My Grim Reaper

Danny looked at Melanie as she pondered on the thought of Grim, but he, of course, didn't know what she was thinking about. He watched her tuck some of her soft black hair behind her ear and bite her thumb nail, and bat her eyelashes in the sunlight, and he was soon captivated by her stillness and silence. She was never loud, Melanie kept to herself most of the time and never bothered anyone. When she felt like troublesome, she would shrink back and repeat constant apologizes with her small cute voice, but he never complained. She was the best roommate to have, and she was an overall fun person to be around, he wanted her to live here with him--Danny was completely caught off guard by her sudden outburst.

"I need to go home!" Melanie exclaimed, shooting up from her crouched position in front of the window.

Danny jumped slightly on the couch when she stood so fast, it really startled him a little. Home? Melanie had stayed at his apartment for the last week and a half, wasn't this her home now?

"Wh-what do you mean?" the man with brown hair asked sitting up straighter on the beaten up piece of furniture. This was a stupid question, and he felt just as stupid for just asking it. God, why did he have to be so stupid?

Chocolate brown eyes warmly met his own, and his mind scrambled. "Danny," she started softly, "I need to go back home to my apartment. I've intruded your privacy for far too long."

He shook his head and smiled widely at Melanie as he pushed himself off the couch. "You know I don't care that you're staying here, Mel."

"I know, but I still need to get home." Melanie rushed around the tiny apartment in such a calm state, it amused Danny, but he just needed to convince her to stay for maybe a little longer.

Danny stopped breathing to watch Melanie gather some of her clothes from a basket he lent her. She made everything she did seem so perfect, it nearly knocked him back. How could she leave? She fit in perfectly. He sucked in a deep breathe before speaking with a voice that he was never familiar with, "Thank you for keeping me company, Melanie."

Melanie looked up at him with large brown eyes and her mouth open a bit. They were just looking at each other, waiting for someone to do something. He didn't whether or not she would get upset with him, or the fact that she was leaving him. Maybe she wasn't even considering his feelings, but Melanie wasn't selfish! The silence and staring was making Danny nervous. Finally, she smiled. Her beautiful real smile was showing, and she didn't care that he saw.

"Thank you for putting up with me, Danny."

Danny bowed playfully with big grin tugging up on his lips. "It was my pleasure. Plus, you are the best guest I've ever had!"

Melanie grinned along with him and he felt successful in a sense. He walked over to her and helped her fold her clothing and pack. Danny walked her to her car, carried her suitcase, and watched the girl of nineteen drive away. He didn't want her to leave, he wanted her to say there at his apartment. He wanted to curl up on the couch with her and eat food while watching some movie she picked from the stacks of DVDs he had. Danny just wanted her to stay, but she had already driven off. He felt empty, and he couldn't really explain why.

Danny found himself practically dragging himself up to his apartment as if it were a dungeon of terror. It longer felt like a home to him--Danny was 100% sure it was because Melanie had slept there for the past ten days. The Melanie effect. Was it like this at her house too? Whoever was waiting for her to get home was one lucky son of a bitch. What was he thinking? Why hasn't he noticed this before?

Danny turned around right as he reached his apartment door and thought about her. Melanie, the quiet girl in his U.S. History course. What was with all this thinking of her about? He looked at the ceiling, mentally confirming his answer before entering the home. Melanie was his best friend. She loved Batman and had this guilty pleasure for western movies. She preferred vanilla ice cream over any other type of ice cream and she loved to cuddle. Danny had developed a crush on his best friend.

___________________

Ashley pushed the door open to an auto mobile mechanic shop and smiled as the smell of oil filled her nose. There was nothing Ashley loved more then working on and fixing up cars. She had been doing it since she was eight years old, helping her daddy fix the cars he found at the junkyard near their Alabama plantation--which was family inherited. She looked around the medium sized office/store in search for some sort of secretary or manager when her eyes stumbled upon an overweight man sitting at a computer with a dazed look in his eye. She strolled over to his desk with confidence and wit coating her.

