Let it go, let it roll right off your shoulder.
Don't you know? The hardest part is over.

Six year old Andy Biersack trudged towards his house from school, a plastic lunchbox clutched in one white hand, a bag on his back. It was Summer in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the sun shone high in the sky.
Andy sniffled, looking dejectedly down at his knees where his pants had been torn and ripped, revealling scuffed, red skin. It hurt really badly, and he brought his small fists up, dragging them over his eyes to get rid of the tears.
"Hey, kid, you OK?" Andy started, before looking up through his thick, blonde locks at the person perched on the garden wall of a large house, who'd addressed him.
"N-not really," he said, softly, his voice thick. "My k-knees h-hurt."
The kid jumped down from his place on the bars, and came over, head tilted to the side slightly. "Where's your mommy?"
Andy sniffed again. "I have to walk home alone today, mommy and daddy are working late."
The kid bit his lip. "My mommy has band-aids in the kitchen." He gently took Andy's small hand in his own tan one, and led the younger boy through his front door, into his house.
Sitting Andy down on a chair at the kitchen table, the boy began rifling through the cupboards. Finding two band-aids, he gently applied them to Andy's sore knees. "All better!" He grinned, brightly.
Andy wiped his eyes again and asked, "why were you nice to me? Everyone hates me. They push me down in the playground."
"'Cause I don't want you to cry. And 'cause it's what friends do. I'm Ashley, we're in the same grade."
"I'm Andy."
"Stick with me, Andy, and no-one'll ever mess with you again." Andy smiled gratefully.
At that moment, a woman walked into the kitchen. Her skin was tan, like Ashley's, and her dark brown hair was pulled back in a tight bun. She wore a neatly creased pant-suit, and was typing rapidly into a blackberry.
"Oh, hello," she smiled warmly when she saw Andy. "Ash, who's this?"
"Mommy, this is Andy, he needed a plaster 'cause he hurt his knee," Ashley explained. His mother smiled, ruffling his hair gently.
"Andy Biersack?" At Andy's nod, she said, "the Biersack's live next door to us."
"Really?" Ashley and Andy grinned. "Can they come over for dinner? Please, mommy, please?" Ashley begged.
"Oh...I don't see why not. Why doesn't Andy ask when he goes home, and I'll put something together for us all?"
"That sounds great!" Ashley's mom smiled and left the room.
"Wow, she's so...cool."
Ashley nodded. "She's a business woman. She's not home alot, but my auntie Izzy looks after me. Anyways, you'd better go ask your parents if they wanna come for dinner."
"Oh, yeah! I'll see ya soon, Ash!"
Ashley stared after Andy as he ran out the door towards his own house, and grinned to himself.
"We're gonna be friends forever."

Let it in, let your clarity define you, in the end,
you will only just remember how it feels.

"Boys, settle down!" The teacher looked down on the two fourth graders, frowning at their behavior.
"Sorry, miss," Andy and Ashley chorused, twin 'innocent' looks on their faces. The teacher sighed, and turned away, and the best friends grinned and high-fived.
"You lookin' forward to the sleep over at mine?" Ashley whispered, because the teacher was still keeping an eye on them, and gave the pair the evils everytime she saw them talking.
Andy brushed a stray blonde hair out of his face, smiling brightly. "Yeah, it'll be fun," he whispered back, bright blue eyes sparkling with mischief.
The second the home-bell went, they were off like rockets, bags over their shoulders and running out of the school doors, glad to be away from school.
It was the weekend, a life-line for all school pupils. Ashley and Andy ran back to Ashley's house and as soon as they went inside, they were greeted by Ashley's aunt Izzy. "Hi, boys!" She grinned. Izzy looked exactly like her sister, Sara, but a lot more laid back in casual, paint-speckled clothes, with her hair down and wavy. "I'll take your bags, you two go up to Ashie's room."
"OK, later Izzy!" Both boys said, running upstairs and flopping onto Ashley's bed.
"What d'you want to do?" Andy asked.
Ashley got up and walked over to his desk, which had a laptop and several other items on it."I have to do homework real quick, you do whatever. We can go swimming after, if you want." he said, picking up a pencil.
"'Kay, sounds fun," Andy nodded, doodling in his notebook. Ashley stole a glance up at him. In the four years they'd been friends, Andy had become alot more confident, brighter and happier.
Ashley smiled and went back to doing his work, so they could have the whole weekend to have fun.
Andy was humming as he sketched out a picture, fingers tapping against the page to create a beat.
"You should write songs, Andy," Ashley said, looking up from his half-finished math work-sheet.
"I tried, once...it was easier than I thought it would be. Maybe I'll just leave school and be a rockstar," Andy mused, "with lotsa tattoo's and piercings and stuff. Like the guys from KISS," he guestured to his t-shirt, which had the band in questions logo on it. "That would be awesome."
The other ten year old nodded, pursing his lips as he thought about it. "Yeah, it would be."

