Chapter 31: Final Will and Testament

Chapter 31: Final Will and Testament

It had only been a day since Faith's death when Darren, Morgan, Ben, and Hope had been ushered into a limo and taken to the Hancock building to meet with lawyers about Faith's final will and testament. Since it was all contained in the little envelope she had left on the nightstand the night before she died, it was quiet easy to get this moving.

The press was still clueless about what had happened, but that would soon change when Darren's record company would make an announcement later on that afternoon about Faith's death and funeral.

Darren was now seated on a leather chair beside Morgan and Ben with Hope in his lap in front of a large glass table. The lawyers were all seated on the other side, this grim faces darkening when they opened the contents of the envelope.

"Well, this is interesting," the lawyer sitting at the head of the table, said as he held the CD in his hand and turned it over several times. "We've never gotten a DVD before."

"Benson, there's a sheet of paper sitting in front of you. I think that should be looked at first," a female lawyer in a gray suit sitting beside him, replied. She picked up the piece of paper and began to read.

"Dear whoever is reading this right now. This isn't my final will and testament, but you'll find it on the little tape in the envelope. Play that first before you take a look at the DVD. Sincerely, Faith."

The female took the tape sitting on the table and placed it in the video camera set up at the other end of the table. It was connected to a TV to multiply the image. She pressed play and everyone instantly saw Faith sitting on her bed only a couple of days earlier, her body frail and pale.

"Hey, guys. If you're watching this, I know I'm dead. But anyway, I have very few things to say and give away. First of all, Darren, please take good care of Hope for me. I know you will. You're a great father. I saw it when I was alive. I really don't think I have anything to worry about in that department. To you I leave the apartment and all my videos, which are stashed under the bed in a huge box that you didn't even know existed. Please show them to Hope when she's old enough.

"Morgan, my girl, my dog! You get all my stuff, including my clothes, makeup, and whatever else you find in my closet, under my bed, and in your closet. I know how much you loved all that Hollister stuff.

"Okay, second, I don't want my parents coming to my funeral. Do whatever you can to keep them away from my grave. Why the hell am I even calling them my parents anyway? They were nothing but assholes the last few months of my life. Otherwise, everyone else can come. Also, Darren, please don't give up music because of me. If anything, write a song for me. Just don't give up music. Stay strong, okay? You too, Mor. Send everyone my love. Oh, I almost forgot, the DVD. There's a little bit more stuff on that that I wanted to say. Play it next before you finish this tape. Bye, everyone. I love you all."

Faith disappeared from the tape as the female lawyer stopped the tape. She took the DVD out of its case and put it into the DVD player beneath the TV. Pressing play, she sat back in her seat and watched along with the others.

The video started in a studio with Faith sitting behind a piano beginning to play a song she had written.

"Time goes slowly now in my life Fear no more of what I'm not sure Searching for your soul The strength to stand alone The power of not knowing and letting go

I guess I've found my way It's simple when you try Feeling lucky just to be here tonight And happy just to be me and be alive

Love in and out of my, my heart And though life can be strange I can't be afraid Searching for your soul The strength to stand-alone The power of now knowing and letting go

I guess I've found my way It's simple when you try Feeling lucky just to be here tonight And happy just to be me and be alive

I guess I've found my way It's simple when you try Feeling lucky just to be here tonight And happy just to be me and be alive"

The camera cut to another scene where Faith was sitting on a bed in a hotel room looking like she had when Darren had first seen her, happy and full of life. "I should have done this a long time ago, but with things rushing by so fast, I just didn't have the time up until now. I should start from the beginning. I'm Faith Somers, I'm 18 years old, and I just graduated from Glenbard East High School. Class of 2002 baby! I'm going to Columbia College in downtown Chicago to study film and someday become a world-renowned music video director . . ."

Faith looked so happy back in the summer of 2002. Darren could feel the hundreds of emotions bubbling up in his mind when he remembered the first day that they met. He smiled for the first time in what felt like ages. He continued to watch the video as Faith was explaining her experiences of the summer. It brought back so many old memories that Darren couldn't help but laugh when he heard about getting caught on tape during their first kiss and cried the day he almost found her dead in the hotel room after drinking too much alcohol.

