𝐃𝐄𝐏𝐑𝐀𝐕𝐄𝐃

37

HER PREY

"Uhh, I guess you could say I was troubled."

I laid on Lowen's chest as she spoke; I could feel each time that her stomach gurgled, each time she sighed, each time she laughed, each time she giggled.

Each time she held back a sob.

"I wasn't gettin' hardly any to little guidance from much of anyone. I was fightin', I was pickin' at people, I was hurtin' inside. I felt like, because I was hurting other people should too, type of thing, I guess," she shrugged. "We've all went through a rough patch in life before but we all haven't went to juvy. We all haven't done some irreversible things with our lives. I was makin' decisions that my mind couldn't handle."

"I get that," I blinked against her chest, staring at her moving her feet, near mine.

"Euphemie pulled me out of my adolescence and gave me wisdom that I needed from an older person. Our relationship just wasn't...right. They helped me so much but they were also hurtin' me. I was feelin' emotions too big for my body and my heart. I didn't even know how to make myself cum yet. I didn't even know how to use a tampon yet, and here comes Euphemie, in my life. They matured me so much through the time we spent together. Until they made a mistake off of emotion."

"They fucked up," I stated.

"They did," Lowen sighed. "And I took the fall because I didn't want them goin' down. I was too in love and I wasn't rational. My parents didn't know about what I was goin' through until the cops came to my door to take me away. Because all of the evidence pointed to me."

"Because you let it," I repeated.

"I was an idiot. Felt like a huge one," she laughed, "When Euphemie slowly stopped talkin' to me and we broke things off, I guess they were tired of dealin' with a childish ass person. News flash: I was a child."

"I remember the time we were sitting in their RV, and I was layin' on their bed, hand on their stomach kind of like you right now. Blues music softly was playin' in the background and we had just smoked. I had been with Euphemie earlier when they bought the stuff, but still, something felt...wrong. I try to sit up and it's like I'm covered in eye drops." Lowen suddenly sat up straighter, moving me off of her as she stared at me, "Lemme explain. It's like those heavy eye drops they give you at the eye doctor's office, but like, all over your body, Casei. I felt like I was being weighed down. Like I was...sinkin' into the ocean."

I nodded, and she calmed down, staring at her lap.

"I don't remember much from that day. But stuff like that kept happenin' when I'd smoke with them. And, I guess one day I confronted them about it and that's when they blurted out what they had done. I felt like it was holdin' me hostage in the relationship."

"Why? If anything, that woulda made me leave, no lookin' back," I stated.

"I wasn't thinkin' and actin' right before Euphemie, Casei. I hadn't found reason in my life yet. They had threatened me with suicide and all the usual stuff before if I ever broke up with them. This was new...they had killed someone."

Lowen's eyes found mine again.

"I mean, one time, I was with this girl and she was big on church right. Naturally, hid me from her parents because she was afraid what everyone would think. I didn't mind because I had the mindset that one day she'd take me around them. Never did," I chuckled bitterly, "I remember one time during our breaks she had blocked me on everything, and I mean everything." I laughed a little, thinking about it, "So; I knew that sometimes she watched church on a live stream when she was home sick, and that weekend she just happened to be sick. I went on the live stream, and I feel so bad now, thinkin' about it. I kept textin' on the little message board, sayin' her name and tellin' her to text me back."

"Casei, no," Lowen laughed.

"I never mentioned the reason why I wanted to contact her or no shit like that. I just kept sayin' that it was me and I wanted her to text me. Well, one day, she pops up at my place and tells me that one of the church members mentioned the whole thing to her in front of her parents and her parents checked her phone on the spot and saw what me and her had together."

"Casei," Lowen gasped.

"Now, that situation was wild, but what Euphemie did with all of that is even more wild. You couldn't see that they were crazy, Lowen?" I asked incredulously.

Lowen only shook her head, "I wasn't usin' reason."

"Why'd they do it?" I asked.

"Because Euphemie was bein' them." Lowen sighed again, "I never got a real reason out of them of the whole why. I guess no one will ever know. It was a red-haired chick with dark sunglasses, cute little dress on and some leggings. I'll never know the correlation."

"That gotta suck 'cause this shit will stick with you-

"For life," Lowen nodded, "Yeah I know."

"I'm sorry, Lowen, for thinkin' that...these rumors are you. I'm lookin' at you right now. Not those rumors," I stated.

I laid my legs on top of hers, and she wiggled her toes to tickle mine, as I giggled.

She leaned in and kissed me, the motion more sad than earlier. "I'm not sayin' I don't have secrets, sweets. They just don't involve killin' that girl."

Out of nowhere, we could hear a few clicks then a turn; the front door unlocked downstairs and closed, leaving my stomach to drop down to my ass.