Shattered Mirrors

Chapter Nine: Nightmare

Aya woke up in a cold sweat, a scream piercing the air. She shuddered and curled under her blankets. She was in her room...she wasn't in that cold palace with those horrible dead guards. She was safe, and warm. She forced herself to think it over and over. But it still didn't stop her heartbeat from spiking, or her shivering. She hated nightmares. The way you couldn't escape them. The way you couldn't force your body to move the way you wanted it to. The way you were vunerable and helpless.

Of course, when it had actually had happened she had been vunerable and helpless too...

She had tried to convince herself it hadn't happened, that she hadn't been raped by so many men. And, because of Beej, it hadn't happened. At least...not now. But she could still remember it, and remember how much it had hurt, how much she had wanted out. The feeling of being used and the feeling that day after coming home when she had realized no one would want someone that mutilated.

But she wasn't that bad now. Just the scars from her parents and the rest of herself. No extra or outstanding scars. Still, she found herself getting out of bed, and looking over her body. Her legs, her chest, her arms. To see if the scars from the ghostly rape had happened. Nothing. Just the small scratches and cuts on her arms, and the scar above her left breast. All of those had been there before.

She sighed in relief and pulled her nightgown back on. She planned on crawling back in bed. She could miss school. That nightmare had really spooked her.

There was a knock on the door.

Since when did ghosts knock?

Oh, right. She had sex with this ghost, although...he had been a teenager at the time. Which made things better. Although, she felt guilty about it. She had used him. She was a whore, and she felt like it. All those feelings washed up along with shame. She had been fine yesterday and very fine the day before when they were together. But now...after that nightmare, she could honestly understand the way she had reacted.

He had been human, he had been handsome. He had wanted her...and she had wanted to please. To be wanted. It was normal, right? Humans were sexual by nature. But...he wasn't human, at least not really, and at least not anymore. She couldn't go near him while he was dead...because...because of that horrible incident. That nightmare.

But...somehow, she wished she wasn't so worried about it all. "Come on in." She said finally.

He walked into her room, and he wasn't looking straight at her, but in her direction. She wasn't sure why that bothered her. Of course, she was in a nightgown...and they had sex only two days ago. And she wasn't planning on it happening again. It couldn't happen again.

**

Beej couldn't look at her. He'd see what she was wearing and he knew he would remember that night. Damn, he would remember that night. It still ran through his mind. All of it. He wished the spell hadn't only been for a day, he wanted her still. He couldn't have her.

And she had made things worse without realizing it. She had said she loved him. He had never...really heard that, at least not in the sense she had said it. But, he was still convincing himself that she hadn't said it that way.

"You okay, I heard you scream." He said, sounding almost gruff as a hand ran through his naturally messy hair.

"I'm fine, just a nightmare. It's nothing." She said. She slipped out of bed. Why was this so terribly awkward?

Then, something broke their awkward moment. The front doorbell.

**

Aya jumped at the sound of the doorbell. She hadn't heard it in so long, that it was almost unnatural to hear. She walked downstairs, not bothering with a bathrobe. It was probably just someone who had the wrong house. And her pink nightgown wasn't too short, and it covered what mattered.

She opened the door, and blushed. Maybe she should've put a bathrobe on.

There, standing in her door, was Ryan.

**

"Nice outfit, you wearing that to school too?" Ryan said, in a taunting voice as he walked into her house uninvited. "Wow, nice place. Do you live here alone?" He asked, looking around, but was really thinking on how rich she had to be.

"No, I have a...roommate." She said, having to think for the right word for Beetlejuice.

"Oh really? What's she like?" Ryan automatically assumed it was a girl.

"I really don't think you can count Beej as a she." She said with a laugh, honestly remembering his hands on her, him pinning her to the shower. Crap, she didn't need to be thinking about that right now.

"Oh, the guy from the beach." He seemed disappointed.

**

Aya looked up and saw Beetlejuice floating behind Ryan, seeming annoyed she had let him in. Or...maybe for some other reason. "I'm not going to school...so you can just go if you wanted to walk with me." She said, wanting to get him out of the house before Beej decided to prank him.

