Shine *Richie X OC*

C.11

So when I got home that afternoon, I told Richie I had that important errand to do, gave him a long kiss and sent him off, and it was about twenty minutes before mom got home.

I grabbed the sigil paper from my bag, taped against the front, and brought it to the bathroom with me as I had a washcloth, warm water, hydrogen peroxide, gauze, and medical tape.

I stuck the sigil to the middle of my chest and peeled my shirt down, just taking the whole thing off and leaving me topless. I popped two painkillers and disinfected the sharpest knife with the most precise blade we had.

I took a deep breath, and following the pattern of the sigil, started to carve it into my flesh, above my heart and a little to the right, so directly down from the end of my left collarbone.

After the first line was done, I let out a shaky breath and continued onto the next few lines and curves. I made sure it was deep enough to scar, but not so deep to the point where I could stab and kill myself.

I heard the blood dripping into the sink, and my hands were starting to shake, and my vision blurred with tears. I was exhausted but had two more lines to complete the protection ward.

I let my hand rest a bit and brought it back up again. I finished it within a minute, and let the knife clatter into the sink.

I wet the washcloth with warm water and pressed it to the fresh wound, and I cried out at the pain. Painkillers weren't doing a damn thing for me, and I really needed them to.

Once the blood was clear and my skin looked raw, I wet cotton balls with peroxide and pressed them, hissing sharply and gripping the sink.

I heard mom come in the front door, and I immediately cried for her help. She came in and her eyes widened in horror at the bloody mess I made.

"I can't..." I said and soon blacked out.

When I woke up, my chest was bandaged, and it was light out. I looked over and saw mom sitting next to me, a glass of lemonade on the table beside us.

"Oh, thank goodness gracious. You scared me half to death, Briar, honey." Mom said, and her voice brought tears to my eyes. I immediately sat up and gathered her in a hug.

"I love you, momma. I never want to lose you." I said.

"I love you too. I ain't going nowhere." I heard a smile in her voice as she stroked my hair. I pulled back and just looked at her.

Mom was always tan, slender, eyes that were the color of honey with a green twinge, and a voice that matched the honey aesthetic about her; sweet and smooth. Her hair was long and dark brown, and she was beautiful no matter who you asked.

I took the glass of lemonade and gulped, seeing the time. "Two? Like, two pm?" I asked, remembering it was light out.

"You've been asleep nearly a whole day. Twenty-one hours. Carving a sigil into your skin will do that." She nodded and continued her word search she was working on beside me.

"A day?" I asked, still shocked.

"Your friends and Richie came by. I hated to turn them away. I told them you fell sick, and Richie wanted to see you so badly. Thought it was better he didn't see you in this condition." She said and I set the now empty glass down and ran a hand through my hair.

"I have so much to explain to them," I said and she tilted her head at me. "They all shine, but they don't know it."

"Oh, honey, even I coulda told you that." She shook her head, still searching for words. She liked to do them in alphabetical order. It didn't matter if the found a word that started with Z, if she hadn't finished the whole alphabet before its turn, she wouldn't mark it.

"Well, I'm the one who has to explain everything to them." I groaned.

"I'll help you with that, sweet pea. Bring them over whenever." She said and I smiled.

"You would?" I asked.

"What kinda shiner would I be if I didn't?" She gave me a sweet smile, then it dropped as I got out of bed. "What are you doing? You need to be resting and healing."

"I've been resting for a day, I feel ten times better, and we all know I heal fast," I said and pulled on a bra and a T-shirt that covered the entire bandage, and then some jeans and my boots. I didn't bother grabbing my bag, but instead raced out of the house and tried my best to find everyone.