Transitive Murder

A story of suicide and the pain that comes with it for both the victim and those close to them.

David stepped out of the shadows of the party and pulled out the obsidian pistol he had been hiding in his jacket. One of the partygoers screamed as he aimed it at his head, tears streaming down his pale face. The rest of the guests leapt to their feet and began to scream inaudible words at him. The bonfire roared. Where had his life gone so wrong? Just as he had gotten a girlfriend, one he cared for more than anything, his grades plummeted and his life went to shambles. All he had now were a few good friends, all of them girls who felt sorry for him.

“But not sorry enough,” he thought. It wasn’t enough.

He stood there remembering his relationships with the people at the party. His girlfriend, Haley, had recently always been there to keep him company. She sat by him at lunch, messed with his hair when he felt it looked silly, watched movies with him and everything. Their kisses were something he was going to miss the most. He remembered their first clear as if it were yesterday. It was at a movie theater, and she had been looking at him for quite some time during the movie. Shyly, he had looked at her and he did for a while. Haley then inched forward, kissing him on the lips quickly and then beginning to draw back. As she did though, he moved forward and continued, passionately, and just for that moment, everything important in the world and everything he ever cared about didn’t even come close to being as important as that sensation.

As his life continued to flash before his eyes, he remembered another friend. A black girl named Georgia, who had always been able to make him laugh. She was rather dull at times, and could be easily fooled, but they had shared a friendship that no one else could even compare. Her smile was wide and weird, just the way he liked it, and her closeness to Haley was also comforting, even though Georgia had had a small crush on David. However, after his depression, he seemed to lose touch with her and all of her friends, including Mary, the one who had helped him the most in the past. Mary was a beautiful brunette whom he befriended the instant he saw her. She was so outgoing and friendly, he became attached, and went to her with every problem he had, because he felt that he could. A memory came to mind: the last time she tried to help him. The conversation began to flow through his tortured mind.

“Everything I do just seems like a step in the wrong direction,” he had said “It makes me want to just end it, you know? Just run away from everything.”

“David, your problems are what define you. They are what make you stronger,” she had said as she then moved closer to him. She hugged him, and he embraced the contact but was not comforted.

“Me? Strong? I can’t even stop my father from going at me.”

“Didn’t you go to the police about that?” she asked, confused.

“What’s the point?” he sighed “They’ll never believe me.”

“Yes. They. Will,” She said, enunciating each word. The irritation in Mary’s voice caused David to hate himself even more. “You have to tell someone about this, Dave. You can’t keep this bottled up inside.”

“You seem to do a fine job of it,” he snapped; his self-hatred began to turn towards her. Mary glared.

“I do not have an issue like this. I keep up my personality in order to help those I care about. Especially, you! You need help, David.”

“Yeah, and since when has that happened?” He pulled away and rose to his feet. “You dated that loser back in the summer, and you expect me to believe you care about anyone?”

“I do, David…”

“No, as far as I’m concerned, you don’t care about me. You boil down to be just like everyone else. You only see what you want, not what you need.”

“David, how do you know what I need?” she asked.

“You never wanted to date me,” David retorted, not answering her question. “Why?”

“I told you, I never saw you that way. You are too dear to me to let anything bad happen between us.”

“Yeah, well look what’s happening anyway!” He yelled. Mary closed her eyes and sighed. A tear passed down her cheek.

“I love you, David. You are a good person and a true friend. But…”

“But not good enough to date,” he said and stormed off down the hallway.

“David, please!” But he had gone. His mind then melded back to reality, and he saw all three of them there. His girlfriend…he hoped by doing this, she wouldn’t have to deal with all of his problems. Georgia…she wouldn’t care. He was just another guy to her. And Mary…after what he had said, what good was he to her? Her last attempt to help him failed, and she ended up hanging with one of her close guy-friends even more. His name was Fred, and he seemed nice, but he wasn’t right for Mary. He was thin and popular, yet also rather wimpy. He did not hang around Mary nearly as much as the other guys, and therefore obviously didn’t care about her as much. He then remembered talking to Fred earlier that day about his problems, out of pure happenstance.

