A Friendship So Deep Part 4
Carla's house was one of the biggest in Middlington. Not because her parents made the most money really, but rather because she demanded to be given the best at all times and her parents were very quick to comply with her demands. It was a situation Chris-Alice found somewhat puzzling as she approached the huge front door that hovered over her like a wooden monolith. She had never asked for much from her parents besides encouragement and a few classes like martial arts and ballet, how Carla could milk her parents for things like this struck her as odd.
Still, Carla was her friend, and she was sure she would help if Chris-Alice told her the situation. She pushed the button beside the door, and stepped back to nod her head to the doorbell rendition of an All-American Rejects song ring throughout the house. The door opened a few moments later as the doorbell ended, the final notes punctuated by a thunderous 'pop' before Carla sucked the bubblegum back into her mouth after what must have been one truly epic bubble.
"'Sup, girl?" Carla swung the door open and stepped aside, wearing a green towel around her chest that fluttered down over her body, with another towel wrapped around her hair.
"Not much… am I interrupting?" Chris-Alice asked.
"Just in the middle of my weekend massage, no big. Come in, maybe you can join me." Carla waved her in and pushed the door closed behind her. "Stress isn't good for the skin you know, a weekly massage keeps the skin soft and smooth."
"That makes sense." Chris-Alice nodded. "But I wouldn't wanna-"
A few minutes later, Chris-Alice found herself wrapped in a towel, lying face-down on one of the long lawn chairs located in what must have been Carla's private massage parlor. A pair of strong hands pounded against her back in a steady, firm rhythm, pounding out the knots in her back. She squeaked in pain and clutched at the chair as the hands shoved against her spine with a loud cracking noise. For a moment she thought her back broke, but the pain faded a moment later with a relieved sigh.
"Wow, you must've been really tense." Carla smirked at her from the next chair over, similarly face-down.
"It hasn't been the best week for me." Chris-Alice admitted with a slight blush. "This feels really good though… painful, but good."
"You should do it more often." Carla winked. "So, what'd you come over for anyway?" She reached one limp arm down from the chair to pluck a cup of lemonade from the floor, bringing it up high enough to sip it through the straw.
"Oh, uh…" Chris-Alice blushed, her mind suddenly snapping back to the reason she had come. "Actually I wanted your advice on something… on kissing."
"Ah, you've come to the right place." Carla smiled.
"You've done it before?" Chris-Alice gasped.
"Hah, nah, but I don't need to. I've done lots of study, and I think I'll be ready when my future husband comes for me." Carla plucked her cell phone from the floor beside her drink and popped it open, sighing wistfully as a picture of Harry came up on the front screen. "I could drink in his lips for hours… mmm…"
"So… you wouldn't want to try it with someone else before you get to him…?" Chris-Alice prodded cautiously.
"Nope, I'm not kissing anyone else. My lips belong to him, and only him." Carla giggled and brought the phone in for a mock-tender kiss.
"Oh…" Chris-Alice sighed, not wanting to make things uncomfortable by pressing the issue any further. Instead she tried to focus on the massage that was quickly turning her body into a limp noodle. No wonder Carla and Melanie were two of the best cheerleaders in the state, if she got this kind of treatment on a regular basis she'd be as flexible as an Olympic Worm too. Now that she thought about it, though…
"Hey, where's Melanie?" Chris-Alice asked curiously. "I don't think I've ever seen you two apart for this long."
Carla's expression shifted curiously for a moment, then settled into a casual stare and a careless shrug. "We're not Siamese twins you know, we don't have to do everything together."
"Ookay, then…" Chris-Alice let the topic die, getting some very weird vibes from her friend all of a sudden.
They spoke a few more times about trivial things, what movies were coming out soon that they wanted to see, but otherwise the rest of the massage passed in companionable silence. When it was finished they gathered up their clothing again and slipped them on in separate rooms, then met once again by the front door.
"Thanks for the massage, I feel much better now." Chris-Alice smiled happily.
"Hey, no sweat, you looked like you needed to relax." Carla smiled. "Take it easy, alright? You don't need to be working yourself into a tizzy again, I want everything back to normal."
