One Flesh

Sarah will never forget the time spent with Eddie. She'll never forget when they both proposed to each other at the same time. They were the perfect couple. Both depended on one another equally, and couldn't imagine their lives being separated from each other. They saw themselves as one flesh, which the pending marriage was going to solidify. They were so madly in-love, Eddie worried about which one of them was going to die first when they grow old. He didn't want to be alone in the afterlife without her, and she didn't want to be alone on Earth without him. It was the only worry they had in the world. If they separated, they would no longer be one flesh.
It was a long day for Sarah. She tried on wedding dresses for hours until finally finding the perfect one. It cost thousands of dollars, but worth every penny. Though, she did find it strange that a middle aged man was spying on her hiding behind a rack of wedding dresses. Turns out he was merely forced into a challenge by his best friends. Perhaps he should get new friends.
She returned home to the couple's lavish Chicago apartment on the 8th floor. She was psyched about the wedding dress and couldn't wait to surprise her fiancé with it. However, upon reaching the floor via elevator, she immediately noticed something wasn't right. The smell. She opened the door to the apartment. A ghastly flame blew toward her face. The inside of their expensive, luxurious apartment was engulfed in flames. She jumped back and let out a shriek. Sarah wanted to go in, but the smoke was too intense. Had she gone in she would most certainly die of suffocation. But that wasn't the main reason. What really stopped her was a familiar voice crying out from the roar of the flames. "Don't look at me!" Eddie, likely burning to death, cried out to Sarah. Respecting her fiance's wishes, she stepped back and decided not to go in.
Sarah sat on the floor and sobbed until the fire department showed up and put out the fire. In the mean time she had to stay at her elderly mother's less than stellar apartment. She was restless the whole night, waiting for someone to notify her about the whereabouts of Eddie. The next morning there was a knock at the door. Could it be Eddie? Sarah rushed down the stairs and opened the living room door. She was confronted by an officer, holding an object in both hands. "Yes, is this Sarah Calderon?" the officer asked. She nodded. "I regret to inform you, that..." the officer said before pausing. Sarah put her hand over her mouth, waiting for the bad news.
"Eddie's whereabouts are currently unknown. There's evidence he was in the fire, but we can't identify a body in the apartment at the moment." the officer explained. Sarah began shedding tears, fearing the worst happened to Eddie. "This was the only thing that barley survived the fire. I think you should have it." the officer said before handing Sarah a badly burnt book. Half of the pages were burnt to a crisp, leading to most of the text being unreadable. It was in such poor shape, Sarah didn't even recognize the book.
Sarah thanked the officer and he left. It was as close to an update on Eddie she would ever get. Although a body couldn't be identified in the apartment, investigators speculate the fire swallowed Eddie's body while he slept. They theorize his corpse slowly melted on their king sized bed, which made his limbs and ashes become one with the burning the bed. The ash, was it of the blanket or Eddie? They didn't know. The fire was unusually hot, the hottest fire on record put out in the massive city of Chicago. So hot it even melted some of the floorboards. Investigators are unsure how the fire started and why it was so hot. The whole thing is a big mystery.
Eddie was quickly declared deceased and a funeral for him was put together. It was the hardest day of Sarah's life. She wept on his empty casket while wearing the dress she planned to wear at the wedding. His last words of "Don't look at me!" echoed through her head for months, haunting her in dreams and in waking life. To cope, she became addicted to smoking and drinking excessive amounts of alcohol. One time she bought a bag of mushrooms and experienced a bad trip. It was like she could hear the words "Don't look at me!" right with her in the room. It was almost like he was there... but he really wasn't. She considered therapy, but no amount of worldly therapy could help her deal with the trauma of losing Eddie.
Months after the funeral, Sarah bought her own apartment. It wasn't in a nice neighborhood, and was rather unkempt compared to her and Eddie's apartment. She mourned those days with him in that apartment. It was another night of consuming alcohol while watching old home movies with her and Eddie. At midnight she slumped into bed with a bottle in her hand and passed out. She often slept with the light lamp on due to her passing out from the drinks. A couple hours later, the sound of her beer bottle rolling off the bed and hitting the floor woke her up. She had a pounding headache, but it wouldn't be the only thing pounding. Her heart would follow suit in mere seconds.
"Sarah... Saraaaah..." a gravely voice uttered from somewhere in the room. Eyes wide open and her drunkenness sobering up, she jumped out of bed. "E-edie?! Are you there?!" she cried out in terror. After saying it, she knew she sounded crazy. After that bad mushroom trip, she knew she could no longer trust her psyche. The love know longer affected her heart, but affected her brain as well. "Yes... It's me... Eddie..." the voice says in a slow, weak tone. "No! It, it can't be! I'm imaging this!" she exclaimed in distraught. That's when a ring rolled out from under the bed and bumped into Sarah's foot. She reached down to pick it up. It was Eddie's ring from when they both proposed to each other at the same time. That's when Sarah knew this was not apart of her mind. This was reality. This was really happening.
