The following days passed uneventfully. Eva had all but locked herself in her room, she couldn't bring herself to shower, dress, shop, go to work, or even talk to Marni on the phone properly. She had called in sick at the parlor, claiming that she had mono. Marni dropped by once or twice, but Eva didn't bother to answer the door. Frantic text messages were the only way the two communicated. She was worried, Eva knew that. Yet, she had no desire to face her after what she had done. Eva had fucked enough guys (and a few women) that she wasn't proud of. Like any average person, with a healthy appetite for sex, she had regrets. This, horror, wasn't just your run of the mill "I sucked a guy's cock and he didn't even return the favor" it was more like "I gave full emotional and physical access of myself to a fucking psychopath, and I even enjoyed it, what does this say about me as a person? Am I like him, are we alike, am I losing it, have I already lost it!?"
It was Friday, the day before Joker's appointment, and Eva was in bed, eyes trained at the ceiling. She traced out the patterns that rose and fell in the cheap popcorn style paint. Her phone buzzed continually in the background, Marni had become relentless in her efforts to contact her. At this point, the tattooist could no longer bring herself to darn a vocal mask in order to assure her sanity to her only friend. There were points in the last few days where she tried to speak while staring at the mess in the mirror, but vocal cords rebelled and relinquished a rasp of words that couldn't even be strung together to form a coherent sentence. Still, Eva turned in her bed and eyed the picture of her giggling friend, she couldn't hold Marni off forever. Maternal instincts would result in her calling the cops, and that would risk her current standing with him. Slowly, she reached for the phone and answered "Hello?"
"What the fuck Eva?"
She had to admit, it was a shock that Marni wasn't screaming at her. Her voice came across the line, gentle and angry. Eva couldn't bring herself to say anything at that point, but stagnant tears creeped from her eyes "You're avoiding me."
It wasn't a question, it was a statement, it was the truth. Eva realized that she couldn't weave another pretty lie "Yeah."
The admission came at a hiss, like cooking meat. Marni was silent for a minute, mulling over that single word "Why?"
Pressing a hand to her mouth, Eva stifled the sob that wanted so badly to tear from her throat. Marni was hurt, scared and worried for her "Please, tell me what's going on with you."
Hands dropped between her legs, she was sitting at the edge of her bed. She couldn't do it, she couldn't bring herself to drag Marni into this. Joker would find out, he'd break her, he'd kill her. He would make Eva watch. Hearing her voice call from the ground, she looked down. Must have dropped the phone "Eva?"
She needed to keep her away, at this point Marni was the only family she had in the world "Marni, I'm in trouble."
Silence followed, hollow and somehow bloated. It left her nauseous. It was a phrase that the pair hadn't uttered since childhood. In those days, trouble meant lifting some money from their foster mom, maybe stealing a pack of smokes from the drug store. It meant menial juvenile wrongs, but wrongs that might inspire the system to tear the pair apart "Ok"
Licking her lips, Eva chuckled through the tears "No, not Ok. Marni, I'm in trouble, I'm eyes deep in shit creek without a fucking boat, I am in that much trouble."
A shaking breath came over the line "It-it can't be that bad, common Eva…?"
"It is that bad."
More silence, more disgustingly bloated silence "Marni, I'm sorry, I am so sorry I let this happen."
"You sound like you're gonna shut me out."
She was good, Eva had to admit. If she had actually gone to university instead of beauty college, she would have made a great therapist. Taking a deep breath, Eva nodded and affirmed her suspicion "No, no, I'm not letting you do that!"
Before Marni had to chance at a rebuttal, Eva hung up and proceeded to block her best friend's number. Next, she took to Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and blocked her there. Tears struck the screen, creating pixelated rainbows. Suddenly, there was a pounding on her front door. Eva slowly made her way out of her bedroom, eyeing the door as it shook. It was probably Joker, it was then that the tumblers of the lock turned and the door flew open. Marni stood there, her eye make-up smeared against her flushed cheeks, which were wet with angry tears. Shit, "It's a guy isn't it!? You left the club early, Deluca said you looked like you went through 20 wringers and then got your ass kicked again? Who is this asshole!?"
Marni was shrieking at this point as she slammed the door and grabbed Eva by the arms. She took in the bruises and the angry welts on her face, the purpling hand shaped mark on her neck. Her eyes dropped to the horror show of trauma around her legs and thighs "Eva, please, just tell me who this fucker is! We'll call the police, fuck, Batman might be an option…!"
She wasn't letting go. Shaking, Eva matched her volume "Joker!"
It was then that her best friend let go, as if the very mention of his name sent a shock through her. Eva stared at her, bringing her arms up and cradling herself, she could feel it, she was going to lose Marni forever. Bending over, doing her best to ignore the pain that rocked her body, Eva pulled up the fabric of her shorts. The J stood out against the wrecked chrysanthemum. "It was the Joker."
(Author's Note: So, Eva is bi curios, who knew? I honestly didn't until I found myself writing it. So there you go.)