by Greg Ness
Infinite Testament
by
Greg Ness
Text copyright © Greg Ness
All rights Reserved
Table Of Contents
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
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53
Epilogue
All that begins will end.
All that ends will begin.
Their suffering is eternal.
1
Stephen Pandora glared at his best friend Bruce. Growing up, they had spent many of their days together. Sadly, it had been a while since Stephen had seen him. This reunion was long awaited.
Bruce lay on his back with his eyes closed. It was easy to tell: he was at peace.
Of course, dead people usually looked like that.
Hundreds of people filled the rooms of the funeral home. They lingered about, struggling to squeeze through the crowds. The scene reminded Stephen of a rock concert. A somber, silent rock concert. Recently, perceptions of death had changed. While some ‘mourners’ were filled with sadness, many were laid-back and even happy for the deceased.
Stephen knew better. He stood over Bruce’s casket and fell to his knees, clunking onto a kneeler. This was Stephen’s time to say goodbye. His face flushed. The room erupted with heat and the walls crushed around him. All the people in the room, with their incessant chatter, seemed to disappear, leaving only him and Bruce. He forced his eyes to look downward. It was difficult to see. Every time Stephen tried to absorb the image, his rich blue eyes rebelled with tears. As his sleeves wiped them away, he saw Bruce wearing a suit. Stephen had rarely seen him dressed so nicely. On any other occasion, he’d be impressed.
Stephen absorbed the pain of a lost friend too many times. All his life, Stephen felt abandoned by those he loved the most. He was sick of feeling this way. “What if?” It was a question that tore apart the soul of every man on the planet. He who lived with no regret was a lucky man. What if? Bruce might still be here. His infectious laughter and smartass remarks would still be ringing in his ears. But now, he was silent.
Stephen took one last look at his friend. “Goodbye Bruce.” Behind him, people in line waited their turn to say their goodbyes.
Stephen finished with the only thing he knew with any certainty, “I will see you again.” He gave his friend a half-smile of reassurance and turned to squeeze his way through the crowd. In a flash of carelessness, he bumped into a young black teenager who had been tormented by Bruce’s death.
“Excuse me,” Stephen apologized. The boy looked at him through a screen of tears and while gazing at Stephen’s blue eyes, the boy saw an emptiness, a dimness. The two uncomfortably stared at each other until finally, the boy responded, “It’s alright.”
Stephen patted him on the shoulder and hurried out of the building.
Bruce and Stephen were two pals at the ripe age of 21. College work was a concern, but only a minor one. The more pressing issue was having fun and squeezing as much out of life before the inevitable ‘real world’ crept up and bit them by surprise.
Bruce said to Stephen, “We’ve been here before…”
“Yeah I know, but I don’t remember it, do you?”
On this sunny spring day, thousands of people were battling the heat to experience a day of excitement at the ultimate theme park full of 3D experiences and cutting-edge roller coasters.
Stephen chugged a bottle of water as he and Bruce waited in line for the Paramnesia roller coaster. There was a lot of hype surrounding the ride, which had just opened a month ago, so naturally, it had a whopping line. Bruce didn’t mind. Not with the overload of hotties in short skirts. “Check out that one, man.”
Bruce fixated in the direction of a leggy blonde. As she made eye contact with him, Bruce treated her with a wink. She returned the favor by turning her back on him.
Stephen nodded. “Nice.”
After waiting in line for a zigzagged hour, they approached the loading dock and were next to board. The cars lined up and stopped in front of them. Through the exits across the way entered a blonde sporting a hot-pink tank top. Bruce took notice immediately. “My kind of woman: hot and smart.”
“What makes her so smart?” Stephen asked.
“She brought a friend on crutches. She gets to go to the front of the line.”
Sure enough, behind the blonde, a brunette hobbled on crutches. They lined up across from Stephen and Bruce in the same row. “Perfect. They’re going to sit with us. Watch me work my magic on this fine piece.”
“Good luck picking up a girl on a roller coaster,” quipped Doubting Stephen.
“It’s the perfect place. Adrenaline is pumping, man.”
The gates swung open and Bruce bolted onto the four-seat row. Crutch-Girl, with the help of her friend, sat at the far end. The blonde, conveniently for Bruce, sat next to him. He went to work right away, “Hi.”
“Hello,” she answered.
“I’m Bruce.”
“Nice to meet you,” she said untruthfully.
“I like the little scheme you got goin’ on. It’s genius.”
She glared at him. “What scheme is that?”
“The crutches. Do you guys switch off after each ride or what?”
“No… her foot’s broken.”
The safety restraints lowered and squeezed their shoulders.
“Sure,” Bruce chuckled. “Your secret’s safe with me, babe.”
The restraints blocked Bruce’s view of her face. But he could imagine her expression. Insulted, she responded, “Excuse me?”
Bruce playfully slapped her bare leg. “Don’t worry about it.”
Bruce heard her mumble something to her friend but could only guess what it was. He whispered to Stephen, “I think she likes me. You can take the handicapped one.”
The girl responded, “I can hear you, jackass.”
