The Connection

It was two o’clock in the morning when Matt found out. His wife awoke him screaming and crying. A phone in her hands. The devastating look in her eyes made a terrible chill run through his blood. The news was not pleasant. As she retold him the story, his heart shattered, and a sheer of shock concealed his entire body and he slumped onto his bed. Numbly reaching for his phone, he dialed a phone number he knew by heart. A few rings later, a tired and scruffy voice answered the phone.

“What?” Brian snapped. “This better be fuckin’ good Matt it’s two in the morning, man.”

“Jim’s gone.” Matt breathed into the phone his face still frozen in an emotionless expression.

“What? Jimmy? What do you mean he’s gone?”

“Jim’s dead, Brian.” Matt sighed running a hand down his face. “Call the others.”

After hanging up Brian’s tousled head fell back against his pillows, as his fiancée questioned who had called. His head swarmed with unanswered questions of his own. None that he could get the answer to at the moment. All he knew was what Matt had instructed. To call the others. Without answering Michelle’s own questions he picked up the phone searching for a number, upon finding it he quickly pressed the bright green sign at the phone began to ring.

“Brian?” Johnny’s voice answered matching the tired and annoyed tone Brian had used with Matt. “What the hell man?”

“It’s Jimmy…” Brian started.

“What about him?” Johnny asked yawning.

“He’s dead.”

“What?” Unbelief was Johnny’s first reaction; this was just another practical joke the guys were playing. The only thing that made him doubt his thoughts was the seriousness in Brian’s voice. “What happened?”

“I don’t know.” Brian stated “Matt just called, he said Jim’s dead and to pass the word along. Meet me at my house in a few hours, tell the others too.” With that, Brain hung up the phone.

Johnny could feel the tears threatening to spill. They stung his eyes and his heart. He thought that maybe in a few hours things would be okay. He would fall asleep and wake up, and everything would be ok. Reaching for his phone, he dialed quickly and Lacey stirred beside him.

“Babe?” She asked sitting up next to him. “What are you doing up?”

Placing the phone to his ear Johnny ignored his girlfriends questioning. A few rings later, another tired voice answered the phone.

“I'm going to kill you short shit.” The gruff voice replied. “What do you want?”

“We gotta go to Brian’s.” Johnny stated.

“What the hell for?” Zacky asked

“Jimmy’s dead. The Rev is dead.” Johnny said trying to reassure himself as well as Zacky at the same time.

“What?” Zacky asked “How? What happened?”

“I don’t know, I'm just passing the word along.” Johnny shrugged. Zacky heard Lacey gasp and her sobs in the background.

“Shit.” Zacky muttered as his own sadness took over. “Who else doesn’t know?”

“Only two people left. I though you should be the one to call though.”

“Will do.” Zacky sighed hanging up. Falling back into his empty sheets, he dropped the phone beside him. He wondered how he was going to make his next phone call. What do you say after five years? How do you begin a conversation that bears such bad news? Amongst his deep thinking, Zacky did not notice his falling asleep until a few hours later when he awoke in his cold bed. Glancing down at his phone the large digits read 4:56 A.M. Mustering the courage he searched his phone book until he came across the name he was searching for. Pressing ‘send’, he placed the phone to his ear taking a deep breath.
A few rings later, the phone was answered with a gentle whisper.

“Hello?”

“Hi.” Zacky said at a loss for words.

“Who is this?” The voice muttered struggling to wake up.

“Uh...” Zacky stuttered until the person on the other cut him off.

“Zackary?” She whispered, “Is that you?”

“Yeah, it’s me Lis.”

“What the hell are you calling for at 5 in the morning?”

“I’ve got some news.” He began.

“News?” She asked, “You have some news after five years?”

“Look, please just hear me out.” He pleaded into the phone.

“What is it Baker?” She snapped. Smiling lightly he remembered her tendency to call him by his last name. I only knew you before you were famous, she once said I don’t know you by your stage name. That is not who you are to me.

“I know you were close to Jimmy…” He started.

“What about him?” She asked her voice suddenly taking strong interest.

“He- Liss…Jimmy…H-he...”

“He what Baker?”

“He died.” Zacky sighed.

“Oh my gosh,” The woman on the other end whimpered into the phone as tears began to fall down her face. “H-How?”

“I don’t know yet, I'm meeting everyone at Brian’s and I’ll get the details there. Probably to plan the funeral. It hurts too much to think about it.” Zacky closed his eyes as his own tears fell freely.

“I’ll be on the first flight there this afternoon,” She sighed.

“I’ll pick you up from the airport.” Zacky offered “Just text me the time and stuff.”

“I will. Bye Baker.” She hung up and the tears began to flow more freely. Lying across her satin sheets she silently wept for her long-time friend as old memories flooded back to her. He had always been there for her, since the beginning of time. She remembered growing up with him and watching him evolve into the person he became. He introduced her to the boys that eventually formed Avenged. Most importantly, he introduced her to the love of her life. She could not imagine that the man that kept her laughing was actually gone. He was the one that kept her in touch with some of the boys of Avenged. He was what held them together. Remembering that she too had someone to call, she quickly scanned her phonebook. Soon the phone was ringing and her old friend was answering the phone. Recounting the details of the tragedy her friend also shed their own amount of tears. She explained that she was booking a flight to California to meet with the rest of the gang and help prepare for the funeral. Her friend said that they also would make an appearance to show their support at the funeral. With that, they both hung up the phone.
Pulling her phone back into her hands Liss logged onto the internet and booked the next flight out to Huntington from Manhattan. After taking a shower and packing her bags, she hailed a taxi and was off towards the airport.