Chapter 3: Color Me Black
I was woken up the next day, sometime in the afternoon, by my communicator which buzzed loudly from the other room. I didn't want to get up just yet. My naked body was still entangled in the sheets as my face buried deeper into the comfort of my pillow. It was too warm. Fuck 'em, I'd call them back later, whoever it was.
One of my eyes cracked open when I swore the buzzing was getting closer. And then it was next to my head. Glancing up, I saw the noisy bracelet dangling from a dirty finger just in front of my face. My body suddenly reacted just as my brain clicked back on. I grabbed onto the hand and twisted with all my strength, jerking the figure onto the bed and wrestled them until they were pinned under me.
"Oh- goddamnit, Grave, you scared the shit out of me!" I hissed as the man under me laughed. The vibration from his deep laughter came from his chest and tingled my thighs, and I inwardly hoped he couldn't feel my shiver that followed.
"If I had known this was how to get you ontop of me, buck-ass naked, I would have broke in sooner." He grinned, letting me keep him pinned to the mattress. I scoffed, rolling off of him and wrapped myself up in the sheets.
"I think it's just buck naked..." I sighed as he sat up, twirling my communicator on his finger. "Ugh, How did you get in here?"
"I'm pretty good at finding my way into places, El. Figured you'd know that by now."
The bracelet began to beep again, whoever it was needed my attention apparently. I snatched it away from Graverobber and cleared my throat before answering. "Yeah?"
"Do you know how long I've been trying to get a hold of you? Jesus." I froze at the sound of my boss' voice
"Oh, hey. Sorry about that."
"Whatever. Look, you have a package waiting to be picked up that has a request for you deliver it."
My eyebrows drew together in confusion as I stood up to shuffle to my dresser. "There is? From who?" That wasn't a regular thing.
"From a- N. Wallace, Does it matter? Get your ass over there, get it, and deliver the damn thing."
I got dressed and made my way to the door when I remembered my unexpected guest. "Grave, I have to go. Get out of my apartment." I shouted and watched him come from my kitchen.
"Your fridge is empty." He stated it as if it was new or something, the beer I had forgotten to drink and left in the bathroom was now in his hand. Didn't he notice the amount of weight I had lost since the last time we hung out together? Of course not, that would suggest he gave a shit.
"Yeah, no duh, dickhole. I'm poor. Now come on, I'm in a hurry." I waved my hand to the door and watched him stroll outside before following him. He had my helmet in his other hand as he began to walk towards my Vespa.
"Give me a lift?" He plopped himself down on the seat as if I had already said yes.
I stood there, a hand on my hip and raised an eyebrow at him. The guy just didn't know how to stop pushing, or maybe he did and just enjoyed the look of 'are you fucking kidding me' that I was almost always sending him.
"You seriously expect me to be the chauffeur for your Zydrate dealing?"
"Come on, El, it's on the way." He smiled, again trying to turn on the charm. Bullshit, he didn't even know where I was going. I sighed, rolling my eyes at Grave before joining him on the bike. He plopped my helmet down on my head as I started up the engine.
"You're paying for my gas with your drug money then," He gave a hearty laugh that forced me to crack a smile.
I found myself back in front of that big, old house once again. And, again, I was at the gate, ready to see Shilo's father stalk out to take the box from me. I had been a few hours late, thanks to a no good Grave crawler, and now I had to come up with some kind of excuse along with an apology. Hopefully my pay wouldn't get deducted for this. A buzzer sounded, startling me to jump back as the gate slowly clicked open. Hesitantly, I stepped forward and made my way up to the door. With a lick at my dry lips, I raised my hand to knock on the door but it slid open as well. Was I suppose to go in?
"Uh, hello? Mr. Wallace?" I called into the dark house before slowly taking a step inside. It was starting to get dark out already and I had no light. "…Shilo?"
A body suddenly sprang out from behind a set of stairs, arms raised above their head. My switchblade was whipped out before I even knew it and I nearly snabbed poor Shilo in the chest as she staggered back, a look of fear in her eyes.
"I-I'm sorry. I just wanted to get you back for scaring me last time..." She stuttered as I all at once felt guilt wash over me.
"Oh, Shilo, honey- I'm sorry." I quickly tucked the knife back into the back pocket of my shorts.
