I'm The Monster ( Jinx X Fem Reader )

Our Resolution

-chapter 14-

I stand outside the shack, clothes dirty and torn and bare feet aching from the cold of the night and the roughness of the roofs. A drizzle had started on our way home, and my hair has become damp with the moisture. I feel her presence beside me but I neglect to look at her- instead, I find myself studying the side of the shack, avoiding eye contact.

"Jinx..." I begin, my voice low in my throat. Her name leaves my lips as more of a request for her voice than just her name. She gives no response from beside me at my inquiry

Out of the corner of my vision, I see her shift from one foot to another- the movement spurs me to turn to her, dazed eyes falling on her still frame. Jinx has a similar demeanor to mine with a twinge of embarrassment through it; she rubs her left bicep with her right hand in an idle motion, shifting her weight over her hips again. Those beautiful eyes I had admired not long ago feel like a million miles away now, wide and glued to the ground. The light from the window of the shack illuminates the blood on her face with a sickly sheen, now mixing with the rain and sliding down her face in droplets of pink liquid and plastering her bangs to her cheeks. This is the first time I've seen Jinx look truly, truly defeated. Even after she had smashed her hand on the wall, fracturing all of her fingers in the process; I look down at her hand momentarily, hanging limply at her side. The bruises across her knuckles are fading now, leaving behind yellow and purple sores. No, even then she wasn't truly broken- but now, it's like her entire existence has cracked in half. Words build up in my chest, begging to be released.

"Jinx, you-"

In a sudden spurt of movement, Jinx's hands come flying up in exasperation to interrupt me. "Yes, yes, I know. Nobody likes a party crasher, toots. I get it, really." Looking up at me, I see pain swimming in her eyes as she takes a step back. Unconsciously, I compensate by taking a step forward, keeping the gap small between us. "I'll leave now, okay? I mean, who needs me, right?" Her voice grows rapidly, breaching a point of sounding nearly manic. Tears sit at the edge of her lower eyelashes, threatening to mix with the blood pouring down her face. Her hands thrash about with every word, but her eyes betray her. "I can't expect-"

I catch one flailing arm, using it to pull her to me. Her words come to an abrupt stop as she meets my gaze once more, harsh lips quivering and a single tear sliding down her cheek. In my close proximity, I watch it- the blood swirls through it's trail, a single strand of a lighter toned pink cutting through her already soaked face.

I take a deep breath and she mimics me, filling her lungs with our shared air in the small space between us. It's not quite close enough to be intimate, but that isn't what this moment is for anyway.

"Tell me why you've really been watching me, Jinx. No more lies." I say, fighting desperately with myself to keep my voice level. The words tumble out of my mouth with only the slightest hint of the disparity that I feel.

"I..." Jinx's voice trails off. I let her take her time as she formulates her response. "I... Don't know."

I shake my head, sighing heavily. "Despite this, you're making it really hard to not care about you, Jinx. Yes, one day you hate me, but the next you're..." I huff, motioning loosely to her. "Well, this." I study her face, concerned at the silence. Where I expected a sharp retort, there's only her wide eyes, and lips slightly parted in surprise. Confusion turns her eyebrows upward.

"...What did you say?" Jinx whispers, her tone almost afraid; like if she talks too loud, she'll shatter the air between us. Before I have time to process the confusion I see, her arms fling around me and draws me tight to her chest. Her breath leaves her lungs in short, frightened spurts against my skin and after a moment of registering, I clutch her to me as well.