Rattlebones (bxbxb)

Life and Death

A beautiful lie. A painful truth.

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"It's you. It's always been you." 

I stand across from Iggy, both of us just watching one another. Or...it's mostly me, watching him. He's looking down at his hands, turning them over as if they're suddenly going to turn purple and fall off. 

"It doesn't make any sense." Iggy's voice is slightly hoarse. I think the idea of him bringing Eugene back to life was terrifying him. Which, I mean, was understandable. 

I try to put the jagged pieces together. Of seeing Iggy standing across the parking lot, of sitting across from him while Eugene Wilder lay there on the kitchen table, unresponsive, and then suddenly alive minutes later. Iggy was somehow bringing Eugene back to life, but I didn't know how.

"Hey," Eugene suddenly says from inside the car, and he gets out. "Can someone tell me what the hell is going on?"

I stand between Iggy and Eugene, feeling small and frightened. How had my untrembling heart managed to be caught between life and death? I loved Eugene with the passion of a bull released into the pasture with the cows. But Igor was something entirely different. He invoked the desire for me to wear colors, allow me to feel something real. It was entirely horrid.

"Darcy thinks I'm bringing you back to life." Iggy scoffs a little, his shock turning into annoyance. "I'm trying to figure out why the hell I would do that."

"Maybe it's because I'm the fucking best there ever was. You never could hold your own, could you, Vita?" Eugene steps forward, bumping into me with his chest. It looks like there's going to be a fight, and I'm caught in the middle of it.

"Can you two stop it?!" I demand from in between them and shove both of them back. "I don't know what's going on until I run some tests," I tell them. "I'm sure there's a logical explanation behind all of this. We just have to find out what it is."

Iggy rolls his eyes and pushes back his hair. "So what? Am I going to have to be permanently attached to his hip from now on?" He demands. "I have a life. A pretty good one, actually."

"Igor," I look up at him. "Can we sleep over tonight? Preferably in your bed?"

"Oh my fucking God," Eugene murmurs from behind me. "This is my worst nightmare."

There were things in this world that I didn't understand. In one day, three lives had changed, by no fault of our own. It felt as if an entire week had passed in these few hours together. 

"I don't know--" Iggy starts to say, and then the front door to his house flys open and his girlfriend comes spilling out. She's blonde and beautiful, and I can vaguely see why Iggy has chosen her womanly charms over my dark and mysterious allure. 

"Iggy!" She shouts at him and comes storming over. "I've been waiting for two hours to have dinner with you. Who are these people? Why is that weird kid with the eyeliner wearing a lab coat?"

"Megan! I can explain." Iggy assures her, and he moves to push her back into the house. "They're just friends, okay? They needed some help. A lot of help."

"No." She snaps at him. "You've been acting so distant lately. I don't even know who you are anymore." She glares at him and then shoots Eugene and me an ugly look. "Now I can see why. You've always chosen your friends over me." She says and then storms off.

"Megan!" Iggy shouts at her, and he starts to follow her, then stops. "It's not like that!"

"Don't worry, Iggy," I assure him from where I stand next to Eugene, and I smile my best smile. "We're here for you, okay?"

Iggy takes one look at us,

The dead boy and the grave robber,

And then he heads for his house without another word.

(Hey all who are still reading this! This is a bonus chapter, so it's short.
Prepare for fluff coming your way soon!)