Amidst Crimson Kisses

Chapter Ten: A Long Road Ahead

Asher's POV

For a minute, the world was in a standstill as I blazed down the highway, lost in time. I imagined vain memories of Juliet as the front tires locked on the platform and my heart deteriorated. I didn't understand the scattered fragments that held Juliet captive in my mind, not until I slammed my foot on the accelerator. Somehow, I thought peace would take over my mind, but instead, the wheels revolved aimlessly as the freight train grew closer to us. It's insane but her smile still reigns before me even now as we carry Andre on the side of the road in silence.

I remember the engine screeched as I pressed my foot firmly against the gas, glaring as the train inched closer to us. I punched the steering wheel as Juliet sat in the passenger seat with a halo over her sun-kissed locks. Then Charlie gasped for air as he held his right hand over his chest. I blinked hard, trying to erase Juliet from my mind, but she only laughed. I closed my eyes as Andre groaned in pain, and Charlie pressed his hands against his eardrum, preparing for the impact that would've killed us all.

My heart pounded inside my chest with each breath I took, but I could only pray for Juliet to disappear. It's just, whenever I looked at her my heartbeat would accelerate, and my fingers went numb. But now one memory of her has me reflecting on every single aspect of my life, including my death. I was dead for ten minutes before the Paramedics brought me back to life. For a moment there was nothing left to be afraid of and not a worry about tomorrow.

I prayed again for her to disappear, but the only words that mumbled from my lips were, "I pray Juliet's alive." Finally, I heard Andre cry out for help as he whispered, "Asher, please." Then I thought about what Andre said back at the diner when he confronted Lynn. I wanted to hurt him because I was in pain until I realized we were both suffering. I hated Andre for all those years only for me to realize we were the same. I opened my eyes and rushed around the Mustang, snatching the passenger door open as I pushed Charlie off the tracks.

I could see the fear in his eyes as he watched me race to Andre without a single thought about my life. The truth is I could never let Andre die not when we've been through hell together. I know we don't always get along but for better or for worse Andre Smith will always be my brother. But the train was less than four yards away when I opened the door and Charlie dashed to my side as I dived on the backseat. We dragged Andre away from the tracks as the train bulldozed the last thing I had left of Juliet.

"Man, I'm so sorry," Charlie whispers. "There's nothing you could've done differently. It was out of your hands the moment we stepped into that place."

"You guys could've died," I say, facing the road. "All because I couldn't let go of my pride and give Andre the keys. You were right, I'm not ready for the world, at least not without Juliet. If it were only me, I probably would have locked the doors and pressed my foot against the accelerator until the Amtrak headlights hanged above my head one last time. I would of twisted the ignition until the train collided with the car, imagining Juliet as I died on impact."

I didn't want to distinguish between reality and the illusion of Juliet's smile as she took over my mind. My heart shatters as I visualize the car Juliet gave me dissemble into pieces. It replays over and over again in my head as tears threaten to overflow. I remember her cornflower eyes dissolving in the ocean as her soul relinquished in the waves of her irises, and I watched her die. It's like the moment Juliet died, the world started spinning counterclockwise, and then time became the past.

How could I have been so foolish to lose my last memory of her?

Why didn't I hand Andre the keys in the first place?

Why didn't the siren leave me to die?

"Why do you keep finding ways for everyone to lose you?" Andre spat, glowering inches from me. "Do you know how hard it was watching you die? I thought I would never talk to you again. I thought you were gone just like my mom. And Charlie, you mean it was over the moment I walked into the lounge. Go ahead and say it because I'm tired of pretending it's not the only thing crossing your mind when you look at me. You're still upset Asher left the car to me. Juliet was Asher's girlfriend not yours."