"Do you always carry that around?" She almost whispered, still keeping her distance.
"I kind of have to, yeah."
There was an awkward pause as I shifted the package around in my hand before holding it out to her. "I believe you were expecting this? I mean, unless its you dad's?"
"Oh, no. I just put his name down. He told me last night that he was going to leave early for work today so I figured I'd invite you over. I thought it would be fun to try to scare you since my dad forgot to lock my door this time...You never came to visit like you promised, you know." She wagged her finger at me in mock scolding and I let out a laugh. It was reassuring to see the fear leave her eyes.
Wait. Forgot to lock her door?
"You noticed huh? I've been a little busy lately. But I'm here now, right?" I handed the box over to her as she made a face at me.
"Only because I had to make you!"
I gave out another laugh, "so what'd you buy?"
She unwrapped the box to show a glass case inside, which was a little unexpected. She noticed the odd look I made and smiled.
"Come on, I'll show you,"
I was certainly surprised by the amount of bugs this girl had. Other glass cases, already filled, lined one of her walls as well as books about insects and jars stacked on top of a shelf. Other than that, it appeared like the normal room of a teenage girl (except for the anatomic human skeleton just left of her bed). There were posters of Blind Mag and stuffed animals laying around. I noticed she had her very own piano as well.
"Wow, kid, I didn't notice all this stuff last time." I whistled as I went up to her book shelf to look through her collection.
"Maybe because last time you came up through the window?" She giggled as she placed the new case on her desk, eager to fill it up.
I laughed too, she had a point. My finger ran along the spine of each book before I noticed something. "All you have is informational books and dictionaries." I glanced back at Shilo from over my shoulder.
"Oh, yeah. Those are the kinds of books my daddy brings me." I noticed her stiffen when she realized she said 'daddy' again instead of just dad.
"You don't like fantasy or adventure books?"
She was quiet for a minute before shrugging, "I've never really read any like that."
My nose wrinkled at the idea of someone never getting the chance to sink into a good adventure book. I had plenty at home myself "I'll bring you a couple to see what you like, how about that?"
The bright smile and nod she returned made me add that to a mental list of things to remember. This girl needed a few good books, not just dictionaries. My eyes scanned past her bed, that was oddly covered in a a clear tarp, over to the night stand where most of a sandwich and a couple of cookies sat. Shilo must have noticed my lingering eye.
"My dad brought me up lunch before he left. You can have it if you want, I'm still full from breakfast."
Still full from breakfast. I could have let out a bitter laugh if I were talking to anyone other than Shilo. Either she had no idea how good she had it, or she didn't realize the power behind those words. I knew I shouldn't but my stomach let out a loud whine as Shilo brought the plate over to me. Together, we sat on her floor as I devoured the sandwich. She watched me quickly stuff the food into my mouth like a starved dog. What can I say, I'm a classy bitch.
"You know, if you visited more I could feed you. You seem really hungry."
I nearly snorted as I looked up at her. "What am I, a stray cat?"
Shilo smiled awkwardly back at me and shrugged before she looked down, playing with the frill on her perfectly white dress.
As I went to finish off the last cookie, I gave her a gentle nudge. "Dig around in my bag, I think you'll like what you find in the back pocket."
She gave a confused glance my way before tugging my satchel over to her and stuck her hand inside. I watched as she pulled out a bottle of black nail polish, topped with a plastic skull shaped handle, and gaped at it with a quiet "oh wow,"
"Want me to paint your nails?"
Her eyes widened as she looked up at me, as if I had just asked her if she wanted me to pierce her ears for the first time. You'd think the girl never painted her nails before. She looked back down at the plastic bottle in her hand before handing it over to me with a small nod.
"Black not to your liking, Miss Shilo?" I teased and watched her lips pull into a pout.
"No, I like black, I just- never done this before. Daddy doesn't like me wearing makeup either. He says I have natural beauty and don't need makeup, 'just like your mother'." Her little nose scrunched up as she deepened her voice to mock her father's. Well that sounded bitter as hell. I wondered what she had against looking like her mom?
But then I figured, Shilo was probably getting to that stage in her life where she wanted her own identity instead of being compared to someone else. I remember when I was like that. My mom's friends used to coo over how much I looked like her, and I was constantly reminded that I had her hazel eyes. So I guess I could understand the feeling. My eyes lingered a moment over the large picture of a woman that hung over a mantle across the foot of Shilo's bed.