“Dude, I don’t know of anyone else I can talk to,” he had sobbed, alone in the commons with the high school senior.

“Well then pop a squat, man,” said Fred, offering him a chair “I’m Fred by the way. What’s on your mind?” David sat, not really knowing why he was so desperate.

“Everyone else is already gone to the party. Why are you still here?” Fred smiled.

“Don’t be too hasty with life, man. I like to be fashionably late to these things. Why aren’t you there? And why are you crying?”

“I don’t feel wanted….by anyone. Everybody I try to love ends up ignoring me. Even Haley today completely ignored me for everyone else. It was as if I didn’t exist…”

“Now, kid, I am sure you missed something, cuz what I saw was - “

“What do you mean, you saw?” David rose. “You never hang with the group.”

“I walk by your group and I trade glances with some people as a ‘hello.’ I don’t feel right being just another guy.”

“And that’s what you think I am?”

“Uh, dude, where is this coming from? You were the one who wanted to talk to me. I don’t have to stay.” David stood there for a while before taking a seat again, his mind burning with rage. Fred continued. “Now, like I said, I think you’re overreacting. I see those girls all over you all the time. Giving you hugs, telling you how much you matter to them " “

“Shows what you know,” David interrupted, leaving a bit of an awkward silence. Then Fred let out a sigh.

 “Dude, just go to the party. I’m sure you’ll see that you are just as loved there as everyone else.”

“To them, I’d be better off dead,” David mumbled. Fred grimaced.  

“That’s not a healthy thing to say…”

“Deal with it. It’s the truth.”

“I highly doubt that. Now, kid, I dunno what I can say to cheer you up. You seem to be playing a pretty hardcore devil’s advocate. Just know that I am really not up for people faking suicidal tendencies just for attention. Regardless of whether you are actually depressed or not, I still think you should go to this party. They want you there, I’m sure.” However, David was no longer listening.

“Faking suicidal tendencies?” the words stung in his mind. Fred had gone too far, and David now saw him for who he was: an ignorant jerk, just like the others, who only cared about himself. He decided he would go to the party, and show them all just how empty their lives would be because of Fred. He got up and stormed out of the commons, leaving Fred to watch, wonder and worry.

Now he stood there on the murky grass with the cool, metal barrel digging into his temple. Who knew one could be so close to death? It was as if the scythe was already cutting the hairs on the back of his neck. His ears became numb to the cries of the party guests and only heard the whispers of death in his ear. The time had come, but he decided to speak one last time before he saw the flash of the gun.

“I am sorry,” he choked back tears “but this is the most attention you have showed me all month. I know you would all be better off if I was dead.”

“That’s not true, David!” yelled Georgia “You can’t think that!”

“It’s the truth, whether you realize it or not,” he replied, and smiled. “You are so blind to what you do to people… I mean, you sit there wishing you had someone to love and when someone comes along you just ignore it, cuz you’ve got tunnel vision and….” He paused.

“I don’t understand, David!” yelled Haley “You’re not making sense! Please, just put the gun down.”

“No!” he boomed “I have been in pain for a long time and all you ever did is felt sorry for me! Maybe it’s time for you all to be helpless for once.”

“Maybe you’re right,” sounded Fred’s voice from beside him. Startled, David leapt backward so he could see everyone around him. There stood Mary, her neck in the grip of Fred’s gloves. A white pistol was pointed at her head, causing her to sob uncontrollably.

                “What the hell is this?!” screamed David “Let her go!”

                “You sniveling b*****d!” yelled Fred “I am so sick of little pricks like you being all depressed and committing suicide just for attention! But this b***h has done so much to hurt me; I really don’t care if I blow her brains out all across this lawn!” Georgia screamed but stopped when Fred yelled “SHUT UP!” Then he turned to address the congregation. “So, I’m going to set you all up into a social experiment. Good thing everyone’s here, because this is going to be fun.”

                “You b*****d, let her go!” yelled Haley, her tears flushing her make-up into her mouth and causing her to cough and spit. Mary, herself, choked through tears that had been cascading down her soft face. The hand on her throat was uncomfortable, yet not enough to strangle her.

