She lashed out, knowing there was no hope left but wanting to try regardless. He pressed down on her wrists, twisting her arms, and she felt the damp earth crumble away beneath her fingers. She wanted to scream, to shout, to yell for help, but she was paralysed, half by the rough, calloused hands forcing themselves onto her arms, and half by the memories she would never get to remember again.

The pink and orange glare of the approaching sunset burned her eyes, and she opened her fists to release some of the soil trapped from her feeble attempt to escape. His eyes bore into her, telling her what she already knew; This is what living like this does.

Tears pricked her eyes, and she let out the first muffled cry as she noticed the change in him. She felt the grass tickling the naked small of her back and arched up, unwittingly bringing herself closer to him as her cheeks began to moisten with teardrops.

I love you, she wanted to scream, but there was so much more to say, so many more important things to say, that she couldn't express in words. She missed the slow, gentle sway of the empty swings in the park, she missed the glow of the orange sky in the evenings, she missed staying overnight on the football field to watch the sun come up, mockingly claiming that it was the most beautiful event on earth. She missed the clear cerulean of the sea beneath the bridge, she missed imagining leaning over the railing, just l e t t i n g g o and dropping into the water, spoiling the smooth surface with fierce ripples. She missed cycling down the steep-hilled streets in the city, dropping at 80 degrees on her bike and closing her eyes, imagining she was falling, falling from somewhere she so desperately wanted to get away from. She missed deliberately skidding to a sudden stop at the bottom of the hill and throwing herself to the ground, just to feel the skin on her elbows and knees burnt away, so that she would know that, as perfect as this was, she was still alive. This is not a dream.

Her mind was attacked by flashing images, the vivid colours surrounding her not helping her illusions disappear. She could feel his tongue on her neck, and she felt sick, although she knew that whatever was happening would end soon. She gathered the emotion she felt into one tight, powerful ball, and, feeling overwhelmed with courage and strength, opened her eyes, thrust her hands to her captor's face and pulled it towards her. Still feeling tears roll down her face, she kissed him full on the mouth, knowing his initial shock would fade in seconds. He brought his hands to her scraped cheeks and kissed her back, passing the poison from the back of his own throat to hers. His teeth scraped her tongue uncaringly, yet his bony fingers caressed her cheeks almost lovingly.

With one final look at each other, she fell limp in his arms, submitting herself to him, allowing him do whatever it was he wanted to do. He wiped away a few unruly tears from his own pale face before dropping her body to the ground, leaning on top of her, and letting his razoredged teeth sink into her neck. She stiffened, before falling limp again and feeling the numbess wash over her. By now the sun had fully set, and her eyes lit up with the passion she had seen so often in his eyes. She rose to her feet unsteadily, but reached for his hand. Clasping his fingers between hers, she shared one more kiss with the man she used to love before she let him lead her to the cemetery.

- End.