"Of course, okay." Chris-Alice nodded, then hesitated a moment before speaking again. "Can I ask… what was it like? In juvie?"
"What do you think it was like? It was a nightmare!" Carla shuddered. "You have no idea what they did to me!"
"Oh no…" Chris-Alice gasped. "Did the other girls… hit you?"
"No, it was waaayyyy worse than that!" Carla gulped. "They… took away my cell phone! Seriously, what was that!? Was I going to text message somebody to death!?" Carla panted for a moment, then shivered and regained her composure. "Okay, I'm okay now…" She clutched her cell phone to her chest as if someone would pop out of the wall and try to wrestle it away from her any second. "Nobody's taking it again, nobody…"
"Well… I'm glad you're feeling better, too." Chris-Alice flashed her friend a smile. "I'll see you later, Carla."
"Oh, alright. See you around, Chris-Alice." Carla waved and shut the door behind her as Chris-Alice left, making her way back down to the sidewalk.
Chris-Alice didn't hesitate for an instant at the sidewalk, knowing precisely where she was going now. She was too curious, and a little worried, not to follow up on Carla's strange look when she'd mentioned Melanie. Something must have happened between them, they weren't even on the phone talking about the day's gossip. This alone was enough to convince Chris-Alice that something was very, very wrong.
She approached Melanie's more modest house in the center of Middlington. It wasn't tiny, but compared to Carla's extravagant mansion, or even Chris-Alice's own home, it didn't exactly stand out other than being so plain. Chris-Alice paid all of this no mind, however. She didn't judge people by their home or money, so she made her way up to the door and knocked, stepping back to listen to the chimes play inside the building.
A blonde woman opened the door a few moments later and flashed her a smile. "Oh, hello. Chris-Alice, right?"
"That's right." Chris-Alice smiled brightly. "Is Melanie home?"
"Yes, she is…" The woman paused for a brief moment. "But I'm not sure she wants to see any visitors right now. Maybe you can play with her later."
"I just want to talk, I promise, I'll leave if she tells me to."
"Well, alright." The woman nodded and opened the door for her. "It's the third door on the left down the hallway… I hope you can cheer her up, she really hasn't been herself lately, at least, not when she's not around Carla."
"I'll do my best." Chris-Alice flashed the woman a bright smile, her suspicions being confirmed before she even set off into the back of the house. She rapped her knuckles lightly on Melanie's door and pressed her ear to it, listening for any movement inside.
"Yes?" Melanie's wispy voice called back from inside.
"It's Chris-Alice. Can I come in?"
"Oh!" Melanie gasped. "Coming!" She heard a soft rustling noise, followed by the thump of a pair of crutches rushing towards the door. Chris-Alice stepped before when the doorknob began to jiggle, and moments later the door swung open to reveal Melanie's typical obliviously smiling face. "Wow, I don't think you've ever been to my house before. Come in… this is my room! Well… yeah!" She gestured around to the room, which had a few pieces of furniture scattered around, the most prominent being the bed underneath the window and the massive armoire against the wall beside the door.
"It looks nice." Chris-Alice stepped inside at the gesture.
"Oh, and look at this!" Melanie hobbled rapidly across the room to her bed, which looked like it hadn't been made up at all that day. In fact, now that she looked, Melanie's hair was frazzled on top of her head, as if she'd only recently been lying down even though it was three o'clock in the afternoon.
"I found this a few days ago at the store!" Melanie bent down to reach under her pillow, pulling out what looked like a comic book. She whirled around and flashed Chris-Alice a toothy smile, just like the one the blonde woman on the cover on the comic was giving. "She looks like me! It's like I have my own book! Isn't it great!?"
"Haha, that's great. She DOES look just like you!" Chris-Alice smiled honestly. Melanie squealed and shoved the book back under her pillow.
"Melanie, why aren't you with Carla?" Chris-Alice asked boldly. Melanie was so caught off-guard that she tipped over on her crutches and toppled to the bed with a small 'oof'. "You're Carla's best friend in the world, and she's yours. I know because I've never seen you apart, and honestly? I'm kind of worried about you."
"Carla said we shouldn't hang out so much anymore." Melanie bit her lip and started nervously tugging in a few strands of blonde hair.
"What? Why?" Chris-Alice asked.
