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June 4th, 19797:28am I awake with a start, already on edge. I'm covered in sweat and I realize that I'm only awake because Ben fucking Solo needs to wash his car listening to Hall and Oates as loud as possible at whatever the hell time it is. I hate him. Oh, how I fucking hate him. I start trying to yank open the window of my trailer and I end up almost ripping it out. I'm so angry I push the screen out and start shouting at him to turn it the fuck down, middle fingers out. He turns to me and stops, but only for a moment, before he pulls the hose up the his mouth and starts dancing and signing at the top of his lungs. "REY YOU - YOU MAKE MY DREAMS COME TRUE, OHHH OH. OH, OH, OH, OH, OH."He's wearing those tiny red shorts, sans shirt and he's pointing to me while he dances like some... Big, dumb stripper. I can feel my blush burn me almost worse than the fever I've been having. Argh...
"Asshole!" I shout and grit my teeth, having to hop to my feet on the bed to slam the window shut. I drop back down onto my back and huff and puff. I'm so mad. Fuck! I scratch my leg angrily, enjoying the burn and comfort I get. Ah. I sweep my super long brown hair from my face and sigh happily, snuggling into my pillow. I feel terrible but sleep comes to me easy and quick. 5:36pmMy eyes are still closed but I can feel I'm sweating more than before. My leg is itching again. Fucking... Stupid bite. I tear the sheets off and inspect it. It's scabbed over for the most part but I can where my nails dug in and tore a bit off. The puss and blood stains on my mattress look totally gruesome. I feel horrible. God, I should have gone to the hospital, but I didn't think there was much they could do for a dirt-poor girl who got bit while camping. I have some old antibiotics from when I had strep throat but... maybe they're too old. Damn it. Rose insisted I go but I don't have any money. I didn't even tell my mom because she's always working and her boyfriend is a piece of shit, drug dealing predator who has taken over my house, hence why I'm exiled to the trailer in the front yard. I don't even really remember what attacked me out in the woods. Poe, Finn and Rose found me almost a mile away from the camp site in the morning. I don't even remember getting up to leave the tent. Poe wrapped it for me like a good boyfriend, pouring some mint Schnapps on it. I screamed bloody murder. They dropped me off a few days ago and no one has come to see me yet. I'm seriously dying to smoke a joint. I groan as I roll out of bed and stumble out the door to the front yard, going straight to the garden hose. Thirsty, thirsty, thirsty, thirsty. The water comes out hot so I let it run for a minute and wobble on my legs as I look around the neighborhood. It's probably around 4 or 5pm, and it's hot out here. The water finally cools and I start slurping loudly, water running down my chin. So fucking good. I see Ben leaning on his car, talking to some painted candy whore blonde in a tube top and white high waisted pants that look impossible to breathe in, even though she's almost as skinny as me. She laughs and touches his bicep and I glare and look away, still gulping away. Skank. Ben turns to see me, and he bursts out laughing. He calls to me, his hands circled around his mouth. "Hey, Rey! Forget something?"I flip him off and keep drinking. Asshole. The girl is laughing and pointing at me but Ben isn't smirking anymore. He leaves her standing there, and runs over to me. I take a step back, still drinking, ready to spray him in the face. I glare for a second before I go back to slurping obnoxiously."Rey..." He whispers. "Are you okay? You're uh, not wearing any pants, doll."I glance at him out the side of my eye and shrug. It's hot. Duh. He keeps standing there and then gasps silently. "Jesus, Rey!" He hisses. "What the fuck happened to your leg!" He kneels down to look at it. I kick him away and growl, deeper than I'd thought I could. Whoa. Ben looks up at me, startled too. I look away and keep drinking. I can feel my belly expanding with the cold water but I can't stop. I wonder if I'll explode or just pee myself. But Ben stands up and rips the hose from my hand. "Hey, asshole!" I yell as I try to yank the hose back but he just sprays me down with the cold water and I yelp as I cover my chest. I don't miss him glace at my tits, no doubt seeing right through my white crop tee shirt. My nipples are hard now. Asshole! "F-fuck!" I grit, shivering now.He drops the hose and turns off the water so quickly that I don't even register him picking me up like some damsel until we're halfway through the door of my trailer. I start pounding my fists on his chest and he laughs, turning his face away from me so I just grab onto his hair and pull it hard. "Ow! Don't pull my hair! I work hard on this feathering, Rey! Fucking brat!" I pull harder. Fuck his dumb hair. "Ow! Stop!" He drops me on my bed and I shuffle back and bring my knees to my chest. I do feel a little better after the cold water but now I'm all wet; my hair is dripping and my shirt is soaked. I stick my tongue out at him, which makes him scowl.
"Stop being so difficult, you brat!"
He grabs my foot, pulling me half way across the bed which makes my shirt ride up, almost exposing my tits. I pull it down quickly and blush furiously. I won't give him that satisfaction ever again. The last time was too weird. He kneels down at the foot of the bed, looking at my bite and his eyebrows shoot up his forehead. He even gasps a little again, turning it over slowly, softly touching around it. "Holy shit..." He murmurs under his breath. He looks up to me, and he looks horrified. "What happened...?"I look away, annoyed with him acting like he cares. "Went camping with Rose and Finn. Something bit me."I play with my hair and try to go for the 'too cool for you' act but Ben doesn't care. I need a hair cut. It almost reaches my butt. "When?" He demands. I purse my lips. "Few days ago."He glares at me. "And you didn't think to go to the hospital? Did you do ANYTHING for it?" He's speaking through his teeth. Uh oh. He's mad. "Well..." I twirl my finger in my hair and bite my lip. "Poe put some alcohol on it and wrapped it and they brought me home... It's not that bad, Ben -""Not that bad?!" He shouts suddenly, making me flinch away. I know he'd never hurt me, but it scares me anyways. "You could have rabies! Get gangrene or something! What the fuck! You could die! You could -"
He stops shouting then and his eyes narrow. He leans forward, inches from my face. I blink, wide eyed.
"Did you say... Poe? Poe Dameron? What the fuck are you doing with him? What, is he your fucking boyfriend now?" He's whispering but then yanks on my foot, making me yelp again when I don't respond. "Huh?!"My eyes rim with angry tears. Is he fucking serious? Like he has any room to talk! "Yes!" I shout back at him. "He cares about me, unlike SOMEBODY."Ben flinches a little at the venom in my voice before he frowns at me, sadness glimmering in his dark eyes while he stares at my gory leg.
"Oh, really? Well... He's got a funny way of showing it, seeing how he leaves you in a trailer for days without medical attention." Ben sighs before looking at me. "He's an asshole, Rey. He's just using you." He mumbles, all pissed off while he strokes my calf. "Looks like you both have that in common, then." I sniff. He sighs again and gets up. "Where are you going?!" I yell, not that I care, because I don't. He stops at the door, his hand on the lever and huffs. "I'm going to go get you some medicine. And gauze and ointment and... Some food. And a jug of water. And... Some clothes for myself." He's staring at the door, but I'm staring at him. "Why..?" I whisper. I know why - I just want to hear him say it. He rolls his eyes, annoyed. "I'm staying the night with you, you dummy, to make sure you're okay." He turns to look at me. "You need a little TLC, doll."My heart thrums heavily in my chest and I'm so light headed and sick that I just smile weakly. He cares. "Thank you, Benny." I whisper. He smiles back and walks out the door. I lay back and cross my arms over my wet chest, closing my eyes while shivering a little. He knocks on the window, and I bolt up, alarmed. "I'll be back in half an hour or so." I nod to him and he smiles sweetly. "I'm gonna kick the absolute dog shit out of Poe when I see him." He waves and I watch him go, chewing on my lip. The girl is still there, looking all pissy but Ben hands her something from his pocket and waves her off when she tries to hand him money. She stomps away and I giddily hope he brings some grass with him. That will make me feel better. I lay back down as he drives away and wrap the sheet around myself. I'm still pouring sweat and my stomach suddenly lurches, followed by a horrendous stabbing feeling right in my gut. I gasp and writhe in the bed, panting heavily. I push my palm into my stomach and hold my breath, grinding my teeth. Oh my god. Am I fucking dying?
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I'm trying to hurry through the small pharmacy off on Corelian Avenue where my cousin works but I can't stop thinking about how Rey looks like an actual fucking car wreck. Argh! I can't believe Poe Dameron just left her like that! She... She looks like she's about to die. Her pretty tan skin is so pale. I'm making myself literally sick with worry.My face rolls into a frown. Jesus. What am I? My mom? C'mon, Ben. Don't get all... lovey-dovey. Rationality is what fixes these things. Just stick to the list. Don't get distracted. Ask Hux some questions.And then get the hell out and back to Rey. Poor doll...Hux is staring at a box of band aids he's holding in his hand in silence when I bring him all the medical supplies in the little hand cart. The Temptations are playing over head and the store is empty. I clear my throat, but he keeps staring intently. My grimace deepens and my patience wears thin. Oh come on, man - I don't have time for this! I smack the box out of his hands and he looks up, angry, face all pink. "I was reading that, Solo..." He sneers. I smirk. "Groovy. I've got shit I gotta do, and I need to ask about which is best for uh, animal bites." I hold up my little cart. We talk briefly about how I should help her, tapping my fingers on the counter. "Ah, I forgot to mention, though... No shirt, no service. Sorry, Solo." Hux smiles. I set my jaw. "But cuz, I insist... Please take my money." I reach for the money I keep tucked in my waistband. I grab it and shove it deeper, dragging it across my swamp-like sweaty balls and pull it out, smearing it across his face. He does nothing but look horrified. I grin. I love it. I drop the money on the counter and tip my imaginary cowboy hat with a wink and blow a kiss. It's times like this I know dad thinks good about me.
I purse my lips. At least, I hope he does. I stop by the house to grab some food and I find some left over steak and potatoes in the fridge and throw it that stupid Tupperware shit mom has. I grab some clothes and jog over to Rey. I smile, reminiscing.
Sleepover with Rey, just the good ole days.
I kick open the door because I can't get the stupid lever to work and I see Rey curled up in a ball, panting. It takes all my self control to not run over and lose my shit. Don't panic, don't panic.
"Fuck."
I gently set everything down on the little table and crawl across the bed to hold her. She's burning up. I sweep my hand over her forehead to wipe the sweat off and press my lips to her, like mom did when I was sick. Her skin actually burns my lips. I recoil a little."Jesus Christ, Rey. Here, sit up." I whisper and hoist her up.
She whimpers and shakes. I lean over to grab the bottle of antibiotics and one of the jugs of water and slide the pills into her trembling mouth, helping her drink.
She's supposed to take two every six hours for a week. She sips the water weakly at first, then snatches it from my hands and gulps it down. I keep petting her hair and run my fingers up and down her arm, making her get goosebumps.i swallow dryly as I watch her, sick to my stomach. I'm so scared she really might die. I can't handle that. I'll lose my mind.
She finishes the jug off and drops it down between her crossed legs. She wipes her chin and points weakly to the Tupperware, whimpering pitifully. I grab it and hand it to her and she tears it apart greedily and sloppily. Poor thing, I wonder when the last time she ate was... I look off to glare out the window. I'm gonna rip Poe's fucking head off and kick it like a soccer ball when I see him. She's licking her fingers and sighing when she's done, all happy and content. She nuzzles into my side and I wrap my arm around her thin shoulders, a little shocked she's being sweet again. "Do you wanna shower? I can, uh.. Help you.. If you want." She nods and I get up to help her. Her eyes are glazed over, but she doesn't look quite as pale. Good. She peels off her drenched white crop top and pulls off her panties without hesitation and I look away, a little uncomfortable; the last time she was naked in front of me, we were drunk and high on grass and even though the night was one of my most favorites, the morning didn't really end... Well. I help guide her into the tiny shower, turning on the cold water. She doesn't even flinch as the freezing water sprays down onto her and she holds my arm for support as she closes her eyes. I hand her the orange soap bar but she won't take it so I suds it up and rub it against her arched back, down her long and tanned legs, over and under her slim arms. I grit my teeth but try to whistle while I work. Ugh, such a hot little body... I lick my lips but keep at the task at hand. Be respectful - she's sick.She places her hands on the wall and I use both hands to wash her dirty and salty skin off. I gulp as I run my hands softly over her breasts, trying to get this done as quick as possible but also being thorough. She keeps her eyes closed but she's panting heavily, squirming a bit.
Does she... like this? Hmm... I brush my thumb against her hard nipple, watching her closely. Rey hums lightly and arches her back a bit more.
Interesting.
I gently rub her tits and I can feel myself getting harder. I should stop. She's sick. I slowly clean her tight belly and dip the soap bar between her legs (only to be helpful, of course) and I barely graze her clit when she suddenly tugs me up into the tiny shower with her, using way more strength than I thought she'd have being so sick. "Fuck!" I spit.
The water is freezing and I try to jump get out but she holds my arms roughly, digging her nails into my flesh. It's hard to move."Ouch, hey, relax! That hurts!" I say through my teeth, trying not to shiver. She looks up at me with those glazed hazel eyes, her hair slick and stuck to her arms and down to her ass. She smiles hazily. "Shh."Rey gets down on her knees and tugs my shorts down, grabbing my cock with her skinny hand and starts jerking me off. I'm shocked at her behavior, but it feels good, even though the freezing water isn't doing me any favors in the length department. I turn the water off with a shaking hand and place it on the crown of her head as she begins to lick and suck my dick. Feels really fucking good.
I gasp when she starts sucking harder, bobbing her head, going to town. I'm not gonna last like this. I rub my eyes with my palms and stutter out, "R-Rey, h-h-h-hey... Let's put on s-some m-m-music... f-f-fuck...! First."She looks up at me, almost dead eyed, and slides my dick out with a wet pop. Rey smiles and nods as she rises and sways over to the record player. She picks something out while I sit on the edge of the bed and admire her long legs dripping with cold water, warming up in the hot ass trailer.
But I can't look away from the bite - it's a strange dark blue and but not as pus-like as it had been earlier. Huh. Maybe she's already doing better. Definitely has her strength back, that's for damn sure... Lynyrd Skynard's Free Bird starts playing. I roll my eyes. Ugh, really? She slowly turns back to me, getting down on her knees and crawls to me, grinning wildly and I feel like prey. It's weirdly... hot. She crawls into my lap and doesn't waste anytime sliding down on my dick. She's so wet and hot all over that it makes me dizzy. She rides me like I've never had before and I fall back into the bed and let her do her thing. She moans and digs her nails into my chest and I softly grasp her hips, groaning with every one of her moans. I open my eyes and see her head tilted back and her long hair falling over her shoulders like cascades of water, like a woodland nymph.
God. I think I love her. My orgasm is building and she's going faster and faster and it's driving me crazy. My toes start to curl and my cheeks get hot when I feel her tighten around me, riding out her orgasm and it's all over for me from there. "Rey... Get off.. I'm gonna cum." I try to tell her but she's lost in her own bliss, so I have to lift her up and off quickly just as I shoot hot cum on to my stomach.
Fuck, shit.
I run my hands through my hair and pant with my eyes closed for a minute. Whew, that was too close. No Ben Jrs for now. Rey giggles and lays next to me, wrapping her leg over my hip and I hold her while I catch my breath for a little while. Fuck. She traces her fingers down the bones of my chest, between my pecks. She traces my collar bones and my Adam's apple. Her skin is still hot but I kind of just figure it's from the sex we just had. I look down at her and she definitely seems 100 times better. But I wanna wrap the bite, still. I sit up to get the gauze and ointments, pulling her leg over my lap and trying to clean it with hydrogen peroxide. She hisses a little but mostly is tough like she's always been, since we were kids. I always thought I was gonna marry her back then. So weird to think now I'm her "sancho" of sorts. Christ. I purse my lips while I work, tilting my head. Oh well. Not every relationship is perfect, I guess. I finish wrapping it and place a kiss to it and she laughs. "Gee, thanks daddy." She says as she flicks my nipple. "Ew, don't say that... That's so creepy, Rey." I roll my eyes and flick her nipple back, which turns into us trying to pinch each other's nipples back and forth until we're wrestling like when we were kids. Eventually we lay back down and I hold her close. The record plays for awhile until we hear a car pull up out front, sounding like it had run over the curb a bit. I figure it's just Qi'ra but then we hear a loud pounding on the door of the trailer.
