Lost souls

I was once told that our souls were always on the lookout for a mate; A soul mate. However, on this long journey in search for its partner, the soul can bump into a number of others, and mistake them for being “the one.” If every soul has a mate, and they happen to combine in a blissful and passionate way; then what happens when someone else gets in the way, and things take a turn for the worst? What happens when one of them seizes to exist?
*
Kim wrapped her arms around her body, shielding herself from the chilling wind. She looked up at the night sky, painted in stars. Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks as she reminded herself that it was Jake’s birthday. Jake. The very mention of his name melted her insides and made her drift into a world of her own. Jake had been her boyfriend for two years; and now it was all over. The last time she’d seen Jake they’d had a fight. Kim closed her eyes wishing she could take back all the horrible things she’d said; “I hate you!” “Get out of my life! I never want to see you again!” she had screamed at his face, as he walked away, speechless and broken.
Just then she heard yet another police siren. Her eyes fluttered open as she took in her surroundings; police cars parked all over, men and women huddled up; chattering away, her best friend Leila, leading a very handsome police officer towards her.

"Miss Evans, I’m Officer Gordon Buck," said, the man; probably in his early twenties, cropped brown hair and green eyes.

"Hi," said Kim in a fragile and broken voice.

"I’m very sorry to hear about Jake, I understand you were his girlfriend?" he asked, placing a strong hand over her shoulder.

"Yeah, I was," she replied, remembering all the good times they’d had together. "Can I please see him?" she asked the officer.

Gordon grimaced at the thought of an innocent nineteen year old, looking down at the dead body of her boyfriend. "Um, I-I don’t think that’s a good idea," he said, softly but sternly.

"Please, let me…I can handle it." Gordon thought about it and finally nodded and reluctantly and led her towards the crime scene inside the house.

Kim was about to follow him upstairs when she suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder; Leila. "Hey, Kimmy…I’m so sorry," she said, tears streaming down her cheeks. She was also close to Jake, not as close as Kim.

"Oh Leila!" cried Kim as she hugged her friend tightly. "I miss him already," she whispered softly into her best friend’s ear.

"Me too," replied Leila. Gordon watched as the two girls shared their emotions at the foot of the stairs. Kim glanced up at him and smiled "We’ll be there in a second."

"No problem, take all the time you need," replied Gordon, shuffling uncomfortably.

Leila suddenly gasped as she looked over Kim’s shoulder. "Kimmy, look," she said, pointing at the pictures Jake had taken over the years.

"He always had a thing for photography," murmured Kim. She scrutinized the pictures; He’d taken so many of his family; his mother and brothers at the beach. There was one of Kim, leaning on a tree, looking into the distance and another of her looking straight at the camera.

"He took those on our first date!" cried Kim.

"It’s okay Kimmy, everything is going to be okay," said Leila, soothingly. That’s what they always say “everything’s going to be okay” when the fact of the matter is; nothing was going to be okay, everything was going to change.

Kim pulled away from Leila and looked up at the staircase "I have to see him," whispered Kim as she slowly trudged up the stairs. Each step she took felt like she was being pulled down by a ton of elephants; heavy and slow. Her heart was racing so fast, she was afraid it would pump right out of her chest. Kim was about to see the dead body of her boyfriend. Her emotions were muddled up and sweat started to drip from her forehead.

"Where is he?" she asked softly, looking deep into the green eyes of Officer Gordon.

"Here," replied Gordon, holding onto her arm as he led her to the end of the staircase.

Kim stepped into the circle made of crime scene tape and gasped as she looked down at the cold, lifeless body of Jake Rhines; her soul mate.

"Oh God!" she screamed as she brought her hand up to her face, covering her mouth. "Give me a moment…alone," said Kim, looking at Officer Gordon and Leila. Leila looked like she’d just seen a ghost, as the blood drained from her face.
"Oh my," she said repeatedly as she gasped for air and Gordon slowly led her down the staircase.