"Because I'm stupid." Melanie spoke in a blunt tone, as if it wasn't the most horrible thing she could have possibly said.
"Wh-what!?" Chris-Alice gasped. Sure, she had to admit she'd thought occasionally that Melanie was kind of dim, but for someone to come outright and tell her that… "Did Carla actually say that to you? That's horrible!"
"She was right, I was being stupid. Carla is always right."
"No, she's not." Chris-Alice rushed over to sit beside her on the bed. "Why would she say something like that?"
"Because I'm confused and stupid." Melanie was still talking in a simple tone, though it was obvious that she was distressed by this. "I don't even know what to think anymore."
"Don't know what to think? About what? What happened?" When Melanie didn't speak, Chris-Alice slipped a comforting arm around her shoulders, with a gentle smile on her lips. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me, but I'm here for you if you need to talk about it."
Melanie grunted, then with a sigh began to speak. "I didn't like being locked up, it freaked me out, I felt like I was all alone, except for Carla…" She hugged herself lightly. "Creepie always kept to herself, and she was in another cell anyway, so it was always just me and Carla in our cell and in the cafeteria, I don't think we were ever in separate rooms while we were there, until… until I tried to kiss her."
Chris-Alice gasped. "What…?"
"I know, it's stupid, that's why I'm stupid." Melanie nodded as if this was the absolute truth. "I couldn't help it, I just wanted to, I even had these dreams where we did it and I felt so badly that… I thought it might be nice. I thought it would make us better friends or something but I'm just stupid and-" Melanie continued to ramble for a bit, but Chris-Alice's mind was locked. It seemed amazing, it was as if Melanie was reaching inside her head and putting all of her innermost thoughts and worries to words. Suddenly, Chris-Alice realized she wasn't alone in this. There were others who were wondering the same things, who felt the same things. Others who were rejected…
"I wish I never did it…" Melanie sighed. "Now I don't think Carla ever wants to see me again."
"Carla's… firm." Chris-Alice smiled and squeezed Melanie's shoulders. "And sure she can be bossy and mean, but you've been friends forever. I don't think that's going to end over a kiss."
"Even if I'm stupid?" Melanie asked.
"Even if you're stupid... after all, there are plenty of stupid people out there." Chris-Alice smiled and nudges her in the side. Melanie giggled softly and wiped at one of her eyes, which had begun to fill with tears. "Besides, if thinking you'd like to get that close to a good friend is stupid, then you're not the only one in the world…"
"Huh?" Melanie blinked and looked up at her, her bright, baby blue eyes staring into Chris-Alice's green. "What do you mean? Do you…" Melanie trailed off, letting the question remain unasked. Chris-Alice wasn't sure if she'd already figured out the answer or if she was afraid of getting an answer. Honestly, she wasn't sure how to answer the question even if it was asked. So the silence held as they just stared at one-another, their minds racing with unasked questions.
Chris-Alice wasn't sure if she moved or if Melanie did, but it wasn't long before their lips were pressed together, with neither moving away in horror or disdain. It was a gentle kiss without much force applied to it, a simple thing that didn't need them to hold onto one-another or push it any further. It wasn't the experiment Chris-Alice had been looking for earlier, but it definitely felt like it gave her some results. She liked it… now if she could figure out what that meant…
The kiss ended as abruptly it began. Melanie had a slight smile on her face as her cheeks lit up a soft pink color. Chris-Alice could feel her own cheeks grow hot when she realized what happened, but still neither of them got angry at the other.
"Wow… heehee…" Melanie giggled. "I liked that…"
"Yeah… me too." Chris-Alice smiled brightly and clasped one of Melanie's hands in hers. "You look like you could use some sun, why don't we go get some ice-cream?"
"Yummm." Melanie licked her lips. "Okay!"
What it meant, Chris-Alice still wasn't sure. It was a new kind of feeling she'd experienced, and indeed, was still experiencing. She wasn't sure if she like-liked Melanie or if it was just because it was her first time kissing a girl, but she was sure those answers would come with time. In the meantime Melanie was her friend, and she was in dire need of someone to help her now that Carla was pushing her away. That was something Chris-Alice was happy enough to help her with.
