The Human Retaliation [on hold]

Chapter 5 part 2: Eating

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It only took six minutes and Jessie was sitting at the bar, kicking her feet back and forth with something that resembled a grill cheese sandwich on a plate in front of her, sure the configuration was the bottoms of two hamburger patties with shredded cheese melted inside toasted on an electric grill, but it was what the bar had given its short food menu of poorly made hamburgers, fries, and chips with salsa.  Food, after all, was not the place’s main source of profit.

Jessie’s new friends were all seated quietly around two of the booths against the wall, three in one and four in the other, they were all watching her, but she paid no mind to them—her eyes more observant with the sandwich in front of her and the wall of liquor behind the bar.  The bartender sat on a short stool next to the cash register at the end of the bar further from the entrance, behind him was the murky door that led to the small half-assed kitchen of the place. 

Yes food was on the menu, but the idea was that no one actually ordered it—and there’s an unwritten rule that visitors don’t order food if there is only one bartender on duty, which is before seven.  Food even when there is more active staff is reserved for near closing time to ‘sober partisans up’ or before the rush while early arrivals waited for friends.

Eight pairs of eyes rested on Jessie, seven from her back and the bartender in front, watching as she went to take a first bite, all worried for whatever reason.  The eyes were blind to Sean as he carefully stood up and slowly moved away from the front door.  Sean’s eyes were not on Jessie like everyone else, his were on the body belly up in the center of the bar, the large wads of cash, and the white powder that was spoiled by the drying pool of blood.

Jessie’s first bite was followed with a slight smile and a general sigh of relief filled the room.  She took a second and third bite quickly, and kicked her feet against the underside of the bar as she ate.  Soon Sean was hovering over the dead biker, but even if he was in the center of the bar looking down at the body it seemed as if no one saw him.  They were all too mesmerized by the little girl eating.  Sean’s hands moved around and his head went down closer to the body. 

His body faded and when it reappeared fully he had his fingers out from under his heavy black coat for the first time.  There was a glisten that had replaced where one of his fingers should have been, some type of gagged blade, brand new according to its shine.  Jessie was half way through the sandwich when the boy she pulled into existence kneeled next to the body and silently shoved the blade into its belly.  He withdrew cutting the man open further than when he stabbed and stabbed again.  He did this again and again, but other than a mushy red mess nothing seemed to happen.

The boy shed his first emotion then; a tear fell from his face, landing on the now shredded remains.  His second hand went down next to the body and he rested it on top of the powder and blood mix, having the mess stick to his fingers.  He leaned back onto his feet and stopped stabbing at the body.  With a few bites left Jessie turned around, “What’s wrong?”  She asked chewing on half a mouthful and hardly taking notice of the massacre on that poor man’s chest. 

Sean looked up at Jessie, his solid black bloodshot eyes locking with hers.  His cracks swelled and the tears running down his face were unable to even make it to his chin, getting sucked into the smoking voids.  His lips moved but nothing came out—once he closed his mouth sounds seems to echo out of nowhere, “I’m so hungry…” the sounds grunted, the voice was distant and hardly above a whisper—it looked hard for him to even manage to open his mouth for the unspoken words.  Off sync, he was somehow off sync. 

Jessie held out what was left of her grill cheese, about a bite or two.  Sean just looked blankly at her and the hamburger buns with cheese running off the sides.  After a little while Jessie realized what he meant, “Oh…” and finally looked at the body, his bloody hands, and the shiny blade he had as a finger that was against the wood floor, “You’re doing it wrong.”