Final Day

The final day had arrived, and the final four had decided that Eridan and Feferi should go across first, just for Jade's sake. Eridan told his story first.

"Well as you all know, I killed a lot of people at my school. But there was a deeper story than just bullying. It was three bullies that really pissed me off, one of them bein my own brother. It was after I tried to ask a girl out to Homecoming and got rejected for the tenth time that my brother and his stupid friends decided that I was a joke. They pushed me around, told nasty rumors, and pretty much made sure my day was a living Hell. Then, after school, my brother went home with me like he usually did," Eridan paused and gave out a huge breath. "But my brother did somethin unusual that day. H-he started touchin me i-in weird places, and I d-didn't like it. H-he did that to me everyday after school, and h-he told me if I ever told anyone, h-he'd kill m-me. So I never told. Until I got so upset one day that I couldn't take it anymore, and I shot a lot of people, hopin I would shoot him too. That bastard is still alive today, but I ended up shootin his friends, which was a plus. But even then, he's probably makin up some fuckin sob story to dad and the rest of the media, just to get him on their side. It just makes me so fuckin mad." Eridan said, practically shaking with rage. He took a few deep breaths while being comforted by Feferi, who looked like she was on the brink of tears. "Th-the only thing I ever regret doin was shootin the only person who cared about me. That was Kan." he said, burying his face in his arms. The group had once again said that they were really sorry for what seemed like the billionth time. At this point, the sorrys that they had given out were now sounding like a sad, broken record. And they still had yet to hear what Fef had to say.

"I really feel bad for you Eridan. I was under the same family pressure as you were, but in a different way. All my life, I wanted to become an Olympic swimmer, or a marine biologist. But my mom is the CEO of the Betty Crocker baking company, so I was always under the pressure of following in her footsteps." Jade was surprised by this. The only other people she had known who had had anything to do with Betty Crocker was John and Jane. She wondered if Fef was related to them in anyway. "I also have a cousin, Jane, who really wanted to be a part of the company, so her and I did a little switchy thing where she took over for me, and I pursued my dream career." Yep, just as Jade thought, Jane had a lot to do with this. As Jade was thinking about this, Feferi's face suddenly turned dark. "Eventually, mom forced Jane to teach me all sorts of baking skills, but I didn't like it. So, I tried to rebel as much as I could. Eventually, mom got fed up with my rebelling, and I was beaten and starved for days on end. But that's ok. I was happy with swimming at the beach or in the pool after school." Jade had just realized how skinny Feferi was, and how she looked like someone who suffered from an eating disorder. "Eventually, the beatings got so bad that the CPS came over and inspected the house..." she sniffed as she continued. "A-and I told them e-everything was fine. But really, I was dying on the inside. So on the day of junior lifeguard practice, when I was asked to demonstrate how to save the dummy, I took it as a way to finally free myself from this torture. I didn't drown on accident like everyone says. I drowned on purpose." Feferi said, burying her face in her arms while being comforted by Eridan. Jade just stared at her.

Oh my God. How am I going to do this? she thought as the Purgatory door appeared in front of Eridan and Feferi. They stood.

"Karkat, Jade. I know we've only known you guys a little while, but it's been an unforgettable journey. We hope you do well on your journeys to wherever your final destination maybe." Feferi said, waving goodbye as Eridan waved too. They stepped through the door, leaving Karkat and Jade being the only two left. After hearing all of these horrific stories, the two were thankful that they'd be the only two left to hear. Karkat took a deep breath, and told her he'd go first.

"Well, my story starts off with when I was in first grade. You probably can't tell now, but when I was alive, I was an Albino. In first grade, everyone made fun of me because I was different, and my parents were going through a nasty divorce. It's hard to believe when I say it now, but I actually ended up dropping out of school in fifth grade," he said, reminiscing about his life before death.

Wow, Karkat's life sure sounds hard. Not that hard compared to mine. Jade thought, now intrigued by Karkat's story.

"I lived with my fuckface of a father for the remainder of my time on earth. He didn't give a shit about me or my brother. So my brother went on pushing through school and getting A's like nothing. But me, I ended up joining a gang by the time I was in seventh grade. We called ourselves the Blood Brothers, because we were all Albino. We'd rob stores, scare people, one of the boys even stabbed someone, and some of them smoked and dealt pot. We were like the mafia of our town. I don't really remember why being in a gang was fun, and it was really stupid of me to waste my life like that. I ended up getting addicted to alcohol at age 14, and dad was already no stranger to that damned drug either. He'd beat us everytime he would fly into one of his rages, or when he had nothing else to do. I fucking hated that prick, and I'm not surprised my older sibling ran away with his girlfriend when he got the chance. He didn't want to deal with my shit, or my dad's, and practically left me for dead. I hated everyone and everything, so I started to cut to get out my frustration," Jade noticed the more Karkat talked, the more angry he got. "I ran away from home at one point because I was sick of my dad's bullshit. Then, I got caught, but the police noticed the scars on my body. When they asked my if my dad had hurt me, I chickened out and told them no. I've never told anyone why, but I was afraid that if I told them yes and dad went to jail, he'd come back and kill me in my sleep." he said, shaking. And then Jade noticed something she'd never noticed before in Karkat's eyes. Fear. Karkat was very afraid, and Jade didn't like that at all. So she went over to Karkat and hugged him gently. He let out a small thanks and sniffed a couple times before talking again.

"Jade, I never told you this, but because of you, I've been able to look on the bright side of things. This is going to sound really fucking clichè, but every time I talk to you, I just forget about the shitty stuff that's going on. And... I really do love you Jade." he said. He then leaned over and gave Jade a ghostly peck on the cheek. She smiled and kissed his spirit back in response.

"Karkat, you've really helped me calm down about this whole story telling thing. In fact you've helped me through every tough time I've had. I've had a crush on you for so long now. I'm glad we could make this work out." she said, smiling. They hugged for a long time, until Karkat pulled away and asked what her story was.

"Well mine isn't all that important compared to everyone else's, but it sure is unique. See, I told you that I woke up dead and had no idea why. Well now I think I know why. It's because I was having hallucinations, and I got tired of them." she said. Karkat was still confused.

"Wait, hallucinations?"

"Yes. I remember the day before I died, and when I did end up dying, I saw my grandpa and Beq playing with me, as well as mourning my body," Jade said. Then, she started to tear up. "B-but that's impossible, b-because... Beq and grandpa died two years before I did. I ended up going c-crazy because I was on that island alone for two years. I started making up elaborate stories of gray skinned creatures that had to do with the zodiacs, and other creatures, like bulls with wings and giant sea goats. Then, I'd run around the island, going on adventures with my imaginary teammates, fighting off black dogs and talking to yellow salamanders that didn't actually exist. Eventually, I told my Internet friends about this, and they all called me crazy... When I realized they were right, I got so depressed that I started to take pills. Lots of pills. I guess I over-dosed and died in my sleep. But even after all this time, I still find it hard to believe that I went crazy." she said, with a sad smile. This smile bothered Karkat, who pulled her in for another hug, and kissed her head. Jade felt a lot better. Suddenly, a door with light green and candy red appeared in front of them. Karkat smiled a genuine smile, and spoke.

"Well Jade, it's time to go. Are you ready?" Jade took one last glance back over the many hills and valleys, at the rising sun and the waterfall. She breathed everything in, for one last time. It was going to be hard to say goodbye. But with Karkat by her side, she was finally ready.

"Let's go."