October Writing Prompts- Pinterest List by ZellyKatArt
October 15- Graveyard
Ray and Will walked into the graveyard wearing their best suits. They followed others wearing their black clothing to a gravesite of their buddy Karl, who had passed a week ago. They stand behind Karl’s parents with their hands in their pockets, staring at the ground. Ray sniffled and looked at Will. Will wouldn’t look up at the casket that held their best friend. They were no longer the three musketeers. Ray placed a hand on Karl’s mom’s shoulder and she turned to look up at him.
She laughed and hugged him close. He hugged her back and once it was all over, Will and Ray walked alongside Karl’s parents. She held their hands as they helped her through the graveyard to get to their cars. “I still remember the day our Karl brought you two home when you were teenagers.”
Will chuckled. “I was always hungry back then.” He cocked his head to the side. “Still am on most days.”
They all laughed and hugged his parents when they reached their car. His dad opened the door for his wife. “You two keep coming to visit from time to time, you hear? You two are my other sons still.”
They promised and watched the couple drive off. When the graveyard was empty, they headed back to Karl’s gravesite. They stood on either side and looked down at Karl’s gravesite. They said one last goodbye and left. They found a local bar and enjoyed a few beers in Karl’s memory. After the bar closed, they wandered around aimlessly until they ended up back in front of the graveyard.
Will glanced at his watch and sobered quickly. “It’s time.”
Ray, who had been giggling the entire time, stopped and nodded. They walked back to where they had left the rental car in front of the bar, jumped in, and drove to the graveyard. Ray parked in front of the gate and the two grabbed the items they had bought earlier from the back seat. Will walked over to the lock and picked it, letting them in. They looked around, turned on their flashlights, and walked to Karl’s grave.
They put their flashlights on the tombstone across from them and got to work digging their shovels deep into the ground. They kept digging until Will hit the coffin. He tapped it with the edge of the shovel and grinned at Ray. They scraped off the dirt and cleared a path around the coffin before they tossed the shovels up on the ground above them.
Ray squatted down next to the coffin and knocked. “Hello? Are you ready to get up, Karl?”
There was movement from inside, and then a knock. Will and Ray opened the coffin and Karl sat up. “Phew! It was getting hot in there.” He grinned at his best friends as they grabbed his hand and they pulled him to his feet. Karl climbed out of the grave while Ray closed the coffin. The guys climbed out of the grave and filled it back in. After a few more hours, they cleaned everything up and disappeared.
In the car, they drove out of Karl’s old town after they had picked up a few things from the store. Karl picked up an envelope that sat next to him on the back bench and opened it. Inside, he found a new social security number, new ID, new name, new everything. He grinned at his friends.
“Well, one down, two more to go. Who’s going to die next?” Karl leaned forward as he talked to his buddies.
“It’s Will’s turn and I go last,” Ray said as he glanced in the rear-view mirror. He couldn’t help but grin. “Then we can do what we’ve always wanted to do. Die, then live a life as someone new.”
His buddies laughed and Ray turned the car towards Will’s hometown in Mississippi. They talked about the plan to fake Will’s death and how they would make sure he wasn’t cremated by accident. They had thought about doing this as kids and even made a pack. Now they were in their early thirties, had plenty of cash saved up, new identities were obtained, and all they had to do was die.