Wicked Games
Chapter Three: Face To Face
It was Friday night and Lila was sitting on the couch in her living room, listening to her father flutter around the kitchen in a rush to make a dinner before he had to scuttle off to his second job. She sighed softly, flipping through the channels on the TV. It didn't take long for her to come full circle. They didn't exactly have a lot of channels.
"Almost done honey!" He called to her. He plopped some plates on the counter, they rang out as they warbled around from the force of his rushing, and he spun around to the pan on the stove. He threw some buns down on the plates, tossed some seasoned fries on the side, and spun around with the pan to scoop some sloppy joe meat onto the buns.
"Done!" He announced happily, coming around the corner to plop her plate down on the coffee table with a bottle of Coke. She stared at it and looked up at him.
"Dad, I can't eat this. I'm on a diet." She said stiffly.
"You are? I don't remember that." He said scratching his head with his oven mitt covered hand.
"I've told you a thousand times!" She said exasperated. He frowned, hurt in his eyes.
"I'm sorry honey. I must have forgotten. I really gotta go though, there's some cold cuts in the fridge if you want something different."
He leaned down and popped a kiss on her cheek.
"I'll see you in the morning. Good night!"
He raced out the door and she huffed as it shut loudly behind him. She grabbed a fry and nibbled on it. She was on a diet but one meal couldn't hurt. She piled her fries on the sloppy joe and scarfed it down. Her phone went off loudly and she jumped, feeling guilty. She picked it up and the bold letters of Arnold's name jumped out at her.
"What!" She cried happily and leaned back to read the message from him.
Can we talk?, it read. She smiled. Finally! All that stubborn silent treatment from her had paid off. She smirked as she replied.
Sure? When?
How about now? Wanna come over?
Of course! Be there soon.
She grabbed up her purse and flew off the couch. Finally, now she and Arnold could move forward. It had been more than a week since she'd seen him last and she missed him terribly. She needed to hear his voice, receive his compliments, and actually feel someone care. She sighed dreamily as she reached into her purse for her key. Her hand brushed against the business card there and the video shoot came back to mind. She cursed. Checking the time on her phone, she figured she had some time before the shoot to see Arnold. Maybe she'd actually be in a good mood this time if Arnold gave in to her temptations.
She locked the door behind her and skipped down the road. The bus ride to his block seemed to take longer than normal. There seemed to be a person at every single stop the entire way there. She groaned, sinking down into her seat every time it stopped for an old grandma who took her sweet time shaking her cane to her seat. Finally though it was her stop and she jumped off. As she walked up to his boarding house, she paused at the stoop and smoothed her dress down. She was infinitely glad that Arnold had texted her the night of the shoot. She looked like a million bucks. She was wearing her prized emerald green dress with the classy sweetheart cut, spaghetti straps, and a poofed bottom. Her red locks were curled, cascading down her shoulders. There was no way he could resist her tonight.
She knocked on the door lightly, pulling back to frame herself perfectly in the doorway. She fixed a small shy smile on her lips as the door opened.
"Hey." Arnold said awkwardly throwing a hand up to rub his neck nervously. He moved aside so she could walk in and she stood in the entryway.
"So." She said, looking down at her feet.
"So." He said back, shuffling his feet.
"You wanted to talk?" She said hopefully, looking imploringly into his face.
"Yeah." He said, his hand still on his neck.
"I just-I don't want things to be awkward between us, Lila. I really enjoy your company. I don't want us to stop hanging out."
"So let's not stop?" She said trying to look into his eyes. He kept ducking his face from her. He sighed.
"I just, I have a feeling that you want..more than that. And I don't know if I can give that right now. Do you understand?"
She could feel the pout forming on her lips before she could stop it.
"You don't like me?" Her voice cracked.
"Of course I like you." He said exasperated, rushing forward to grab her hands.
"I just don't know if I can be what you want, Lila."
She sighed softly, slipping her hands from his grasp.
"I've got to go. We start shooting Rhonda's music video soon. I don't want to be late." She said quietly, trying to keep the tears from her voice.
"I didn't know." He looked guilty for making her sad. "I hope you have fun."
"Yeah, me too." She said and squeezed past him. She let herself out and half ran to the bus stop. She leaned heavily against the post, tilting her head back to stare up at the stars overhead.
From one wolf den to the next.
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A tightness swelled in his throat. He'd never felt so bad in his whole life. Lila had always been a good friend to him. Yeah, she had changed a lot since joining up with Rhonda and Helga but he had noticed that whenever she came over and they hung out, watching goofy shows, the shiny veneer fell away and the real Lila would shine, if only for a little while. That's why he had enjoyed their time together so much. But now all of it was in jeopardy, all because she had finally grown feelings for him at the most inconvenient time, of course.