Our lives are made, in these small hours.
These little wonders, these twists and turns of fate.

"Hey, Andy, lookin' forward to prom?" Ashley asked, from his place on Andy's bed. They were nearing the end of fifth grade, so it was time for prom, before moving onto middle school.
Andy rolled his eyes, straightening his tie. "Nope, Scout dumped me last week. I'm dateless."
Ashley nodded, sympathetically. "Kina's was goin' ape tryin' to find the right dress and stuff. It got annoying. Finally, after tonight, it'll be over!"
"True that," Andy fell backwards onto the bed, landing beside Ashley. He let out a dramatic sigh as he did so. "Why are girls so weird?"
"I don't know, dude. I don't know." They lay in silence, both staring at the ceiling, wondering how the night was going to play out. "Andy, you've been distant all week. Are you gonna tell me what's wrong?"
"I..." Andy sighed, looking into Ashley's worried brown eyes, he knew he couldn't keep anything from his best friend. "I'll tell you tonight." Ashley nodded, smiling.
Later that night, Andy sat at the side, drinking punch. Ashley had been dragged off and was dancing with Kina, his girlfriend. Andy felt a weird feeling in his stomach, while looking at them, and frowned.
He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. Hopefully, the feeling would go away soon. He took another sip of his drink, and went back to watching everyone else, dance, finding amusement in it.
Twenty minutes later, Ashley came back over, sweaty and smiling. "God, that was fun!" He smiled.
"Ashley, can we go outside, I have something to tell you."
Ashley looked confused at the request to go outside, but nodded. Andy was finally going to tell him what was wrong. "Sure, dude." They both slipped out of the hall, un-noticed by anyone. Walking out onto the playground, they came to a stop under a tree. Andy slumped against it, sliding down 'til he was sitting against it.
"Ashley...I'm gay." He said.
Ashley frowned. "What?"
"I'm gay. I like boys...I've known for a while, now...please don't hate me. I don't know what to do." Andy hid his face in his arms.
"But...Scout..."
Andy sighed, sadly, shaking his head. "I never felt anything for her. I just kept her around because..."
"Because?" Ashley prompted.
"I was scared, Ash. I still am. So, so scared!" Andy snapped.
Silence for a moment. Andy looked up, his blue eyes tearful. "Please don't hate me, Ash. I couldn't handle it if you did."
Suddenly, arms were around him, and Andy was pressed into Ashley's warm chest, crying freely. Ashley held him tightly, allowing Andy to let it all out. His hand stroked Andy's back, reassuringly.
"I don't hate you. I couldn't. It's an impossibility."
Andy came to realize at that moment, that the feeling he'd felt when he'd seen Ashley dancing with Kina, was jealousy.

Time falls away but these small hours,
these small hours, still remain.

