BLUE

Chapter Thirteen || Mature Content

Blue leaned against the counter, twirling a kitchen knife between his gloved fingers. If I wasn't mistaken, he was smirking underneath his mask, and his relaxed stance exuded confidence.

Blue whispered, "As I mentioned earlier, this target was meant to surprise you, so I want you to do the honors and kill him." He twirled the knife in the air, catching the back end of the blade between his index and middle finger. As he handed me the handle, I graciously accepted it, and my body slacked.

It felt so natural: my grip on the handle, the shimmer from the metal twinkling under the moonlight. My mind felt at ease as my thoughts circled toward my objective. With a satisfied breath, my grip tightened, and I gazed deeply into Blue's eyes.

I grinned, my voice breathless. "Thank you."

He shook his head and said, "Don't mention it. It was the least I could do.". Alright, follow me, he's asleep in his room."

Blue kept his promise and took my hand, guiding me down a quaint hallway. The sound of Randy's CPAP machine hummed from behind his bedroom door. It whistled and caught each breath he took, clicking to the speed of a clock. Blue placed a firm hand on the doorknob and gently pushed open the door.

As soon as I entered Randy's bedroom, I was taken aback. I cringed as the sour odor of mold and piss lingered in my nose.

The queen-sized bed was nearly hidden beneath an avalanche of clothes, and the floor was littered with unfolded laundry, fast food wrappers, and cigarette butts. Randy's weight pressed heavily on the bed, causing his body to teeter on the edge of the mattress.

The nightstand was cluttered with crushed soda cans and candy wrappers, with his CPAP machine resting wearily in the midst of it all. Randy was sound asleep, a half-eaten bag of Halloween candy slipping from his grasp. As evidence of his obesity, his cheeks spilled out from behind the clear mask that covered his mouth.

His excessive appetite — and/or his self-loathing — led to his downfall. Despite the relentless bullying I endured from Randy in high school, I almost pitied him. But then again, he brought this on himself.

I shuddered as a chill ran down my spine. I hesitated to walk through the mess on the floor. It was complete chaos, and I was concerned that the sound of a wrapper crunching under my boots would wake him up.

"Don't worry," Blue confidently strode past me, casually helming through the cluttered bedroom. He glanced back at me, his triumphant smile hidden behind his prosthetic. "That machine is too loud, Syvl. Trust me, he won't wake up."

And he didn't.

Each candy wrapper and empty can that crunched under my boots made me cringe. Meanwhile, Blue moved through his clothes as if wading through deep snow. Then, he settled onto Randy's bed. The closer I got to Randy, the more I found it difficult to breathe. Luckily for Blue, his mask was thick and cushioned, protecting him from the strong odor of sweat that permeated the redhead's body.

Once I reached his nightstand, I noticed that Randy was no longer recognizable. He used to be a spirited redhead on the soccer team, but now he was an obese dropout who choked on his tongue. If it weren't for Blue, I would've thought this was an entirely different person.

I retrieved the knife from the pocket of my hoodie, and a sense of emptiness engulfed me. My mind felt foggy and unresponsive, and my body was numb. Gritting my teeth, I lethargically ran the blade across the tube connected to Randy's mask. I felt my eyelids flutter and my heartbeat steady, as if my senses were dulled. A small smile formed on my lips as I increased the pressure on the tube and smoothly cut through the thin plastic.

A stream of air escaped with a hiss, and in a matter of moments, Randy let out a laborious grunt. His chest heaved irregularly as he struggled to gasp for more air. His brown eyes snapped open, and his body began to jerk uncontrollably. With trembling hands, he reached for the mask on his face, but then he suddenly froze. His widened eyes were now locked on me, filled with terror and shimmering with tears.