Denial

“Brian… Brian, baby… you need to wake up,”the girl with long dark locks shook her husband lightly, trying to wake him up. The man groaned and spoke with a hoarse voice, “Is it Matt again?”

His beautiful wife nodded with a small sigh as she handed the phone to him.

“What’s up, dude?” Brian said, trying his hardest not to let out a sigh.
He already knew what Matt was about to say to him. This had been happening a lot lately and he was getting sick of having to see his friend in so much pain.

”Brian, I can’t find Val! I’ve looked everywhere... I’m starting to get really worried about her, man!”His best friend spoke. Brian closed his eyes as a groan escaped his thin lips. “Matt... Valary can’t be found...” He replied sadly to his friend as his wife rubbed his back soothingly, knowing that this was killing him.

“What are you talking about? Of course we can find her!” His friend of so many years argued with him, not understanding that Valary was gone forever. ”She wouldn’t just leave me... right?” His voice started wavering at the end of the sentence. Brian ran his fingers through his dark hair before telling Matt that he’d be over at his house in a second to explain what was going on.

“Bri...” Michelle whispered as she watched the love of her life get dressed quickly “This has to stop. We have to make him realize that Val’s not coming back... even though we all want her to,” She continued as a tear fell from her hazel eyes.

Brian climbed onto their bed again and gently wiped away her tears with his thumb. He kissed the top of her head as he held her close to him. “I know, babe... I know...”
Brian held his wife for a couple of minutes before pecking her lips quickly “I have to go... I’ll be back later. I love you”

“Love you too...” Michelle mumbled before pulling the covers over her and falling asleep again

Brian took one last look at the beauty trying to fall asleep again and smiled weakly, he was so utterly happy that he had been the lucky man that got to marry her.
However his smile turned in to a frown when he thought about the accident that had happened almost six months ago. Michelle’s twin sister, Valary, had been in a car crash and had died on the spot.

His wife had been, and still was, devastated. But not nearly as broken down as Valary’s husband and Brian’s best friend, Matt. The first week he had cried his eyes out and refused to talk to anyone, he locked himself up in his own room, looking at pictures of his wife, which was understandable.

But then, after a while, he started to call Brian in the morning saying that he couldn’t find Val. This had confused Brian to no end, what was Matt talking about?

Valary couldn’t be found, and they both knew that… right? But as time passed, Brian and Michelle started to suspect that Matt actually didn’t know that she couldn’t be found. It was like his brain shut down and had forgotten the day that Valary had died. Every day it was the same for Brian and Michelle, they tried almost everything to make him see that his wife wasn’t alive.

Brian shook his head with a groan as he knocked on his friends’ door. Matt opened quickly and started to talk at an amazing speed about how worried he was about Valary.

“Matt, please, listen to me… Valary can’t be found.” Brian spoke to his friend, a pained expression upon his face. Matthew furrowed his eyebrows together. What the hell was Brian talking about? Was he telling some sick joke? Because frankly, Matt did not find it very amusing. “Why do you keep saying that, man? It’s not like she’s dead or something… “ He spoke, his face holding nothing but confusion about the whole situation.

Brian chewed on his thin bottom lip; he was hoping Matt wouldn’t say that. “Is she?” Matt whispered, his hazel eyes overwhelming with tears. Matt looked at his friend pleadingly, silently begging him to tell him that she was alive. But Brian didn’t say those words that Matt so desperately needed to hear.

“You have got to be kidding me, right?” Matt continued, his voice thick from the lump he had in his throat. His black-haired friend shook his head no slowly, hoping that realization would wash over his friend. Brian nibbles nervously on the inside of his cheek, wondering what he should do next.

“Do you know what date it is today, Matt?” He questioned his friend. “Uhm… it’s November 14th 2010, right?” Matt answered, confused as to why Brian had changed the topic. “Matt… it’s April of 2011…”

Matthews’ eyes widened at the words his friend spoke “No way…” he spoke, still in denial. “This is just some sick prank that you’re playing on me, Brian!” he yelled at his friend, tears now streaming down his pale face. “It’s not!” Brian defended himself “What do I have to do to make you realize that Valary is dead, Matt? That she is not coming back? How can I wake you up from this denial?” he continued furiously, he knew he shouldn’t get frustrated at his friend. But there was no stopping him now.

“Well, prove it to me then! Because if I remember it right, people have funerals when they die. And I certainly do not remember going to my own wife’s funeral!” Matt boomed angrily, getting tired of Brian’s silly games. Matt knew that his wife was not dead, that Brian was lying to him. “Sure! Get in the car and I’ll prove to you that she had a funeral, and you were there,” Brian growled angrily before walking out to his car, Matt joining him quickly.

Soon enough the two men were stood at Valary’s grave. Matt blinked away the tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes. The buff mans’ lower lip started to tremble as his friend put his arm around him. “What can I do to make you realize that she can’t be found, Matt?” Brian asked quietly.

Matt shook his head and fell to his knees, tears now falling down his face and onto the green grass. “Just go…” he whispered, his voice hoarse from crying. Brian nodded slowly before making his way to his car, leaving his friend behind.

Matt put his rough, big hand on the soft stone that was the proof that his wife, indeed, could not be found. His tears fell quicker as he thought that he would never see her beautiful smile again, never hear her soft voice and wonderful laughter. He would never look into her breath-taking eyes and tell her that he loved her. He would never hold her in his arms and kiss her plump lips.

He wiped his tears away as he started to remember the awful call he had gotten six months ago. He couldn’t believe that out of all people, God had decided to take his beloved Valary away from him. He let out a strangled sob and his shoulders slumped sadly as he put his face in his hands. He couldn’t believe that this was happening to him, how could the universe be so cruel?

They were supposed to have kids together, raise them, watch them grow up, meet their significant others and have children of their own.
Matt sat there silently for quite a while, tears still making their way out of his hazel eyes.

Matt sighed sadly before looking down at the green grass as he whispered the words that would become the beginning of the rest of his life.

”My story starts the day they said ‘she can’t be found’”