Better Off Dead (Kellic) ✔️

22: Vic

**Vic's POV**

I hopped back up the stairs, out of the basement and made my way to the living room, my mind ready to talk about what had happened the last time I was 'here', when Kellin literally ran into me, almost knocking me over.

"Oh great, you did it again." He murmured with an exasperated sigh.

Ouch. Nice to see you too, Kell.

"I just- I just wanted to talk to you." I mumbled, rubbing the slightly sore shoulder that he had just flown into. My brows furrowed as I looked at him. "I thought you said you enjoyed my company." I then added with air quotes.

"I do! I love having you around okay!" Kellin exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. I was taken aback just a bit by his choice of words. Enjoying something and loving something were two completely different things. Yet it did make me smile a little.

"This is just fucking dangerous okay, how many times do I have to tell you that?" Kellin then pressured, worry lacing his voice.

"Well fine, then I'll just go plug myself out or something." I shrugged, feeling a little defeated as I turned on my heel back towards the hallway. I didn't know if I could actually do that, but it didn't exactly seem like he wanted me here.

But before I could walk off, Kellin grabbed me by the arm. "Jesus fuck, no, don't do that. That will kill you for sure."

I frowned as I turned to him again.

Kill me... for sure?

What was that supposed to mean?

I let Kellin pull me into the living room. When we were near the couch, he let go of my arm and pressed me down with his hands on my shoulders. For a dead person, he was pretty strong.

"We need to talk, and you're going to listen this time." He said firmly as he paced around for a moment. He then sighed deeply and finally sat down beside me.

I pursed my lips, letting out a sigh of my own. "If you're upset about me kissing you then—"

"No!" Kellin immediately interrupted. "I-I'm not upset about that. Hell I... I liked it. But we can't do it anymore. Vic, you have to stop using the machine. And I mean, let's be real here, I'm dead." He spoke apologetically.

My heart sank a little.

I didn't want to stop using the machine. It was the only way that I could see and actually be around Kellin. And I liked being around him. I liked seeing him smile, being able to touch him and hell... I wanted to kiss him so much more.

I had officially become way too attached to a ghost.

Nice going, Vic.

"But I- I don't care that you're dead, Kellin. I kinda like, really like you, and I mean..." I was starting to become desperate now, I could feel it. I needed a legitimate excuse to keep doing this. "With this machine I can keep seeing you. It's a good thing, it's not dangerous. This way we can be toget—"

Kellin suddenly cut off my rambles by pressing his lips to mine. I was shocked, but quickly kissed him back with a sense of desperation; afraid that if Kellin stuck by his word, that this was going to be the last time I would ever have the chance to.

I didn't want this to be the last time. I didn't want to give this up.

However insane it was... using some kind of contraption to enter the world of the dead to be with someone who had been dead close to five months now, while I was alive and healthy... the way I felt made it seem like it was the most normal thing in the world.

Why didn't he want me to use it anymore?

Did he not feel the same?

Kellin's hand moved up to my cheek, caressing it before he pulled away, leaving me sad that it had ended.

"That machine is the reason I'm dead, Vic." He then spoke softly.

My eyes widened in shock. "W-What? How?" I asked, my eyes darting around his face in search for answers.

"I don't know how I could forget, but..." He paused, shaking his head and chuckling darkly, like he didn't even really understand it himself. "The machine, technically it kills you temporarily, so that you can go to the other side for a certain amount of time. Then it basically brings you back to life. It goes against all of nature's and destiny's rules, or whatever you want to call it. It's cheating death, Vic. And death isn't very happy with it being cheated on."

I frowned questioningly as I looked at Kellin, almost expecting that it was all a joke. But of course it wasn't.

"You know what I'm talking about, because you've seen him. I know you have." Kellin then quietly added, confirming to me that this was definitely real.

"Th-that thing... is death?" I asked incredulously.

Kellin nodded slowly and calmly, while I could feel myself starting to panic.

Okay, so I wanted to be with Kellin, but I didn't want to die. Not yet anyways. I was too young to die! Kellin may have died a younger age than me, but he didn't deserve that either.

There oughta be some way around death, right?

"He already has his eyes on you, Vic. That's why you need to stop using the machine. I'm so sorry that you got caught up in this; it's all my fault." I could hear him choke up, his voice breaking throughout his sentence.

I finally looked at him again. His eyes were glossy, like he was about to cry. So I did the only thing I knew... I wrapped my arms around him and held him close.

"It's not your fault. It's gonna be okay." I whispered calmly, even though half of me was still freaking out.

If people could cheat death in hospitals on a daily basis, then so could I.

It was just a matter of trying to figure out how.