He shook his head. "Hey, how about I stick around here. We could like get to know each other." He said with a wink. He had already forgotten she had said she had a roommate.

Suddenly, Beej was gone. And she inwardly winced. She wasn't going to "get to know" Ryan like that, but apparently Beej must've thought she was that much of a whore...and that hurt.

"Alright." She agreed.

**

It was late at night. The day had been spent talking, watching tv, and playing countless games of pool. And somehow, they were drinking. Ryan was almost as random as she was about wanting to do random things.

"Your turn." He said. She shot for a pool ball but missed and he gave her a penalty shot. Luckily her parents liquour cabinets were stashed with enough alcohol to hold a store. Rich bastards. She laughed at her own thought as she downed the shot.

He was better at pool then she was, and had way less shots then her. He looked over at her, leaning against the bar, her hair slightly mussed from a game of tag earlier when she had tackled him onto the ground to tag him.

This was all part of his plan. Get her drunk, fuck her, and then make off with whatever valuables he could find. He had been lying when he said he lived on her street. He was a con artist, and was almost 20 in age. Actually, there was another part to his plan...but he hadn't decided whether that would work. Depends on how good she was tonight.

He walked over to her. "Okay, I think you've had enough." He whispered softly, his voice low and rough.

Aya enjoyed the sound of his voice. She really was a whore, wasn't she? And...Beej thought so too, or he wouldn't have just disappeared that morning. She doubted he'd come back anyways. Suddenly, Ryan's mouth was on hers, and she was kissing him back, but...something was wrong. She knew it.

She reached around him. She...just had this sense. Like when she had known Beej was thinking she was cute, or when she had been able to know when her parents were going to do something. She had little urges like that, and they weren't normally wrong. She slid her hand into his back pocket, and pulled out his wallet, ducking under his arm and having his ID out in a second. She blinked at the age. 20?

She threw it at his head. "Is this...your idea of a sick joke, you fuck! You said you went to school with me and that you were only 17." Her voice was slurring from the alcohol, and she was angry. Anger issues and alcohol weren't a good mix, even on a petite girl.

She felt him grab her arm. "You fell for it too." He grinned, as he bent lower into her. He had already heard from her that her roommate probably wouldn't be back. She was all his. Then suddenly. "You bitch!" He cried as he fell to the floor in pain.

She had kneed him. His eyes watered at the sharp pain. He had never been kneed or kicked there before...and he had never realized how much it hurt. Suddenly he felt something kick him in the side, and he was out the door, again and he was outside of the house. The door slammed.

Aya watched as Beej kicked the guy out of the house. She could've done it herself. But, she was probably too drunk to have better aim. She giggled as she sat down on the floor.

Her anger fading away quickly under the effects of the alcohol. How much had she had? Or...maybe it was because Ryan had fixed the shots. She didn't know. She laughed a bit at her own stupidity. "I'm such a slut." She said with a laugh at herself.

**

Beej had known he should've stepped in when they started drinking. But...he wasn't a knight and he shouldn't have to come to her rescue. What had she done for him anyways? Still, he heard her call herself a slut, and while part of him agreed with her, another part prayed that she really wasn't like that.

"Come on, get up." He said as he offered her his hand.

She took his hand and stood up and he helped her to her feet, but she stumbled. She landed straight into him, although he didn't fall, just caught her. She was still so warm, and he felt sudden lust for her all over again. He let go of her and let her fall to the ground.

**

"Ouch! What the hell was that for?" She asked, angry that he had let her fall. She was a bit embarrassed that he had seen her with Ryan, ashamed really.

She was full of emotions, and she didn't understand most of them. He was dead, he was a ghost, he was cold and icky. He wore a cheap suit and was so old. He was a pervert.

But he had also saved her so many times since she met him. Saved her from a horrible life. And she wanted to repay him. And yet, she had thought having sex with him would pay him back. She looked up at him. No, that had probably made things worse.

