I've always been a fan of ghosts, even when I was afraid of them.
They were a concept I came to appreciate as a possibility that may be our loved ones are still there and not truly gone.
This tone shifted when I thought on the concept of afterlives and the hereafter. Places that were meant to bring the soul eternal rest.
I could rant on an on about the human soul and how I think our essence is tied, but the part that birthed this brief, but impactful story is the fact that I wanted to write about a ghost, who felt trapped in this limbo, who found someone that could bring him the joy he longed for, the friendship he craved, and finally, the closure he needed to cross over.
I came up with Joaquin quickly after this and then Cassandra who I felt had a beautiful push-pull relationship.
Cassandra is scared because she's gone down this path before, and gotten in too deep. Meanwhile, Joaquin has never done any of this and isn't afraid to plunge in headfirst, but at the same time he's mindful of Cass' bodily needs and therefore becomes like a guardian spirit, hearkening back to my original concept of ghosts looking after us from the other side.
The plot came together from a variety of places as well as my own imagination, but the theme I wanted throughout all this is that everything is connected, and that no one's actions are unaccountable.
What came last oddly enough was the title. A bleeding heart is a person who feels too deeply, too quickly. An idiom I felt described Cassandra perfectly. However my in insistence to have things mean more than one thing made this title take on a second meaning. The flower, of the same name symbolizes a strong connection of that which goes beyond life and death. A connection that Joaquin and Cassandra will always hold.
So yeah, that's the story behind Bleeding Hearts, and I'm so glad if you've read up until this point. Sometimes the most interesting things come in the smallest of packages.