II: Heartache

As I was kneeling down on the floor, a warm and soft hand touched my back. It was Samantha, she looked at me as if she was confused, she asked:

"Andrei? Are you ok? Do you need something?"

I looked at him with tears running down my face and asked her.

"Samantha.... please.... tell me.... the news just now... it wasn't real was it?"

I forced a smile, hoping it was all just a prank my friends have made. She answered.

"I don't know, but by the looking at it. It looks real to me, they wouldn't be broadcasting it if that was just a hoax"

I answered as I stuttered

Andrei: "T-Those.... people that died.... they w-were all my friends... m-my.... my only family... they were just with me last night"

Samantha knelt down beside me, and gave me a hug.

"I'm so sorry for your loss. I can't say that things will be ok, but for now just be strong. I'll be here for you"

She said sincerely.

While I was crying on the floor, Tommy who was making his way towards me, shouted across the hall.

"Andrei!! What the Hell are you slacking around for!! Didn't you say you'll finish the projects till the end of the day? TIME IS TICKING!! and you know what will happen if you don't finish. Do it or YOU'RE FIRED!"

I gathered my strength and Samantha helped me to get up on both feet.

"Thank you, I'll get back to work now"

I said.

I walked towards my desk and proceeded on working on the projects I needed to finish. Samantha followed me and sat on her desk, she looked at me in silence and with concern. I broke the silence and said.

"Please don't look at me with pitiful eyes. It's distracting me and I might not make this in time or else you won't be seeing me here anymore"

I said while I forced myself to make a joke with teary-eyes. She smiled at me and looked at the other way, but she still wears those pitiful eyes even tho she wasn't looking at me.

Time passes, and my deadline is almost due. I handed all my works to Tommy, and he gave me one final lecture on my actions recently. After that he let me off. I walked out of his office, took my bag and hurried out of the building.

As I walked outside, I fell to my knees once again with my chest aching. The thought of seeing my friends, dead and on a TV broadcast. I whispered to myself:

"This can't be real, this must be some kind of joke they did"

I said in disbelief.

I contacted their parents, and asked about what happened. They all said the same thing, in a crying voice.

"Haven't you heard the news? They're gone Andrei, we're at the morgue right now."

I went to my car and drove as fast as I can to the hospital. I hurried to the morgue and there I found four body bags, each one for all of them. Outside the room are their family. It's hard to see them like that, especially my niece and nephews. I went to them and gave them a warm hug. I proceeded inside the morgue, and the Diener (morgue attendant) assisted me in looking at the bodies. He opened the bags one after the other. The first bag was Kris, the second one was Patrick, the third one was John, and lastly Joshua. My knees were weak, I held on to the table where Joshua was lying. I can't hold onto my tears, I can't catch my breath. The only family I have left are lying dead right in front of me. I spoke to myself and cursed:

Andrei: "Damn you guys! Damn it all!! If only you would have let me drive you home this wouldn't have happened!! If not I would be with you guys right now!! Why would you guys leave us this early, right before I can get my life back on the right track!! AHHH!!! DAMN IT ALL!!"

I kept on shouting in disbelief, until the attendant told me that he has to start cleaning the corpses.

I went out of the room, and Joshua's Wife Alex came towards me and said:

"Joshua, always said you were one of the best friends he ever had... They recovered something from the crash. Medical personnel said he was holding onto it when they found him, he always mentioned it belonged to you."

She gave me a polaroid film covered in blood stains. I bursted in tear as soon as I flipped, it was the polaroid photo we took back in High school. The first ever group photo we had with my camera.

"He would've wanted you to have that back, he cherished it so much he always tells stories about you and the others did to the kids."

"Thank you, this means a lot to me. I'm sorry for your loss. He was a good friend. This is my fault, I should've been the one to drive them home but they insisted that they can manage it. If only I could have been there. This wouldn't have happened, they would still be here with us."

I said in response, she answered back in a worried voice:

"You don't have to take the blame Andrei, it's not your fault. We wouldn't be able to predict what was going to happen. It pains me to see my husband lying dead in front of me, but we have to accept it"

I still can't believe that they're gone. No matter where you look at it, I lost the only family that had faith in me. That never lost their trust. The people who kept me getting back in both feet. Gone in an instant, I never had the chance to say my last farewell.

