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Chapter Text

Prologue

November XX, 1987

The sun was blinding every time it peeked through the hanging leaves. You don't even remember how long you had been laying there, but you knew that it had been a while. You were nearly done with your daisy chain by now.

The slow rocking of the hammock was helping you relax, but you knew that you couldn’t stay here in the shade for much longer. Your aunt was prepping to light the candles on your cake, and the birthday girl needed to be there before any cake lighting could happen.

Even though it was November, typical with Florida weather, it felt like your skin was going to start peeling off any second now. It wasn’t the worst way to spend a birthday, having your blood boil inside your skin. At least it wasn't raining.

You carefully turned your body, denim overalls riding up your thighs as you slid off the hammock. You made a point to avoid stepping on the large ant hill that was directly underneath you, having to arch your spine at a weird 65 degree angle.

Deep in the confines of your mind, your grandmother's voice resonated inside your head. She all but slapped the hair off the back of your head, scolding you for nearly kicking the hill over in a childish moment of destruction. She emphasized the superstition of never crushing them, for fear of angering the spirits that live there.

Your mother always chastised her for telling you about those things. She said it was too scary for you to learn about that at such a young age, but Nana always countered that point with how you needed to learn young so that it would be instilled in you when you grew older.

Clearly, Grandma won. So, instead of stepping on it carelessly, you plucked a few honeysuckle flowers from the tree closest to you and placed them carefully down next to the hilly mound. You bowed your head, albeit a bit clumsily, and turned on your heel to walk back into your garden.

The noise of the party enveloped you once again as you entered your backyard. It wasn’t a huge party, just a small get together with a few of your family members. Despite the lack of kids from your cul-de-sac accepting the invitation, it had a decent turn out.

Your cousins were running around like headless chickens. You couldn’t tell what exactly they were playing but it looked pretty intense. You thought about going to play with them, but didn’t have the time to ask before your arm was grabbed and yanked in another direction.

“I was wondering where you were!” You turned and locked eyes with a very excited Angela, who had cream cheese frosting from the cupcakes on her face. She was the only one from the neighborhood who came to your party, which was expected as your best friend.

You followed after her, giggling as she gently pulled you over to the serving table. The insect themed treats were everything you ever wanted, and all that was left to be revealed was your cake. It was perfectly hidden underneath your moms favorite glass casing and shielded from our eyes by a giant napkin.

“What flavor do you think it is?” Your sidekick murmured to you, eyes glimmering with all the possibilities. You knew she was hoping for Red Velvet, all cake was trash unless it was red velvet in her eyes.

You specifically asked for red velvet cupcakes for that exact reason. It was the one thing you got to pick out for yourself when it came to the decor and flavor of the cakes. The actual flavor of the birthday cake was meant to be a surprise.

Your mom worked on it for weeks, she let you taste the failures and take them to school but once she perfected the recipe, you weren’t allowed to know what it was.

You felt your stomach ache with all the possibilities, and hunger. Mostly hunger. “I hope it’s strawberry.” You hadn’t eaten any of the hot dogs or burgers that your uncle James made, wanting to save your appetite for the main event.

You couldn’t serve cake or blow out candles though until your mother came back from the inside. She’d been upstairs for almost half an hour now, and everyone was waiting around for her to come back. “Bleh, that’s the worst flavor.”

Ignoring her blasphemous words, you gently unwrapped your arm from hers, looking towards the backdoor of your house. Angela peered at you curiously, reaching again for your arm.

You took a step back before she could grab you again, brows furrowing as you looked at the house. “I’m going to go look for my mom, tell Aunt ‘Mog I’ll be right back!”

She frowned but nodded at you nonetheless. You could feel her eyes following your shadow as you wandered off and inside through the sliding back doors. You were instantly hit with the chill from the air conditioning the second you closed the sliding doors. It sent a chill down your spine.

Everyone was outside, so there was little to no noise around you other than the TV. You wiggled off your shoes, feeling how cold the mat was even through your ruffled socks. It smelled like it usually did, like a cheap air freshener to mask the overwhelming scent of bleach..

Your legs tingle and ache as you shuffle through the kitchen, tired from running around all morning but determined to venture forward in your search.

You glanced towards the entryway duly noting the dirty footprints on the tile as you walked halfway up the stairs. It looks like someone forgot to take off their shoes when they came in to use the bathroom. Your mom was going to blow a gasket.

The living room TV was turned up to max, but after a quick glance around you couldn’t see her on the phone in there, like she said she was going to be doing. The phone was in fact hanging off the receiver and the dial tone was steadily beeping. Whoever was on the other end was long gone by now.

You continued walking up the stairs, peaking into the bathroom and then her master bedroom to see if she was there instead. Maybe she had retreated there to sit down and relax. She often left in the middle of us sitting outside to lay in her bed, claiming it was too hot to stay outside with you.

But when your search turned up fruitless, you turned to your bedroom, eyebrows furrowed. The door was slightly ajar, even though you remember making an effort to close it behind you this morning. Your cousins notoriously had sticky fingers so you had to lock it to keep them from touching your things.

You stepped across the floor, trying not to make a lot of noise in case she was dozing off in your bed. You didn’t mind if she was, you liked to curl up in her bed when she wasn’t home. It wouldn’t be fair if you were allowed to and she wasn’t.

The space looked as if a tornado ran through it. Your vanity was shattered, clothes strewn all over the room and shattered trinkets were glimmering all over the floor. My door handle was on the floor, the door splintered as if someone had pushed on it too hard.

Then you saw it and you stopped. Your lips parted to speak and yet you remained completely silent, body washing over with a chilling numbness. Your knees wobbled, forcing you to lean against the door frame to hold yourself up.

You felt sick.

You don’t know how you got outside. You didn’t know how long it took you to get there either. All you know is that when you came back to reality, your hand was fiercely gripping onto Rena’s again. She had long cleaned the frosting from her face, but she now had her mess replaced with damp, soil covered clothing.

“Hey, did you find your mom?” You paused for a moment before nodding slowly. She intertwined your fingers, squeezing your hand affectionately.

“Is she coming down?” You didn’t hesitate this time and shook your head firmly. The creases of your arms and inner thighs were moist with sweat, as you suddenly became aware of all the heat you were feeling.

She frowned at your silence and lightly headbutted you before quickly wandering off in the direction of the snack table once more.

You stood there for a minute, watching as she left. Soon, your eyes traveled across the garden to the sight of the ant hill from earlier. It had been crushed, as well as the flowers you laid on the ground.

You don’t know how long you stood there before one of your older cousins snuck up behind you and cupped her soft hands over the apples of your cheeks. She was older, maybe fifteen? Or sixteen?

You shook off your daze, looking up at her with wide eyes. “Honey, are you okay?” Her voice was soft, affectionate as she crouched down to look at you.

As you processed her question, your brows slowly furrowed. Her eyes glanced down for a moment before she pursed her lips in silent frustration. Quickly she pulls you to the secluded side of the house, forcing you to trot closely behind her.

You tripped as she came to stop, trying not to stumble over your own feet. She crouched down again, eyebrows furrowed as she tried to form her words.

Finally she exhaled, “You’re bleeding, do you need help?” You stared back at her concerned face, confused.

You looked down at yourself, frantically checking your arms and torso for the blood she was seeing. You nearly called her a liar until you looked at your legs, thighs slick with blood

Chapter Text

Chapter One

Septempter 1993: Day One

Your knees rubbed together as you stared out the window. The longer you sat there in your seat, the more intense the need to puke up what little bit of lunch you had managed to scarf down became.

Not to mention your head, and the pain rhythmically pulsing behind your eyes in tune with whatever ska bullshit your dad was playing. You were left feeling positively overstimulated, too dizzy to even open up the window, just enough to stare out it.

Prim was quietly snoring in the backseat with you, not completely asleep but not exactly awake either. Unlike you, she had basically inhaled her food the second it was in her hands. What followed was, thankfully, a deep food induced coma.

You’d rather hear her snoring than her incessant chattering. Especially since you had accidentally packed your headphones into one of the boxes that was already at your new home.

You’d been riding through Nockfell County for almost twenty minutes now. It was a quaint town to say the least. It was nearly barren despite it being the middle of a Saturday and the few people you did see looked…interesting to say the least. Very interesting.

“What’s the plan for today, Prim?” Despite seeing that she was half-asleep, your dad peered only at her from the rearview mirrors and smiled.

After a few years of living in his cramped old house, you were packing up your things and moving to who-knows-where, Minnesota.

You didn’t remember him a lot from childhood but his face made vague appearances here and there. Your mom had primary custody and he barely made the effort, same old pity party story every teenager had.

The point was when you finally came to live with him, after no one else in your mother’s family could afford to take you in, it threw his life with his other family into disarray. You relished in it to spite the sourness from his toy bride and their oopsie baby.

“After I visit the church, I’m gonna visit the shops and get a feel for the town.” The oopsie herself murmured sleepily, rubbing her eyes so she could look at your dad properly.

He nodded his head, now focusing on the road. After a minute, he looked at you through the mirror, his smile much more unsure. “What about you back there, gon’ follow around your sister?” His teeth were a little lopsided. It seemed to run in the family.

You barely let the question get the chance to breathe. “Absolutely not.” It came out harsher than intended. Actually, it came out exactly how you meant it. Harsh and firm. You would rather stick needles in your eyes than hang out with his spawn more than necessary.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Dad’s wife, Anna, was the quiet type—until she wasn’t. Backhanded compliments and a smile like she didn’t just shoot you with insecurity darts. “Are you too good to hang out with my daughter?”

The word yes bubbles up immediately but you swallow it down, trying to find a crumb of calm inside your body. You exhaled, annoyed at the fact that you had to waste precious seconds to placate her in the first place.

“No, I just want to unpack.” You smiled at her sour face, leaning back in your seat and bracing your knees on the back of your dad’s chair.

She narrowed her eyes back at you, but with no other argument, turned around in her seat and leaned back, crushing her dusty curls against the headrest.

Your arms were littered in goosebumps but you had packed all your sweaters away. All you were left with was just a thin shirt over your strappy undershirt. You didn’t know why you thought Prim would give you the right info on the weather, but trust a snake and your nose would start running.

Despite your intense need for a car side nap, you quickly forced yourself awake so you could watch as the car slowed to a stop in front of your new residence. You had to go a little outside of the main town to finally arrive home and the isolation was appreciated more than anything else.

The house itself was masterful to view. Two floors, god knows how many acres of yard for gardening and a lake half a mile back. It was isolated by even more acres of surrounding woods leading to an old corn maze.

To a child this place was just a giant castle, but as a teen, you can appreciate how beautifully the outside paint and stained glass complimented each other. You were far away from neighbors but close enough to get to the only school in the county within reasonable walking time.

“Wake your sister please.” Your splendor soured immediately as you glowered at the back of Anna’s head. You wanted to bite back and tell her to wake her own kid but…

You glanced at your father, who was walking around the car to open the door for her. It wasn’t worth the headache.

It took a solid fifteen seconds of you shaking her shoulder before she finally got the energy to glare at you. “Stop touching me.” She snapped as your dad opened her door, tossing her sandy blonde curls dramatically as she stepped out.

You rolled your eyes and opened your own door, jumping out into the damp earth. You took glee in the horrified scream she let out, her shiny new Mary Jane’s squishing loudly in the deep mud. As Anna and your dad console her, you stomped on with your much bulkier shoes, safe to walk up to the front door and shove it open.

It was even more stunning indoors, even with the tacky furniture and curtains. They were hard to look at in this beautiful interior and you couldn’t help but shudder as you kicked off your shoes at the door.