Now if only they could find Creepie, everything could be perfect…
***
It was so dark she couldn't see anything, yet somehow she was comfortable. She could hear water droplets falling into a river of water somewhere nearby, the sound echoing soothingly around her, vibrating through her very skin. The moisture was hovering in the air all around her, clinging to the pitch black nightgown she still wore, and the blue hairs that covered her body underneath that. The cold dampness made her shiver slightly, but it wasn't an unpleasant feeling. In fact, she felt pretty good, despite not knowing where she was or how she had gotten there.
Over the sound of dropping water, she could hear the steady hum of insect wings beating at the air. They were swarming around her, hovering over her and landing on her body, as if making sure she knew that she wasn't alone here. She thought to say something to them, but she found she didn't really want to. She was happy to sit here, content, as if something strange was welling up inside of her, robbing her of her will to act, or even think.
"You've awakened to the hive, young one." A strange, crackling voice echoed through the darkness a moment before a light began to shine. It was soft, barely more than a tiny candle's flame, but after the total darkness it was enough for the girl to turn and look into the face of an old woman with bony hands, and a long mane of hair that travelled down her back nearly to her ankles. Her skin was stretched taught over her bones, as if she had never eaten in her life, but she showed no weakness as she approached with the candle in one hand.
"You needn't fear anything, anymore. Soon, you will no longer be a stranger to the world. You will no longer be the exception… soon, we won't have to worry about the humans anymore, my child…" The woman smiled a tender, loving smile and ran her palm lightly over Creepie Creecher's cheek. "Very soon…"
SEE YOU NEXT TIME
"Okay, on the count of three let's gas these bugs and take Insectiva down. One… two…"
"Three!" Abby and Ty Archer leaps over the railing, together, sliding down one of the beams that held the platform in place before touching down and whirling on the bugs. At once a powerful stream of gas erupted form their Goop Shooters, plunging straight into the massive cloud of insects that still hovered over the water. The noise grew louder and more shrill, as if the bugs were screaming in surprise and terror as the swarm began to disperse.
If it had been a normal swarm, it would have dispersed… but it didn't. The swarm loomed large outside the range of their shooters, then began to shoot down toward them in pockets like miniature missiles. Powerful blasts of gas met each missile knocking it off-course as the bugs fled for their lives as the two Grossologists met threat after threat without hesitation.
"Yeah, we've got you guys licked!" Abby grinned as another blast from her cannon took down a barrage of what looked like moths, though she'd never known moths to attack anything. "Now why doesn't your master show herself? We know she's here!"
Abby readied herself for further assaults, but the swarm of bugs didn't attack. Instead, they regrouped toward the top of the building, hovering right over their heads as their buzzing grew ever louder and more fearsome. Abby kept her Goop Shooter trained on the swarm, but Ty lowered his to stare up at the swarm in awe. "Ty, this is no time to let your guard down." Abby warn through gritted teeth.
"But look at them…" Ty muttered in awe. "Doesn't it look like they're talking to each other? It's absolutely incredible…"
Abby finally lowered her Goop Shooter, realizing that he was right. It did look like the hovering swarm was talking among itself, the various individuals either shrieking at them or whispering to one-another in hushed tones covered up by the sound of their beating wings. "There's something weird going on here…" Abby muttered.
No sooner did she mutter her last sentence than she heard a sound that made her back crawl and her Goop Shooter once again point to the sky. It sounded like the buzzing of insect wings, but the sound was so deep and massive it sounded almost more like helicopter blades spinning. "Ty, you have any idea what makes a sound like that?"
"No idea, it would take something huge. Keep your eyes open." Ty pressed his back against hers so they could watch as much of the building as possible. The deep wingbeats continued to pound at the air, growing louder by the moment, echoing throughout the massive metal building. They couldn't even tell where the sound was coming from, despite that it was now drowning out both the bug swarm above them and the pounding of the water through the pipes.
Abby didn't even have time to shout a warning when something split from the darkness, the wingbeats stopping for several seconds as the figure arched through the air towards them, the violet gossamer wings still against its human-shaped back as it raised claw-like hands into the air above it, screaming in anger.
COMING SOON
Growing Up Creepier
Verge of Extinction