Curious Thoughts (Part V)
"aaaaAAAHH HORSE FUCK!"
*WHAM!*
Rachel woke up suddenly, feeling completely disoriented and lost. Startled, the young girl looked around for the source of the noise, having trouble finding her bearings.
"God! What's this feeling?! Make it ssstooOOP!" Zack yelled, slamming his head on the wooden wall brutally, making the whole cabin shake in a way that couldn't benefit them at all. The serial killer groaned as he kept pulling at his hair, trying to fight the intense dizziness he was experiencing, but in vain.
Rachel looked at her companion with wide, confused eyes. She did not expect to wake to such scene, or to ever witness Zack act so... violent, to himself nonetheless. His unfocused eyes looked around to find something to relieve his pain, anything that could reduce its intensity...
The blonde slowly stood up, looking around to realize that they were truly in a wooden cabin. The sounds of birds chirping outside and rustle of the leaves confirmed her suspicion of them still being somewhere within the woods- far from the city, and perhaps from the police as well.
Her gaze then rested on Zack's slouched form, wondering briefly if he was alright. The pool of blood beneath him had been a clear sign that he had moved around too much and made the wound worse, much to her worry. It was reckless of him, but she wasn't going to dwell on that further than intended.
She highly doubted his severe pain came from a hangover too...
And so with that thought in mind, the petite teen made her way towards the serial killer as gently as possible, trying not to startle him.
"...Zack?" She called, trying to take a glimpse at his face. It was hidden and shadowed by strands of black hair, making it near-impossible to decipher his expression. Though, judging by his groans- it was surely painful.
'What on earth happened yesterday?' Rachel thought while biting her inner jaw, putting a reassuring hand on Zack's shoulder. As soon as warmth seeped through his hoodie did he violently push the younger girl, making her land loudly on the floor.
She gasped and winced in pain, surprised he had actually pushed her with so much force. If he felt so bad that he couldn't even control his own strength, then it could only mean that something was going terribly wrong-
Rachel pushed herself up and stood, looking at Zack with a worried gaze. She couldn't possibly stand there and do nothing, watching him hurt himself and scream in agony... No, there was something she had to do, something to soothe him...
'But what...?' Was the question that floated in her mind. 'I can't seem to be able to approach him, plus his wound looks worse. Can't there be something?'
She thought long and hard, but settled in trying to soothe him again. He probably couldn't see or acknowledge her presence, but it mattered not.
No way was the teen going to let her friend suffer like this.
"Zack." She called, her voice firm and reassuring as she approached him once more. "Zack, it's me...Ray, look at me."
The tall adult flinched as he finally recognized the owner of that voice. As he panted in visible agony, Zack tilted his head to look at Rachel with wide mismatched eyes.
"Ray- Make it stop!" He said, confused at what was happening to him.
It didn't take long for Rachel to kneel next to her friend and hug him tightly, trying desperately to calm him down.
"It's alright, Zack. I'm here, I'm right here with you."
Zack groaned as he wriggled free, "AGH! Dumbass... Uurrk, I ain't a kid for you to-BLEGH!"
Rachel turned around and looked away as Zack puked the last remains of yesterday's meals, thankful he had broken the little hug she initiated.
He had continued on for a while before finally stopping. Having puked his guts out, Zack hung his head and began catching his breath; the pain being persistant.
It was in that moment that Rachel saw something bright and shiny on the back of Zack's neck...
'Huh? What's that...'
She crawled towards him and, wordlessly, touched the mysterious object which appeared to have been inserted.
It was round, relatively small- so small she was surprised to have even seen it. It felt like metal, it was surely that... But where did it come from? Zack definitely never had it before, and she was sure of it.
Knowing her companion was more than capable in withstanding pain, Rachel wordlessly dug her fingers around the small object, she felt Zack twitch at the feel of her nails bruising his flesh, but decided to keep on digging deeper.
She felt like she had a good hold of it, eventually; and so she pulled the wretched thing with all her petite might. It was only then that Zack yelled in utter pain, confirming her suspicions towards that piece of metal.
"What the fuck are you doing Ray?!" Zack practically shouted at her, drool coming out of his mouth due to the extreme pain.
"Stop moving! I'm trying to help you!" She spoke, still pulling like her life depended on it. That piece was stubbornly deep, causing hundreds of questions to float within her mind.
"Hold still..." she whispered, biting her lip as she pulled and pulled. Her face growing redder and redder by the second, barely feeling her arms anymore- until finally, she succeeded in ripping it off.
Zack breathed in relief and bliss as his headache slowly nulled into none. Suddenly, it felt like his whole body lost all the weight in the world- making him fall abruptly on Rachel's lap.
