The Falling Snow

    Luke stood on the edge of the cliff watching the sun set over the distant horizon, he knew one false step this close to the edge would send him plummeting to his death but he didn’t care, he no longer cared about anything. Luke sighed deeply, and ran his fingers through his dark hair, which he had allowed to grow quite long over the past two years. His crystal ice blue eyes were filled with a deep sadness that seemed to cut through his very existence, penetrating his soul. Luke turned and walked away from the cliff, resisting the urge to merely end it all, he believed that he deserved suffer for all of his wrongs. Luke shivered against the cold, thinking to himself that is was no doubt going to snow tonight, winter was coming to the small seclude mountain top in Colorado.
     Luke walked back to his cabin, which was nestled in the woods on top of that mountain, as he tried to stay as far away from civilization as he could. He started a fire in the fireplace, and wrapped a blanket tightly around his shoulder as he stared at the blazing fire. He wondered how he ever let things get so far gone. Outside a heavy snow began to fall blanketing the land in a cold white death. Luke closed his eyes tightly as the memories of the past flooded through him. He opened his eyes and he nearly fell over backwards when he saw his younger cousin, Bo, standing in front of him.
     “You don’t appear to happy to see me.” Bo said.
     “You . . . you can’t be here.” Luke said.
Bo shrugged. “But I am.”
     “No . . . you can’t be here. You . . . you are . . .”
     “Dead.” Bo said finishing Luke’s sentence. “I am dead, that is why I am here.”
     “You can’t be here you are dead.” Luke said. “How . . . why are you here?”
     “I am here to be sure that you never forget.” Bo said nastily.
     “I never could forget.” Luke said.
     “You can’t run away far enough away to escape no matter how far you run it won’t change what happened, you can never escape your guilt.” Bo said.
     “I know . . . I know the guilt will never leave me nor will the grief that pains my heart everyday of my life.” Luke said.
     “Yet you continue to exist thinking that you can escape.” Bo said.
     “No . . . I carry on because I feel that I should be forced to live with the pain . . . the pain my own actions have caused. I don’t deserve the freedom that death offers.”
     “How do you now that death offers freedom?” Bo asked.
Luke looked at Bo with tear eyes, he could hear the hate in Bo’s voice and see it in his dark blue eyes, and it broke his heart to know how much his once best friend, brother, now hated him.
     “I am sorry Bo. I never meant for anything to happen to you . . . I could never intentionally do anything to hurt you.” Luke said.
     “But you did Luke, and it is far too late to say you’re sorry.” Bo said.
     “Bo . . . I . . . “ Luke said struggling to find the words. “I never meant for anything to happen to you . . . I can’t stand the pain of having lost you I feel as though a part of me died along with you.”
     “No matter what you say it don’t change what you did.” Bo said, he placed a cold hand against the side of Luke’s face.     “Remember that day.”

*********************
     Bo and Luke were chasing down the criminals, who had really done the crime they were framed for, a quite typical Hazzard day. Bo was driving and eventually managed to cause the other car to run off the road. The black car slid down the embankment and slammed to a stop against a tree. Bo pulled the General to a stop along the edge of the road, and the two cousins ran down the embankment to catch the bad guys.  The two bad guys climbed out of their car, both looking slightly dazed. Without any words being said Bo and Luke chose the bad guy they were gonna fight. The four men became entangled in a fight. The guy Luke was fighting his gun, and Luke attempted to wrestle the gun away from him.
 Everything seemed to go quiet and then the sound of a single gunshot echoed through the trees. Luke felt a chill run through his body, and he glanced over at where Bo had been fighting with the other guy. Bo was laying on the ground, clutching his chest, as blood steadily streamed through his fingers.
     “BO!” Luke screamed, pulling away from the man he had been fighting and rushing to Bo’s side.
The bad guys quickly took off running through the woods to escape.
     “Bo . . .” Luke said looking down at his cousin.
Bo blinked up at his older cousin, he wanted to speaking but finding he lacked the strength.
     “Just hold on Bo . . . you gotta be okay.” Luke said, peeling of his jacket and pressing it tightly against the wound. “I’m sorry Bo . . . I am so very sorry.”
Bo’s lips moved but no sound came out, he wanted to tell Luke that it wasn’t his fault, but he couldn’t, all he could do was feel the life slowly slipping out of his body. Luke felt Bo’s body growing cold, and his heart beat wildly, he knew Bo was gonna die, and he knew it was his fault. Bo closed his eyes, the last thing he would ever see was the concerned face of his older cousin.
     “NO! BO, YOU CAN’T DIE! YOU CAN’T! I AM SORRY . . . I AM SO VERY SORRY!” Luke screamed, and added in a whisper. “It’s my fault . . . all my fault.”
Luke hung his head down and closed his eyes allowing his tears to fall freely.
********************
     Luke woke up and found himself laying outside in the snow, under a tall snow covered tree. Luke sat up and surprised that he really wasn’t too cold. He went to stand up and that was when he realized that he was no longer in body, his body lay on the ground, his skin frozen is lips blue.
     “I am dead.” Luke said himself, and looked up startled as a flash of light, flickered before him, he swallowed hard to see Bo standing there.
     “Hey cousin.” Bo said.
Luke just looked at Bo, not knowing what to say, thinking he was there to make him suffer for all of eternity.
     “What’s the matter, forget how to talk?” Bo asked, as he extended a hand down to Luke to help his older cousin to his feet.
Luke took the outstretched had, and was surprised to feel how warm it was, when last time it had felt so cold.
     “I am sorry whether you want to believe it or not I am sorry.” Luke said.
     “I know you are, it wasn’t your fault.” Bo said.
     “But . . . before you said . . .” Luke said his voice trailing off.
     “That wasn’t me, that was an illusion caused by the guilt that you have carried with you for so long.” Bo said.
     “But . . .”
Bo placed a hand on each of Luke’s shoulder. “Look at me.” Bo said, and waited until Luke raised his head to face him in the eye. “Do I look angry? Do I look like I blame you for something that wasn’t your fault?”
Luke’s light blue eyes locked with Bo’s dark blue eyes and he could see no blame, only the friendship that had always been there.
     “No . . . but I still blame myself.” Luke said.
     “You have to let go of that self blame. We both know you never meant for it happen. I know you would never do anything to hurt me, I always have, and always will trust you with my life.”
     “But you are dead because of me.” Luke said.
     “And you are dead because you couldn’t let go of that guilt . . . so I guess in a way you are dead because of me.” Bo said.
     “No that’s not true.” Luke said.
     “It is as true as you being responsible for my death.” Bo said.
     “But . . .” Luke started to say but Bo cut him off.
     “Stop arguing with me cuz.”
     “I just don’t know if I can let go of this feeling. When you died I felt as though a part of me died along with you.” Luke said.
Bo nodded in understanding. “I understand how you feel . . . I just wish you’d let go of the guilt, especially now that we are both . . . dead. It don’t matter now we are together and everything will be okay.”
     “I am sorry.” Luke said.
     “I know.” Bo said. “I forgive you.”
Luke gave a small smile. “Thank you.”
     “Anytime.” Bo said, and the two cousins exchanged a brotherly hug. “Now let’s get out of here.”
     “Where to?” Luke asked.
     “Where do you think?” Bo asked, looking straight up through the falling snow.