We both shoot up and Rey looks to me confused before she yells, "I'm busy!"The voice yells back, "Come on, babe. Open up. I miss you!"It's Poe. And he's drunk. I jump up and pull on my damp shorts and stomp to the door.
Fucking finally.
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Ben snatches the door open and it only takes a moment or two of yelling before the guys are shoving each other. I can't let Poe see me stark naked so I jump up to grab a yellow crop top and my jean shorts before I go to try and break up the dog fight.
Boys are so fucking stupid. Man, I feel sooo much better. It's weird. Those antibiotics kicked in almost instantly. Or maybe I just really needed some food. Whatever it is, I have almost more than my usual strength and I pull Ben away and get in between them, yelling. "Hey, cut it out! What's fucking wrong with you?!"
I'm mostly yelling at Poe because I know what Ben's deal is. Poe points at Ben behind me. "What's he fuckin' doing here?! And where is his shirt?! You fucking whore!"Poe is drunk, and clearly feeling insecure. For good reason, but I don't want Dryden coming out here and making things worse. I speak sternly to him. "He's taking care of me. I was really sick Poe, and he got me medicine. You just left me here!"He looks down, a little ashamed. Shocker.
"I... I didn't know! I've been working, ya know... Come on, baby." He holds his hands out to me, faux sadness on his stupid face. "I can play doctor. I'll take care of you." Ew, he's pouting. I can't stand when he does that. Ugh. I flip my hair over my shoulder and cross my arms. I'm beyond irritated now. Poe just rubs his hands together and looks at me hopefully, still with a pitiful look on his dumb face. "Poe, fuck off. You're gonna piss me off and then Dryden is gonna come out here and kick your ass when I'm done with you. Go hang out with Finn or something. Just get out of here.""But... Baby..." His lower lip juts out. "I wanna take care of you." He casts a glare at Ben. "Solo isn't the kind of guy you need hanging around you. Come on, babe."Poe reaches out for me but before I can smack it away, Ben puts his hand on my shoulder and pulls me closer to him. So protective. I look up at him and smile. "She already told you to kick rocks, man. You're lucky I don't break your fuckin nose, Dameron. Leave."Poe glares at Ben but turns and leaves with his shoulders hunched. I shut the door and lock it and walk back to the bed, closing the drapes after I see Poe drive away like an asshole. I roll my eyes and flop on to the bed while Ben peaks out the drapes. "Hmm. You pick 'em well, doll." He says as he smirks down at me. I smack his arm. "I know, right?"He kisses me sweetly on the lips and pets my hair. My hearts thumps happily. "Feeling better? You sure look and sound like it."I nod and he braids my hair like when we were kids. We drift off to sleep with the windows open, cuddled up while Pink Floyd's Animals record plays in the dark. I feel so much better, and even though Ben barely fits on the bed, I know we fit well together.
Someone is whispering to me to wake up. I push the drunk and sleeping Poe off of me and follow the voice out of the tent. I stumble over a few beer cans and squint in the limited moonlight. I don't see anyone but I feel compelled to follow the voice. It sounds familiar but it's too faint to be sure. I walk for a long time, carefully stepping over branches and around bushes. I think I can finally see a figure out ahead of me... Is it Rose? I call out to her but she keeps walking. I jog to close the distance and when I reach her, I notice she isn't wearing any clothes. What the fuck? I touch her arm but she won't look at me. She keeps telling me that we're almost there but I don't know what's happening. Is she sleep walking? When we finally come to a stop on the top of a hill, I yank her arm towards me and her eyes are all white. I freeze. She had no irises, only the small black pinpoints of her pupils. The whites remind me of seashells. Shiny. Reflective, almost. I don't understand what I'm looking at. I'm dreaming. She stares at me with her mouth hanging open. A black goo begins dripping. Drip. Drip. Dripping from her mouth and then it's gushing and her pupils her bigger and bigger until they're also dripping out of her eyes and down her face. I start to scream. I've never been so scared. This is a fucking nightmare. I try to run but I twist too quickly and fall onto the rocky ground under me. I scatter back and keep screaming. The thing turns its head down towards me and its head twitches all about at my screaming and it falls to its hands and knees, jerking uncontrollably and making obnoxious sniffing noises and gurgles from the black fluid that's still gushing. It lurches forward and grabs my leg in a gnarled cage of boney fingers and I try kicking it with my other foot but it does nothing to deter it. Long, thick dark blue spikes form out of the melting face and black inky mouth and gnash into my leg. it burns it burns it burns it burns it burns I'm screaming and crying try to push it away from me and yank my leg free but it starts sucking and I can feel the horrible black, hot liquid burning into my leg. I scream and scream but no one comes to save me. I'm gonna die with a monster eating me alive. I cry and struggle until suddenly there isn't anything suckling on me. I get up and try to run but I can't. I crawl on the woodland ground until the pain in my leg makes me vomit. The last thing I see through my tear soaked vision is that my vomit is black.
And then so is everything else.
I wake up screaming and clawing at the monster above me, trying to hold me down. I lash out at the monster's face and bite at it's hands, making the monster yell in pain. I see the blood dripping from its face. Somewhere, Ben is screaming at me to stop, but I can't. I have to kill it. I have to get away.
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I'm holding my bloody face with one hand and trying to pin her hands with the other; it's not working out too well.
I keep trying to plead with her to be quiet and wake up but it's not doing anything. I know her mom or Dryden is gonna come out here and cause a scene so I clap my hand over her mouth but she bites me. I gasp loudly. "God DAMN it, Rey!"I rear back and slap her hard across the face without thinking. She wakes up suddenly, sitting up and instantly starts crying. I feel kind of bad about hitting her but she did just kind of try to rip my eyes out. I hold and shush her while she starts babbling about some monster in the woods. "It was just a bad dream, kid, you're okay. I'm here, you're okay."I grab the antibiotics and have her swallow them dry. I dab the blood from my face and she cries about how sorry she is but I'm just glad she isn't screaming anymore.
We snuggle back to sleep and my hand throbs but I'm too tired to give a shit. She nuzzles into my chest and whispers something I can't hear. I kiss her head and fall back asleep. I feel miserable as soon as the sun peaks through the curtains and I put my arm over my face, groaning. Taking care of someone is way more exhausting than I thought it would be. I should apologize to my mom sometime.
Rey talks me into driving to the little diner in town and getting breakfast. We listen to Gene Chandler to her dismay. She likes KISS but I don't have any a-tracks of them. When we sit down and I take off my sunglasses, I finally get a good look at Rey and she looks as terrible as I feel. I know I don't look any better: I had to patch my face up because her fucking tiger claws mangled my face and I didn't style my hair. I must actually look like a dope dealer now.
Great. She's pale and the bags under her eyes are telltale of our long night. I rest my throbbing hand in my lap. It's bruised and a little scabbed. I'm really trying not to be irritated about everything because it's not her fault but... fuck.
I chew on my lip to keep quiet while she rearranges the napkins awkwardly. Is it always going to be this weird when we screw? I sigh. Suddenly, I'm starving. It's enough to make my stomach twist in pain and knock the breath out of me. My mouth waters and I flag down the waitress. We both order a bunch of food and eat all of it. I've never seen a girl eat like that before. Then again... I've never really eaten like that before, either. Even the waitress looked disgusted but I felt better and better with every bite; I couldn't get enough.
We eat mindlessly for a long while and finally stop around the time the lunch crowd is coming in. Rey drops her fork on the table, knocking me from my food frenzied daze. I wipe my mouth off and we stare at each other for a moment. "Uh... What do you wanna do now?"Rey just shrugs and smiles. "Whatever you want, Ben." We go to the public pool because the heat is getting to me. I'm pouring sweat. Rey is a knock out in her red bikini and I just had to toss her into the pool. She squeals and I jump in after her, causing a huge splash from my canon ball that pisses off all the mom tanning around us.
We play Marco Polo with some kids until the sun is low in the sky and they leave with their parents. I talk the lifeguard, Kaydel, into letting us stay late after getting her high for free by the dumpster. Everyone leaves when streetlights come on and we float around in the hot night, smoking cigarettes and talking about being kids while the sky turns from purple to black. The stars are bright, but the full moon is brighter. It's a perfect night. Rey is laughing and wiping her tears, gasping while she tries telling me about the time I dared her to eat a whole tin of black licorice that was probably a billion years old my dad had in the garage.
I laugh hard, remembering how much she puked on our new stray dog we found. The crazy bastard tried licking it off but then he puked on my feet. My dad was trying to be mad but he dared her to do it, too. Even mom had to hide her giggles. Good times...Argh. I'm starving, again.We get out after Rey almost drowns from laughing too hard. She breaks us into the snack stand and we gobble up everything we find. Kaydel is probably gonna get fired for this but we couldn't care less. Rey licks her lips after munching down her fourth hot dog. "Mad munchies lately, huh?" she whispers as she inches her butt over to me on the counter. "I'll say... I could eat you up, little piggy." I grin at her. She smacks my chest and yells, "I'm not a piggy, you asshole!" I grab her face and kiss her. I feel powerful, like I could rip her apart. A growl escapes from deep in my chest when she wraps her arms around my shoulders and tugs my hair. She breaks the kiss and looks at me, puzzled. "Where the hell did that come from?" she whispers. I shrug and yank her ass closer to me and bite her lip. I stop thinking and just relish in touching her hot skin. I kiss down her neck and tug the strings of her bikini top off and kiss her tits, licking circles around her hard nipples. She pushes me away and yanks down my swim trunks and I push her bikini bottoms to the side and slide into her. She moans in my ear and pulls my hair and I growl again and bite on her neck and pick up the pace quickly. We claw and scratch each other, biting and kissing while skin smacks skin. It's vicious. I feel like an animal, and I snarl when I pull out and cum on her stomach. We pant loudly, with our foreheads touching and she looks into my eyes and we both suddenly push away from each other, her covering her mouth in terror. I don't know what she saw, but I know what I saw. I'm crazy, I must be, but... Her eyes were black, an orange sliver in the middle. I pull up my trunks as she darts out the door, naked. I chase after her and my hand throbs. This crazy broad, god damn it...
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck, what the absolute FUCK! What kind of Rosemary's Baby shit IS this?!
I swipe up a left over towel from a chair as I zoom passed it, my bare feet smacking against the pavement. I secure it over my chest just as I come to the iron gate, and without stopping, I launch myself over it and land on my feet again. I smile as I stand up, momentarily too busy patting my own back. Oh. Didn't know I could do that. Good for me. I can hear Ben calling me, and when I look back, he's a lot closer than I thought. He's holding my bikini top and telling me to come back but fuck that. I take a big step back. He stops at the gate and I take yet another step back. We stare at each other and his eyes are still... Whatever the hell they are. Is this another nightmare? What's happening? And he's looking at me like I'm the monster. He's always had such audacity. Ridiculous. "Rey... What the fuck... Is happening?" He pants as he grips the gate. "I should ask you the same thing! What's going on with your eyes!""MY EYES?! Look in a mirror you crazy fuckin' broad!" He shouts at me, gritting his teeth. I roll my eyes and cross my arms. Oh, please. "Asshole..." I mutter. He growls and opens the gate, rushing me and knocking me to the grass, hard. He's crushing me under his weight and I'm thrashing with all my might but he barely budges. I growl at him and bite his arm hard enough to draw some blood. He howls out in pain. "Why! Why do you keep fucking biting me! Stop it!""Well get off me, brick house! You're crushing me!" I yell while I keep trying to shove him off. We struggle around for a few minutes and his eyes are freaking me the hell out. I just want to go home. A car pulls up, tires squeezing, suddenly and we're blinded by the headlights but I know who it is: fucking Poe, of course. He runs to us, trying to shove Ben off of me, but Big Ben won't move an inch for Poe. What a little weakling. Poe tries to keep macho, but he's drunk, again, and his little shit fit has Ben and I both looking at him like the idiot he is. "Get off her man! Is he like, raping you babe? Man, you better not be! I will fuck you up! So bad!" I roll my eyes. It's a good fucking thing I'm not actually in any danger of that but I guess... I can kind of see where he's getting that idea from... Ben stands up and I roll over and jump up, snatching my bikini top from him. I turn away and try to maneuver it on quickly while they yell at each other again. I'm getting real sick of this shit. "We were playing around, I wasn't raping her you fucking moron!""You shouldn't be touching her anyways, dickweed! She's MY girlfriend!"I'm suddenly trembling with rage and my heart is beating out of my chest. I must still be riding the adrenaline high of earlier because I feel like I can rip Poe's fucking face off at this point. I stomp over to Poe and shove him - hard. He lands on his ass and he looks scared. Something in my gut likes it... I lean down into his face and scream; a scream I've never felt before, from the pads of my feet to the crown of my head, and it's deep.
Poe covers his face and I lose all control.
He's weak. Destroy him.
I leap onto him, clawing his face and biting wherever I can reach flesh. I can feel his blood, it's warm, and it makes my gut clench strangely. I'm hardly aware of what I'm doing. I don't think. I can only feel.
hungry.
Poe's screams are distant as I grab his hand and twist it until something snaps. For some reason I bite into his arm and tear back a chunk of meat... and it tastes better than anything I've ever had in my life. My body spasms and I think I can feel pain, but I can't stop. I chomp loudly and swallow back my little snack. Fuck. Good. So good. Need more. I rip into his throat and chew as quickly as I can, his screaming becoming a gurgling noise. I smash his head back into the grass and munch away and I can't explain how orgasmic he tastes.
I dig my clawed hand into his neck, pulling out crunchy tendon and juicy meat. I run my hands down my face and chest while I chew and snarl. I'm lost in it all until something nudges my foot and my head snaps behind me. Ben is on his knees, holding Poe's hip bone and ripping through his stomach with his hands and mouth. His face is covered in blood and his black eyes are rolled into the back of his head, his eyelids fluttering. The small Rey part of my brain shrieks in horror: this is Ben... but it isn't. His face has morphed into something grotesquely inhuman. His hands are clawed and under the skin, his muscles are practically bubbling. His teeth are long and canine like and his pale skin juts out random patches of inky fur. The rest of my brain doesn't care for this information, however. Mate. Share. I turn back and feast into Poe's slowly chilling corpse. I lick up the blood that pours from his face and I pry open his mouth with my hands, ripping his jaw off in the process, which is great because now I can dig into his tongue.
I think this is my favorite part so far - it's chewy and tastes faintly like Bourbon. When I finish it, I dig out the bottom of his jaw with my clawed fingers like an oyster. I moan and close my eyes while I slurp up my fingers. Suddenly, Ben is beside me, and he takes my hand, licking up the rest, trailing his tongue down my palm all the way to my elbow and back up. I snag his hand and do the same. I'm full and sated but I've never been more turned on in my fucking life. Ben must reciprocate my feelings because he wraps his arms around me and tosses me to the ground. He tears off my bikini bottoms, getting right into licking at my pussy. I sequel and secure my hand into his hair, humping his face like a bitch in heat. It's too much and I cum fast. He won't let up, and makes me cum a few more times, each faster than the last. I look down at his black eyes and watch his longer than ever tongue flicking up and down on my clit. He's never looked hotter, even with the new... Additions. He crawls up my body, licking any blood, and nudges my legs apart, sliding his huge dick into my dripping cunt. I wail in pleasure. I could die like this and have no issues with it. He fucks me for a long time, eventually turning me onto my knees and pushing my face into the grass, holding my wrists behind me in one hand, my hips gripped in the other.
