“Pull up as close as you can get to the water. I just want to dump him and go.”
Thankfully, the water was strong. The body moved quickly, and the head bobbed alongside it.
“It doesn’t matter if he’s found. They don’t care about thealready dead.” I shivered at the nickname humans had for us.
Desi stuffed his hands in his pockets and motioned for us to leave. We did, and we arrived back at my apartment with twenty minutes to spare.
I sighed at the state of my home, but I was too tired to deal with it.
“Let’s just go to bed.” I sighed. “It’s been a long night.”
“You want to shower first? Can I shower at least?” He grimaced. I blinked and looked at us. We were both covered in dirt, grime, and lots of blood.
“Yeah, we probably should. I don’t have clothes for you.”
“I sleep nude,” he smirked. I rolled my eyes but agreed to take a shower first. I was significantly dirtier than him. He jumped in as soon as I was out, and when I took another glance at the front room, I was surprised to see full trash bags all over. The blood from my hack job had been cleaned up too. How long had I been in the shower?
I dried off, and despite Desi’s desire to sleep naked, I opted for one of my nightgowns. This one was a pale yellow and had frills around the skirt and neckline. I shut the light off and climbed into bed. The bathroom door opened, and a sliver of yellow light poured into the hallway. His shadow came out as he worked his way through the dark to the bed. I could hear him drying off until finally, he slipped under the covers with me.
He pulled me into his arms, and I snuggled tightly against his chest and closed my eyes. I could feel my body and mind growing heavy.
“Scout, I have to tell you,” he started. I turned my head slightly. He chuckled. “I think you’re fucking psycho.”
“Oh? And you’re still choosing to sleep with me?”
“Mmhm,” He nudged my neck with his nose. He then planted a soft kiss on the sensitive skin. “I think it’s so fucking sexy.”
***
“I don’t want you doing that. Ever again.”
“You said it was sexy.” I glared at him from across his desk. We took separate cars to work after spending the day cleaning up my place. I nearly cried at all the projects I had to toss, even if they were all abandoned midway through.
“The blood, you being strong and so sure of yourself, is sexy. Giving up your numbers to save mine is not. If you’re not ready to break your curse, then that’s it.”
“What if I am?”
He didn’t say anything for a long moment.
“You’ve said before that breaking your curse will give you back your happiness. What if it’s not with me?” he asked, finally. He couldn’t look me in the eye. He knew how selfish it sounded, but I understood. I had the same fears.
“But what if it is?”
“How will we know? I won’t know until I break mine, and I’ve still got a lot to go.”
“How many?” I asked quickly.
“Stop. It doesn’t matter,” he sighed.
“Yes, it does!” I protested. “What if we’re supposed to break them at the same time. Maybe there are multiple pieces to the puzzle?” I know I sounded desperate.
Desi shook his head. “Scout, look. If you want to go forward, then do. Twenty-eight years is a long time to be standing still. I’m not ready to risk losing how things are with you. If that means I never lose my curse, so be it.”
“Fine. You’re such a loser.” I pouted. I stood up and smacked his feet off his desk. He flashed me a grin with a red candy in his mouth. I stomped back to my own office and tried to sketch.
I flipped through the pages and couldn’t find anything I wanted to work on. I was almost to the end of my sketchbook when I found a project I had started when I first met Desi.
The Hanged Man.