Why couldn't she have fallen for him so long ago? Things were different now. He sighed, watching her go as she hustled down the street to the bus stop. She paused there, leaning against the street sign and gazing upwards. The urge to follow and talk to her was strong but he didn't want to ruin her mood even more before her music video.
Curiosity got the better of him though. She was jumping onto the bus and it was pulling away from the curb. Frowning, he took one leap off the stoop and landed on the sidewalk. He pivoted around the stoop and grabbed his bike. He took off after it. At first, he didn't really believe he would be able to follow Lila all the way to her shoot but it actually seemed that the bus was going to stop at every corner on the way there.
He thanked a God he didn't believe in and paused to pant every time it stopped. He was suddenly very grateful for his wrestling coach's unreasonable demands or he would have been out ages ago. But finally Lila was the one to get off at a stop in a particularly shady part of town. They were in the warf area, dead to anyone around. It smelled like a salty rotted fish market. He ducked behind a building so she wouldn't see him and waited, trying to regain his breath in the meantime.
He poked his head out and caught sight of her bright red head bobbing along the sidewalk. He yanked his bike out and pulled it along beside himself instead of riding it. He tried to keep far behind her so as to not alert her to his presence but the ticking of his bike's tires were like little gunshots and Lila's head spun around. He threw himself quickly behind another building and froze there. He couldn't let her know. He stayed there for a few minutes, hell bent on letting her not see him. He peeked out again but she was definitely gone. He shot out from behind the building. He stared around but she was gone and he was lost downtown with the stink of salt on his flesh.
"Damnit." He said and began his search for her.
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Helga sat alone in her room at her small vanity desk. She was staring at her reflection. Her hair had gotten so long, she didn't remember when that had happened. She didn't remember much of anything anymore. It was deathly silent in her room, in her entire house, and it echoed in her mind. There wasn't a single soul home and for that, she could not have been more thankful. She would be allowed to complete her beauty rituals in silence.
The last swath of straightened hair fell through her fingertips to join the rest. Separating her bangs, she styled them to swoop to the side and finished with a bit of hairspray. Satisfied with her hair, she leaned over and pulled a tiered gold necklace from her jewelry box and clasped it behind her neck. Feeling good about the flash it brought to her plain white tank top, she stood and inspected her navy blue skinny jeans for fuzz. Then she slipped on some metallic gold heels and made her way downstairs.
It was dark. She walked into the kitchen and jumped. The blender was sitting out of place on the island and she had mistaken it for a person.
"Oh my!" She cried, laughing nervously. She moved forward, putting her arms on the countertop and resting her chin on them.
"Why yes mother, I am going out! How good of you to ask!" She exclaimed, speaking to the blender.
"No mother, there won't be any boys or alcohol there, though we both know I could be lying I suppose!" She tittered around the kitchen, throwing open the fridge door to peer inside.
"Oh yes mother, I will be sure to call when I get there and let you know I'm safe and sound! No worries. Promise." She said slamming it shut.
"Father? Oh yes, let me inform him I'm leaving. Oh father!" She cried dramatically, flouncing into the darkened living room. Her father's chair sat ominously in the middle of the room, a black boulder in space.
"Oh father! I thought you aught to know but I'm leaving for the night and I won't be back until very late tomorrow! I do hope that's okay with you?"
The chair was silent.
"What's that you say?" She leaned forward, cupping her ear.
"You want to give me money to go out? Well that's just too kind! Well if you insist." She strutted to his prized trophy, tipped back the lid, and pulled out a wad of cash.
"Why thank you father, you are too sweet to me. What ever would I do without you?"
She walked back into the entryway and glanced up at the stairs.
"Olga! I didn't even hear you come in! Are you here to send me off too?"
The many framed photographs of Olga through the ages hanging on the stairwell were silent, froze in whimsical poses.
"Oh no! Thank you sweet sister but I don't need any dating advice tonight! I'm going out with the girls, so I shant need it this time! But truly," Helga bowed low, pretending to hold out a dress' skirt.
"I appreciate your concern." She said smiling broadly. She stood there momentarily, her smile fading slowly. She straightened up and grabbed her purse from the side table.
"Au revoir Pataki family! Although your concern is overwhelming, I really must go!" She called loudly, opening the door and turning to wave at no one. Then she strode out into the darkness and jumped on the next bus.
