Ginger blinked into the bright sunlight and cleared her throat.
“Death occurs in an instant,” she began. “So in a way, losing Fred took virtually no time at all. But loss… and grief… are not instantaneous. Grief is moment upon endless moment. I am continually losing Fred. I will be losing Fred forever. He is gone, but he will never be gone.”
She felt her throat tighten and tears well up in her eyes. “The last words I said to Fred were angry words. We were having an argument. That will haunt me forever. In fact, I fully expect Fred to haunt me. It would be just like him.” She paused, hoping to draw a little laughter into the somber occasion. Fred would like that — and he would hate everything else about this ceremony. But she met only silence from the crowd broken by the sound of a siren approaching.
“Fred and I liked to hold hands,” she pressed on. “Even now I can feel our fingers intertwined. My thumb strokes the back of his hand.” The siren was louder still and a brief murmur arose. “I…” Ginger gulped at the air. “I… I’m sorry.” The sun shrank to a bright point that began flashing red and blue.
The police officer approached the vehicle wrapped around the large oak tree. He didn’t expect to find any survivors. He was half right. “Ma’am! Can you hear me? Can you unlock the door? I’m going to get you out of there. Just hold on.” With grim irony he noticed that she held tightly to the hand of the vehicle’s driver — almost the only part of him that wasn’t crushed beyond recognition.
[Note: Learn more about Fred and Ginger here. ~Tim 6 Dec 2009]
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Let's do Something Cheap and Superficial 
I assume the eulogy is purely in her head. Trick of the mind, after the crash. With the approaching siren I thought she killed him. In a way, I suppose she did. I can see where she will have lots of guilt, if she survives, blaming the argument for the crash.
~jon
Exactly! ~Tim
I’m glad that you left the hand attached to Fred. That would have been just too much for me otherwise.
nicely written.
Karen :0)
It would have been… overkill. [sorry] ~Tim
Very well-written, gave me chills. Love the names too.
Chills? Thanks! ~Tim
Scary good!
Loved the second paragraph…
Thanks! I hope I never have to really deliver such a speech. ~Tim
Endless guilt, wondering if the argument caused the crash. Great read.
P.S. Don’t believe Karen’s comment. She carried lips around in her pocket.
Thanks! And Karen got another word in before I did so I’m not getting in the middle. ~Tim
I have to disagree Laura….MY CHARACTER who was a MAN carried lips around in his pocket…. lol
[sorry for passing notes in class Tim]
No problem. ~Tim
Awww, this has quite the punch to it
Thanks! ~Tim
Wow.. how is Ginger going to explain this to Fred’s wife?? I feel like I am missing scenes!!! nicely written!
Well, the thing is I use the names Fred and Ginger in a lot of the pieces I write but they aren’t recurring characters. It just helps me concentrate on aspects of the story other than choosing names. ~Tim
Very well done. I love the eulogy playing itself out in her head as she lays in the wreckage; and that the reader doesn’t know this until the very last moments. The sirens in the background give the impression of a murder coming to justice at the funeral of her victim.
A very well-played piece! Bravo!
Thanks! ~Tim
I love that dreamworld perspective. Keeps the reader paying attention, thinking, and engaged with the story.
Thanks! Making a reader pay attention and think are all I can ask for. ~Tim
That’s a nice succinct flash; you don’t need a lot of words to say a lot. With the flashing red and blue lights time gets confused, as does the narrator’s perception, yet you show clearly what has occurred.
Thanks! My earliest drafts did not have the siren, but I like the way it ties the two scenes together. ~Tim
Oh, you also should warn readers to get tissues. Very nice story, that’s a huge burden to bare if the argument was what caused the crash.
Oh, I love the idea of a little tissue box icon to mark stories! Thanks. ~Tim