My Cause-
Disclaimer- I do not own the characters or lyrics from the movie Repo! The Genetic Opera
Plot Summary- A year after the events of the Opera, Amber (the new CEO of GeneCo) assaults and leaves Graverobber for dead. Fortunately for him, a certain teenager stumbles upon him and takes care of him. Grilo.
"Hey kid…" Graverobber muttered when Shilo walked into the room. He looked her over; wondering if she was really there or just a hazy hallucination from the drugs.
She was wearing a long black dress fastened with a white studded belt. Her hair was longer and streaked with blue (extensions no doubt), and a backpack swung over her shoulder.
"Um, hot date tonight?" He asked. Shilo crossed the room, the skirt flowing behind her as she walked.
"Not exactly, I have class this morning." Shilo opened her closet door. After a moment or so, a wheelchair emerged out of it. She tested it by rolling across the carpet over to Graverobber. "But before I go, I need to patch up that rib so you can move around."
She bowed, not so dissimilar from how he had once bowed to her. He smirked and pulled the blanket off his chest. Shilo helped him sit up and pressed a gentle hand against his upper stomach, where his lower rib was. He tried to swallow down his groans as Shilo patched his side up. He was reluctant to admit that the pain did lose it's edge once the patch was on.
After assisting him into the wheelchair, she gave him a set of instructions. "You can stay on this floor but don't try anything too strenuous… I'll leave some pills on the dresser incase the pain gets to be too much." She turned to leave but stopped just when she reached the door. "If Amber comes while I'm gone… "
"Hide…" He finished for her. "I've been doing it half my life kid, I know what to do."
She provided him with a grim smile. "Good….Good."
()
Graverobber was bored of simply waiting around. He was unimpressed by her medical books and there wasn't much else to do in the small room.
So he rolled out of her room, passing down the hall and looking for a place of interest. He noticed, on the side, there was a library and various rooms filled with treasures and dim lights—things the girl probably didn't want, but didn't heart to get rid of either.
He then found a door opened barely a crack; her room no doubt. There were two sides of him; one insisting that he leave the kid's stuff alone. Another one was reminding him she gave him permission to do whatever he wanted on this floor.
Besides. WWSD. What would Shilo do? From his previous experiences with her; her curious mind would have walked right in. Using the front of his chair, he pushed the door open.
The room was large, decorated with rock n roll posters, posters of Mag, and newspaper clippings depicting various parts of her life; starting with the day she walked free from the opera. Shilo had a dresser with piles of make-up and different extensions next to her black silk covered queen sized bed.
Her closet was left wide open and showcased a variation of different styles. He didn't understand it until he saw one of the dresses matched one of the ones on Mag's posters. She inherited Mag's estate—her money, her clothing, everything. Graverobber whistled; damn, the kid really was loaded. Being repo's lead opera singer for nearly 20 years had made Mag a lot of money, and since she was always too busy to spend it, there was sure to be plenty of it.
He rolled over to the mirror to see what else he could find. He just so happened to catch his appearance in the mirror. Graverobber winced, not because he had been hurt (besides the fat lip and the bruised up nose, he looked okay). But Shilo had washed off his makeup, and days of not shaving had made him look some how grungier than usual, if that was even possible. But he looked like a normal human being.
So all this time, she had seen the real him. The disguise he used to protect himself was gone and she had acted no different. For some reason, it felt like a big deal that she had been the first person in over 20 years to see him without his makeup.
But if anyone deserved the honor; it would be her.
Graverobber looked down at the desk and saw a notebook. He picked it up, assuming it to be a journal for her class. The injured man was surprised to see it was in fact a book of songs she had written.
He knew he was a dirty bastard for looking. Yet, once he started reading, he couldn't stop. It was good, really good. So much more depth then most of the artists today. She had a way with words.
()
Shilo walked through the front door while balancing the Chinese food she had picked up for dinner. Just as she turned to lock it, she frowned when she heard music playing—Lithium by Nirvana. The song was over 60 years old and hadn't made it to modern music players. That meant he had found her old c.d. player and c.d.'s.
Which meant he was in her room. "Graverobber?" She flipped the lock and walked upstairs, skipping steps along the way. Shilo peered into her doorway in time to see him eject the c.d. "I guess you made yourself right at home?"
He laughed as he put the c.d. back. "What can I say? I was bored. Not going to lie, I was hoping to find something a little more…sexy in here, instead found out you have a pretty cool collection. Didn't know you were into the classics."