You carefully stepped inside, enjoying the creak of loose floorboards. You were really good at spotting the creaky ones, they were always the path least followed, so they looked the freshest. You followed the creaks into the narrow hallway up the stairs, rubbing the sleep from your eyes and rounding the corner into your bedroom.

It wasn’t much different from what you had in the city. Sure there was no more breezy draft, but the only real difference was that it was slightly bigger and weirdly… lonelier.

Guess you needed to find more things to fill up the empty space. You already had a nicely sized bed, a bookcase, and your dressers. Maybe you’d get a vanity in here, like the one your mom had back in the day. A couple of rugs maybe.

Your lips stretch into a grin before you even realize. This was going to take a while, but you were definitely not complaining.

Chapter Text

Chapter Two

September 1993: Day Two

You don’t remember when they left, just remember hearing feet running around both upstairs and downstairs before a definitive door slam left the house silent.

You couldn’t tell if you were anxious about being left alone or not. It wouldn’t be the first time they left you by yourself, but for some reason this felt a lot more isolating. Maybe it was being in a new environment. Maybe it was your own anxieties. Either way it was slightly nerve wracking to be in this house.

You dropped down onto the floor from your windowsill, briefly wheezing at the impact. You sighed feeling your body physically relax as you quietly panted. You weren’t sweating yet but the physical strain of balancing yourself on the windows edge was exhausting.

You felt unnerved, but you couldn’t let that stop you from keeping yourself entertained. If they were going to leave you out of family time then you would go out and have a good time by yourself.

You used the uncomfortable position you were in as an excuse to move, slightly stumbling before you found your footing.

You kicked your clothes from yesterday into the hamper as you walked by, wandering over to the closet hiding all of your clothing. Your feet were freezing the longer you stood there, even after you pulled on a pair of thick socks.

You didn’t have many clothes that were weather appropriate. A lot of your garments growing up were passed down from Prim, so you often had to tailor the legs and bust to fit you better. Mildly annoying, but at least it forced you to learn how to sew.

After a few unsuccessful minutes of struggling to put on three different pairs of jeans, you were left to wiggle into a skirt. You made a mental note to set aside time to find a thrift store and buy better jeans.

Taking care of other things was easier than taking care of yourself most days. Which explained all of the potted plants you had in your room. The logic of ‘if I can’t take care of myself, who will take care of these little guys” helped you build a proper routine.

And right now, taking care of yourself meant going outside and finding the closest thrift store to spend your money in.

You glance out the open window, noting the sounds of people a ways away. In a tiny town like this, you didn’t doubt that word traveled fast when someone new moved in. Your neighbors would probably be coming by to investigate by tomorrow.

Doing a weird shuffle-hobble, you did your best to not fall down the stairs while you struggled to put on your shoes. You nearly tripped over your own legs but managed to keep balance and make it to the ground floor without falling face first.

In elevated shoes, you had to be extra careful going down the hill. You were stable enough to walk on flat ground but on slanted ground was another story. Not to mention the sun was already starting to go down so you had to be careful where you stepped.

You finally dropped your skirt as the moss and flowers cleared into the sidewalk. You had tripped on a piece of loose concrete a few yards back, and it put into perspective how long your new home had gone without proper care.

The streets were empty beside a lone car that drove by every couple of minutes. Maybe two if you were lucky. It made crossing side streets and peeking inside random shops a lot easier than doing it in the city.

There wasn’t much to look at, but there were a few stores that caught your attention. You were surprised that this nothing town had so many chains but you weren’t complaining about having a fabric store so close to home.

Your left foot barely had time to finish settling on the ground before you were turning back around to look into the building you nearly passed. In the window, shiny and new, was a Standard Gibson Les Paul. You could see even through the glass how improperly the strings were tightened in it and your fingers twitched, desperate to touch.

Your heart thrummed against your sternum and from an outsider's perspective, you probably looked like a looney tunes character. You didn’t need any more convincing beyond what you saw and shoved open the door, causing it to bang against the wall and startle the few patrons inside.

Embarrassment burned your neck, but your excitement burned brighter. “How much for the Gib in the window?” You stared hard at it, desperately wanting to pluck it from the stand and run out the door with it.

You rip your eyes away from your beauty and focus on the shop teller, a younger man with long blond hair that looked like it was dipped in hair grease. He blinked at you, basically steaming from your nostrils, and smiled wide.

“You’re not the only one who was looking at it,” He jerked his head towards the back of the store, where all the amps were. “Those two guys were thinking about buying it in a couple of months.”

You could hear someone playing in the back, very poorly but playing nonetheless. Your curiosity was piqued, but your determination was stronger than that.

Grabbing the beautiful instrument from the window, you stormed up to the counter and carefully placed it down. “Yea yea yea whatever, but I can pay for it right now.”

His eyes flashed with greed and you grinned slowly, feeling the excitement burn even brighter. “I dunno man, I promised them I’d hold onto it until…” He trailed off as you slammed a couple of hundreds on the counter.

Your nose flared as you breathed hard, eyes boring into his. He squirmed under your intense stare, averting his eyes to the money on the counter.

You barely noticed the music from the back stopped until you felt two presences next to you. Your eyes glanced over to your right, and you couldn’t help but get a little anxious as you stared at them.

The taller of the two was your cookie cutter Metalhead. Long brown hair down to his waist, ripped up jeans and a baggy band sweatshirt. His eyes were narrowed at you, heavy with eyebags. He looked like the stereotypical boy-toy a rich parent wouldn’t want you to bring home.

“Oh shit, you’re buying it?” His voice was scratchy and deep, obviously he smoked cigarettes… and weed from what you could smell.

Your eyes were trained on the head of blue hair next to him. His hair was bright almost impossibly blue, you envied how well maintained it looked, with not a split end in sight. He was dressed similarly to his friend but the real point of contention was the mask on his face.

The mask looked old. Not in a “white going yellow from age” kind of old. It was more of a “slightly cracked and splintered in certain places but in otherwise good condition” kind of old. You could see it lower a little and his eyes crinkle as neither of you broke eye contact.

“Yea, I am.” You shook off the heat in your face, turning your attention back to the guy in front of you with a new found determination. “I need a replacement, and this just got released.”

“What happened to the other one?” Metallica took your lack of hostility as a sign to approach, running his fingers over the neck of your guitar.

Your mood soured as you thought about it. You came home to find it at the bottom of the stairs a week ago. Prim had sobbed about how it was an accident in front of your dad, but the second he was gone, her eyes gleamed not with tears but with triumph and malice.

It made you sick to your stomach. “My step-sister broke it while we were moving.” You settled on that explanation, turning to give them your attention again. “Why did you guys want it?”

Blue was staring at you with that same squinty expression. “I was teaching Sal here how to play and it seemed like the perfect one to practice on.”

You hum in response, squirming awkwardly under ‘Sal’s’ stare. Despite how awkward it was, you didn’t let it bother you much.

“Do you go to Nockfell High?” Finally he spoke up, his voice much softer than his friends but only a pitch higher. It sent an electric hum down your spine.

“Not yet, I’m due to start tomorrow.” You push the money across the counter into the man’s line of sight. He looked up, in the middle of licking his rolling paper. You commended him for openly packing a joint in front of three teenagers, especially with weed laws in this state.

Someday, you hope to not give a fuck like he doesn’t. “Sorry about the guitar by the way,” you murmured, a little quieter now, watching as the guy opened and placed your money in the cash register, solidifying the deal. “I understand why you wanted it, it’s beautiful.”

The only thing that you heard was the buzzing of the lights above your, and the sounds of the dude rolling the joint. You felt awkward, like you had pulled the rug out from underneath them.

“Yea it is.” Metallica finally huffed from next to you, walking back over to his friend.

Shuffling back and forth, you clutched the instrument in your arms and turned to watch them walk away. The taller of the two was half-pouting and half-scowling, hands shoved in his large pockets.

You couldn’t tell what the other’s face looked like, but you could tell from his posture it wasn’t positive. Guilt creeped up your spine and you stared at your feet, mulling the idea over in your head.

Exhaling hard, you ran after them, shoving open the door with your shoulder and calling out to them, barely thirty feet away. “Hey!” They turned to look at you, one still pouting and the other unknown besides a certain curious glint in his eyes.

You didn’t know them, they didn’t know you. You don’t see in what universe they accepted this offer, but it couldn’t hurt to try. “If you guys help me carry an amp home, you can come over to mine whenever you’d like to use it.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 3

September 1993: Day Two

Achill ran over your body as you laid down against the cold floor of your bedroom. Larry laid next to you on the ground, eyes as equally red rimmed as yours. His hair was spread around his head like a brown halo, if you had film in your camera you’d snap a few pictures of him.

In the two hours you’ve spent on the floor, you learned many things about these two practical strangers. “Have you guys like, ever thought about the universe and shit?”

Larry was an artist and, if the bloody splits on his knuckles were anything to go off of, brash. Living with a doting single mother, in a shithole apartment a couple miles away from where you currently were. He seemed…complex under his grungy exterior.

Your body felt as if it was made of nothing but absolute vibration as the sound of Sal fussing with your new guitar echoed around you. Briefly, you worried about the other occupants coming home to all the noise, but at this moment you didn’t care.

“All the time, Larry.” You responded lazily, trying your best to not snort as you drew shallow breaths of air. For some reason breathing was a lot harder right now. “I envy astronauts.”

It was a little bit of a struggle, but eventually you managed to turn your heavy body to the side, facing away from Larry. You scooted and squirmed, until your lungs were crushed against your ribs with a new position.

In case he felt you were moving away from him for a negative reason, you tossed your legs onto Larry’s lap, causing him to wheeze out a noise before snort laughing himself into silence.

You took this opportunity to observe Sal. His knees were bumping together every few seconds, as he tenderly held your beauty in his lanky arms. From what you could see of his face, aka only the area around his eyes, he seemed really focused. His eyes were narrowed and his breathing was even.

Sal Fisher, in your eyes, was an absolute oddity. He was definitely on the quieter side, but something about it wasn’t willing. It felt forced.

The expression he was making was hidden but based on his tensing posture and jerky body movements it wasn’t positive. It was almost hilarious, the silent rage. You couldn’t help but laugh, spine tingling.

Seeming to sense your gaze, he turns to look at you, eyes curious underneath his mask.

“What are you staring at?” You watched as he stood up, wandering over to the rack and delicately placing the guitar down. It wobbled for a moment, causing your blood pressure to spike, but immediately settled.

You exhaled, relaxing against the floor once more. “Staring at you,” You responded, resting your head on folded arms, “Is that a crime, Fisher?” You could feel the smile threatening to take over your features.

Sal never ended up saying anything else. Instead he just joined you floor dwellers from the beanbag perch. His arms fold on the ground, cushioning the back of his head as he begins to stare at the ceiling.

Nothing was said between the three of you, which wasn’t really a problem. With your senses a bit sluggish, you weren’t exactly up for coherent thought. You’d spent the last hour and a half talking to each other, now was the time for silence.

You noticed Sal's head turning every few minutes to peer at you and Larry. It wasn’t longing or intense with passion. More like a mother making sure her kids weren’t dead or hurt between episodes of her TV show.

Your spine prickled with a sudden creeping anxiety, but you shook it off, “You smoke, Fisher?” You finally broke the stretching yet comfortable silence after the fourth time he looked at you. After a beat of silence he turned onto his side, mimicking your fetal position and tossing his legs on Larry—who grunted once more.

