Part Three: Chapter 1

Part Three: Sanctus


Spring was beginning to come. The winter rains had made everything green, and flowers were budding. The air was slowly warming, and I began to pack away my sweatshirts, and pull out the t-shirts again.
Saturday morning dawned bright and clear; even though I wasn't going anywhere that morning, I'd gotten up early and went for a run through the park. Angie had called to say that she couldn't take me anywhere that weekend, she was going up to the cemetary again. It wasn't that I didn't want to go with her, but she seemed like she needed to have that time alone. I'd emailed James, and we were planning to meet up at the cafeteria for dinner that evening, but I didn't have anything in particular to do until then.
I glanced at the clock; only 8:23. I grabbed my bookbag and a loose flannel shirt from my room, being careful not to wake my roommates. I don't know why I took care to be quiet, considering the fact that both of them slept through their blasting alarm clocks on a regular basis. But I shut the door silently behind me, slung my bag over my shoulder, and trotted out of the dorm. I knew the library wouldn't be open for a few more hours, and the cafeteria for another hour and a half. However, I could find a good sofa in the lobby, and get some studying done; I had a whole stack of textbooks that I needed to catch up on.
I sat down, pulled out the books and some paper, and dived in. But I had a hard time concentrating. Usually, large quiet rooms don't bother me; I generally prefer them to large noisy rooms and small noisy rooms. But for some reason, it was getting to me today. Everything was still and silent, but it didn't feel calm. Everything felt like it was...well, almost like it was waiting for something. It was just a little unnerving. I was glad when it was time for the cafeteria to open, and I could haul my studying off to somewhere less expectant.
Revelation 8:1: "When the Lamb broke the Seventh seal, there was silence in Heaven for about half an hour."
I went back to the dorm after breakfast; I figured I'd try studying in the lobby for awhile, if my roommates weren't up yet. As I walked into the building, I saw several people gathered around the television; it looked like they were watching the local news channel. I could see what looked like an overhead view of a freeway; given Southern California, that probably meant a high-speed chase, which would end, as always, with the driver stopping, and getting caught. I don't know why they always focus so much attention on them, they're all the same.
I was about to pass right by and go up to my room, when several of the people around the television gasped. I moved closer to the group seated around the set, and took a better look. The wild driver had veered out of control and hit another car. The other car. A blue Toyota, had skidded across the road and slammed into a lamp post. The driver of the first car got out, and started running; he didn't appear to be hurt by the collision. The driver of the blue car didn't get out. The police caught the runner within moments, but the cameras stayed on the crushed blue car; an ambulance was there within minutes, but it looked like they were too late. I saw them pull body bag from the ambulance, then the news anchor came back on screen.
"We do not yet have the identity of the fatality in the crash, but she appears to have been a young woman about twenty-one years old. We will keep you updated, and you can also check out our website."
I went back upstairs at that point. I was sorry for whoever had been in that car, but I had work to do. As I opened the door, I heard the phone ringing and reached to grab it.
"Hello?"
"Jason? This is James."
"James! Hey, what's up? Are we still meeting tonight?"
"Jason, have you seen the TV? The chase?"
"Uh, I watched it for a few minutes, but not for long. Why?"
"Did you see the crash?"
"Yeah. That was sad, wasn't it?"
"You didn't recognize the car?"
"No....Should I have?"
"You didn't see the parking sticker on the back windshield."
An ice cube was forming in the midst of my stomach. "James, no, I didn't notice, what's wrong?"
Silence was the only thing I heard for a few moments, then a short sniffle and a deep breath. "Jason, that's Angie's car. She must have been coming back from the cemetary; she always takes the 5."
Have you ever been on the beach, maybe as a child, enjoying the warm sun, and suddenly a huge wave takes you by surprise, dragging you into the freezing cold water, and for a moment, it feels like your heart stops? That's what that moment felt like. Only it didn't stop, wouldn't stop. It just kept going on and on, deeper into the ocean.
"Jason? Jason, are you still there?"
"Uh...yeah....oh god, James, it can't be her..."
"It is, I don't want to believe it either, but it is..." I could hear him crying on the other end of the line.
"What do we do?"
"I don't know...I mean...I guess there'll be a funeral in a few days, but I don't know what we do now...I guess I should call a few more people, send out an email...we should be together now, not alone."
"Umm...yeah...ok....What time?"
"As soon as I can get in touch with everyone....say.....three o'clock? At the chapel? The little one, I mean, not the big one."
"Uh...yeah. I'll be there."
"Ok. I'll see you soon then."
"Yeah."
"Ok?"
"Ok."
"Ok. Bye, Jason."
"Bye."
Click.