The Lonely One.

The Future.

Fixing, fixing, fixing. Tick tock, tick tock. The time dragged on slowly, a river of molasses, tugging at the lonely one as it oozed and ebbed onward. Temporary solutions crumbling upon each other like a flaky pastry- the likes of which the lonely one had denied itself for, oh, how long now? Whatever. Life as it was was alright. It stood up, wobbling upon its feet and took an iron to its mangled flesh and straightened itself back into some semblance of order and went back into the world. The pain had softened. The worst fall was its last true fall, and the shattered pieces were clanking back together, pulled in like a magnet to the black hole core of the lonely one.

Mostly, the relief came because the new one crashed and burned. The petty appreciation of seeing the bitch suffer was a balm upon the lonely one's burnt, crispy skin. The new one had lost her, had failed a final time and seen a loneliness much like that of the lonely one. It smiled as it watched the new one- perhaps now better known as the old one- drag itself across the ground like a dog trailing after its master. Only, the master was fed up, the master had been bitten one too many times- they muzzled the dog and gave it away. The suffering of the old one brought joy, brought balance.

Regardless of that, the lonely one had healed on its own anyways, had sought a different mindset, a different outlook. While she may have been its favorite person once, she had hurt it drastically until the lonely one simply didn't feel anymore. And what a grand advantage it is, the absence of feeling! The apathy was lovely and healing. It acted as a thick protective skin around the lonely one, hiding away its scars and burns until they could heal. Although... with the old one out of the way, impulse came alongside its twin, apathy.

A simple offer.

Made so casually.

As if it hadn't been something the lonely one had dreamed of forever...

An offer easily taken, a connection brief and without purpose and without love- a small kiss- a small lapse in judgement in time in sanity. An offer taken once, twice, thrice. 

Without meaning, it wasn't satisfying.

Without meaning, the suggestions and the kisses and the innocent-enough marks were fun when they happened but painful in retrospect.

The lonely one pauses in its writing, staring at that last written word... Ah, "retrospect." On the subject, it looks down upon its arms and its shoulder where there are still yellowing bruises in the shape of teethmarks, as if it were attacked by some savage animal. No, no- the lonely one chuckles- an animal, yes, but not savage or bad. Clueless may suffice better. Yes. A clueless animal. A potential lover. Even now, despite the kisses and bruises, the lonely one isn't an option in her mind. It's okay. While she is always the lonely one's first choice, it, too, wants to find someone- ANYONE. 

It realises, in this moment, that maybe she isn't all it wanted all along... Perhaps, rather, all it ever wanted simply was companionship. It always thought of her as top selection for this, she paid attention to the lonely one when no one else would, always was there with comfort  and happiness- or if not happiness, then friendliness. Obviously some of her unique personality and mannerisms did draw in the lonely one more efficiently than anyone else... but if anyone else was willing to give the creature attention, it would probably latch onto them too, huh...

She's always been the only one, though. Nobody else ever pays the creature any mind, it thinks. Not in the way it wants.

It craves love. Or, more than love... attention. Someone to give and take attention.

Give it attention, please? It begs the world around it, piercing eyes fixing on you in particular as you read these very words.

"I need attention to feel visible. Help me be human again? Turn my black blood to brilliant red, take my charred, dusty ash skin and restore it to human tone? Place a crown of hair upon my barren head, uncap the claws from my fingers and mold me into who I used to be?"

"Please give me attention?" It begs, in a voice you've never heard before but in one that feels familiar, reaching through the screen with a hand to grip your wrist in a begging gesture as the eyes back in its hollow eyesockets begin to ooze an oily black liquid that slowly empties into a clear colour.... tears. Human tears.