Spooky

Chapter 31

{Author's Note: Hey everyone, a little heads-up—from here on out, the story gets a bit dark. Touching on themes I said I couldn't deal with last year. However, I've decided to keep it short, although that still means around 4 or so chapters of it. So, about a full month's updates of just ... depressing stuff. Except I'm going to try and update twice as frequently so we can get back to that goodgood Wholesome™ content just in time for the holidays. (I've already been doing so, if you've noticed, with lil surprise updates on the weekend lmao)
In any case, consider this a brief content warning. There's some death and depression in this chapter. Ready your tissues and/or skip this chapter if death bothers you.}

-Shadow's POV-

December begins with little fanfare and the cheer of Thanksgiving Break has left me. I feel barely motivated to get up in the morning despite pulling repeated all-nighters just staring at the ceiling. I've lost track of how many hours of sleep I get a week, but it must be less than ten. I can hardly talk, my brain doesn't work and even when I do sleep I just have the same nightmare over and over. Or, rather, the same memory. But it's hardly important. Every year is like this. Every year. This is my life. I get another call from my mother on the twelfth, full of more apologies and another promise I know she won't be keeping. It doesn't hurt this time, and that frightens me. I can't feel anything anymore. I shuffle along to my classes like a zombie, then come home and collapse onto my bed. Sometimes Scourge lies next to me, no questions asked, and holds me close as he dozes. It's only then that I feel close to the way I did two months ago. I know he can tell something is wrong, but he says nothing of it, simply silently supportive. He's so kind to me. I don't know what I could've possibly done to deserve his love, and to be honest, sometimes I feel a bit guilty. I'm not being the best boyfriend, moping around like this, but the one time I express that opinion he shushes me with a sweet kiss, reassuring me that everything's okay. From then on, I say no more on the subject, and nothing else happens between us until Thursday, the fifteenth.

The day itself was uneventful. I go to class, come back to the dorms, flop down on my bed. A few minutes later, Scourge comes in; I'm lying facedown atop the covers, head turned to one side, staring at our lamp. I hear his bag thump against the floor gently, and he whispers, "You asleep?"

"No." I reply flatly, and I hear him approach the bed. He slithers in next to me, perilously perched on the very edge of the bed until I grudgingly scoot over. He shoves an arm beneath me, curling up and entwining his legs with mine.

"Are you havin' a bad day, baby?" He asks gently, and I feel a smile tug at the corner of my lips. He's taken to giving me little pet names like 'babe,' 'love,' and 'baby' lately, and every time he does, I feel my insides melt a little.

"Mmyeah," I yawn. "Don't worry about it."

He nuzzles into my side, purring softly. "Of course I worry, I care about you." Scourge gently runs a hand down my back. "I'm here for you, you know?"

I twist in his arms, kissing his forehead gently. "I know."

We remain there until the dinner bell; I barely eat anything at dinner, feeling a little unwell. I've been feeling under the weather for the whole month, and wave it off to Rouge and Steel as just a cold affecting my appetite. I don't think either of them buy my bullshit, but they don't challenge it, either. The moment dinner is over, I book it back to the dorms, Scourge at my heels, and we almost immediately settle in for the night. This time, I actually feel tired enough to sleep; sometime around eleven, I pass out, immediately plunged into a disturbing, twisted version of my usual nightmares.