Chapter Eight: Ben.

Ben knew nothing of Ella's background, he knew none of her friends... all he knew was that she was amazing. There was always a sparkle in her eye. Her life seemed just... well not perfect but abnormally together. Her face was soft and she wasn't a skinny - I only eat 1200 calories a day- kind of girl; she wasn't a double zero with a clown painted face. She was normal, and nice, and beautiful.. most of all she was real and that is what made him like her even more.
"Excuse me?" Ben snapped out of lost thoughts and turned to a peirced and tatooed up biker who had his iguana on a leash.
"Yes, sorry, how can I help you?"
"Yeah, do ya'll take in road kill of any kind?" Road Kill? What the hell? Ben turned towards Ella who was stacking cat food in the corner.
"Umm, I don't think so? Road kill?"
"I happen to have a soft heart for animals. I didn't want to leave the poor creature in the middle of the road." Ben thought how ironic that a death machine - look of a man has a soft spot for dead animals.
"Umm, you know what let me ask the owner. One sec, just one sec." He walked out to Mrs. Pat's office at the end of the store. She looked busy, but she listened to him anyways.
"Well, tell the kind man that my brother owns a shop down the road, it's an animal shelter.. called Animal Safety Shelter. Tell him to go there. My brother will take care of it." She turned back to her work and then told him to shut the door.
"Sir, she said that down the road her brother owns a animal shelter that he could take care of it." The man looked flustered.
"Look man, I drug him from across the street I am on a big bike. There's no way I can." Ben was disturbed. He couldn't see another dead creature ever again, not after that night. "Look, I can't do that. Sorry."
"Fine, fine. Well I guess thanks for nothing."
"Uh huh." He turned around.. a little bothered and returned to fixing the little toys on the side of the counter.
"C'mon man, please I am begging you I can't just leave him on the side of the road... Please I will pay you, hell, I will even help you load him up."
"I can't.. I'm sorry. I can't." Ben didn't have the strength or the sanity to look at another dead body. Not after what he saw that hot summer night.
"Please." The man was now literally on his knees.."have mercy" in his eyes. Ben felt bad and wanted to help... the man looked pathetic and like it or not if that was Ben he would want the sales clerk to do it for him.
"Okay, but you have to load him up. I don't even want to look at him. I don't want to touch him. How about you just come with me?"
"Deal little dude."
"Okay, load him up on the hay truck I will get the keys."
"Okay, thank you so much little dude."
"Yeah." Ben walked away from the man with worry and coldness in his chest. The more he thought about the dead animal the more butterflies filled his body.
"Ben, where are you going? Are you okay? You look pale." Ella was walking towards him concern across her face.
"Yeah, I am gonna go down the road to drop this dead animal off.. be back."
"Are you okay?" She looked worried and a little stressed.
"Yapp." He walked off before she could say anything else. Leaving Ella feeling even more worried and stressed. As he left he turned to see her still staring down at him.. with confusion in her body language. How would he explain this to her? Would he? Or would he just not talk about it, ever again?