“I’m just here to make sure you guys don’t fall down the stairs and break your necks.” His blue hair brushes against your face, and you shiver as his cold fingers nudge the spot between your eyebrows firmly.

You pursed your lips in annoyance, the skin where he jabbed still warm with a phantom touch. “Any particular reason why you don’t?” Underneath his mask, you could see two blue pinpoints staring at you.

His eyes reminded you of a stone you saw inside one of those metaphysical stores. They weren’t one specific shade of blue and seemed to change depending on the sunlight they reflected. “Yea,” He didn’t say anything else to elaborate, but that was enough for you.

You reached out to touch the porcelain and trace the divide between the white and pink, but he moved back before your hands could get too close. He stared at you, quietly calculating your movements. You were a stranger after all.

However when you gently touched the front of the mask and made no further movements, he slightly relaxed. He didn’t seem to mind your curiosity and even moved in closer so you could see better.

It was cold.

The longer you stared at him the more you realized something. His right eye.. was more unfocused than the left. You’d seen glass eyeballs once or twice, but never from this close.

Why he found himself in a position to need a glass eye was the question, and you unconsciously narrowed your eyes in thought. You could see the edges of deep scarring around the fake eye, leaving you curious about what else was underneath.

“Fascinating,” You murmured quietly, running your fingers down to the lips of the mask. It was so simplistic, yet the years obviously wore it down, making it look aged.

His eye visibly narrowed underneath his mask. He didn’t say anything for a good minute, and instead you could feel his mask shift against your fingers as he smiled. “Thanks."

You shiver as your spine prickles for what felt like the tenth time today, springing up into a sitting position. You didn’t mean to sit up so fast, and cringe as your vision blurs.

You could feel Sal watching you closely as you shake your head, squeezing your eyes shut tight in order to stabilize yourself.

Your ears twitched as you heard the sound of footsteps running up the stairs. You barely had time to react before the door was being thrown open, startling yourself and your guests.

“Oh my god, look at what daddy got me!!” Prim was so invested in showing her newest thing that she didn’t even notice the fact that you had company. Her neck was adorned with a shiny jeweled necklace that looked like it cost hundreds more than your new toy. “Couldn’t you just die?!”

When you didn’t respond, she frowned, opening her eyes to look at you. Only then did she finally notice Sal and Larry, the former sat up next to you and staring narrowed-eyed at the intruder and the latter barely able to sit up to look at her properly.

He merely grinned, eyes heavy with what looked like exhaustion. “I forgot you said you had a step-sister.” You inwardly cringed at the emphasis on the step part of that title.

She narrowed her eyes at you, eyebrows slowly beginning to furrow as her eyes shifted from Larry to Sal and then back to Larry once again. You couldn’t read her, but the fact that they were here was adding fuel to that ‘step’ fire. “Who are your…friends?”

Your voice was sour, noticeably deeper from your smoking. “They’re no one, get the fuck out of my room.” Her eyebrows shot up her forehead at the venom in your tone. You were too out of it for placating.

She huffed, slamming the door behind her and screeching for your father’s attention. Why exactly was obvious; if you couldn’t share, you couldn’t have.

The room was completely silent and you could feel both of them staring holes into the sides of your head. Your neck burned with embarrassment, but you had to focus or else you would start yelling at people.

“It’s late,” You murmured, forcing your body to stand so you could help Sal to his feet. In turn, he could help you help Larry stand.

Neither of them said anything, your previously peaceful moment together now spoiled and awkward. You could tell that they wanted to ask why you were so sour to her, but like with the both of them, family was a cold topic no one wanted to touch.

So you didn’t. Not as you walked down the stairs, nor as you all passed your guardians, watching the three of you with their daughter grinning in between them.

Sal turned on the porch, his mask raising slightly with a small smile. You recognized the crinkle of his eyes and grinned back at him. “Hey, we’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

Larry nodded affirmatively, much more conscious now that he was standing. He placed a hand on your head, mushing you around a bit before trotting down the stairs. “Later loser.” You flattened your hair back down, rolling your eyes.

Sal was much more gentle with his goodbye, reaching out and squeezing your hand. He said nothing else, nodding and following his friend.

Your hand burned for a moment, before being cooled by the breeze and you turned around to go back inside once they were out of sight.

“Who was that?” Your smile dropped instantly as you were confronted, a familiar tall form leaning over your much smaller frame.

He was taller and domineering. You couldn’t fathom what your mother saw in him, he wasn’t very attractive physically nor was he very intelligent. Which is why he ended up with Anna you supposed.

You leaned against the door, arms crossed over your chest as you stared back. “Friends.” His stare sharpened, clearly a lot more irritated with your overt lack of answer.

“Don’t be a smartass, you can’t have people in the house alone without me knowing them.” You smirked, eyebrow raising lazily as he tried to goad you.

But he would get that information when you were cold in the grave. “Okay, then I won’t have them in your house.” You responded, shoving off the door and stepping past him. “Goodnight,”

You didn’t give him a chance to continue, trudging up the stairs and slamming the door behind you. Back into your silence, like you craved.

Chapter Text

Chapter Four

September 1993: Day Three

Maybe it was your body’s sick idea of a joke to keep you up all night even though you had to get up early the next day. Maybe your fucked up sleep schedule was made to be the butt end of a joke to whatever sick god is playing with your life. But you definitely did not find any of it funny.

“I’m surprised to see you wearing shorts.” Someone was laughing up there, you didn’t know who it was but someone was deeply enjoying your aggravation.

You slowly exhaled, looking at Primrose through the mirror. You thought that the sound of the front door closing was everyone leaving. “Don’t you have toddlers to terrorize?” It was probably dad warming the car up.

She rolled her eyes, shoving herself off the door and standing next to you. She was taller than you by an inch or two, but she was slim like her mom. Dedication to ballet and dance left her with the form most adults spent their teen years yearning to achieve.

You were also tall, but the complete opposite. You got your swerves from your own mother, who easily turned heads when you were out together. As a kid you wished that you could look half as beautiful as her when you grew up.

You didn’t know that looking like her also meant that you couldn't enjoy pants without struggling to put them on.

“I’m serious, most guys don’t like girls with hips like yours.” She reiterated her invalid point, stealing your brush from your hands and brushing out nonexistent knots in her perfectly layered hair.

The look in her eyes made it clear that she wanted a reaction. But you simply hum in acknowledgment, adjusting the waistband of your shorts and tossing Prim a look through the mirror, “Sir Mix-A-Lot has a song that disagrees with you.”

She mocked your words as she followed you out of the bathroom. When that didn’t work, she started poking your shoulder with her nailed fingers. It’s not like you couldn't hear her or anything you just didn’t care enough to respond.

By the time you were downstairs, she was fully pushing your shoulder. But you kept walking, now going into the kitchen where Anna was plating breakfast.

“Good morning.” She stepped carefully across the cold floor, pressing a kiss to Prim’s forehead. “How did you sleep?”

You breezed past her, grabbing your cardigan from the doorknob of the pantry. Pulling your collar out, you fixed your vest back into place and snatched a piece of bacon from the pile on the counter.

“Hey!” Anna swatted you away but you were faster, snagging another piece before you slid out the room on your Bobby socks.

Not wanting to break your neck, you made sure to avoid the rug as you ran and slid across the wood floor. You let out an almost deranged laugh as you crashed into the wall, stabilizing yourself for a moment before wandering to the front door, where you left your shiniest pair of docs last night.

The sun felt good on your face, a pleasant combo of the warm sun boring down on you and a cold breeze making you clutch your fluffy cardigan a little tighter. Fall was everything you loved wrapped up in the most delightful three month period.

“Hey there sailor!” You jumped as a familiar voice called out to you, eyes darting across the yard.

There, parked right next to Anna’s idle car and leaning against a beat up wan was Larry, with a cigarette perched between his lips. Standing next to him was Sal, with his mask slightly pushed up so he could drag his own cigarette.

Your heart leapt into your throat as you ran across the unkempt lawn, a smile springing across your lips. “Oh my god, what are you doing here?!”

Larry grinned, throwing his arm around your shoulders and yanking your body close “We said we’d see you tomorrow!” You grinned sheepishly, hauling your satchel onto your shoulder and wrapping your arm around his waist for a squeeze.

Once you were deemed sufficiently squeezed, he let you go so Sally could hug you now. This hug felt a lot more casual instead of a squeeze to the death so you were free to breathe as much as you wanted to.

“Cmon, we gotta be there in thirty,” Sal murmured, letting you go so he could put out his cigarette on his converse. You admired him for his technique but said nothing about it, climbing into the van after Larry opened the door.

That’s how you ended up where you were now, in the back seat of the van with their best friends—who were all giving you “secret” glances as if you couldn’t see them.

Larry and Ashley were somehow understanding each other over the insanely loud music that was vibrating your nervous system. According to what Sal said the night before, Ashley Campbell was a skilled photographer. She didn’t live in the apartments with them, but she lived close enough to catch a ride from Larry.

In the row directly in front of you was Todd Morrison. An apparent wiz with electronics and the perceived smartest person in the group. Somehow he was zoning out the screaming match, and was instead halfway into a very hefty book.

“Wanna share?” Larry offered you a cig and a lighter. Your chest flutters a little. It wouldn’t be the first time, but it had been a while.

The burn was familiar, yet foreign after so long. Weed was a completely different monster than tobacco, because tobacco left you dizzy. But you didn’t choke. Larry grinned, watching you through the rearview as you blow the smoke from your nostrils. “You’re pretty good.”

You made sure to move it as far away from Todd as possible as you handed the cig back, shifting into a more comfortable position. Sal grunted as you kicked your legs into his lap but said nothing, instead holding onto your calf.

Moving your hair from your eyes, you watched as the trees began to thin into a clearing of your school grounds. Nockfell High seemed like a typical school, nothing too exciting or fancy about it.

A few kids loitered out in the parking lots and front lawns. Since it was about ten until the late bell, it wasn’t too far-fetched to assume everyone else was in the school already. Besides the few late stragglers of course.

Your stomach jostled around as Larry drove over a speed bump, haphazardly pulling into a roundabout in the school parking lot. You didn’t doubt that the car was facing the wrong way, but you had to applaud her for how effortless it was.

Larry leaned back effortlessly, offering the cig to you once more, which you accepted with a nervously fluttering stomach. “We’ll wait for you to park before we go inside.” Ash’s voice carried over the music as she quickly jumped out of the car.

Sal opened the sliding door before you had the chance to undo your seatbelt, having to noticeably duck down to leave the car.

You also had to duck as you climbed out, narrowly avoiding a concussion as you lept the rest of the way. Your skin prickled from the chill, but you couldn’t help but stretch out immediately towards the sun.

Your stomach turned over, and soon your attention was brought back to your hands by a burning sensation. You didn’t even realize that you'd smoked the entire cigarette until now, and dropped the dead end on the concrete ground.

Something in you felt guilty so you picked it back up and tossed the extinguished butt into the trash. Which Sal was leaning on. You grinned as you settled in across from him.

He looked cute, wearing a deep burgundy flannel over a black band shirt. But you weren’t alone in staring. He was looking at you right back. His gaze traveled back up to your face, staring at you closely before he smiled. “Cute vest.”

“Cool shirt.” Your fingers tingle as you return the smile, not getting much time for talking before your forearm was grabbed.

You let out a small squeak of surprise, looking at Ashley with a bewildered expression. “Yea?” Your lips curled ever bigger, the point of contact warm and inviting.

“We weren’t really properly introduced!” She tugs you ahead, heading towards the front of the building. “I’m Ashley Campbell!” Her strides were strong and fast, forcing you to match her pace without any argument.

