The End

The full moon shone brightly between two passing clouds. Two men, best friends, sat in the front seats of a new Ford Explorer, staring outwards towards the park.

"Its so beautiful," Thade remarked.
"I know what you mean" said the driver, looking away from the moon and towards the rows of trees.

As he started outwards, the wind began to stir, causing the branches of nearby trees to shudder and sway, while leaves on the ground were violently thrown about from their places of rest.
As the leaves again settled, two people emerged through the trees, arms entwined around eachothers waists.

"Rich," Thade began. "You can't do this forever."
"Pity" he sighed. "I was hoping it would last longer."

Both men watched as the two people, both young adults, passed between the trees, coming closer together than before.

"I only wish," Richard said. "I only wish I had taken my chance when I had it. Would things be different now?"
"Different how?" he asked.
"I mean, would it be me beside her, if I hadn't been too scared to do anything?" He stared blankly at something in the distance.
"I don't have all the answers, but at least you would have had a chance. She deserved the truth," Thade replied.
"I know. But maybe it's better this way," he sighed again.
"I don't think so. She still deserves the truth now."
"Too late for that," Richard again looked towards the object in the distance.
"It’s never too late." Thade looked upon Richard with a solemn expression.

The thing Richard was staring at began to move faster, more hurriedly, towards the wandering couple.

While he still couldn't quite make out what it was, Richard had an impending sense of danger about him. He leaned closer towards the windshield.

A man; Richard could clearly see the outline of a man moving towards the unnoticing pair. He was tall, but heavily shadowed.

"Wanna leave?" asked Thade, who had not seen the man.
"Not yet."
"Something wrong?" he questioned.

Richard had to hurry, he knew something horrible was about to happen, but he had to get some answers.

"Look, you said it's never too late. Would it change anything now?"
"Probably not, but it's up to you to take that chance."

He was almost out of time.

"If you could stop something from happening, something horrible, would you? Even if it changed nothing?” he asked.
"Do you love her?"
"Yes."
"There’s your answer."

With that, Richard swung the door of his explorer open and took off running in the direction of the unknown assailant.

Richard tried yelling at the couple to get their attention, but the wind picked up. His voice was lost in the gust.

No turning back. This is where it ends, he thought to himself.

As he got closer to the couple, they turned and saw him. The girl recognized him immediately, she looked astonished.
The pair stopped walking and turned towards him, but Richards gaze was focused behind them. The other man was closer than Richard, still sprinting, with one hand in his pocket.
The girl turned to see what he was staring at. As she saw the man, only a few feet away, she screamed.

A loud, hollow crack pierced the night sky. Birds scattered from their treetop dens, small animals and critters everywhere scurried to safety.

Richard stood there, unaware of what had just transpired. Then he felt the burning, the searing pain. The adrenaline had passed, and now all that was left was the molten bullet deep within him, the blood pouring out of his newly formed orifice, just slightly above his lungs.

Another crack: and he could clearly see the gun now, six inches in front of him. Another hole had torn open in to his muscular chest.
In one last act of defiance, Richard grabbed the gun, tore it from his assailant. The burning pain was more than he could bear, but he had a job to finish.
He stumbled backwards, trying to make distance from his would-be killer. As he raised the gun, he mouthed two incomprehensible words.

Another roar shattered the night, and his murderer collapsed to the ground.

As Richard watched him fall, he too began to lose his balance. The world around him was spinning, he couldn't stand anymore.

---

As he regained consciousness, he could faintly make out two figures above him. One, a man, was standing. The other was kneeling beside him, she was a woman, and he recognized her face. In the distance, he could hear sirens.

"Why?" The woman asked.
"Because," Richard could barely speak, the words he spoke were too soft for the man to hear.
"I had to stop him from hurting you." He coughed, blood covered his entire body.
"But Why?" she asked tearfully.
"You would have died," he said.
"I'm so..." Her voice cracked, she was weeping.
"Don't be. It's my fault." He could feel his life slipping away, the cold grasp of death was closing around him. He had to talk fast.

"I'm sorry for everything," he whispered.
"You shouldn't be sorry for anything, you saved my life." Tears were streaming from her eyes now.

"I love you," was all he could say.
Before he could comprehend what was happening, she kissed him. And the last thing he saw, as the last ounces of life passed away, was the reaper, death, his friend Thade. He smiled and nodded, and Richard knew it was over.

The sirens faded, and his entire world turned to darkness.