A “For Sale” sign stood in front of the building that housed two of the best musicians at Canterlot High. The color from the sign began to fade from months and months of being on the market. Many people saw the house as a reminder of losing the famous “DJ PON3” to depression. Many people avoided it like it was nothing. Except for one cellist who made it a routine to stop by the house every day on her way to school.
After the death of Vinyl Scratch, Octavia decided to move out of the house. The death of her best friend- the girl she loved- was too much for her. Staying in their house, she saw hallucinations of that day, of her girlfriend hanging herself every time she looked in the room. The pain of feeling it was her fault grew too great, so she left. But, she couldn’t forget her. So, every day on her way to school, she would walk in front of the house and stop. She would stand in remembrance for a while, then carry on her way.
10 months had gone by since that tragic day. Each day, Octavia walked past the house where Vinyl died and was driven to the brink of tears each time. Octavia didn’t move too far. She still needed to get to school easily by walking. So, she moved a few blocks further from the school.
November 25th, Octavia followed through with her usual routine. During school, she heard everyone talking about what they’d be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Everyone was saying how thankful they were for the wonderful friends they had in their lives. Octavia couldn’t say the same.
After the incident, Octavia lost all her friends and social connections. She either withdrew from people, or they withdrew from her. She was alone without a single friend to turn to. She spent her days alone, listening to an old iPod Vinyl gave her.
The day after the incident, Octavia decided she would try to be strong and get through the entire day at school. However, she was met with questions from people, they were asking why she had left school in the middle of the day in such a hurry. Most of the questioning people, she just ignored and gave no answer to. She felt no need to explain herself. However, each time someone asked her what happened, she nearly cried and fled to hide her pain. This went almost the entire day, until Lyra Heartstrings asked her what happened.
When Lyra asked, it triggered the breaking of a flood dam that was holding back gallons upon gallons of water. Octavia poured her eyes out explaining what she saw when she got back to her house. She cried until she couldn’t cry anymore. By the time she was done, Lyra wasn’t looking at her the same way. “Lyra, Is something the matter?” Octavia asked through her tears. In a dark quiet voice Lyra said, “Murderer.”
The word rang in her ears. Did she really murder her best friend? The one person she really, deeply cared about? Yes. It makes sense. She was the reason Vinyl killed herself. She was the reason Vinyl was depressed in the first place. It was all her fault.
Octavia told herself that everyday since the incident that it was her own fault. She always blamed herself. Rumors began flowing through the school, about how Octavia murdered Vinyl Scratch and tried to hide the body. She had no way to defend otherwise. She just let the accusations flow against her. They weren’t completely wrong, after all.
After the rumors began swirling around the school for a while, Octavia got tired of the questions people asked her. Her classmates didn’t want to be associated with a killer. Everyone abandoned her. As a sign of her failure and inability to help her friend, Octavia carried around Vinyl’s note in the pocket of her jeans. She never revealed to anyone she did.
One fateful day, Octavia walked through the school hallways like she usually did. She didn’t feel it was special in any way. Until a gentle hand was placed on her shoulder. She turned around to see one of Vinyl’s closest friends, Neon Lights.
“Octavia, what really happened? I’ve heard rumors that you murdered her yourself, and others that she was depressed and committed suicide. So, I want to know straight from the horse's mouth. If you feel comfortable talking about it, that is,” Neon said. Octavia was shocked. The one person she expected to completely hate her and be completely against her wanted to know how she felt.
“I pushed Vinyl away. I made her feel like she wasn’t worth anything. I made her feel like she needed to die. She killed herself because I wasn’t a good girlfriend.” Octavia replied. As she spoke, tears began flowing out of her eyes.
“What’s that in your hand?” Neon asked. In Octavia’s bunched up fist, she realized she had pulled Vinyl’s last words out of her pocket and began clenching it in her fist. She decided to trust Neon and gave the paper to him. “It’s Vinyl’s note. She wrote this and I found it when I got home. I carry it around with me as a reminder,” Octavia said, handing him the small piece of paper.
Neon began reading aloud “Dear Octavia, I’m sorry for all the trouble I caused you. For keeping you up late at night, and eating all the food, and generally making your life suck. But, it’s alright now. You won’t have to-” He stopped himself from reading aloud any more. After a bit more of reading, he gave the note back to Octavia. “And these were her last words?” Neon asked. “Yes,” Octavia responded with misty eyes.