"Andy...Andy!" Andy started awake as he was shaken. Squinting, still half-asleep, into the dark of his room, he frowned.
"Ash?" He asked. "What're you doing here?"
Ashley came closer, sitting down next to Andy, who sat up and rested his back against the head-board of his room. It was the summer before they were to go into middle school, so Ashley and Andy had been staying at each others houses most nights. However, Andy hadn't seen his best friend in a week, now. Ashley had went home one day and just not came back out.
Ashley shifted closer to Andy and sighed, sadly. He looked so upset that Andy immediately wrapped his arms around Ashley, and  stroked his soft, black hair.
"What's wrong?" He asked, quietly.
Ashley sighed. "Andy, mom got a new job. We're moving to California." At those words, Andy's heart sank and he gasped audibly, bright blue eyes wide. He let his arms drop and sank back down onto his bed.
"Y-you're joking, right?" He asked, quietly.
Ashley shifted him, gently, so that he was stroking Andy's choppy, blonde hair. "No, we've been packing all week...we move tomorrow." He sounded almost as sad as Andy felt.
"No!" Andy said, loudly. Ashley started, taken aback by what his friend had said. He tried to hug Andy, but Andy shook his head, his head down and his hair covering his face. His shoulders shook, and he punched Ashley's chest, repeatedly.
"Andy..." Ashley said, softly, managing to grab hold of his thin wrists. Andy looked up, and began crying. Ashley hugged him, tightly, resting his chin on Andy's head.
"You- you can't. You promised! As long as you're there, nothing bad'll happen to me! What am I going to do in middle school without you. You're my best friend."
"I'm sorry. Shhhh, it's OK." Ashley gently rocked Andy's body, whispering reassurances. "Everything's going to be fine. I promise."
"I'm sorry I punched you," Andy whispered, sounding more like the six year old he'd been when they'd first met, than the eleven year old he was now.
"It's fine."
"Ohio and California are far away...I'm never gonna see you again," Andy said.
"No, you will, I promise."
"How can you promise that?"
"Here." Ashley leant down and pressed their lips together. "There's my promise, OK?" Butterflies erupted in Andy's stomach, and he nodded, blushing, resting his head in Ashley's lap. "Go to sleep, you need it." He said, stroking Andy's hair.
When Andy woke up the next morning, Ashley was gone, and the Purdy's house was empty, their car long gone.

Let it slide, let your troubles fall behind you,
let it shine, 'til you feel it all around you.
And I don't mind if it's me you need to turn to, we'll get by.
It's the heart that really matters in the end.

Lonely. That was the only way to describe how Andy felt. It had been a year since he'd lost his best friend -a year already?!- and the empty feeling hadn't left. Now Andy knew how people on TV felt when they talked about broken hearts.
The kiss still lingered in his mind. The feeling of Ashley's lips against his own was like heaven. Nothing compared to it.
Everyone noticed a change in Andy since that night. Andy spoke less, his eyes lacked the shine they once had. He fell behind on school work, and didn't even bother to respond when he got called "emo fag."
In fact, the first chance he got, he bought hair dye. He sat there, in the bathroom, his newly-black hair dripping wet, falling over his face.
"Andy?" Amy Biersack asked, knocking on the bathroom door. "Are you decent?" When her son made no attempt to answer, she opened the door. She took in the sight of her son, shirtless, his hair black. Tears were running down his cheeks. "Oh...Andy." She whispered, brushing the hair out of his face.
He looked up, "please, mom, I just want to be alone."
"Ok, dear. Honey...I know it hurts, now, but turn to the pen, not the knife." With that, she left. Andy looked down at his wrists, where several red lines were. He nodded, getting up and going back through  to his room. He picked up his notebook, and remembered Ashley saying once, years ago, "You should write songs, Andy."
He chewed his lip, thoughtfully.
"Maybe I'll just leave school and be a rockstar, with lotsa tattoo's and piercings and stuff. Like the guys from KISS."
"Turn to the pen, not the knife."
"That's what I'll do..." he muttered, picking up a pen from his bedside table. He jammed his headphones into his ears and blared rock music loudly, sketching a face. His face. He studied the drawing for a moment, before drawing a lip ring on his drawing's lower lip. Next to the drawing, he wrote 'what's it like to be a ghost?'
Andy smiled wickedly, nodding approvingly at the drawing. "Yep, that works." He felt a little less lonely, as if a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.
The pain was still there. He still missed Ashley more than anything, but by focussing on other things, maybe he could make good out of a bad situation. It's what Ashley would have wanted, Andy knew that for sure.
"Mom!" He called. "Can I get a lip piercing?"

