BLACK SHEEP | DW

050.

"they were different people together in daylight than they were alone in the dark"
-joseph heller

she finally had visited johnny.

she had to say something to him to kill the guilt that had been transpiring in her gut. "why?" she asked him. "it should've been me, that got hit with that board. why would you push me out of the way?"

venus wasn't supposed to be off her oxygen, never mind sauntering into someone else's room. but it had still been way too early, Dally had gotten caught in her room and was told to leave— long after she pretended she was asleep, and johnny was still awake.

he winced, intaking a painful breath. it was reminiscent of the night she had saved him, abandoned in that lot, after getting jumped by the socs. only now, he was worse off. only now, it should've been her.

"cause," he almost cried out. "cause you would've done it for me."

when venus bit her lip, coating her lips in blood at the sheer sharpness of her teeth, she fiddled with her fingers. her breathing was a lot worse than his— he could almost hear it from down the hall. "you know something, venus?" he tried to spit out the words that got mangled in his throat.

"i would do it again. cause it's like the movie, right? it's just like the movie we saw."

tears had came steady down her face, and she refused to look into the glass and allow him to see her like that. "it was just a movie," she shakes her head in disbelief. "it didn't mean you had to save me."

"better me then you," he muttered. "cause you-you... you gotta save Dally, venus. you're the only one who can... do it," he had passed out.

placing a careful hand on his hair, with urgency, venus leaned over to try and see him face. "johnny?" she said worriedly. "come on, johnny, don't do that."

"hey!" a nurse rushed in. "you can't be in here, get out! you shouldn't be off your respirator!"

when a couple of women, dressed in white, pulled her towards the door, venus kept looking over her shoulder to check on him. "johnny!" she cried. "is he all right? is he all right?" venus coughed out.

her lungs had been working double time, attempting to make up for the fluid that had often built up in them. she hadn't realized how bad off she was, and that she might have been just as hurt as johnny— even though you couldn't see her injuries.

she felt like hell, the way her every breath threatened to not provide her with enough air. venus felt sick— simply, she felt so sick.

maybe she had been so worried: about pony, about johnny, about Dally, that she hadn't even considered she needed to worry about herself as well.

against her will, they had strapped her to the bed. they said it was to stop her from getting up again, but venus couldn't seem but feel as helpless as she always had. the night reggie took that picture of her, when johnny pushed her out of the way in the church, when the socs wanted to jump her at the movies.

venus had always felt helpless.

but, she found a commonality in all those things. in all the times she had been so helpless, she always had Dally, who made her feel safe.

maybe that's what johnny had meant. she was supposed to be there for him, just as they had always been. maybe johnny knew he couldn't do it himself— that he would never have the impact on Dally that venus could have.

maybe that's why he saved her, venus realized. because he would be saving two people.

as the sounds of the room: the beepings and whooshings, lulled her to sleep. venus kept only one thing on her mind— she would follow Dally to the ends of the earth.

she had to. for him, for herself, for johnny.

he wouldn't have done this all in vain.

venus would protect Dally with everything in her.

hey y'all!
sorry, short chapter,
but were nearing the end
and i'm not ready yet :'(

butttt with that being said,
i am also in the process of
working on a new story
after i finish this one.

a prelude is up on my
page if you are interested.

much <3
rumipip