After a second, you repeated your name back to her pulling your bicep away from her stone-like grip. She looked disheartened for a moment, until she realized you were holding her hand now.

She immediately perked up again, hip checking the door open so the group could walk through. Todd wasn’t that far behind you, carefully brushing past you and Ash holding open the door. Last to come were Larry and Sal, whose conversation quieted as they grew closer to you.

“You forgot your bag in the van.” Sal shoves your shoulder with his, offering it to you.

By the time your small group arrived at their lockers, which were conveniently grouped together, you felt like you were going to be sick. You felt weirdly out of place.

Maybe it was the fact that they were all talking about things you didn’t know about and you didn’t have anything to input. Maybe it was the fact that you were still holding Ashley’s hand, her thumb idly stroking your skin with the pad of her thumb.

Maybe it was the several pointed gazes watching you stand with them, eyes accusing and curious.

“Thanks for the ride, guys,” You decided to cut into the conversation, briskly and firmly. “I’ll be seeing you guys around.”

Ash looked at you weirdly, as did Larry. Sal’s expression was unknown, as always. And Todd didn’t look like he really gave a shit. “You’re leaving?” Ash gave you a look, her eyes shiny even in the lighting. They were so brightly hued that you couldn’t pinpoint a specific color for her either.

Your stomach turned. “Yea I have to go pick up the rest of my schedule. I only know I have class with a Stepknowski for my first.”

“Oh shit he’s on the other side of the school,” Larry exhaled, eyes widening with anxiety. Anxiety for you. “We should all skedaddle or we’ll be late.”

Larry shoved shoulders with you, slipping something inside the pocket of your sweater before walking off, assumedly towards his first period class. Ashley followed, dragging Todd along with her while babbling something about a class they share together.

For a moment, you were in silence. Standing there in that hallway, unwavering at the threat of being late. You were alone, in a way, but you were okay with that.

“I’m right next door to Step,” Sal said, voice soft next to your shoulder. You jumped slightly, having forgotten about him still being there next to you.

Now that you were wearing less elevated shoes, you never noticed how much taller you were than him. It was a noticeable difference—roughly four inches taller if you had to guess.

“Oh well at least I have someone somewhat close,” Your fingers glide over the narrow cylinders in your pocket as well as a lighter. You knew it was a cigarette because of how long it was.

You couldn’t question Larry about why he gave them to you, because he was already out of sight. But a part of you felt thankful that he did.

Sal stared at you behind that mask of his, eyes unblinking. It made you nervous, looking at him while you were still trying to figure out what your relationship with his friends would be.

“I’ll find you after class,” His voice was teasing and airy. “We can compare schedules.” From that, you guessed it was positive.

And with that, you parted ways.

Chapter Text

Chapter Five

September 1993: Day Three

For a moment, the silence was almost unbearable. The dozens of stares on different points of your body had vomit slowly crawling its way up your throat.

You wanted to crawl into a deep hole and die a thousand times over before finally rotting away in said hole. They’d never know that from looking at you though. You learned in the city that you can’t show fear in the eyes of your enemy, else they’d use it against you and drag you into insanity.

This was the third time you’d introduced yourself today, but you still wanted to hide in fear of embarrassing yourself. Half of them knew who you were from your previous classes but the other half were left in the dark. So you had to introduce yourself.

“There has to be more to you than just your name, young lady.” Then again, it’s not like this old bag was giving you much of a choice anyway.

You leaned back against the teacher’s desk, holding onto cold, fake mahogany for stability. “Not much to say, I’m fifteen, just moved here with my Dad and his family.”

“You’re only fifteen?” The teacher, Mrs. Packerton said from behind you. “This is 11th grade math, are you sure you’re in the right place?”

You rub the back of your neck awkwardly. “I skipped a grade. I was always really good with reading and math.” This is why you hate being the new kid. Not only were you always the youngest in your grade, but all the schools made you feel like a side show attraction because of it.

“That’s surprising.”

You twitched, not acknowledging the mean spirited whisper that passed through the class of giggling kids.

“Very funny, Mister Dinwoodie,” Mrs Packerton rolled her eyes before pointing you in the direction of the back. “Have a seat next to Sal. Sal, raise your hand, won't you?”

You could basically feel the shit eating grin slinking onto your face as you make eye contact with each other. He pats the empty desk, and you take that as a cue to walk on.

You casually stretch your arms above your head as you head down the lane to your new seat. You could hear a few hitches of breath, and had to stop your urge to smirk.

As you sat down, you tossed a look over your shoulder to that boy, Dim-Witted. You think that’s what his name was anyway, who was in his seat, eyes locked on you.

With an unamused eye-roll, you turned your attention to Sal. His mask was wiggling, you assumed, with quiet laughter. “Hi stranger. I just moved here, we should totally be best friends.”

“I was just thinking the same thing,” He followed your lead, a soft laugh slipping past his straight faced cover. “I’m Sal Fisher, your new best friend.”

You had to stop the laugh that threatened to leave your lips, shoving his shoulder gently with a huge smile on your face.

To your relief the class went by quickly, you may have been late to start but it was still the beginning of the year.

You felt giddy as you walked in tune next to Sal and Larry, following them out of the school into the yard for lunch. Ash was ahead of you, eyes wide with delight as she talked about one of her neighbors with a camera decades older than any of us. Apparently he got it from his grandfather who must be very dead by now. You’d be shocked if not.

“Hey!” You tossed a look over your shoulder, lips wrapped around a cigarette. Your group instantly slowed as they all heard your name be called, parting like the Red Sea so you could see.

You focused on the form of your sister, a couple of yards across the space. She was with a group of girls, all with crosses that gleamed against their covered collarbones.

Larry threw an arm over your shoulders, leaning over so he could use you as an arm rest. “Daddy said he doesn’t want you smoking anymore.” You flicked closed your borrowed zippo, not breaking eye contact with her as you took a drag.

To her irritation, you blew smoke in her direction, before continuing to walk. Everyone with you took that as a sign to keep moving, so they did, towards the parking lot.

“Dude what is her deal?” You hummed in response, shrugging him off as you climbed into the backseat once again. It felt weird when others pointed out how weird it was. Though maybe it was because no one else has ever done that but you.

Sal clambered after you, carefully plucking the cigarette from your fingers to bum it once he was seated. You grinned in amusement but didn’t mention it, instead opting to kick your legs into his lap. After being designated as your foot stool, it was only fair that he could share your cig.

“I don’t think we’re allowed to leave the premises for lunch.” Todd brought up his point from outside, leaning against the open car door to peek at the four of you sitting there.

Larry leans back in his seat so he could see his ginger friend, an eyebrow raised on his tan face. “Maybe, but realistically do you think they’ll give a shit?”

You guessed Todd couldn’t argue with that, because he was soon climbing inside to join your group of four and shutting the door behind him.

You startled a little as the car rumbled to life, enjoying the hum of the engine in your aching bones. The car eased to the edge of the lot, before quickly pulling off onto the street.

Unlike this morning, the drive was quieter. You watched as Ash turned in her seat, leaning her upper body on the edge of the window. The breeze blew to the back of the car, allowing Todd some fresh air.

Despite how unnerving of a town it was, Nockfell was absolutely beautiful in certain areas. The buildings were old, but well loved and maintained. Maybe with a fresh coat of paint on some of the buildings, it could regain some of the charm that was begging to come ahead.

Instead of how dreary and downbeat it looked now. “Hey.” You look up as Sal thrums his fingers against your calf, tilting your head to the side lazily.

“My dad and I were going to the music store to pick up that new In Utero album that came out a few days ago.” He started, carefully drumming against your leg with his slender ring adorned fingers.

You raised an eyebrow curiously. He shifted underneath your legs but you couldn’t know if it was a good shift or a bad one. It did make your mouth become slightly dry. “Do you, um…”

You didn’t give it to him. You wanted him to say it outloud. He seemed to notice the look in your eyes because he was rolling his eyes underneath his mask and turning away.

After realizing he wasn’t going to give it, you snickered and placed your hand atop of his. You were amused at how he jolted, but didn’t mention it. “I was meaning to pick up a vinyl copy but it was always sold out.”

That was all the confirmation he needed. He turned back to you, and briefly with the motion, you could see how red the tips of his pierced ears were.

“Cool.” He breathed, his fingers shaking underneath yours.

You smile at him, tightening your hold on them. “Cool.”

Chapter Text

Chapter Six

September 1993: Day Six

The longer you stayed here, in this town, the colder you always felt. It was draining, having to be here day after day. It felt like you were constantly being sapped of all of your energy, even if you'd just woken up from a full night's rest.

You felt more at peace when you were away from the watchful eyes of everyone else. Yet ever since you’d moved here, you’ve been feeling eyes following you all over the town no matter where you were or who you were with.

Your eyes burned with fatigue as you struggled to stay awake through the day. You’d spent the last several hours dragging your feet through the various halls and classrooms. You couldn’t function much longer. Your mind had turned to mush and your body felt heavy just sitting in your seat.

You could feel your poor heart leap into your throat as the bell screamed overhead. It shattered the gossamer veil around you so abruptly you had to stop yourself from bolting up from your seat in shock.

Teens of various ages were already flooding out in droves. You quickly gathered your books, so you could blend seamlessly into the crowd.

“Can you stay behind for a moment?” Ms. Maroon called out for you before you could finish packing up your materials. You would have ignored her, but you couldn’t exactly pretend that she might have been talking about someone else when she was staring right at you.

You met her eyes, anxious to get out of the classroom. Your gazes locked. “Any particular reason you stared out of the window for the last twenty minutes of my class, or was my voice so boring that you zoned me out for nearly half an hour?”

You could feel your skin begin to tingle and burn, the fine hairs on the back of your neck rising—as if someone was watching you. Several people for that matter.

You stubbornly pursed your lips, silent. She stares at you for a moment before brushing her curly brown hair from her eyes. She was one of the youngest teachers in the building. Her enthusiasm was draining, but you could respect it.

“Just pay attention, okay,” She relents once she realizes that you weren’t going to answer her, motioning towards the door. “I’ll have to give you detention next time.”

You let out a quiet groan as you stood up onto your feet, stretching your arms above your head. You finally followed the last few stragglers out the room, tugging at your tights feverishly.

As you stepped into the hallway you were suddenly flanked on both sides by two girls. You nearly bulldozed into them, but managed to stagger hard into an abrupt stop.

Your lips flattened into a line as they stared up at you. You towered over the both of them, but they looked much older in the face than you would have thought they would at their stature and height.

You smiled, expression awkwardly pinched. But you got no reply, soft maroon eyes staring at you so intently, you thought you might combust. “…What’s up, ladies?”

“You’re Sal Fisher’s friend, right?” The one on the right spoke up, straight to the point and blunt.

You wanted to say no and then make a run for it, but you felt like they’d hunt you down if they found out you were lying. “Does it matter?”

The one on the left smiled, much more friendly than her stoic faced twin. “Sorry about her. We just needed to talk to you is all!”

Briefly the twins from The Shining flashed through your mind, but this time they were the ones holding the axes. You didn’t get time to ask what exactly they needed from you before they each grabbed one of your arms and dragged you off down the hall.

What. The fuck.

You look down at the one on your right. Her platinum blonde hair was pulled into two flower accented puffs. Her face screamed the threat of death to everyone around you, and you cringed as her nails dug into the skin of your arm.

The one on your left was a smidge darker than her sister. Her face was brightened with a brace-laced smile. As tiny as they both were, they had no problem shoving their way through the hall. The one on the right barely even got a wrinkle in her dress as she shoved a dude twice her size out her way.