Our lives are made, in these small hours.
These little wonders, these twists and turns of fate.

It was eighth grade, and Andy was looking forward to the holidays more than ever. At the end of the day, he almost ran all the way home, and smiled, relaxed. Finally! Summer had decided to show its face. Now there was so much free time to play music and write and draw...it was just amazing!
"Mom, dad, I'm home!" He called out, his voice light and happy, showing that he was in a good mood. Not that he was usually in a bad one, but right now he was ecstatic.
Andy had grown alot taller since starting middle school, and stood at five nine, though he was still growing. He still had the same porcelain skin and startlingly bright blue eyes. Now, his hair was long and shaggy, black, razored, and fell over one eye. It was currently pulled back into a ponytail. His eyes were outlined with black, and he wore skinny jeans, multiple belts, and a large 'Motley Crue' t-shirt. A bass guitar case was slung over his shoulder. He also had a ring in his lip.
"Andy, we have an announcement to make," Chris Biersack said, from the family room, and Andy walked through to see both his parents sitting on the sofa.
Amy decided to be the one to break the news to her son. "Your father's friend has started a record label, and needs his help to get it running. We're moving house." She looked worried incase Andy's reaction was bad.
"Oh, cool, I don't like it here, anyway. Where are we moving?" Andy asked, sitting on one of the plush arm chairs, gently placing his bass on the floor.
"LA," Chris replied.
"Cool!" Andy smiled brightly. He seemed excited by the prospect. "Think I'll meet any cool famous people?!"
Amy smiled at her son, glad that through the years, though he'd matured alot, he still maintained the same level of childish innocence. She nodded. "Yes, I'd imagine so. Your dad'll be working with alot of musicians, maybe even some really famous ones!"
Andy grinned.
"Oh, and Andy. You're not just going to any high school after the summer, you're going to a performing arts school."
"OHMYGOD, I love you guys so much!" He ran up to his parents and gave them both a massive hug, before sitting back down.
"When are we movin'?" He asked, bouncing on his seat.
"In two weeks, you'd better start getting packed, my little rockstar!" Amy said, causing Andy to groan.
"Mo-om," He whined at the pet name, running up to his room. Already starting to pack his things in the cardboard boxes Amy had placed there earlier.
Even from downstairs, Amy and Chris could plainly hear their son's excited cry of: "Hellyeah, we're movin' to the coolest place ever! This. Is. AWESOME!!!"

Time falls away but these small hours,
these small hours, still remain.

