Melinda and Josh, a prime example of what upper middle-class living has to offer.  An apartment in Manhattan's ritziest neighborhood, six figures in the bank, good friends and family, and most importantly of all, each other.  It was a Monday afternoon and both were walking around in the village, window shopping and chatting away as the busy traffic flows by them on the street.  Melinda is a skinny little nothing of a girl, standing only a few fractions of an inch over five feet and weighing in at only a hundred and three pounds.  Melinda’s hair hangs down to her waist, straight and dirty blonde.  Though the couple were satisfied with their living conditions they were always trying to improve it, Melinda at only twenty two, was working on her masters in psychology, so that she might become a therapist. Josh on the other hand came from money, and while he played around with the idea of going to school, he never bothered. He opted instead to work with his family, supervising a chain of grocery stores that spanned the east coast.   Josh was an average looking guy, short black hair, about six feet in height. Both Josh and Melinda are dressed casually, and one would never be able to tell their financial status by eyeing them on that December afternoon.

“Oh look!” Melinda says excitedly as they pass one particular store, tugging on Josh’s much larger hand in order to get him to stop walking.  Josh looks into the store window, looking in at all sorts of peculiar objects, a skeleton’s arm with hand still attached, a shrunken head, dried out insects and all sorts of other oddities.

“I’ve read about this place.” Josh says as he cocks an eyebrow at the items displayed before them.

“Let’s go in.” Melinda suggests.

“Nah, do we have to?” Josh groans miserably.

“Yes mister!” Melinda snaps playfully, her blue eyes scanning the window as she drags her lumbering boyfriend towards the door.  The couple walk in, a bell chiming overhead as their shoes creek on ancient hardwood flooring. Dust flows into their sinuses and Melinda cannot help but sneeze.

“Bless you…” Comes an odd masculine voice from further back within the dimly lit establishment.  Moments later footfalls can be heard creaking closer and closer and a short, pale man in an antiquated vest and a small top hat lumbers from the shadows.   

“Thank you.” Melinda says as the man offers a wide smile.

“You’re quite welcome dear...Can I help you?” The man asks in a slow and exaggerated tempo.

“Uh, no, we’re just looking around.” Josh interjects.

“Be wary of what you look at, some objects do not take kindly at being gawked upon.” The man says before turning around and walking back towards a small counter in the back of the store.  Melinda and Josh simply stare on, Josh giving a nervous little laugh as they both wear bewildered smiles.  Melinda slowly walks towards this counter and that, looking at the displays, the masks hanging upon the walls, old walking sticks, capes, and all sorts of Jewelry.  She soon spots something that looks out of place, a plain looking locket, heart shaped, with tiny emeralds inlaid around its edges.  

“Look at this…” Melinda waves her boyfriend over, who stares down at the piece of jewelry.

“What am I looking at?” Josh asks.

“The locket…” Melinda says, not averting her gaze for an instant, her eyes intently glued to the mundane piece of jewelry.

“I see it, and again, I ask, what am I looking at?” Josh blinks as he looks down on Melinda.

“Don’t you find that odd?” She asks as she looks up at Josh for a brief moment, before returning her gaze back to the locket.

“What? It’s just a locket.” Josh responds.

“It’s not strange, or odd at all, look at everything else here.” Melinda says as they both hear footsteps behind them.  The odd man slips behind the counter and places his hands atop the glass case.  

“Would you like to see it dear?” He asks with a smile.

“Yes, please.” Melinda responds as the man slides the back of the case open, and paws the locket, handing it to Melinda by it’s chain.  Melinda finds her heart leaping into her throat as she slowly takes the locket from the man, turning it this way and that and studying it.  For a few seconds, nothing else in the universe matters.

“Hello? Are you still with us?” Josh asks, but Melinda simply tugs at the small locket, opening it.  A small piece of age stained paper sits inside and Melinda places the locket down, carefully plucking the paper out and unfurling it.  The small woman bites her lip as she begins to read it out loud.

“To my lost, our love will never end, what is wrong, will right again.” Melinda says solemnly.  Josh simply stairs down as they both realize why this particular piece of jewelry is here.  Melinda carefully folds the note back up and stows it back within the locket, closing the tiny necklace with an audible snap.  