I try to compose myself everyday, thinking that everything was just a dream. I wake up and check every time and think that this was just some kind of joke, that they would call and say "It's just a prank!" But that day never came. I go to work like any other day, looking pale and dizzy. Tommy, who I happened to be walking down the hall was saying:

"Andrei, have you done the finishing touches to Mrs. Soriano's Duplex plan? It's due this...."

I walked right passed him and did not respond because I was busy thinking of the accident. He kept on shouting my name, louder and louder.

"Andrei..... Andrei! ANDREI!!"

The people who were walking towards me suddenly moved aside with a worried face as I felt a knuckle land on the back of my head. He then punched me in the face. It was Tommy, he yelled:

"HOW DARE YOU IGNORE ME!! ME.... YOUR BOSS!! HANDOVER ALL YOUR PLANS AND LEAVE THIS BUILDING AT ONCE!! YOU'RE FIRED!!!"

He left then I just sat there, with blood dripping down my lips. People staring, whispering... I've lost my friends.... my family.... my job... I'm done for. The only people who gives me the strength are gone, how am I supposed to get back up again? A faint sound of rushing footsteps came towards me, I had blurry vision at that time because of the tears. But as I looked up to see a clear view, it was Samantha. She overheard Tommy shouting at me across the hall so he came as soon as possible. She said,

"Are you ok? Does anything hurt?"

I looked at her with teary eyes, and soon as she saw that she immediately hugged me.

"I know it's tough, losing the ones you love. You'll get over it soon"

She comforted me until I stopped, and soon explained her what has happened

"Tommy fired you?!"

She said with a shocked face.

"I guess you won't be seeing a lame excuse of an architect anymore"

I smiled.

She looked at me with the same eyes she gave me the day Joshua and the others died. She helped me cleanup my desk and I turned over all the plans to Tommy. As soon as I did that he said,

"Get the hell out... I don't want to see your face here anymore."

I went out and Samantha was waiting outside Tommy's office for me. I gave her a smile, and she cried. She immediately hugged me, that was the last time I get to see the person who was always so nice to me in the office. I said my farewell and she said

"If you need anything, don't hesitate to call me ok? Don't mess up your life or I will come for you and give you a beating"

She handed me her contact number and I left.

Seven days had past since the death of my friends. I'm unemployed, I have nobody beside me. The friends I held dear for the past years of my life are gone. It was a Saturday night, and those were the days when all of them would come. Sadly, today I was alone. Nobody came, I went out and bought the usual things we'd have. I bought drinks for five people. I fixed the table, putting each drinks on every chair they would sit down on. I drank all of it, my head was spinning. I can't think straight. I thought that my friends are waiting for me at their houses. I immediately went to my car, strapped my seatbelt with the blood-stained polaroid picture in my hand. Now I'm off to see them, I didn't think straight. I drove as fast as I can, and took the route they took the day they died.

"I'm on my way, you guys just wait for me"

I said to myself as I stared at the photo in my hand. As I did that, I wasn't able to see the sharp curve coming up ahead. My car ran through the traffic barrier and I fell off the cliff. Glass fragments flying all over the place, as if it was in slow-motion. My life flashed before me. As if it was a movie scene in my head, the happy memories and the bad days, the day I lost my family's trust, to the day I lost my best friends. I'm sure, I'm going to die this time. I thought to myself.

"I'll see you guys soon"

My car crashed at the bottom of the cliff. I can finally rest.......

Or so I thought.

I woke up the next morning, and felt odd. I thought I was gone for sure. I didn't even feel any pain.

"I guess it was just a dream"

I whispered to myself.

But I was in an oddly familiar room. I scanned all four corners of the place. To my surprise, I was home. Not the small apartment I was living in. But this was my parents house, my old room. I was confused, I picked the phone besides a night lamp. I said to myself in confusion as I saw the lamp:

"Why is this still here? I thought they got rid of this already?"

I looked at the phone, It had a wallpaper that says "Don't Touch my phone" with angry eyes above it. This was my phone 15 years ago. But how? Why is it here? I checked the date, and it was July 6, 2015.

"What? Is this some kind of joke?"

At first I thought this was only a simulation, like the movie Captain America back in 2011. I saw the bathroom, I was puzzled. How would they know the details of our old house? It seems very real. I washed my face, and turned to the mirror. I stared blankly at it.

"What the f*ck"

I cussed. I was in my 15 yr/old body. As if I travelled back in time.

"What in the world is happening? How is this possible?"

I questioned myself, as I slapped myself across the face multiple times thinking that this was just a dream.

......But it wasn't

~End of Part 2~