He wasn't like Leslie, he wasn't like Ryan. He wasn't like any guy she had met before. She doubted that he had wanted sex from her. At least not originally. He wouldn't have stuck around if that was the case.

She wanted to make things up. But...all she knew was sex and pushing people away. She didn't know how to have friends. Or how to act. She didn't know why she felt so sad at the way she had treated him, like her chest was throbbing in pain.

She looked away, suddenly more ashamed then before. "I'm sorry." She whispered, voice slurring with alcohol.

**

Beetlejuice heard her. She was sorry? For what? There were so many things he expected her to apologize for. Things he should blame her for more than he did. He blinked though. He wasn't angry like he should have been. He looked down at her, sitting on the ground, looking away from him. He sighed and reached down to help her up. "Can you make it upstairs?" He asked finally.

"I think so. I'm not that drunk." She said, but the giggling good mood had faded and she seemed almost depressed.

He hated this, how her moods shifted so quickly before he could guess how to handle her. She was such a handful. He wasn't a responsible adult, he shouldn't have to babysit her. Normally he wouldn't have dealt with this for so long, but everytime he thought about just...leaving her alone, he couldn't.

"Yeah, you are." He said, rolling his eyes.

"No I'm not." She argued.

"Yes. You are." He argued back. At least he could prove he was right.

"No, I'm not!" She said, a bit louder.

"Yes, you are." He said back.

The two glared at each other, neither wanting to give in. But...the argument didn't seem to be just about how drunk Aya was. It seemed to be about everything at once.

"Look, I'm sorry I slept with you. I didn't...mean to use you." She mumbled, giving in before he would. She normally didn't give into arguments and apologize...but she had to for this.

"You didn't?" He sounded like he didn't believe her. But, he wanted to avoid this conversation. He was afraid that...somehow what she had said last night would be a lie, and she had just used him. It hadn't meant anything to her...something.

"No...I didn't." She said softly and moved to slip out of his touch, away from him. She looked up. It was hard to make sense of her jumbled thoughts. "I...didn't plan it, I didn't plan any of it...but...it just...happened. I'm sorry it happened that way, or that I tried to act like nothing happened. But...I...I feel bad about leaving things like that. I...I keep thinking that I did something wrong, and I guess I did. But, I don't know how to fix things. I've never...wanted to fix a mistake before." She was trying to make sense.

Beej listened to her. But...he didn't know what to answer. He wasn't the best at things like this either.

"I, just...ugh, I can't explain this!" She said, as she started to walk towards the stairs, not making much progress because of how drunk she was.

"Try to explain it. If, you're really sorry you'll explain what you mean." He sounded serious, as he stood there, not offering to help her, just watching her.

"I hate you! At least, that's what I keep saying. I hate you, so I shouldn't feel sorry about any of this. Yet, I still want you as my friend..." She mumbled. She made it to the steps and sat down on the botoom step. "And..." Maybe it was the alcohol that finally made her realize her emotions. "I love you...at least, more then I have anyone else." She said it, softly. But then she stood up and wandered up the stairs so she could go collapse in her bed.

Beej was stunned, eyes wide. It had been...different when she was asleep. He could imagine that she didn't mean it. But, hearing her say it out loud, even when she was drunk, stunned him. He wasn't...the type of person who was loved by anyone. People disliked him automatically because of his scams. Because he...didn't care about anyone about himself, right? He shook his head. Why was she lying about something that serious? He honestly couldn't think that she meant it.

A/N: Wow...um, this chapter sucked. Sorry. I doubt anyone's reading this by now. But...if you are reading this, thank you! I'm surprised it hasn't killed you yet. So, if you read this, PLEASE REVIEW. I've honestly started to doubt anyone liking this piece of crap other then me.

I also have a question. I have two different endings planned...one's a happy ending for Beej and Aya. The other is just a happy ending for Aya. So, which one would be better? There's also a third choice in the making. But...I have most of this planned out, its just a matter of writing it.

School starts soon...which sucks. So most of my fics will be on hold and probably won't be updated unless I get to it these next two weeks.