Part V

Modern Day

The boy before her smiled as she stepped to the side and let him in. Something about him made her trust him. She shut the door behind him and leaned back on her heels. Folding her arms over her chest, she studied him. He wore black jeans and a white t-shirt with a worn yellow and red logo on in.

He ran his hands through his hair, making it frizzier than it had already been. As he peered at this reflection in the hallway mirror, he gave her a small nod.

“Thank you,” he spoke.

She frowned. “It wasn’t raining that hard.”

He turned. “You’re right, it wasn’t. But I wasn’t running from the rain.”

“What were you running from then?” she raised an eyebrow.

Who exactly was this guy? She knew him from somewhere but she couldn’t place where and it was annoying her.

“Well, see,” he sighed. “I bought these flowers at the stand down the road but they were the last red and white roses the woman had. The dude behind me wanted them but I told him they were for someone important and refused to give them to him.”

“If you got there first, they’re yours,” she said.

He shook the flowers at her. “Exactly! But anyways, he was really mad, saying he needed them for his girlfriend or whatnot and was following me. And, well, I’m not the kind of person that can get involved in a public argument.”

He wiped at the water on his shirt, trying to straighten out the wrinkles that were already appearing. “So, sorry for barging in like this but I needed to get out of the situation as quickly as possible.”

She nodded towards the flowers. “Are those for your girlfriend?”

“Look,” he looked at her. His eyes were a shade brown darker than they had been a moment ago. “Just because it’s Valentine’s Day and I bought flowers doesn’t mean I have a girlfriend.”

“Why wouldn’t you have one?” she questioned. He looked to be around seventeen or eighteen, old enough to have a girlfriend. He was certainly cute enough to get attention from any girl.

“Because,” he sulked. “I just don’t.”

She turned and looked out the living room window. The boy followed, leaning over to see over her shoulder.

“Is he gone yet?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I don’t know. He’s probably confused as to how I disappeared so fast.”

She leaned her head to the side. “How did you see this house? There are houses on either side of it, why didn’t you knock on their doors.”

He looked at her, confused. “I… I don’t know. It’s just the one I picked.”

She shook her head, muttering. “It shouldn’t be like that.”

“What?” he asked. “What did you say?”

“Nothing,” she excused it. “What’s your name?”

“Hayden Hills,” he extended his hand. “Yours?”

“Artemis,” she answered. It was okay to tell him. He would forget as soon as he left.

“No last name?” he questioned with a hint of a smile in his voice.

She shook her head. “That’s not important.”

Hayden Hills. Even the name was familiar, rolling off her lips smoothly. She had heard it before but where?

She took a breath. “I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere.”

He nodded. “You probably have.”

“Where?” she asked. It was like an annoying itch that she couldn’t seem to reach. It was irritating her more and more with every passing second.

He shrugged with a mischievous smile. “I don’t know.”

Glaring at him, she nodded towards the door. “I’m sure he’s gone by now.”

“And if he’s not?” he challenged jokingly.

“Then knock on someone else’s door,” she snapped. “I have things I need to get done.”

The smile disappeared from Hayden’s face as he realized she was annoyed. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair once more before opening the door.

“Thank you,” he nodded, pulling the door shut behind him.

She stopped him by opening the door. “Of course. Have a good day.”

He jogged down the few front steps and onto the sidewalk. He didn’t look back but continued on down the sidewalk, swinging the flowers by his side. She watched him go for a moment as a saddening feeling sunk in her stomach.

He wouldn’t remember her or anything that had happened—just another person that she would meet but continue to walk past.

With a sigh, she headed back up to her bedroom where she changed into the black dress she had picked out earlier. The heels of her shoes clicked on the wooden stairs as she headed out the door.

Once on the street, she quickly bought a dozen of roses and headed down the sidewalk in the same was as Hayden. She wondered if she would see him as she crossed the street.

The soft green grass caught on her heels, pulling her down into the ground so she stopped and slipped them off. Continuing barefoot, she walked up the hill, winding her way through the maze of grave stones and monuments.

She stopped, reaching the one she had been looking for. She had come many times and knew where it was yet she liked to take the long way to reach it. She knew many of the names engraved on the headers. Every one brought a face to mind of when she had seen them. None of them remembered her of course but she couldn’t seem to forget them.

The stone she stood before was obviously old as moss climbed the sides of it and filled the edges of the engraving. She picked it from the cracks and leaned back on her heels.

The name on the stone was Mark Acker, a descendant of Elise. She flinched at the memory and closed her eyes for a moment. She made herself stop thinking about the woman and looked back at the grave before.

Setting the roses down, she stood up. “I promised Elise I would leave a dozen roses on her grave and yet here I am, leaving them for her descendants.”

She laughed sadly. “I’m sorry, Elise.”

The woman hadn’t deserved such a brutal death. She could have let her go. One survivor wouldn’t have made a big difference.

Artemis hung her head, hair falling over her face so she couldn’t see the world around her. She liked that—it was like it was protecting her from the reality that made her eyes sting with tears. She pulled a flower out of the dozen she had laid down, running her thumb over the area where the thorns had been removed.

Sniffing, she looked around, a lone figure a few rows up catching her attention. He looked familiar, frizzy brown hair, black jeans, and a worn white t-shirt. She looked closer as he gently set the bouquet of flowers down.

He turned and walked down the hill, never looking back. She watched as he wiped his face with the back of his hand. He disappeared below the tree line and she turned back to look at the grave he had just been at.

She was curious. Why had he come to the cemetery? Hadn’t the flowers been for someone special?

Picking up her shoes, she walked over to where he had been and kneeled down to get a good look at the name.

Mia J. Hills

A loving mother and wife.

She looked down the hill, trying to see if there was any trace of Hayden but there was none. Turning back to the grave, she set the rose down. She had been planning to take it home and put it in a vase but now she felt it was better to honor the deceased. She felt bad, assuming that the flowers had been for a girlfriend.

After all, just because it was Valentine’s Day doesn’t mean he was in a relationship.