CHAPTER 13 - Hypocrisy.
Broadway crept silently through the rows of cars and trucks until she came to the bottom level of the garage. She surveyed the area for any sign of Royce, then realized with dismay that her glasses were on the end table in her room.
"Shit." She cursed under her breath and kept her senses open for any indication that the Prince was close. A cold draft floated towards her and she swallowed the ball of cotton in her throat. "Prince..?" Her voice came out as a harsh whisper and she decided to try again. "Prince? Are you here?" She sounded a bit more courageous this time. Broadway took another tentative step forward and cleared her throat. "Please, Royce..talk to me." Broadway sounded more desperate than she was intending and hoped that she didn't seem weak to him - if Royce was there.
Another cold wave hit her face and goose bumps surged down her arms. Broadway listened again for anything that would give away Royce's position but all she could hear was the sound of her breathing and her heart within her chest. Shaking her head, she turned and headed back towards the exit.
"You shouldn't come near me." The Prince's voice rang out in the still silence of the garage and echoed off the walls. Broadway whirled around in the direction of his voice hoping to catch a glimpse of him, but all she saw was the empty space beside her truck.
"Royce - I can't see you. Where are you?"
"Don't make me repeat myself." He replied coldly. Broadway frowned.
"Oh, come off it - it's a bit too late to be playing the tough guy now."
"Is it really?" His voice sounded closer. Broadway swallowed again.
"Royce, please..why won't you let me talk to you?"
"Don't be stupid! I almost killed you!!"
"That wasn't your fault!"
"Yes it was, I can't keep making excuses!"
"It's not an excuse, it's the truth. I know you wouldn't hurt me." Her towel dropped from her shoulders, but she made no attempt to pick it up. Broadway had to stay alert this time. She felt the space behind her move, causing shivers to form along her wet back.
"You don't know that, dolly."
"Yes I do, Prince. You would have done it already - way before if you really wanted to." There was a moment of silence.
"I can't afford to lose control again, Broadway. I can't afford to hurt anyone. That's why I need you to stay away from me." Royce's voice came from in front of her. Broadway looked at the ground.
"Well maybe I don't want you to stay away from me."
"But I thought that there weren't any 'methods to your madness' or that you didn't see something special in me." Royce sounded bitter, the same tone he used before.
"So you WERE listening? Why were you out there?!"
"No reason, I just was." He replied shortly. Broadway tossed her arms out in an exaggerated gesture.
"Great answer!" Her fingers brushed against something cool and soft. It felt like leather. She took another step forward and grabbed the unseen fabric of Royce's jacket. He pulled away immediately and made a soft noise of protest. "I'm not afraid of you Royce." She felt something under her chin and her head was tilted upwards.
"Look dolly, I see where this is heading and it's not good. Do you understand what you're getting yourself into? How many times do I have to tell you this isn't a game?"
"How many times do I have to tell YOU that I'm not a child?! I can make decisions on my own-"
"This isn't about the house, and you know it." Broadway fell silent and bit her lip. "There can't be anything here, you understand? I tried to think otherwise but there just can't. I'm dead Broadway, you have to understand that." The shorter girl pulled free of his light grasp and clutched the necklace around her neck.
"So this is how it ends? You're going to ignore me and stay away from me until all this is over and for what? I know you're dead Royce, I can see that and I can fee that. But I also know that there's something about you that you don't want others to know - maybe because you're afraid of it or maybe because you want to protect yourself." Broadway tucked a lock of damp hair behind her ear. "But it's like you said - if you could find someone to make life on earth bearable, even for a moment, why would you throw it all away?"
"Who told you that?"
"Dana did. But I guess that doesn't mean much to you anymore, now does it?" Broadway snapped.
"Broadway.." Royce's voice was soft and quiet in the stillness of the garage. She felt him move close to her again but she backed away.
"Don't, Royce. This is all messed up - forget I ever came down here in the first place."
"That's the problem - I can't!! I can't forget about you, Broadway! I can't forget the fire I your eyes when you pushed past me to get to the basement to save me, or the way you looked at me for what I've become when even I can't! Royce paused. "But I also can't forget the way you looked when I lost it. It was like I saw you and knew who you were but couldn't stop myself. I couldn't help it, and I can't let that happen again." Broadway blinked back the sting of tears and took another step towards the exit.
"You're a hypocrite!"
"And you're a liar!" Royce tossed back, hurt rising in his voice.
"That's not true and you know it!"
"Neither am I being a hypocrite!"
"You say one thing to Dana but something completely different to me - that sounds like a hypocrite!" Broadway shouted. Royce clenched his fist.
"Well then what's the difference between what I'm doing and what you just did up there with your sister?"