Jake was sprawled on the floor, limp and dead. He was wearing his favourite shirt and denim shorts. He had a bracelet on his wrist, glistening in the light. His eyes were staring up at the ceiling and his mouth was shaped in a perfect expression of horror, as if he’d been shocked by something. Jake’s blonde hair was a mess; as if it had been pulled ruthlessly. Kim looked further down his body and that’s when he gagging reflexes kicked in… Jake’s legs were positioned through the railings of the staircase, as if they’d been forcefully pushed through. His ankles were red from dried up blood, they were so twisted that the tendons in his foot were clearly visible, bones jutting out of his torn skin. Blood was everywhere, seeping through the carpet. He’d also been stabbed in the stomach, several times, blood pooling on his shirt.

There was no way Jake’s death could have been an accident; the awkward position of his legs and the wounds on his perfect physique proved it. Jake Rhines had been brutally murdered.

Kim gasped as realisation hit her. Someone murdered her boyfriend! Who would do that? Who would want to hurt Jake? She felt hot tears welling up in her tired eyes. She stumbled back and found herself in his bedroom. She looked around; posters of his favourite bands and schoolbooks neatly piled on his desk. The mirror on his wardrobe was covered in photographs. Kim stepped closer and looked at them; exact replicas of the ones downstairs. Jake only displayed pictures of the people he loved the most. Just then there was a soft knock at the door. Kim spun round to see Gordon leaning against the frame of the door.

"Miss Collins, I know this is hard for you," he said softly. Kim nodded instead of speaking; feeling that if she opened her mouth the only thing that would come out wasn’t going to be words.

"He was murdered, as I’m sure you noticed…" said Gordon looking down at the floor.

"What have you found out already?" she asked, finally gathering up the courage to speak.

"Well, we know that he was stabbed…repeatedly, with a knife; too small to be a kitchen knife, more like a…Swiss army knife. Someone was obviously angry with him, judging by the… condition of his legs," he said, glancing at the dead body behind him.

Kim nodded. "We’ll probably check for fingerprints and stuff like that. Rest assure Miss Collins; the murderer will be caught in no time," he said, sternly and confidently.

"Um, is it okay if I take something from here?" asked Kim, tears spilling down her cheeks "to remember him by?"

Gordon nodded and smiled "sure… I have to go downstairs," he said, trudging down the staircase, creaking with the weight of him. Kim wiped away the tears. She gingerly stepped away from the bed and walked over to his bedside table. Just then she had a flashback of her and Jake, eating dinner at her house and him talking about the box under his bed, with “private” stuff inside it.

She crouched down and immediately found it. Jake’s most precious belongings probably existed in wooden, handcrafted box, covered in dust and cobwebs. She slowly placed her hand on the latch and lifted it. Immediately her expectations were met. Letters to his mother, baby pictures, documents, tickets from musicals and concerts he attended and so much more piled out.

Kim slowly examined each and every item. She smiled at some of the pictures and letters. Just then, her heart stopped beating she jumped back at the sight of the image, stuck firmly onto a piece of paper; Leila.

Jake had a picture of Leila, sprawled out on his bed, the sun hitting her face, showing off her gorgeous locks of her blonde hair and ocean blue eyes. The creamy white skin on her face crinkled up into a smile as her blue dress flowed just below her knees. Why did Jake have a picture of Leila in his drawer?

"Oh my God!" cried Leila behind her. Kim jumped up in surprise, unaware that her best friend had been behind her the whole time.

"Leila, what is this?" she asked, calmly.

"I-I don’t know, I didn’t even know he took that…" she babbled.

Kim flipped the picture over and read his neat handwriting “Leila, a mere photo isn’t able to capture the beauty in you. With love, Jake” Kim’s face hardened as she read each word over and over again.

"Kimmy, I promise you we had nothing together! Honestly, he must have wanted to give it to me on my birthday or something! Please, you have to believe me," she whispered softly. Just then Kim noticed the bracelet Leila was wearing, sliver and glistening in the light; just like the one Jake was wearing when he was murdered.

"You killed him," murmured Kim, playing the situation out in her head. "You killed him!" she shrieked, more accusingly.

Leila’s face flushed "N-No I didn’t! Stop it Kim please! I would never hurt him!" she cried.

"Yes! It makes sense! You loved him but you couldn’t have him because he was with me…so y-you killed him, because he refused to be with you!" shrieked Kim, laughing like a mad man.

