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Phase 22

That night, Lucas suffered silently by himself.  I could hear him through my door, down the hallway and in the den, writhing in pain.  I clutched the covers under my chin tightly and pulled them closer, feeling the sheets wave over my stomach and legs.  I then heard Lucas yell and I heard a tumble, like he had jumped up from the couch.  I was in fear of what Mercy had done to him.

Then, the apartment door opened and I heard it shut.  Lucas left.

I couldn’t stand it anymore.

I threw the covers off myself to the cold side of the bed.  My legs swung from the side of the bed and let them down slowly until my toes tapped the cold floor.  The floorboards creaked eerily under my legs as I pushed myself up.  I walked to the window and leaned towards it to look below at the street.  Down the alley, under the flickering streetlamp, Lucas was walking slowly.  For some odd reason, he was walking towards the apartments, didn’t he just leave?  Wait.  He’s not wearing a shirt.  Lucas then looked up to my exact window.  I staggered back, he saw me?!  After a few seconds I leaned forward to the window again, but he wasn’t under the streetlamp…  I narrowed my eyes, confused, then…  I looked down and I saw him again, standing right under me, three stories down, with his… black eyes.

I cursed as I staggered back, frightened.  To keep my balance my hands shot behind me and landed on the night table.  The clock fell from the table, along with an old glass of water.  They clattered behind me as my heart began to race.  That was Regret!  Where did Lucas go?  I pulled back the dark curtain slowly.  In the window, I saw Regret’s eyes, surrounded my darkness.  I blinked, then a hand threw itself through my window.  He leapt into the room and I shrieked, but then felt stolen of my breath.  He tucked his head, rolled, then stood.  When he was rolling on his back on the ground, I felt as if I could hear every vertebrae of his spine crack as it scaled the ground.  He walked closer and was towering above my trembling, small frame.  Even though he was the skinniest man I knew, I felt so small with him.

“As well you should.” He said.  My eyes widened.

“W-what?” My breath was staggered, my voice felt weak.

“You should feel small with me.” He spoke softly with me now, not as harsh as he would in his realm.  I had almost forgotten about what he did to Mercy…  I wanted to say something about it, I wanted to bring it up again and ask him why.  And I wanted to ask him how he died.  But I knew that if I did, I would get hurt.  I looked into Regret’s eyes as he rolled them.  He then said, “you know better, good Roslyn…”

“What the hell?” I said softly, “How…?”

“I call it a gift.” Regret took his hand covered my eyes with them.

A sense of comfort was found in this.  His hands weren’t burning my eyes, like Denzel’s used to, but I reminisced, and I enjoyed this for some sick reason.

This remembrance came to a sudden end when I felt his fingers fall into my eyes.  They began to push in.  I felt lost of breath again, but my hands shot up to his arm, which burned me.  I felt boils emerge from my hands and I brought them back down in front of me, in a pained position, as my mouth gasped for air.  I wanted to reach out and push him away, but my hands throbbed.  It felt as if my veins were beating and pulsing through the boils.  I felt Regret’s fingers slide around my eyes and reach behind them.  I wanted to cry out in pain so badly, but the words could never escape.  Regret then took his knee and thrust it into my stomach.  I bent forward out of reflex, feeling his fingers push farther and deeper.  I fell to my knees and he finally released his fingers from my eyes.  I couldn’t see, I was blinded by the blood and pain.  Blood fell from the sockets in my eyes and it fell onto my traumatized hands.  I opened my mouth, gasping for air.  My eyes burned with an intense fire as the blood made it’s way to my cheeks.  My breath was staggered and my hands shot up and grabbed onto Regret’s pant leg.  He slapped my hands away and I fell onto my elbows, then rolled to my side.  I then felt his foot step onto my wrist, pinning my side down.  Then my other hand was pinned next to me, too.  He was straddling me, stepping on my wrists, I could feel it.  The blood filled my gouged eyes as I lay helplessly on my back.  My chest rose and fell quickly and painfully.  He then forced all his weight onto my right wrist.  I arched my back and breathed heavily and loudly.  I then felt him jump from me and kick my side.

My vision was restored, my hands stopped throbbing, and I was staring at the ceiling, sprawled out on the ground, my arms out from my body.  The ground was cold on my arms and I was afraid to blink…  I then rolled my head to my side and looked at my wrist.  It had a red imprint burned across it.  For a few minutes I stared at it as it slowly began to fade.  I then sat up slowly, afraid that my spine, arms or eyes would start to hurt again.  I looked at my hand and caressed the palm, it was fine.  There was no sign of boils or…

My eyes darted up from my hand and I found myself looking into the eyes of a frightened Lucas.  His lips were slightly parted and his eyes were looking pained at me.  I was afraid to speak and breathe, but the words came out like a flood, “W-what are you doing?  What’d you see?”

“Everything.” Lucas responded more quickly than I had expected.  I stood quickly and approached him timidly before saying, “W-what?  Did you see Regret?”

“Who?  Oh, no…  Just… just you.”  Lucas stepped closer and he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me to his chest.  I stood straight, confused, what is he thinking?  Slowly, my arms circled him as well and I began to feel more comfortable.  I laid my head on his shoulder and shut my eyes.

Everything is so scary now.

I wanted to hold back, I wanted to hold in my fear, but it poured out of me slowly.  I tightened my eyes and, silently, a few tears rolled down my face and soaked into Lucas’s shirt.  I felt him put his chin on my shoulder, he felt comfortable, too.  I wanted to stand with him and cry all night, but he had a different idea.  He took my shoulders and gently pushed me away then, looking into my tear stained eyes, he said “good night.”

Phase 21 ----- Phase 23