She began sobbing while clutching the ring in her palm. "H-h-how?!" she stuttered with tears streaming down her face. "Don't look, Sarah... Don't look..." was all what he said from under the bed. "Why? Why can't I look?!" she asked in distress. "Sarah, please promise me you won't look... Please God don't look at me!" Eddie pleaded very seriously. "I won't, I won't!" she promised. "Good..." he said. She began to wipe her tears. "The book, Sarah... The book... Please... I need it..." he asked of Sarah. Sarah, without hesitation, stepped toward her nightstand and took the book out of the cupboard.
"I-I got it..." she said with the book in hand. "Give it to me... And don't look..." he asked. She dropped the book to the floor and slid it under the bed with her foot. She could hear Eddie pick up the book and flip through the pages. Eddie let out a long, but soothing groan. "W-what is it?" she asked concerned. "The book... It's burnt... It's no use..." Eddie said in a bit of disappointment in his voice.
"What's the book for, Eddie??" she asked. She still couldn't see him, but she could smell him. A very foul and dead stench lingered in the air. Though that could've been the cheap cigars she bought earlier in the night. "All I ask of you now, Sarah, is... To not look at me..." he said defeated. "Su-surely's there's a way for me to help?" she asked. "Don't look at me, that's how you can help..." he affirmed. "But what are you going to do?" she asked of him, followed by a sniffle. "I'm going to make sure you don't look at me. That's what..." he said ominously. His voice was more gravely and weak compared to the last time she saw him.
"Turn around. I know you're staring." he demanded. "But I, but I can't see you!" she exclaimed. Eddie sighed. "Just turn around, Sarah..." She turned around to face her bedroom window. She stood there, shaking in her gown, holding her hands together close toward her chin. She never expected something like this in a million years to happen. It was only that bad trip where something even close to this happened. Her heart began to thud harder when she could hear him move out from out of the bed. Plat, plat... the sound of his feet touching the floor made. She felt his presence right behind, towering over her. Eddie was a tall man, and handsome man. She so badly wanted to look at him, but did not want to break her promise. "Sarah..." he whispered into her ear.
She could feel his warm breath on her neck, as she shook even more. She swallowed. "You're not looking at me. You're doing good... I just wish I could touch you again..." he said right next to her. "Why... Why can't I look? Why can't you touch me?" she asked. "Oh, Sarah... My little angel from Hell..." he whispered. She could feel a tingling sensation in the back of her head from it. "You can never look... No matter what..." he said, very adamant about her never staring at him. "Eddie, you're really freaking me out! What's with the book and why can't I look at you? Please, Eddie, I want to be with you but you're acting very strange!" she exclaimed.
"Just don't look at me. That's all you have to do... You will pay the ultimate price if you look at me..." he said in his gravely, but calming tone of voice. She felt scared. He was being vague and she couldn't stare at him, no matter what. She thought he was dead, and now he's back, repeating the the same phrase over and over -- the same phrase that's haunted her and crept into her nightmares since that fateful day.
"I love you too much for you to look..." said Eddie. Her breath shaking, Sarah inhaled, then exhaled. "I love you too, Eddie. I think I demand a real explanation for everything." she pestered. "None of it matters... Just... don't... look." Eddie said, followed by a light cough. "So are you just going to stand there? What am I supposed to do? I won't look, Eddie... I promise." Sarah said. "Don't worry, darling... I'm just here to make sure you don't look." Eddie said, basically repeating himself over and over at this point.
Sarah felt like she was losing her mind. None of this made sense, especially with Eddie talking about being there to make sure she never looks at him. Why couldn't he just go back under the bed and or leave altogether if he so badly didn't want her to see him? These thoughts raced through Sarah's head. Nothing was making sense. She doesn't recall taking any drugs that night that would trigger another bad trip, but you know what drugs do to people's memories. How could she know for sure any of this was real? She could look at the voice behind her... but that would break the promise.
"I... I feel sick. I think I need to throw up in the bathroom." Sarah said, feeling a pit in her stomach. "You mustn't. There's mirrors in there. You can't move, I don't want you to see me..." Eddie pleaded. "I won't stare, I promise!" she exclaimed. "We humans are mistake makers... Can't risk it." Eddie stated. It's as if Sarah was being held hostage by her thought-to-be dead fiancé. She isn't allowed to move because Eddie fears she may accidentally stare at him? It sounds like Eddie is suffering from an extreme case of paranoia, if he really is in the room. Something about this isn't adding up, she thought. Sarah gulped loudly, then quickly walked to the bathroom. "Sarah, no!" Eddie cried. She closed the bathroom door, not looking back once.