"Nirvana? More like ancient history." She shook the bag of Chinese food and smirked. "Hungry?"
"Like you wouldn't believe! Now that you brought something actually edible." She figured he would like it; half the reason she decided to get it. She tossed him a white case of food and pulled her own meal. With a shrug, she landed right on the bed and started picking through. In between bites, Graverobber made a comment. "So how was the outside world, kid? Do they miss me?"
"Actually, a couple girls in my class were talking about you. Apparently, the Z addicts have been running around like headless chickens trying to replace you." Well, it was nice to be missed at least; even if it was only because you sold the best glow. "I guess Amber's been a mega bitch too—even more so than usual, looking for you."
"Great. " He murmured, hoping she would have given up by now
Shilo smiled grimly. "She has to give up soon; eventually someone's going to notice it's odd she's looking for a drug peddler and start asking questions, and she can't kill everyone who gets curious. Amber will back off for the sake of keeping her name clean."
He sighed; wishing he could believe that. But the kid was just too damn hopeful. In reality, he wasn't so lucky to escape Amber by just laying low. No, she'd come back for him—and this time, she'd make sure he ceased to breathe.
But why push that on her? Shilo had seen enough death in her short life. After all she had done for him, it was unfair to make her carry this too. "I found your journal too; the one with all the music."
"You did?" She managed to say with a mouthful of Chinese food. He chuckled.
"Yeah, it's actually pretty good kid. Kind of reminds me of the stuff I'd go to see when I was your age."
"The concerts? Like old school concerts? Not the opera?" She questioned, he nodded and laughed. Suddenly feeling very old. Shilo set her food down and leaned closer to him. "What was it like? I've only heard stories from my professors and classmates who do the underground scene."
Graverobber gave her a look, but couldn't resist the wide-eyed attention she was giving. Besides, it might be nice to enjoy a conversation that didn't revolve around his job or injuries.
"Well, my first concert was when I was thirteen, I think…. Maybe fourteen. I don't know, it was way too long ago… I do remember my parents were fighting and I just needed to get away." He scratched the back of his head, as he tried to remember. "It was at a warehouse, some little starting band. They weren't even good but…everyone was mashing, and rocking and having a good time. It was just really cool to be rough and tumbling for once…I guess I never stopped being rough after that."
His eyes turned to the side as a smile graced his face. "So…could you sing one of these songs?"
"Right now?" Shilo asked. He nodded and she bit her lip. After a moment of consideration, she leaned across her bed to grab her notebook. "Which one?"
"Just pick one, kid. I liked them all." He said simply. Shilo flipped through the pages until she found her favorite. With a deep intake of breath, she summoned the courage to act out the guitar part she had imagined. He laughed but she continued.
Seventeen! Mama drama's got to go, dad
Seventeen! Nothing's gonna bring her back
Seventeen! Experiment with something living
Seventeen! Cause I'm sweeter than sixteen
Hey hey hey hey!
Hey hey hey hey !
Hey hey hey hey!
Hey hey hey hey!
Seventeen! I've always longed for true affection
Seventeen! But you compare me to a corpse!
Seventeen! Stay with the dead, I'm joining the living
Cause I'm freer than sixteen!
Hey hey hey hey!
Hey hey hey hey!
Hey hey hey hey!
Hey hey hey hey!
Something's changing...
I can feel it...
I'm seventeen now
Why can't you see it?
Seventeen and you can't stop me
Seventeen and you won't boss me!
You cannot control me father,
Daddy's girl's a fucking monster!
She was out of breath and hadn't realized she had stood up. Graverobber looked amused, but impressed. "Three guess on who you wrote that about but I think I only need one."
Shilo flicked a hair away from her face and blushed. "Well… I kind of said a lot of that stuff during our last fight here, at home. I never did apologize for saying any of it…"
He frowned. "Why should you have? That asshole locked you up for seventeen years like you were a goddamn doll. Even poisoned you to do it. He should have heard that stuff a long time ago."
Shilo got the feeling that this anger wasn't solely directed towards her circumstances. She had to wonder if maybe there was some resentment towards his own parents in his voice.
"Maybe but… it wasn't like it was easy for him." Shilo sat down on the bed, holding the notebook in her small hands. "I mean, I was the only thing left of my mother and he thought it was his doing that had done it. He didn't know Rotti had killed her and if he did…he might not have been so…jaded."
Her nails raked across the cover. "What he did wasn't right—not even close. And I guess I'll never forgive him for what he did. But... I also never forgot that he was all I had at one time too."