It's primal. It's perfect. My eyes roll into the back of my head when suddenly his cock swells and my eyes bug open. He gasps as he shoots loads of cum into me, growling and snarling in my ear and he lays across my back. I don't have to tug away to know we're stuck. Hopefully forever. I smile into the grass and close my eyes while his cock twitches inside me. But suddenly I can hear this disgusting sound, like a billion little mouths slurping and chewing, tiny feet squelching around in slobbery, mushy stuff and I snap my head over to Poe's body and I'm overcome with morbid terror. The sounds of the ants already digging into him is too loud, too close and I think I'm going to puke. He looks like a zebra after the lions discard them. Holy fuck. Oh fuck. Okay. Oh no. It's fine. No, no, this isn't right. Maybe? No. But... No! Ben stills and stumbles his whisper into my ear. "Rey... What... W-what did... What did we do..."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
We're stuck. In any other situation, I'd be pleased as punch to stay here with her in this moment. I love the way it feels to be inside of her: So wet. So warm. So tight. So fucking right. In any other situation, I'd relish in this. But right now... I'm kind of fucking terrified. Poe (or.. What's left of the dumb shit-for-brains) is more of a broken egg than a human. Corpse. Thing. It's horrifying. I can't look away from him. This is way worse then when Hux and I watched Faces of Death last year. This is in front of me.
I... I mean we did this. Oh. Oh, God. No. Oh no, no, no. Oh nooo... I vomit on Rey and she yelps, trying to tug away from me. But alas, we're still stuck together and there's nowhere for her to go. I would laugh, ya know, in any other situation, but... Rey starts crying and I try to pet her, panicked, but I'm just smearing my puke everywhere. It's black and chunky, and I try not to spew again as I wipe my hand on the grass. This is an absolute shit show. I can't grasp this. What the actual fuck is going on? "B-ben... Get OUT of m-m-m-ME!" she cries. I try to slowly pull out, but I can't. She whimpers and it makes my cock twitch. I'm fucking embarrassed. What's going on with my dick?"I can't... Doll, we're stuck. I don't... I don't know what's happening..." I choke a little on a sob. I'm trying not lose it and cry too, because I'm a man god damn it, but this is fucked up. There's no way this can get any worse. At least her hands look like they're... Back to normal? I shiver at the memory of her face, and how her spine protruded and those weird tuffs of fur... What the fuck kind of weed did Dryden fucking sell me?! I slowly start to feel my dick soften after awhile and Rey is reduced to sniffles, her face still laying in the grass. I need to get her home and showered. Maybe rub her back. Maybe trail my hands down her plump ass and -Okay, NO.I have to resort to thinking about Uncle Luke's weird feet to try and keep from getting hard again. I'm holding my breath and almost working up a sweat in the effort. Eventually Rey slowly starts to crawl away and I feel a soft pop as she unsheathes from around me and my dick shoots out a few dribbles of cum again. I blush hard and scramble to turn away, shuffling to find my trunks. I feel like I'm in the throws of fucking puberty again. She wraps herself in the towel and curls into the fetal position, staring right at Poe's mangled and faceless body. I hold my trunks while I stare at her for a few moments. She's blank and trembling, clearly traumatized. I should be, too, but I keep staring at her, my mind turning. Why couldn't we just have a normal life? I mean, not that we always dismembered her boyfriends and ate them on a Friday night, but things were always kind of a shit show... I run my hands through my hair and close my eyes. Rey attracts crazy.
Or maybe I'm just nuts. But none of that matters because off in the distance, I can hear people.
Shit.I try to pull up my trunks in haste, falling over and tying the knot of the strings as fast as I can. I crawl quickly to Rey and shake her, startling her to reality. "Come on, doll. We gotta hightail it the fuck out of here. People. Coming."She doesn't move fast enough so I sweep her up and run into the woods off to the left of Poe's car. I crouch down into a bush and cover Rey's mouth when she tries to ask me something.
"Shh." I whisper as the voices approach closer. Rey huffs into my hand and I know she's rolling her eyes. The two men come into focus under the streetlights, chatting about something I don't understand. It looks like the two new guys in town. There's whispers about them being butt-buddies but meh, who knows. "Yeah Larry, I don't know. I just think it's lowkey like, bullshit, you know? Like, yeah, the movies are dope but the people are fucking dumb lil bitches." The shorter Mexican guy says.
What? Who the shit even talks like that? I strain my eyes and I can see them better, and their mustaches are just ridiculous. The white guy, Larry, just sort of chuckles and flicks his sunglasses over his eyes. What a douche bag, it's dark outside. I frown. "Yeah, dude. Hella." They laugh as Larry does some weird dance, moving his arms around in circles. Fucking weirdos. Maybe they are a couple of homos or something. The Mexican guy stops short and tilts his head, looking at Poe's car that's still on with the headlights shining onto his body. His face turns pale and he staggers back, grasping onto Larry's arm, who looks over and stumbles back. "God DAMN IT! Why does this keep happening?!" He yells as he falls on to his ass, dragging the other guy down with him. They both gag and gasp, crawling backwards like crabs in tandem.
It's kind of funny, I have to admit. Rey even starts chuckling into my palm and I turn into her collarbone to snicker. "Let's get the fuck out of here, Jack!" The Larry guy yells while the Jack fella wipes his mouth, having just vomited up foam. Larry pulls him up by the shirt but they both trip and fall in the vomit slicked grass.
"Noooo!" Larry yells and tries to crawl away further. Rey and I are laughing hard, so hard no noise comes out and tears roll down our cheeks. My stomach hurts while the guys trip and fall, running away back to wherever they came from. Fucking weirdos, man. Rey is rolling on the ground, covering her mouth, still covered in gore but it doesn't bother me so much anymore. Her towel is barely covering her breasts and it makes my dick spring back into action. I kneel above her, grinning wide, and pounce onto her like an animal. "Stop! Stop!" She gasps as I tickle her ribcage and she crackles like an old witch. God damn it, I love her something awful. Always a shit show, but at least she's fun.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After Ben tickled me and I ended up punching him in his big nose, we stood under the showers and hosed the blood off of ourselves. The water ran dark and down the drain, along with my anxieties about everything. I felt great, like I'd done some cocaine and smoked a jay. It was therapeutic, almost. I wasn't hungry or sick anymore and that was the best part. Of course, as I watched the water rain down Ben's huge shoulders, I found myself pulling his wet, curly hair and bringing his mouth to mine, kissing passionately under the cold water. He ran his hands down my ribs, passed my hips to my ass and picked me up.
I wrapped my legs around his hips and he pushed me into the wall, grinding his hard cock against me. My eyes rolled back a little bit. I was sore but I wouldn't mind feeling his dick swell inside me again. Just the memory of it made my pussy clench in anticipation. I bit his lip and traced my tongue lightly against it, and brought my hand down between us to rub my clit with my fingers. He watched me for a few moments, breathless and pulled his trunks down to rub his cock on my wet pussy, making me moan softly. He gently stuffed himself into me and held under my thighs to fuck me into the wall.
I leaned my head back and watched him through my hooded eyes, getting off more to him than my own circling fingers. He kissed me as I came undone, my legs shook and my toes curled. He bit my shoulder and blew his load into me. I didn't care. He was mine. Come what may. We walked passed Poe's body, and I didn't spare it a single glance. I weirdly didn't care anymore. All I really cared about was getting home and getting under the covers with Ben again. That was the most important thing now. Were we like, an item now?
Gosh, I fucking hoped so. We listened to some ACDC on the radio while Ben lit us two cigarettes, handing me one and placed his big hand on my skinny thigh as I sat cross cross on the big bench seat of his Ranchero. I exhaled my hit, rolling the window down to enjoy the warm summer night breeze. It smelled so good outside, like I could catch every scent of flowers and trees. I looked over to Ben and admired his oddly handsome face in the greenish glow of the dashboard. I lost myself in remembering the first time I ever really thought he was attractive...
We were probably about 13 and we were walking home in the snow, my teeth chattering like crazy, gloved hands stuffed into my big puffy orange jacket... I'd caught him looking at me while I talked about a rerun of Star Trek, our favor show. He didn't even look away as he normally did when I called him out on it, suddenly coming to a stop. His big, dark eyes were almost haunting and I was trapped in them.
I loved how pale his skin was and how his inky black hair was a stark contrast. His big pouty lips trembling from the cold, slowly growing into a smile, his cheeks pink from the chill. I wanted to kiss him right then and there, but that moment was seized from me by Dryden pulling up suddenly in my mom's car, telling me to hurry my ass up for dinner. Then he speed off, not even offering me a ride like the dick he is.
Ben had hugged me tightly once we reached my door, holding me a few seconds longer than usual. He left quickly after, Han calling him home for supper, too. Our friendship wasn't the same after that. We spent the next few years watching TV, ten feet apart and leaving notes on each other's windows, exchanging long looks but never doing anything that wasn't strickly platonic.
I guess our parents had noticed our sudden difference, because soon after, we weren't allowed to have sleepovers anymore. Rose and I started hanging out more, he with Hux. He had been there at the party a few months ago in the spring. Rose had a kegger when her parents went out of town to help Paige move in with her boyfriend and I was trashed.
I had to ask Ben for a ride home, and he had said yes immediately, even though I'd interrupted his conversation with the tall, perfect captain of the basketball team, Ellen Phasma. She glared at me, but I didn't care. He was still my friend. Ben gave me a piggy back ride to the car and we smoked some grass when we got back to my trailer and laughed about some fight Poe tried to start with freshman. It was still a little cold out so he gave me his jacket, and as he wrapped it around my shoulders, I suddenly lurched forward and kissed the corner of his mouth.
He looked at me, shocked, and I tried to apologize and play it off like I was still drunk, but he wrapped his hand around the back of my neck and pulled me closer, kissing me sweetly. I melted into it, crawling into his lap. One thing led to another... In the morning, I was ecstatic. I'd finally had sex that wasn't fucking terrible and awkward and it was with Ben Solo, my very first crush. We fit perfectly, two weird puzzle pieces finally connected.
But then I remembered something from the night before: He hadn't just been talking to Phasma. He'd been holding her hand. I asked him about it, and he begrudgingly told me she was his girlfriend. I sort of... Lost it. I pushed him off my bed, throwing books and cups at his big stupid head. He was just another asshole, trying to fuck me, not be with me. He tried to explain, but I chased him down the street, hitting him with his belt. I cried for days, until Poe called and asked me out on a date, probably Rose and Finn's half baked idea. I didn't really like him beyond being party buddies; he drank too much and was seriously reckless. He would look at other girls on our dates, but give me shit for how I dressed, and drove like a total dick, which was both scary but mostly exhilarating. The sex was fine, I guess, but he didn't care if I orgasmed.
I don't even think he knew girls could. But he was best friends with Finn, and I loved getting to double date with him and Rose, no longer just a third wheel. Ben would try to talk to me sometimes, but I started staying out later and later just to avoid him.
I was still too miffed to even care (okay, I cared a little when I heard but I wouldn't let anyone know) when he and Phasma had a very public break up in the gym about a week later. I'd see him come and go from my house, doing business with Dryden. Always waving, and always receiving my middle finger in return. And now, we were snuggled up, after having sex 4 different times in one night after we had uh... Well, ate my boyfriend. Ah, ex-boyfriend now, I supposed.
I traced my fingers down Ben's thick arm as we discussed the night. We were oddly calm, all things considered. He combed his fingers through my hair as the night sky slowly turned pale and a tad pink while Pink Floyd's Shine On You Crazy Diamond played softly in the background. "So... You don't feel... Bad about any of it?" He asks. I stared at his toned chest and shrugged. "No, not really. Do you?"He chuckled. "Not even a little bit. Fuck that guy."I snuggled closer as I started to almost fall asleep, a small smile on my lips. "No thanks. Been there, done that. I'd rather fuck you." I nipped at his nipple and he jumped a bit, pulling me closer with a deep growl. "Don't remind me. I'll go back and put my foot through his nonexistent face."We giggled and he kissed my forehead. He sighed and pulled me even closer and I heard his heart pattering away. I stilled and looked up to him questioningly but his eyes were looking up to the cracked and grimy ceiling. He shuddered a breath. "Rey..." He swallowed, making his his Adam's apple bob. "I... I fucking love you, doll." He whispered into my hair and my heart stopped for a minute. "But I think you alre-""I know." I said quickly and leaned up and kissed his big, plushy lips gently, smiling as he kissed me back earnestly.
Finally.
"I love you, too. Asshole."He squeezed the air out of me briefly and we were quiet for awhile.
He loved me... I could die happy. My eyes fell shut, but I had to ask the unavoidable question that'd been lingering in my mind. "Ben, what do you... What do you think is happening to us?"He squirmed a bit. "I... I don't know. It's nothing I've ever read about in anatomy. It's definitely not natural. Maybe it's... It's maybe supernatural?""Well yeah... But, this is reality. Not the movies. There is no Dracula or Frankenstein. These things don't exist, Ben. People don't just turn into... Human eating monsters. This isn't a horror movie...""Apparently they do. And maybe it is." He stroked my arm thoughtlessly. "Maybe we need to do a little research. I'll talk to Hux about it later. He knows all the medical stuff. Maybe it's a disease, or a shared psychosomatic duel hallucination. I don't fucking know... I'm tired, doll. We can look into tomorrow, okay?"I nodded and yawned lightly, resting my leg over his. "Mm. M'kay. Love you, Benji.""I love you more, doll."We faded into sleep as the heat from the breaking sun began spilling through the shades. I hoped we could just lay there all day, really. But itching curiousity would get the better of me. It always did.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
BANG BANG BANG BANG
I shot up from my deep slumber, knocking Rey off my chest before I grabbed her back quickly and held her closely. I could feel the hair on the back of my neck standing straight up while my heart beat right out of my chest. Low growls emanated from both of us, but I didn't have time to really think much of it.
"Rey! Rey, wake up! Rey!!!"
I didn't recognize the nearly hysterical female voice, but apparently Rey did because she ducked out from under my arms and ran to the door. I tossed her my shirt since she was only in her underwear. She caught it and pulled it over her head head before unlocking the hatch and throwing the door back.
Suddenly she was engulfed in a hug by the petite Rose Tico, whose face was covered in tears and beet red. Rey darted a look of confusion to me before wrapping her arms over Rose and asking cautiously:
"Uh... Hey. What's wrong, Rosie..?"
Rose sobbed and buried her face into Rey's chest, which weirdly annoyed me. A low voice in the back of my head grumbled.
Mine.
We grimaced at one another as Rose blubbered on, incoherent. After a minute or two, Rey finally took her by the shoulders, holding her less than a foot away from herself. Gentle. Always gentle.
"Rose. Use your words. What's wrong? What happened?" She said, sounding more like a tired mother than a concerned friend.
Rose whipped her nose with her wrist and sobbed loudly, wailing.
"I.. I tried t-t-to call..." She said, shaking.
I rolled my eyes at the pitiful show of weakness. Oh my god, just -
"Spit it out, Rose!" Rey shouted, jerking Rose's frail shoulders. I smirked.
My thoughts, exactly.
Finn stepped into the trailer behind Rose then, wrapping his own arms around Rose. His face was blank. His sudden presence startled me a bit.
"The police found Poe." Finn muttered. "He's... He's dead."
Rey and I exchanged a glance within a millisecond, but I swear I could hear her thoughts, mirroring my own:
Oh, fuck.
Rey pulled them forward to the end of the trailer, sitting Rose down at the small rectangular table across from the bed. I reached under the bed and grabbed a shirt, so they didn't feel so uncomfortable. Finn and Rose seemed to notice me then, eyes slightly widening.
"Oh. Uh. Hey... Solo..?" Finn whispered as he reached for Rose's hand, watching me pull the shirt over my head and staring at my chest. I had to remind myself to behave, but his staring was irking me.
At least Rose had stopped crying. Fucking irritating.
Rey blushed and smoothed her long hair, awkwardly sitting a foot away from me with her legs crossed at the ankles towards me.
"What do you mean he's... Dead?" She said as her eyebrows pinched together, her lip slightly quivering. I raised an eye brow. Oh god, is she for real?
"Likes he's gone, Rey... Torn apart by a cougar or something out near the woods, by the community pool..."
Rey took in a shuttering breath, hunching her shoulders. She covered her mouth but I didn't miss her subtle bite into the flesh of her palm. I could almost laugh - this is something she did when we were kids and she got into trouble. Some shit never changed.
I bit my own lip to avoid the laugh building in my chest and then I swear I heard her in my head again:
Do. Not. Laugh.
Rose and Finn reached out to her as the crocodile tears ran down her face and she pretended to look sad and shocked. I narrowed my eyes slightly.
