Bent (Merome)

Chapter 31

I whipped my head towards the voices, seeing two familiar faces. They sprinted out of the trees, running to us.

“We've been about a day behind you guys since you got here,” one explained, still running. As soon as they reached us, one grabbed Jerome, yanking him away from me. The other grabbed me by the shoulders.

“Mitch, are you okay? What happened?”

“I'm fine, don't worry. It was Lesa. She did something to Jerome and made him kiss me. Thank god you guys got here when you did.”

I wrapped my arms around her.

“Thank you, Cat.”

She pulled away, smiling softly.

“No problem.”

She turned away, eyeing Lesa.

“You're Lesa?”

Lesa waved her hand in the air.

“What's it to you?”

Cat stormed towards her, grabbing her by her lacy collar.

“It means a shit ton to me. Are you Lesa?”

“You don't scare me,” Lesa hissed. Cat growled.

“Answer. Me.”

“Yes, I'm Lesa. What does it matter to you, you spin-off?”

An infuriated scream ripped its way out of Cat's throat.

“I HATE YOU!”

The words echoed throughout the clearing, the forest, the world. It sent shivers through my spine. The pure, raw hatred was jagged and dripping with venom and mace. The words weren't directed at me, but I was terrified. Her eyes were wild, her teeth bared. At this moment, her name fit her perfectly. She was an animal.

I reached my hand forward, but I was to afraid to do anything. Lesa's face showed the same fear that I felt, but her pride was too high for her to back away. She put her chin up, pushing Cat off of her.

“Stay away from me, filth.”

There it was. It pushed Cat off the edge. She snapped.

Cat lunged for Lesa, hands outstretched. She wrapped her fingers around Lesa's neck, tackling her to the ground.

“I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!” She screamed, smashing Lesa's head into the ground with each sentence. I shook my head, running forward.

“Cat! Stop! Stop!”

I hated Lesa as much as she did, but if Cat continued any longer, Lesa was going to die. Cat began to yell.

“You did this to me! You made me a useless shadow of someone, never enough to be normal, but too much to be nothing. You've put me in hell, and I'm going to stay there forever. By bringing me into this world, you've trapped me in a whirlwind of pain and awful emotion. I'll never be as good as what I was copied from. I'll live in the shadows forever. It's your fault. No one will ever look at me as anything but a useless spin-off. My existence is worthless. And I hate you for it. I hate you. It's your fault.”

My mouth was open, but nothing was coming out of it. I didn't believe what I'd just heard.

“C-Cat?” I whispered.

She slowly turned. The vicious hatred drained from her eyes.

“I-I'm sorry,” I breathed. Cat blinked, standing from Lesa's body.