"Well at least he's right about one thing. You do have a natural beauty." I gently took Shilo's hand and began painting the nail of her index finger. Shilo was blushing now, she seemed to blush really easily when embarrassed, but she was still pouting too. "But-" I continued, "It's still fun to put on makeup sometimes. Your dad is just goin' have to get over it. Besides, what are you, like 15?"
"I'm turning 16 in a couple of months." She confirmed with a nod.
"Yeah, then you should be deciding stuff for yourself. At least little things like wearing makeup if you want to. Screw him." I probably shouldn't have but I enjoyed the slight smirk that crossed her lips, like she really enjoyed the idea of her father coming in to see her in full makeup. This girl was going to rebel hard when she gets older, that was easy to tell already, and I certainly wasn't helping.
"Whaddya' think?" I grinned as I let her hand go so she could look over my work. I wasn't awesome at painting nails but I wasn't too shabby either. At least it didn't look like a three year old attacked her hand with black paint. Shilo's smile reassured me of this.
"It looks so cool! Thanks, Miss Elena."
I laughed, shaking my head at her, "You can drop the 'Miss' stuff. Just call me Elena, or El. Whichever." Her eyes lit up so bright, I could have sworn it blinded me for a second. She looked so pleased that I was letting her call me by a nickname. But it also added to the suspicion that was gathering in the back of my mind.
I took her other hand so she wouldn't look like a weirdo and began working once more. The questions were starting to nag me a little too much, I had to ask. "So why aren't you hanging out with friends or a boyfriend or whatever? As much as I enjoy giving you the company, isn't it a little odd you're not spending your time with someone more your age, you know, rather than someone with ten years or so on you?"
Her expression twisted once again into only what I could describe as uncomfortable. I didn't let it slide this time and quietly waited for her answer. She stared down at her black nails as emotions ran behind her eyes, like she was debating with herself weather or not to tell me something.
"I don't have any friends." She finally spoke, her voice so quiet I was surprised I even heard her.
Sympathy rushed me like a bull as I frowned down at her, only staring at her for a moment or so before looking back down at her nails. "That's kind of hard to believe, you're really sweet and pretty. I'd think you were one of the popular kids at school."
"I'm home taught." She whispered again, her eyes avoiding me all together as she also stared down at her nails.
Oh. Good job, El. I chewed on my bottom lip as silence filled the room, the awkward tension practically palpable to the both of us.
"I don't go to school because I inherited a blood disease from my mother. I'm not allowed to leave the house because it's dangerous for me to breath the air outside, it affects me somehow. And I have to take medication to prevent me from have fainting spells and chest pains." Her voice started off quiet but grew angry as she spoke. I saw the fire in her eyes as hatred for this disease rolled off her tongue.
Our eyes met and I couldn't do anything but frown at this poor child. She could see the sympathy rolling off of me and I couldn't tell if it upset her more or comforted her. Her eyes still held that angry fire even as tears threatened to fall, and my frown deepened. Letting go of her hand, I instead wrapped my arms around her head and pulled her over to me in a hug. She didn't do anything at first, but her arms slowly circled me as she began to cry.
Shes probably cried so many times before this, but did she ever have a shoulder to pour it out on like this? Did she ever cry her little heart out while her father cradled her? Or was her pillow and stuffed animals her only comfort? I had to wonder these things from how tight her grip on my shirt was, her face buried in my shoulder as her sobs were muffled. I gently petted her hair as I laid my head on top of hers. Slowly, I rocked us back and forth there on the floor, whispering quietly to her,
"Let it out, Shilo. It's okay. I'm here."
She tried to speak between hiccups and sobs, and at first I couldn't understand a thing she was trying to say, but it slowly became clear. "Please don't leave," She was repeating this over and over into my shoulder as her body shook like a frail baby bird, which really, that's what she was.
"I won't, Shilo. I promise I won't. I'll be right here." I whispered back to her, continuing to rock her until she calmed down. It took about an hour before I was finally willing to pull away from her, her red and puffy face staring down in embarrassment. She sniffled and rubbed the streaks of tears away from her face. She looked tired.
