The People I'd Die For (Part 14)

After the conversation with Brian's father in the kitchen, everybody had seemed to lose their appetite. The luscious plate of bacon sat lonesomely in the middle of the kitchen table getting cold. Kat and Amy had tried to dry their eyes while Carl insisted that they go into the living room and get some rest. Brian sat down at the table with a sigh. Carl stood behind Brian and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. As they started to talk, Kat and Amy walked out into the living room.

Amy looked to her left to see Kat standing next to her. The smell of fresh bacon and old popcorn lingered in the air. Kat looked around the room at the blue shag rug, the dark brown wooden walls, and the random pieces of clothing strewn across the room. The lighting was dim, but it made the room all the more comfy.

Kat sighed and looked over at Amy. She paused and then said, "You know, I didn't even realize that I was tired until now."

"I know what you mean." Amy said in return. She looked up at the old grandmother clock sitting on the mantle and saw that it was now a little past one o'clock. She had barely slept the night before. It seemed that the day was going by quickly but was slow in the fact that she felt like she had already done so much. She took a slow breath and sat down on the old white couch at the western end of the living room. It faced a wide, large window that looked out onto the neighborhood. The sun was shining in beautifully and the wind was blowing outside. "How can everything look so normal when it's all so screwed up?"

"Well..." Kat started, "Life goes on for other people. People aren't as sad and hurt as you and me. So maybe for somebody else... it's a good day."

To Amy, Kat's words felt like a severe punch to her stomach. Amy clasped her hands together and put them in her lap. Kat was angry and hurt, and her voice showed it. "It shouldn't." Amy said, looking at the floor. "Not when someone like Jake..."

Kat look at Amy blankly for a moment. She had unintentionally ended the conversation. Kat looked at the floor and walked over to the cozy chair. It was red and soft and clashed with the rest of the room, but it would never do in any other house. Kat sat back in the chair and crossed her arms. She let her eyes wander around the room until they fell on the wooden coffee table in front of her. It was covered with magazines, various papers, pictures, a cell phone, and one more thing. It was a beautiful red carnation corsage. It looked like it had been left out for a while and it was beginning to wilt. "What's that?" Kat asked.

Amy looked up at Kat. "What's what?"

"That." Kat replied as she pointed to the corsage.

Amy's eyes found where Kat was pointing to. A corsage. Most likely for prom. It looked like it wasn't going to be alive for long. Amy reached out her hand and took the box the corsage was in. Something else caught her eye inside the box. She removed the corsage and saw that on the silk padding that the corsage rested on, 'Amelia' was sewn in with golden thread.

As Amy stared at the box, Kat's curiosity grew. She moved to the couch and sat next to Amy and gently took the box from her. She looked at it and saw Amy's name. "This was for you." Kat said.

Amy stared at the corsage, unable to say anything. It was for her, from Brian. A wave of guilt immediately swept over Amy. Survivor guilt had come.

Kat put the box down and looked at Amy. "He loves you, you know." she said. Amy snapped her head toward Kat. She opened her mouth, about to deny what Kat had said, when Kat shook her head and spoke first. "No, Amy, listen. He loves you. You can see it in his eyes, the way he talks to you, the way he holds you, the way he plays with your hair and how you talk to each other in a way only you two could understand. He cares about you so much it even makes me weak sometimes. I know you see it. A love that big can't be denied. Not by anyone. Amy...He even told me he loved you after that night when you... had your accident."

Amy closed her eyes and shook her head. "Yeah, he told me too, but he said he couldn't be with me because of what I did."

Kat took hold of Amy's hand. "No. Look at the corsage. Look at how he's been here for you through all of this and went downstairs to be with you last night. Look at how he's been there for you and cared for you ever since the day you two met. Amy...He loves you."

Tears formed in Amy's eyes. She looked up at the ceiling and took in a shaky breath. She looked down at Kat again. "Kat...I'm so sorry."

"No, don't be sorry." Kat said. Her eyes were forming tears too. She pulled Amy into a hug and held on tight. Only a few tears managed to escape from the girls' eyes before they let go. They each crawled to a separate end of the couch and pulled a blanket over them that was on the floor. The smiled and laughed at the fact that they had been thinking the same thing.

"Sleep?" Amy said.

"I'm already ahead of you." Kat said with fatigue in her voice. She smiled a warm smile to Amy and they lay down comfortably. Once Kat had her eyes closed Amy paused for a second, picked up the corsage, and held it in her hand. Before too long, she was soundly asleep.

An hour later, Brian left the kitchen where his father and he had been talking to wake Kat and Amy up. They both looked so peaceful he was having second thoughts about doing so. A shot of red caught Brian's eye. The corsage he had gotten for her was lying comfortably in her hand while she slept. He walked to the side of the couch and kneeled next to her. A warm smile spread across his face. He opened his mouth as if to say something, and closed it again. He woke Amy and Kat up and told them to get ready. It was time for them to go to the airport.