Flow of Madness

This is the last installment on my series about Grace and her relationships with the other members of the gang along with the impact of her death on all their lives. I decided to conclude the series with the most important person in Grace’s life and vice versa…Mr. Daddy Rich Hardbeck.

You can read the rest of this series by going to the table contents link on my tumblr page.

So this is Rich….

Relationship:

It started off with a snap judgment on Rich’s part and curiosity on Grace’s part. It was a romance for the ages. A stubborn, tactless, and shy Metalhead and a bubbly, feisty, and social Ballerina fall in love. Together they help one another become better people. They did not save one another and they did not create each other. They do not have a co-dependent relationship by any means. They simply learned from one another by allowing themselves to be open to it. Rich learned to live, smile, and not take life too seriously. Grace learned to be honest and learned to fight for the things she wanted. Together they shared a common old soul vibe mixed with passion and creativity. They were Mom and Dad of their group of friends. Together with their relationship Gen 3 became a unified group. They simply loved one another in the purest sense of the word. They never asked one another to change and ended up falling in love with their differences. It was a relationship of the soul, the mind, and the heart. It was the type of love that entwines people. It was real love.

Grief:

Everyone thought that we would see a sad and broken down Rich struggling to live after the death of Grace. Instead we got something different. We got a Rich who seemed to be surreally happy and mature. The reason for this is fully explained by the relationship I described. Rich and Grace were not co-dependent and in a unhealthy relationship. They were two individual people who fell in love and learned from one another organically. When Grace died she stayed in Rich’s mind and through her teachings she helps him navigate through his grief to find a strange sense of peace. Though he was still in pain and lost without her as anyone would be. However the strength Rich’s personality and the knowledge that Grace loved him emboldened Rich to grow up, take charge, get into University, and try to help his friends. He lives for Grace every day. Grace would be proud. At the end of the series we see a Rich about to start a new phase in his life. Grace is still a big part of him, but he is going to live…just like she taught him. Her memory will live forever through him. It’s beautiful. They’re beautiful. 

***Gifs are not mine***