Pernicious

Prologue

I love people. I guess that's my reasoning behind the things that I do. I love the reactions they have, the feelings they express. Humans are like pawns to me. I love playing with them. My favorite human was Astrid Young. She was different. I liked the way she interacted with people and the way she hates me. Her feelings for me gave me goosebumps. To be honest, I was obsessed with her.
When I saw Astrid sitting alone in a classroom, I wanted to get close to her. I wanted to see how much I could mess her up or manipulate her. According to her friend, Dede, Astrid was a quiet person. So, I kissed Astrid, knowing she wouldn't retaliate verbally. Sarah got in the way through, but she was needed. When Astrid was too busy finding me disgusting or avoiding me, I used Sarah. The poor girl had no idea how unimportant she was to me. There were several times when I wanted to end Sarah's life, but instead, she became a pawn. All my friends were pawns to play in my story. My family were pawns, Astrid's family were pawns, even the minor background characters were pawns. They all worked together in my story to play Astrid directly into my hands. I developed a love-hate relationship with her to scare and confuse her. I wanted Astrid to feel hopeless. I wanted to see how much she would fight until she decided to run.

Who knew my story was a success, but it also failed. All my life I got exactly what I wanted. I knew exactly what I wanted. Yes, I treated Astrid poorly and broke her, but I ended up loving her as well. That's why I lashed out the day before she left me. I'm the one that was afraid. I didn't want those feelings, especially not for her. Love is a feeling only the weak had. I wasn't weak. Though, am I now? Astrid was gone. I was stuck. I was stuck staring at the pictures on her phone. I was passing her house every day, even when her family moved out. I was hoping that she'd come back. I was stuck staring at my walls wondering what to do next.

A smile spread on my face as I fidgeted with my lighter. I would go find her. Astrid was mine and mine alone. I just wanted to mess her up even more. I wanted to grow old with her. I wanted to put her out her misery.