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Arnold was sitting on the curb alone. His search for Lila had yielded nothing. Annoyed, he turned up his wrist to catch sight of the time on his watch. Deciding he was going to give up, he stood and threw a leg over his bike. Just at that moment though, he caught sight of a thin girl with straight blonde hair cascading down her back. He instantly recognized the long legs and square shoulders. It was Helga, also heading to the video shoot he assumed. Thanking no one in particular for his returning luck, he went to take off after her but she stopped in front of a warehouse, pausing outside but finally stepping up to the door. He hid beside a stoop and watched her enter the building. He waited for about fifteen minutes for her to reach the other two girls. He didn't want them to realize he was spying on them. Finally, he stood and crossed the street to the warehouse. He dipped inside the big door and hid his bike off to the side. It was pitch black except for a small light in the distance. He made his way towards it.
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The neighborhood that Rhonda had chosen for their music video shoot was not cute. If anything, it seemed particularly out of character. The bus wouldn't even drop Helga off too close to the address. She realized she was going to have to walk at least a block in the dark to get there. Perhaps if there were any people around, she would have felt more nervous, but it was completely dead. There wasn't a single stray dog or lone cat or drunk and sleeping homeless guy. She was suddenly glad she hadn't brought a purse. She walked forward insistently though, her back straight and a dark, angry look on her face to ward off any potential aggressors.
She was checking out the location around her. There were nothing but warehouses up and down the street. The stark smell of the ocean hung in the air, stinging her nostrils and aggravating her throat. It wasn't that pleasant beachy smell. It was that dirty, oily, fishy salt smell. Again, she was surprised by Rhonda's choice in location but the thought fell from her mind as the warehouse with the numbers she was looking for loomed into view. It's rusty red bricks hung in the air before her. She looked around. There was no one outside to greet her. She walked up awkwardly and knocked on the wide metal door. It gave way and swung open. She peered into its inky depths.
"Hello?" She called into it, her voice echoing. No one answered. Confused, she walked in and shut the door behind her. It banged loudly and she was shut in the darkness.
"Oh Rhonda!" She sang nervously. "Where are you?"
She walked forward for a lack of something to do, her arms held outstretched so she wouldn't bump into anything. Her low heels clacked loudly in the darkness, the only sound in the place. Her eyes were getting used to the dark, noting the long hallway before her and heading down it.
"Rhonda! Lila! Where are you my darling harpies?" Helga called out. She laughed as she stumbled through the hallway on the loose gravel. She had to say, Rhonda really knew how to decorate. She definitely felt a subtle chill in the air. She was starting to get impatient though that no one was answering. The dark was kind of suffocating.
"Rhonda! Lila! Where are you bitches!" She yelled. A light cut on sharply further down the hall. She walked towards the empty doorway. A soft yellow light shown through it. She paused in the doorway, cupping a hand over her eyes to peer in. The sudden light had made her blind.
"Hello?" She said again. She could see something, a heap on the floor in the middle of the bare dusty room. She walked forward, walking into the wide spotlight spilling onto the heap.
"What the...?" Her voice trickled off. The hair on the back of her neck stood up. It was a person lying awkwardly on their side.
"Lila" She breathed. The mess of red curly hair tilted up, her usually bright hair dull with dust and dirt. The duct tape over her mouth flashed in the spotlight.
"Mmmph? Mmph!" She mumbled forcefully. Tears of dirt and mascara ran down her cheeks.
"Lila!" She reached for the girl but froze with her hands out.
"Wait a second." She looked around into the dark and smirked shakily.
"Is this a trick? Are ya'll punking me? Rhonda!"
Lila could still be heard making squeaking pleading sounds.
"Rhonda, get out here!"
She heard a sound. A click clicking. She saw a curvy shadow above them, heels clicking on the wooden floors. She could make out a wrap around balcony above them, a perfect platform from which to observe.
"Rhonda, you almost got me!" She pointed up at her as she descended the steps before them.
"You had me going girl. Scared the shit out of me. Get her up."
"Helga darling." Rhonda's voice drifted towards her from the dark. "What ever are you talking about?"
Helga gestured down at Lila's body tied up on the floor.
"Your little trick here. You got me! I thought this was for real!" She laughed forcefully. "But really, get her up."
"No." She said somberly, pausing at the edge of the spotlight.
"What?" Helga froze. No. No no no.
"I said...no." The stillness of Rhonda's posture frightened her. Helga could feel the spinning of the world stopping. She almost lurched forward with the force of it. Somehow she had been shifted to an alternate universe and somehow she just knew, nothing was going to be the same ever again.