A/N: Some things in this chapter could be potentially triggering or graphic (suicidal thoughts, self-mutilation), just a fair warning.
(One Month Later)
I stepped into my apartment with grocery bags in my arms and kicked the front door shut behind me. I dropped everything on the counter in the kitchen and snatched an iced tea from the fridge, popping it open and bringing it to my lips. It was Mieko and Ryoko's eighteenth birthday, so Ryoko decided he wanted to throw a party. I was, of course, put in charge of fetching supplies from the store and ordering the food so I wouldn't "cockblock him", to put it in his words. I started thumbing through the disarray of menus on the counter to find one for a pizzeria when I heard someone murmuring to themselves behind me.
"You don't have to go on a redecoration spree. This is someone else's property, Kid. Just don't go into the bathroom. Don't go into the bathroom."
I turned around and spotted Kid sitting at the bistro set in the corner of the kitchen with his head in his hands. He was mumbling to himself about something and he looked pretty stressed out. I furrowed my brows and pulled out the seat across from him, leaning my own elbows on the tabletop and setting down the menu in my hand.
"You look a little stressed. Are you alright, Kid?" I asked tentatively.
His golden eyes snapped up to meet mine immediately at the sound of my voice, widening with alarm as if he was a deer caught in headlights. "Um, I'm fine. Nothing's wrong. I'm just a little tired," he lied with a tight-lipped smile.
"That's bullshit," I asserted, "Is something bothering you? You can tell me if there is."
He bit his lip and studied the frosted glass tabletop, as if contemplating whether or not he should tell me what was on his mind. He sighed and finally looked up to meet my gaze. "Your bathroom is an asymmetrical disaster. Especially that sink! There's a cup holding toothbrushes on one side and not on the other. I– uh, sorry," he apologized, "I don't like telling people this, but I have a pretty bad case of OCD. Most people figure it out on their own. Your bathroom set me off a bit."
"It's fine. Why wouldn't you tell people? It's nothing to be ashamed of. You can't change who you are," I said with a kind smile.
"People always judge me and label me as a weirdo when I do. They treat me differently; they treat me like I'm fragile, and that's the last thing I want," he answered.
My eyes softened and I shook my head gently. "I know what you mean. People are judgmental pricks," I agreed knowingly, "I had...issues when I was younger and the only people who know are Ryoko and Mieko. They still treat me differently sometimes and it pisses me off, but part of me knows it's only because they care."
After my anecdote to console him, a comfortable silence settled between us. He toyed with the silver skull ring on his left hand while I studied the silhouette of my own legs underneath the frosted glass tabletop. I took a sip from my iced tea can and glanced up at him, only to find him watching me intently. I cocked my head to the side curiously, wondering what was wrong.
"What is it?" I questioned.
"Nothing, I was just admiring your symmetry," he replied with a smile that made my heart skip a beat.
"W-what?" I stuttered.
"You're very symmetrical. Your facial features are even symmetrical...that's rare on a person," he clarified.
"Thank you," I murmured softly with a shy smile.
"You're welcome. Now, shouldn't you be ordering a pizza? I'm sure everyone's starving," he said teasingly. I rolled my eyes and picked up the phone, reluctantly ending our conversation. He seemed to have calmed down, at least. He shot me one last smile as he stood up and disappeared through the doorway to the living room to join the rest of the party.
After I finished ordering the pizza, I poked my head into the living room to see how Mieko and Ryoko's party was progressing. Ryoko was lounging on the couch with a can of Coke in his hand beside Tsubaki. A flirty smirk was on his lips and his arm was slung around the back of the couch behind her. I couldn't help but want to slap him across the face for being so sleazy, but I held myself back since it was his birthday.
Mieko stood with Maka by the window, conversing over a thick, hardcover book that sat on the windowsill. Patty sat on the floor cross-legged in front of the TV, gleefully playing one of Ryoko's video games. Liz was sitting with Black Star and Soul, though she didn't look too entertained by Black Star's gloating monologue. Soul glanced away from his narcissistic friend for a moment and his eyes met with mine. He excused himself from his circle and stood up, crossing the room to meet me.
"Hey," he greeted with a curt nod and a crooked smile.
"Hey. What's up?" I asked, tipping my head back and taking a sip from my iced tea. It seemed odd to me that he was approaching me to talk. We hadn't really spoken much in the past month aside from the occasional light conversation here and there when walking to class late.
"I just wanted to talk about something that's been on my mind for a while now..." he said, "I know things are awkward between us, and they are for good reason, but can we put what happened past us? It was a stupid mistake. We were both drunk and–"
"It was no mistake, Soul. You wanted me and I wanted you, that's what happens when two people are attracted to each other. We wanted to have some fun, so we did. I see no harm in that," I expressed, "It's not like we're in a relationship or anything, our bonds with our partners are just fine."
Soul shrugged and nodded in agreement, "You're right. It was just casual sex." After a few moments, a smirk quirked up the corners of his lips and a fang poked out from his mouth devilishly. He leaned in and huskily whispered, "Where's the harm in having some fun again then, right?"