By this point, they’d let you go, but you were slightly afraid of what they’d do to you if you didn’t follow.

As we slipped into the girls bathroom, you could physically feel the air shift. It only worsened as the door shut behind you, and the cheap fluorescent lights blinded you.

“What do you prefer we call you?” You glance up at the right twin, who was currently pulling out a wet wipe from her purse.

You pursed your lips in response. You don’t really think your reply mattered, she seemed set on barely talking to you from the look in her eyes. But you told her your name anyway.

She slowly nods her head before motioning you closer, eyes sharp and narrow. Cautiously, you leaned down, watching as she gently wiped below you lip with the wet wipe, her hand gently cupping your chin to hold you in place.

“I’m Dahlia, she’s Magnolia,” Her touch was soft’ and despite her sour expression, she was being very gentle. “I noticed that your make-up was smudged during our History period. I figured this was the best way to fix it for you.”

It immediately clicked that you had in fact seen them there, always sitting next to each other and murmuring back and forth when the teacher occasionally dozed off during individual work. It always looked like they were judging everyone, whispering and giggling amongst themselves.

You felt your face flush as she looked up into your eyes, the small smile on her face much different from the scowl from earlier. Unlike her sister, she had almost perfect teeth. But they were both gorgeous.

You could feel the Magnolia adjust the band of your skirt, trying to get it as high on your waist as possible. You didn’t question it, instead opting to let her.

“Oh my gosh Dia, these are skin colored leggings!” Magnolia pulled at the fabric coating your legs, awe riddling her face. “Where’d you get them?”

You gave a wobbly smile, rubbing the back of your neck sheepishly, “I dyed them this color.” Her eyes shined with curiosity as she pulled them out once more before letting it snap against your calves.

She smiled up at you, hooking her arm through yours as she gently pulled you towards the mirror again. “I love them.” She sounded genuine.

Your lipstick wasn’t as messy as it was when you left this morning and your outfit weirdly looked much better. Then again, it was purely your fault that you looked so poorly put together, you had to fight Prim for the last bagel. You won.

“You look absolutely darling,” Magnolia grinned at you through your respective reflections. “You’ll have to make us some of those leggings soon.”

Dahlia nods quietly in agreement, carefully tightening your half updo. “Very cute.” Their voices were much different now that you’re listening closely. Magnolia had a much lower and softer voice while Dahlia had a much higher and airy one. You would have thought, based on their personalities, it would have been the reverse.

Magnolia fixed her own flowery accents, eyes narrowed in concentration. She was just as lovely as her sister.

“Since we’re obviously friends now, you should come to our party this weekend at the church.” Dahlia grinned at you as she and Rosemary guided you out of the bathroom.

Your group was waiting for you there, Larry leaning against the wall while Ash and Maple were talking to each other on the floor. Sal was in between them, eyes closed as they finished the last touches on his messy buns.

You felt your face go a little warm as you made eye contact. You hadn’t said anything to one another since the car ride this morning, where you had dozed off in the back with your head on his shoulder on the way to pick up Ash. Who promptly snapped a photo of you before yelling in your ears to wake us up.

“Bring your friends,” You looked away. Dahlia handed you back a pink sticky note with both her and Magnolia’s numbers on it. You don’t remember her pulling it out in the first place. “We’ll be in contact, okay?”

Bewildered, you watched as they waved to you, heading back in the direction you came from. Ash followed them with her eyes narrowed. You feel like there was something deeper there, but didn’t bother mentioning it.

“I saw them kidnap you,” Larry grinned, throwing his arm around your shoulders again, where you often found it these days. “I had to rally the troops, just in case they stole your kidney.”

You grinned, offering an arm to Sal. He looked confused until you murmured. “Gotta help the lady up.” Which causes him to pout and the girls next to him to giggle in delight.

Despite your comment, he grabbed your hand, allowing you to help him up so he could help you get Ash and Maple off the ground. “What did they want with you?”

You shrug at Ashley’s question, following her lead as she shoved open the door leading to the parking lot. “Nothing really, they invited me to a party happening at the church this weekend.”

You swung your arms absentmindedly as your group headed further away from the school and into the parking lot. You didn’t have to go very far because you almost immediately saw Todd, sitting by the van talking to a boy. “That church gives me the fucking creeps.” Larry shudders dramatically.

“Maybe, but I feel like as teenagers we need to have experiences.” Ash probed, shooing Todd off the driver side door so she could drive. “And a party in a church sounds like the best experience.”

You listened silently as you pulled off, enjoying the soft hum of the engine. Sal scooted in closer next to you, leaning back preemptively so you could place your legs there if you wanted.

His lap was basically your personal footstool at this point. Your eyes closed as you leaned against the window, listening to Ash and Larry argue the logistics of going to the party.

“I think it’ll be fun.” Sal chimes in, placing his hand on your knee and softly squeezing. It sent jolts of shock up your spine. “We should all go.”

Instead, you placed your hand on his, avoiding eye contact by closing your eyes again. Neither of you said anything, but it felt good. And that’s all that mattered.

“I’ll have to see if Chug wants to go.” Maple spoke up from the row in front of you, her voice barely carrying over the sound of the radio.

You wince a little at the mention of Chug. You’d only met him once but it was watching him barf up his guts in the lunchroom after a particularly interesting smelling batch of bologna sandwiches, lovingly provided by the lunch ladies.

A part of you wondered about what would be in them to make someone throw up like that. “Do you think he’ll be feeling better before then?” Ash seemed to read your mind.

Maple shrugged demurely, her movements flowing almost too naturally. “Maybe? He seemed fine yesterday but pretended to still be sick so he could miss his math test.”

You grin as you look out the window. Classic.

As the car begins to slow, you look out the window, eyes widening. You knew exactly where you were going before anyone could ever clarify it for you. Sal and Larry weren’t lying, from the outside, the apartments themselves looked like all it would need was one good gust of wind before it fell over. A hot bed for shady people to come here to do shady shit.

You followed as everyone vacated the car, hands shoved in your pocket idly. As the days were passing, it was getting colder. Soon you’d have to start double layering to stay warm.

The inside only looked slightly better. The paint was chipped in certain areas along the walls and the carpet smelled vaguely like mildew, but besides that; it was adequate.

Your skirt was crushed against your thighs as the lot of you piled into the elevator. It was comfortably cramped, leaving you gently smooshed in between Larry and Sal.

“We can’t do multiple floors at once,” Larry sighed, looking down at you so you knew you were being addressed. “Last time we did that, the power went out and we were stuck in here for almost two hours.”

Your stomach flipped as the elevator groaned to a start. It shudders and moans as it begins the slow crawl descent. It was definitely old and briefly you thought about what would happen if it just gave out.

You tremble a little, unconsciously gripping onto the hand closest to yours. You shiver at the feeling of cold rings pressing onto the back of your hand; knowing immediately whose hand you were holding.

He said nothing about it, he didn’t even look at you. He just held onto you, fussing with his pigtails quietly with his free hand.

The first to go was Larry, he had to go down to the basement, so he was dropped off first. You thought it was odd. Until you remembered that his mom works for the apartment. It probably came with the job.

He passed out a round of hugs and fist bumps, depending on the person, and wiggled his way out. “See you dudes.” You made a mental note to ask him what the keycard he was carrying was for.

And then you were moving again. You cringe at the sounds of creeks unconsciously squeezing down on Sal’s hand. You almost felt bad, using him as a living stress ball.

Ash and Todd were next in floor two, followed by Maple on floor three. Then there were just two, standing side by side together in the elevator. Neither of you made a move to press four. Instead, you stood there together in the dim elevator lighting.

You looked down after a heavily pregnant pause, a shiver of surprise traveling up your spine as you made immediate eye contact with Sal. Who knows how long he’d been staring at you.

You smile sheepishly. “Are we going up?” Your voice was somehow loud, even though you were practically whispering. Or maybe it just felt louder because it was the only noise around you.

“Do you want to?” The words hung in the air around you. You didn’t know what he was implying, but a part of you yearned to remove his mask so you could properly look at him.

Jerkily, you nodded your head. You felt like a marionette being controlled by something else unseen.

He released your hand, leaving you tingling and warm. He pressed the button for the fourth floor, and stayed by the doors, eyes avoiding you entirely now. You breathed a slow breath as the elevator shuddered to life once more, too focused on the heat in your face to think about how rickety the elevator was anymore.

The moment you walked inside the apartment, you felt at ease. It was warm and smelled of febreeze. The good kind, not the cheap knockoffs. “My dad won’t be home for another hour or two, but for now, we can hang out in my room.”

You nodded, already halfway into shucking off your shoes to feel the warm carpet under your feet. You left them by the door, eagerly following after Sal so you could properly explore the new space.

Posters for up and coming metal bands, vaguely concerning yet horrifyingly beautiful artwork. It was fitting of his character. Curious, you focus on the beaten up guitar sitting on the stand. You weren’t surprised he had one, assuming that it was his to play.

You glanced at his window, noticing the plant sitting there. You couldn’t tell because of the succumbing darkness but something inside you was uneasy, almost antsy.

“Hey,” Your voice was soft but prodding. Sal hummed in response, following after you in a sort of chase. “When was the last time this was watered?” Maybe six days.

“Ummmmm,” Sal hummed next to you, leaning over your shoulder lazily. “Almost a week? Why, is it dead?”

”Nearly.” You shook your head and walked out of his room, tiptoeing around the living room then into the kitchen. It took you a moment to find the glasses but as quickly as you left, you were back walking into the bedroom once again.

You carefully soaked the soil, slowly turning it to not disturb the roots but to allow them to be moistened instead. Your fingers would be a little dirty but it was worth it.

You look over, jolting at how close Sal was to you. He was completely silent, intently watching as you worked. Once he noticed you were done, he looked at you, eyes shiny with something unidentifiable beneath his mask.

“I used to garden with my mom.” You murmured, reaching out to lazily play with a strand of his hair. “Well, really I would watch while she did all the work.”

He laughed quietly, walking over to and jumping back onto his bed, “Everything green I touch, I kill.” He crosses his legs, hands braced behind him to hold himself up. “That’s my third plant this month.”

For a moment, he stared at you expectantly. You blinked, confused, until you realized what exactly he was waiting for. A grin stretches across your face as you join him, leaning against his headboard and throwing your legs into their proper place.

It was just as natural as when you were in the car. Yet something about your surroundings and the isolation left you both as quiet as church mice. You were okay with that. He was your friend. It felt good to just sit in silence with someone instead of worrying about filling the empty void.

You found your gaze focused on his head, lips pursed in thought. It’s been a little under a week since you’ve met Sal, and it took you this long for you to realize that you have only seen him with his hair up. Buns, pigtails, high ponytail. Never just falling down his shoulders.

“Cmere real quick, Sal.” Unconsciously you lean closer, your right arm brushing against his left as you’re reached towards his hair. He held still, even leaned into the touch as you undid the twin tails.

His hair cascaded around his narrow shoulders in an almost wave-like motion. A part of you felt jealous at how well maintained and soft it was. “Is this natural?”

It came out like a whisper, weirdly raw. If he noticed, he didn’t say anyway, instead turning his head to look at you head on. “Yea, I get it from my dad.”

He leans in closer, his side brushing against your chest now as you guide him closer to you. Your fingers rake through his hair slowly, the tips of your nails occasionally bumping against the buckles on his mask.

You didn’t know how long you spent repeating the motion. The sounds of your fingers gently gliding through his hair was the only sound heard inside the room. Other than the sounds of your own breathing.

