Eric Church What I Almost Was Novels & Stories

Christian said, but Eric stood at his place a little stunned. “I know you,”

Yet, every year without fail, his comrades would deliver peach crisps on his behalf. At sixty, I stood at the lectern for the very last time and delivered my final lesson. Before I dismissed my class, my gaze drifted to the window, toward the green hillside I knew so well. There, beneath the sprawling branches of a tung tree, was a small, quiet mound of earth. Caleb's grave. My heart, weathered by decades, spoke the words my voice no longer could. 'Did you hear me, my love? I taught my whole life for you. I hope you were listening.'

Frank didn’t argue after that. He simply stayed beside me as we walked into the church together. The inside smelled faintly of flowers and candle wax. Rows of people already filled most of the seats while quiet crying echoed occasionally from different corners. At the front of the church sat Eric’s coffin surrounded by white flowers that looked too beautiful for something this ugly. My chest tightened painfully at the sight. God. He was really gone.

Mary’s Hospital. I sat in the backseat, my fingers interlaced tightly with Eric’s. His skin was clammy, his pulse thrumming a frantic, irregular rhythm against my palm. I understood his silence. I understood the war raging behind his eyes. Despite everything Elijah Kingston had done—his cold compliance in Eric’s mistreatment, the way he had allowed Eleanor to torture me with her words—I couldn't help but pray for his recovery. He was the only living pillar Eric had left, the man he still held in a complicated, deep regard.

“Guys, before you kill each other, I set up this so this could be done with and dusted. I also want out, so whoever is going to survive don’t expect me to come for you.” “You`ll come back without anyone forcing you, snitch!” said Black Jesus. “I`m sorry, I`ve quit this life of crime. I wasn’t born for this, this is not the reason why I came to the outside world.” “No- one cares!” “Goodbye, for good!” I said.

I never expected it too, it just happened that my prayer got its answer. As we headed to the school, we saw Elijah's car parked next to us, and when I got down the car, he happened to get out as well and we were facing each other at the moment. He was wearing his uniform, cute. I smiled at him and I was going to greet him but he just looked at me and walked out like he didn't see me at all. Like what the heck was his problem? We never saw each other in days and he would just act like that? ''Babe, let's go?'' Bert called me and his twin sister teased us for calling me babe all of a sudden, well that became our call sign. Hahaha.

“Shhhh. I’ve been a silent partner for years, but recently bought my partner out.” “So what’s next?” “You’ll love this. That crazy church on the outside of town.” “The church of if you don’t agree with us you’re going to hell and by the way our leader just got a twelve-year-old girl pregnant because God said that the child would be second coming, that church?” “That’s the one. Turning it into a club.” “Got a name for it?” Reese grinned and his eyes held mischief as he moved out of the way for the salad to be replaced with the surf and turf. Tru thanked the waiter as he placed her salmon and steamed vegetables in front of her.

"Y-Yeah, true, but it's alright. I'm getting over it." And then she just had to show up. A voice called out to me, "Leonardo Riviera! Rachel came up to me like a violent ball of storm. I got up from my seat and gave my colleagues an awkward smile. "Sorry, I need to deal with this." I scurried off like I was trying to escape a disaster, but Rachel wouldn't stop following me. My left leg was still recovering, so I gave up the escape attempt and sat down to recover my strength.

They agreed to wear a matching black and white, outfit four of them. Ace and Edwin slept at the hotel in the C town, Eric picked them with the helicopter and they went to the church together. The pastor and his congregation were surprised to see the helicopter. Evelyn and her cousins arrived before the church starts and led the church choir when the service started. They sang like they had been practicing for a century while they practiced they songs they wanted to sing that morning when they met.