Shattered Memories

“It’s exhausting!”

The words kept haunting Juliet. Her words.

She sat on the hood of her car with her arms wrapped around her legs, overlooking the woods that spread out below her. The setting sun painted everything the eyes could see with soft, golden tones, and a cool breeze caressed her exposed arms; fall would arrive soon.

A scenery such as this should’ve been comforting.

Letting out a breath, she pulled her cellphone from her pocket. There were nine missed calls.

“Shit...”

Juliet wanted to talk to him, to apologize for what she’d said, for how she’d acted. None of this was his fault, and she wanted to break things off properly.

But she didn’t call.

Instead, she went to her photo album where she looked at the dozens of pictures of the two of them. She found one they’d taken three days after they met; a small smile appeared on her lips as the memory played in her head.

They’d bumped into each other at the local burger joint after Juliet left work, and they started chatting. Adrian was sweet, funny, and radiant; just a guy that made everyone happy, and Juliet knew in that moment that she wanted to spend more time with him. It had taken her a few drinks to get the courage to ask him out, but she did it.

There was a moment of silence between them before Adrian answered.

“I can’t.”

“Oh...” Juliet responded, trying to hide her disappointment. After a few seconds she chuckled in embarrassment, “It was worth a try.”

Another short pause followed before Adrian shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “Didn’t think it would let you down this much.”

Juliet stared at him in surprise; Adrian wasn’t looking at her, he was paying attention to the two drunks singing loudly at the bar. He gave a bit of an embarrassed laugh himself after turning back to her.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to, but I just can’t. I...I have a problem.”

Juliet grew cautious at his response. She readied herself for the answer as she started to speak when--

“No, no. I can safely say it’s not whatever you’re thinking.” Adrian laughed again. “I, um, I feel what others feel. I’m not sure how else to explain it.” He continued. “It’s too much for some.” He said smiling sadly.

She always remembered that smile, even after she’d convinced him to give her a chance. It hung at the back of her head and came up every time things were difficult, a reminder of his subtle warning.

Juliet looked at the picture for a while, until she noticed she had started playing with Adrian’s pendant. She’d forgotten she still had it.

The pendant had been a present and it was beautiful; a silver chain that held the most peculiar, delicate glass heart she’d ever seen. Its iridescent tone glistened magically against the moonlight; Juliet wore it every day since she got it. Adrian never told her where he’d found it.

He would just laugh and say, “You’d never believe me if I told you.”

Tears threatened to leave her eyes as the memory of his laugh tore through her. Juliet stepped down from the hood of the car and made her way to the edge of the cliff, where she took off the pendant and held it over the edge.

The last rays of sunlight hit the crystal surface, making it shimmer.

Give it back. The voice in her head said as the heart dangled in her hand. She ignored it.

Choking back soft sobs and looking away, she released the necklace from her grasp, letting it fall unto the rocks underneath. She didn’t open her eyes until she heard the shattering of the glass, and when she did, she fell to her knees and cried; her voice being the only thing heard on that cliff.

She sat there until the moon was visible, gathering her thoughts.

“I should get back.” she said to herself after she was confident her emotions were under control. The looming conversation with Adrian would end up like their earlier argument if she lost it again.

Juliet went back to the car and made her way back to his house. She grabbed the phone from her pockets and, this time, called back Adrian. It rang for a few moments before going to voicemail. Juliet sighed.

“Hey Ade, we need to talk. I’m sorry about...you know...” she continued, trying to keep her voice from trembling, “I love you; I really do but ...”

She took a deep breath; he didn’t deserve this. “Just forget it. I’ll be there in a soon.”

The drive was quiet and felt longer than it was. Only after she parked in the driveway did she notice how much her hands ached. She could feel her heartbeat going a mile a minute in the emptiness of the car, and the darkness inside the house only accentuated her dread, but it had to be done.

She stepped out of the car, walked straight to the porch with a determined gait, and knocked.

No answer.

Juliet knocked again. “Adrian?”

Still no answer.

“Adrian, open the door please.”

Yet again, no answer. Juliet looked through the windows next to the entrance. There was a faint light at the back of the house.

She gave the door one last shot and turned the knob. It was unlocked.

The door opened to silence.

“Ade?” Juliet called, closing the door behind her.

Her voice filled the empty room as no response came. She cautiously moved to the living room, where the light source was coming from. As she approached, she could hear noise from the TV. A sigh of relief left her and she quickened her pace, expecting to see Adrian napping quietly on the sofa. Yet, when she turned the corner, there was no one. The sofa was empty, though it looked recently used.

“What the hell?”

A heavy feeling came over her.

“Adrian? Adrian?” She yelled as she darted to the garage; his car was there.

Panic rose in her like water in a sinking ship, and she ran as fast as possible to check the rest of the house. With each room she opened, she was met with a nauseating combination of relief and anxiety; Adrian was nowhere to be found.

Where is he?

“Wait!” She said in realization. She grabbed her phone and called Adrian again.

For a moment, there was nothing; but then, a phone rang. It came from the garden.

Never in her life had she run so fast. Her chest was about to explode as she rushed to the backdoor and opened it.

Thin clouds drifted in front of the moon, casting shadows all over the small garden. In the center of the green grass and the lush flowers was Adrian’s phone, still ringing. Next to it were only his clothes, sprawled on the ground.

Juliet stood frozen. One hand on the doorknob, the other holding her phone. She tried calling his name, but it got stuck in her throat; all that came out was a small whimper.

Reluctantly, she pushed herself forward. Time seemed to slow down with each step she took, and the sounds of the night just seemed to vanish as she reached the pile of clothes.

At first, she didn’t know what she was looking at. There was something on the ground other than his shirt and jeans, something like rubble. It wasn’t until the clouds parted and the silver glow of the moon illuminated the garden, that she let out the most gut-wrenching cry she could muster.

There, in the grass, glistening like thousands of tiny diamonds, were the shattered remains of her heartbroken Adrian.