ignore it, not anymore.

I brush away my thoughts as I wonder if anyone would notice if I leave to join Javi. Hopefully not, but Vera's firm grip on my arm doesn't really leave me much place to shake it off. Sometimes I forget Aria had a life outside me and Javier. Her friends with whom she covered the wall outside the school with graffiti, and those ones she met when she helped around at an animal shelter are all present now. Which feels weird because we've never actually met. And now we don't want to, knowing people who knew Aria is just a stabbing reminder that she isn't here anymore.

The unmistakable smell of waffles reaches my nose, and it almost makes me want to throw up. My appetite isn't back yet, and waffles are just another cruel reminder of the person I miss. Before I know it, I’m yanking my hand from Vera's, leaving her behind with a confused yet concerned face.

I push the doors open as quietly as I can, but they creak anyway. I ignore the annoyed glances thrown my way for interrupting and try to find Javier to check if he wants to leave too. Driving isn't my strong suit, especially not with blurry eyes as we pass through all the places Aria and I used to go through, which basically includes everywhere.

I find Javier huddled behind a huge rock in the garden just outside the funeral home. The garden looks beautiful with its little purple lilacs and its golden flowers, I think I would've liked it if it didn't stink of death. But if death has a scent, it shouldn't smell this beautiful. I suppose it is more of the feeling that there have been hundreds of mourners and funerals here just makes my heart drop.

“Hey…” I start off before I notice his tears. Taking a deep breath, I settle down beside him. I think I would have been in tears too, but it seems I’ve run out of them.

We just sit here for hours, noticing the missing presence of a girl we both love. Or rather, loved. The sky turns darker by the minute, even the moon abandoning us. Missing a screaming, singing, annoying, wild girl who's left us with nothing but memories which aren't supposed to hurt, but they do.

ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ 

Everyone is worried. I know, but I pretend not to notice. Javi dropped me off at home around midnight. My mother tries to talk to me, but I wave her off saying I’m fine and walk into my room essentially skipping dinner as well.

After scrolling through more waves of messages and actually trying to reply to a few of them, my fingers skit around to the hidden apps. 72 Hours. A game which allegedly killed my best friend. A game which actually looks fun. A game I’m going to actually start playing. I think as I click on the app.

I get under the blanket to not let any light from my phone escape the room and wake my parents up. The loading screen is nothing special, just a black screen filled with red flames, and the words ‘Make me your villian.’ scrawled out in the middle. The bone white color of the words and the creepy font somehow make it look quite beautiful.

I brush through the privacy policy and I am on the game screen, decorations scarce yet elegant. My finger just inches away from hitting the start button.

This is a bad idea. That much is obvious. It is the logical thing to not entertain a dangerous but stupid idea. But looking at the empty bed on the other end of the room, and the small box which used to be filled with waffles, logic can take the back seat. Or maybe it can be gagged and thrown out the window.

I find myself clicking the start button before I can think myself out of it. Music blares from the phone as random images flash through the screen. I quickly put the phone on silent and hide it under my pillow just in case my parents decide to check what all the noise is about.

A few minutes pass by and I slowly open my eyes to look around if I woke someone up. I have never been more glad that my parents sleep through anything, just like pandas. But the street dogs seem to have been up all this time. They howl together, and my traitorous mind remind me of how Aria and I used to laugh together. Javi commenting that our laughter was essentially the most evil thing he had ever heard.

I wait for a few more minutes before I drag my phone out. The flashing images had stopped but a single imagine remained. It was an ordinary page, torn from a notepad. And the only thing more intimidating than the blood staining the right corner of the paper, are the words written on it.

If you’ve come this far, mistakes have been made. Leave now or regrets have been prepared.

ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