“How much?” Melinda asks the man behind the counter.

“What?!” Josh snaps.

“What? I want it, I think it’s beautiful.” Melinda says turning towards Josh.

“But...I mean...she obviously died...what if she died wearing it?!” Josh shoots back, obviously not on board with the idea of the purchase. The man behind the counter offers nothing, his face expressionless as his head turns between the two as they argue back and forth.

“Oh please...how do you even know she died? Maybe she left his ass because he wouldn’t buy her a locket!” Melinda smiles, laughing a bit as she dangles the piece of jewelry before Josh.

“How much?” Josh sighs.

“That is a hundred and five.” The man smiles as he waves them over to an old fashioned cash register.  The two walk to the counter and Josh pulls out his wallet, narrowing his eyes down at Melinda as she places the necklace around her neck.  He hands the man a credit card, which is swiped through a reader.

“You’re gonna...wear it?” Josh asks hesitantly, but Melinda seems to be in her own world, offering no response as the strange man hands Josh a receipt.  Josh snatches the receipt from the man’s hand.

“Enjoy.” The man smiles, taking his hat off in a small gesture of gratitude before placing it back on his head and walking through a door in the back of the store.

“Yeah...thanks…” Josh mutters before looking at his almost comatose girlfriend, her fingers idly toying with the heart shaped locket.  “Mission control to Melinda Pratt.” Josh says as he looks down on the girl.  Melinda blinks her eyes and shakes her head, smiling.

“Ok, let’s go.” She says, prancing from the store.  Josh had to wonder what had gotten into the girl, she had never in the four years of their relationship, made him buy her anything.  He holds the receipt in his hand loosely as they walk down the street.

“We should go get some lunch.” Melinda suggests as a strong gust of wind blows the receipt clear out of Josh’s hand, towards the street.  

“Dammit!” Josh mutters as he begins towards the busy flow of traffic.

“Josh leave it…” Melinda suggests as he walks into the street.

“Josh!” Melinda snaps, angrily.  “What are you-” She begins, but is cut off by the sound of a truck blasting its horn. Before she knows what is happening, she is watching a large semi slam into the love of her life, tossing him seven or eight feet into the air.  She watches, completely stunned as Josh rolls five or six times on the asphalt, his lifeless body coming to rest as the murmur of aghast onlookers enclose her in a world of stark shock.  

The truck releases the air from its air brakes.

“Oh my god! Oh my god!” A man’s voice can be heard as the door of the truck opens and then closes, a burly looking trucker rushing over to Josh’s limp body. Melinda stares on, the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end as realization slowly burrows into her brain.

“Someone call an ambulance!” A random feminine voice rings out as Melinda’s lips move, no words forthcoming.  The sound of people running into the street can be heard all around as a slow moan escapes Melinda’s lips, slowly turning it a shriek.  Melinda completely loses it, running towards the street.   “He’s not breathing!” The trucker calls out.  “Everyone back away! Back away! Give him room!” The burly man screams as Melinda falls to her knees over Josh’s body. She begins to sob hysterically as she looks down on her love, blood pooling around the back of his head, his eyes closed, and his chest lacking even the slightest of movement.

“Josh! Josh!” Melinda screams as she buries her tear soaked face into his chest. “Nooooo...nooooo…” She whines through her tears as she rocks back and forth. The sound of sirens can be heard in the distance as people look down on the gruesome scene, one of them being the shopkeeper, who wears a stone cold expression on his face as he looks on.

“C’mon C’mon C’mon.” A man’s voice calls out before Melinda is being pulled away from Josh’s body, the small woman going into completely and utter shock as she sobs, uncontrollably.  Melinda watches as Josh is put on a stretcher and runs forward as he is loaded into the back of an ambulance.  “I’m going!” She cries out and climbs into the back of the ambulance with a male paramedic and her lifeless boyfriend.  The doors are slammed shut and the sirens begin to blare.  The paramedic looks Josh over, checking for a pulse.  He sighs and knocks on the small window behind which sits a driver.  He shakes his head and the siren’s are switched off.

“What are you doing?!” Melinda asks through her tears.

“I’m...I’m really sorry hon.” The man says solemnly.