You didn’t realize how close you were to each other until you physically felt him shiver. He had asked you to scratch a part of his scalp while your fingers were there and you had looked at him for confirmation that it was the right spot.

His left hand was now braced behind your back on the bed, causing his chest to rub against yours every time either of you breathed in. His right hand was now resting on your lower thigh, stroking slow gentle circles into your skin.

Was he always this close? He has to have been because you didn’t even notice. “Thanks.” His voice rumbles in his chest, slightly tickling you.

You nodded your head, suddenly very aware of every single breath that was leaving your chest. “Uh-huh.”

A part of you damned the mask on his face. Sure, as a whole the group was a very affectionate bunch, but something about this was… less than platonic. All that clued you into his expression was the burn on his ears and the subtle hitch in breath when you made eye contact.

It suddenly felt very warm. You couldn’t put your finger on why for the life of you, but you found yourself tucking your head against the side of his neck to hide your nervous expression.

He went rigid for a moment, clearly not having expected the sudden affection. It took a second for him to decide on what he wanted, and instinctively you made a move to pull away from him.

You didn’t get far, because he was wrapping his arms around you tightly, one hand braced on the back of your head to hold you closer. “S..Stay..” his voice was a plea, stuttering and quiet but affectionate.

And you did, grasping quietly onto his shirt and nodding against his burning neck.

Chapter Text

Chapter Seven

September 1993: Day Eight

Your neck ached as the last piece of hair fell delicately into pace. The breeze from the open window helped, but you could feel your skin beginning to burn as you slumped against the chair tiredly. Despite your efforts to remain upright you sat back a little too hard and tumbled slightly as you hit the floor.

You didn’t get up immediately, in fact you enjoyed how cold the wood was against your back. As you breathed, your lungs ached and the longer your body laid on the ground underneath you, the more relaxed your bones were becoming.

Eventually, your headache slowly began to subside and when you finally opened your eyes, it didn’t feel like an axe was embedded in your skull anymore.

However, despite your newfound health, it was significantly darker than it was mere moments before–well how long had you really been there now that you think about it–and the sun was almost completely gone.

You jumped up from the floor and looked around the room in a brief panic. Once you noticed you were alone, you frowned with confusion. For a moment, you debated on if you were crazy or not but you could hear the loud music coming from what you were guessing was a car in front of your house.

You pushed up from the cold floor, stumbling to your window to follow the sound of your name being called once more. Your concern for your mental health was refuted, because you realized quickly that what you thought were voices in your head was in fact Ash and Larry yelling at you from under your window.

“Oh thank god we thought you died!” Ash giggled, motioning for you to come down the stairs. They ran back around to the other side of the house, leaving you standing there in your window by yourself.

For a moment, you thought about pretending that you were grounded and couldn’t go. The sight of your bed was making you physically exhausted and had you yearning for the sweet release of sleep.

You had clothes laid out on your comforter for the departure but you also had planned to shower again before you left. Unlike most people, you couldn’t put clean clothes on an unwashed body.

However, did you really care right now?

You nearly tripped on your velvet bell bottoms on the way down the stairs, but you made it to the door in one piece, albeit a little bit frazzled. Ash and Larry’s loud yelling from less than six feet away was causing your head to start hurting again.

By the time you figured out what shoes you wanted to wear your temples felt like they were pulsating again.

“Where are you headed off to ?” You physically jumped towards the door as your father’s voice sounded from behind you.

Technically, you didn’t tell anyone you were leaving. You just assumed they wouldn’t care. But surprisingly he seemed to care enough to ask you.

You shoved your hands into the soft pockets, eyes soft with defiance. “I got invited to a party, you don’t need to wait up because I’m not coming home.”

His eyes hardened. “Where are you sleeping?” Your lips twitched into a grin as you pulled on your boots, waiting for some kind of reprise of his questioning.

What he wanted to ask was who were you going with. It was a pointless question, because he knew exactly who you were going out with. Safe to say he didn’t like your friends. He just wanted to ask so he could get upset about it.

As an ex-deacon, he’d rather you hang out with the girls from the church, like Prim and Anna. But Larry had a point, something about the church made you anxious.

The silence stretched between you both and with a final sharp breath, you were walking out the door and into the brisk air.

You physically relaxed at the sight of Sal, standing there on the porch and smoking a cigarette. Somehow there was a sort of mind link when it came to wearing black, because both of you were head to toe in it.

The lower part of his mask was unbuckled to allow him to blow out smoke and just briefly you could see an uneven chin hiding there before it was secured in place once more.

“You look…” His words trailed off, voice rough on your ears as he carefully pushed off the porch’s support beams. Eventually, he nodded his head, pulling you into a tight hug instead of speaking anymore.

You press a kiss to his cheek closer to his ear, enjoying how he shivered at the affection before turning pink. “Thanks, so do you.”

You softly laugh as Larry bounds up to the porch, also aligning with the unspoken theme of head to toe black. Your curious eyes couldn’t help but notice how his shirt was cropped higher than normal, showing off the band of his boxers and beltless jeans.

“Looking good, disco queen.” Larry’s eyes lit up once he saw you, eyes running up and down your form.

You felt your face get hot, sheepishly looking away. Maybe the sheer top was overkill with the pants, but you liked how the low cut of the top accentuated you.

Your skin prickled with goosebumps as Larry linked your arm with his. He was gentle but firm, guiding you to the van leaving Sal to follow after you with a lazy stride.

“We’ve been out here for like ten minutes waiting on you!” If there was nothing else that Ash had, she had appeal. Even if it was just going to school, she made sure to look her absolute best.

And now was no different, dressed in black and sitting on the hood of the car. As her eyes traveled up and down your body, you couldn't help but squirm under her stare. After a long beat of silence, she smiled at you, “You look sexy. Are you trying to seduce me so we stay here?”

“I’m not,” You huff, swatting at her a little as she tried to squeeze your covered hip. “Plus it wouldn’t work anyway. You’re straight.”

Ashley grinned, fixing her hair as Larry helped her down from the van’s hood carefully. “For you, I’d try it.” Night was in full swing, casting shadows over the house and making it look much creepier.

“Youre one to talk, Ashley Titbell,” Climbing into the back seat, you immediately relax at the familiarity, “Like now, your boobs are busting out of that top.”

“Are not!”

“Are too.”

“Are not!!!”

“Are too.”

And on you went the entire car ride. Thankfully, after 25 minutes of that, you somehow made it to the church, no wrecks or cat fights in sight. Everyone in attendance was parked further down the hill leading up to church so Larry followed their lead.

“How did we even get invited to this anyway?” Todd huffed quietly, fussing with his curls. It looked impossibly shiny from what you could see, and you outwardly cringed, suddenly self-conscious of your own hair. What is it with these Nockfell boys and their effortless hair care?

“Those freaky blonde twins invited this one,” Ash huffed, pulling down her shirt into its place and flattening her skirt over her ass. “Said to bring her friends for a freaky orgy at the church.

For a moment, you pause, then realize what she said; eyebrows furrowing in protest. “That is not what they said.”

Larry and Ash shared a laugh, the former throwing an arm over Todd and you to pull you up the winding road and the latter leading the charge as always, leaving Sal to find his pace next to you like usual. It wasn’t a typical house party; people drinking out of red solo cups, rubbing their groins together and dancing to crappy music. Everyone that was there was either sitting in sub groups outside and doing their own thing with each other or inside the church doing another.

Instantly you wereyanked off in the direction of the church by a very excitable Ash. She shoves you both past a pair talking to each other in the doorway, coaxing you inside the darkened hall. You could smell all the wine and various other stronger substances radiating through the space. But it wasn’t overwhelmingly strong.

By the time you turned around, Larry was already gone, as was Sal. You couldn’t see them from where you were standing, leaving you alone with Ash and Todd.

The human wildcard you called a friend somehow managed to snag herself a bottle of fireball, flicking the cap off with a sharp black acrylic nail. “This looks cool.” Ash had to slightly raise her voice so you could hear her over the music.

Where the music was loud enough to be heard outside, it wasn’t that overwhelming once you were inside. “I guess.” Following her example, you glanced around, trying to find a place to settle down. “There’s a lot of people here.”

She gave you a weird look. “I mean, yea,” Her hand squeezed onto yours, pulling you onwards through the crowd. Somehow she managed to get you to the pews, where a smaller subgroup was sitting on the ground with a half drank bottle of vodka.

“Hey guys,” Ash greets with a smile, leaning over the group of others with wide eyes. “What are we playing?”

You vaguely recognize the tallest girl with dark red hair, sitting next to a boy with almost perfectly maintained locs. You don’t know where you’d seen them, but you’d definitely seen them both around before.

A smirk stretches across the girl’s face, as she looks up at Campbell, ignoring you and your presence completely. “Truth, Dare or Drink. Join the fun.”

Ashley looked at you, dark hair unable to hide the red on her cheeks. “Are you going to join us?” You look over the group. To your dismay, you didn't see a single person you knew, but she seemed pretty familiar with them.

“Nah, have fun.” You nudged her towards the strangers, shuffling back from them carefully, ”I gotta take a leak.”

She frowned, but nodded her head, pointing across the room towards the stairs assumedly leading down to the basement. You follow her direction, weaving and shuffling between various teens to get there.

As you stepped down the stairs and into the more populated area, your senses were thrown for a loop. It was warm but the air was thick with the smell of flavored tobacco and marijuanna. A part of you wondered how exactly they would get the smell out by the time the church members returned.

Sadly, by the time you weaseled your way to the bathroom, there were already people in there, talking about who knows what and doing their make-up. You wrinkle your nose in distress, quietly squirming.

Now you really have to pee.

~

You didn’t know how you ended up by yourself when you came with a group of six but all you knew was that everyone was scattered throughout the place and you were somehow in a recliner. You couldn’t see them, but you knew they hadn’t left without telling you beforehand.

Or you hoped that was the case anyways

You lean over the back of the recliner, making a grab for the closest bottle you could find to refill your half empty glass. In the end, all that was there was the more intense brown liquor, which couldn’t be mixed with your wine.

You kicked your legs up onto the table, watching the various people your age conversing amongst themselves. Most of these people have known each other since their freshman year, leaving you feeling out of place. Like you weren’t supposed to be here.

In the end, all that was left to do was kick up your feet and watch everyone else converse until one of your friends found you or you found them. You didn’t mind, people watching was entertaining.

You huffed quietly before taking a sip of your third drink of the night. You don’t know where you got it from, and a small part of you felt weird drinking wine at a party. You only took interest because it was berry flavored.

“Hey,” You let out a small noise of acknowledgement, looking up from your glass of ruddy red wine. “Nice boots.”

Instinctively you glanced down towards your feet. As if predicting foot pain, you wore your lowest platforms just in case. At some point before you moved, you had painted various flowers and stupid smiley faces on them.

“I saw you touchin’ ‘em up in art class.” He observed, peering down to get a better look at them. Following his movement, you lifted your foot so he could see it better. “I’m impressed.”

You could feel your heart swell with pride as you sat up straighter. He took this as a sign to proceed, stepping closer to you. “I’m Daniel, you’re that new kid, right?” You nodded your head, feeling yourself relax against the soft plush furniture.

He was cute. “I’ve been waiting to talk to you, but you were busy every time I saw you.” He leaned into your face so you heard him, his breath ghosting across your face. “I ain’t wanna bother you.”

He was really close, grin wolfish and sexy. If you stood up even a little, your lips would press together. “You want to dance?” He was plainer than your usual type. No cool piercings or shiny eyes but he was cute in a sort of puppy dog way.

