Page 62 of Roses and Skulls

When I blink at him, he grins. “Come on, let’s go sit outside.”

He guides me to the bench where dad and I sat last night. It’s so beautiful here. I hadn’t been here since…

I sigh loudly and turn away from the view to stare into the cup of coffee Elijah placed in my hands. All my memories are either before or after that night. It’s the moment of time that I define everything else around.

“Why are you scared to go home?” Elijah asks, reminding me that I’m not alone.

My fingers nervously tuck my hair behind my ear. “Isn’t it obvious?”

“No, it’s not. That’s why I asked.”

My gaze slides over to him, he has his fingers steepled in front of his mouth. An ankle propped across his knee. I giggle. He looks just like my old therapist. Minus all the tattoos, the brown eyes, and the dangerous glint in his eye.

I shake my head and bite my lip, looking away from him.

“What do you think is going to happen?”

“They aren’t going to be able to trust me.”

He drops his foot and leans forward, resting his arms on his legs. “It’s probably going to take some time, yes. But I think the road goes both ways. You all need to learn to trust each other again.”

The wind blows gently and suddenly there are a thousand little rainbows surrounding us. Elijah stands up and walks over to the first chime I ever made. It’s made out of crystals. It really is beautiful in the morning sun.

“Your mom told me about how you started making these after your accident.” He pauses before flicking one gently with his finger.

“Grandpa told me that the sound from wind chimes were whispers from Heaven.”

“Do they work?”

I wonder if he is making fun of me but the way his shoulders tense, I know he’s being serious.

“I didn’t think so until yesterday. I don’t think I had been ready to listen before that.”

He spins in a circle, his gaze roaming over my dad’s collection.

“What did you hear?” His brown eyes stop on mine.

I pull my legs up and hug them to me. “He told me to trust you.”

The corner of Elijah’s mouth tips up. “I think we have a ways to go for that, huh?” He gives me his back as he stares out over the amazing view.

“It wasn’t an accident,” I say quietly, my heart thumping loudly in my ears. I’m risking everything right now. It was one thing when he made me talk, and then showing the world my scars but this… this, he could use to crush what’s left of my soul.

He spins around.

“Rosie,” he whispers, covering his mouth with one hand while the other grips his hair.

No going back now. “That night I saw the headlights first, and then the truck hit us.” I slowly uncurl myself. “I still hear the sound in my dreams.” I snort, shaking my head. “I guess they aren’t dreams, more like nightmares.”

He makes his way back to my side, sitting down and giving me his full attention.

“When everything stopped, it was so quiet. And then a man came up to the driver’s window. He smiled at grandpa.” I bite my lip and kick my feet back and forth over the rocky ground. “I couldn’t figure out why he was smiling. Grandpa was broken.”

Elijah doesn’t move. Doesn’t speak.

This is the first time I’ve said any of this out loud and I realize just how awful it all sounds.

“He fucking smiled,” I say louder. I jump up and grab a rock off the ground, throwing it as hard as I can and then I pick up another and another. “He smiled. He fucking smiled!”

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