PERVERSE - Apply Fic

08

By the crack of dawn, everyone has returned to the church and its basement. Ajay and Ambrose come back first, only as far away as the bell tower. In the bathroom, Ajay washes his hands twice. It wasn't rust on those earrings. This town has many ghosts as people, clearly. Most people work for the oil sands and commute out there every day. Anyone who stops by is just spending time in a truck stop and thinking about the oil sands. These bloody earrings could belong to any unfortunate Indigenous woman who happened to stop through here.

Why is Ajay alive when they are not? He can't remember it. No matter how hard he tries. He was on a sidewalk and Chelster doesn't have many. Ajay pukes.

So, it isn't just Nico's stomach. They can be sick. Perhaps he can die still.

Ambrose is not stupid. He doesn't know Ajay isn't going to tell anyone about their discovery, but he knows he certainly doesn't want it to spread around. Maybe Ambrose wouldn't be the best vessel for delivery, but there isn't much use for a panic. They are more powerful than a man in a black robe. Their connection to life and death has more depth than anyone could achieve by standing on a pulpit.

In a few hours, Fallon and Kaia have returned. Both smile and each time it hurts their faces. Muscles that haven't been pulled recently enough. They left without Barry and Eva and somehow found themselves talking. Being lesbians in small towns gives them enough in common. They don't have all that much in common besides wanting to leave, but that is enough.

Of course, they both have girlfriends, but neither of them even speaks their names.

Barry is exhausted when he arrives with Eva in tow. He cannot imagine someone less charismatic than Eva, from her choppy blonde hair and black eyeliner that couldn't look better if she hadn't been pulled out of a dirty ground less than forty-eight hours ago. Yet, she's bummed an entire pack of cigarettes and a bag of greasy fries off a fry cook at the diner. He doesn't want to cope with their inability to leave yet. This is the town of Evas.

When Eva gets back, she plops down on a cot, squishing between Fallon and Kaia. She offers them some of the fries. Kaia reaches in too quickly and Fallon laughs. Kaia bites into it, and the fry is just as soggy and flavourless as she had expected. As she remembered.

There is a lip gloss, cherry on her lips. She can feel its thickness, she tastes Rory. Her face feels a hot flush, embarrassment, rage. Kaia stands up and excuses herself to the kitchen. She runs the water and tries not to cry as it pours down the drain.

Clare and Leo see her enter and exit before she even gets to the sink. They see Ajay, and he offers them a small nod. They'll chat with him later. Leo keeps avoiding touching his face. It's not just the sight of it. He can feel how wrong it is. He needs a topical ointment, and he needs his pills for his RAS. All of this is stressful. If he listens closely, he can hear Kara sniffing.

Beside him, Clare is tapping their foot. They are sure how people are supposed to sit down. It might have been a dream three days ago to sit in a basement and think just for a minute, but Clare works best with a deadline hanging over their head and not a church. They want a book, or a podcast, or a thousand answers. They are here. The police haven't contacted them in days, and they were apparently still investigating deaths that definitely happened. Chelster may have few resources but Clare has even less at their disposal.

Having given up on all the markers that are running out of ink, Audrey scribbles with a crayon to create a list. When Audrey was studying journalism at Yale, lists were invaluable. Writing down every thought as it comes and being able to return to it, even if it is written in crayon, is more valuable than anything in the rest of the church. Audrey doesn't remember dying, but Fallon claims it is 2021. Audrey needs a newspaper, preferably from the outside world. She needs access to a computer to research exactly what caused her death. Audrey can start her search there and then later figure out what to do with her mother.