Through the Hellfire

Chapter Three | The Murder Suspect

Please forgive me
I've got demons in my head (in my head)
Tryna eat me
Tryna feed me lies until I'm dead (till I'm dead)

xxx

"And then Vicki laughed. And it wasn't like a cheap, fake laugh either. It was a real, genuine laugh." Robin went on about her interaction with Vicki at the Championship game.

"Of course she laughed, Robin. It's my Muppet joke. It's hilarious." Steve replied.

We were currently at the Family Video store where the two worked. They were putting back the returned tapes, while I was re-painting my nails black.

"My point is that Vicki laughed, and everything was just like...I don't know, it was..." Robin continued

"Perfect." I said, admiring my nails. I did a really good job on not getting the nail polish all over my fingers.

"Yes! It was perfect." Robin replied, causing me to finally look up from my hand. I was truly barely listening, and didn't even fully listen to her rant.

"But?" Steve asked as I stood up and walked next to them.

"But I'm having this problem where it's like, I should stop talking. I have said everything I need to say, but then I guess I get nervous and the words they just keep spilling out, and it's like my...my brain is moving faster than my mouth. Or...or rather my...my mouth is moving faster than my brain." She sped up her rant as Steve pulled the returns trolley behind her to the next section. "And it's like I'm digging this hole for myself, and I want to stop digging, and I'm trying to stop, but I can't."

"Robin, babe, in the nicest way possible, slow the fuck down a bit." I grabbed her shoulders, lightly shaking them back and forth.

"I'm doing it right now, aren't I?" She asked.

"Yeah, you are." Steve and I replied at the same time. We send each other a look and a smile as Robin exhaled.

"I'm hopeless." She replied, smacking her back while leaning against a wall.

"We both are." Steve agreed, doing the same lean.

"I guess all three of us are then." I chuckled, joining in the lean.

"If only we could just, like, combine." Robin said. I leaned forward to look over Steve as we both looked at her in a questioning matter. "No, think about it. I know exactly what I want and I've found the girl of my dreams, but I just can't get the courage to ask her out. Meanwhile you, Steve, go on like a million dates, and you have no idea what you want. And you, Stas. You've got the courage, and you're really fucking hot, so you could definitely have anyone and everyone you want, but you claim you're happy single and all that."

"I will take the fact that I'm 'really fucking hot' as a compliment, but hey, I am actually very happy being single, okay? It's not just something I claim." I leaned back on the wall, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Yeah, anyway. If we just combined, all our problems would be solved. Because I mean alone, let's face it, we totally suck." Robin continued, Steve finishing the sentence with her.

"Y'all can do as much sucking as you want if you're just going to be standing around doing nothing. Meanwhile, I will continue being happily single so I don't have to suck at anything. Or anyone." I smiled, walking towards the counter before lifting myself to sit on it.

"Okay, I'll make a dare-bet with you Stas." Robin walked over to me, standing just off to my left while Steve stayed leaning against the wall, deep in thought. "I bet that you do long for someone's touch, so I dare you to make-out with someone by the end of the week. Or better yet, sleep with them. If you still think you're doing fine being single at the end of the bet, you win. I will owe you one favour of any sort. If you lose...If you lose and end up liking somebody's affection, you will owe me a favour."