Hunter

XXVIII

Jade was curled up on the bed in fresh clothes after taking a hot shower.
She couldn't stop shivering. The bruises and bites thrummed dully after Aric had treated them.
He had gone into the bathroom to clean himself up, and Jade wished he wouldn't go in there. She had him stand right outside the door when she took a shower.
She hated what behind that wall. She wished she never saw that mouse. She hated the way those monsters had made her feel. So useless, so weak. She wasn't like that, right? It was just....
She shuddered again. She hated that feeling. Her stomach was turning inside out and back again.
She folded against herself, wrapping her arms around her stomach.
She felt so sick.
Jade squeezed her eyes shut, blocking out the images of monsters pulsing against her skull.
She took a deep breath, spelling her name out in her head to relax.
That calmed her down, and she stretched out spread eagle on the bed.
Jade closed her eyes, drifting off. Her body was exhausted, and so was her mind.
She needed to rest.

Aric winced as he tied his hair back with a rubber band the inn had in the mirror/cabinet. He pulled the hair away from his face, staring into the mirror.
His eyes looked so much bigger and childlike, it was almost unnerving.
It reminded Aric of how old he actually was.
He thought of himself as a battle veteran, when he wasn't even a legal adult yet.
He sighed, reaching towards the counter to get some ointment.
He had gotten a nasty bruise on his back, right where his muscles moved the most when he shifted his arm. He couldn't believe he hadn't noticed it before, but that's adrenaline for you.
He finished drying the rest of his body, pulling on his pants.
He glanced down at his hip, his fingers grazing the scars. He felt like they were fresh, the bloodlust of those harpies tearing into his tiny body.
Aric shook his head, dismissing the memory.
As he pulled his gray tank top over his head, he thought about Jade.
I really hope she's ok. Even though she was shaken up, I feel like she can handle it. She's handled everything else pretty well, right? I mean, she's older than I was when they- they died, so she can take it better.
Aric frowned to himself, still thinking.
His mind flicked back to when they had first met. He had acted so arrogant, it was cringe-worthy.
He didn't really know how to talk to girls. The only one he had interacted with was his cousin. And since his cousin had taken him in, he had been homeschooled.
He didn't really know why he acted like a playboy, but he remembered his cousin telling to be more confident. "Girls like cocky guys," she had said.
Aric snorted as he thought of Jade. Apparently she didn't.
He walked out of the bathroom, feeling too tired to dry his hair properly.
He left it in it's makeshift ponytail, walking into the main room.
Jade was spread across the bed, and Aric groaned.
How was he supposed to move her without waking her up?
Jade grunted in her sleep, turning her legs and arms away, making a space for another person.
Aric slipped in next to her, pulling a blanket at the foot of the bed over them.
He closed his eyes, trying to calm down his mind.
He needed rest. The weird maze behind the wall had took more out of him than he thought.
He took a deep breath, and fell asleep.
Then the nightmare started.