She got on her knees by the toilet, feeling queasy. A tapping sound came from outside the door, followed by loud knocks. "Sarah, please! You can't do this!" Eddie yelled from outside the door. "I can't see you in here, please leave me alone about it!" Sarah said, fed up with his bizarre demands. "I need to make sure you don't look... Please open the door!" Eddie demanded. Sarah put her hands in her hair and grabbed on tightly. She wanted the nightmare to be over at this point. Had Eddie not been acting so strangely, she would've been overjoyed to find out he's been alive this whole time. That and her hangover probably made things worse. She began sobbing while her back was pressed against the wall by the toilet. "Leave, Eddie! J-just go!" she pleaded while tears formed in her eyes.
After crying for a few minutes, she realized Eddie had stopped talking. She peered her head down at the bottom crack of the door and saw no feet from the outside. Had Eddie finally given her peace? Sarah got up and creaked the door open slowly. The only sound in the room was the loud door creak and Sarah's loud breathing. She swung the door open fully and saw no sign of her lover Eddie. She stood there for a moment, observing her fairly empty room, with only the tiny lamp on the nightstand illuminating it. There was the bed, a nightstand, and a dresser. She wasn't a very material person. It was all she needed. But it added to the eeriness, because, besides under the bed, there was no place in the room for Eddie to hide. Sarah slowly stepped out of the bathroom and stood in the middle of the room. She took a sigh of relief.
Plat, plat...
She heard Eddie's footsteps from behind her, followed by warm breath gracing her neck. Her eyes opened widely. "Sarah..." he whispered. She closed her eyes and began lightly sobbing. "W-what?!" she asked defeated. "Don't. Look." he said in her ear. "For the last fucking time I'm not going to look!" she yelled in profane. "Good girl..." Eddie said calmly. Her shaking of fear turned into shaking of anger. "I couldn't let myself die. I had to come back for you, Sarah... Our love has no bounds..." said Eddie. Sarah stood there in silence, with her patience weaning. "I want to touch you so bad... If only I could." Eddie ominously said. Still, Sarah was silent. "The love you have in your heart for me is burning so bad... I can feel every fiber of your being unable to resist me. You want me... Not being able to see or touch me is driving you mad... Oh I know it's making you want me even more..." Eddie passionately stated, followed by "...Let the love burn."
Sarah stood there in a confused state. At this point she didn't know what she was feeling inside. Was it fear? Anger? Love? All the above? Regardless, the main root of the problem was Eddie being vague and not allowing her to see or feel him. Maybe he's playing a game. A cruel game. A test of love. The fact she's even obeying him by not staring shows how much she still loves and respects him. Eddie was right... Their love holds no bounds. "Talk to me, baby... Love doesn't have to be physical... It all comes from the heart, our minds. Forget the flesh, love is spiritual... It's eternal..." Eddie stated, grooming Sarah with his wisdom of love. Sarah wiped a tear from her eye and exhaled. "I love you, Eddie." was all she could say.
Eddie lightly chuckled. "You don't even have to say it... I can feel it..." he said. Sarah's fear and anger drifted away as her undying love for Eddie swept over her. "I had to come back for you, Sarah... I couldn't bare being alone in the darkness anymore..." Eddie explained. "Darkness?" Sarah questioned. "Join me, Sarah... For our love shall last forever in the flames of eternity..." Sarah shed a tear. "Please, Eddie... I need you to touch me. I want to feel your love on my flesh..." Sarah pleaded. "We must not come in contact... Let us feel our love through our spiritual energy, and soon... the fires." Eddie said. "Fires?" she questioned. "We need to become one flesh, Sarah..." Eddie said.
Sarah loved everything Eddie was saying. So romantic, so calming, it was everything she wanted to hear. And that's why she began doubting again. She couldn't see him, and he's repeating a phrase that's been haunting her for months, along with everything she wanted to hear from him. It doesn't even make sense, because Eddie is dead. There's no way the paranormal is real, she thought. And even if it were, why would Eddie presumably coming back from the dead prove it to her? She then realized her ring was missing, as it was the last time she had a bad trip. And the ring that rolled out from the bed was identical to the one she had on. Sarah's undying love for Eddie burnt out in that moment. The only way she could do to confirm this was not real at all was to look behind her. That's when Sarah ever so slightly cocked her head to the left.