                “Here’s the deal,” said Fred, a stern look on his furious face “If you kill yourself, I will kill everyone here, starting with those dearest to you. I have plenty of ammunition for all the party members to die twice, and yes, I include you in that statement.”

                “What are you talking about?!” yelled David “Let her go!”

                “YOU KILL YOURSELF, THEY DIE. YOU DON’T, THEY LIVE. IS THAT CLEAR ENOUGH FOR YOU, DUMBASS?” Fred exploded. David took a step backwards.

                “This isn’t happening…” said David, but then his eyes narrowed and anger took over. “You wouldn’t! You don’t have the balls to kill someone! You’re just a high school senior; you’re nothing but talk!”

                The sound of the gun echoed through the country loud and clear as the bonfire roared. David watched in horror as the body of Mary fell to the hard dirt and in the shadows of the night, and while the group was stunned, Fred flew to the group and seized Haley.

                “That enough ‘talk’ for ya?” he said as his hands found the struggling Haley’s throat. He dragged her away from the group at gunpoint and as the barrel of the silver firearm touched the back of her head, Haley let out a blood-curdling scream. As he did this and the rest of the party members began to bawl uncontrollably. “Now that all doubt is gone, this is your final test. You wanna kill your girlfriend too?”

                “YOU MURDERER!” yelled David as he pointed his gun at Fred.

                “Ha ha, now you wouldn’t want to accidentally blast poor, helpless, beautiful Haley into kingdom come, would you?” David froze. “I mean, after all, one girl is already dead because you wouldn’t put your Goddamn gun down. Do you want to hurt them more? After all, that’s all you’re doing right now.” David’s tears began to fall again. “Sure, I’m the one that would kill them, but that blood would be on your hands too. Transitive murder.” Fred chuckled. “You told Mary you were weak, but now your weakness is beginning to have consequences. So let’s see how ‘strong’ you can be.” David gulped, the tears still streaming down his cheeks. “Throw the gun into the bonfire. Destroy your need for death. Embrace life and all these people will be able to continue with theirs. If you don’t, then you essentially murder everyone here. You damn yourself and you turn the emotional pain your death would bring into authentic, state-of-the-art pain. The choice is yours.”

                Through the screaming and the taunting, David stood there, motionless, the gun at his side. He saw Mary dead on the ground, and Haley feeling the cold scythe on her neck that was once his. Now the tables had turned. Yet through the numbing sensation that had crept upon David’s body, Fred’s voice still managed to get through.

                “Will their lives really be better because of your death?” A dark chuckle echoed in his mind. “You can save them or you can kill them.” David’s brain surged with thoughts. The stress became too much for him to handle. He needed to get out. He needed to stop this. Everything was happening too fast. He screamed a long, agonizing scream that silenced everyone in the vicinity. Then, in the darkness, David felt his heart beat slowly, then faster, and he raised the dark gun up and flung it into the air. It arched into the darkness of the woods, and immediately someone from the group, one of the host’s parents, sprinted after it. David fell to his knees, completely exasperated from the stress. His heart was beating rapidly, and he felt warm hands help him lay down on the grass where he had stood. Darkness stole his sight, and his mind filled with memories of his friends as he fell into unconsciousness.

Author's Note

Hope you like it. I haven't posted anything good for a while. After talking with a friend, I got to daydreaming and had a bit of an epiphany. I hope you like this story and appreciate it for the message it carries.

Reviews

[The Dudeman (Kenneth T)]

It was a good idea, a VERY good idea. I'm proud of you for that. But it had issues with pacing; the middle part was rather slow. Also, I thought that the ending was too perfect, but it's not bad. If you like it, don't change it. Or, maybe you could have and alternate ending, one that starts off with Fred actually shooting Mary. I'd like to see where you take that.

[Nirganzerix]

Update: The ending was stupid. Goodbye, ending. Now we just have a story with an indefinite ending. Should've gone with my gut in the first place and left it like this originally. Ah well.