"Let me tell you something, kid." He responded in a low voice. Shilo looked up suddenly, shocked by how dangerous his tone sounded. "He may have loved you. Hell, he may have thought that you were the moon and stars. But last time I looked—parents didn't do shit like that to their kids. And if I were in your shoes that night, I would have pulled the trigger."
"But you weren't." Shilo said curtly. Now it was his turn to be shocked. After a moment, her face lightened. "I'm not even going to begin to try and understand my relationship with my father, because there's no way around—he was screwed up, and he screwed me up, and it made us both so… twisted that I don't think I'll ever be able to live a normal life. But what good is holding it against him, now? Am I really going to spend the rest of my life chasing a ghost? Isn't that what caused all of this in the first place?"
She looked at the poster of Mag on the wall. "She said it best herself. Don't look back until you're free to chase the morning…I can't look back now, I've come too far."
Shilo stood and walked towards him. He was shocked; she was going to put him back in his room. Just after saying something so….moving to him. He could hardly believe a girl, not even really an adult, could say something so poetic and true. So much more thoughtful than his usual sluts, and he liked it. "Come on, you need to rest."
He grabbed her wrist with one hand and used the other to turn his chair to face her. After he was turned, he pulled her down to get eye level with him. Shilo gasped at how close their faces were. "I don't get you, kid. Everyone you've ever known has died, used you, hurt you, or lied to you…But you're still standing. How did you get to this from the lost little girl I knew?"
With smirk, she answered. "Isn't it obvious? It's because everyone I've ever known has died, used me, hurt me, and lied to me. Let's face facts Graverobber; you're my only real friend."
Well that's a scary thought, he pondered. Sometimes he wasn't able to trust himself. Like this moment—he wanted to kiss her. Take her surely virgin mouth and show her what it truly meant to move forward. He would have loved to show her just how friendly he could be.
But this nagging feeling (could have sworn it was his conscious but he wasn't entirely sure) told him it was wrong. For one thing, he would have been dead days ago if Shilo hadn't helped him. It wasn't fair of him to use her like so many other women, when really…she wasn't like other women at all.
Besides, what would she possibly want with him anyway? She was pure, naturally beautiful inside and out, and intelligent too. She was going to be a doctor for godsakes! Practically the opposite of his profession. She would give bodies new life while he preyed on the dead. Shilo was a saint—and he was a lowly devil. Not worthy of even her time, let alone her affections.
He realized he had over stayed his welcome. Amber looking for him or not, if he didn't leave soon, he would take advantage of the resilient creature who had graciously saved him. And even if it would be a sweet victory; he would never forgive himself for it.
Even if she secretly wanted it.
()
It was late in the night when the door cracked opened to her room. Shilo groggily woke up and saw a tall shadow standing in the doorway. "Graves?"
His make-up was on again. The white color beaming through the night, as he smiled. Pity; she actually enjoyed how he looked without it on. "Who else, kid?"
"What are you doing up? It's…" What time was it anyway? This thought never evolved past that. Graverobber slinked across the room and to her bed. Before she could even comprehend what was happening, he was over her. Her eyes wide and uncertain. "What are you—"
"Sshhh." He whispered. His finger than trailed across the Shilo's face—she sighed contently, losing the will to deny him. God, she wanted him! He was the object of her teenage hormonal dreams—ever since the day she met him. The men on t.v., in her class, at the opera—they were fake. They didn't do a thing for her. But him; he hadn't even kissed her, but just being on top of her was enough to drive her insane. He was more than real than other man she'd ever met. He was life and death at the same time; and it just drove her insane.
"Graverobber…" She murmured. He lowered his head down, his locks brushing the side of her face. His lips cradled hers and that was it…
Literally.
Shilo woke up to the sound of her alarm going off. Her eyes close once again and she groaned, having a sudden urge to throw the damn thing against the wall. It was all just a dream. Graverobber could barely stand, let alone, sneak into her room and seduce her.
It was cruel for her mind to tease her. Especially when she knew that man wanted nothing to do with her in that sense. Sure, he flirted with her here and there, but that didn't mean anything. That was just his way of doing things. To him, she was the same kid he had rescued time and time again. He practically reminded her of it every time he called her 'kid'.
Not to mention, he had his choice of women. Women with huge breasts, toned stomachs, and big asses. Women who would have sex with him as long as he had zydrate. And then, there was her—skinny, untouched, and unchanged Shilo. Big choice…
The dreams were the only time she could act out her urges for him. Simply because it would never become a reality.