Corruption

10 | overstimulated

I was hesitant, to say the very least. Ben had picked me up bridal style, and was carrying me over to where EJ's old lab used to be. He explained it was practically the nurses office of the house, and that the proxies used it regularly to patch up. Ben also explained apparently EJ owed him a favor, something about getting him some stolen credit cards. The medical lab was clean and pristine, with the exception of dust outlining certain unused areas of the room. Ben sat me down on a typical hospital bed, the bedding underneath me soft and clean. "Now not to freak you out, but I do need to pull Milani to the side to talk to her. So you're gonna be alone with EJ for a bit," Ben told me. I looked up at him, beyond worried. Leaving me in the room with a cannibal was a questionable decision, one I wouldn't have made if it was the other way around. "What if he eats me? Or my organs?" I questioned loudly. Ben ushered me to be quiet, shushing me before glancing over back at the entrance we came through to make sure EJ hadn't heard.

It was then I noticed the door was made out of metal, with locks not on the inside, but the outside. "Jack is one of my best friends, he wouldn't do that to me. Just relax," Ben urged. I contemplated getting up and leaving, and ignoring the pain in my feet. Truth was, I was nervous about both outcomes. If I left, my feet were burnt toast. If I stayed, I risked my organs. Not exactly the best situation. "But he's a cannibal! What if he's hungry?" I asked in a yell whisper. A stiff cough came from the doorway, where EJ stood menacingly. "I have plenty of food for myself in these fridges, your organs aren't in my field of interest," He told me. I could feel my cheeks dashing red from embarrassment, realizing he heard me talk about him. Ben shot me an awkward smile, before nuzzling my hair. "You'll be fine shawty. I'll be back after I talk to Mil," He told me. I quickly tried to fix my hair, annoyed he frizzled it.

Ben left the room nodding and walking by EJ as he made his way out. "Do me a favor and lay back," EJ told me. I raised my eyebrows, unsure if it was safe to listen to him. He walked over to one of the marble counters, putting on a pair of latex gloves. "I seriously don't want to eat you. If I did you'd be dead by now," He insisted. I decided to listen, putting my feet up on the hospital bed. EJ grabbed a small stool with wheels, rolling it over to me. There was an awkward silence between us as he examined my feet, and I  never had put as much thought into them until now. He reached under the bed, taking out a roll of paper towels. He ripped some off of the roll, folding them and setting it beside my feet. I watched as the tall man walked over to the counter again, this time reaching for the cabinet above it. The cabinets were all pure white, with clean silver handles. If I hadn't known any better I would've guessed I was in an actual hospital. "So, how'd you meet Ben?" EJ asked me curiously. Oh God, is this gonna be some kind of interview?

"I uh, was trying to find stuff for college. I used to go," I admitted. EJ took out a small white bin, and carried it over to his stool. Through the holes on the side I could see tweezers, along with a variety of other small metal tools. "What were you going to college for?" EJ asked. I gulped nervously as he held the tweezer in his hand, trying to locate the splinters in the sides of my right foot. "I was gonna be a psychologist one day," I told him. I watched as he grabbed one of them out, wiping it onto the paper towel. At least that didn't hurt. "You don't sound too excited about it," He commented. The next splinter was wedged into a thin layer of my skin, causing EJ to have to dig it out with his tweezers. I screwed my eyes shut, trying to hold in a number of curses threatening to spill out. "College was mainly my dads idea. That, and it's not like I can go now anyway," I said. I could feel the semi dull blade digging into my skin, the sharp pain sending lighting strikes to my foot. I found myself yanking my foot towards my chest, which EJ prevented by grabbing my ankle. "Don't move, it'll make this harder," He ordered.

"Kinda hard not to when you're jabbing my foot," I replied. I allowed him to pull my foot closer to him, forcing myself to look away. "Anyways, at least you were on the right path," EJ said dryly. I forced myself to look, seeing he managed to pull the splinter out. Note to self, never run barefoot in a forest ever again. "Not like it matters now, I can never go back," I replied. EJ reached over to his white basket, grabbing a small package. He ripped it open, revealing an alcohol wipe. "Thought you were having home troubles. They that bad?," EJ hummed. He gently wiped the dry blood off of me, thoroughly examining my skin as he did so. "Ben was just covering for my ass. I caught my boyfriend cheating on me and I killed the girl," I confessed. EJ froze, his gaze trailing up to my face. He then chuckled darkly, his voice hoarse and deep. "Something funny?" I asked sarcastically.