"Wow, this place is awesome..." Andy muttered, taking in the school. People were everywhere, drumming out rythmes on lockers, singing loudly, dancing, talking, laughing...
"'Ssup, new kid!" He looked up to see a boy his own age who looked alot like him. Dark hair, eyeliner, skinny jeans...except this kid had a bandana wrapped around his forehead, and drumsticks in his hands. "I'm CC."
Andy grinned. "Andy Biersack, nice to meetcha."
"Ooh, Ohio," CC said.
"That obvious?" Andy asked.
"Yep. You seem cool, wanna hang with us?" CC asked.
"'Us'?" Andy asked, raising an eyebrow.
"My friends, and my boyfriend- if you say homophobic shit right now, you're getting punched," CC warned.
Andy laughed, causing CC to look confused. "I'd be the weirdest homophobe of all time, then, considering I'm gay," he explained, and CC joined him in laughing.
When they'd stopped, CC said, "OK, then, follow me. My friend's will like you. This place is a Junior and Senior High School, so we can show you around. We know all the short cuts and hideouts and shit."
The two walked in silence for a moment, before CC opened a door and motioned for Andy to go inside. He was immediately met by the sound of laughter.
"Nice one, Jake," someone said, sounding sarcastic.
"Shuttit, Jinxx, it's not- Oh, hey babe!" A black-haired boy came running over, wrapping his arms around CC's waist. They shared a kiss, before he looked up.
He had green eyes, and messy black hair. His black shirt was ripped in several places, the rips held together with safety pins. Very cool. "Oh, hey new kid. Who're you?"
"Andy Biersack, you?"
"Jake Pitts." Jake and CC led Andy further into the room. "That's Sammi and Jinxx, they're together." Jake pointed at a blond haired girl sitting on a black haired boy's lap. "And that's-"
"Ashley," Andy cut him off, eyes wide. Ashley looked up, and frowned, slightly, before his mouth fell open.
"Andy?!" He gasped, standing up.
Andy's eyes filled with tears. "Ashley, I-" he was cut off as Ashley's arms wrapped around his slender figure, and connected their lips. It tasted like cinammon, and salt, from their tears.
"I missed you so much," Andy whispered, in between kisses, his arms around Ashley's neck.
CC, Jake, Sammi, and Jinxx looked at each other, then at the two kissing boys.
CC said thoughtfully, "think that's why Ashley never had a girlfriend?"

All of my regrets will wash away, somehow.
But I cannot forget the way I feel right now.

As Amy watched her son and Ashley play X-BOX 360 in the family room, she smiled across the table at Sara, Ashley's mother, who'd come over for a coffee.
"We did the right thing," she said, feeling happy. "Managing to get Andy into Ashley's school by 'coincidence'."
"Yes, we did, Ashley was hung up for years over your boy," Sara agreed.
They both watched as Andy, nestled into Ashley's side, who had his arm around the younger boy's shoulder, proceeded to kick Ashley's ass at Skyrim.
"They're going to be inseperable, again. I'm so thankful tha-" They stopped talking as both boys came through to the kitchen to get a drink. Their hands were entwined, something which both parents inwardly went 'awwww' over.
Amy smiled at Andy, giving him the thumbs up. He rolled his eyes, but gave his mother a quick hug, whispering into her ear, "thank you."
Amy snorted inwardly. He's too smart for his own good, she noted to herself. Like mother like son.
Both boys got a glass of cola, and went back through to continue the game. Amy looked down at her coffee, and picked up the steaming mug, taking a sip. Sara and her exchanged a knowing look, and they continued their catch up on life as they watched their sons be actually happy for the first time in three years.

In these small hours.

Andy answered his phone as Jinxx called.
"Andy, you coming to band practice?" Jinxx asked.  
"Band practice?" He asked.
Jinxx nodded. "Yeah, of our name-less, singer-less band. I do rythm guitar, Jake does lead, CC does drums, Ashley does bass."
"Sure, I'll come," Andy said. "Sounds fun."
"Cool, it's in Jake's basement." They hung up, and Andy started walking towards Jinxx's.
Andy knocked on Jake's door which was answered by CC, who grabbed his wrist and dragged him down into the basement. Everyone was already set up, so Andy took a seat on one of the larger spare amps, next to Sammi, who smiled warmly at him. "Hi!"
"Hey, Sammi."
They began playing, and Andy was surprised by how good they were. He recognised the song as 'Shout It Out Loud', by KISS and couldn't resist the urge to sing along.
He must've sang louder than he thought because he didn't become aware that everyone was had stopped playing, and were staring at him like he'd grown a third head.
He blushed, ducking his head. "Sorry."
"No...that was AWESOME!" Ashley said.
"Agreed!" Everyone else said, nodding their heads. Andy blushed harder, if possible.
Ashley came over to Andy said grabbed his hand. "Join our band, please baby?" He pleaded, brown eyes wide like a puppies. Andy chewed his lip.
"I...OK."
"YES!" Jake and CC cheered, "we have a chance of making it big, now!"
"We really do," Ashley whispered into his ear.
"Do you have any names, Andy?" Jake asked. "We need a name for the band, and we can't think of one."
Andy chewed his lip. "My parents are catholic. When a nurse marries into the church, she gives up the cardinal pleasures of life. I really respect that, having that much faith, y'know? She's called a black veil bride. Rock's completely about the cardinal pleasures of life...so..." He looked at everyone, expectantly.
"Black Veil Brides?" CC said. "I like it. Alot."
"All in favour say 'aye'."
"Aye." Jinxx said.
"Aye." Sammi said.
"Aye." Jake said.
"Aye." CC said.
"Aye." Ashley said.
Andy smiled. "Then it's settled. We are the Black Veil Brides."

