The Echo of Silence

One Last Time

The headstone was marked with a death date of only seven months previously. An unusually small gap in years laid between the two dates that marked the marble: less than twenty-eight years.

Wilted flowers rested upon the leveled grave, their scent and beauty long gone. The grass that grew over top the grave was the deepest shade of green—healthy and strong due to the end of summer and the moisture of an Arizona fall.

Wind rustled like a song throughout the graveyard. The cemetery was nearly empty, save for the boy who stood before the grave marked with his own last name. He was somber and silent, a mere statue amongst ghosts.

Kai bent down in front of the grave, black suit wrinkling as he scooped up the withered flowers and replaced them with fresh carnations. The brilliant red petals were shocking in contrast against the white marble and green grass; the crimson was the brightest spot of color in the world as far as Kai could tell.

"Hey, Cinder," Kai spoke aloud, kneeling down before her headstone. He brushed his fingers along her name with a gentle touch, as if it were her, and not the place that marked her final remains. "I thought I'd come visit you one last time before I go."

There was no response to Kai's words, but there never had been. He often liked to speak to Cinder in moments of silence, but something about being where she was made him believe that she could actually hear him from wherever she resided beyond the grave. He hoped that she could hear him.

In the months since Cinder's passing, Kai had struggled to find himself. He had discovered stuff about Cinder that he had never known before. He had felt anger towards her for a time, and then with himself. Now he could feel nothing but the brokenness inside of him.

"I just got back from my father's funeral," Kai said, gesturing at the suit, his voice calm despite the sadness. He was a man who had lost everything but himself, and yet somehow he was still alive. It was more devastating than dying.

"It's been really hard without you here," Kai whispered, his voice soft, but not without emotion. "I had to go to the funeral alone." Kai turned his face to the ground, placing his palms flat against the earth. "Scar offered to come, but she just had the baby, and I didn't want to bother her."

Kai sighed, his face only half as troubled as his heart. "Did I tell you they named the baby after you?" Kai asked, a smile lighting his face as he thought of their conversation.

Scarlet had been hesitant to pose the question, seeing how their intention had been to announce the big news at Thorne's birthday party. Her eyes and voice had never been as gentle as in the moment she asked Kai permission to name their little girl after Cinder. It had been only three months after her death.

"Scar and Wolf asked me permission and everything. I told them that you would have loved it. I thought it was a beautiful way to honor your memory. I hope I was right." Kai stroked the grass, his chest aching.

The wind brushed Kai's hair off his forehead, just like Cinder had once done— just like it always did when she was near with him. A warm feeling flooded Kai's chest, and he knew that somehow, somewhere, Cinder was listening to him speak to her.

"Everyone is doing good these days." Kai said, deciding that he would tell her everything now and with her instead of silently in his own head. He would share all that she had left behind before he too left. "Well, almost everything is good. Everything is better at the very least," Kai corrected himself.

"No one knows where Thorne is. I haven't seen or heard of him since that night he told me he was in love with you." Kai ran a hand through his hair, threading stray grass through it. "I'd like to think he moved on, started over; but deep down, I know he didn't." Kai confessed. "I've come to forgive him. I mean," Kai brushed his fingers across the death date on the headstone, wishing that that day had never existed. "I did the same thing. Sure, circumstances were different, but you were the most lovable person I ever knew."