Chapter 25: Stitches
"This is your wake up call."
When Adrian Mason opened his eyes next, he was in a whole other world.
'If it stayed I'd never leave it
If that turned around, I'd grieve
The special dirty things
That we used to talk about
I mean that loving you is strange
And adored by me throughout- oh no it's you again..'
Jay Gordon's voice was always Adrian's own tool to calm his nerves before a show- it was the level he meant to transcend with every performance. The shows never got more crowded than a few hundred people, but he and his band needed every living soul on their side so they could get a good record deal.
The band Orgy wasn't that popular after the new millenium, but their debut CD was solid enough to warrant Adrian's whoring of it long afterwards. From the beginning of high school to being in his final days of it, the song was always a catchy tune; never one he got tired of. It was one that he used to get through performances, and other things, including an unsatisfying home life that he never wanted to approach head on.
"We're on in three." Mike Telxeira was the bassist. His black hair obscured his face for the most part, but it was no variation from how he was seen every day. Adrian's opened eyes looked up at his friend and he didn't seem the slightest bit scared. In fact, he was expecting his friend to wake him up.
"You hear me, bro?"
Adrian took off his headphones and sat up from the edge of the club stage he laid next to. "Yeah man, I hear ya just fine."
"'Ight, man, let's get ready here."
"Yeah."
Clatter upon clatter filled the stage, and it quickly became the backdrop, the instruments, the entire setup that Adrian and his band would put to use. It was something extravagant, but it was the same tone that the band was looking for in their music. And in that sense, it was all perfectm even if their minute ramblings didn't show it.
"Go to Florida yet, Ademeister?" Adrian grabbed the mic stand next to him and leaned against it, throwing a sneer in John Harrington's direction. He hated that nickname.
"For fuck's sake, don't call me that. I hear that 'Ade' B.S. enough from my 'rents."
John laughed at the sense of hostility. "Your 'rents? I thought you were outta that house already." Damon sneered. As far back as Adrian remembered that man was annoyed at him. And still he could not remember why.
"I am, but the apartment place I live at is like, four blocks away from their place. They come by every week bothering me about the apartment and nitpicking like it's not appropriate looking. I think all the Christina Scabbia posters in my room got to them." He permitted himself to emit a wry chuckle.
"They still give you shit," Mike snickered, "that's a damn shame. You really oughta think about going to Florida with Maria, now. Like right now."
"Heh. I'd think about that, but right now I have to worry about pulling in the audience for you guys, right?" They all nodded to him in unison. "Well, let's get it done!"
And from the opening drum beat, the first solo guitar riff, the first exclaimed lyric, none of them looked back.
'Someday soon you'll find that someone
Waiting for the chance to beat you
Drooling on the set to feel you
Blessing you with every kiss'
Adrian could almost feel like he was watching himself and his own band in slow motion while everyone in the audience moved in motion blur before his eyes. Everything was in tunnel vision; like every other performance he had done before that. Exactly like it. It was near the point that he wanted to black out, but he never let that happen. He always remained focused, never slipping up once and he knew it. The smirk he donned as he sang was almost one of overconfidence.
And then, he saw her. Through the hyperfast movements of the crowd in front of him, a woman moving at a delicately graceful pace made her way to a seat at the bar. She was perfectly recognizable, even without a clear enough look at her face. He knew the figure all too well.
'Why are you here? Did you get away, too? Did you want to see me? What the hell are the chances of us meeting again?'
It wasn't like she could read his thoughts nor did she seem interested in doing so, attention kept on her impending drink. Adrian didn't think for a minute that anyone would notice his attention on the woman, but in the same breath he could admit that he wasn't really thinking about that. His hands were tied enough trying to balance keeping an eye on the mysterious woman without mucking up his band's set, even though the latter was never a real issue with him.
And then she turned around, and he was positive she was the one he thought she was. The one glance she made towards the stage was all he needed, and subconsciously he was thinking of how to greet her. It had been such a long time since he last seen her, he was surprised he still knew who she was. What was more surprising, though, was what he remembered of her.
'Tying yourself to me
Stitch up my emptiness cause you're the death of me
So precious, loving the thrill'
"The school is pretty inappropriate if you ask me, but miss Wolf is a very nice lady at least."