The ride screamed into action. Before they knew it, they were soaring at intense speeds with their heads banging along the restraints. Bruce loved roller coasters. Actually, he loved anything that brought a bit of excitement to his life. Stephen and Bruce had been on quite a few adventures in their day, mostly thanks to Bruce’s lust for thrills. Bruce put his hands in the air as they blazed through the hot wind rushing in their faces. After two minutes, the ride ended, much to Stephen’s relief. Stephen was not as addicted to excitement as Bruce; he could do without all the adrenaline. They arrived back at the loading station.
“Woooo!” shouted Bruce. The restraints were lifted. A dazed Stephen stared ahead, trying to catch his breath.
Bruce laughed. “Meet me at the ride exit.” He darted away, leaving Stephen with the two girls. Left to fend for his own, he said, “Sorry about him, he gets easily excited. He might have ADD. It’s a serious disorder and…”
“Don’t
worry about it,” Bruce’s blonde interrupted.
As Crutch-Girl struggled to writher out of the seat, Stephen asked, “Can I help you up?” He offered his hand, prompting her to smile. “Sure.”
Crutch-Girl was a brunette, conservatively dressed, the all-American girl type. Stephen gripped her hand and helped her up as her friend retrieved her crutches.
“Thanks… you’re not like your friend.”
Stephen laughed as the three of them headed toward the exit together.
As they walked down a long path, inevitably leading to a gift shop, Stephen found himself absorbed with Crutch-Girl. “So what’s your name?”
“I’m Lisa,” replied the no longer nameless crutch-girl.
Bruce’s target interrupted, “I’m Kristen,”
“Nice to meet you guys, I’m Stephen.” They continued to follow the path, which seemed to take forever to get through.
As they passed underneath the steel frame of the coaster, Lisa moved swiftly along on her crutches. She looked into Stephen’s eyes to try and catch a glimpse of him. When he caught her looking, she darted her eyes ahead. Her lips subconsciously pulled back and created tiny dimples in her cheeks. She tried to avoid gawking at Stephen but the temptation was too great. There was something about him she was intrigued by. She stared into his gentle blue eyes looking back at her. They brought an odd warmth that resonated within her.
That simple eye contact was a moment Stephen would never forget. He had often heard the eyes were the windows to the soul, but he never believed it until right then. At that moment, Stephen saw a person he desperately wanted to get to know. She was an affectionate, selfless person who cared more for others than herself. Of course he didn’t know that, but he could tell. Her eyes told him that much. It might’ve been too early to know anything about her, but Stephen fell in love with Lisa right then.
When they reached the gift shop, Stephen strolled through the T-shirts and stuffed animals searching for his missing friend. Bruce could be anywhere, and no doubt, he was up to something. Together, Stephen and Bruce formed the perfect team of mischief-makers.
The three left the gift shop and found Bruce waiting outside with a wide grin on his face. A shopping bag dangled from his hand. Stephen thought to himself, ”Oh no. What did you do?”
Kristen squinted at Bruce like she was getting ready to duel him. Strangely, she had a tinge of a smile. Was this really going to work for him? He reached in the bag and pulled out a photo: a roller coaster snapshot of the four of them as they were on the ride. So that’s why he ran ahead, to buy a photo. “Wow, bold move,” Stephen mumbled to himself, impressed with the effort. But no way would it work. He glanced over at Kristen. Surprisingly, she was all-out smiling. It worked. Kristen was no longer the stuck-up, closed-off girl she appeared to be. This was among Bruce’s finest work in action. Kristen grabbed the picture and looked at their goofy faces. She smiled at Bruce.
“My name’s Kristen.”
“Stephen!”
He couldn’t stay at the wake any longer. Stephen had left, hoping to continue going unnoticed. He was in the parking lot and was almost at his car, a sleek silver convertible. It was gloomy outside, with daunting clouds forming strange shapes. Rain battered from the sky, a fitting punishment from above. It didn’t fall too hard, but just enough to need an umbrella. The ratting and tatting pounded above his head like gunshots and he worried he might go deaf.
Stephen didn’t feel alone. The feeling of watching eyes burned the flesh under his suit. He turned and saw Kristen, adorned in all black. It was a tragic sight he hoped to avoid. Her eyes were heavy and her face was pale red. Her dress blew in the wind, getting drenched by the unforgiving rain. It was just the two of them for what seemed like miles.
He stared at her, unsure what to say, if anything at all. Kristen stared back. Her face was scrunched and it was obvious she had been crying for days. It pained Stephen to see this beautiful girl so torn down. It would take forever for her to move on.
Kristen struggled to say, “I’ve missed you… we’ve missed you.”
This shot Stephen like a bullet and he might have stumbled a bit from the impact. What he wanted to say was “I’ve missed you too,” but all he could muster was a lowly, “I’m sorry.”
Kristen looked at the sky and the rain pounded her face. Stephen wasn’t going to be able to escape from this. He reluctantly walked over and covered her with his umbrella. With his free arm, he hugged her and gave her a tender kiss on the forehead. He whispered in her ear, “I’m so sorry.”
