Chapter 6
Goosebumps lined Finn's arms as he stepped into the cave. It was eerie and unilluminated, only with the exception of the light that shined through Marceline's living room window. A sudden chill ran through the human's body and caused him to shiver.
When he approached the door, his body felt heavy and immovable. His feet dragged slowly onward, his arms hung loosely at his sides, his head became a cement block on his shoulders. Finn could just barely hear the sound of Marceline singing with her bass. With a shaking hand he knocked quietly on the door, almost hoping it was too silent for her to hear.
He would have no such luck. The music stopped abruptly. The door swung open, and in its frame stood the Vampire Queen. Her hair was tied back in a loose ponytail and she was dressed casually in a navy blue tank top and black jeans. A hole had been ripped in them at her left knee.
"Oh hey, Finn. What's up?" She asked as she smiled at her friend.
It took Finn a moment to gather the ability to speak, but after a few seconds he uttered, "I have something I want to talk to you about."
Marceline's smile faded into a curious expression. "Alright. Do you want to come inside?"
"Sure," he said as he followed her into the living room. He took a seat on the couch and Marceline sat about a foot away from him, her body turned to face him. Uh-oh, that's a bad sign. She's not cuddling me, or even sitting very close to me.
"So is this bad?" she asked.
"No…at least I hope not." Finn kept his eyes down as he spoke. "This is going to sound like a weird question, but what did you do last night?"
"Excuse me?" the vampire hissed.
"I told you it was going to sound weird," he explained. "Please just answer it. It's important."
Marceline raised an eyebrow. "I rocked out on my bass for a while, then got some inspiration for a new song. After I finished writing the first part of it I got tired, so I went upstairs, changed into my PJ's, brushed my fangs, and fell asleep. Same thing I do pretty much every night. Why the hell is that so important? I'd like to know."
A lump formed in Finn's throat. He felt as though a dagger had been thrust right into his heart. He sat there lifelessly, unmoving except for the shaking of his hands. He couldn't breathe, he couldn't think, he couldn't feel. The boy did everything he could to hold back the water that was building in his eyes, but it was all in vain; it overflowed, and a single tear streamed down his cheek.
"F-Finn?" Marceline slid closer to him and placed her pale white hand on top of his. When she felt his hand shaking, her eyes softened and her mouth fell into a frown. The vampire wiped the tear off of his face with her forefinger. "Finn, it's okay. What's the matter?"
"It—it was all a dream…it never happened," he stuttered.
"What are you talking about? What never happened?"
Finn shook his head. "Just forget about it. It doesn't matter."
"Well if it makes you this upset than it does matter. You are going to tell me what you were talking about, Finn, or so help me—"
"It doesn't matter, Marceline!" Finn yelled. He paused for a moment to collect himself. "It was just a stupid dream. It doesn't mean anything. I asked what I wanted to ask, and now I'm going home."
He attempted to stand, but Marceline kept a firm grip on his hand and pulled him back onto the couch. "Please stay, Finn. Talk to me. Maybe I can help. I hate seeing you so hurt. When you're hurt, it hurts me…a lot. You don't want me to be hurt, do you?"
Finn shook his head.
"Then talk to me."
"You are gonna flip on me if I do."
"I promise I won't flip, no matter what you say," she assured. "I love you and I want to make you feel better."
The human's heart grew lighter as he heard her say those words. He suddenly felt full of energy. "Last night I had a dream that I came over to your house and we talked for a while. You lied and said that your dad told you that you needed a king. Then you kissed me and I kissed you back, and we were all over each other. And when I left you said that I was your boyfriend, and that actually made me super happy." The words rushed out of his mouth. "But now I'm finding out that none of it really happened and it feels as though my heart's been chopped in half."
Marceline's eyes locked with his, her facial expression showing much concern. Her mouth hung open just a bit.
"I know it's crazy, but it's the truth." Finn's heartbeat increased as he waited for her response, but it never came. "I'm sorry," he said after a while. "I'm sure it's a lot for you to take on at once."
"Are—are you going to be okay?" Her voice shook with concern and worry.
"Eventually, I guess. I don't know…I just feel like I've lost you or something. The dream seemed so real, but now I guess I know that I never had you in the first place. I finally felt happy and just…happy. I was the happiest I had been in forever. And then it just all disappeared. My happiness just…disappeared."
"You…I…" She shook her head. Finn's eyes grew wide as he saw a tear fall from her eye and onto the couch, dying the fabric a darker shade where it landed. "I'm sorry that you're so hurt, Finn. That was never my intention…"
"What? It's not your fault. I was just dumb enough to believe that someone as amazing as you would ever want to be with someone like me. You have nothing to be sorry about." Unable to hold in his emotions any longer, tears began to trickle down his face. Embarrassed, he buried his head in his hands.
"I'd be lucky to be with you," Marceline said quietly. "Please don't let this hurt you, Finn. Please."
"It's a little too late for that, Marcy." His voice was muffled from being spoken into his hands. "I'm going to go home now. I'll talk to you sometime soon."
Finn stood up and walked to the door. As soon as he placed a hand on the knob, Marceline flew over and wrapped her arms tightly around him, squeezing him to her body. Then she kissed him once on the cheek, and then on the forehead.
He quickly reached up to crush his lips to hers. The kiss lasted for a few seconds until the vampire pulled away, her expression sorrowful.
"Finn…we can't…"
"That's only because you won't let us, Marceline! I say we can. I want to so badly. I saw in my dream how our relationship would be, or at least part of it, and it's amazing. I know we're best friends, but I think you might feel the same way about me as I feel about you."
She sighed and pulled away from him to sit back on the couch. "You just don't get it, Finn. We can't be together, okay? We just can't."
Finn couldn't utter a response; he was choked up from trying to fight more tears. He took a deep breath and shook his head. "F-fine," he said as he opened the door to leave. He glimpsed at her one last time, then slammed the door behind him.
Marceline sunk down onto the couch and began to sob. "What have I done?" she whispered to herself. "Why am I so stupid?"
She sat there, crying, her eyes fixed on the door. She wanted more than anything for Finn to come walking back into her house. She wanted to talk to him, to comfort him, to try to make things alright. I have to tell him, she thought. He should know…but he'll hate me. He'll hate me even more.
