Don't Sleep (Jeff x Reader)

4 - Making A Killer

Underneath the surface, I didn't see anything but the bright white of Jeff's hood. I grabbed it and tugged, pulling him up towards the surface. James was pulling too, but I eventually won. I dragged Jeff up to the shore, where he started to cough up lake water from his lungs.

Something grabbed my ankle, and I looked back to see James, tugging me into the water. I pulled the knife out of my pocket, stabbing towards him on instinct. The knife became buried in the mud, but I tugged it out as my face went under the water.

James had a hold on the back of my head, and he was pulling me deeper into the water. I could imagine what he'd be saying if he could.

'If I'm going down, you're going with me.'

I struggled against him, trying to swim upwards. He was pulling too hard, and I wasn't able to get away. I couldn't hold my breath any longer. I knew what I had to do. I stabbed backwards, my hand shoving the knife behind me. It went slower since it was in the water, but it carried the same amount of force.

James released me, and I swam up. I broke the surface and gulped down the oxygen. Jeff pushed himself up and helped me to stand. We watched as James crawled out of the water with the knife in his side.

"You think that'll stop me?" He shouted, laughing. He tugged the knife out, then went to stab me. "You stupid bi-"

He stopped, looking down. Jeff was holding a knife in his gut, and twisting it. James made pitiful choking sounds as he watched the knife being yanked out. He dropped to the ground, dead.

I covered my mouth with my hands, tears forming in my eyes. Had I really just helped to cause someone's death? Jeff pulled the other knife out of the corpse, wiped it off on James' clothes, then held it out to me.

I shook my head quickly, but then considered the other people like James out there. That made me rush to grab the weapon.

Jeff cracked a large smile. "I really didn't think you had it in you. You called me a murderer, and you called me insane. But look at you now." He teased, then handed me my camera.

"When did you take it from my pocket?" I asked, warily eyeing James' dead body.

"I took it while you were sleeping. Anyways, good luck finding your way back before nightfall." He said, winking and disappearing into the trees.

I backed away from the body, then turned and ran. Now I was a real criminal. My evidence would be all over James. Even if I turned in Jeff, I was still screwed.

I stopped running for a moment, leaning against a tree. I turned on the camera and flipped through the photo gallery. There were a few new things. One was a video of me and James walking towards the lake. Then, a video of me fighting off and stabbing him in the water. After that, a picture of the body, with a heart carved into the dirt beside his head. I shuddered. Why hadn't I noticed that shape before? What was it supposed to mean? That I loved killing?

I hadn't realized how late it had gotten. Luckily, I still had my flashlight. It wouldn't turn on, and the sun was setting fast.

I didn't know what to do. I decided there were only two options. I could suffer in the dark, or I could call for Jeff, who probably stole the batteries. I decided quickly.

"Jeff!" I called out, but there was no response. "Jeff!" I called again, and this time, there was a large cracking noise, like a huge branch had been yanked on.

I rushed towards the noise, and saw Jeff, sitting on a branch high up in the trees. He was licking the edge of his knife, which was covered in fresh blood.

Just beneath him, hanging from a noose, James' body swung in the wind.

I covered my nose, then glanced back up at him. His intestines were dangling out, and his eyes had been gouged out. I turned away and started to hurl.

"What is this?" I panted, wiping my mouth once I was done.

"My gift to you." Jeff said, hopping down from the tree. He slung his arm around me. "He threatened you, right? He won't be doing that again." He laughed a bit. "Besides, I cleaned your DNA off of him. You'll be off of the police's radar for a while."

"And what about the pictures and videos?" I asked, gesturing to the camera as he slid his hand down into mine.

"You want to take pictures of me, and I want to take pictures of you." He said simply, as if I was supposed to understand what he meant by that.

I allowed him to lead me back to camp. Even though it was dark, I wasn't very afraid since I had his hand to hold on to. Whenever I heard a strange noise, I'd tighten my grip, and it would make my face feel warm. I watched the back of his head as he led me through the dark woods.

Why do I feel like this? He's a killer... He's threatened my life, and his idea of a gift is dangling a corpse from a tree... So then why can't I just get my evidence and leave?

"C-can you bring me, the next time you kill?" I asked. This would be my chance to record him in the act. Then, I could head home and forget about him.

He stared at me blankly for a moment as we stopped outside my camp. "Alright." He agreed.

Maybe he knew my true intentions, and just didn't care. Either way, I promised myself that tomorrow night would be the last night I ever saw him.

Thinking about this, my heart ached. I didn't know why, but I went through the pictures and videos that Jeff had taken. I traced the cut on my cheek, and remembered James' dangling corpse. "I wish I had gotten a picture of that..." I muttered to myself, then was instantly horrified. No I don't?! I was confused. I shut off the camera quickly and curled up into a ball, laying on my side. I shut my eyes, and dreamed of Jeff coming into the tent and taking my camera.