A part of you thought to turn him down. He wasn’t your type but maybe he would be mildly interesting. Finally, you shrugged, your noses pressing together as you sat up straighter. “Sure.” Despite the alcohol in your system you were coordinated as you were gently taken in a train formation to the pit of writhing bodies. At some point you ditched your wine glass after downing the rest, leaving your buzz to become more intense.

You may not be able to dance as well as everyone else, but you weren’t unfamiliar with the following example. He was warm and solid against you providing both stimulation and stability.

“You’re so soft.” You grin lazily, tilting your head over as his soft lips traced the sensitive parts of your nape. You took pride in the compliment.

He smelled like body wash and cannabis. It was strong, and invaded your senses, leaving you dizzy and breathless as his teeth began to nip.

Your ears were softly ringing, you realized. You couldn’t hear much of anything right now. Maybe a few garbled phrases here and there that you replied to at the best of your ability. The world around you spun like you were on the gravitron. Maybe standing after drinking so much was a bad idea.

You could barely comprehend that you were being pulled somewhere, until you were violently yanked from behind into a warm embrace. It felt strong and firm but the smell coming from whoever was holding you was familiar. This was the smell you knew. Laundry detergent, mint and cigarettes.

You shake your head hard, forcing yourself to focus. You were by a room, Daniel a few ahead of you and standing in a dark doorway and you a few paces away being held by a strong grasp.

Ashley was in front of you, basically bristling as she slammed her hands hard against Daniel’s chest. “Back the fuck up, Dinwoodie.” The name sounded familiar in the back of your mind but you couldn’t pinpoint it.

By your side was Larry, who looked ready to punch Daniel’s lights out cold at the drop of a metaphorical hat. His hands were shaking as he stood protectively in front of you, eyes hard with a lack of restraint.

You look back at who’s holding you, eyes half lidded and tired. Sal, eyes unreadable behind his mask, stared up at you with shaking arms. “Are you okay?” His voice swarmed in your brain, stirring your brain into mush.

His fingers felt good on your hot face. They were cold on your skin and you felt your stomach kick. Not with affection, but something more visceral. You were in motion again, rather quickly as the bile rises up into the back of your mouth.

You ran away from the pitch black corridor that you were about to walk into and back towards the populated basement. There were three sets of footsteps running after you as you slammed open the bathroom door.

You were conscious enough to feel the hands on the nape of your neck. Whoever it was, was rubbing the back of your neck while you puked up your lunch and whatever else was in your system.

“We’re going to go get some water, stay put,” Ash told her accomplice, which got silence in reply. Well silence from whoever was holding your hair, anyone could still hear your puking.

You rest your elbows on the edge of the toilet, wiping your mouth with the sleeve of your shirt. The hand in your hair alternated to your back now that you weren’t in the bowl, rubbing slow circles into your spine.

It was weirdly soothing. You look back at Sal, who was staring at you expectantly. “Better?”

Ignoring your nerves, you whine softly, leaning back to sit on your butt properly instead of kneeling on the cold concrete tiles. “My head is spinning like a top.”

He sat down as well, pressing his back against the absurdly large tub next to the toilet. His left leg was bent towards his chest, and his right outstretched directly behind your butt. He looked good like that. Something about him was weirdly sexy in a dark and grungy way.

“I heard that guy talking about some plan when we came in.” You could feel your arm twitch as he violently ripped you from your calming thoughts. “I wouldn’t have cared but then he said your name so...”

You could feel the vomit creeping back up your throat as you slowly processed his words. Had he not heard anything, who knows where you’d be right now.

“Right,” You couldn’t help but laugh, your heartbeat steadily racing. You could feel the anxious tears welling in your eyes the more it dawned on me.

What plan? Who made the plan in the first place? What was he even going to do to execute it?

That last thought left you reeling, and you puked whatever was left in your belly into the toilet bowl. Sal sprung up immediately, chest pressing against your side as he held you once more.

You couldn’t help but curl into his body once you had stopped. Despite your attempts to stifle it, you let out a soft noise of relief once you felt his arms tighten around you.

“I don’t want to be here right now.” Your voice was raw and it hurt to talk. Most likely from stomach acid. “I need to get the fuck out of here.”

Sal let out a noise of agreement, nodding his head. The chin of his mask bumped against the top of your head with the action. “Do you think you’ll make it home?”

You nod your head, moving yourself onto your feet with his assistance. “I’ll be fine.” He let go of your shoulders once you were upright, but he replaced the grip on your shoulders with a hold on your hand.

The drinks hadn’t fully left your system, you still felt dizzy and warm. Sal must have felt you wobble on your feet, because he held onto you, guiding you away from the bathroom. You felt like a child, being guided out of the room by your hand. But you knew it was so you didn’t get separated from each other. So you tightened your grip on his hand.

He returned the action without looking back at you, pushing through people who were either talking or dry humping against the walls of the narrow hallway.

You heard shrill chanting as you got closer to the stairs. A repetitive fight! fight! fight! could be heard throughout the church, causing the pit in your stomach to turn into a sink hole.

Sal must have heard it too, cause he paused and his shoulders physically sagged with exhaustion. “…I swear to god.”

You tumbled up the stairs towards the source. Once you were in the chapel the yelling was so loud, you physically cringed. The both of you shoved your way to the front of the crowd, only to discover that it was definitely who you both thought it was.

Punches were being thrown, pews were overturned and Larry was right there in the middle, slamming his fist into Daniel’s face. You could see Ashley in the front with Todd, most likely screaming cheers for their best friend.

You would have too, if you weren’t so suffocated already. “Larry, lets fucking go!!!” Sal shouted over the noise, hand gripping yours a little tighter than you think he intended.

Larry seemed to acknowledge his friend’s yelling, and with a double tap to Daniel’s nose, he sent him flying onto his back. You felt a sick spasm in your chest, begging you to laugh, but smothered the noise with a whimper.

Ashley crowded to her friend's side, eyes wide with excitement as she yelled something unintelligible over the loud music still playing. Sal pulled you forwards, towards your friends who were flushed with either excitement or rage respectively.

Larry stood in the middle of the group, sweat beading his brow. He was panting, blood smeared across his clenched fist and his face. “Fucking piece of shit.” You could feel a tremor of excitement run down your spine.

The crowd dispersed, now bored since there was nothing new and/or violent to keep their attention. You took this chance to let Sal go, focusing on cupping Larry’s face.

His skin was hot under your touch, and you felt him leaning into your palm almost immediately. He stares at you, as if he were an expectant puppy. “You did great.” He lit up at the praise, wrapping his arms around you.

“I thought you both went to get water.” Sal was less than impressed, glaring scoldingly at his two buddies.

“We did, but Larry saw that guy chatting up another girl and went ballistic.” Ashley explained, hands placed on her waist to hold herself up. “He deserved it.”

“You could have at least brought the water before you decided to cave in his face,” Sal sighed quietly.

“…I had to make sure Larry would be okay,” You smile at Ash’s half hearted explanation as Larry moves his arm back over your shoulder. He shoved his head against yours, his way of making sure you were okay.

And you were.

Chapter Text

Chapter 8

September 1993: Day Nine

You were thankful for the cover of night, to hide your slowly creeping shame. Now that it was the middle of the night, it was much colder than it would have been during the day. Your skin pebbles with goosebumps, but you couldn’t tell what it was from anymore. The cold? Anxiety?

When you opened the van’s passenger side door, there was an audible squeak, nearly sounding like it was gonna snap off its hinges.

“Oh shit, did I break it?” You froze, looking at Sal who was already sitting in the driver's seat. Larry and Ash were both still tipsy and Todd not Neil had their learners permit yet. So that left you, who was still drunk and Sal who hadn’t had a sip of anything the entire night.

He leans over the console, making eye contact with you. His eyes looked confused for a moment, but he quickly went back into reality. “Huh? Oh, no, it just does that sometimes.”

Once he’d straightened out the vehicle and shifted into drive, he pulled off of the street crowded with cars and onto the main road. The streets were dark, quiet. Granted it was about one in the morning so it made sense. It was serene and almost peaceful.

You leaned out the window, beginning to count the tall streetlights on the sides of the road as they passed by.

The car was silent. Only the hushed cries of cannibal corpse playing on the radio. You could see Sal bobbing his head next to you, but his hands were gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles were bleached white.

The engine rumbled beneath you like always. It felt nice, sending what felt like electricity throughout up your soft thighs to settle in your lower stomach.

Moments like these didn't feel real in the grand scheme of things. Nothing around you mattered, in fact nothing in the world mattered because everything was temporary.

Sal, the usually silent one during cat rides, said something next to you. It shook you out of your thoughts and brought you back into your seat. “Sorry, what?”

“I was just making sure you were good,” His eyes narrowed at you from underneath his mask. “I don’t wanna watch you jump out the window, ya know?”

You took a moment to look at him. Really look at him. His rings glimmered around his fingers, matching the ones in his ears. If you looked long enough at his hands, you could see the blue and green veins there.

The casual spread of his thighs and his scraped up knees underneath his ripped up jeans—most likely his own doing. His slow, heaving breaths that caused his loose hair to be disturbed every time he inhaled.

You pursed your lips, feeling the heat rise to your face as you turned towards the open window. You needed to sober up and fast. “What are you doing?” You barely heard him over the harsh whistling wind in your ears. You pulled your weight onto the open window, holding onto the handlebar for stability. Your hair slapped you in your face, as you turned your head to watch the road. You tried to breathe in, but the wind pressure was so intense that you found it hard to inhale.

“You’re going to get you head taken over by a pole,” Sal yelled from inside, something close to concern in his voice.

“No, I’m not,” You yelled back to him, tightening your grip on the handlebar and leaning further out the window. “Drive faster!”

“You shouldn’t—“

“Please!”

Silence, even if just for a moment. But he obeyed. Like clockwork, the wheels started rotating faster.

Your eyes stung with tears. You leaned your head back, finding bliss in observing the stars from this angle. There was nothing better than this. Pure freedom.

You felt the grasp of a desperate hand on your thigh. It almost caused you to lose focus, the hardness of his rings pressing into you through your pants. It was for your safety but mostly for his sanity.

You knew he wouldn’t be able to catch you, you’d fall too fast. You don’t think he knew that though.

“..ar..”

“What?!”

“CAR!”

He was right. You jolt as you spot the quickly approaching headlights, ducking back into your seat and flopping back onto your ass.

You couldn’t help but laugh, breathless and maniacal. You felt delightfully giddy and dizzy. Sal removed his hand from your leg the second you were settled in your seat.

When the car passed, he glanced over at you, eyes wide underneath his mask. “You’re gonna get yourself killed.”

The adrenaline coursing through you made your head spin. You wanted to go back out, but you also felt like if you did, you would pass out from trying to hold your breath again.

“Are you feeling better now?” Ash slurs from the row directly behind you, eyes soft with worry and affection.

You nodded quietly, slouching down in the passenger seat. “I just needed to stabilize myself.” She didn’t respond, and only let out a noise of acknowledgement.

Todd was in the back row with his boyfriend, talking in hushed tones. You don’t know how he joined your group, maybe he had his own ride and ditched it to hang with his boyfriend.

Larry was sitting behind Sal, staring wordlessly out the dark window view. He looked troubled, deeply angry and jittery. He’d been quiet ever since you drove off.

There wasn’t any loud screaming, no one was clambering over each other like usual. It was just, quiet.

You frown a little, perturbed. “Where are we going by the by,” You asked Sal finally, running your fingers across your tender scalp.

“Well we were going to go home and hang out at Larry’s apartment.” Sal explained, glancing at you briefly but looking back at the empty road ahead. “But I have a better idea.”

