| Plaything | Antisepticeye x Reader

Chapter 26: Leverage

I splash cold water onto my face, and eventually the redness goes away. Anti's new strategy is definitely effective. And, unlike fear, I'm not exactly sure how to handle it. To let out anger, I throw a kitchen knife at the dartboard, knocking it off of the wall with its force. The knife clatters to the side.

Sighing, I replace it, then head to my room. My mind eventually returns to Bernice Baker, who's probably plotting their revenge, at the moment. They never really liked me, and now I've assaulted them, which means that they can legally bully me.

Still, I'm not too stressed about it. They probably won't get legal people involved. They're problem with me is too intimate. Baker wants to make me suffer, personally. It never really made sense to me that people would get worked up over non-serious relationships, but I guess they feel so empty inside they need to fill themselves with the tears of others.

That, or they're just a bad person and like to make others miserable to feel better about themself.

Either way, I refuse to let them affect me. After making myself a snack, I turn on Netflix and watch The Office for about two and a half hours before Anti reappears.

I glance at him nonchalantly before noticing the blood covering his hands. He holds a knife in each hand. The sleeves of his sweatshirt are rolled up to his elbows and expose his forearms, which are also painted in dried blood. My eyes trail back up to his questioningly.

"The hell were you doing?"

"The average," Anti replies, chucking a knife at the dartboard and again hitting the bullseye with ease.

"It looks like you were just in a slaughterhouse."

"How do you know I wasn't?"

"Because you probably would've brought a pig's head back with you, if not the head of the butcher."

Anti takes a breath in to protest, then shrugs with admittance. I stare at his hands a moment longer, then look back up at his eyes to find him staring back at me.

"So are you gonna tell me where you were?"

"Someone's house."

"I'm assuming they're dead now. That or they were painting a picture of the world's largest ruby. I'm surprised you didn't bring back a souvenir, in all honesty."

"Actually..."

"That wasn't an invitation to show me your souvenir."

But my complaints fall on deaf ears as Anti snaps his fingers. In a swirl of green smoke, a body part appears in his hand. I quickly turn away before I can see what it is, cringing at the smell of human insides.

"I implore you to not."

"It's just a severed foot."

"Why on earth would you take that person's foot?"

"Her last name was Rabbit."

"You took her foot for good luck."

I cover my face with my hands and sigh. What is my life now? I groan. Anti appears in front of me, thankfully no longer holding the foot. I look up and find him staring at me again, crouching in front of me so we're about eye-level with each other.

"You have to admit," he smirks, "it was a good joke."

Sighing again, I can't bring myself to disagree. I smile and shake my head, giving a small laugh. Anti smiles with me – a genuine one that isn't at my expense – then stands to go wash his hands in the kitchen sink. Afterwards, he sits down next to me. I go back to watching The Office.

A dark green cloud covers the rug in the living room. Looking down, I find a wide array of knives. Some are ones I've seen before, others are unfamiliar to me, a few are types that I've never seen nor imagined. Anti begins at one side and begins to sharpen them. I watch him work for a minute, then turning my gaze to the television screen.

My thoughts eventually drift from the show to Baker again. For a minute, I wonder what to do if I run into them again. Guess I'll just have to hope they leave me alone, I think.

The sound of metal against metal beside me stops and I feel Anti staring at me.

"Who's Bernice Baker?"

I don't resist the interrogation. "They hate me because of Lukas. Last time I saw them, they tried to mess with me so I kinda... assaulted them–" I pause "–Probably wasn't the best idea but whatever. It's not like they've never injured me."

Absentmindedly, I pick up one of Anti's knives and look at my reflection in the pristine blade.

"What'd you do?" he asks.

"Gagged them with a napkin, stabbed them in the arm with a fork, threatened to mutilate them, then poured hot coffee over the wound."

Anti goes silent for a moment. Suddenly, he's beside me, cupping my cheek in his hand. "Aww, you're learning from me." I swat his hand off of my face and turn away. "Sure, you didn't kill anyone but this is an important first step."

"Remind me to never think about anything around you."

I grip the knife tightly in annoyance, but don't make any threatening moves. He's literally stabbed himself before – Why should a knife scare him? Instead, I take a long look at him, then dig my keys out of my pocket and hold the tip just above the metal.

"Stop teasing me and I'll put my keys away," I say with a straight face.

Anti's smile falters and he leans forward to take away the knife. I put the tip of the key to the blade, without applying pressure. He promptly pulls his hand back, watching me carefully. Fighting the urge to break into a grin at my discovery, I keep my hands steady, watching for the slightest movement.

Finally, he raises his hands in surrender, then extends a hand to take the knife.

"Nah, I think I'm gonna keep this one," I smirk, putting my keys away as promised. "Never know when I might need a bit of leverage."

As Anti's hand shoots out to grab the weapon I move my right hand away from him. Then, a smile grows on his lips, and I watch him warily.

Suddenly, Anti's leaning over me. He'd wrapped his right arm around my waist and pulled me toward him, and grips my right wrist with his left hand. I instantaneously tense, becoming uncomfortable with him looming over me. As he pulls me into a kiss, his hand presses on a pressure point in my wrist, forcing my hand to let go of the knife. Once he grabs it, he breaks away from me, drinking in my burning cheeks and glare.

"Would. You. Stop?"

"Don't think I will."

Just to make himself clear, he places his lips on mine again. This time he lingers for a bit longer. his already firm hold on my waist tightening ever so slightly. My stomach twists, but not in fear.

"This is my leverage."

I hope you enjoyed this chapter of "Plaything" as much as I enjoyed writing it. Comments and votes are super appreciated. Thanks for reading! ~Blue