"Excuse me," she said, her southern accent was thick and it threw the man back to hear anything other then a New York accent.

He looked up at Ashley, the same hazed over look was held over his eyes. "May I help you?"

"I'm here ta speak ta the owner for my job in'erview." she batted her naturally glassy blue eyes, knowing her southern charm was rubbing off on him.

The man behind the desk nodded and pointed to the door behind him. Ashley smiled then made her way over to the door where she gave two knocks before entering the room. This time, there was a man in a pin stripped suit sitting at a large oak desk in the dimly light room. He looked up to see Ashley close the door behind her. Some of her wavy blonde hair fell in front of her face as grinned at him, biting the side of her lip.

"What do you want?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her as he tried not to get aroused.

"Mr. Cannon--" Ashley started, but he cut her off.

"Please call me Gary."

"Gary, righ'. My name is Ashley Haggins and I'm here for my job in'erview," she said as she started unbuttoning her red flannel shirt and walking over to his desk.

After a little time well spent, Ashley left Gary's office with a smile, the word's "You got yourself a job" ringing over and over in her head.

___________________

Melanie didn't like the feeling that struck her as she trudged up to the apartment she shared with Grimm for the last two years of her life. She couldn't determine exactly what the feeling was pooling in her stomach, but she just sucked it up and reached the last flight of stairs to her apartment. Her suitcase hit the back of her ankle as she started up the stairs, causing her to topple over and fall on the metal structures below her. She felt a sharp pain in her knee, but she knew that she had probably scrapped it. Melanie stood back up carefully to look at the wound; there was now a hole in her pants and the skin of her knees was cut open, but she didn't stop there, she kept going up the stairs as she let out small hisses of pain.

She arrived at her apartment door and found herself fiddling with the picture of the couple that had been taped to it for the past two years. It was a picture Melanie took of them the Summer they purchased the apartment. Melanie's hair was almost a light brown from the sun while Grim's remained a jet black color. The photo was taken at some sort of amusement park that was just a one hit wonder, but Melanie found magic in that place. She found it peaceful, Grim was at peace and in love with her.

Melanie was surprised Grim didn't take it down since she had left, considering she hadn't tried to contact him for the last week and a half. Maybe he really didn't want their relationship to end, maybe he really did want to talk it out. Just maybe...Melanie pushed her key into the lock and twisted it until it was unlocked, and she pushed the door opened with her hip. Eerie silence hit her; her heart dropped into her stomach as she entered the apartment. There was nothing settling or soothing about this silence. All the lights were on, though it was about three in the afternoon.

"G-Grim?" She called walking into the kitchen with her suitcase dragging behind her. She wanted to see if he had went out, and if he did, there would be a note sitting on the oven. There wasn't a note, just some dishes scattered around the counter. Melanie felt a crunch under her boots, which she recognized as glass. When she looked down at the kitchen floor, she noticed that at least two of their plates were smashed on the ground as if someone had thrown them down. Her eyes traveled through the kitchen into the dining area where the glass had shattered into. What had happened?

Melanie called his name once more as she hurried into the living room, her suitcase being dragged back by the glass. What her eyes met made her let out a shriek of horror and tears pushed over her eyelids. Grim was collapsed against the wall, passed out. Normally she would have just shook her eyes and go to clean up his mess, but she was scared out of her wits at that moment. She dropped everything in her hands to race over to him, more glass crunched under her shoes when she got over to him. Melanie fell to her knees next to him, glass cutting at her jeans and her wounded knee.

"Grim, I'm here baby." she whimpered and cradled his head in her hands. "I'm back. I'm home." she kissed his lips gently, instantly tasting the vodka that laced them. Melanie sighed, moving herself so she was slouched against him comfortably, not wanting to move him.

Melanie noticed a black frame lying face down on the carpet. When Melanie grabbed it, she could hear the glass breaking and falling off the frame. She rolled her eyes and brought the frame to her face to view the photo of Melanie and Grim ice skating last Winter. Winter was coming soon again, she started hoping to not be depressed like how she was last year when she heard the man next to her let out a small groan.