Welcome to Crystal Lake (ENG)

Chapter 21 - Decisions

The Crystal Lake killer was covered in blood from head to toes. There were no words to describe what he had done to the fake guide, and he was extremely proud of it too. His mother's voice in his head kept complimenting him on the excellent job he had done with, sweet and cheerful as he remembered her. He felt very happy, and the thought of the muffins that were waiting for him at home further improved his mood.

It was precisely that peckishness that he very rarely perceived that made him decide to go to his house first, to celebrate, and only after to the girl's house. She surely was sleeping, it was quite early, and he still didn't know if he really wanted to meet her or if it was better to just leave her the necklace, maybe observe her unnoticed, and then leave. After all, she had moved there now, so there would be many other occasions to see her.

Although she had written in the note that she would try to "keep calm" at their next meeting, neither of them could have absolute certainty that the other would do the same, so probably observing her from a distance without getting noticed was the best choice to learn more about her. Or maybe spy her while she was sleeping, that was also a valid option.

To be honest, Jason wondered what she would do if they came face to face, at a close distance, not like when he killed the two girls at the lake. What could Jasmine do if not run away? And what would he do if she didn't run away? A friendly chat was out of the question. The few times someone had spoken to him was either to insult him, to deceive him, or to beg him to leave them alone. In all cases it did not end well for one, or more, person.

He didn't have much precedent to rely on, in the case of an encounter with someone he didn't need - or didn't want - to kill and who didn't run away as soon as he was spotted. And he doubted that the girl had had many encounters with serial killers of his caliber, so probably even she wouldn't really know how to behave.

While all these thoughts were running through his mind, he was back home. He hadn't taken any kind of souvenirs this time, leaving everything to the police. He put his ax, machete and knives on the coffee table in the living room, maybe he could clean them later. Then he headed into the kitchen, eating all 12 muffins he'd been given with relish, not bothering to wash his hands. It had been a long time since he had eaten homemade sweets, and germs certainly didn't scare him.

When he finished them he found a coat of powdered sugar on his shirt, and since the blood was still fresh enough, there was no way to get rid of it. It was not his habit to wash the clothes he soiled, just as he did not know how to mend the ones he tore, so he would have to find a clean change. Usually it meant to steal them.

Before that, however, he had other things to do, more urgently, since it was almost dawn and he had decided he wanted to observe the girl while she was still asleep.

He only recovered the ax, made sure he still had the necklace by feeling his pocket, and walked quickly towards Jasmine's house, arriving shortly after 6 am.

He easily and silently climbed onto the porch railing and the canopy, unbothered by the dark red footprints he left on the wood, and positioned himself in front of the young girl's window, which had been forgotten, or perhaps left, a little open.

He opened it wide open, slowly so as not to make any noises, but the girl's dog senses were as developed, if not more, as his, so he wasn't surprised at the low growl he heard. Looking around the room, he noticed the sleeping girl, lying on the bed with her back to the window, and the dog's head sticking out from under it. He stared at Jason and bared his teeth, trying to intimidate him, but Jason was not of this world and it was enough for him to stare at the dog and snort to scare him and make him whine. The animal went back to hiding under the bed, silent, but he could see that he continued to observe him. As long as he didn't make any noise, he was fine with it.

He could have entered the room, but he contented himself with observing it even from that distance. She would have preferred she had turned towards him, but she was satisfied. She let her gaze wander around the room, trying to catch some detail to better understand the brunette. He was not a little surprised when, thanks to the light of the moon, he noticed on the chest of drawers two small figurines that represented him: a statuette and a puppet. Jason cocked his head curiously. There was no doubt, it was him. There wasn't so much to be surprised, though. He had suspected Jasmine was a "fan" when he found her mask necklace, this was just confirmation. As proof of everything, there was also a drawing hanging on the wall and, despite the dim light, he was able to recognize the figure of her and that of the girl. He was not sure about who the others were, he was too far away and he was too dark to understand well.

He could have entered the room, but he was content with observing her even from that distance. Tho he would have preferred she had turned towards him, no doubts. He let his gaze wander around the room, trying to catch some details to better understand the brunette. He was quite intrigued when, thanks to the light of the moon, he noticed on the dresser two small figures that represented him: a statue and a plushie. Jason cocked his head curiously. There was no doubt, it was him. There wasn't so much to be surprised, though. He had suspected Jasmine was a "fan" when he found her mask necklace, this was just a confirmation. As proof of everything, there was also a drawing hanging on the wall and, despite the dim light, he was able to recognize the figure of himself and that of the girl. He was not sure about who the others were, he was too far away and it was too dark to understand well.

He had no idea that Jasmine had a whole file about him, a huge poster, various other drawings of him, the complete collection of films, the video game and half a dozen T-shirts. If he had known, he would have been more than surprised.

He stood there for a long time looking at everything, imagining various scenarios on how could have reacted the girl in the case of a not so hypothetical next meeting. And, more importantly, how he should have reacted. He was giving her a lot more importance than he had with anyone else, but then she was proving to be very different from most of them, not to say everyone.

Meanwhile, dawn had arrived, so it was time for him to leave. He lingered a little longer, then the girl turned over, without waking up, finally showing him her face: she was serene. If only she had known!

He took the necklace from his pocket and left it on her windowsill: a small gesture to thank her for her gift, he definitely enjoyed it.

He jumped off the roofing smoothly, making a decision on his way home. He would have taken Jasmine by surprise, absolutely certain it would have been fun - and useful to really understand her intentions - to scare her a little.

A/N

As promised, here I am!

As expected, I am late once again...

Well...what do you think of this chapter? It's shorter than the others, but writing from Jason's point of view, as interesting and fun as it is, is more difficult than writing for Jasmine. Let me know if you enjoyed it! 

Until next time!