The Devils Bargain | stuilly | billyxstu | stuxbilly

Chapter 27

Billy couldn't breathe. His hands were trembling, and the rattle of his gun only made that fact all the more apparent. Stu stood in front of him, ripping open his chest to show him his gooey insides, and who decides this is when you'll have a soap opera moment? Stuart Macher, who else?

Billy couldn't speak, his mouth was dry, and his tongue was like sandpaper. "Shoot him, William!" His mom screams at him like their deal meant shit anymore.

It's easy to pretend you could kill your best friend, only a little harder to pretend when that best friend means more to you than that. But to have a gun trained their way? To still be expected to kill them just because of what? They MIGHT become trouble later. Billy wasn't naive enough to believe that's the whole truth.

If he had said any of this out loud to himself a week ago, he'd punch and berate himself, calling himself a pathetic pussy. The way Stu looked at him with a mix of acceptance and pleading made it hard to think.

The part of Stu that wanted to live was telling Billy to help him, to drop his gun and run away with him like that choice was even on the table in the first place. Stu tried to make it out that he'd be okay - words twisting as if he was trying to convince himself that what he was saying was true. He wondered if it was working for him.

Because he wasn't so convinced.

Billy couldn't even blink, his finger felt like stone so even if there was a part of him - that nasty part that Billy wished wasn't as influential as it was - wanted to pull the trigger and splatter Stu's brains across the concrete floor, he couldn't.

Billy could see Stu's mouth moving, words muted and Billy couldn't read his lips. He took a long, careful breath and the world fell slowly onto him, weighted and terrifying. "Billy, I love yo-"

Billy couldn't stop the way his form jumped when all he could hear was the blast of a gun. Their eyes locked and all Billy could see was the confusion, the fear and worst of all, the acceptance. He watched Stu's collapsing figure, the tall boy's hands coming to his gushing side, staring down at his blood. This wasn't the first time but this was hardly the same.

The expression etched on Stu's face was one Billy knew would linger in his memory, it easily trumped the expression he saw in his nightmares and he knew it would haunt him for the rest of his pathetic life.

"What just happened?" He felt himself asking, though not loud enough for anyone to realistically answer.

Unable to tear his eyes away, Billy watched as Stu crumpled, collapsing into a limp pile of black polyester and faded blonde. Crimson red pooled around him, staining into his costume.

The ringing in his ears drowned out all other sounds, his heart and the growing pressure of blood pumping through his ears seemingly the only thing worth listening to. Slowly turning his head, Billy saw his mom's gun aimed where Stu had once been standing, wisps of smoke trailing from the barrel. But that wasn't the most chilling sight.

Her face was twisted in a raw display of disgust, the same kind of look she had when he stood up to her, earning himself that slap. But with far more deep-seated hatred. It was the kind of look Billy feared he'd grow on her face if she ever caught him with Stu and yet, now it was there, for all to see.

Billy found he didn't quite care as much as he did about wanting it gone.

Barely realising he had dropped his gun, Billy was snapped back to the present when he heard the sound of shoes clapping into the ground. His attention shifted to his mother, who was now grappling with Karen, but before he could react, Sidney lunged for his gun, missing and only causing it to skid across the parking lot.