War in Broadway High

15. The Dark Knight

Chapter 15: The Dark Knight

Veronica.

She was done. That was it, the end of Veronica Sawyer. Her head was swirling with alcohol and worry, spiraling out of control. It had been foolish to think they could defeat the demon queen, she would always win, she would always come out on top, because the world was made for her. And you only had two options: kneel down to her power, or die. Thinking she'd been straying away from it all and finding a new way, she'd actually walked the path leading to the latter.

And she was already a dead girl walking. But in that moment of despair, all she could think about was JD. How safe she felt in his presence, how protected, how far away from all the bullshit of society, like none of it mattered. She needed that right now. And before she was even sure what she was doing, she found herself stumbling with her phone and dialing his number. She only hoped he wasn't sleeping.

It rang once before he picked up, clearly already awake.

"Veronica?" His voice sounded sweet, but uncertain.

Her worries dissipated almost instantly, replaced by her need for him.

"Jayyyy Deeee," she belted out in a singsong voice. "Why aren't you here? I want youu."

"What?" Confusion had turned into concern. "You sound wasted...how much did you drink?"

"Yes," she giggled.

"I- Where are you?"

"In Hell," her eyes suddenly welled up with tears, her emotions unfiltered and all over the place. "I'm done, JD, this is it. I got about 30 hours till my execution. And then say goodbye, because Veronica will be no more..."

"Wh- alright hang on. I'm coming to get you." She heard some movement and shuffling of clothes, like he was getting dressed. "Are you still at that Halloween party thing?"

"Yes. I'm- I'm locked up in the main bedroom, actually."

There was silence for a second. When he spoke again, there was a cold undertone to his voice.

"I'll be there soon."

About fifteen minutes passed of Veronica being alone with her thoughts, the loud sounds of the party in the background making it impossible to forget her current predicament, even as they began to die down because people were starting to leave. Had they forgotten about her trapped in there so easily? She felt like crying again, but instead, to keep herself busy, she saw some aromatic candles and decided to light them to set the mood, with some matches right next to them. She was thinking what else she could do, when she heard a knock...but not coming from the door.

Startled, she turned to the window. And there he was, her knight in dark armor, with his devilishly charming smile, coming to her rescue.

She grinned and went over to open the window. He was propped up on a tree branch, barely holding on, but still acting like it was the most casual thing in the world.

"Dreadful etiquette, I know. But you said the door was locked."

"Get in here," she laughed, pulling from his coat to help him in.

Once he was standing in front of her, he frowned, looking into her eyes, probably noticing her crying. He ran a hand through her cheek, his thumb delicately wiping her tears.

"What happened?"

"Doesn't matter anymore," Veronica said at the same time she was deciding it, and got on her tiptoes to kiss him. Hard, with a hint of desperation, and a lot of built-up emotion. That's what she needed, that was all she needed; it wouldn't be the Heathers' night, it would be all hers, she was taking control of the one thing she had left for now, her life. And he felt so good, even better than she remembered. After a second of surprise, JD kissed her back eagerly, sharing her feelings, but pulling away much too soon.

"Let's get you out of here."

Veronica showed a bright, playful smile, and shook her head.

"Not yet." Her arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him close again, burying her fingers in his soft hair, leaning into his lips until they were only an inch apart, sharing a breath. "First, I decided I'm gonna ride you till I break you," she whispered.

JD's eyes were so easy to read, beyond his quizzical look. There was so much in them, surprise, temptation, love, desire, concern, all mixing together in a unique spark. But that last one seemed to take over.

"Veronica, you're really dru-"

He couldn't finish the sentence before being pushed onto the bed, falling on his back. Not having time to even process what was going on, she was already climbing on and straddling him.

He started to protest once more, but she put a finger on his lips.

"Shhhhhhh." Her finger slowly trailed down. "Sober me wanted this. Drunk me wants this. Tomorrow's me will still want this. Will want you. You're my last meal on death row."

His eyes started to show a tender adoration combined with excitement.

"And it's 'cause you're beautiful, you know?" She reached a hand out to his face, and he instinctively flinched first, as if he was expecting to be hit, before letting her touch him. She cupped his cheek affectionately and looked into his eyes. "You act like you're all numb inside, but I don't buy it. The world sucks and is unfair, yes, but tonight let's keep it beyond that locked door. In here," she patted his chest with her other hand, right over his heart. "it's beautiful. So let's make this night beautiful, okay?"

JD beamed.

"That works for me."

He sat up to meet her lips with eagerness, a kiss that very quickly turned passionate, their tongues tentatively exploring each other, discovering each other. He tore her blazer and slid it off her shoulders without breaking the kiss, and then fumbled with her bra under her dress, his cold hands trailing her skin like they couldn't get enough, sending a pleasant shiver down her spine.

"I didn't bring-" he started saying in a breath.

She roughly pushed him onto his back again.

"I'm on the pill," she assured him with an impish smile. "Now shut your mouth and lose the clothes. I want you to make this whole town disappear."

She could tell he really liked this, bowing down to her will, both from his expression that he couldn't believe his luck, and the excitement she could feel in his body directly beneath hers.

He hadn't finished taking off his jacket though when there was some sudden, aggressive banging on the door. After a few seconds the person seemed to realize it was locked from the outside and the key was right there, because they tried it and opened it.

Both teens jumped off the bed and stood next to it, JD quickly getting in front of Veronica.

Rich came in, acting really strange, twitching almost as if he was tweaking on meth. His eyes were unfocused, and one of his hands was hitting his own head while the other swung a bottle of vodka around, spilling its content all over the floor.

"Stop, it needs to stop!"

"What the hell are you on about?!" Veronica questioned, covering herself as best she could.

"It said, that you two, together was- I don't know! Just your names! I don't know what- but danger...AND BECAUSE I DRANK IT'S NOT MAKING ANY SENSE NOW! I DON'T SPEAK JAPANESE!"

He violently threw the bottle at a wall, unfortunately, right where the candles were. A flame burst and quickly caught onto the curtains, spreading wildly.

"Shit!" JD moved over to try to put out the fire, but it was then that Rich set his sight on Veronica, his eyes maddened and filled with tears.

"I have to stop it, I have to, I don't have a choice!" he screamed, running at her at full speed, with clearly violent intent.