The Beetle Bride (ON HOLD)

Chapter Seven; Kiss And Make Up

**Authors Note**
Just want to say a BIG thank you to those of you who have commented/voted on this fic, you're all awesome! To everyone who is reading my story, thank you. Keep sharing the Beetlejuice/Lydia love!
This chapter is very angsty, emotions are running high so expect a lot of feels...
especially as things begin hotting up between our beloved pair. *wink wink*
Anyhoo...I hope y'all enjoy! xD

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"The boundaries which divide life from death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where the one ends, and where the other begins?" - Edgar Allan Poe

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How did she end up here?
She couldn't rightly recall. Or perhaps she did not want to. Her mind had long since ceased functioning properly. All coherency was gone, and all she could do now was feel, not think....

The previous evening had been awkward to say the least, having been given the third degree by Barbara. She'd had to sit and feign innocence as the kind couple painstakingly explained to her how 'he' was on the loose again, and quite possibly on the prowl...for her.
Lydia had wanted to laugh, and possibly cry simultaneously due to the surreality of the situation. The fact that the Maitland's were so concerned for her safety, felt like salt being rubbed into an open wound. Barbara honestly and whole heartedly seemed to believe that Beetlejuice, being the depraved beast that he was, was going to return in order to kidnap or subject her to some form of sexual deviation or another for his own twisted pleasure. All the while, she sat inwardly squirming, mortified by the knowledge that she was the one guilty of speaking his name, of bringing him back. And their fears were completely unfounded. Aside from his occasional attempt to grope her, and inappropriate remarks, he had proved to be no threat to her chastity. And knowing he may well be listening to their berating, added to her excruciating embarrassment. Even she found listening to Barbara's lamenting over having ever exposed her to such a lecherous 'pervert' painful to listen to, and bitterly ironic. Because as her ghostly friend recounted the way in which he had forcibly kissed her, leered at her legs and attempted to look up her dress, Lydia began to feel irrationally irritated. Her feelings alarmingly bordered on what could only be described as jealousy. But it couldn't be, could it?
So what if Beetlejuice had kissed Barbara? That really ought not to have bothered her...yet it did.

"Remember the...you know, the...whore house, Adam?"
Barbara went on, relentless in her quest to prove her point.

Adam fidgeted uncomfortably, adjusting his glasses.
"Well Barbara, I don't think we need to go into all of that."

"She needs to be made aware Adam, he's a sexual predator-"

"Look, I already know about that place, I saw it in the model. That's where he was when I first met him."
Lydia interrupted, unable to endure anymore.
"I knew then what type of place it was, I'm not an idiot."

The surprise on both of their faces was almost amusing. They really did believe that she existed in some type of bubble, an impenetrable bubble that kept the seedy, gritty reality of the world at bay. But that wasn't the case. There was no such thing, and it wasn't possible to remain naive and ignorant to the ways of the world forever. She knew the Maitland's had her best interests at heart, but their overprotectiveness was proving to be stifling. As endearing as it was that they cared, and wanted to shield her from all things potentially dangerous and unsavoury, Lydia was finding it increasingly difficult to live with. After all, she wasn't a child anymore. She was almost eighteen now, she had grown up a lot since having first encountered Beetlejuice, and now she longed for adventure and danger.