Counterfeit Reality: Schizophrenic

Chapter 5: Sinner

oOoOo-

The knife pierced through his skin, sending the crimson liquid oozing out. He gasped, a sharp intake of air, and repeated the action. After all, physical pan healed a lot faster than emotional pain.

Brooklyn's moss green eyes were transfixed on the red blood that soaked his arm. He had cut himself again. Never deep enough to kill him, but deep enough so that the blood was the only thing he could think about, the only thing he wanted to think about.

His hand tightened around the handle of the knife and he raised it to his flesh, resting the tip of the knife against his skin. The first time he'd cut himself had been at the tender age of twelve. Ever since then he'd continued cutting himself, being careful to never let the scars show. Every time he tried to give it up he peeled at the scars and started again. Damned if he was going to some physciatrist with his problems.

Pain seared through his arm as he yet again ripped through his own flesh with the knife. The first few cuts were the deepest and hurt the most, but after a while the pain became bearable and even welcoming. Almost like an embrace, he thought.

He smiled sadistically as his eyes roamed over the multiple cuts on his arm. Since his right arm had been covered with scars, he hadn't been able to cut properly so he was using his left arm now. Brooklyn dropped the knife onto the ground. Blood dripped like on the floor like a leaky faucet, staining the brown and making it a sickening red.

He closed his eyes and basked in the blood, watching it dribble onto the floor in a mess. Sitting in silence, he listened to the seconds tick away. Brooklyn dwelled in his thoughts, all blurred together, no longer realizing the difference between reality and fantasy. He felt drowsy and took off his t-shirt, revealing the smooth, pale skin of his chest and torso. He put the shirt under his head and lay down, spreading his legs out.

Moss green eyes stared up at the ceiling that reminded him of snow, so pure and white. He blinked a few times, finding it hard to stare at the white any longer. So he closed his eyes, longing for the sleep he so badly wanted. But it never came.

Sighing, Brooklyn continued to lie there and do nothing. His arm was tired and sore. The cuts that adorned his wrist and arm were caked in blood. Everything was still and silent, as if it were frozen in time. The only thing that was audible was his steady, even breathing and the tick-tock of the clock in the background.

Peaceful didn't even begin to describe what Brooklyn was feeling inside. He felt so surreal and different from everyone, like he didn't belong with the human race. Fitting in had been so hard so he'd given up on that a long time ago. There was nothing worth doing and he didn't know if he could keep on living like this. He was a worthless piece of crap and didn't deserve to live.

A sudden ringing had him jerking his eyes open and scanning his bedroom for his cell phone. Whoever was calling probably didn't realize what they had just done. Breaking out of his thoughts Brooklyn got up and searched for the silver cell.

When he found it he picked it up and answered. "Yeah, what?" He rasped. "Oh, hey Mystel. Sorry, I was, err, never mind, so what do you want?"

Brooklyn sat down on the edge of his bed, the phone still in his hand. "Uh-huh...yeah, I'm coming. Later."

He hung up and rubbed his eyes, coaxing the oncoming headache away. He rubbed his hands on his temples, then ran his hands through the thick mass of his hair and got up, pulling a t-shirt on from a random pile on the floor. He ran his gaze around the room and searched for a sweater. He found a grey one with a phoenix on it and slipped it on over his shirt.

He went to the washroom and washed the blood away from his wounds, hissing as the cool water stung his skin. The red liquid mixed with the water and swirled down the drain, disappearing from sight. He turned off the tap and patted his arm dry with paper towels on the counter.

Brooklyn stepped out of the washroom, and picked his jacket up from his bed. He walked out of his room. Grabbing his keys, he left the small apartment, locking the door behind him. He walked down the hallway, covered with a navy carpet, and made it to the elevator. He pushed the small silver button and waited for the lift to come to the eight floor.

It opened and a little girl and her mom stepped out. The little girl smiled at Brooklyn, he stood still until she passed by. His mother smiled at him too, then walked past to her daughter. Brooklyn stepped into the elevator and pushed the round button with a 'one' on it.

While waiting for the lift to reach the lobby, he counted the number of cobwebs in the corners. There were only three that he found. They were hanging off the security camera in the upper right corner.

