Forgetting the Murder

26: Absolution

I can hear the rain hit gently off the window pane. As I pull open the curtain and look outside I notice that thick, grey clouds cover the night sky, hiding the stars from view. It is raining quite heavily and little droplets bounce of the ground below me.

I look up and notice there is a gap in the clouds. The moon is peeking out, yearning for attention. It is only a small sliver that is still there. A crescent moon, the last of the cycle.

Marking the end of an era.

***

The large, bricked house towered over me, it seemed much bigger than it actually was this particular afternoon. It had just struck twelve o'clock and the sun was at mid-point in the sky. It was warm as the blue sky was cloudless, letting its golden rays beam down. The greenery that surrounded this familiar house stood still because of the lack of wind, making it seem as if time was frozen.

I'm not sure why I remember every single detail of that particular moment, maybe it was because what I was about to do could change my life, or maybe I was just so nervous that I surveyed my surroundings in extreme detail.

It had seemed like hours from the moment I knocked until the moment the black, wooden door opened. But when the door did open it seemed as if nothing else mattered in the world, and that the past had been forgotten.

"Abby?"

I stared at the speaker in the door in front of me in silence, his dark brown hair looked as if he had been running his hands through it a lot and he was wearing grey sweat pants which were torn in several places and a over-sized t-shirt.

And yet, he still looked as handsome as ever.

"I'm so sorry," he spoke again, clearly worried as to why I was there.

"I know," I replied, "I'm here to forgive you."

His eyes lit up, but it quickly faded. "Even after all I have done? The murders and the lies?"

"I'm fully aware of what you did, Zeke."

"Then why would you forgive me?"

"Because I fell in love with Zeke Riley, not Damien O'Kane. I realise that you two are separate people."

Zeke looked a bit flustered - almost confused - but asked anyway, "Do you want to come in?"

I walked through the open door like I had done many times before. The interior of the house hadn't changed - not that I expected it to - except it had a bit more clutter littering the floor.

I made my way to the kitchen where I sat down at the familiar glass table in the spot I usually sat at and gestured for Zeke to sit beside me.

"Why do you call me Zeke?" he questioned, "If you know my name's Damien?"

"Because you aren't Damien. You are Zeke Riley; a caring, kind and sensitive man. Calling you Damien just brings up the past and the person you aren't anymore, it digs up bad memories I'd rather not remember."

"Abby, you can't run away from who I am."

"Was," I corrected. "You aren't that person anymore, I believe you when you say you aren't. I was right at the beach last year, people can change."

I looked into Zeke's bright, green eyes and could tell he was relieved that I forgave him.

"I love you," I whispered before taking Zeke's hands in mine.

"I love you too."

I leaned in closer to Zeke and kissed him roughly - it had been too long. Zeke returned the kiss and I found my hands tangled in his already messy hair. Zeke kissed me as passionately as I kissed him and I think we wanted it as much as the other. I quickly cleared my mind of all thoughts and just focused on Zeke's lips on mine.