Sweet Obsession (In Progress)

Chapter Six: Part One

A/N: Picture is of Rosaline's living room, minus the window.  

_________________

Welcome to Hell

"Hello there, Angel from my nightmare."

                                - Blink 182

I awoke with a start the next morning, my eyes flinging open to land on the painting Paisley had purchased. It was hanging on my wall and seemingly staring me down with its black, eyeless face. As far as size went, I would say it was roughly around that of a pillow, but the tension it created was suffocating.  

A loud growl followed by hissing drew my attention to the foot of my bed. There, crouched down in a defensive position, was Zeus. I was momentarily struck with concern for my cat, but it was quickly replaced by  a deep seated feeling of foreboding.

My eyes darted around the room, before scanning the area that Zeus was hissing at. It was a corner, a dark one. Being that it was three a.m., all of my room was dark, but this one seemed to be blacker somehow; as if it was being occupied, haunted by an unknown, evil presence. I knew without a doubt, that said presence was watching me. 

I tried to think of a way to get out of here, away from whatever that darkness was. I decided to just run. My parents had a few of my things at their place, and the suitcases they had gotten me were still by my door, so I figured I'd just grab those, my cat, and my phone on the way out. 

I snatched up Zeus, which was no easy task due to his fear stricken state. His claws were extended and buried in the layers of my bedding, so with him came my comforter. I freed his paws as I backed my way to the kitchen. There I grabbed my phone and keys, leaving the white, floral blanket in a heap on the floor. 

When I made it to the door, I turned quickly to unlock it with shaky hands. For all I knew that thing was still in my room, or maybe it was heading outside, somehow, to get me when I left. Hell, maybe it's following me. I shot that last one down right away due to the fact that it was way too creepy and if started shaking any more I'd likely vibrate the whole building.

It wasn't until I looked back to grab the gold and white suitcases that I realized just how spot on that last frightening thought was. I let out a scream, or tried to, but began to sputter and cough when it got caught in my throat, choking me. Turning on my heel, I took off towards the exit closest to my car. I didn't even bother to close my door, I just ran. 

Why? Because the appearance of the dark being was identical to the one in the painting Paisley had bought me. Black, wispy tendrils of darkness flowed around its malicious form, attached to it, yet moving as though they were separate. It had taken slow steps into the hallway of my flat, ebony face locked on me. That is where I had really been able to see it, a feat made possible thanks to the moonlight filtering in through my kitchen window.

The way the thing looked, in pairing with the fact that it was following me, is why I was currently tossing Zeus into my passenger seat, locking my doors, and calling Paisley as I started my car. On the third ring she picked up, sounding groggy as she whispered a soft, "Rosaline? What is it? Is everything okay?"

I quickly glanced out the window on my passenger side when Zeus started to hiss at it. There, up in my second story kitchen window was the being. It's not so much that I could easily make out its features that gave it away as it was that I could clearly distinguish the skin-crawling sensation that only ever came with its presence.  

"Hello? Rosaline, is that you?" Paisley asked, tone suddenly more worried. 

I sat back in my seat, strapping on my seatbelt and pulling away from my home, onto the street that would lead me to my parent's house. "Yeah, I'm here. Sorry," I said, voice shaking with the effort it took to hold back the gathering tears. 

Paisley immediately picked up on my distressed state and, suddenly wide awake, demanded, "What is it?! What happened?"

The flood gates opened then, tears streaming down my face and creating little rivulets in their wake. I had to pull over, I could hardly see anymore, and I figured that two blocks was far enough from whatever was back in my place. There was no way they would have followed me all this way, let alone could have. 

"There, uh, was this-" a wave of fear hit me then, cutting me off as the hysteria took over. Everything within me was warning me against telling Paisley what I had seen, but I needed to. She was my best friend, and if anyone could help me get through this, it was her and my parents. Who knows, maybe we could just drop everything and go to Paris early.

"There was what? Rosaline, you're breaking up. Hello? Hell-" she shouted, only to be silenced as the line went dead.

"Paisley?" I sniffled. When no reply came, I pulled my phone away from my ear, glancing at the screen to discover that I had no bars. I was in the middle of Seattle with no cell reception. What the Hell is going on?

A deep, melodic humming abruptly took the place of the silence in my car. I stiffened, making to grab the handle of my car door, when a burning numbness engulfed me. "I wouldn't try to do that again if I were you. You've already pissed me off quite enough for one night," Daemon's smooth baritone lilted threateningly in my ear. 

No! I thought I had gotten rid of him!