The Reminder - Short Story (Part 4)

Chapter 4

The brisk air of the countryside waved through Jason's hair as he stepped out from his Ford Mustang onto the dusty road of Handover Pass. The sun had begun to set, covering the fields of dry grass and corn in an orange blanket - they danced in the breeze, celebrating their isolation from the distant cityscape. Up ahead was a singular house, old and tarnished by years of neglect - This couldn't be the right place, could it?

Jason looked around, but the lack of any other options sealed his suspicions, this was the address, this was where she would be.

He walked up the sand trail leading to the front porch of the home. Apart from overgrown weeds and grass, the outside of the property was bare, there seemed to be no care taken in the maintenance of the grounds, stranger still was the complete absence of life - no car in the driveway, no furniture on the deck, no sounds - just utter stillness.

^image

A surreal lightness came over Jason as he approached the front door, as if he had held his breath for too long or stood up too quickly. He knocked on the cracked, wooden door, causing it to creek open.

-"Hello? Vanessa?"

He stepped into the house and was immediately taken aback the swarm of dust that hovered through the building. He fanned the dust away, and took another step inside, the floor creaking beneath him. The interior reminded him of an abandoned apartment in Downtown, the kind he'd sneak into to smoke pot with his high-school friends - there were hardly any belongings or fixtures, just an empty house, save for a lone couch, ragged and decayed in the center of the living space.

-"Jason, you came!"
The excited voice of Vanessa reached out from behind him.

-"Vanessa!"
Startled, Jason spun around to the voice, it was hers, it was Vanessa. She stood before him in her same youthful luminescence, almost immediately providing warmth to the dead setting.

-"What is this place? Why are we here?" Jason probed.
-"This is where I am now" Vanessa replied

Jason's eyes widened in disbelief.
-"Wait, you live here? How?"

Vanessa hesitated for a moment, she looked down, disappointed, then lifted her eyes back up to Jason in all their whimsical splendor.

-"You know, I didn't think you'd come, I've been waiting for you for so long, wondering if I'd ever see you again."
She steps closer to Jason, hands behind her back, leaning towards him in tempting mischief.

-"You're talking shit. I tried calling you, I tried just about everything - it doesn't matter, what's going on?"

There was a slight crack in Vanessa's jubilance, a depth of longing in her eyes , only for a second. Jason noticed it.

-"Listen, if you need money, I'm su-"

Vanessa lunged forward, grabbing Jason's hands and pulling him into her lips. The two kissed - a moment of gentle, soothing embrace that forced Jason's eyes to close.

^image

As he kissed her, Jason could feel himself becoming faint, the lightness of head he had felt before now overriding everything but the sensation of his lips meeting Vanessa's. The passed several years seemed to dissipate into dust, that hovered within his mind like that of the empty house. What empty house?

When he opened his eyes, he saw only Vanessa, like he had for many-a-year, right here in their home, where they had always been so happy, where they had started a life together so long ago. The walls were covered in fresh, cream paint, and decorated with framed photos of their favorite moments. The air was clean, the furniture quint, the world perfect .

-"This is our dream."
Vanessa whispered, her smile warm and bright...

*

---

Thank you for reading Part 4 of The Reminder - A short story about lust, death, and the unfinished stories of passed lives.
Please like, share and follow if you enjoyed the read, and look out for the next installment in a few days, be sure to read Part 1 if you're new to story. :)