stab | scream applyfic ✓

chapter seventeen

STAB,
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

"DO YOU THINK it's wrong of us to be going on a date during all of this?", Ming asked Abigail, taking a sip of his drink. The two of them were at the diner where they always had their dates when they just wanted to go out without planning something. Did Ming actually care if it was wrong? No, not really. If it wasn't all about him, Ming didn't particularly care about anything. That didn't make him a bad person by any means. It's not like he didn't care about anything. He cared about Abigail.

"Probably", Abigail shrugged. But she didn't care all that much either, not when she was with Ming. Abigail could flirt all she wanted, but she had never actually cared about anyone the way she cared about Ming. It was new and exciting and thrilling. And it was falling in love for the first time. It was the feeling of being weightless and falling, but not even caring if there was a net left to catch her. "But I don't really care about that right now." She frowned, biting her lip. "But I guess I am worried that something might happen to cut our time short."

Deep down, she knew that Ming would be okay. Their relationship would survive this test. And they could just ride off into the sunset and finally have their happy ending. But...

What if she was wrong?

What if things all went horribly wrong and they were ripped apart before they ever got the chance to really begin? Ghostface couldn't have come at a worse time. Why couldn't it have all went down after she got the chance to experience this and see where it takes her? Why couldn't her life be settled before it was at risk of being over?

Ming was beginning to learn all of Abigail's tells at this point. He may not have been able to catch her every emotion when it happened, but he knew that flicker of worry and uncertainty when it arose. Her brows creased right in there center. Her lips turned down at the corners, just slightly. It was like she tasted something sour. Ming was quick to place his hand over hers. His touch was warm and gentle. Abigail turned her hand over, palm up, so that she could interlace her fingers with his. "We're gonna be okay", he reassured softly, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. Everything about his presence was warm and inviting. It provided a comfort that she didn't know she needed. He was amazing. This was amazing.

But it wouldn't last, would it? Not while Ghostface was around. Not while they weren't allowed to have peace. If things were different, if Ghostface had never existed, they would be able to live in peace and love freely. The Ghostface legacy was one of horror and bloodshed. Everyone always talked about the physical pain, the deaths. And sure, those things were important to talk about. Most of those deaths were brutal. Even Zara's death, arguably, was brutal. Because she'd tried so hard. She'd fought to survive, and she'd still lost.

Just like that, Ghostface had made an orphan of her daughter.

And sure, Zoey would have people to look out for her, but she would never have her mother again. The very thought made Abigail's heart sink. That was the thing about the Ghostface Legacy. Everyone only ever talked about the pain. No one ever talked about the emotional trauma that was left in its wake. The victims may have been put through a pain worse than most people could imagine, their lives cut far too short by some cruel mistress of fate, but it was the survivors who would live the rest of their lives in emotional turmoil. It was them who would never know peace. Only anguish. Death was often short. It was an ending to whatever suffering you endured, mental or otherwise. Some people might consider it peace. Abigail didn't. She feared death. She tried to outrun it at every possible turn. One day, its icy grip would eventually catch up to her. Its cold fingers would rake through her soul like a misguided kid dancing in the smoke. But still, she felt that living was a lot harder than dying. When you were dead, there were no expectations.

That's all that living was, expectations.

Expectations and a lot of pain. Politicians who didn't care about you. A planet that was dying, a generation ahead who didn't care, and a generation behind who would have nothing left. And there they were, right in the middle of that. Abigail had to keep reminding herself that death may come for her one day, maybe even one day soon, but today wasn't that day. Death would come for everyone someday. She just didn't have to worry about it right now. She could worry about it later.

Right now, there was only this moment.

Abigail forced the thoughts to the back of her mind. Ghostface wouldn't ruin this. This moment, this day, was hers and hers alone. It was Ming's and Ming's alone. It was theirs and theirs alone. The rest of the world could wait for some other day to be. She smiled then, bright and optimistic. "You're right", she finally said. "I'm working myself up. I mean, with good reason, because this is literally hell that we're living in, but still. We have to acknowledge what's going on, yes, but it doesn't have to bleed into every aspect of our lives. When we do that, we'll lose out and miss the things we have right now. Because, at the end of the day, all we have is right now. And I just want to be with you."

Ming couldn't help himself but to smile in return. He always found himself smiling in Abigail's presence. She made him feel so much lighter. When he was with her, he felt free. He was often floating on air. That's how he felt, anyway. "I just wanna be with you too." He would never admit to it, though, but some of Abigail's worrying had rubbed off on him. He tried to dismiss things about Ghostface, but even he knew that they were all working on borrowed time. And that thought often scared him.

What would become of them?

OCTOBER 23, 2023
POPPY SPEAKS !
i know that last chapter i said i was gonna keep doing these short chapters, but do y'all actually rock with them or nah?