"I don't know. They don't tell me that."
"Because of your spikes?"
I couldn't help it. For once it was like someone understood me, like someone cared for the right reasons that I had spikes growing out of my back. And then when I made her laugh, something inside of me just ignited. I had made someone laugh, something I hadn't done in so long. And she understood what it would be liked to be called 'Razorback' or 'Coathanger' because she was like me. In hindsight, not entirely like me, but you get my point. It didn't help when she started to list all of the things that she could do now, things that I could do. It felt like we were just two peas in a pod, waiting to meet. And watching her come alive as she told me about the little details she could see on the trees out the window and her strength as she lifted the bed made me feel a little more alive, a little more comfortable in myself.
Suddenly, she was so close I could almost taste her, I could smell the woods on her, I could see every little fleck in her eyes. And then she did the unthinkable. She leaned in and kissed me. It was like my whole body was set on fire but I was so numb. All I could do was gape like a fish, my mouth flopping open and my eyes staring at her. I didn't need to see my back to know that the spikes were glowing. As weird as I felt in that moment, it felt normal, almost as though this was supposed to happen between us. Every bit of reasoning left my mind. All of a sudden, it was as though Karen wasn't lying to the entire 2nd Mass, she wasn't here to do horrible things. She was here because this was supposed to happen, she and I were supposed to connect.
But then the door opened and I could hear a little "What the Hell?"
It was as though time froze. Karen's lips left mine so slowly that I didn't even realise that the pressure was lessening. But the coldness came all at once, the cool air suddenly hitting where Karen's warmth had been and it took everything not to let out a small shiver. All I could do was watch as Karen collapsed onto the floor and Hal came into the room asking what I did to her. All I could do was panic as Karen didn't move. I was still entranced from her lips on mine, but I was steadily just becoming confused as I backed out of the room. I didn't know where I was going, I just needed to get away.