These little wonders, these twists and turns of fate.
Yeah, these twists and turns of fate!

Andy burst into the music room on his eighteenth birthday, smiling like a madman. He was greeted by a chorus of 'happy birthday's'. He ran up to Ashley and jumped on top of him, landing on his boyfriend's lap.
"Happy birthday, sweetie," Ashley said, hugging Andy close to him.
"Thanks! Guys, guess what?!" Andy said.
"What, hunnie?" Sammi asked, smiling as she pinned a birthday badge onto the collar of his leather jacket. Andy rolled his eyes but smiled at the guesture.
"I'm finally old enough to get a tattoo!" Andy exclaimed happily. Ashley kissed his neck, and said,
"I'll pay."
"Thanks, baby," Andy smiled, pecking his lips. "We should get one together."
"Yeah?" Ashley asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah. Right here," he pointed at Ashley's heart, then his own. "I could have OUTLAW in mine, you could have 'Outcast' in yours."
"That's actually a really good idea," Ashley mused.
"That's so cute!" Sammi gushed.
"I have my moments, guys," Andy joked. They all looked up as Jake and Jinxx brought a cake in, Andy laughing in delight. "Thanks, guys!"
Jake said, "no problem! Now make a wish, birthday boy!"
Andy looked at Ashley and smiled. "I have everything I want."
Later that night, they both sat, shirtless on Ashley's bed. Andy's new tattoo matched the OUTLAW script that arched above Ashley's navel. Ashley's 'outcast' had been written by Andy himself, then tattooed over to make it permanent.
"I love you," Ashley said.
Andy blushed. "I love you, too."
Ashley placed his hand on Andy's thigh and squeezed, gently. "God, you're beautiful." Andy smiled, and reached over, turning the lights off, bringing his and Ashley's faces together.

Time falls away, but these small hours...

"God, I haven't been this nervous since I graduated," Andy said, pacing the room. He stopped to check himself in the mirror. Perfectly back-combed hair, not an eyeliner smudge in sight. His suit was bright white.
Sammi smiled from her place on the fancy hotel's bed. "Calm down, hunnie. Everything's going to be fine. Promise."
Andy stopped pacing and looked up. "I can't believe it's finally happening."
Sammi nodded, sympathetically, her hand gripping his. Andy looked down to see her own engagement, wedding and eternity rings. "I felt exactly the same."
"I can't believe we flew all the way out to New Hampshire," Andy laughed.
"Believe it, this is important!" Sammi smiled. "I'll leave you to finish getting ready." She kissed his cheek, then left the room.
Andy bit his lip. "I can't do this, I can't-" he looked up as his dad stuck his head around the door.
"You feeling OK, son?" He asked.
Andy tried to nod, but failed. He sank down onto the bed and sighed. "What if- what if I screw up my lines, dad? What if something goes wrong?! I'm so scared and nervous!"
Chris sighed and walked into the door, sitting down next to his son. "I felt exactly the same, son. But, you've got to remember, it's not some alien out there. It's Ashley. Ashley who's been your best friend since you were six. Ashley who you thought you'd lost, but found again. Ashley who you love so much. Everything's going to be fine, just concentrate on him."
Andy drew in a deep, shaky breath, and stood up, straigthening his tie. He looked at himself one more time in the mirror. He didn't look scared like he felt, he looked calm and collected. He smiled at his reflection.
"I'm ready to get married." Chris offered Andy his arm, and Andy took it, smiling thankfully. The Wedding March started playing, as they entered the room.
Alot of Black Veil Bride's fellow bands had been invited. Asking Alexandria, Reckless Love, D.R.U.G.S (Matt Good and Danny Worsnop were the 'best men')
Andy heard collective gasps as he came into view, and smirked. Being a part-time model came in handy. He looked up through his hair and met Ashley's eye, who winked. Chris let go of his arm, and Andy took Ashley's hand. "You look beautiful, baby," Ashley whispered.
The priest began, "We are gathered here today..."