"Come'on, kiddo." I scooped up her small frame and carried her over to her bed, gently placing her down. She shimmied under the covers and looked up at me, still looking pretty flustered but was smiling. I returned her smile.
"Here, let me see that." I motioned for her wrist and she slowly lifted up to me. Her communicator was what I was after as I held down one of the only buttons on the bracelet. Her's was a newer model, it was easy to tell compared to my old thing.
"Add contact: El" I spoke in a clear voice before adding my communicator's number. Shilo was staring up at me with big, round eyes as a wide smile spread across her face.
"I've only ever had my dad's number." She said softy, eyes catching mine, and I smiled.
"Yeah, well now you have mine too. Now you don't have to buy stuff to get in contact with me." I gently tapped her nose before leaving her side to go pick up my bag, the empty plate from before, and the nail polish. I sat the plate back where it had been before on her nightstand. I then turned to her, the nail polish in hand, and offered it to her, "you can keep it."
She gave a squeak of a thanks, taking it from me and holding it under the covers with her like it was some kind of precious gift. I gave a wave, to which she returned, and headed for the door. Before I could close it behind me, I heard her call out.
"El, you're going to come back to see me again, right? I don't have to trick you into coming back with packages?" I let out a quiet huff of a laugh before nodding, "of course, Shilo. I'll be back before you know it." That seemed to satisfy her as she finally closed her eyes, her fist visibly curled around the small bottle of nail polish.
By the time I was back out on the street, jacket pulled tight around my body to protect myself from the cold air, a expensive looking car pulled up to the house. I quickly darted far enough away to look like any other normal pedestrian and watched as a man stepped out. He straightened his pea coat, glancing about before making his way up to the fence, and then inside his house. Shilo's Father. So I guess I decided to leave just at the right time.
I suddenly felt dirty when I realized just how wrong it was that I was sneaking around his house, being friends with his 15 year old daughter without his knowledge. How fucking weird is that? But still, I felt drawn to Shilo. She needed a older sister or mother figure, or at least a friend, even an idiot could see that. There was something obviously very wrong with what was going on in that house, I could feel it. I didn't know if her dad was abusing her or what, but I needed to know, and help change it. Shilo was a very special girl, and I wasn't going to ignore her cries for help and companionship.
By the time I got home, it was pretty late. I was ready for a shower and bed but someone waiting outside my apartment building halted my quick pace. Graverobber had spotted me as soon as I pulled up and watched me dismount my bike and approach him.
"What's up?" I yawned, tucking my cold fingers into the warmth of my pockets.
His hand dug around in his own pocket a moment before pulling out a fist and holding it out to me. I raised my eyebrow as I held out my own hand, a little suspicious of what exactly he was about to hand me. I was actually really surprised when money fell into my hand (along with some nasty looking pocket lint). I looked down at the coins before looking back up at him as he shrugged.
"Gas money, remember?"
And I laughed. I didn't actually expect him to pay me back. He never pays me back. "What about the beer money you still owe me?" I grinned and watched his own cocky smirk grow across his face, flashing his teeth at me like he always did.
"Let's not get out of hand. I have a business to run." He straightened his dirty trench coat, if that's what you can call it, like some kind of proper business man before grinning again. "I've been waiting for a while here, what the hell have you been doing all day?" His eyebrows raised in a suggestive way and I grunted.
"I was visiting someone."
Grave motioned downward with both index fingers, "Ah, finally cleaning out the cobwebs are we?" He chuckled loudly as my mouth fell open and I took a swing at him, aiming to hit him square in the chest, but he bounced away playfully and I missed.
"No, I mean it was a little girl-" Before I could correct myself, his eyes widened mockingly and he let out a whistle.
"Wow, that's a little too kinky, even for me, El." I swung at him again, this time hitting him in the shoulder. He dramatically rubbed at the spot and let out a silent "ow" as I turned away from him, ready to just go to bed. I was done talking Graverobber.
"Hey, how about you use that money you just got to buy me a drink?" He grinned after me, following me up the steps to the door of my apartment building.
"With the money you just paid me back with?" I glanced over my shoulder to see if he joking but all I was greeted with was that expecting cheshire cat smile. "You're unbelievable," I laughed, shutting the door in his face and made my way up to my apartment.