This prompted more tears from Kristen. She looked at Stephen and attempted to smile. She didn’t succeed but it was honorable for her to try. “Bruce wanted me to give this to you.” She opened her purse and pulled out a small, rectangular, beat-up wooden box that was kept closed by a metal clip. It was about the size of a shoebox but a bit smaller. The word ELPIS was carved on the top of the lid. Stephen had seen the box many times before and knew it well. It was hard for him to appreciate, but he took it anyway.
“Thank you Kristen. I’m sorry for the loss of your husband.”
She lunged forward and hugged him. Stephen wore a cloak of guilt that would likely never leave. It was overbearing, like a steel backpack he couldn’t take off.
Kristen uttered, “She still loves you.”
Stephen backed away from her. He didn’t know what to say. It was a comment he didn’t want to hear.
“Why isn’t she here?” Stephen snapped back.
Kristen opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Stephen waited for an answer. He could’ve waited forever. There was no answer coming. “I have to go. I’m sorry about Bruce. He was a great friend.”
Stephen was sorrier than anyone could understand, but that was it. He didn’t come here to talk about Lisa. He pulled his keys out of his pocket and walked toward his convertible, leaving Kristen in the rain.
Stephen opened the door of the car. He stopped, wondering if he should say one last thing or leave it alone. He hesitantly looked back at Kristen, who wasn’t going to budge. He considered offering some final words of encouragement, but realized it was too late. Their goodbye was over and it wouldn’t be a temporary one. Stephen would never see her again. While this saddened him, he knew those days were long gone. He turned away and started to lean into the driver’s seat.
Kristen yelled out, “We can change it!”
Stephen stopped. Her assertion was ridiculous and it pissed him off. He turned his whole body and stared deep into her eyes. He wanted to make sure she understood exactly what he was about to tell her.
“No one can change a thing. Get that in your god damn head and forget about it.”
2
Stephen drove his silver convertible into the garage of his mansion. A traditional two-story brick structure, it featured six bedrooms and seven bathrooms, but ironically only housed Stephen and his dog, Miles. Stephen never got around to filling his house with fancy decorations, so other than painted walls, tables, and chairs, there was minimal décor. There was a small lake in the backyard that he shared with one other house, but he never saw the people who lived there go outside. The area was isolated and that was exactly the way he liked it.
Stephen stepped out of his car. He could already hear Miles barking. Miles was either excited to see him or couldn’t wait for the meal he was about to get. Stephen opened the door and Miles jumped all over him. Being a little Shih Tzu didn’t allow him to leap too high, but he did his best. He was an excitable little dog whose bursts of energy were uncontrollable. Miles forced his little paws on Stephen’s shin. He hopped around and pushed. Stephen hung his keys on a hook and picked him up. “Hey Buddy!” Miles returned the hello with a big lick to the face. Stephen laughed. Miles was great at cheering him up.
Stephen put the wooden ELPIS box that Kristin gave him on the kitchen counter. The box begged to be open. It had been years since he last saw it. Although they weren’t perfect about it, he and Bruce kept their promi
se as best they could. It was never really that important, but it was a nice gesture. He would take care of that later; it was time for dinner with his friend Miles.
Stephen chewed his juicy steak. This restaurant always had a way of cooking it perfectly. The meat was red and every bite produced a savory, delicious burst of flavor that made his tongue smile. Across from him was his girlfriend, Lisa Binsby. She looked especially dazzling in a black dress on this night, their one-year anniversary. Stephen soaked in the sight of her face, something he never took for granted. Under her green eyes was a small nose. Her teeth were perfectly aligned and on her cheeks was a smattering of freckles. To Stephen, she was gorgeous, like a full-fledged movie star.
It seemed like so long ago that he met her at the theme park. Her wobbly broken foot had since been healed. Stephen’s first inhibitions about her that day were right: she was perfect. There was nothing in the world he enjoyed more than just being with her.
Stephen and Lisa were in their twenties, seniors in college, and just old enough to enjoy the glasses of champagne that sat in front of them.
Stephen raised his glass. “To us.”
Lisa followed and gently clanged her glass against his. “To us.”
The restaurant was low-lit, mostly illuminated by the generous flickering flames of the candles on every table. The waiters spoke with eloquence and the whole place oozed with excessiveness. The restaurant was bustling with people, but it managed to keep away from Stephen and Lisa. The soft, jazzy dinner music in the background enhanced the romantic atmosphere. Stephen was no high roller, but with their anniversary on this day and graduation coming soon for both of them, an expensive date was in order.
Lisa asked, “How are Bruce and Kristen doing?”
Stephen’s smile disappeared from his face. “I guess they’re still going out, aren’t they?”
“Last I heard. Don’t you talk to Bruce anymore?”
It was a sore subject. Bruce had abandoned him ever since he started going out with Kristen. Stephen fidgeted with his silverware as he tried to politely answer. “Sometimes.”
“How about Vince?”
She knew exactly how Vince was doing. “He’s doing great,” he said.