"Stop it Kim what is wrong with you?" shreiked Leila.

"Ha ha! You should have seen your face when I accused you!" laughed Kim, holding her stomach "Priceless!" she gasped for air.

Leila was utterly confused; what was she talking about? "Kim, please, you have to believe me. I didn’t kill Jake" said Leila, softly.

"Of course you didn’t, silly girl!" said Kim, laughing hysterically. "Of course you didn’t kill Jake…I did" she said, coolly.

Leila’s eyes widened in shock "Kim, don’t be an idiot. Don’t say things you don’t mean," she said, trying to talk some sense into her crazed friend.

Kim jumped at Leila, pushing her against the wall, covering her mouth, muffling her screams. "Oh Kim!" she mimed in a baby voice. "Please, just shut up and let me do the do the damn talking," she said, gritting her teeth. "I killed Jake, Leila face the truth!" she laughed as Leila tried to scream but all the came out was "mfftmeft!" "What’s that Leila sweetheart?" asked Kim, giggling at her own sick joke.

"You never asked what our fight was about," she said, smiling cynically. "Go on…ask me," she said, laughing. At this point Leila was completely dumbfounded. "Oh, that’s right! You can’t talk! Well, I’ll tell you anyway…he wanted to break up with me. He wanted to be with you. He’s always wanted to be with you, Leila," she said glancing at the picture again. "I didn’t want to let him go, but he insisted. He believed that you two were soul mates! Can you believe that? Soul mates! What a load of crap! Jeeze! Can’t people come up with a better excuse?" she asked, laughing and pressing her face onto Leila’s "you’re a spoilt brat, Leila! Spoilt brat! You never deserved him!" she spat at Leila.

Leila shrieked again but Kim’s hand was firmly over her mouth. "You better shut up girly, or I’ll have to kill you too!" she laughed.

Leila was in utter shock. Her best friend was a crazed murderer, the boy she’d always loved was dead and no one could hear her screams for help. "Now, the police think that whoever killed him used a Swiss army knife…and that’s exactly what I used…These cops are clever." Kim’s eyes were wide in horror and excitement.

"I’ve already planted evidence in your room," she laughed. Leila stopped squirming and struggling, finally facing the truth; she was doomed.

"They won’t find fingerprints because I didn’t touch a thing with my bare hands." "I thought this plan through, that’s something Jake always admired about me; I always planned things well ahead. Too bad the poor boy didn’t know I planned out his death too." She pulled a puppy dog face and giggled again.

"Once I let go of you, you can tell anyone anything you like, but no one will believe you." She gritted her teeth, threw Leila across the room and tore the picture of her into shreds, placing it back into the box.

Just then, the door burst open, and Gordon Buck, stood in the hallway, gun pointing right at Kim.

"Don’t move a muscle Kimberly Collins. I caught everything you said on tape, don’t even think about denying or fighting," he said, running up to her and arresting her.

Kim struggled and cried "this is not fair! Stop this! I didn't do anything! I hope you rot in hell Leila! Love isn’t fair!" she shrieked over and over again with a crazed look in her eyes. More police officers piled in, carrying her downstairs and stuffing her into the back of the police car.

Leila was left on the floor, sobbing madly. Gordon crouched down and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It’s okay Leila, it’s all going to be okay."

Leila looked up at him "I sure hope it will be," she sobbed. "Will she be okay?"

"I don’t know," replied Gordon, helping her up and escorting her down the staircase. "I’m so sorry" he mumbled.

*
That night changed my life. I found out that the man I loved; loved me back. My best friend killed him out of bitter jealousy, and intended to blame it all on me. I’ll never forget the words Kim uttered over and over again on the night she was arrested; “Love isn’t fair!” She was right; Love isn’t fair. Three years later I’m married to whom I believe, really is my soul mate. Although I was madly in love with Jake and I believed he was my soul mate, I had to move on. I still believe we were meant to be together but I’ve developed a new theory: For every soul that dies; a new one takes its place. And for those like Kim; I hope they never give up their search for whom they're destined to be with.


Word count: 2,481 approx