"Look Prince, I want to help you - I want to help all of you. If I didn't, I wouldn't have risked my life back at the house! But if my sister knew about anything I may feel or rather HAD felt about you or anyone else, she would have us packed up and as far away from you all as possible before daylight broke! She wouldn't understand..you don't even understand!!"
"You're the one who doesn't understand, dolly! Dana was right -I was getting too close, but how could I not? You were the first person who looked at me as..as anything but a ghost! I didn't understand you, and I wanted to - but before I could THAT happened and it made me realize that I couldn't get any closer, no matter how much I might have wanted!" Royce said pleadingly. Broadway rubbed her eyes and shook her head, sighing lightly.
"Fine, you're right. If that's what you want to hear, I'll leave you alone and stay away from you."
"It's not what I want, it's how it's gotta be." Broadway felt something soft and cool lay against her cheek. She reached up and her fingers traced over the smooth fabric of gauze bandages. She followed the hand to the arm and to the shoulder until she too found the side of the Prince's face. She felt him jerk away slightly before laying his face in her hand. "I'm sorry, dolly."
"Me too, Prince." Broadway removed her hand and bent to retrieve her towel. "I'll see you around though, right?" Royce sighed.
"Yeah.." She nodded and made her way to the exit.
"I wish I could have seen you, Royce."
The Prince watched her leave wordlessly before reaching up his hand to touch the place she had lay her hand. His skin tingled slightly and felt warm. Frowning deeply, Royce gabbed the bandages from is face and head and tore them from his body, and again with the gauze from his arm and torso. Once away from his body, the discarded fabric flickered into existence and fell to the garage floor where they lay in a heap. Grabbing his bat from it's place in the passenger side seat of his car, Royce phased out of the garage and into the resorts front lot. He picked up a stone and self- pitched it over the tree line with the power and ease that had always come naturally to him.
"What am I still doing here..?" He thought sadly. "I have more than enough power to get the hell out of here for good." He thought about how easy it would be to get behind the wheel of his car and just drive. No destination, no cause, no worries - just drive. Royce reached into the pocket of his jeans and brought out his key, fixing his eyes on its' silver glint until it fell out of focus. He looked between the resort and the garage and the resort until his head thought it was going to snap off. Clutching the key tightly in his hand he nodded slightly towards the garage. "Fire up.."
Broadway crept silently through the rows of cars and trucks until she came to the bottom level of the garage. She surveyed the area for any sign of Royce, then realized with dismay that her glasses were on the end table in her room.
"Shit." She cursed under her breath and kept her senses open for any indication that the Prince was close. A cold draft floated towards her and she swallowed the ball of cotton in her throat. "Prince..?" Her voice came out as a harsh whisper and she decided to try again. "Prince? Are you here?" She sounded a bit more courageous this time. Broadway took another tentative step forward and cleared her throat. "Please, Royce..talk to me." Broadway sounded more desperate than she was intending and hoped that she didn't seem weak to him - if Royce was there.
Another cold wave hit her face and goose bumps surged down her arms. Broadway listened again for anything that would give away Royce's position but all she could hear was the sound of her breathing and her heart within her chest. Shaking her head, she turned and headed back towards the exit.
"You shouldn't come near me." The Prince's voice rang out in the still silence of the garage and echoed off the walls. Broadway whirled around in the direction of his voice hoping to catch a glimpse of him, but all she saw was the empty space beside her truck.
"Royce - I can't see you. Where are you?"
"Don't make me repeat myself." He replied coldly. Broadway frowned.
"Oh, come off it - it's a bit too late to be playing the tough guy now."
"Is it really?" His voice sounded closer. Broadway swallowed again.
"Royce, please..why won't you let me talk to you?"
"Don't be stupid! I almost killed you!!"
"That wasn't your fault!"
"Yes it was, I can't keep making excuses!"
"It's not an excuse, it's the truth. I know you wouldn't hurt me." Her towel dropped from her shoulders, but she made no attempt to pick it up. Broadway had to stay alert this time. She felt the space behind her move, causing shivers to form along her wet back.
"You don't know that, dolly."
"Yes I do, Prince. You would have done it already - way before if you really wanted to." There was a moment of silence.
"I can't afford to lose control again, Broadway. I can't afford to hurt anyone. That's why I need you to stay away from me." Royce's voice came from in front of her. Broadway looked at the ground.
"Well maybe I don't want you to stay away from me."
"But I thought that there weren't any 'methods to your madness' or that you didn't see something special in me." Royce sounded bitter, the same tone he used before.
"So you WERE listening? Why were you out there?!"
