# Garden Of Rosa Ending 1

Garden of Rosa
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Ending 1
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Imagine if you will, a world where Anon had refused Fang the commiseration she so desperately desired in the music room. A world where Anon cared little for any of his friends besides Rosa, a world where Anon had ignored the lives of others to focus on his own fortunes. Ignorant and blind, Anon grew increasingly naïve about the pain Fang was in, instead bragging about his QT-Latina Dino GF on his favorite Botswanan nickel-collecting usenet.
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This, is the ending for that Anon.
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***
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The Monday after Prom dawned, a morose collection of grey clouds darkening my usual walk to school. Prom certainly had been eventful, to say the least. Shame about VVURM DRAMA’s performance, though. I wouldn’t say Fang had been excited to play; no, she seemed more nervous than anything when we talked before the show, and I guess for good reason. When she walked out on stage wielding her bass instead of her guitar, I knew nothing good could come from it.
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But hey, at least Rosa and I had a good time, before the band’s ill-fated performance. God, she looked so beautiful in that dress! And despite my distinct lack of any ability, I managed to make her laugh on the dance floor, my imaginary reload animations entertaining her throughout the night. I even considered asking her back to my place, maybe seeing where the night took us…
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Nah, it was probably for the best we all went home. Seeing Fang getting pelted with punch really pissed Rosa off, and Spears had to step in to separate her from the unfortunate bastard who had thrown the last volley. I hope Stella was able to calm her down back home after they dropped me off. Still, not a bad night, all things considered. The picture I posted of Rosa and I got me a new record: Thirty-Five (You)’s. Not bad at all, if I do say so myself.
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Still riding high with smug self-satisfaction from this morning’s harvest, I quickly found myself at my destination. Trudging through the halls of Volcano High, I dump my stuff at my locker before checking my phone for any texts from Rosa. We usually met up in the morning for a bit, if only so I could get away from Fang and the gang. Things had gotten awkward around her since I shot her down, and I couldn’t imagine how painful today would be for her. Everyone jeering and laughing at her, at the band, maybe even some additional ammunition thrown their way. No, better to butt out and let them be, right…?
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…
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Thumbing to my messenger app, I can see I’ve already had a few from Rosa.
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Rosa: Morning An-on! Thanks for last night, I had a great time!
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Rosa: I hope Fang is doing okay though :(
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Chuckling to myself, I shot a message back. That was just like her, always worrying about other people.
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Anon: I wouldn’t worry about it, Fang is tough, they’ll survive.
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Rosa: …I hope so.
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Rosa: ¡Mira eso! Fang needs to see me in the library before school, I can ask how they’re doing then
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Rosa: See you later, mi amor!
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Damn, no time to see her this morning, I guess. Shrugging, I pull open my favorite shit-posting site, comfortable with the knowledge that I still had a few minutes before I had to get to class. A ripple through the assembled students drew my eye away from a particularly juicy Stony thread: It was Naser, sporting an uncharacteristically haggard look on his face. The Prom King ignored the well-wishes of his peers, instead charging up to me, his voice edged with panic.
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“Anon, have you seen Fang?” Naser was fidgeting with his backpack, constantly scanning the crowd behind me.
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“Uhh, not today, no. Why?”
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“It’s just, they never came home after Prom. I didn’t notice at first, because Naomi and I were…”
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Yep, it’s better you don’t finish that sentence Naser.
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Coughing, Naser continued, his face reddening. “I saw what happened to them, and I tried to help but Trish just told me to fuck off. Naomi wanted to take my mind off of them so we went to an after-party, and by the time I got home Fang still wasn’t there. Shit Anon, they haven’t answered a single one of my texts!”
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Naser showed me his phone, scrolling through his messages. It must’ve been nearly fifty texts there, all sent to Fang between Prom and this morning. And all unread. Maybe her phone was dead?
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“Dad and Mom are worried sick. Dad’s even put out a missing persons report on them this morning. I just checked with Trish and Reed and they don’t even know where they are and I’m fucking freaking out Anon!” Naser rubbed his face with his hands hard, dragging his eyelids down as he did so. I could see the stress building on him; he looked practically ready to explode.
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I knew Fang was the type to skip school, but to not come home for an entire day? Where could she have been? Shaking my head to banish those thoughts, I gave Naser a consolatory smile, flashing the texts from Rosa.
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“Well, I haven’t seen Fang yet, but hey, look: Rosa said she just got a text saying to meet them in the library. Maybe check there?”
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Visibly sagging with relief, Naser steady himself with a hand on my shoulder. “Thank Raptor Jesus, Anon… You don’t know what I was going through, what Dad was putting me through, trying to find them!” The tired ptero gave me a weak smile, one I returned with a clap on the shoulder.
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“Come on, I’ll walk with you. See Naser, it’s gonna’ be fine!”