"Sarah, don't! I thought you loved me?" Eddie pleaded. She stopped turning her head and began crying again. There was a long pause. "You're not real... I think I'm developing schizophrenia." she cried. "Our love is real, Sarah.... It brought me back... I need my bride..." he said behind her ear. She threw her hands up and stormed out of the room. "Come back, Sarah!" Eddie exclaimed as she stormed down the stairs. "Sarah, please! You must not look at me!" Sarah reached the bottom of the steps and stopped dead center in the hallway. "Don't look at me! Don't look at me! DON'T LOOK AT ME!" he kept repeating, getting closer and closer to Sarah. She closed her eyes and began shaking. "DON'T. LOOK. AT. ME!" he shouted in her ear. Sarah let out a scream and turned around. She wanted her nightmare of an episode to end. But it just made things worse.
Sarah's scream of stress turned into a scream of horror. She was now staring face-to-face with the badly burnt corpse of Eddie. "I SAID DON'T LOOK AT MEEEE!" Eddie cried as his fried flesh began to slowly melt away. Sarah stepped back and continued screaming. She watched in horror as chunks of Eddie's flesh dropped to the floor. He was groaning in agonizing pain, his joints giving out and making him fall on his face. He lifted himself up by his blood red arms, which were going to give out any second. His melting skull with eyes in-tact glared up at Sarah. She stared back, looking at her fiancé melt away in front of her. She thought she was denying a dream, but she was really denying reality. Eddie really did somehow bring himself back from the dead.
"I said not to look at me..." was the last words Eddie said before his jaw unlatched and splattered on the floor. The rest of his skull detached from his spine and made a large thud sound when it hit the floor. Eddie was now nothing put a large, steaming puddle of blood and guts sinking into the floorboards. Sarah fell her to her knees and stared at the enormous puddle in shock. This is why Eddie asked her not to look, because staring at him somehow caused him to melt in front of her very eyes.
She began sobbing profusely, but she had cried so much there were hardly any tears left in her body. She buried her face in her hands and let out every emotion she was feeling. When she wiped her nose, she noticed something odd and horrifying. The book. She didn't notice Eddie had been holding it the whole time. In the middle of the bloody puddle sounded by shriveled guts and organs was the burnt book. But something incredible was happening. The book appeared to be regenerating its pages, soaked in the blood of Eddie. After a minute of watching this unfold, the book flipped on its back. She dragged her hands in Eddie's gallon of blood and picked up the book. All the pages were wet and covered in a dark red blood. But she could actually read the text now. She laid her back on the liquefied remains of her lover and began reading from the book.
Sarah quickly learned about the romance of Hell. Eddie knew he and Sarah would never make it to Heaven, so he devised a plan to have their love last eternity in the fires of Hell. Had they gone to Hell normally, they would've suffered in the lake of fire alone and away from each other. But with this demonic spell, it could be circumvented by becoming one flesh with your lover. The next few pages were written by Eddie himself. Page after page of nothing but untamed love and desire he expressed for Sarah. The love so rich and sweet like sugar, her fingers trembled while reading it.
Eddie then goes on to describe how it got to this point. When they talked about their loving lasting an eternity, he really wanted it to become true and not just empty words that ultimately meant nothing. So he managed to come in contact with the owner of this otherworldly book, and immediately began following the steps on how to make their love last forever. The flesh is only temporary. The spirit, however, is forever. He didn't care what happened to him, so long as he could make this happen. He summoned the fires of Hell, which caused the fire that took his life. Due to the demonic spell, he managed to escape Hell and come back for his bride, Sarah. He wanted her to follow the instructions so the ritual could be complete, but the book burnt, so he panicked. The next few pages of the book are the instructions for Sarah, written by Eddie himself.
Sarah closely followed the steps to the ritual while standing in Eddie's pool of blood. She set up the candles and slit her wrist so her blood could pour onto Eddie's. The candles turned a blue color, signifying the ritual was complete. Suddenly, her whole body became engulfed in flames hotter than the sun, let alone any flame on earth. She screamed in agonizing pain as her body slowly melted into Eddie's blood. By the time she fully melted, Sarah and Eddie's blood were now one. Her agonizing torture didn't stop there, however, as her conscious reoccurred in another dimension. The dimension that's mentioned in the Holy book of The Bible... Hell.
Sarah was scorching in the flames of Hell for rejecting Christ and being unrepentant for her sins. But she didn't care. All that mattered to her was that she was now with Eddie for all of eternity. Those five months she spent being without him was the worst time of her life. She couldn't care less if she has to suffer the worst pain imaginable forever in the lake of fire. As long as she's with Eddie, it was all worth it. Even with her soul burning, she could feel Eddie inside her, and Eddie could feel Sarah inside of him. They were now one flesh, one being, and one spirit. Together, their spirit and undying love will burn in the fires of Hell forever.
Let the love burn. 
Category:Romance
Category:Books
Category:Blood/Gore
Category:Hell