I smirked and glanced over Soul's shoulder to check on everyone else. No one seemed to be watching the two of us, they were all preoccupied by other things. I purred in his ear, "Meet me in my room in five. Don't let anyone know." I trailed my finger along his jawline seductively and winked as I spun on my heel and headed down the hallway.
Little did I know, someone was keeping an eye on the two of us. From his seat on the armchair, Kid's eyes were glued to Soul as he disappeared from the party just five minutes after I had.
The poor red Solo cup in his hand was crushed into oblivion.
I was alone.
I sat on the bank of a lake, watching as the calm surface of the water rippled gently in the cool evening breeze. The full moon's reflection rippled in the lake as the only source of light to be found in the suffocating darkness. I flicked a pebble into the water and it made a small 'plunk' as the water expanded into circular ripples surrounding where it had landed.
I stood up and gazed down into the water, studying my own reflection. My black hair was tied up into a neat ponytail with a few stray hairs framing my face. My skin tone was pale, appearing almost translucent under the white light of the moon. Though I didn't feel myself doing so, a smile graced the lips of my reflection and happiness twinkled in my monochromatic eyes.
Two identical reflections joined my own in the mirror of the water. Auburn hair, blue eyes, and light skin. The one to my left had an unmistakable mischievous grin while the one to my right had a calm smile and an air of maturity about him. I glanced up from the lake, expecting to see my weapon partners on either side of me, but my eyes were greeted by nothing but empty air.
"It's all a lie," a disembodied voice hissed in my ear.
When I looked down, I was holding a silver switchblade to my delicate wrist. It trembled in my hand over the raised skin of my fading scars. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to pull my own hand back, but I was resisting myself. When I closed my eyes, I felt the familiar sting of metal slicing across my skin and that tingling feeling of pain shoot up my forearm.
I was no longer in control of my body. My eyes were forced open so I could see the damage done by my own hands. The image of myself and my weapons was shattered by the droplets of blood that stained the clear water a deadly crimson. The girl in the reflection was no longer myself. Her eyes were a dangerous vermillion with a glint of burning hatred and bloodlust, and her teeth were sharpened fangs. She no longer looked like an innocent girl; she looked like a corrupted monster, a victim of insanity.
She locked eyes with me as she snaked her clawed fingers around my weapon partners' throats and squeezed, piercing their skin with her sharp claws. My breath hitched in my throat and a helpless whimper escaped from my lips. She flashed me a sinister grin, pleasure dancing in her crimson eyes as she took in the expression of pure horror plastered on my face.
She let go of Ryoko and Mieko, who disappeared into nothingness, and instead took her own slender arm into her grip. She dragged her talons across her own skin, giggling with madness and pleasure as she dug them deeper and drew blood. A sharp pain lanced through my forearm and sent shivers down my spine, yet I couldn't break eye contact with the maniacal girl – it's impossible to break eye contact with your own reflection.
"Crys! CRYS! Crystalin, wake up!"
My eyes shot open and I was immediately greeted in the waking world by a shooting pain through my left arm. I winced in agony and yanked my arm from someone's tight grip to study my injuries. Fingernail marks were embedded into my skin and uneven scratches marred my already scarred wrist. Ryoko was kneeling over me, pinning down my right arm to the bed. His blue eyes were bloodshot and he looked exhausted. His gaze locked with mine, and when he realized I was awake, he heaved a sigh of relief and collapsed onto the mattress beside me.
"What happened?" I murmured, sitting up in bed and cradling my left arm close to my body.
"I don't fucking know, you're going bat-shit insane or something. I heard banging from your room, so I came to check on you. It's a good thing I did because you were in here fighting with yourself and clawing at your own wrists in your sleep," he responded, "Everyone left about two hours ago. You didn't come out of your room, so I assumed you weren't feeling well."
Shit, am I still naked?!My eyes widened when I remembered why I hadn't come out of my room again and I glanced down at my body in a panic. Thankfully, I was fully dressed. I guess Soul saw me fall asleep while we were talking and put some clothes on me...that was sweet of him.I glanced over at my weapon partner, who was gnawing on his bottom lip and keeping a watchful eye on me.
"I haven't slept yet. You're joining me in the living room so you don't go insane in your sleep again. Next time you might find hidden razors or some shit, Death forbid," he muttered.
"What? No, I just wanna sleep, I–"
Despite my protests, Ryoko stood up and threw me over his shoulder. I tried to squirm from his grasp, but he was too strong. When we got into the living room, he tossed me onto the sofa and flopped down next to me. He snatched up his video game controller from the coffee table and powered up a second one that was beside it. He chucked it at me and I clumsily caught it, the batteries falling out into my lap.
"Play something with me. It'll get your mind off of whatever that nightmare was that you had," he murmured, "Right trigger is to shoo– Just put the batteries in the back of the controller. No, the other way. Oh my f– gimme that damn thing!"