Ding! The elevator had reached it's destination. Brooklyn put his hands in his pockets and exited the apartment building. He walked down the street and turned at the first corner. He continued walking until he reached the apartment building where Mystel lived, a ten minute walk from his home.

He stepped into the lobby and looked around for blonde companion. Upon spotting him, he walked over to the teen and the two left through the back exit, walking alongside each other.

"Hey, what's down?" Mystel asked his red-headed friend.

"The ground?" Brooklyn suggested sarcastically.

"Real funny." Mystel replied dryly.

"Yeah, a real riot." Brooklyn continued.

Mystel rolled his eyes at Brooklyn's attitude. He really didn't give a shit to the world, but he meant a shit to Mystel. A really big shit.

Mystel reached into his pocket and pulled out two tickets, handing one to Brooklyn. "Look what I have."

Brooklyn grinned. "Two pieces of paper?"

"That's so funny I forgot to laugh."

"Well, remember next time because you hurt my feelings." Brooklyn mock whined.

"Seriously, look what I have." Mystel repeated.

Brooklyn raised an orange brow and took one of the little rectangular papers from Mystels hand.

"Holy shit!" He exclaimed, his eyes lighting up. "This is a ticket to the Linkin Park concert."

"I'm not sure about there being such a thing as 'holy shit' but hell yeah it is."

Brooklyn turned to Mystel. "How'd you get it?"

"Well I drove to the---"

"No, you dumb ass, I mean how'd you score them?"

Mystel took no heed to the name he'd been called because he knew that Brooklyn swore out of habit. "Nice to know you care about me." Mystel replied sarcastically, Brooklyn punched his arm softly. "But I won them from a contest off the radio."

"Them?" Brooklyn asked.

"Well duh, Einstein, I won two of them." Mystel retorted, and punched Brooklyn on the arm.

Brooklyn hissed in pain. His cuts were still fresh and hurt. "Not again?"

Brooklyn averted his gaze and stared at the ground, then looked to the sky. "Well, it's hard to stop but I'm getting better at not doing it though."

Mystel sighed. He was the only other person that knew about Brooklyn cutting himself. No matter how many times Mystel told him it wasn't his fault, the words seemed to go in one ear and come out the other. He himself had stopped cutting himself over the course of a year, but Brooklyn seemed like he would never give it up. Relapse had claimed him again, making Mystel severely annoyed at the actions of his best mate.

"Brooklyn," Mystel sighed. "I care about you, and this is hurting me because it hurts you. I want you to get better, but you have to want to get better too."

Brooklyn's eyes burned with tears. Fear of them falling out he swallowed the lump in his throat and took a deep breath. He cared about Mystel and loved him dearly, but how could he stop something that helped him cope with all the pain? How could he just give it all away now, how could he just throw it all away? Simply put, he couldn't. At least he didn't want to, not yet anyways. He would hang on a little but longer and then quit. The only problem was that he wasn't sure he could, which was the only reason he still cut himself.

"Mystel..." Brooklyn paused because he didn't know what he could say to make it all better, to make it all go away so they could both be happy and free.

Mystel sighed and patted Brooklyn's arm in reassurance. This wasn't the time to get angry, nor the place. They had walked onto the road and were standing in the middle of it, blocking the cars from passing by.

Mystel started to walk and Brooklyn followed him, a few steps behind the blonde. The two stopped when they reached the sidewalk and then turned and sat on the bench conveniently located on in front of the fountain pedestal. Behind them the park rang with the happy voices of children and their parents. Water rushed out of the hole in the fountain and landed in the basin that was attached to it, so that the water couldn't escape.

Brooklyn closed his eyes and willed away the tears, they disappeared behind his moss green eyes, and suddenly he felt a little better. Mystel watched the emotions race across Brooklyn's Russian complexion, he watched intently, searching for something that could help him help the red-head.

Brooklyn opened his eyes and watched the pigeons flutter around the fountain, drinking the water greedily. Children ran by, playing tag and other games of the like. The chilly wind tore through the air and ruffled his spiky hair, bangs fell in his eyes and clouded his vision. Torrents of wind rushed through the park rapidly, his eyes blurred as the wind passed by. His eyelids came down automatically, briefly shielding eyes that were blurry before re-opening when the wind passed.

Hurting Mystel was never his intention. It had been so much easier when Mystel was cutting too. It was easier to deal with. He sighed and looked to the sky, so blue. Clouds drifted around lazily, moving at their own pace.

