The Hand of Crimson

Chapter 13: The Mourning After

I awoke to the gentle stroking of ethereal fingers. My eyes opened sleepily and automatically slitted themselves against the morning light. Realizing where I was, my lips curled into a smile. I snuggled deeper into the warm pillow that lay beneath me. It rose and fell with silent breaths, thrumming with the beat of an innocent heart.  

“Morning.” The pillow murmured in an angelic, gravelly voice.  

“Morning, beautiful.” A grin spread over my lips just at being able to finally call he that. This all still felt like it was a dream. But I didn’t want to wake up. 

“How did you sleep?” 

“It was probably the best sleep I’ve had in a long, long time.” I leaned up to kiss her. I was only going for a quick peck, but her hand reached up to cup my cheek, drawing me closer. When we broke apart, we smiled at each other, both giddy with happiness. We’ve always been in tune with each other, but this was different. It was as if we were one. Two people combined, tied together by an invisible bond of love. Two hearts beating as one.  

The moment was interrupted by Jennifer’s mom. “Jenny!” She yelled up the stairs. “You are up for breakfast and school, aren’t you?” 

Jennifer groaned, grimacing. I merely smirked at her in amusement. “Jenny?” I asked, not having heard anyone call her that.  

“Don’t you start saying that too. I hate that she calls me it. She’s so fucking annoying.” She muttered, her cheeks burning in embarrassment.  

“Oh, alright, Jenny. I guess I’ll see you at school?”  

“Yeah. But- How are you gonna get out of here? My mom’s gonna see you if you go downstairs.” 

“No, she won’t. I’m like really fast, remember? I could flash her, and she wouldn’t notice.” I giggled, playing with her hair.  

“Hey! I thought I was the slut here.”  

“Not anymore. You said that you’d stop.” At that, she grumbled and slowly got out of bed.  

When we were both up and relatively dressed, I wrapped my arms around her. I didn’t want to let her go; afraid I’d wake up from this perfect dream.  

“I’ll see you later, Vagisil.” 

“See you soon, Monistat.” Came her reply, but instead of letting me go like I thought she would, she only pulled away slightly and then leaned in. I closed my eyes as our lips met in a gentle, but passionate embrace. That moment seemed to last forever, and I wish it could have lasted for another forever. When we broke apart, we both let go simultaneously and ran down the stairs. Our footsteps were a symphony as we ran, perfectly in harmony, no matter the pace and speed. I watched her as I sped past, smirking to myself as I flashed her instead of her mother. Not that she’d know anyway. She wouldn’t be able to see even a human-shaped blur.  

Luckily, the door was unlocked, so I just opened it and ran straight through. The wind hit me like a punch in the chest, but I ignored it, pushing through like a barge. I didn’t bother going home. My mom knew I’d been at Jen’s, and she wouldn’t be surprised if I stayed over. I’d done it so many times at Jennifer’s that I didn’t need to tell her anymore. Instead, I went straight to school. Most of the usual morning preparations were wasted on me anyway. I couldn’t eat and I didn’t need to wake up with coffee or tea. I was quite awake and energized after my feast the night before, though I tried not to think about that. My clothes were fresh on this morning, so I didn’t need new ones. Though, they were Jennifer’s, so they were much skimpier than I was used to. But I didn’t really care and the fact that they were Jen’s only made them better in my mind.