Academy Murder Party

~:Chapter 35:~

Zach opened his eyes, immediately expecting to be met with a world full of pain, yet, there was none. Instead, he felt completely normal, like nothing had ever happened. He took a deep breath, fully embracing the sharp stabbing pain that was to come, but it never did. For a second, he almost considered that he was dead, yet, when his vision returned to normal, he realized he was in the same place. He struggled yet, still couldn't move.

"G-Gah..." He grunted.

"Stop moving... You'll pop your stitches." A voice, gentler yet familiar, came from behind him. He looked to both sides of him yet, couldn't see the origin of this voice until a hooded figure walked around him, looking down upon him, at least, he assumed. He couldn't make out any details of the person, except that it was most likely a girl from the voice. Her entire body was covered by a cloak, including the head and face.

It stared at him for a moment before sighing. 

"P-Please... let me out..." He whispered to her, pleading for his freedom.

"I'm not doing this for you." She whispered. "Lady Annabelle wanted you kept alive." She said, crossing her arms. "She has plans for you."

"N-No... please..." He whispered, feeling the strange sensation of the stitches on his face.

"It is not up to me." She said. "I must be going now, seeing as you're in stable condition." She said, sighing before she turned around and began to walk away. However, she paused while still looking ahead. "The pain relief won't wear off for another few hours." She muttered before opening the door in front of him. Once again, Zach squinted his eyes from the blinding light, and soon, with a loud metal bang, the door shut, leaving Zach stranded in the dark room under the flickering light.

He wasn't left alone for long. Soon, he heard the sound of the door opening once again; much to his dismay, it was the girl again, who smiled from ear to ear upon noticing he was conscious. 

"Good morning, piggy..." She grinned as she approached him, tracing her fingers through her hair. "I hope you're feeling well-rested because we have much to do..." She said with a smile before moving over to the tray behind her. Zach heard the oh-so-familiar haunting sound of the clang of metal behind him, making him cringe just from the noise alone.

"You know, I've been thinking about what you said earlier... about the scissors..." The girl spoke out from behind him. "As much as I hate to admit it..." She paused for a moment as if hesitating. "You were right. They couldn't..." She said, walking back around into his field of vision. "I just needed to go bigger! So, this can!" She pulled out a knife and placed it on his finger. He shivered at the sensation of cool metal against the flesh of his already nearly mangled finger. 

"What? You're not going to beg?" The girl frowned. "You're no fun!" She pouted. "Oh well." She said with a shrug before cleanly slicing through his finger. He cringed at the sound of the blade slicing directly through his finger at the joint. "Not even going to scream, huh?" She said with disappointment.

"D-Did you want me to?" He muttered.

"That's a great idea!" She said, holding up his pinky finger. "What do you think I should do with this? Make a necklace?" She said. Zach didn't respond. Instead, he stared ahead, not even bothering to give the girl any attention. "No idea either? Hm... Maybe I'll get some inspiration down the line." She said with a shrug, tossing it to the side. "Now, let's see... where were we?"

"ANNABELLE. COME HERE AT ONCE!" A faint voice screamed out, like a mother angrily calling for her child. The girl immediately stopped before she sighed and turned towards the door. 

"I'll be back. Don't miss me too much." She said with a forced smile before turning on her heels to leave, quickly moving towards the door, opening it and leaving it slightly ajar behind her—the light from the crack flooded into the room, illuminating a line next to the table.