She was quite the good little actress. I didn't like it. It was... concerning. My eye twitched, but I learned over to drape my arm over her shoulder anyways. I stared at my feet while she pretended to cry and wondered how the fuck we got here of all places.
The afternoon was spent with them crying and reminiscing about the dumb fuck. I was more interested in whatever could be on TV then. I didn't know him all that well, even though we grew up together in the same small town, but it seemed like there wasn't really much to the guy. He liked to drink, fight and assumedly fuck - judging from all the random flashes of Poe groping Rey in the back of his car, barely illuminated by the dashboard. My anger swelled and flared before my ego flamed brighter - she liked fucking me more. I smirked.
Good riddance, asshole.
But I still felt completely uncomfortable with all the emotional bullshit flying around so I opted to go home and get some booze to 'honor' his life or whatever.
I unthinkingly kissed Rey on the forehead after I tied up my chucks and got up to leave. I felt Finn and Rose's eyes on us immediately and I smiled into her hair. Whoops. She grimaced up at me.
"Uhm. Do you need anything while I'm out?"
"Food. And juice for the vodka. Please." She placed a hand on my arm softly, her voice not matching the 'fucking kill me' face she was giving me, hidden by my torso. "Thank you Ben. You've been so helpful."
I nodded and left with my my teeth biting almost through my lip before I could burst into laughter.Stepping into the hot summer day and setting my aviator sunglasses onto my nose, I saw the blinds from Rey's house flicker. Probably Dryden, nosey bastard. Quira's car was gone, as usual. I could see my parents weren't home, either. I felt like I hadn't seen them in months... It'd been a wild two fucking days.
Rey's voice interrupted my thoughts with a silent whine.
cigarettes...
I nodded like she could see me and took off to my car, revving towards town absent mindedly. After everything that had happened, hearing each other's thoughts wasn't that weird, I decided.
Fuck it, why not be able to communicate through our minds? Yeah, sure. Why not.
Diana Ross played on the radio and I hummed along, tapping my thumb on the steering wheel to the beat.
Hux's car was in the parking lot of the neighborhood market. Good, maybe now I could bug him about this shit. He was a smart guy, even if he had become almost insufferable after signing up for boot camp at the end of summer. I might even miss his tightwad ass.
"So you've never heard of like... Animals bites making two people share delusions? Like see the same shit?" I said, leaning on the counter on my elbows.
Hux shook his head, eyeing me suspiciously.
"No..." He said slowly. "Maybe you both just smoked some seriously wacky tobacky. Laced or something." He shrugged.
I rolled my eyes. "Dryden doesn't sell that shit, get real, man." I pinched the bridge of my nose with my fingers and huffed. "Look, I can't explain it. And like..." I lowered my voice and looked around, leaning closer towards him. "What if it's like... Some supernatural shit? Bigfoot or whatever?"
Hux raised his eyebrows at me. "Solo... I honestly think it is." He looked down at his wrist watch. "I'm off in about 30 minutes. Wait for me by my car, we'll go my house and converse further. Maybe ask my dad."
I nodded and stood up straight, cracking my back by moving side to side. "Alright, but first... I need two packs of smokes."
He sighed, turning around to the giant wall of cigarettes behind him. "Marlboro Red shorts?" He asked over his shoulder.
I grinned and dropped my sunglasses over my eyes.
"You know it." I said as I grinned and pointed finger guns at him.
Hux's house was dark, and musty smelling. His father was strict, and mostly stayed indoors these days, having become a total hermit in the last ten or so years.
They lived off of government checks, mostly. My mother didn't even really speak to him since he didn't answer the phone. My dad took it as a personal betrayal, but I just figured he was a grouchy old man who was done with the world. I was starting to feel the same way and I was only 18.
Smoke hung in the air when we walked in, Hux locking all the locks once he was inside. Uncle Luke was watching television, a bottle of dark rum on the lamp table next to him. The tv was broadcasting about Poe, warning everyone in Alderan to be careful of wild animals, tips on what to do if you encountered one.
He grunted at me when I awkwardly said hello, intensely engrossed in the news report.
Hux kneeled down next to Luke, murmuring into his ear for a long while, which caused Luke to suddenly look over at me, his dull blues eyes widening, darting all around me, suspicious. Like father like son, I guess. I looked around awkwardly and decided to light a cigarette.
"No kidding..." He muttered, then taking a big swig of the rum. He wipped his mouth off with his dirty sweater sleeve and gestured to me. "Ben, come here. Tell me everything. And I mean, fucking everything, kid."
I sat down on the foot rest, and got right into it. He was a crazy old loon who hated cops and I knew Hux wouldn't turn his back on family, even with a homicide under their belt. I could trust them.
As I tell him everything, from the bite Rey got in the woods to the desecration of Poe Dameron, Luke said nothing, only lit one cigarette with the dying embers of the one before, puffing like a chimney. I took a few swigs of the rum without asking, blowing smoke from my nose as I gulpped it down. I'd buy him another bottle if he bitched.
I glanced to the clock every so often as time marched on, lastly reading 8:54pm, wondering what Rey was doing. I threw thoughts across to her, hoping she could hear me but I get nothing in return. I guess we were too far to do that bond thing, but eventually it started to make me anxious.
My stomach ached horribly out of nowhere. I'm starving. That fucking hunger was back, strong enough to make me feel clammy and sick.
I stood up suddenly, swaying. "I'm sorry uncle Luke, but I've got to get going. I need to check in on her."
I jogged to the door, trying to figure all of the stupid fucking locks, when a god damn pocket knife flew by my nose, sticking into the wood of the door. I turned quickly to see Luke frowning at me, struggling to stand up.
"You're not going anywhere, Ben. I can't let you leave. I've dealt with lycanthropes before, and I'm not about to let you shed anymore blood, kiddo."
I laughed nervously as I ripped the knife from the door with hardly any effort, swallowing the bile rising up my throat. Not the first time he'd thrown something at me with ill intent, but if he kept pissing me off, it would have been his last.
"Lyco-what..? You're drunk, old man. I really gotta go." I say as I go back to fiddle with the locks again, pressing my head against the door, breathing hard. Movement caused my eyes to flash back to them.
Hux, looking more pale than I'd ever seen, stood next to Luke, holding his elbow to straighten him up.
"I'm sorry, Ben. But he's right... You... You fucking murdered someone. You won't be leaving." He grimaced at me, trying to look intimidating.
I scoffed.
He flicked out his own pocket knife and a deep growl rolled from my chest. I took a step back, my limbs beginning to shake. Oh fuck. Oh no. I swept my hair back from my suddenly and extremely sweaty forehead with a quivering hand. Hux took a step towards me, aiming to block his father from me, but it was too late.
My vision blurred, and all I could feel was ripping, crunching pain again, all like the night before. I fell on all fours to the floor, feeling my body morph and twist, bones cracking. I screamed as my jaw jutted out and my teeth sharpened. I could faintly hear yelling over my own screams, but those died as my human brain turned off.
The monster within ripped out of me, and I no longer was Ben.
I'm hungry.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
11:57pm Ben has been gone for hours.
Thank my lucky fucking stars we found a luke warm bottle I had stashed away and we're drinking it without any juice or soda. It's so gross... but now that I have a new found guilt to drown, I drink it up like a fish. Rose lays her head on my shoulder and I absent mindedly wrap my arm around her shoulders. Finn lights a cigarette and takes a big puff before handing it to me. I wish I had my own pack, but sharing is fine, I guess. I'm over company for a life time after this bullshit.
Benjamin Oberon Solo, where the fuck are you? I push out to him, gritting my teeth as I try to pass it off as a smile at Rose.
This new bond thing is cool and all, but I'd really appreciate it if it would actually work now. I flick my ashes on the floor as I cross my legs and blow a ploom of smoke from my nose, tapping my nails on the wooden side of my bed. I'm irritated. I wish he had a sort of portable phone I could call... Like in Star Trek. Ugh. Eventually, Finn picks Rose up and carries her to his car. I follow behind, chewing my nails and spitting the chunks across the dying lawn. I ask him for another smoke and he gives me three. I kiss his cheek and pat Rose's sleeping head in the front seat. I roll my eyes. Always a light weight. "Rey, can I ask you something?""What's up?" I ask, half paying attention. My stomach rumbles with that sick hunger suddenly, and it makes me nauseous. "When did this whole... Ben thing start? You didn't like, cheat on Poe or anything did you?"I'd been expecting the question all afternoon. I lie like a pro, shaking a bit. "Poe and I had an open arrangement. You know that."Finns eyebrows crease together. "Did I? I don't remember him ever saying that..."I snort as I bite into my ring finger nail. "But you knew about the girls he played around with?"He looks away towards the ground. "I guess I did... It's none of my business, anyways, Rey. Sorry." He looks to me for a moment before throwing up a peace sign. "Gotta get her home... See you around. The funeral is on Thursday."I nod, even though we both know I won't be attending. My father's funeral was hard enough. Not to mention, I can't just show up to a funeral I'm responsible for. That would be insane. Ed Gein type shit. I wave him off as he backs away and notice mum still isn't home yet. Huh. As I walk back to the trailer, I finally hear Ben.
rey
I freeze in my step, clutching my stomach suddenly. Argh! Fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK. I crumple to the ground, shaking. I'm so... God damn it, that smarts! A sheen of sweat glosses my body and I whimper. My body lurched and cracks, causing me serious pain. I groan as I call out to Ben weakly.
ben... food??
Almost promptly, a car's lights flash behind the trailer and tires squeal. A door slams. Foot steps hurriedly fall. Big arms pick me up. I nuzzle into his chest.
ben... where have you been
I sniff up his scent greedily with my eyes closed. He smells fucking amazing. My mouth waters and I whimper again. "Brought you food."His voice is deeper than usual, almost a growl. He lays me down on the bed and darts away again, like a flash. I hear the doors open and shut a few times. Suddenly he's standing over me, eclipsing the light. I open my eyes weakly to see his face is morphed, like the night before. He's also covered in blood, holding what looks like three arms and a leg. He dumps it all on the bed, and I see a glimpse of a mangled head fall on top of our spoils. I grin up at him and turn quickly, jumping to sate my fucking horrible hunger. I tear into the leg, relishing in the lean meat. Ugh. Fucking magical. I make a mess of it all, while Ben stands above me covered in gore and smiles, obviously happy with his hunted goods. I purr as I rip my way through the flesh with my claws and teeth, not bothering to hide my shitty manners. I chew and chew until I hit a bone, then to as it behind me, grabbing an arm. This one tastes a little less great but the blood is even better. A little spice to it. My eyes roll back into my head as I munch like a ravenous beast and Ben lights a cigarette, watching me. I finish the limbs quickly, excitedly reaching for the head. How sweet. He knew this was my favorite part. But even the monster in me couldn't stop the human brain from reacting to what I grasp in my hands. I pause, my hands on either side of the face of Uncle Luke. I stare up to Ben slowly, perplexed. He shrugs. I shrug back after a few seconds and rip the jaw off, reaching low down into the throat to snatch the tasty tongue out. I bite into it like a pickle, munching away. My unpreoccupied hand subconsciously rubs the falling blood into my skin, and I let out a debaucherous moan. Ben quickly stomps out the cigarette at the sound I make, and crouches down next to me, licking up the blood I've smeared on my breasts through my shirt. He rips it open, grabbing my tits and licking my nipples while I mewl and squirm, feeling the heat all over my body, my own blood pumping quickly, making me overheat. He reaches his hand down between my open legs and rubs at my clit as I discard Luke's heads to the floor and throw my head back, eyes rolling back. Fuck. Feels amazing. Ben pushes me down and yanks my shorts off, tossing them onto Luke's head and crawls on top of me, pulling himself out of his pants and stuffing me full of his huge cock. I moan too loudly, gripping on his shoulders with my claws, making him growl at me. I growl back and he bites my neck, drawing a little blood. He laps at it with his wet tongue as he thrusts wildly into my dripping cunt, all while groaning like a depraved heathen. I fucking love it. I pant and wrap my legs around his hips and meet his thrusts with as much enthusiasm as possible. My head is swimming as the heat begins to burn me, nearing an orgasm with every lewd smack into me. His cock is swelling as I tighten around it, wailing like an animal as I cum, digging my claws into his back. Blood flows from under my nails. He growls in my ear and suddenly his cock swells too much- I cry out in pain and he covers my mouth. Thick cum squirts into me and I tremble, gasping into his palm as his thrusts eventually slow and he drops his full weight onto me, panting in my ear.
love... you...
We lay there, my legs eventually falling down to the bed. The movement makes him cum again, his cock pulsing inside me. I whimper and he pets my hair. My heart is pounding out of my chest, just as I feel his own heart mimic the rhythm. I sigh and smile as he moves his hand from my mouth. I could die here, so fucking happily. Ben runs his hand through his hair after props himself up on his elbow above me. We stare at one another as our faces slowly fall back into normalcy. He smiles and kisses my lips softly. "Hi there, doll. Eat good?"I nod lazily and kiss him. "How did.. What happened with Luke?" My voice is rough and breathless still. He rolls his eyes, shaking his head. He leans over to grab us a cigarette from the table, moving carefully but his cock twitches again and he cums once more. His eyes roll back and he shudders. He lights us cigarettes with a shaking hand and I take one. I inhale deeply while I wait for an explanation, adjusting slightly under him. "Well... He and Hux knew what we are, apparently." He takes a hit. "And apparently... We're like... Werewolves or some shit. Lycans or whatever the fuck he called it."I watch the smoke pour from his lips while he speaks, not sure what to say. "I mean... Okay?" I let out a nervous laugh. "Sure. Why not. Life is but a dream, I guess."Ben chuckles and I feel his cock slowly start to soften. He sweeps my hair from my forehead and shows me his palm: sticky, sweaty, bloody. I frown as I stare at it. "Shower time, maybe?"He chuckles again. "Yes, doll, I'd say so. Also... We need to get rid of these left overs. Bury them, I think. Don't want anyone finding them. You know what that would mean, don't you?"My lips form a hard line. "Yes." A vision of my mother finding the trailer in blood soaked horror pops into my head suddenly. I swallow hard. "Yes, I understand."His face is very serious as he nods and kisses my forehead, pausing for a moment before licking a swipe across it. My eyebrows together as I look up at him above me. Ew. It's sweaty. He sighs and closes his eyes, leaning his forehead to mine. "Life is dream but maybe we're the monsters from a nightmare..." He pauses again to hit the cigarette before looking at me, his dark brown eyes almost black. My heart patters. "Rey. It's just us now. Everyone else who tries to fuck with us will be torn apart." He holds my jaw. "Agreed?"I chew on my lip while the smoke blows out of his nose. I stare into his eyes, seeing a small pulse of orange flicker in his pupils. My heart skips. "Agreed."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Rey and I stared into each other's eyes for what felt like an eternity. I wanted to trust her. But I couldn't. Something in me was starting to feel panicked about being caught. Even worse, imagining that I would run into my parents while I was covered in gore and mounting Rey like a fucking animal was making me sick. Rey's eyes reflected my own, and something between human and monster stared back at me. I stood up suddenly, stepping to the shower and twisting the dial to turn on the spray. I stood under the water and washed the blood off of me, closing my eyes for a second. A warm hand touched my chest, making me nearly jump out of my skin. My eyes snapped open to see Rey, trying to scoot into the water next to me. "Jesus, Rey... You scared me..." I murmured when my heart evened out. I wrapped my arms around her and rested my cheek on her head, closing my eyes again. My brain felt numb, and I chased the dark void for a few minutes while trying to ignore the cold water.
I'm scared...
Her thought came into my head slowly, a tiny glimmer in the dark, a dim and light blue neon sign in the distance. I held her tighter and nodded.
you're not alone.
She sniffled slightly and held me closer.
neither are you.
