Eldritch

Chapter 13

Martin rises from the dinner table and dashes toward the bathroom. 'Martin,' his father scolds.

He carries on, his head bowed until he arrives in the room. He slams the door shut and sinks to the floor. He stretches towards the key and locks the door over. He leans his head against the wall and squeezes his eyes shut as tightly as possible as the voice in his head gets louder.

'You've always been the outsider,' it hisses. 'A loner. A nobody. Until you found Daniel. He allowed you in, but he doesn't really care about you either. He and Sean are the best of friends, but they couldn't care less if you weren't there. They just tolerate you.'

Tears stream down his as the tone of the voice takes on a harsher and more cutting edge. 'Reject. Loner. Outsider. Freak. Nobody likes you, not really. Even the people who pretend to be your friends.'

----

As she stands in the shower, Lisa allows the water to keep flowing over her naked skin. The blood pumping through her body, she leans her head against the tiles, and continues to hyperventilate while the water continues to soak her.

'It's not my fault,' she cries.

'Yes it is,' it hisses back. 'Your dad couldn't cope with having a brat like you for a daughter, so much so, that he found it easier to hang himself.'

Up to this point, her face had been the only place not getting hit with the steaming water. But now, tears are pouring out onto her cheeks. 'I, I didn't—Daddy just had—'

'Had to deal with you,' it barks. 'And now your mother has to deal with the aftermath of it, as well as raising a spoiled little tramp like you. Is it any wonder she turned to drinking for comfort?'

She leans forward and places her hands to the steamed up glass of the shower door. She presses forward, as though she's leaning against them for support. Slowly, she descends to the tray at her feet and comes to sit in the puddle of cooling soapy water. The shower water continues to lash down on her, and she doesn't seem to notice or care. Either that, or it's providing her with some sense of comfort. But not much, as she continues to weep shrilly and bite down on her lip to contain her screams.

'It's your fault she's the way she is. You drove her over the edge. You turned her into the mess she is. She's a wreck because of you.'

----

Seated opposite each other in a booth at the Starryton Diner, Daniel furrows his eyebrow at Sean. 'Dude, you okay?'

'Yeah,' Sean lies, as he tries to vanquish the vision presenting itself in front of him. To his horror, he sees Martin, in the booth neighbouring them, seated beside Ella. She's laughing at something he's just said.

'Ella,' he gasps.

Daniel follows his gaze to the empty booth and his eyes widen as Sean continues to murmur to himself while focusing in on the booth. Sean blinks and shakes his head as he sees Martin leaning towards her, pressing his lips to hers, and Ella reciprocating. But, it doesn't make it disappear; it's still happening before his eyes. His friend, kissing his missing girlfriend.

'Can't stand it, can you?' a voice taunts. 'Martin with Ella. Ella with Martin. But that's how it was. She never really liked you, you know. You were just a rebound fling that she stuck with. But, she still wants him. If she had the opportunity, this is what she'd be doing right now, not going out on your lamely planned dates.'

Sean winces and swallows. 'And guess what? Martin has never forgiven you either. He'd love to get his own back, and this is what he thinks about doing every day. He'd do it without hesitation. Kiss your girlfriend all over.'