~

Your toes felt like they would freeze off the longer you stood on the dock. You had previously expressed anxiety about walking barefoot on an old wooden deck but it was surprisingly well kept. No real risk of splinters.

Maybe you were crazy. And that’s why you wanted to jump into that ice cold lake right now. Clothes and all. It would put you in a very bad position since you didn’t have a change of clothes, however, it would be fun.

You glanced over towards the treeline, eyes soft with consideration. Todd and Neil had run off into the woods together half an hour ago. It wasn’t inherently sexual, actually it was quite sweet. They had the intent to find a place to sit alone together on one of the various blankets they had in the back and watch the stars.

You hadn’t heard the approaching footsteps until they started to pick up pace rapidly. Somehow, without accidentally taking out yourself, you ducked out the way, just barely avoiding Larry’s attempt to push you into the lake.

Resulting in him going face first by himself with a rather girly scream. It wasn’t long before Ashley followed, giggling maniacally as she leapt very gracefully into the lake and totally did not belly flop.

You laughed. A deep, keening belly laugh.

“Good reflexes,” Sal came up next to you, standing at a distance by your side. “How did you know when to move?”

You shrugged as you watched the two resurface. Larry flipped you off, and you returned the action with a grin. “He runs very loudly.” His dark hair looked like seaweed in this light.

Either that or it actually was seaweed. Sal nods his head, hands coming to grasp at the ends of his shirt. “Ain’t that the truth.”

You watched in muted silence as the fabric came over his head of deep blue hair. Your tongue felt heavy in your mouth as you took in his frame. It only got heavier as his jeans followed.

He had a stick and poke tattoo on his leg, a cheeseburger with a speech bubble above its head. You couldn’t tell what it said, not in this light. It was amusing though

“You coming in with us?” He asks, looking at you curiously. His fingers glimmered in the moonlight, still wearing his rings. “You don’t have to.”

“I’m not wearing a bra.” Your voice was strained as you tried to avoid looking below his neck. But you wanted to very badly. “Unless that was the angle, Fisher?”

He snorted, rolling his eyes and looking towards the lake once again. He didn’t jump in though, and you realized that he was standing there waiting for you but not looking for your own privacy.

You wiggled off the shirt you were wearing, leaving you in my pants. It took a second, but you managed to get them down, skin pebbling with goosebumps as your boots and socks followed.

Your top was naked, but you were still wearing your underwear. You didn’t feel embarrassed in your own skin, but you felt a little angry at yourself for not wearing any undergarments besides your panties.

Sal still wasn’t looking at you, instead watching Ash and Larry trying to drown each other. But you noticed immediately how his hand was hovering in the air, waiting. You gently grasped it, following his lead as you stepped several paces back before taking off running across the dock. Somehow, you hit the water first, but he followed soon after.

You’re enveloped in nothing but a cold chill. Your body felt numb, and you felt your skin practically turn into ice the longer you were there under the surface. Something about it felt familiar, and you let yourself be carried by the water naturally.

It was a happy feeling, enveloped in your own brief isolated silence.

Then you resurfaced, your previously styled hair now clinging to your forehead. You felt the chill of early morning air take over you, as you looked over at the group.

Larry and Sal were doing horseplay, shoving one another. Ash was peacefully floating a few yards away, belly to the sky. Once you knew no one was looking for you, you quietly sank back below the surface.

You were at peace, even if just for a little while longer. You thought about home, your garden that most likely had crumbled into dust without you or your mother’s help. You were happy to have nonleafy friends, but a small part of you wished you were nine years old again, back home with your mom.

You could feel the need for breath causing your lungs to ach the longer you floated there. It was scary, but comforting. A sign that you were alive.

You surface again, leaving your cold comfort behind. You took in a hungry gulp of air before shaking your soaking wet hair like a soggy poodle.

“Hey,” You look up from the abyss, eyelashes heavy with water. Larry was a few inches away, eyes narrowed suspiciously. “You okay?”

You offered no words, instead lifting a thumbs up. He seemed like he was going to call BS but accepted the answer with a nod. His sour mood seemed to be gone now. Same old Larry.

Thankful that he was feeling better, you clamored out of the lake, dripping wet as you planted your moist butt on the wooden dock.

The chill instantly took hold, leaving you shivering on the old wood. Maybe coming here in the middle of fall wasn’t the best idea, but you only learn through living as your mother used to say.

The world was quiet, but you knew it wouldn’t last long. Your head was gently pounding and your toes were slowly going numb inside the water.

Your attention was snagged as Sal climbed out of the lake. You got anxious the longer you stared, so you didn’t, looking instead at the dark sky.

Sleep and you have never really had the best relationship. You spent most nights staring out the window until you became tired enough to pass out for a few hours. But right now you are struggling to keep yourself awake.

“Here.” Your focus is on Sal again as he offered you a towel, as well as his hand to you. You took both of them, stumbling slightly until you eventually found your footing.

You walked off back to the van, hand in hand, wrapped up in your respective fluffy towels. Even with the towel, you were absolutely chilled to the bone.

By the time the car’s heat was blasting around you, your nose was running.

You don’t know how you ended up in the backseat, since you started in the front, but eventually you ended up with your nearly naked body smushed up Sal’s for warmth. You were both shivering, but to you, his skin felt like it was burning.

The silence that stretched between you was nerve wracking but the cover of night allowed you to be as nervous as possible. From how rigid both of your bodies were, you could tell that he was just as anxious as you were. Even if neither of you would admit it.

“How are you feeling?” Sal’s voice was low, the warmth of his breath going downwards to the bottom of the mask. You knew it did because you felt it hit your chest. “You’re not going to barf on me, are you?”

You knew he was poking fun but gave him a look anyway. Well as much as a look as you could muster in the dark and without actually being upset. He seemed to sense your glare anyways, because his laugh echoed inside the car.

The longer you both sat there, the wetter your towels were getting, which was making you colder than being in the lake itself. You shrugged until yours was on the seat next to you, using your goosebump ridden arms to hide your modesty.

Sal either didn’t notice or didn’t say anything. You were betting on the former, because you were sitting on his blind side. “Thank you for being there.” Your voice was still hoarse but much clearer than it was earlier. No more slurring. “You and everyone else, obviously.”

“We can't let anything happen to one of our own.” You shiver as his ring-clad fingers carefully grasp your chin, mushing you around. But the way he talked showed something deeper. More protective.

“Worried about me, Fisher?” Your voice cracked, neck hot at the sudden consciousness of how close you were. Your legs were in their usual spot, but it was mostly your thighs on top of his. You could feel his naked side press against your bicep and his own arm resting next to your back.

His tone was soft as he replied, voice stirring your stomach into a twisty turny mess. “Why wouldn’t I be?” You shuddered, the darkness leaving your imagination to run wild with the possibilities of where this conversation was going to go.

You didn't reply, hands moving from your shoulders to his, holding onto him tightly. He seemed to take your curious touches as an invitation. His hand abandoned the seat, instead finding its home on my waist.

The smell of laundry detergent was gone but as always he smelled like mint. You let out a soft whine, selfishly searching for that addictive smell and bumping your noses together. Well, your nose and his mask’s nose.

You both chuckled, his hand trailing from your waist to your hips. You shudder as a thrill spreads down your body, settling between your thighs.

“So what now, besides freezing to death waiting for them?” Sal proposed. He sounded more nervous for this part, as if genuinely worried. But it wasn’t for any potential freezing, it was something else entirely.

The more feral part of you yearned to say what was on your mind, the good and the… deeply provocative. But you also want to milk this as far as you could. “I dunno, I might like being an icicle.”

The air around you seemed to still, reminding you of your time in his bedroom. But this time, there was more of an underlying intent there. Before it was a cautious curiosity. This was something much hungrier.

“Take it off.”

“What?” It came out like a whimper.

“...Take off my prosthetic.”

The sickness of your inebriation was gone, leaving you a gooey mess of teenage hormones. You were definitely sober enough to understand basic instruction but also tipsy enough to want to do what you wanted.

You purse your lips, shifting your body until you are able to swing your leg over his thighs. You could hear him let out a shuddering gasp of your name underneath you. You smirked quietly, crouching on your knees over his eagerly waiting lap

His fingers shook as he held your hips, his short nails still somehow digging into your skin. It forces you to focus instead of melting into his embrace. “Are you sure..?”

Cautiously you reached up, gliding your fingers from his chest up the curve of his neck. “I guess… It’s not like you can really see me…” His hair was soft underneath your fingers and you almost found yourself back in a quiet hair fussing daze,

You shook your head, you could worry about his hair later.

Even if you couldn’t see all that well, you could still feel him shaking. He was as terrified as you were. But you were definitely scared for different reasons.

His mask fell to your lap, and you let out a soft gasp as instantly he pushed his forehead against yours. His breathing hitched, grip on your waist tightening as he pulled you closer.

“You’re… really warm...” Something about that made you sheepish. At the same time, you were bold, pinning him in place as you finally sat down on his waist.

He was shivering as you cupped his face, his fingers aimlessly playing with the soft curve of your waist. You started from the top, working your way down slowly.

You could feel a large scar on his right cheek and followed it down with your finger until it stopped at his top lip—what was left of it anyway. Your fingers grazed something solid and you realized quickly that the scar split his upper lip open on the right side, leaving some of his upper teeth exposed.

Tinier scars littered his face, and with a careful confirmation, You could feel how the cartilage in his nose was almost completely gone and your heart crooned inside your chest.

His face was burning, so you knew he was blushing but his shaking seemed to get more intense the more you explored him. You couldn’t see his expression from this angle, but if you leaned back he could see yours from the moonlight.

“Do you… still want me to kiss you…?” He was gentle, as if he would break you if he held you too hard. You let out a shuddering breath at the desperation in his voice, hands coming up to grasp weakly at his hair once more.

Despite your fear of being found in a compromising position like this, you felt yourself begin to nod. Sal caressed your waist, coaxing your body to mesh with his own. “Yes ple—”

You barely finished your thought before feeling his lips press into yours. Your fists opened and closed in his hair and your eyes grew wider than before.

Seeming to sense your surprise, he pulled back slightly but you didn’t let him get far. Your lips followed his, and he grunted as he felt your fingers pulling him closer. It was clumsy and his lips were chapped. But you can’t imagine you were any more pleasant, having puked your lunch out less than two hours ago

His soft kisses moved from your mouth to your jaw, passing quickly onto your neck. He wasn’t nearly as gentle here as the kisses on your lips were. These were with purpose.

"You taste like honeysuckle," He mouthed at your skin, holding you in place as you gasped out. It was soft and slow but the intent was there, stirring your brain into mush.

"Don't..." You murmured, almost in a daze. Sal draws back immediately, breathing slow but heavy against your own heaving chest.

Softly, he pressed his forehead against yours once more, rubbing gentle circles into your hips.
"Do you want me to stop?"

"No," You pulled him closer than before, a low whine falling from your lips, "Don't stop." The silence was almost deafening, the sound of your breathings in pure synchronization with one another.

Your fingers find his hair and this time you kiss him. He responded with a spine-tingling groan, his hands moving from your hips to your exposed outer thighs. His nails dug into the sensitive skin, and you let out a whine against his mouth.

You didn’t know how long you were back there, a blur of quiet conversations and shy kisses. But by the time your friends had sleepily trudged their butts back to the car, you were both dressed and in the front seat, sharing a cigarette.

Your face was hot, lips swollen and gluttonous for more but happily buzzing from what you were given. It was awkward and scary. Nearly perfect.