My heart ached, but in a good way, if there ever could be a good ache. At some point we broke the embrace to lather our bodies in silence, trading off the soap bar with tiny smiles. The water began to run clear, sinking all evidence of our most recent sins down the drain. The cold water felt good against my hot skin. Rey got out and dressed, while I rested my head against the shitty tiled wall, trying to keep my head clear, for both our sakes. Rey was oddly silent, no more thoughts to be heard. I slipped on some boxers and climbed into bed with her, the morning in full swing outside. I could hear my parent's cars leave the drive way a few houses down, as well as Qi'ra's car arrive back, finally. Rey was passed out next to me, and I thoughtlessly traced my fingers down her small, freckled nose. Birds chirping too happily to my dismay, sprinklers shooting across the lawn and smacking into the trailer walls for a few minutes. Rey snored too loudly suddenly and jerked in her sleep, making me drop my hand away, scared I'd upset her some how. But she just turned her back to me and stretched out her long limbs, curling her toes as she sighed in her deep sleep. The small blue shorts she wore hugged her hips perfectly, her baseball tee riding up her stomach, showing off her small waist. My eyes traveled her body, and I itched to touch her. Instead, I continued to stare at her, wondering what we could possibly do with our future now... We start senior year in September, but that was obviously kind of a bust now... We couldn't go back to having a normal life; not by far. What the fuck did this mean for us now? Were we supposed to go on the run, like some cliche movie antiheros? Bonnie and Clyde? Sure, why the fuck not? A little fantasy played behind my lids: us wandering New York, going to artsy poetry coffee shops with beatniks, snapping our fingers and being so brooding and moody. Or pogoing with the punks in CBGB's, putting safety pins in our faces and having blue hair, being brash and crude. To the desert in Arizona, drinking lemonade and putting Christmas ornaments on a cactus outside our white house. Kids chasing each other outside a big house by the beach in some colder coastal town, running through the tall grass by the dunes, huge waves crashing while we held hands and ate sandwiches... Stupid, Ben. Childish to dream. Hope was useless, and leaving wouldn't solve our problems- it would only hurt our families. And I'd already hurt my family enough. The pit in my stomach lurched... When would mom get the call about Luke and Hux? She'd be broken. I shuttered a breath, bit down on my knuckle, forcing myself to keep my tempting scream in my head instead. No, no. There wasn't time for this right now. Sleep. I needed sleep, then address the bullshit. The sunlight was thankfully blocked out, and even though the mattress was shit, my brain finally began to shut down, piece by piece. Listening to Rey's steady breathing, I slung my arm over my eyes and fell even further into darkness. It swallowed me up whole, and I cannonball jumped into its jaws.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Ben's obnoxious moving around woke me up. But my insane hunger is what really lurched me out of bed, sweating and tangled all up in the sheets. Ben was also covered in sweat, twitching and turning in his sleep, making some weird little whimpering noises. He was pale, and sickly looking. I squinted in the near darkness, the streetlight behind the curtain the only real light, and reached out to him timidly, afraid to scare him. Must be having a bad dream.... I should wake him up... I hesitantly watched him a little longer, and he suddenly started gwaning at his palm. What the hell..? I went to touch him, to make him stop but I snapped my hand back as I was so fucking hungry it was making me sick, and my leg was so fucking itchy. I all but pierced my nails into my flesh and clawed as hard as I could, biting my lip at how good it felt, completely forgetting him next to me for awhile. I scratched... and scratched... and scratched... and scratched.... Digging well into the flesh until I could kind of feel something like a few layers of skin building up under my nails and, what I could only assume was some blood, drip-dropping down my ankle to my foot. I was only barely aware of what I was doing, lost in soothing that God damn itch. I hadn't even realized my eyes closed, so when I opened them, I gazed down to see mostly darkness. I pulled the curtain aside to see better and in silent, abject horror I gawked at what an absolutely gruesome scene I'd made of my leg:I was right to assume I had made myself bleed- but it was worse than I could have ever imagined. Far fucking worse... I'd gauged layers out... All the way down to what I think was the hypodermis, a gnarly hole glaring viciously back at me. The skin surrounding the canyon I made was black and some hideous, dark blue spider webs of veins skewed away from the infected, dying spot. Grey, rotting, and squishy pieces of whatever the fuck it was called hung from under my nails... The blood flow was a fucking downpour, cascading freely, soaking into the mattress and light blue sheets, marking it a nearly black color. Oh my GOD, what the fuck!?! My eyes bulged out of my head and my mouth fell wide, wide open. I sat completely still, totally unable to look away. I sucked in a rattling breath through my nose, and that's when the horrendous stench hit me; It smelled worse than anything I've ever smelled... Worse than black licorice vomit, worse than dead raccoons on the side of the road that cooked in the summer sun and hatched maggots. Worse than my father's own rotting corpse, left after days of being hidden in his car years ago. The black goo that had crusted to his face, rolling that horrible stench from his mouth. My empty and already nauseous gut churned and bubbled, and a gross belch escaped my lips as my vision started to blink in and out. Big black spots burst and grew, taking up the room. I felt myself falling down, wind rushing passed my face before I smacked into the carpet, hard, on my face. Sensation left me, just as I tried to whisper out to him.
b e n
***** My eyes snapped open, my heart pounding like a bass drum. I sat bolt up and clutched my stomach. I was fuckin ravenous, and that was putting it lightly.I licked my dry lips; they tasted bitter and slick, like oil. I was drenched in a gross sweat that made my hair stick to my forehead like I'd fallen in a pool. Jesus fucking Christ! My hand ached something super awful, pulsing to the rhythm of my heart. I turned my attention to it, squinting in the light from the street and gasped loudly. Part of my fucking hand... Was... Was missing?? A gaping hole, black and rotting, crusted with some black goo, pitted where Rey had bitten me a few days before. Not part, just a chunk... my stupid, useless fucking brain tried to reason. I peered closer and I started to feel sick. Really sick... Dark, indigo lightning marks -veins, I guess- spread out of it, long and thick, all the way across my hand, crawling up my wrist, nearly to my elbow. Black bruise-like splotches lined the veins, contrasting sickly against my way-paler-than-normal skin. Fuck me, this shit can't be good... I held my wrist up with my other hand as I inspected the damage, turning it over and back again. My breathing was starting to hitch, the panic taking over steadily. I ran my tongue over my teeth, my lips in a hard line when I felt... small... chunks... in my... my front teeth. I froze with my eyebrows raised. In any other situation, I swear, I'd fucking laugh. But oh. Oh, no. No, no... No, no, no, no... I brought my nail to my teeth, and scrapped out the gunk. I lifted my nail (that was actually freakishly longer than I remembered, my nail beds much darker than the rest of me) to my eyes and my jaw hit the floor. Fuck, it probably hit the core of the earth at this point. It was meat, from my hand. Grey and rotting. Any other time, I know I'd find the humor in this, I just know I could... My stomach rolled uneasily, and I swallowed back the fresh saliva that poured from my tongue, getting ready to lubricate my asphogas for the quickly rising, burning, chunky-I tried to untangle my legs to run to the toilet but it was too late, so I turned over the edge of the bed and hurled black, sticky bile onto the floor. Shiiiit, that's a lot! I kept heaving and gagging, sweat dripping down my face and neck and chest as I emptied my guts onto the carpet and my eyes were blurry from the tears welling up and over. I wiped my mouth shakily with the back of my bad hand, my good hand grasping the wood at the edge of the bed. God damn it... Rey is gonna be pissed.I pushed my myself up to sit on the edge with my face in my hands, trying to catch my breath, placing my feet on the floor away from my puke, when I nudged something soft. I rubbed my eyes and looked down to find a blurry Rey, half naked and very pale, crumpled on the floor.
?!?!?????
"What the fuck! Rey?! REY!"I fell to my knees beside her, landing in my still hot puke. I turned her over quickly, and gasped at her face, bringing my hands to my mouth in shock. Her cheeks were ghastly defined, the circles under her eyes were darker than if she'd gone without sleep for a week. Her long hair was greasy, and she was covered in a fresh dew of sweat, beading up and dripping. Her skin was firy hot to the touch and even her lips looked nearly white and cracked. I started crying as my hands fluttered about her, not sure what to do or how to wake her up. She was breathing shallowly, I could see her chest rise and fall slightly. Okay, okay. She's alive! That's a good start. Okay. Okay. Shit. Shit! I hoisted her up as I tried to stand, swaying and almost dropping her several times before I got a good grip and tried to lay her down gently. I ran my hand through my hair several times, shaking and crying uncontrollably. Fuck! What do I do? Should I get Qi'ra? What am I even supposed to go to a fucking doctor at this point?I growled, and it steadily built into a frustrated scream while I clutched my head and feel into a crouch, bending over completely in half. I bared my teeth to the floor and cursed everything in the fucking universe. Why didn't we just go to a doctor sooner?! I started punching myself in the head, an old habit from when I was a kid and couldn't control myself. Idiot...
Idiot!
IDIOT!
I stood up suddenly, making my head spin, and stared at her. God she looked horrible... I bit my lip and pulled at my hair, the feeling of chaos and desperation firing through my veins. I felt so hopeless, so scared, so alone, so-A glimpse of her leg caught my panicked eye and my blood turned into ice.
What.
The fuck.
Her leg mirrored my hand, gauged and gnarly. A black pit of gore, the blue veins spidering out, covering her foot and calf, almost up to her knee. A panicked cry fell from my lips and I started shouting again. "Oh mY GOD OH MY GOD??"In my panic, I turned behind me and started breaking anything I could grasp in my huge hands. I punched a hole into the shower wall that faced the back of the trailer, broke the nearly empty bottle of booze on the table.I saw the packages of gauze and antibacterial liquid during my rage and grabbed it, the sight pending me some clarity. Huffing and puffing as I fell to my knees again and tried to unscrew the lid. When I poured it into her wound, she hissed in her unconsciousness and that was enough for me to heave a teeny, tiny sigh of relief. Good, good she can feel something, she's still with me. Thank you, thank you. To whatever god can hear me, thank you! I wrapped her leg over and over in my haste and placed a quick kiss to it when I was done, still breathing too hard. Fuck. I'm going to fucking collapse. She needs a doctor... I need to get her to the hospital... I picked the cigarette pack off the ground and crawled to reach the lighter a bit further away. I lit it and took a huge pull from it, exhaling a giant ploom of smoke and closed my eyes for a moment before I snatched and poured the antibacterial liquid into my apparently self-mutilated hand. I growled loudly at the intense burning of it, moving my hand around in a circle to swish the bubbling and fizzing medicine around before wrapping it quickly, biting the end of the cigarette between my bared teeth and then wrapping my lips around to inhale another big hit. I exhaled in a growl again as I felt the fizz burning into deep muscle, smashing my eyes shut.
Ouch. Fuck.
There was a sudden and too loud bashing at the door. I jumped up and sped to the door, stupidly not even peaking to see who was there before I nearly ripped the door open in a violent haste to stop the fucking loud and unholy, infuriating sound. The man before me had a look of Big Man Come To Fuck Me Up. Great.... The intolerable, bossy, and very snide Dryden. His ugly scared face glared at me for a moment before it melted away to pure confusion. "Ben? What the fuck are you doing here? And what the fuck is wrong with you? What's going on in here? I heard animals and shouting..." Dryden demanded, taking a step up on the first stair, shoving me back a little to poke his head in and look around, flashing a flashlight around. He caught sight of Rey and stammered, his tough guy bravado phasing in and out as he yelled. "W-what the fuck is this?! What's wrong with her!? She fucking ODing or something?! What the FUCK DID YOU DO TO HER-?" He yelled, his voice growing louder and louder, only to be cut off when I palmed his ugly, scarred face with my entire hand and pulled him into the trailer like a rag doll. I threw him to the floor, peaking out to see that luckily, Qi'ra wasn't home. I shut the door quietly, not wanting to draw any more attention to us and locked the latch. His face had bounced off the floor on impact, dazing him. Good. The less noise he made, the better. I stepped on his back and groaned in pain. He may have been my boss, but he was shit towards Rey and Qi'ra. No better person to use as fuel then someone we both hate... I grabbed a handful of his thinning hair and smashed his face back into the carpet a few times before stepping over him and dragging him over to Rey. She'd want to see this. I learned down and patted her cheeks, then shook her a little. "Rey? Rey...? Reyyyy, wake up, doll. I got us food. Come on, love. Wake up, wake up, wake u-" I sang to her as her eyelids fluttered open. She looked around, dazed, and lick her cracked lips. I smiled and kissed her cheek, beyond words she was awake now. She gave me the tiniest smile and whispered. "Did you say... Food?" She winced as she took a breath in. "I could go for... Ugh, some food."I took a step aside and helped her sit up slowly, letting her see Dryden lifting his head to look around, still not completely coherent as blood dripped from his nose. Rey smiled widely at me just as Dryden set his sights on the decomposing and mangled head of Uncle Luke. He began to scream and scramble backwards, but there was nowhere to go from here but to the torturous hell he'd endure before cold, quiet death.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
My father was bent over the engine of his car, tinkering away. The sky was blue, a few dark clouds rolling in from the east but the sun cast a golden glow over everything. It was the summer of 1972 and my mom was sun bathing on a towel, playing some motown, sipping on some fruity drink. "Oh, mother fucker!" My father spat, dropping the wrench under the car. My mother scowled. "Mace! Watch your mouth! Shit!"My dad chuckled and turned to me. "Babe, you wanna get that for me?" I nodded and crawled under, reaching as far as I could to grab the fallen tool. I rolled out and handed it to him, flashing a proud grin. He pat my head with his dirty hand. "Alright, now place it right there... Uh huh. Good, okay, turn it... Turn it, turn it, turn it... Okay stop. Take that bolt and put it with the others. Okay, then we're gonna put this on here..."I followed his instructions, sweat dripping down my brow. I felt like a grown up, working hard. I wiped my brow with my dirty hand and heaved a groan while I helped him remove a big piece. He chuckled at my efforts, lifting it far easier than I ever could have. "I'm gonna make dinner, clean up and come inside soon." Mom called from the garage door, her hand over her eyes. Dad yelled a half distracted reply, both of us engrossed in the car. She smiled at us before she turned and went in. Dad was patient with me, taking his time to show me tools and parts, explaining their uses. I tried my best to commit them all to memory, wanting to impress him for the next time we would come back out here, not knowing this would be our last tinker session. When the sun started to set, Ben rode his bike up the drive way, waving to us. Dad noticed him before I did, crowing loudly. "Benjamin, what's up little man?" They high fived, and I looked up from screwing some bolts in. "Hey, Ben." I tucked my hair behind my ear, smearing more grease one my sweaty face. Ben grinned, ear to ear, and licked his thumb to wipe the dirt off. I scowled and smacked his hand away, making him and dad both laugh. "Daaaaad!" I whined, crossing my arms, looking to him for help. I hated when Ben bugged me, always touching me. "Tell Dumbo to fudge off!"Ben opened his mouth to say something, probably to call me Scarecrow or something dumb, but dad laughed again. "Come on, Reychelle. Quit acting like you hate it- we all know you got a biiiig ol' crush on Benny, here. Don't play."Ben and I looked to each other in quiet horror, both making faces of disgust. "Eww!" We yelled in unison, both taking a step away at the same time. Ben tripped over his bike a little, and I noticed his cheeks were bright red. What a dork. I shook my head and looked up to my dad who was having a laughing fit while trying to drink his beer. I leaned passed my dad to shove Ben and ran inside, ignoring Dad's shouts of warning. Mom wouldn't let him tease me. 