A7X One Shots

See the thing about people who always seem happy, the people who are always smiling—they aren’t the happiest. They’re hiding their emotions so that they can make others feel better. Maybe that’s why they’re here—to make others happy even while they’re suffering unimaginable pain. I was once one of those people.

My smile never dulled, and I was quick with a joke. For many years, all I wanted to do was make others feel better. I was the class clown, the goof ball, and the chuckle man. People loved me, even teachers, but all the changed two days ago.

Two days ago, I was shot, straight through the skull. Death wasn’t as bad as people thought. Dying was easy. This part, watching the aftermath, that was the hard part. The day I died was like any other day. My mom had kissed my cheek as I rushed out the door, late for my morning class like always. She shook her head and yelled to have a good day.

Running through the hallways, I skidded into the room to giggles and a glare from Mr. Turner. He just shook his head and pointed at my chair. He was my favorite teacher mainly because he could put up with my shit for the longest.

“Charlie, since you’re always late, why don’t you lead us in the pledge today?” Mr. Turner looked at me with a smirk on his face.

I smiled and nodded, unphased by his antics. Standing back up, I lead my classmates in the pledge of allegiance. When we were done, Mr. Turner started discussing our new English project. We were reading The Merchant of Venice and had to recreate an act from the play with a group of people. It should be fun, and I knew I could make it really funny if my group gave me the chance.

The bell rang after groups were decided, and I walked to my next class, chatting with Mark about our project. We wanted to do a version of the play and make it like the mafia—almost like a Goodfellas of Venice. As we neared our next classroom, Mike, a good friend of mine, approached us.

Mike looked nervous, jumpy, and jittery. His forehead was sweaty, and he couldn’t keep his eyes focused on me or Mark. Mark gave him a weird look but waved. They never got along well but were friendly with each other.

“Hey Mikey,” I said.

His eyes finally met mine, and he glared at me with bloodshot eyes. Anger rolled through his eyes as he shoved his hand into his pocket. I wondered what he was mad about.

“Hey man, what’s going on?” I tried again.

Mike pulled his hand out of his pocket and something silver flashed. I looked down at it and then back up at him. It was like my brain was in a sludge; I couldn’t process what the hell was happening.

Before I could think more than that, a friend pulled the trigger that silenced me. The last thing I remembered was a scream. Then white silence… so peaceful and so numb. That was two days ago.

Now, I watched all of them: my friends, family, and Mikey.

After Mikey had shot me in the head, the school had gone into a frenzy. He’d shot two other people, including Mark, but they had lived. Mark was still in the hospital. They didn’t think he’d be able to walk again, but at least he was alive.

The principal was speaking about the “tragedy,” waxing on about how loved I was. Everyone seemed to have a story about me according to him.

Pausing in his speech, he took a breath to add one thing. He stared out at the students as he opened his mouth to speak. Principal Wesley was a good man. He was, but we never got along.

“Charlie was a… unique kid, but we should take this horrible incident as a warning to believe anything can happen. He will be dearly missed.” Two days ago, I was shot. Something was wrong though. There was a part of me that felt I need to stay because moving on seemed to be somber bliss. I didn’t get to say goodbye to anyone. I watched as my mother shed tears.

For me, Mikey’s gun had stopped time in its tracks. His one action had altered the course of my fate. I closed my eyes and felt the chill of the wind embrace me.

My mother cried over my casket, her arms thrown over it as my friends and pastor looked on. I watched as she screamed my name, calling for me over and over again. Her body shook with the grief that was beginning to overcome her. I had been her only child. What was she going to do now?

Anger rushed through me at the thought. Mike had taken my voice from me. And the more I listen, the more I have to say, but there’s no way for me to do it. I have no voice left. It’s gone. Mike had taken it.

Looking back, I wish I had seen it. He had given me so many hints that he needed help. Mike was an angry kid, I never had denied that. His dad hated him and his mom thought he was worthless. Whenever we hung out, it was always somewhere away from his family.

There had been moments when he had told me that he wanted it all to end. Mike talked about death a lot, always wondering what life held after it was over. Thanks to him, I knew now. I should have told someone. Mike needed help, but he had taken away my life. There was no way he’d get that now.

A sob brought my attention back to my funeral. My mother was rocking back and forth. A metallic taste entered my mouth. In her sadness and grief and anger, she had bit her own tongue, and I could taste the blood.

She wailed and called my name. “Charlie” was shouted over and over. The pastor patted her back and helped her up. My mother tossed a rose onto my casket. My friends followed after that, covering my coffin in dozens of white roses. Tears wracked Mother’s body as they lowered me into the ground.

I thought I’d go after that, but I didn’t. I was still here, waiting for something, but I didn’t know what.

Two days ago, I was shot. And now as I wait, stuck in this warped time flux, I only had one thought in what was left of my head: hope will fall tonight with broken wings.

Like me mother at my funeral, I was trapped in this one place and this one time. Hope had
fallen tonight, and its broken wings wouldn’t be healed, couldn’t be healed. I sighed.

“I’m sorry, Mother. I’m sorry.”

Notes

Again this is a trial run of short stories. I have been writing short stories based on the guys' songs. So this doesn't feature them but it is based on their Radiant Eclipse song, so let me know if I should continue or go back to the boys!