The Preacher had given Brian his advice and Brian listened intently, but still followed his own thoughts on the matter, keeping the words from the Preacher in the back of his mind. It wasn’t until midway through the next year that Brian was forced to re-evaluate his life. The ring of his cell phone broke his concentration.
“Brian, I have some news.” Laura said immediately. He noted how she neither said if the news was good or bad. “It’s Amber…” ‘Here it is’ He thought. Amber’s been up to her old tricks and his warm feelings that returned towards Laura were because of magic again. Instead of voicing his anger, as he would have half a year ago, he listened until Laura finished. “Brian, Amber’s dead.”
He was not expecting those words to come over the phone line. He could hear Laura sniffle into the phone. Despite their friendship coming to an end, she still wept for this girl who put them through so much.
“I don’t’ know what to say.” He really did not have anything to say. He knew he should comfort her, but how much comfort did she want and how much. Any comfort towards Amber would be difficult for him to produce.
“There’s more.” Laura continued. What else could there be, Amber was dead, did she perform one final bit of magic on the two of them. “You know that guy I’ve been seeing?” Of course he knew. They talked about him; she finally started dating the guy because Brian kept telling her they could be nothing more then friends over and over again. Did the creep dump her, would he have to help her get over this loss at the same time as Amber’s death?
“Brain, he proposed, I accepted. We’re engaged!”
Engaged? He sat staring at the wall in front of him, unsure how this could be. It wasn’t like they knew each other for long. They met last semester in her speech class. “Wow!” he finally managed to say.
“That’s it?” Laura questioned a hopeful sound to her voice.
“Are you happy?” He asked.
“Incredibly,” a little giggle escaping over the phone.
“What a range to your news.” He had to change the subject an unknown hurt was swelling inside and talking about Amber and how horrible she was would be better then discussing Laura’s engagement.
“I know, I should be said, Amber is dead, but she was behind the biggest heartbreak in my life.” She paused there as if waiting for Brian to say something, anything. When he didn’t say anything she continued. “I can’t help be glad she can’t mess up my new good thing.”
Brian knew this guy was a good thing in her life, bringing her back to the girl he knew and, did he love her, he was starting to believe he did at one point without aid of Amber’s magic. “I am happy for you.” He managed to say hoping he did sound happy, not disappointed.
“I can’t believe how happy I am again. Brian, thank you for being an ear, I don’t’ know if anything could’ve happened with us again, you kept saying ‘no’. It made me seek out other happiness and I found Mark.”
Brian choked back his words, it was too fast, she hardly knew the guy, and he wanted to tell her.
“So I will give you more details later, and you will definitely be invited. You are such a good friend.” Laura finished and said good-bye leaving Brian sitting dumbly wondering what exactly was going on. Why did he feel this way? He told Laura countless times that nothing would happen between them again. He should be glad she found love and would no longer be looking for anything more between them.
Why was he thinking about this? He should be moving on, finding a new girl to date, worrying about the next album not thinking about how Laura was making a huge mistake to rush into marriage.
He sighed and dropped the cell phone on the table. Climbing into bed, he pulled the sheets up under his chin and laid there thinking about that day he spoke with the Preacher, everything he said he did feel again but it was too late. He was not going to be that guy that told Laura one day there was no chance only to convince her to leave her boyfriend because he was having second thoughts about that.
Throwing his covers over his face, the words of the Preacher came back. He was right and Laura was gone forever.
*****
“You’ve come to talk to me?” The Pastor asked Brian. “Your name again?”
“Brian,” Brian told him. “Recently I met a girl and fell in love.”
“Congratulations.” The preacher spoke before Brian could finish.
“Well, the thing is, her best friend practiced…” Brian looked up at the man before him and then looked back down at his feet. Quickly he mumbled. “…magic… to get me and her friend together.”
The man said nothing but pondered the word in his head. Brian, now anxious looked back at the man before him and began to speak. “I did the right thing calling it off and breaking the connection between us right? I’ve started to talk to her again, but there can be nothing but a possible friendship.”
“If that is what you think is best for you, but you believe the magic is what made you love this girl I take it?” He watched as Brian nodded. “Well, Brian, only you and God can allow someone to enter your heart and dwell there. Nothing evil can live in your heart so if you loved her then whatever magic preformed did not force her into your heart, she was not the one that preformed the evil deed, and she can not be accounted for the actions of her friend. She can not be held responsible for her friend’s actions. What I suggest is if you have any feelings for this girl, let her know. The day will come that you regret holding this against her and you will lose her.”
Author's Chapter Notes:
It's over... I hope you enjoyed.