Neon felt the weight Octavia was feeling when she spoke . His eyes glazed over with tears. “Thanks for the info, Octavia. I’ll see you around,” Neon said. “Of course. Good bye, Neon,” Octavia said as she walked away.
Octavia walked the halls with tears in her eyes. Everyone noticed she was crying, but with the rumors in mind, they believed she didn’t deserve to be comforted. One girl noticed more than anyone, but couldn’t bring herself to talk to Octavia. Lyra firmly believed Octavia was responsible for Vinyl’s death.
Octavia continued through the waves of people, wiping the tears from her face occasionally. Not one soul stopped to help her or ask if she was okay. She felt isolated beyond belief. Yet, she carried on like a strong soldier.
That day, after school, she changed up her routine. Instead of going by the house Vinyl died, she visited her grave at the cemetery. She stood in front of the grave saying nothing for what seemed like an eternity. She didn’t visit her grave often, mainly for the reason that she couldn’t help but thinking Vinyl’s death was her fault.
“Vinyl…” she finally spoke. “I’m sorry… It’s all my fault… I did this to you… If it wasn’t for me, you’d still be here… I’m sorry I drove you to this point… I miss you so much. Please, come back to me. I promise I’ll be better,” The tears flowed like a waterfall as she spoke. “Please… Forgive me…” she concluded. When she regained her composure, she turned from the grave and walked away. In the process, her thoughts drifted to the funeral.
The rain poured hard. People in black suits and dresses covered the cemetery grounds. Not many showed up, but those who did were Vinyl’s closest friends and her parent’s friends. Neon Lights was dressed in a way no one ever thought he would be: A black tie, white button up shirt, black blazer, black pants, and shiny black shoes. Almost the exact opposite of his usual attire.
When the pastor finished his speech, Vinyl’s mother approached the podium to make a speech. She spoke of how Vinyl was always happy and upbeat like the music she made. Octavia could say otherwise, seeing that she noticed Vinyl getting depressed before she killed herself. Vinyl’s mother wasn’t quite as upbeat as Vinyl was, so she cried through the entire thing. Her father, on the other hand, smiled despite being in extreme pain from losing his little girl.
Octavia decided she would make a speech in honor of Vinyl. She lethargically approached the podium. As she did, everyone except Neon Lights glared at her. Everyone stared with rage at the girl in the pink bow tie.
“Vinyl was undeniably my best friend. I cared for her like no one else. She always made me smile and showed me how much I meant to her. However, I didn’t do the same. I pushed her away and made her feel insignificant. It’s my fault she’s gone. She didn’t deserve this. Any of this. I apologize from the bottom of my heart.”
She snapped back to reality. The tears were streaming down her face grew heavier and she weeped harder, to a point that it was audible. Her lip quivered. She turned and ran all the way home.
She got home and went to her room. She set up the room to prepare for her suicide, excluding a note, because she knew no one would miss her. She tied a rope to her ceiling fan, and placed a chair under where she’d hang. She got on the chair and put the noose around her neck. “Goodbye, Vinyl,” she whispered to herself and prepared for death.
“What’s wrong, Tavi?” A familiar voice said. She opened her eyes to see a familiar memory from when Octavia and Vinyl were kids. Octavia was on the ground with scrapes and bruises, while Vinyl was standing in front of her. “Older kids keep bullying me. And my parents are pushing me too hard. I can’t do this anymore,” A young Octavia said, tears streaming down her face. Vinyl crouched down in front of Octavia. Grabbing her chin, Vinyl lifted Octavia’s head so her face was visible.
“Tavi, I’ll always be by your side. Okay? Even when I’m not physically with you, I’m always emotionally with you. I don’t ever want to see you cry again. Okay? Now how about a smile!” Vinyl said with a smile shining brighter than the sun. Her smile was infectious, and Octavia began smiling to. “Sure,” Octavia nodded, drying her tears.
Octavia removed the noose from around her neck and stepped down from the chair. She dried her tears and put on a smile. “Okay, Vinyl,” she said. “I’ll smile for you. And I’ll never cry again. I promise,”