'Have a crush on Ben', yeah right... His giant ears could fly him back home. I huffed and went to the bathroom to clean up, scrubbing my face too hard. That's why my cheeks were red, not because of Ben. What a joke. When I came out of the bathroom, dad squeezed passed me in the small hallway and muttered something I couldn't hear. "What?"He turned to me and grinned. "I said your boyfriend is staying for dinner." My mouth fell open and snapped closed again, trying to figure out how to tell him off. Instead I started smacking his arm. He laughed and laughed, crowding into the wall with his hands up, and stuck his tongue at me. Argh! I sulked on my way to kitchen, sitting down across from Ben. He smiled sheepishly at me and shrugged. "Your mom makes better food than mine. I couldn't say no..."I just rolled my eyes and tucked into my dinner when mom and dad sat down. I glanced up at Ben, watching him doing a quiet prayer before tucking his napkin in his lap and talking small bites. My eyebrows knitted at him. His family was so proper... But mine just dug in and talked with our mouths full. He was on a different channel than we were. But I did like him being around... By the time dinner was over, Ben and I were getting along again so we begged for him to stay the night. Mom called Mrs. Solo and she was fine with it, so Ben ran home to get his pajamas. Dad light a cigarette and cracked open another beer while me and Ben ate ice cream on the front porch. It was a really warm night, and our ice cream melted almost faster than we could scarf it down. "Dad? Will you tell us a story?""Yeah, a scary one!"I glared at Ben and smacked his arm slyly; he knew I was a chicken about scary stuff."Well... Uh... Let's see..." Dad said as he rubbed his bearded chin, staring up at the stars. "Oh, I know. It's an old native story, one I've known about since I was a kid..." He took a swig of his beer, still looking up to the stars. Ben and I tried to wait patiently, picking at the grass and throwing it at each other. "My old man told me all the time, 'stay out of those damn woods, kid! You gonna get gobbled up out there!' Course, I didn't know what the fuck he was talking about, so I told him to go on, you know? So he tells me, he says, that there is a monster out there. Everyone has a name for it, but the natives on the rez call it the Wendigo." Ben and I looked to each other uneasily. Apparently I wasn't the only regretting asking for a story. "The monster... Well, he was like a spirit, that could pass on his curse - and his curse was hunger. They say that if he didn't chew you up and swallow you whole, you'd get his curse. Forever."A shiver ran down my spine and I set down my bowl in front of me. Ben gulped loudly and whispered, "Mace? What did he look like?" I looked at him and shook my head wordlessly. No, no, no! Dad snubbed out his dead cigarette, reaching for another one. He lit it quietly, exhaling in a huff. He raised an eyebrow, daring us. "You sure you wanna know...?"I learned closer to Ben, trying to telekinetically will him to say no. Instead, Ben nodded. Dad looked at us, a slight smile on his face. "Well, our buddy, Wendy, can look like a lot of things... Anything he wants to get you close enough... But notoriously, he has that saggy, pale skin that hangs off his skeleton. He's rotting but has some fur. Some old ones have antlers, and an animal skull for a face. It's big, too- bigger than Han. Hell, even bigger than Chewie." He nodded to Ben's house. Ben suddenly took my hand, but I didn't mind; I felt a little safer even though my chest was tight with intense fear as I envisioned the monster.... "He stalks the woods, always hungry... Looking for people to eat. Weak little kids would be a sure treat for him..." He leveled us with a deep stare, and took a hit of his smoke. "So stay out of those fuckin' woods." That night, I made Ben sleep in my bed to hold me and keep me safe from the monster. Ben puffed out his chest and showed me his 'muscles', ensuring me that we were safe with him in charge. I kind of believed him, but we kept the light on, just in case. Ben pet my hair like a cat until I fell asleep with my head in his lap.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Revenge is a funny thing, and it never happens the way you'd think... It definitely didn't happen the way I'd always fantasized about... I'd always thought maybe my mom would break up with Dryden, throw all of his shit on the curb or maybe have the police arrest him in front of the whole neighborhood. I'd daydream for hours that I'd have a front row seat to his humiliation, just like he did for my own. I always hoped that maybe, just maybe I'd finally tell my mom what a real piece of shit he was... Finally tell her what he'd done to me when she was at work, trying to keep us afloat in the debt we'd been drowning in since my dad's devastating suicide. But that wasn't something I could bring myself to do. Instead, I secluded myself to the trailer in the front yard, freezing all winter, boiling all summer. All because my mother turned to an old boyfriend in her depression. All because it was easier having someone to supply her drug habits. All because I was too mortified to tell her the truth. But I could never place the blame on her. Life had dealt her a shitty hand in an already shitty deck of cards. Life was fucked up for both of us, not much humor in any of it. But karma certainly had a funny way of rounding it's head about in my favor. It was like I was watching myself in a movie, making Dryden our date night main course. Nothing has ever tasted as sweet as his screams, or his begging, as Ben watched me break the bones just for fun. Just for laughs. And oh, did we laugh.Dryden had tried to reason with us. He had begged, promised he would let this go, swore he'd leave my mother's house and never come back. But that wasn't good enough for me. I needed to make sure he'd feel the pain he had inflicted nearly a year ago. And I did. I made damn sure of it. Ben held Dryden down in an arm bar move he'd learned in wrestling and I crawled forward, slowly. I wish I could have seen was terrifying monsters he saw in us, our faces morphed and twisted. I never took my eyes off of his as I took his scared hands into mine. I held his pointer and middle fingers in one grasp, his pinky and ring finger in the other and pulled them apart as hard as I could. The craaaaccck and tearing of his skin made my ravenous gut twirl sick and lovely in anticipation. I salivated, but took my time. His screams were muffled by Ben's palm, and I watched the bastard's eyes roll back and the tears fall. His flesh ripped open instantly, and blood trickled from the wound. I pulled one set of fingers up, and the other down with just as much viciousness as I had just before. This caused a dry heave from him. I let his mangled fingers fall, and then grasped his hand and wrist and snapped the bones. I continued my way up, breaking every bone I could with a monstrous strength that surprised me, even after all the mauling I'd done before him. I was finally strong. Strong enough to break this worthless, pathetic rapist. I eventually set into shredding his flesh off in a delicious chomp of my sharpened teeth, tearing his meat from the bone, blood gushing down my chin as I yanked my head back to make it a clean tear. The muscle tore apart in small snaps from his arm, and I chewed loudly in his face, and Ben held his eyes open forcibly with his fingers. He fainted a few times, but Ben would shake or punch him until he resurfaced. I had all the time in the world to abuse, torture and maim him. My thoughts were blurred in ferocity, random flashes of a dark room as I cried into my pillow while Dryden took his time assaulting me, covering my mouth and telling me to be quiet. And now it was my turn. Fresh tears fell from my eyes as I thoughtlessly grabbed Dryden's dick and ripped it off and tore it to pieces with my claws, screaming in his face has he howled pitifully. My thoughts must have been loud, because suddenly Ben tightened his grip on Dryden and growled deeply, giving me shiver of near fear. He brutally tore into Dryden's shoulder with his teeth and severed the tendons with ease, smacking his lips like a dog, still growling. Dryden weakly struggled and Ben ripped some of his hair out at the root, tossing the clumps of hair and scalp away carelessly. His black and orange eyes were riveted on my mouth as he did, his lips slightly parted as he painted loudly, blood painting his pale face. His black shaggy hair was wild, and I'd never found his as beautiful as I did in that moment, even with his almost scary twisted face. He grabbed another handful of Dryden's hair roughly, making him squeal in pain, then yanked his head out of the way, slamming him to the ground to lurch towards me. Our mouths linked together, and we were half kissing, half fighting for the chunks in our mouths. Dryden's blood smeared all over our faces as Ben pushed him further away and tore open my shirt to lick and kiss and nibble my neck and breasts. I lost myself somewhere in that moment as Ben stuffed his impossibly hard dick inside of my dripping cunt and bent me over Dryden's slowly dying body. I only remember bits and pieces of tearing more hunks from Dryden and moaning in bliss at the taste of blood, my horribly empty gut filling quickly with my prize making me purr in satisfaction, and the frenzied way Ben fucked me, multitasking as he used his elongated claws to rip flesh off and chomp viciously behind me. It was chaotic. It was wonderful. It was heaven. I didn't get the ultimate pleasure of watching Dryden actually die, only really coming to somewhere after, when his body began to cool and harden a bit. There wasn't much left of him, anyway. A worthless zebra massacred by the lions, as it fucking should be. I orgasmed again, after a dozen previous to it, collapsing next to the corpse on the floor. Ben was stuck inside me, pumping even more cum inside me, making it trail down my thighs. I panted wildly and closed my eyes, just listening to our heart beats meld together in time with Ben laying on top of me. Our minds were silent for a long time, until Ben whispered quietly and sadly to my mind:
im... im so, so, so, so sorry, doll... why didnt you tell me? i would have done this sooner...fucking bastard
I opened my eyes slowly, staring into the slow approaching paleness of the sunrise. "I... I couldn't. I couldn't tell anyone." I whispered out loud, hoarsely. "I didn't know how." I licked the dry blood on my lips, savoring the feeling of safety he gave me, covered in all the gore of our revenge. My revenge. I could finally go home. Finally see pictures of my dad I knew mom had locked away. Finally...
Fucking. Finally.
Ben stayed quiet, and I closed my eyes as he gently pet my hair like that night my dad had told us the story of the monster in the woods. My eyes flew open.
The woods...
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
"We have to go to the woods. We have to go now, Ben. Now!"Rey was up and circling around the trailer, acting like an ant when you burned their head off. Not that I ever made a habit of doing that... That was some shit my dad, Chewie and Mace used to do when they were drunk and bored. Rey thoughts were a mess, just flashes of the dark woods and Rose naked and her eyes pouring black goo. "Jesus Rey, what the fuck is going on with you? What was wrong with Rose? The fuck is-"Rey cut me off, throwing clothes around and trying to find something to wear. "We have to go to the woods! Don't you remember what my dad told us all those years ago?! About the monster in the woods?" She tried smoothing her gore soaked hair but it was already crusted and gross. "He was right, Ben. That monster didn't gobble me up and now we're dying! We're turning into the Wendy!"I stood up and wrapped my arms around her to make her stay still. She paused briefly and rested her head on my chest and wrapped her arms around my waist. "... Don't you remember?"My brain wracked for what exactly Mace had told us, but I remembered more about her being super scared that night and how she had fallen asleep in my lap. That was a good night... One of the last good nights before Mace had been killed by some animal in his car only a few days later. His car was found out by the woods, and Rey and her mom had to identify the body. My dad, mom, Chewie and I followed them out to the scene. Memories of yellow caution tape and police everywhere flowed into my head. But Quira screaming and Rey collapsing to her knees in a silent cry was most prominent... Maybe she's been the focal point of my memories for a lot longer than I'd ever cared to admit... Focus, Ben. You're so creepy. Jesus... All of a sudden, Rey was barely dressed and trying to drag my naked self out the door. I yanked her back. "Hey. Relax. Can we shower the fuckin blood off first before we go and solve Scooby Doo mysteries?!"Rey looked at me and nodded once. The shower was uneventful, until someone was knocking on the trailer door. "Rey...?" Quira called as she opened the door. I tried to hide behind Rey but instead slipped and took us both down. Quira exclaimed in surprise and covered her face and turned around. "Oh! Oh my god! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! ... Hi Ben.."Rey jumped up to grab clothes and through my shorts at me. "Just.. Just wait outside mom! We'll be right out!""Okay... I just... Dryden isn't home, but his car is here... Have you seen him?" Quira called from outside. Rey and I turned to each other at the same time, wide eyed. Fuck. My. Life.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Shit. Shit, shit, shit, shiiiiiit!Ben and I rushed to scrub all the blood off us and get dressed. It was chaotic and panic inducing - our thoughts were smooshed into one !!!!! and it was exhausting. I finally smoothed my hair back into three buns and turned to Ben for approval. He looked me up and down carefully, starting to nod until he stopped at my leg. He shook his head quickly, muttering under his breath and grabbed the bandages, patching up the horrendous, gauged nightmare of my ankle. Then he patched his gnawed hand. We were falling apart and rotting from the inside, but I'd never felt closer to Ben. We didn't really need to speak aloud anymore, and I actually preferred it. I stood up on my tippy toes to give him a kiss, and turned to head out the door, facing a mother I hadn't seen in weeks. How was I supposed to explain Dryden?
we claim ignorance, doll. and when night falls, we get rid of the rotting corpses hidden under the bed.
I nodded once and rolled my eyes.
obviously...
Ben slapped my ass and stuck his tongue out at me when I turned to glare at him. How was he always so able to joke around in times of stress?
genetic. and trust me, my mom hates it more than you do. dad and I always piss her off when she's shouting like this one time-
Ben continued with a memory as I opened the door, distracting me from realizing that all too soon I was face to face with my mum. She looked awful. All this working was really catching up with her, making her look much older than barely 35, bags under her eyes. Poor thing. At least now she was free from Dryden's rule over our home, and now I could come inside and see pictures of my father again... See my old bedroom... Mum suddenly pulled me in close for a hug, dragging Ben by the collar of his shirt to join. Our brains both agreed:
warmth. home. happy.
I felt tears starting to well up in my eyes and I had to pull away. Mum's eyes were teary as well, and she pinched my cheek lightly and smoothed my hair. Her eyes were flittering about my face and she glanced to Ben and pinched his cheek as well. The big lug blushed. "Come inside for awhile, huh? I haven't seen you both in so long and it seems I've definitely missed out on something big between you two." Mum put on some tea and we all sat in the yellow kitchen I'd almost forgotten about. The orange trim, the blue table cloth... Everything was the same. Ben and I both felt at ease, nostalgia bright and rose colored. "So..." Mum said, sitting down. "When did this-" she wagged her finger between us "-start up? Not to say I'm surprised, really. Leia and I have been convinced you two would get married some day." She rested her chin in her palm and smiled. We looked to each other and shrugged, mirroring each other's movements nearly constantly. When had that started? "Dunno. Guess things just... Happened." Ben said, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. Mum rolled her eyes. "Suppose so... I'm glad to see it. How's your mother, Ben? I feel like I haven't been around to catch up in ages..." She frowned. They went into boring conversation and I spaced out, mostly trying to image my father, drinking a beer and playing with my mum's hair. Melancholy leeched onto me almost harshly and I bit my lip. I hadn't thought about my dad in months... I excused my self to go peek at my room, see if anything had changed. Nothing had. The posters of Star Trek were still stuck to the grey walls, my blue and white dressers still stood. I learned against the frame and thought of that night about the Wendy story. Was there really any truth in it? What could we do to stop this? And what had we done to deserve this? What did my father do to deserve the ruthless way he'd been slaughtered? A gut wrenching flash of his face crossed my thoughts. What if... What if... I tip toed to my mum's room, sneaking through her drawers for anything my father had left. There had to be something. He knew more than he let on. He had to.
keep her distracted
two steps ahead, doll. told her to give you sometime in the house, gonna help her weed the rose bush. take your time.
I nodded to no one. I went through all the papers, all the photos, and cried my heart out. There were so many pictures of us as a family, him with Han and Chewie, a few older friends I barely remembered. Then I found an old book, totally random as dad preferred television to reading. The book was mostly blank as I flipped through it, until I found a few extra pictures stuck in. I hugged one of us three on mum's birthday, laughing with party hats on and put it in my pocket to keep.
I like that one, too. we'll put it somewhere safe, Rey.
I smirked a little.
creep, get outta here.
you couldn't stand it if I were away. get real.
I shrugged. Yeah. He was right. Some pages of the book had phone numbers and car parts written or drawn. I laughed a little. He was a shitty artist, but a great mechanic. Towards the end of it, one page had a small poem. I sat down on the edge of mum's bed and read:
it hurts to breatheit hurts unless I'm eatingit hurt even more to knowI'd snack them both if I lost control
I dropped the book on the floor and stared at the wall. He did know more than he let on. He had suffered just as we are. How many had my father killed? What had killed him in the end? Where did all this lead to? It only strengthened my initial instinct: We had to get to those woods.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Rey was dragging me out of the house, her mind abuzz with the woods the woods the woods the woods. I dropped my cigarette when she took me by the collar, but I didn't fight against her. Rey was on a mission, not even hearing Qi'ra when she called out to us. She ran into the trailer, looking for my car keys. Qi'ra was yelling from the door and I turned to shrug to her. Then Rey was running to the car and I turned to jog after her. She started it and stomped on the gas pedal, making my tires screech. "Uhm, hey! Do you even have your license?!" I yelled at her. She didn't look away from the road, twisting and turning through the town like a woman possessed. "No. But you don't understand - my dad knew something about the monster in the woods. I think he... He might have been bitten, too."She was driving erratically, and honestly it was scaring the shit out of me. "Could you please slow the fuck down!"She shook her head and whipped us roughly to the right, making me slam my head into the window. Then we were bumping through the unpaved road, flying passed big pine trees and bushes. My car was starting to take a real beating and I was worried my tires might pop. Suddenly Rey slammed the brakes at the second campsite and I lurched forward and smacked my head into the windshield because I still hadn't put on my seatbelt. "FUCK, REY! WHAT BUG IS UP YOUR ASS?!" I yelled at her. But she was already out the car and sprinting into the woods. I got out and chased after her, but she was surprisingly fast. She ducked and dodged branches while I just ran with my hands out to avoid them. I was quickly running out of breath after awhile but she seemed to be made of fucking jet fuel.
