𝕋ℍ𝔼 𝕊𝕌𝔹𝕃𝕀𝕄𝕀ℕ𝔸𝕃 𝕆ℕ𝔼-ᴾᵃʳᵗ²

Chapter 42: Unhinged Remeberance

Holding hands, Corey and Sallie walked back towards the caravan, the moon their only guide through the darkened camping site. Their shoes crunched against the pebbled path, taking a slow walk back to their caravan, the cool breeze fresh and gentle on their warm faces. The sweat was already drying from the air, soothing Sallie's body from her aggressive dance-off.

Sallie looked up at Corey, admiring the angle of his face, the sharpness of his jaw and how the stubble of his beard seemed to have made him far more handsome in the moonlight. She took this moment to appreciate how lucky she was to have someone like him.

The microwave pinged, completing its reheating of the fourth piece of breaded chicken. Mr. Knight opened the door, a small pocket of steam escaping, and the entire caravan reeked of the same garbage Sallie had forced herself to eat.

He turned to the small table just behind him, placing the dinner plate down before Sallie, feeding her last, and sat down beside Sam, who was already daintily cutting the breaded chicken.

Comically, Corey lost all of the fucks he had, and was happily scoffing his food down, almost vociferously. Sallie had to think for a time, knowing that Corey was often polite once it came to eating. But he was probably purposely being rude and noisy as a subtle way of getting back at Sam and Mr. Knight.

Sam sat opposite to him, her pointed nose wrinkled in disgust, but remarkably she said nothing. She only stared him down, judging, her stabbing glare trying to bother the younger male. But he wasn't paying attention to her. He wasn't conscious about what Sam thought.

Beside Corey, Sallie played with her food, seeing the half-cooked piece of breaded chicken and sighed deeply at the harsh flashbacks she was experiencing just at the sight of the poorly made dish.

"Do you have to be so noisy?" Sam said eventually, her voice cutting through the awkward silence. She was referring to Corey. "Eating like a fucking animal."

Through the crimson locks, she saw Corey's eyes stabbing back at her, but then he smiled winningly. Sam didn't like that.

"I'm just an animal in general. It's only human." Corey beamed; a smile so painfully fake even Sallie had to cringe at it. "I can be an animal in the bedroom too!"

Sallie subtly kicked his shin under the table, casting him a frown. There was no need to tell her that sort of thing. Even though the pair of them were posing as best friends, there was no way Sam would ever miss the opportunity to simply-

"So, you're a sex-freak?"

And there it was.

Corey shrugged again, now leaning towards the challenge of pissing Sam off.

"Well, yeah, actually. I fucking love sex! I worked in a sex store, for fuck's sake." There was no underlining threat or anger in his voice, but his words held a sharp edge that seemed to have warned Sam off. "Sex is also natural. I'm sure you like it." Giving her another charming smile, he added: "Oh, then again, only men are sex-crazy."

Mr. Knight, who was quietly eating his salad, gave his estranged daughter a questionable gaze, to which she replied with a blank stare. She quietly tried to stomach down the repetitive meal. Corey decided to have a little fun with her father too. "Isn't that right, Mr. Knight?"

Mr. Knight knew he was going to get involved with it at some point. He placed his fork on the plate and gave Corey a small smile, trying to be friendly with this offensive friend of his daughter's.

"Of course. Who doesn't like sex?" He forced a chuckle. "Sallie's mother and I were at it like rabbits."

Sallie's grip tightened around her knife, her eyes sliding past at Sam, who was shaking her head in repugnance as she pinched at a piece of lettuce.