She was ten years old then, as was he. Her innocence was welcome in a town with closests full of skeletons, even if Adrian didn't know how deep the trend had really gone. Miss Wolf was one of the few, if only acknowledged people that cared as much for the well being of her students as her religion. Most teachers at Hope House were totally consumed by their beliefs that pain wasn't a consideration in the prayer process. That made for quite a few incidents, and two cases of murder that everyone, including himself, were sworn to keep secret- and he did. He kept it such a secret, he forgot what the kid had done to be killed in the first place.
"She gave me this ribbon, too," the little girl continued, pointing to the pink bow ribbon on her head. "Do you like it?"
He nodded his head. "It fits you perfectly." She smiled in appreciation of his compliment. It even made her blush, to wish he simply flashed a smile back, before reaching into his pocket. "Wanna play cards?"
"Sure."
They both sat down on the floor in content as he pulled a deck of cards from one of his jeans' pockets. "What are we playing?" She blankly looked down at the cards he dealt her, and waited for an answer.
"We're playing cards, of course!" He didn't look up from the two piles of cards he was busy making. This seriousness caused his friend to giggle in childish delight.
"I know that! I just want to know what game we are playing?"
Then, he looked up from the cards and into her eyes. And there, she knew that he hadn't really given thought to it. His verbal response confirmed it. "I dunno."
She shrugged and let him continue dealing the cards to avoid putting him on the spot. And for her reward...
"I'm glad to be your friend, Raven."
"And I'm glad to be yours, Sam."
They both smiled. And then, the door was busted open. A heaving figure stood in the doorway. A man, desperately struggling to catch his breath- he looked as though he was scared out of his boots.
"She- she just killed Leonard!" Both children stood in wide-eyed shock at the news they've been brought upon the interruption. And moments later the man collapsed onto his stomach, and in view came the handle of a dagger that jutted out of his spine. That discovery permitted both of them to scream at the top of their lungs before they took off running out of the room. The cards at their feet were kicked into the air and they fluttered like snowflakes. They were the only objects that moved in the wake of the fleeing children.
Once outside, neither of them second guessed their decision as the right one. The distinct stench of smoke passed in a tremendous wave over their senses and not only theirs, but the ones of all the other children and adults that ran for their lives, screaming over the crackles of dancing flames. The 'lucky' ones, though, could hear faint cries of 'murderer' and 'blasphemer' in the crowd, and every accusation was centered near a woman who walked calmly along with the group. A bloodied stone dagger clenched in her hand and crimson streaked blonde hair flowing, she literally looked like Death personified.
Raven caught a glimpse of that woman- which was way too much for her. Sam never saw her through the smoke and people running, but she did. For a fraction of a second, the smoke cleared, and she saw her. And Sam would never forget Raven's description.
"She looked like a maniac. Her hair and her clothes, she was completely dripping in blood. I could even make out the plop that her shoes made when she walked because of it. What would cause her to do that? She was so nice to me today... how could miss Wolf possibly do such a thing as kill another human being?"
It was a miracle that they hadn't been trampled in the chaos, but they got out- and were part of only a handful of others that made it. Few children, mainly adults, and all they could do was stand outside of the burning building in disbelief. That was when Raven told him the description of her former role model. They didn't get to say much more to eachother, though; after everyone collected themselves, more carnage was to be had when they all ran off their own ways. Raven was carried off with one of the adults, which Sam could only describe as her father, but it was so dark that he was never sure of that fact. That was the last he saw of the child.
But there she was. Height and weight aside, she looked exactly the same. What clued him in to her identity, though, of all things, was the bright pink ribbon. Why it hit him, he initially wasn't that sure. But the more he thought about it, the more he knew- he could remember her being so happy when she first got it, and he couldn't blame her. It made her look all the more innocent. More pure. More beautiful. And there he was, completely different from his childhood self. Even a new name in tow.
'Such the patient one who needs me
The spoiled one who wins
So shocking where's your sense
Don't you know, I hate you, oh
Unsatisfied, you little girl'
Then, the chance to question her came. He dropped from the stage and eased his way through the crowd that gave him words of approval, approval that he admittedly paid little attention to. What mattered at that time, was the woman.
"Hey, 'scuse me, miss.."