REY STOP what are we doing out here what's happening????
The only thing she offered was the insistent:
almost there I think almost there almost there almost thereFinally, finally she came to a sliding stop and looked around frantically. "Where is it? Where is it?! I know it's out here... SHOW YOURSELF!" Rey screamed into the empty, quiet woods. No bugs or even animals made any sounds. It was eerily still, come to think of it... I slowly turned and looked all around in the weird clearing, feeling a chill that made my hair stand on end. Suddenly there was a cracking noise not far from us, off to the left. My entire body was raised with goosebumps. "Rey..." I whispered. She was frozen in her tracks as she turned to look at me. Another snap echoed off, closer this time. Her eyes were huge, green saucers staring at me like she'd never been so afraid in her life. I wanted to reach for her, hold her close but my heart had seized me, rendering me petrified. The sound of leaves crunching behind me dropped the temperature ten degrees colder. The woods were growing darker by the second, and I watched as Rey eyes left mine and landed on whatever it was behind me. My muscles were so tense I thought I was going to snap in half. Her mouth dropped open and her skin blanked to white. Tears welled up and fell over the rim as she stared dumbly behind me. My stomach dropped when the thing behind me growled deeply behind me. fuck... me... We thought in unison.Rey began to sob and I smashed my eyes shut, too terrified to move. Through our bond, all I saw was impending darkness but I pushed it away. I decided immediately I didn't want to see what was about to rip my head clean from my shoulders. Nope. Fuck that.The sensation of cold air blowing in and out on my neck, a sniffing noise to accompany it. My entire body tightened up harshly as I felt the wet nose breathing on my neck. And that's all it took to make me faint like a little bitch. As the floor flew faster and faster to my face, all I could think was:
and here Rey thought she had a man to protect her
I would have rolled my eyes in annoyance if they hadn't rolled up in blackness.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
It was... Oh my god, it was just...
Horrible.
The tears kept falling down my cheeks as I stood there frozen. It was all I could... Just stare. I was shaking so hard but I was trying to focus on being still, not wanting to upset the thing before me.Ben fell like a ton of bricks, his eyes rolled up into the inside of his head. A little gasp left my lips, but the thing stayed exactly where it was, only bending down to sniff at Ben's unconscious body.I was fighting the sobs that threatened to scream out of me, biting my lip hard enough to bring up some blood. My tongue dashed out at it, but it didn't taste like blood. It was sludgy, and beyond bitter. My stomach rolled in a wave of nausea. Oh fuck.The thing looked up to me, in all of its dark horror, aligning its glazed eyes with mine; there was only the small slivers of dark orange boring back, just like I'd seen in Ben's so many times. The thing bent back down, bit into Ben's shirt and began to trudge backwards, dragging Ben along with it. The steps were loud, powerful, earth shaking. Ben's body moved over rocks and leaves while I willed myself forward, my legs walking me in a jerky motion.This thing wasn't going to take him away from me. Even if it meant death, a violent and terrible death, it wasn't going to take him away from me. It had already taken my father from me, I wasn't going to let it take another man I loved. It couldn't.I followed it for well over a mile.It never took its eyes off of me, the orange spears gazing into me, maybe even through me. My heart was trying to escape from my chest. The tears never faltered even when my feet tried. I was moving against every instinct that screamed at me to turn and run back from where we came.Still, I followed.The sky was getting darker, making it harder for me to see anything but the glowing orange in front of me.
what the... what the fuck...? wha-
Ben was starting to come to. Shit.
no! don't move! don't do ANYTHING
I felt Ben's brain seize in panic. I could myself through his eyes. I looked scary... My skin was so pale, the bags under my eyes so dark and plump. I looked like one of those dope fiends that hung out outside the shopping cart, begging for change. Strung out at best, inhuman at worst.
you're still beautiful to me
I could have rolled my eyes if they weren't stuck on an actual monster that had my boyfriend in tow. Ben was terrified, but he was still just as ridiculous, without even meaning to. I'd never understand him.Soon, the monster was dragging us both into a huge cave, and it was starting its decent into the ground. I took a huge gulp of air. I was covered in sweat, all over, even though the temperature continued to drop as I followed it underground, everything becoming pitch black.Except for the eyes. They glowed in the dark. I could hear Ben's panicked breathing, starting to near hysterical. He was scared, but I tried to tell him over and over it was okay. Over and over again.
it's okay baby it's okay it's okay
The beast's steps halted suddenly, as did mine.
There was no sound but our breathing, until suddenly -
Fire sparked to life, making me jump right out of my skin with a scream that flew out before I could cover my mouth.
Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck.
My eyes adjusted slowly, forcing me to not even realize that the beast had disappeared altogether. Ben was still laying on the ground, his knuckles rubbing his eyes and he was panting.
When my eyes did finally adjust...
I was face to face with my father.
I began sobbing uncontrollably and against my better judgement, ran to him, my arms outstretched, ready to be back in the embrace I'd been agonizing over missing after all these years.
"Daddy!" I cried as I tripped over Ben's leg, making me fall to my knees painfully.
My daddy smiled, exposing dark yellow and fanged teeth. A black sludge spilled over his teeth and lips, dropping onto his naked chest. He held a torch of fire in one hand.
He lent the other clawed hand to me, offering to help me up. I took it with a shaking hand, sobbing still. His grasp was strong and bone chillingly cold, but that didn't matter to me.
I had found my daddy.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
My eyes were still adjusting to the bright, flickering light of the flame above my head and all I could hear for some reason was Rey crying.
daddy!!
Rey's entire brain was full of pure, unimaginable excitement and happiness. I couldn't understand what she was feeling. And why was she seeing her dad? He was dead... I looked up and saw through my blurry vision that she had her arms wrapped around the beast, whose eyes were locked into me. My own eyes were bugging out in terror and confusion... What the fucking fuckity fuck was she doing?!? I scrambled to my knees and reached out to grab her leg but I grabbed her bite instead. My fingers pushed into the clawed and assaulted area, pushing in through the bandage and passed the black and sludgy pit. It coated my fingers and I actually felt her ankle bone. Oh holy shit! Her flesh was fucking rotting away, a lot faster than I'd even realized. I gagged as I yanked my hand away and pulled up my own bandage quickly to see that the same had happened to my hand; the black and festering wound had spread far passed my palm and had made my fingers black and rotted as well. What the hell?!? I looked back up at the beast to see it was slowly engulfing Rey, sucking her into its pitch black darkness. "Rey! Rey! REY!!!!" I screamed but she didn't hear me, instead she stayed stuck, the big smile on her face while the blackness inched its way on to her, tiny little tentacle like pieces of it spreading across her body and face. Happy tears fell down her face and she snuggled closer to the fucking monster. I jumped up on wobbly feet and tried to pull her away by her shirt from It but she was stuck - like really fucking stuck. I started crying as I continued to yank and yank and cried out to her, quickly losing my mind. "Rey, Rey please! Look at me! Rey! That's not your dad! That's not your fucking dad!"I was beyond anything I'd ever felt before; there was no words to describe how desperate I felt. Why couldn't she see what I saw? What was the fuck was this thing?! Why had she made us come to the fucking woods?! My fingers brushed against the monster as I tried to pull and pry Rey away and the ice cold embrace of what I could only assume was Death itself bit my fingers and made me scream in pain. I fell to my knees and sobbed as I watched it continue to slowly leech itself over Rey. Her already sickly skin was also losing color drastically and her was paling into a pure white. I felt like I losing my damn mind when suddenly an idea struck me. I jumped up and ripped the torch from the beast's clawed hand and smashed it down on the mother fucker's head as hard as I could, screaming out as I did. It worked. It fucking worked! The thing screeched louder than anything if ever heard in my life and I dropped the torch as I fell to cover my ears to no avail. JESUS FUCKING CHRIST. The bastard unleeched from Rey, leaving suction cupped bruises all over her face and arms. She fell backwards and smacked her head on the cave floor with a sickening qhhhkt.The thing was still screaming at an inhuman volume but I crawled towards Rey and dragged her up into my arms, when I felt the blood spilling from her head. Oh fuck. Fuck. I was still crying but now it was even harder. I kissed her forehead and laid her down gently and hopped to my feet, picked up the torch again. I began to bludgeon it over and over again and I noticed it was shrinking in size with every thud and soon my arms were weak so I turned on my heels, picked up Rey and ran out from the cave and ran like hell back towards the car. "B... Ben...? What..." Rey muttered, her eyelids flickering open and shut. At least her head wasn't bleeding anymore. I was running like death was on my heels. "Fuck this! We're doing what we should have fucking done as soon as your been bitten! We're going to the fucking hospital!"I turned to look behind us at least a billion times but I didn't see anything behind us. I didn't care. I was getting my dad's shotgun on the way to the fucking hospital. I skidded to a sliding stop in the dirt in front of the car and ripped the door open and shoved Rey inside. I Dukes of Hazzard-ed over the the hood and roared the engine to life, skidding out as we hauled ass away from those fucking woods. "Next time you get a crazy fucking idea to go to the woods, or anywhere else, you can shove it up your ass, Rey!"
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
beep... beep... beep... beep...
Argh. What the fuck was that stupid beeping sound? I reaches out my hand to turn it off or break it but someone snatched my hand and heaved a sigh. I tried to crack just an eye open but it was so bright, I shut it again. The damned beeping kept going as the person holding my hand began to stroke it softly, rubbing their thumb in circles. Soon another hand that was bandaged was placed on my forehead, sweeping my hair away. "Shhh. Don't worry. I brought you to the fucking hospital. Finally."It was Ben. Oh, thank the Maker. "What's... Going on?" I whispered. Ben sighed again and I heard the chair creak as he leaned in closer, lowering his voice. "Welp... You got this hairbrained ass idea to go back to the fucking woods you got bitten in. I don't know why... You were acting so god damned weird. Like you were possessed. You weren't making any sense... It was... Shit, it kind of scary."I couldn't remember anything, so I watched the scene from Ben's point of view as he spoke, my eyelids mashed tight. It was chaotic to say the least... I was driving his car like a crazy person, and seeing myself through his eyes... A pale, frenzied mess chanting over and over as I ran through the woods like the Roadrunner was pretty upsetting. But why couldn't I remember anything? "It was beyond scary... And we found something out there. Well... It found us. And it... I guess I fainted or something." He cleared his throat, and I could feel his embarrassment. "I guess it, uh... Dragged me through the woods to its' cave and... I don't know. It was so dark and then there was fire and you were... Hugging the fucking thing, Rey. All you were thinking was that it was your dad, for some reason. I don't know. But it... It started sucking you into it." His voice broke, and he took a staggering breath. It took him a minute to recover, but his mind was showing me enough. My stomach felt like lead as I watched and felt Ben's helplessness at the beast sucking me in, leeching my hair to white in most parts. And the thing was hideous. Blacker than anything I'd ever seen, the flame doing nothing to show much of anything but reflecting in its orange silvered eyes. The eyes showed no emotion, nothing human or even animal staring back. Its hand, (if that's what you could even call it), was gnarled and clawed and jutted out unnaturally from its side and the mouth hung open, exposing dark yellow, crooked teeth that drooled. The memory became blurry, showing me hitting my head and him bashing the thing with the torch and picking me up and running. It tappered off and became blank before showing my face unconscious as doctors crowded me and wheeling me away. I saw my face as he was seeing it right then and the tears fell hard. My skin, that had always been golden and pretty before, was sickly, and I had black marks all over the left side of my body, all the way up to my face. I looked like a burn victim or frost bite or something awful and it made me sick. I was so... So ugly!
Not to me.
I took a deep, shuddering breath in as I sobbed. Why was he so good to me? The beeping had picked up the pace at some point and I realized it was a pulse monitor. I finally rubbed my eyes of the tears and opened them slowly to look at Ben. My heart seized - God, he looked like Hell... I reached my hand out to touch his face, and wiped away a few tears. He sniffled and shook his head a little while he stared at me, his dark brown eyes still terrified. My poor Ben... My poor, poor Ben. I swallowed and cleared my own throat to speak, but I didn't know what to say, except for: "I'm sorry..."He laughed a little and held my face while he kissed my lips, my cheeks, my nose, my forehead. I smiled a little, too, trying to kiss him all over as well. "I'm so glad you're okay, Rey. I love you. So fucking much." He whispered into my hair. He leaned back into his chair after a few minutes and cracked his neck. His skin was so pale, he looked like a ghost. A really tired ghost that hadn't slept in years. I know I didn't look much better. "What did the doctors say...?" I asked. Ben looked at the floor and shrugged. "They have no fucking idea... 'Never seen anything like it.'" He mocked in a high voice and rolled his eyes. "Like, yeah, no shit. They treated your bite though... Poured some stuff on it and you roared like a lion, but it isn't all... Black and grotesque anymore. So I guess that's good?"I frowned. "It just... Stopped being gross? What about your hand?" I reached out and took it into mine, surveying the bandages that covered his whole hand and individual fingers. "Gave me a penicillin shot, and the same thing happened... It's still a gaping hole, but not all rotted."He shrugged like it didn't matter. I guess it didn't. We were alive. That's all that mattered... I picked up a lock of my hair and frowned. Ew... The white was so ugly. I'd need to dye it when I got back home. I scowled. Stupid fucking beast, making me ugly... I hoped Ben had destroyed it. Ben shrugged then. "I'm not sure... But have you noticed anything missing?"I just stared at him. He rolled his eyes. "The hunger... I haven't felt anything like it since we left the woods."I chewed on my lip while I stared at him. No... I guess not. I mean, I was hungry but not like... Not like before. But what did that mean? Probably nothing. Maybe just more impending doom. We sat in silence for awhile before a nurse came in with a tray of food, smiling and telling me how happy she was to see me awake. She checked my IVs and vitals before leaving, closing the door behind her. Ben tried to feed me, but I took over for him, giving him bites as well as myself. He kept petting my hair before he broke out in a full smile. I narrowed my eyes. "What..?"He pursed his lips to try to keep from laughing. "I kind of like the white... You look like a hot, witchy grandma I'd sure like to fuck. Hopefully soon." His grin was straight wolfish. I smacked his arm and scowled. "Asshole! I do not!"He started laughing and gave me another kiss on my nose. "Whatever you say, doll."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After all the bullshit and insanity... Life just... Moved on.Rey and I went to school when September rolled around, back into classes and sports, and it felt like the entire summer was just a really weird dream. Well, except for the memorial for Poe and Hux. The newspapers said they were killed by a bear or some stupid shit. My mother cried for months about Luke and Hux, but I didn't feel really any 'sorrow'. Just guilt. But that too faded away, just like the leaves in the trees. Life moved on, and so did we. We agreed to leave it all behind us at the hospital, planning to move away when we graduated. It felt right. Healthy. There wasn't much left here for us any ways, besides our parents. We applied to the same college and decided to look into apartments near campus. Everything was back to normal. Except for the nightmares. But those disappeared soon enough, too. I snuck into Reys room every night after the lights went out in both of our houses. Qi'ra even started dating someone new from work, a real nice guy who didn't sell drugs. Didn't even look like he'd ever seen drugs. But that was good. Qi'ra needed someone like that. Everything had fallen into place. I crept open Rey's window and climbed through quietly. She was already asleep, all tuckered out from swim team. I kicked off my shoes and slipped off my jacket and snuck under the covers and snuggled up to her, sniffing her still wet hair. She sighed and stretched out, mumbling something into the pillow. "What was that?" I whispered, my own tired eyes finally closing.
was just starting to dream...
oh... sorry.