'What a trip down memory lane?' Darren thought. He watched the rest of the DVD with the others, laughing and crying whenever they did, and finally feeling a little better up until it was over and the female lawyer turned it off to continue the tape.

"It's almost been a month since the wedding, and here I am in bed again, unable to get up, barely able to move, and barely able to talk. If you haven't noticed, the cancer got worse and my tumor grew. It was the week after the wedding when I had my second seizure. I was sent straight to the hospital for tests, and the doctors found out that the tumor was starting to invade my motor strip, which makes it hard for me to move around and be myself. It's only a matter of time now before I'm gone. I've got a feeling it's going to be very soon, though.

"Darren's been very good to me lately. I think he's knows my time is almost up. He hasn't left the house since last week. He's been by my side 24/7, through thick and thin, seizure after seizure. I think he's even more frightened about me dying that I am. I don't know what he's gonna do when I'm gone. I just hope he doesn't do anything crazy, like try to kill himself or something.

"Anyway, I managed to finish my final will and testament before everything went downwind. Here it is on this little DVD." She held up the small disk for the camera. "I think it's my best work to date. I showed it to the guy who helped me make it at Columbia, and he actually cried. I'm just hoping Darren and Morgan are strong enough to handle it. I also hope that Darren realizes it's something he should save for Hope to see. I want her to know her mother from the inside out, not little bits and pieces of her.

"What else can I say besides the fact that I'm dying, and there's no way to stop it? I know, how about something on the lighter side of things? We celebrated Darren's 31st about a week and a half ago. We couldn't do much, though, because of my illness. We had a little party here at home. It's wasn't much, but it was enough for him. He still had me, so he was happy.

"I don't even want to begin to think what Darren will go through after I pass. I know he's going to be devastated, but I can't imagine how much this will affect him. He's been through a lot lately, especially with his record company trying to push him to release another single off the album. He's told them several times that he wants to spend time with me and that he'll do it after I'm gone, but in reality, I want him to release it now before he gets too emotional. I don't want him to break down in the middle of a promo tour because of me.

"And Morgan, don't even get me started. I think I've told that girl a million times to get her ass back to school, but NOOOO! She doesn't want to leave me when I need her help the most. She even postponed her wedding because she knew I wouldn't be able to attend in any way, shape, or form. I can see that even though she really wants me to be in it, she doesn't want to see me going through anymore pain. That girl is something else. She's willing to put everything aside just to be with her best friend. I never realized up until now how much she really meant to me. She's like my sister. Everything she said in the limo the day of the wedding was true, she really does love me like family, and I do to. I think she's more a part of my family that my parents have ever been. I wonder if we were twins separated at birth? Hmm. . . That would be interesting to find out.

"Ben moved in with us a few days after the wedding. He couldn't stand being away from Morgan any longer. He really does love her as much as she loves him. I hope those two grow old together. I know I'm never going to find out, but at least when I die, I'll know that they were always a happy couple." Faith yawned, her eyelids quickly becoming heavy.

"Well, folks, I have a feeling that this is going to be the last entry to the story of my life. I hope you enjoyed it. I know I did. This is Faith Somers Hayes signing out. Keep in mind, life is a road trip, so stay on the right road. Peace."

Darren could feel his eyes tearing up once more when he realized this was taken the night before she died. How could she have possibly known and not told him? He couldn't believe he didn't notice until it was too late. His heart sank as his mind slumped into a deeper depression.

"Darren?" Morgan was saying as she took Hope from him. He looked up at her, the expression on his face looking almost too painful to look at. "Are you okay?" He shook his head. "Come on, let's go. The meeting is over. We need to get ready for everything else." He nodded and stood up. They walked out of the office together, their eyes staying as far away from each other as possible.

Darren had finally accepted that his life was only going to get worse from this point on. With the loss of his best friend and wife, he didn't want to live anymore. Nothing in his life would be the same.

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