The woman turned and faced him with a warm smile. It was her, no doubt about it.
"You sounded beautiful up there." She gently moved her hair away from her face, so she could get a better look at the man before her. The look in her eye made it clear that she knew who she was talking to as well. A pleasant surprise for her it seemed.
"Thanks." He watched her closely, wondering if she knew him. He couldn't really tell then. Not until she verbally confirmed his beliefs.
"It's been awhile, hasn't it?"
Adrian's mouth opened as he stood there, trying to think of some kind of reply. "Yeah. Yeah it has... I uh, see you made it out, too, huh?"
"Uh huh. Sort of hurt myself trying, though, you see?" She showed Adrian her hands, revealing scars on both palms. Adrian winced.
"What happened?"
"They didn't want me to leave. A couple of teachers from our school found me and tried to get me to stay, but I managed to get away. Said I would be safer with them, but I guess we both know that's not true, right?" She giggled softly, and Adrian nodded his head.
"Yeah... we should totally celebrate now."
"Celebrate what?" Raven blinked.
"Being free?"
And soon, they were both on their way to destroying property. Starting fires in abandoned buildings, throwing stones at cars, and spray painting the sides of bridges. However, it wasn't the criminal actions that did it. Rather, it was as simple as a private walk in an open, seemingly endless field.
'Tying yourself to me
Stitch up my emptiness cause you're the death of me
So precious, loving the thrill'
The decrepit Lakeview Hotel surely wasn't their first decision to stay in, but they were so drunk with their own love that they couldn't think of any place else to go where they wouldn't be bothered. Adrian thought nothing about what would happen if his girlfriend had found out, nor did he even seem to remember that he had a girlfriend. The first thing that came to his mind was lust, and quenching his thirst for it. And Raven, she seemed to have no quarrels with giving herself in to his desires. And he couldn't believe how they did it, but they managed to sleep in the haunted looking hotel until the sunrise woke him up.
Careful to not disturb the woman's sleep, he slipped out of bed and found his clothes, throwing them on swiftly. And it wasn't on his own that he remembered, but it was when he reached into his pocket and pulled out his pair of Oakleys that a picture did the deed for him.
It slipped out of his pocket and drifted slowly to the floor, almost in the way that his playing cards had on the night of their escape. He rubbed his forehead with an index finger, and tried hard to suppress the headache that was coming on. Not from short term memory, either, but due to his own stupidity.
'Maria... dammit.'
He exhaled, leaning down to pick up the picture of him and his girlfriend before he moved to a chair in the room and sat in it. It wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world, but he couldn't care less. All he could do was look at the woman that slept with content just feet away from him, and the woman a couple miles away that would go berserk if she ever found out what had happened. It was safe to say, that he was overcome with guilt.
'Rolling dice and seeming queer
Bastard love, a sick affair
Let's see what new disease you'll fetch
I mean that fucking you is strange
And adored by me throughout- oh no it's you again
Blessing you with every kiss'
"Oh, man," he whispered to himself in despair, "oh shit.. oh shit, I'm so stupid. So stupid." He sat there and thought the night over. He thought over the six months before that. He thought about everything. Of all the things he did not want to do, what he had just done was probably the worst of all. He could imagine how he would have reacted in the event he knew Maria was cheating on him, how could be possibly forgive himself for doing that to her? "Oh shit, what the hell am I gonna do?"
Time seemed to stand still at that moment, even though he knew that somewhere around that time Maria was going to get worried with him not being back at the apartment. He couldn't go back to her yet, though, he had to figure out something first. Anything that would get rid of a threat to her finding out about the whole thing. And as he was thinking, Raven began to stir on the bed.
It was that sign of life in her that compelled him to look at her, and slowly stand up. He looked over her for a long, agonizing minute, before he turned and silently searched the room for something. He was quick to think that the item he was seeking wouldn't be in sight, but soon enough there it was. In the light that shined through the window, the object glistened under the bed of all places. He knelt down and pulled it out so he could get a look at it better. He smiled, and it was indeed just what he was looking for. However, that smile quickly turned upside down.
He stood over the bed, and raised the item high in the air with his right hand. It shook in his grasp, and he took quick ragged breaths to try and calm himself. He couldn't possibly do it. No way. But the moans that signified Raven's awakening forced him to.
