fade to black | james hetfield [1]

four

chapter four: blood is spilled and man will follow

tw: blood

James ran up beside Iris, wanting to talk to her for a little bit longer. He could tell she wasn't feeling good right now and he wanted to make sure she was okay before she left. 

"Hey thanks for coming tonight, Iris," He said as he continued to walk beside her. "I don't know many people who would go see a band they've never even heard of."

Iris turned to him, a bit of surprise on her face when he said that. "Oh, you don't have to thank me," She thought over what he said. "I'm always at the bar, I probably would've come in and watched anyway."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really?" James thought back to the night he first met Iris. Lars had complained that the bar was boring and they'd never go back again, especially because there "wasn't any hot girls there."

"If you ever decide to come in on a random night, chances are I'll be there." She slightly laughed, but there was a hint of sadness to it. It made Iris think about her loneliness again and how uninteresting she must sound to James.

He didn't think about it too much. James made a mental note of what she said. He was going to plan a visit to the bar again soon, in hopes he would run into her again.

There wasn't much to say during the short walk, James just needed an excuse to talk to her alone. He liked talking to Iris, there was something about her that kept drawing him in. He didn't want to let her go.

"Well, this is me." Iris said as she stopped in front of her car. She tried her best to muster a smile at James as she waved goodbye and got inside her car. Once she got inside, she let out a deep sigh, wanting to get away from him as soon as possible.

"See you later, Iris." James said through the window as he waved goodbye. He stood and watched her pull out of her parking space before walking back to the guys.

When James came back, he could tell that they had been watching his entire interaction with Iris. "Be honest," Lars was the first to speak up, a shit-eating grin on his face. "Is that your girlfriend?"

James rolled his eyes, feeling his cheeks heating up. "It's not like that. She's just a friend." Or at least that's what he kept telling himself.

Kirk came to James's defense. "Leave him alone, she seems nice."

Cliff looked over at Kirk, rolling his eyes. "That's easy for you to say. You almost blew up his spot." He laughed.

"No, I didn't!" Kirk defended himself. James was listening now, completely unaware that this interaction even happened.

"Oh really? So you weren't going to mention how much James can't stop talking about her?" Cliff gave Kirk a knowing look.

Kirk stood there quietly for a second, shrugging. "Well, it's true. He won't stop talking about her." James's cheeks turned red when he said that. He was glad it was dark outside so they wouldn't notice.

Lars crosses his arms and looks at James. "I don't know, that sounds like a girlfriend to me." He said purposefully, trying to push his buttons.

"She's not my girlfriend!" James exclaims, his cheeks turning redder from the embarrassment. Now it was even more obvious than before.

Kirk shrugs. "There's no shame if you like her, James. I like her too." Kirk said with a friendly smile.

"Yeah, she's pretty hot." Lars smirked, earning a glare from the three of them. He shrugged it off, ignoring their silent judgment.

James groaned and took another sip of his beer, wanting to change the subject. "Can we talk about something else?" He asks. 

"This isn't over, Hetfield." Cliff winked. They all knew the truth.

After getting a couple more beers at the bar and hanging out, they all decided to call it a night. Once James came home, he flopped onto his bed, exhausted from the show. He shut his eyes, drifting off to sleep.

Suddenly, he woke up, surrounded by darkness. He was a bit disoriented, confused about his surroundings as he tried to walk and see through the dark.

He heard the sound of sniffling from behind him, turning around to see a girl sitting on the floor with her knees tucked into her chest. He could see her clearer, the dim lighting making her visible.

The girl was clearly upset, the sound of her cries echoing in the darkness. It was an unsettling feeling, watching her cry in the darkness alone. He didn't know if she was hurt or needed someone to talk to.

"Hello?" James's voice echoed out to her. She didn't move, continuing to sob quietly as she ignored him.

James began to carefully walk towards her, her cries and sniffles getting louder the closer he came. Her appearance came into view clearer, and for a second, he swore that the girl in front of him was Iris.

"Are you okay?" He asks, whispering close enough for the girl to hear. She suddenly sat up, not saying a word. She began to slowly turn her head towards him, her tears consisting of blood.

James felt his heart drop into his stomach at the sight. It was Iris, sitting there with crimson tears staining her face. He panicked as he tried to find out what was wrong with her, worried that she might be hurt.

Just as she was about to speak, he shot out of bed, breathing hard as his heart pounded against his chest. He let out a sigh of relief when he realized it was just a nightmare and he was still in his room.

He knew it was all in his head, a meaningless nightmare. But for some reason, it felt too real.