Cold Blood

❥ Chapter Twenty-eight ❥

Written by Deadlydisasters

Everett POV

I'm laying on one of the hotel beds, smiling up at the ceiling. The day had gone much better then I had expected and I'm so glad it did. I can hear the water running in the sink where Ash is brushing his teeth. We have to leave tomorrow but we can't go back home. The place is crawling with cops, we have to go somewhere else. Hopefully somewhere less expensive, maybe a nice abandoned house.

The water stops and I hear the loud click that the bathroom light makes when it's turned on or off. I look over at the clock on the nightstand between the two beds in this room. It's numbers are an obnoxiously bright orange and the outside is a dirty white. You can see the build up of dirt from all the hands that have touched it, I don't think it's ever been cleaned. I think that if I were to touch it not only would dirt cover my own fingers but they would also be sticky. The bright orange numbers read 10:30, way earlier then what's normal for us. Ash still dressed in what he came to this hotel dressed in, gets in bed. I feel really gross and dirty for wearing the same thing for two days straight but don't exactly have a choice.

Yes, we could have gone shopping but we went to the beach instead. I think we will go shopping tomorrow because if I have to wear this another day I'm going to kill someone. Which would make the situation worse because we are trying to stay under police radar. When I see Ash is settled I reach over to turn the lights out, I glance over at him when my hand grabs the chain on the lamp. His eyes are staring at my hand in fear, I watch as his chest starts to rise and fall a little quicker with each breath. He's chewing on his bottom lip and he's gripping the blankets so tight that his knuckles have gone white. I pull my hand back leaving the light on and move so I'm sitting up.

"I'm right here, you don't need to be scared of the dead." I tell him gently. Ash nods his head but he keeps staring in fear at the chain.

"What happened last night?" I don't remember what happened last night before I turned the light out. Did he look this way then too? Did he hide his fear and suffer all night when I was just six feet from him?

"The lights went out and I felt alone. Like I was isolated in my closet again and wearing dirty clothes doesn't help. If anything it makes me feel even more like I'm back there. I felt cold and all the people that walked by the room almost made me scream. I could hear the footsteps approach and with every step I could hear my father walking down the hall to come and beat me. I could hear my mother laugh with glee and telling my father to hit me harder in every voice that passed." Ash told me in a voice that was almost nonexistent, it was so quiet. If he spoke any louder he would probably stutter with how badly he's shaking.

I can feel my anger slowly rise, where was the determined guy from earlier, the one who made the first move? Here's Ash, someone who can be like that all day and then the moment the lights are about to go out he's just barely holding himself together. The seams are going to burst soon, they can only hold back so much. I wish I hadn't killed his parents so quickly. I wish I had tortured them slowly for turning Ash into this. I wish I could make them truly pay for all the suffering they've put him through, I grind my teeth together and glare at the wall. He's so strong but I know that if this keeps going on he might very well take his own life soon and I don't want that. I don't want to return one day to find Ash with a bullet in his head, a knife in his heart, or a rope around his neck because of his parents.

"Let's try something different to help you." I tell him. Ash finally looks over at me and I no longer see which is good. I've confused him but he'll understand in a second. I give him a confident smile and push my blankets away. I get out of the warm bed and go over to his. I gesture for him to move over and he does so slowly. He watches me and I get in next to him. It's warm where he was sitting and I adjust the blankets a little bit so it's even for both of us. When I look back up at him a smile has broken out over his face, I can still see a hint of fear in his body language but the smile is genuine.

I turn away and reach over to turn out the lights. I can feel him shaking slightly beside me, luckily it's not as bad as earlier. There's a small click and the lights go out. The room is pitch black, I take comfort in this. I love the dark, I think it's because when I was young the only time I was never beaten was late in the night. When it was dark, he was always fast asleep and I could breathe easy without fear of some kind of punishment for something. I lean over and hug Ash. He's shaking and he's breathing quickly. Neither of us have laid down but that's okay. I rub circles into his back and stare straight into the darkness. He holds me tight and buries his head in my shoulder. Slowly, I can feel my shoulder becoming damp with tears.

"Take deep breaths, it'll help. I'm right here and I don't plan on going anywhere." I whisper to him. He nods against me but he doesn't say anything. It takes a few minutes but he calms down enough to hug back more gently then with the death grip he was earlier.

I push him away and I lay down on my back. He's confused and about to start crying again, hes probably thinking something horrible. He's probably thinking that I'll stay but I don't care to comfort him if he's not crying or that I pushed him away because I don't genuinely care. Both of which are a lie, I hold my arm up and grab his arm. I tug his arm to show that I want him to lay down too. He does so slowly, like he's afraid I'll run or hurt him. My heart breaks for him but I know that he will get better. He just needs a little help, anyone would be like this if they had been in the same situation. Ash is curled into my side, his head and left arm are on my chest.

He's shaking but it's much better then it was originally. His breathing is slowing to an even pace, letting me know that he's fallen asleep. I can feel sleep tug at my own eyes and I let it take me. I need my rest for abandoned house shopping and I want to savor this moment. Sleeping in a soft bed with Ash curled into my side probably won't happen again soon. I can hardly keep my eyes open anymore and I know there is a smile on my face, nothing can get us tonight but tomorrow I'm not so sure.