And down the knife came.
'So precious you know this hate of mine exploded
I'm so deranged you know
I will never be the same...'
She didn't cry. She didn't scream, either. All she did was gasp. Her eyes shot open and the first things they found were the eyes of the man she had just spent the night stressing her love for him through her body, and they were rightfully shocked to find that same man stab her in the heart- figuratively and literally. She couldn't draw in a breath to scream, simply way too taken back to do anything but instinctively claw at her attacker. Her fingers sunk into his stomach, and after getting one especially deep into his skin, he scratched as hard as possible. And there, she left the crescent shaped mark on his body. That did not cause him to stop, however, it only caused him to do it again.
It all happened so fast that in the end, Adrian could only continue his quick breathing and blink his eyes furiously in order to keep the tears from streaming down his face. In the end, however, he caved in. Adrian threw the knife to the ground and into the bathroom he went, where he puked his brains out.
'Holy shit, holy shit... what did I just do, oh God what the fuck did I just do?'
He flushed the toilet and peeked up at the mirror above the sink for no longer than a second. He couldn't bear to look at himself again after what he did. There was just no way. All he could do was shakily wash his hands clean of the blood that they were covered in, before he looked out at the body that laid motionless in the room outside.
His mind raced. Silent Hill was a ghost town, but someone would eventually find her body. Someone that was looking for a good time like he and Raven were the night before. And in the end, the one decision he could think of almost made him vomit again.
After finding every single duffel bag that there was in the hotel, he stood over the dead body on the bed. "I can't do this. Oh, Jesus Christ I can't do this..." Eventually, though, he did. He had no other choice but to. Breathing through his mouth thanks to the horrendous stench that filled the room, he carved, cut, sliced, and chopped until he was able to fit every part of Raven Dremora into the four duffel bags on the ground at his feet. After that, he wiped his brow and put the knife in one of the bags as well. Then, slinging two over each shoulder, he hauled ass as fast as he could out of the hotel and ran straight for the lake.
His reflection stared up at him in the calm waters of Toluca Lake. One look into his own eyes was enough to show himself how much he fucked up. The real price that he would pay for a mere twelve hours of his life that he could not take back. It would be worse than Maria finding out that he cheated on her. Worse than being executed for his crimes. Instead, he would have to live with the guilt of committing the worst crime of all. Murder. And one by one, he threw each bag into the lake and watched until all four sank to the point where he could no longer see them. Afterwards, he slowly turned around and walked away.
'What did I do?'
His eyes fluttered open violently. His body shot up in one fluent motion. He looked around at the bathroom he lay in, and forced himself to his feet. He was alone. No... a sound of crying just outside lured him into the main part of the hotel room.
"Help me! Somebody help me!"
Adrian quickly felt himself collapse back into the bathroom. He barely kept his balance from the towel rack in his reach, but he let himself slide to the floor anyway. A bloodied Raven sat outside in wait. On the bed she cried, arms outstretched as tears corrupted her innocent face. Her wrists were slit, her legs were slashed, and her kimono was soaked with blood. Her pink ribbon dangled from her hair down near her neck. It was her true form.
'Oh God, help, someone help....'
His hands covered his face. He sat on his knees and prayed that everything would end. That someone, something... that God himself would feel pity for his soul and end his life right there. He didn't get that. Instead, he got someone calling his name.
"Adrian?"
Quickly, his hands flew away from his face and his arms stretched out.
"Oh, God! Oh, God fucking help me please! Please!"
And outside the bathroom, he could hear hurried shuffles headed in his direction. He slowly looked up and into the eyes of the person in the doorway. There, he screamed.
And a woman, limbs stitched and sown onto her body, screamed back.
"AHH-"
He closed his eyes, but the horrific images didn't leave- they only got worse. Blood spurted from open wounds. A defenseless woman screamed as blood gurgled from her maw. A decomposed and rotted hand moved gracefully in the waters of Toluca Lake.
"Adrian? Oh my, Adrian, it's okay. It's okay!"
He felt hands grasp and shake his shoulders. He fought and broke away from them. His body fell backwards, and he landed painfully on his elbows, which sharp pieces of glass pierced into with ease. The pain shot his eyes open, and there Cybil stood in restrained shock before him.