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***
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The library was on the second floor of the school, a dusty room at the back of the building. Truth be told, I hadn’t been here since getting caught torrenting anime on the computers. I guess that’s probably why I was barely scraping by in math… Posters lined the entrance of the library, some still advertising Prom, others outlining the library’s summer reading program. Leaving an agitated Naser to ask at the front desk if they’d seen his sister, I let my gaze wander across the stacks, each one creating a separate hallway. It was faint, but I could hear something…
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“Librarian said she say Fang here right when the place opened, but they didn’t say what they were looking for.” Naser joined me at my side, following my questing glances towards the stacks. Sighing, Naser shrugged his backpack further on his shoulder, his one broken wing forcing him to hold it awkwardly. “Look Anon, you don’t have to help me look for them, it’s okay.”
Holding up my hand for silence, I strained my ears, listening intently. It sounded like an argument, somewhere at the back of the library, the stacks of books muffling it just enough that I couldn’t really get a sense of who it was. But, if I knew anything about Fang…
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“Listen, Naser. Do you think that’s Fang?” I hissed, trying to keep my voice quiet under the watchful eye of the librarian. Naser paused, his stare fixed to the floor. Suddenly, he was striding towards the source of the argument, not pausing to answer me. “Naser, wait!”
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Still half-walking, half-running, Naser and I arrived at the source of the disturbance quickly. The closer we got, the more we could understand what was being said, the more we could understand that it was Fang doing most of the talking.
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“…didn’t ask for him to come in here and fuck with my life! I didn’t ask for these feelings! But then you just fucking stole him away, didn’t you?!”
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Who was Fang talking to? Wait… As it dawned on me, I started to run, Naser close behind me. Rosa!
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Rounding the last stack, we found what we were looking for. Fang was standing with her back to us, arms waving animatedly, a terrified-looking Rosa backed into the end of the row. Rosa’s crimson eyes were brimming with tears, a stricken look on her face. Neither woman had noticed us yet, but before I could take a step towards them, Naser flung out an arm to stop me, his gaze transfixed by something in Fang’s hand.
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Oh.
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Oh fuck no.
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Fang held a steely grey revolver in her hand, the barrel pointed loosely towards Rosa. After a second, Fang must’ve realized we were standing there, snapping the gun towards the both of us, a mixture of rage and fear spread across her face. Naser and I froze, standing together at the end of the row, facing down a barrel of a gun. Fang’s gun.
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“Whoever it is, stay the fuck…” Fang’s arm slackened slightly, the barrel wavering. Behind her, Rosa whimpered wordlessly, struggling to fight back her tears. “Anon…You…You weren’t supposed to be here.” For a moment, Fang looked confused, gazing at nothing.
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“Fang…just put the gun down, okay?” Naser took a hesitant step towards her, palms held outwards. “Anon and I are just here to help…”
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Fang seemed to regain her composure at Naser’s words, the revolver snapping back up towards him. Fang’s mouth was a locked in a snarl, her face equal parts disgust and anger.
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“So that’s what I am to you, Naser, just some broken girl you can fix?!” Fang was really screaming now, no longer attempting to hold her voice down. Please, please let the librarian call campus security…”Well guess what?! No one can fix me, Naser! Not you, not Anon, and especially not you!” Fang’s hand whipped back around towards Rosa, causing her to shrink back against the wall in fear. “You! You treat me like I don’t even exist, just like the rest of them, but now that you’re his fucking girlfriend, you suddenly want to be friends?! You think you can just worm your way into my heart, like he fucking did?!” Rosa’s eyes were closed now, screwed shut against Fang’s onslaught. “FUCK YOU!” Screaming, Fang cocked the hammer of the gun, spittle flying out of her mouth as she did so.
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What happened next was a blur. As Fang primed the revolver, my stupid protective instincts took over, and I only knew that I couldn’t let anything happen to Rosa. Rushing up on Fang, I tried to grab the gun from behind, the two of us struggling around before…
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The shot rang out in the library like a bomb, rattling the metallic shelves and leaving my ears ringing. Fang looked stunned, standing there slack-jawed, staring at what she had done, the gun slipping from her hands even before I realized what was happening. Then I saw it.
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Rosa, my love.
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Rosa, the only one who had seen me for what I could be, rather than what I was.
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Rosa, crumpled into a ball on the ground, holding both hands to her chest.
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I couldn’t scream, no matter how much I tried. My tongue felt like felt in my mouth, my chest devoid of air. All I could was moan, an incessant droning noise that seemed to come from everywhere at once. Scrambling over to her, I scooped Rosa into my arms, holding her tight against me. God, how she shook, each rasping breath bubbling inside of her before being expelled with a spray of blood. Rosa looked up at me, her crimson eyes pleading. Crimson, just like the… No, focus on her eyes!
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I could see her mouth moving fitfully, trying to form words, more crimson spilling out onto her face. My hand was wet, sticky. When had I moved it? I didn’t dare look anywhere but her eyes, my own futile attempt to block out what I could not deal with. Rosa’s hand honed into view, moving in little shaky bursts towards my face, unable to find what she was reaching for. Why was everything so blurry now? Lowering myself to her, Rosa caressed my cheek one last time, just she had done so many times before, her mouth finally finding the words.
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“Mi…amor…”
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I rocked her back and forth like a baby, the sweet smell of her hair lost amidst the smell of blood.