"No reason, I just was." He replied shortly. Broadway tossed her arms out in an exaggerated gesture.
"Great answer!" Her fingers brushed against something cool and soft. It felt like leather. She took another step forward and grabbed the unseen fabric of Royce's jacket. He pulled away immediately and made a soft noise of protest. "I'm not afraid of you Royce." She felt something under her chin and her head was tilted upwards.
"Look dolly, I see where this is heading and it's not good. Do you understand what you're getting yourself into? How many times do I have to tell you this isn't a game?"
"How many times do I have to tell YOU that I'm not a child?! I can make decisions on my own-"
"This isn't about the house, and you know it." Broadway fell silent and bit her lip. "There can't be anything here, you understand? I tried to think otherwise but there just can't. I'm dead Broadway, you have to understand that." The shorter girl pulled free of his light grasp and clutched the necklace around her neck.
"So this is how it ends? You're going to ignore me and stay away from me until all this is over and for what? I know you're dead Royce, I can see that and I can fee that. But I also know that there's something about you that you don't want others to know - maybe because you're afraid of it or maybe because you want to protect yourself." Broadway tucked a lock of damp hair behind her ear. "But it's like you said - if you could find someone to make life on earth bearable, even for a moment, why would you throw it all away?"
"Who told you that?"
"Dana did. But I guess that doesn't mean much to you anymore, now does it?" Broadway snapped.
"Broadway.." Royce's voice was soft and quiet in the stillness of the garage. She felt him move close to her again but she backed away.
"Don't, Royce. This is all messed up - forget I ever came down here in the first place."
"That's the problem - I can't!! I can't forget about you, Broadway! I can't forget the fire I your eyes when you pushed past me to get to the basement to save me, or the way you looked at me for what I've become when even I can't! Royce paused. "But I also can't forget the way you looked when I lost it. It was like I saw you and knew who you were but couldn't stop myself. I couldn't help it, and I can't let that happen again." Broadway blinked back the sting of tears and took another step towards the exit.
"You're a hypocrite!"
"And you're a liar!" Royce tossed back, hurt rising in his voice.
"That's not true and you know it!"
"Neither am I being a hypocrite!"
"You say one thing to Dana but something completely different to me - that sounds like a hypocrite!" Broadway shouted. Royce clenched his fist.
"Well then what's the difference between what I'm doing and what you just did up there with your sister?"
"Look Prince, I want to help you - I want to help all of you. If I didn't, I wouldn't have risked my life back at the house! But if my sister knew about anything I may feel or rather HAD felt about you or anyone else, she would have us packed up and as far away from you all as possible before daylight broke! She wouldn't understand..you don't even understand!!"
"You're the one who doesn't understand, dolly! Dana was right -I was getting too close, but how could I not? You were the first person who looked at me as..as anything but a ghost! I didn't understand you, and I wanted to - but before I could THAT happened and it made me realize that I couldn't get any closer, no matter how much I might have wanted!" Royce said pleadingly. Broadway rubbed her eyes and shook her head, sighing lightly.
"Fine, you're right. If that's what you want to hear, I'll leave you alone and stay away from you."
"It's not what I want, it's how it's gotta be." Broadway felt something soft and cool lay against her cheek. She reached up and her fingers traced over the smooth fabric of gauze bandages. She followed the hand to the arm and to the shoulder until she too found the side of the Prince's face. She felt him jerk away slightly before laying his face in her hand. "I'm sorry, dolly."
"Me too, Prince." Broadway removed her hand and bent to retrieve her towel. "I'll see you around though, right?" Royce sighed.
"Yeah.." She nodded and made her way to the exit.
"I wish I could have seen you, Royce."
The Prince watched her leave wordlessly before reaching up his hand to touch the place she had lay her hand. His skin tingled slightly and felt warm. Frowning deeply, Royce gabbed the bandages from is face and head and tore them from his body, and again with the gauze from his arm and torso. Once away from his body, the discarded fabric flickered into existence and fell to the garage floor where they lay in a heap. Grabbing his bat from it's place in the passenger side seat of his car, Royce phased out of the garage and into the resorts front lot. He picked up a stone and self- pitched it over the tree line with the power and ease that had always come naturally to him.
"What am I still doing here..?" He thought sadly. "I have more than enough power to get the hell out of here for good." He thought about how easy it would be to get behind the wheel of his car and just drive. No destination, no cause, no worries - just drive. Royce reached into the pocket of his jeans and brought out his key, fixing his eyes on its' silver glint until it fell out of focus. He looked between the resort and the garage and the resort until his head thought it was going to snap off. Clutching the key tightly in his hand he nodded slightly towards the garage. "Fire up.."