And these small hours, still remain.

THIS IS ALL YOUR FUCKING FAULT!" Andy yelled, then screamed loudly. Ashley gripped his hand, trying to calm his husband down.
"Andy, deep breaths-"
"I'M GONNA FUCKING CUT YOUR BALLS OFF AFTER THIS!!!" Andy dug his nails deep into Ashley's hand, squeezing really tightly.
"You can push now, Andrew," the midwife said, looking amused by the two twenty one year old's conversation.
"ARRGGHHH!" Andy screamed. He fell back onto the bed, limp and sweating. Ashley kissed his forehead. "You did it, baby," he whispered.
"Ashley?" The midwife said, softly, looking worried.
Ashley looked up, "yes."
"Can I speak to you outside for a moment?"
Ashley looked confused, but nodded. "Be right back, baby," he told Andy, who tilted his head, straining his neck to follow his husband and the midwife as they stood outside, talking urgently.
He watched as Ashley's eyes widened, and he put his hand up to his mouth, falling to his knees. The midwife gently patted his back, comfortingly.
"No..." Andy whispered, in fear. "No."

Ooh, they still remain...

It was a rainy, dark day as a small congregation of people stood outside, watching as a small, pink coffin was burried into the Earth.
Andy had his head pressed into Ashley's neck, and they both stood a little ways away from everyone else, as thought isolating themselves from the others. They had tears streaming down their faces, and Ashley had his arms wrapped tightly around Andy's waist, as though afraid to let him go.
Andy's stomach felt empty without his baby in it, and he couldn't eat without feeling sick. If he didn't have Ashley, he'd have been dead by now.Ashley felt ill, too. He blamed himself, it must've been his fault! Who else's could it have been?! But that didn't matter, their baby was dead.
Stillborn.
Andy wrapped his arms tightly around Ashley's neck. "Make me forget. Please," he whispered, tears continuing at a steady pace down his cheeks. "If I'm not living for something, I'll die for nothing."

These little wonders, oh these twists and turns of fate.

Andy stood in the bathroom, holding his stomach. He stared at the stick in his hand in disbelief. Hearing a door open downstairs, he knew Ashley was home.
"Honey, where are you?!" Ashley called out.
"Ash, come here!" Andy called back.
He heard a couple of noises, before footfalls on the stairs. When Ashley got to the top, he walked through their bedroom, into the ensuite where Andy was.
"What is it?" Ashley asked, trying to look happy but failing. They hadn't been quite the same since the funeral, the empty feeling hadn't gone away. The light in Ashley's eyes, that beautiful spark, was almost completely gone.
Andy thrust the stick into his face. Ashley took it and his eyes widened, a smile starting to form on his lips. "Really?" He asked.
Andy nodded, beaming himself, stroking his stomach lightly.
Ashley immediately picked up Andy, bridal style, connecting their lips. He gently pulled up Andy's over-sized t-shirt and kissed his flat stomach.
"Thank you," he whispered.

Time falls away, but these small hours.
These little wonders, still remain.