"You fell asleep early. How was dinner with your mom and Mr. Cool Guy?" I snickered. Rey elbowed me with hardly any strength. "Be nice... And it was fine." She yawned and wiggled her butt against my crotch. I groaned. "Don't start... I'm so tired." She shrugged and rolled over to face me, pulling the blanket up higher over us, covering our heads. "Hey, Ben...""Yes, doll?" I opened my eyes to see hers, barely visible in the darkness. They still had a little glimmer to them. She looked down for a minute so I tucked my finger under her chin to look up at me. "Yes...?""I just... Do you ever... Do you still think that thing is out there?"I flinched a little on instinct; that thing still scared the absolute piss out of me. I didn't like to think about it, so I didn't. I chewed at the inside of my cheek, wondering just how I was supposed to answer a question like that. "Honestly, would be nice." She whispered. I frowned. "Get out of my head."She rolled her eyes.
you'd miss me too much
Heh. How true. "I... I don't know. Maybe... There's definitely a chance of maybe." I narrowed my eyes. "Why?"Rey twirled a lock of hair around her finger and shrugged. "I dunno... I was just... Thinking...""Bullshit. Tell me."She heaved a sigh and her lips formed into a hard line. "I just... Do you ever get that creepy feeling? The chills? Like someone is watching you?"My tongue ran over the front of my teeth. "Sure. But that doesn't -"She poked me in the chest. "But that doesn't not mean it isn't, either. You know what I'm talking about." I glared over her head. "I thought we agreed we weren't gonna talk about this anymore.""Yeah, but -""But nothing. I don't want to talk about it. Case closed.""But, Ben -!""No. I said no, Rey. We aren't gonna pay it anymore mind. Out of sight, out of mind. Done. Zipped. Gone."Rey pinched my nipple and I yelped. She covered my mouth and shushed me so I bite her hand. Animal instincts die hard. "Ow! You're being so unreasonable!" She huffed in a whisper. "I don't care. You're bugging me. You know what..." I flung the blanket away from us and got out of bed, slipping my shoes back on. "I'm going home. I'll pick you up in the morning." I put on my jacket. "Ben! Come on, you're being stupid! Just come back and lay dow-""Goodnight, Rey." I said as I opened the window. I looked back to her, half way out of the bed and looking at me with misty eyes. I sighed. "I love you. But we're not going to talk about this. We agreed." I slipped out and before I shut the window behind me, I leveled her with a glare. "Let the past go, Rey. Kill it, if you have to. But let it fucking go." I slammed her window shut. I walked passed the old trailer, still sitting out in the front yard. I usually ignored it, pretended that anything that wasn't the sweet, sweet love making (sans the gore) between Rey and I had, had never happened in there. It was better to pretend the summer had happened in a different away, something more wholesome and less gruesome. I preferred to remember things differently, and with that, the memories changed slowly. Any memories that stuck after the mental scrub were from a batch of bad mushrooms we had eaten for all I fucking cared. I could let go of the past. Why couldn't she? I pulled a cigarette out from my pocket and stopped to light it in the street. It was cold out, but not completely freezing yet. I liked the cold, though. It was so invigorating, crisp. I exhaled and started walking again, looking up at the big, full autumn moon when I was suddenly overcome with severe paranoia. A chill rocketed its way up my spin, making my head twitch. I stopped in my tracks and glanced around, but I didn't see anyone. I popped up the collar of my jacket and kept scanning as I walked, picking up the pace. I knew I was being stupid, probably just spooked from Rey mentioning That Which We Do Not Mention. Just dumb, useless paranoia, nothing more -Just then something clattered to ground and I spun around instantly to see what it was, my heart slamming against my rib cage. Oh. Just a raccoon on the street, probably digging through someone's garbage. I stared at it, and it stared back. It's black, glossy eyes were glued to me, and it didn't blink. A chill ran up my spin again and I shivered. I threw my cigarette at it and stomped my foot on the ground, puffing up my chest to scare it away. "Fuck off!" I shouted at it, but it didn't even flinch when the cigarette bounced off of its head. Its eyes we're so huge and black, it looked unnatural. It was frozen mid step, like I'd caught it following me. Jesus Christ... Freaky little bastard. What the fuck? I started walking backwards, slowly away from it, my stomach suddenly feeling uneasy. It never moved, never blinked. It didn't even look like it was breathing. I found myself turning around and running away from it, struggling to open my window when I reached my house. I was panting and shaking, but I finally threw my window open and dove through, locking it and sliding down to the floor.I wiped the sweat from my forehead and caught my breath. I started laughing, still shaking, and laid my head into my hands that were propped on my knees in my dark room. Rey called to me silently, probably feeling my panic.
???? are you okay
I brushed her off. It was nothing, just my childish brain over reacting about nothing. I couldn't believe I had actually ran away from a fucking raccoon. Jesus, how pathetic was that?"Stupid. So stupid." I laughed, shaking my head and biting my lip. "I must be going fucking crazy."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
I felt Ben's panic as soon as he'd felt it, and it scared me so much I dashed to the window to see if he was okay. He was frozen in the street but then he was yelling at something, puffing his chest up and threw his cigarette at it. I couldn't see what it was, only a garbage can. What the hell was he doing? Why was he so scared? He took off running then, struggling with his window before he dove through. It was kind of funny, but his fear was now my fear and I called out to him.
im crazy im going crazy
I sat down under my window and wrapped my arms around me knees.
ben... what happened?
Suddenly his vibes became vicious and he all but barked at me.
just leave me the FUCK alone rey seriously fuck. off
I recoiled back from the venom in his voice and bit my lip. Geez, what the fuck did I do to him...? Tears pricked at my eyes and my throat felt like it was constricting. I slumped down to the carpet and began to sob uncontrollably. This wasn't fair, I didn't do anything wrong. Why was he so mad at me? My stomach churned in a hauntingly familiar way and I felt sick... Sick enough to -It came up without any heaving, pouring from me like a bathtub faucet. It burned horribly, and it made my head spin. I probably looked like the Exorcist, and the bile spewed for what felt like an endless time. My eyes were blurry from all the tears and my nose stung a lot as I panted and wiped my mouth with a shaking hand. "F.... Fuck." I whimpered and closed my eyes. I learned back up against the wall and tried to clam myself down. I opened my eyes slowly and looked down, and that's when I laid my eyes on my vomit. It was black... I brought my hand to my face and shook my head slowly. No. That couldn't... No, it could mean a lot of things... Internal bleeding... Please, no, let it be anything but what I knew in my heart it was. I rubbed my palms into my eyes started to cry again. I banged the back of my head into the wall and screamed into my hands. No... God, please, no. No! My skin was slick with sweat and I began to shiver. It was just like before, just like when I had been bitten by that grotesque beast in the woods. My hands curled into fists and I began punching my own head at the temples, sobbing so hard that snot was rolling down my chin. I called out to Ben, but he didn't reply. I was lost in all my thoughts, rushing passed each one faster and faster.
Was that thing still alive? Am I cursed? I'm so sick, fuck... I'm gonna puke again. Where is Ben? I can't see. Has he cut me off? Why is this happening? Cut me out? It's so hot, it's so hot. Over something so stupid, a small little fight? Black vomit can mean anything. I can't breathe. I'm going to die. I want to die, I WANT TO DIE.
My brain was scrambling my thoughts and it felt like it was on fire. I continued punching my head, screaming like a total psycho until my mom came in and startled at my black puke. Her boyfriend, Matt, hoisted me up into his arms, struggling to contain my crazy episode, and suddenly, I felt the pain that I thought I'd forgotten... The pain of losing total control, my limbs bending and tuffs of hair spouting. My teeth ached as they elongated and I was taken over by thoughts of only ravenous, gut wretching hunger. My mouth moved without my consent and I snapped my head towards Matt and bit him, right on the shoulder. His blood was pouring all over my chest and face as I ripped back and tore out the meat and chomped wildly, ignoring my mother's horrified screams. Finally. Some good fucking food.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
My head snapped up from my knees when I heard the screaming, so I bolted. Dogs were all barking, losing theirs minds just like me, along the street. I flew right passed the weird raccoon that was now in Rey's front yard. I skidded to a stop to stare at that freaky fucking thing, and it tilted its head while its unblinking eyes bore through me. My pulse slammed in my throat as I stared at it, stuck to the spot.
What the fuck is this thing...
More screaming tore my feet from where I stood before my eyes could even look away. Fuck it. Doesn't matter. I slid across the slick grass to Rey's window, yanking the stupid thing open and dumping my big, clumsy body inside her room and falling hard onto the floor. I scrambled towards her mutated body and tried ripping her off from Matt's chomped up body, but she was stronger than me. I was wrong, of course I was wrong. I was always wrong. This was all my fucking fault. Great. Whatever had happened to us this summer was still inside Rey. She was horrendous, her spine protruding and the dark brown, oily fur boiling out from the constant, huge goosebumps that rolled under her skin made me wanna puke all over her again. Her limbs were elongated and twisting, making sick snapping noises that were almost unnoticed under the sound of her growling and tearing Matt apart. slurp, slurp. crack, crunch, crunch. Like some fucked up Rice Crispies commercial. I started yanking her arm over and over until she finally whipped her ugly face towards me and growled angrily. My hands flew up in fear and I took a step back, stumbling a bit. Oh shit. "I - I'm sorry. Enjoy your... Food? Don't mind me..." My pulse pounded in my skull but I barely took a breath in.
its me its Ben it's fine everything is fine
She looked me up and down once with her mostly black eyes and I saw the orange sliver pulse as she assessed me. She sniffed towards me briefly, a freaky little smiled quirked her lips.
mate. join. food. eat food.
She jutted her chin towards her buffet before turning back to dinner. Jesus - I mean Matt. Shit. Poor dorky Matt...I blew a gust of air out and ran my hands over my face. Oh holy fuck.I took another slow step back and scanned the room when I finally found Qi'ra hiding not so well under Rey's bed. "Psst... Pssst! Qi'ra!" I hissed. Her big brown eyes shot up to mine and I saw she was splattered with a few streaks of blood. Her eyes welled up with tears and her lip trembled. Oh god. Poor Qi'ra..."Hide... Better..." I whispered, moving my hands around, aggravated my brain wasn't working. They were shaking and my chest felt tight. Qi'ra shuffled back into the darkness quietly. I took another step backwards and slowly wrapped my fingers around the lamp on the nightstand. I swallowed the lump in my throat and blinked a bunch, trying to suck the tears back into my head. I shouldn't have left. God damn it. I stared at Rey's fucked off body while she ripped her head back, tearing flesh like hot string cheese, munching and crunching obnoxiously loud. She licked at her blood soaked hand and moaned, but it sounded different now that I wasn't in the same state as her. It sounded down right fucking scary.I gulped and smashed my eyes shut for a second. ben ?? Rey called to me as she started to turn her head to look at me. "I'm sorry, doll." I muttered before I pulled the cord of the lamp out of the wall and dashed at Rey, bringing the butt of it down on her head as hard as I could. Her groan of pain was cut off quickly and she slumped to the floor like a ton of bricks. Her eyes fluttered and the huge, black orbs rolled up and the whites took over. Her eyes closed, and then she didn't move. "Fuck..." I whispered and dropped the lamp. I stood staring over her, and a sob broke through my tight lips. I fell to my knees and gathered her tightly to me and cried like a little bitch. I touched her raised cheekbones, smearing Matt's blood. God she was ugly. "I should have fucking listened. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Shit. Fuck." I choked and coughed. I rocked back and forth for a while until I got my shit together and wiped the snot from my face with my arm. Qi'ra was sitting next to me, and she nearly scared the piss out of me, making me jump. "Jesus Christ, Qi'ra!" I growled. She didn't react to me, just kept staring at Rey's slowly morphing face. "What... the hell, Ben." She whispered with her hand on her forehead. She stared at Matt's corpse, shaking silently. I should have touched her, but I couldn't. I didn't care about her. "I..." I didn't know what to say. All I knew was that it was time to get out of there.She started crying then, but I just struggled to pick Rey up, since she was as dense as a dying fucking star in my arms. "Where are taking her?" She said tonelessly when I was half way out of Rey's door. "I don't know.""When will you be back?"I stared at the floor and tried to readjust Rey again. "... I don't know.""What's wrong with her?"I sighed and grit my teeth, getting irritated. I could barely think, barely feel. "I don't fucking know, Qi'ra.""Well what do you fucking know, Ben?!" She suddenly shouted at me. I finally spun and yelled back, shaking with a violent rage. "NOTHING! I DON'T KNOW FUCKING ANYTHING!" I spat, the venom burning my throat. And with that, I stomped out of the house, into the street and angrily struggled to rip open my car door to toss Rey inside. I ran to the other side and ripped open my own door, slammed it shut and opened the sun visor to grab my keys and wallet. I revved the engine and sped off, burning rubber and skidding through every stop sign and turn. I didn't know where I was going, but the further away we got, the better I felt. I chain smoked cigarette after cigarette and watched the sun come up with white knuckles. Fuck my family, fuck Rey's mom, fuck our friends, fuck school, fuck jobs. And fuck whatever was lurking in the god damned woods.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
"Ugh! I don't get why we have to leave every time it happens!" Rey pouts and crosses her arms, ever the fucking brat as she stares out the window. "It's not like they even know it's us - how could they?"She suddenly punches the dashboard and growls, low and deep. I roll my eyes. It's a warning, but she doesn't scare me. I don't scare her much, either. Which is good. We have an understanding now. Never, ever hurt each other. Ever. Not that we ever did before... But it's good to have boundaries. Rules. Moral codes. Something to pass down to future generations. Or... whatever. I sigh and snub out my cigarette into the ashtray. I should quit. "Oh god. Shut up, doll. We can't really risk shit, okay? You know that..."I reach over the gear shift and touch her hair. She got a perm and I hate it; makes her smell weird and her hair feels weird. But she wants to fit in with girls her age. Even talked me into a mullet. Somehow. I look like a dad, especially with my mustache. The things I do for her... "Can't risk shit." I mutter again and stare at her stomach. I'm freaking out enough with two fucking kids on the way so being wrapped up in a murder investigation just isn't gonna work out for us right now. Or worse: being held as science experiments in some government testing facility. Blue uniforms and white lab coats are our biggest fears these days. We can't get caught. Ever. They'd tare us apart from each other. Dissect us. Put our babies in glass jars. Or turn us into throw rugs. We're anomalies and neither of us are dumb enough to forget that. They'd fry us if they knew. The hair on the back of my neck stands up and a shiver of rage rolls through me. I snatch my hand back and force the car into reverse too roughly and the gears grind before we tare off, kicking up dust behind us. Rey grabs onto the dashboard handle and shoots me a dirty look. Fuck this place. Gotta go, gotta go. I roll my neck and flex my fingers, focusing on keeping my cool. I can't lose my shit. It keeps getting me into trouble... I lost my shit last night again, but at least I brought home dinner for my woman, my mate. And yeah, we fucked like depraved monsters afterwards but that's how daddy keeps his family fed and happy. Besides - it's not my fault my boss was a total fucking tool and couldn't just get what I trying to explain to him. Fucking idiot. It was so simple, and he was treating me like I was somehow the asshole in the situation because I was angry. So angry... Too angry, too fast. I didn't even realize what I'd done until after he was dead. Oopsies. I bit my lip to hide my smile, even though Rey could hear everything I thought anyways. Mother fucker deserved it. I'd kill him again if I could. Wrap the outside of his house with his intestines like Christmas lights. Feed him to his kids. Skin him alive Bastard. Prick. Son of a bitch -shhh fucking relax Ben you're stressing me out jeez Rey whispered tenderly across our bond, giving me a pleasant chill. I grind my teeth and nod. She's right. Stress is bad for pups - I mean babies. Shit. Rey giggles. who could say... who knows what these little monsters will be likeI smile but we both think the same thing: love them no matter what. Even if we're both a little scared of the... possibilities... She turns up the radio then, drowning out that thought. Queen plays softly while she yanks my hand towards her and rubs our hands on her belly. The babies like it when we both touch her. I can't describe it but... I can feel it. Their happiness is our happiness. My eyes droop a little and I relax into a cloud. This is good. Right. Better than any other high - being content and calm and dreamy and happy. Something primal and probably not human. Well... Definitely not human.But fuck it, it's our normal now. Just us against the world. Rey hums to the music, forgetting already that she was sad about leaving the shitty town behind. We didn't have any friends anyways, not really, and my job didn't pay dick for all the work I put in. On to the next town. Maybe city. Shit, maybe even a new state again. Rey nods. A smug smile on her face, eyes closed. Totally blissed out.
mmm arizona sucks anyways