'Never again.' He thought to himself, panting ever so slightly. 'Fucking pain.'
Rachel brushed his hair with her small fingers, making Zack look up at her. She had quite the odd expression on her face, something mixed with both worry and relief.
"You're okay now?" She asked, somewhat gently. He nodded, not feeling at ease somehow.
"This is what I found in the back of your neck..." Rachel said as she showed the tiny item. Zack's brows furrowed immediately, surprised that such a foreign object managed to bury itself into his flesh.
"What the hell is that?"
"I don't know..." she spoke while examining it further. Two bloody wires were stuck to it, long enough to make Zack uncomfortable. If Rachel hadn't known any better she would've thought Zack volunteeted to become some kind of test subject...
Thankfully that wasn't the case. But still...
"Zack, I need answers." Rachel said very seriously, "tell me what happened yesterday."
Zack stood, leaving the comfort of Rachel's lap. He thought for a moment, a moment that felt a tad longer than it should. If anything, it was a feat in itself- Zack actually thinking properly about something.
What a time to be alive.
"... I have no clue."
Rachel stood up as well, looking at his back with a tilt of the head.
"What?"
"I don't remember, is what I'm trying to say." Zack muttered, rubbing his head with disdain in regards of Rachel's worry towards him.
"You don't remember anything?"
The serial killer straight up snapped at her, "No, you stupid brat! I don't!"
"Not even last night? How we ended up here?" She asked finally, while visibly looking at his leg wound. Zack followed her gaze and was more than a little surprised at the sight.
How could he have missed it? Even the smell of blood in itself was more than just a little noticeable!
"Wh... What the hell? When did this happen?" He asked.
"Last night, when we were running away from the cops... Cops I assume you lured in."
"The cops?!"
"Yes! The cops, Zack! You came back late and drunk, saying and doing all sorts of weird things."
It was then that Zack's expression surprised Rachel beyond words.
"... What kinds of things?" Zack suddenly uttered, eyes wide. Rachel pursed her lips and thought back.
"Nothing of importance, now that I think about it." Came the slow answer. But Zack continued, wanting to confirm something.
"I didn't hurt you, did I?"
"What? No!"
"Alright then..." he sighed, feeling like he lost the weight on his shoulders. That made Rachel morbidly curious, just what was it that made him so worried all of the sudden?
It wasn't important though.
"Think it through..." Rachel said as she started inspecting her pockets for money. "I need you to remember, it's important."
He saw how she pulled out a few dollars from her own wallet and threw her a skeptical look.
"And where are you going?"
"I will go and... see if I can get you something, for that wound, and also food if possible." She replied calmly, counting the several bucks she carried with her. She had always been prepared after starting her new life with Zack, knowing they could run off to a new place at any given time. Carrying her savings turned out to be useful, even if it wasn't much.
It was money she kept for the sake of... well, anything related to her own health and hygiene. Zack wasn't one to care for anything other than snacks, making it a difficult task asking him for anything else. Personal stuff like soap, pads and underwear were things she had to buy on her own... in disguise.
Spending that money on Zack was going to be a necessary sacrifice. She didn't mind anyway.
"I'm off then-"
"No you're not!" Zack stopped her, grabbing her by the arm. "I'm going, you're staying. It's dangerous and we have no idea where we are!"
"Funny thing is that I am one hundred per cent sure that it was you who took us here, since I'm not one to sleep walk... or be somehow able to carry you while sleep walking."
Zack processed that thought...
"I really don't remember anything..." he concluded, disturbed at his lack of memory. "But I still can't let you go out there, espacially when the cops were after us last night!"
"Your wound won't heal itself, Zack. I'll be fine, I know how to defend myself."
He shook his head and looked around for his scythe, cursing slightly when he realized his drunk self didn't bring it with him. He could still deal lots of damage with his fists alone, but his scythe was far more comforting..
"Come on, let me off!" Ray pouted as she grabbed his arm, pushing him away. "I promise I'll be careful."
"Okay fine! But take this first!" Zack groaned in annoyance as he gave her what appeared to be a small pocket knife. Rachel took it wordlessly, feeling a sense of... something familiar deep within her chest. It felt like that one time when...
She shook her head.
"Okay, I will be careful." Rachel said as she walked towards the door, suddenly feeling very cold somehow.
She looked down at herself and remembered how she had ripped her sweater for Zack's sake.
'... I guess I'll go out in my undershirt then-'
Right after that thought though, Zack went and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like an insult, before throwing his hoodie right at her face.
"Wear it."
Rachel lifted it up slightly to peek at his expression.
"Thank you," she said genuinely.
That too, felt somewhat nostalgic now.
To be continued...