Mystel looked away unable to watch the emotions that were plastered on Brooklyn's face. If Brooklyn kept cutting, then he would probably end up cutting again too. That was something he didn't want to do nor think about so he broke the silence and decided to get off the topic.

"It's on the twentieth."

"Huh?" Brooklyn's thoughts snapped, and he turned to the blonde beside him. "What is?"

"The concert." Mystel gave a small smile. "Looks like all that thinking ain't doing you any good."

"Hey! I resent that."

Mystel smirked and shook his head, beside him, Brooklyn grinned. At times like this it was nice to have someone that would always be there.

oOoOo-

Sonia stood waiting for someone to move over so she could sit. She has just finished her daily run accompanied by Ozuma. Her cheeks were painted with a rosy hue, and her blue, blue eyes were shining with delight. Her garnet red hair was pulled in a ponytail, while bangs fell and framed her eyes and face. She was dressed in a baggy white shirt and black track pants with navy stripes on the sides.

Ozuma stood beside her, his hands in the pockets of his baggy black shorts. He had on a white shirt that said 'Tell you boobs to stop looking at my eyes' printed in big block letters. His hair was in it's usual do, composed of grey on the sides and a chunky red lightning-like streak in the middle, sticking up in three spiky tufts. A smirk serenaded his lips, and his eyes danced with shades of teal mixed with azure.

Miyami, Amber, Johnny, Shahero, and Oliver sat together in a circle on the grass at the park. They all had cards in their hands and cards in the middle of their supposed circle.

"Guys, move over already." Ozuma said boredly. He wasn't much of a card player but he didn't have anything else to do.

Sonia, tired of waiting, sat down and lightly nudged Oliver and Shahero apart to make room for herself. Ozuma copied her and sat down beside Amber and Miyami.

"Got any five's?" Johnny asked Shahero.

"Go fish John-John." She replied.

"Awe man, I'm gunna lose!" The red-head exclaimed aloud.

"There, there, Miyami will kiss it better for you."

Ozuma snickered at Amber's comment towards the red-head.

Johnny sent a glare to Amber who made kissy noises in return. That caused Shahero to burst into a fit of uncontrollable laughter, sending Sonia and Oliver to grin in amusement. Miyami blushed lightly and smiled towards the Scotsman nervously, who responded with a lopsided smile.

The teens continued on with their game of cards with odd comments from Amber and Shahero every now and then.

oOoOo-

Arista swept the broom in circular motions, collecting the dust and dirt in the small room. She sang along loudly with her walkman. She didn't notice the two males standing in the doorframe because she was lost in her own world.

"You ain't nothin' but a hound dog, cryin' all the time. You ain't nothin' but a hound dog, cryin' all the time. Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit, and you ain't no friend of mine."

Mystel and Brooklyn stared at the said girl swottingly, exchanging baffled looks with each other.

Jhaylin: Thanks. Hope you like this chapter.

nise-anjel: Thankies, I appreciate it.

Roni: Yeah, unfortuneately people feel this way. Schizophrenic basically mean another term for multiple personality disorder, to put it in "aymens terms". Thannks for the review.

Anonymous: I'll just leave that part to your imagination.

Windwitch: Thanks. I greatly appreaciate your comments and thoughts. And now after aeons, I have updated. Happy reading.

x-infernal: Yay! You like Arista too. Haha, I'm glad you like this fic. And yeah, this is Brooklyn/Arista.

la-de-da: Er, while you can't kill me cause I'd rise from the dead and haunt you. But I won't put it on hold again. I'll try not to, anywho.

leoparda: Hmmn, so you feel bad for him? Then get out the kleenexes cause he's gunna get worse before he gets better.

Wanted: Lol, you can't be wrong with your imagination. You just can't because it's just pretend. Lol. If that makes sense you just learned something new. Sucker! Ayways, I hope you enjoy.

Cokey: Yay! If I can make you feel bad for him, that's a good thing because you'll lke him more, yes? The whole Amber/Mystel thing is great. Especially in TFG. Yeahm he'll mess around with Kai when I get to writing that part.. Valynn. He's got a beautiful accent and nice features and hes just aewsome. Will write more soon. So you can scab away at me, lol. Love ya.