The Prey

Not a murderer

"I am not a murderer. I am not a murderer." I repeated to myself as I sat curled up on my mattress. The thought of ending someone's life was unbearable for me. They have a family, friends or someone out there who'll miss them and I was stealing their life away.

Dane paced up and down the room. I don't know why he's still with me, to be honest I'd rather he go it's bad enough as it is without his constant attempts at conversation. "I'm sorry." He said for the millionth time. Of course it wasnt his fault but he wasn't exactly helping. I just stared at him then returned to my previous state: Eyes closed, hands over my ears, shivering and muttering like a crazy person. I don't know how long past or what was happening but Dane came in with a plate of something I didn't have an appetite for.

"I didn't realise you left." I murmured.

"I was gone for an hour." He sighed. He shoved his watch in my face it read 19:20.

"Oh." I muttered.

"Yeah: Oh. I brought you some food." He said trying to cheer me up.

"I'm not bloody hungry." I growled.

"Mitch won't have you starve." Dane stated simply. If I don't eat he'll murder a friend.

"Fan-bloody-tastic." I moaned and sat up. I stared down at the plate. It looked like some form of bread and on top a weird looking piece of grey meat. On the side was a hanful of seeds and dried fruit, not bad. "Do I get some pee to wash it down?" I groan.

"Pretty sure pee is better than this." Said Dane revealing a bottle of lumpy yellow liquid. I open the cap and sniff. The smell of sour milk makes me gag and I force the bottle away from my face. I dragged the plate on to my lap and with a deep breath I start to scoff the sandwichy thing. The bread was dry and stuck to my throat and the meat was disgustingly chewy. I finish and take a brave swig of the contents of the bottle. I nearly throw it back up as the lumps struggle down my throat.

"What the hell is this stuff?" I demand.

"Protein shake apparently." Dane said.

I shake the bottle violently to rid of some of the lumps. It seems to do the trick.

"To trying not to get anyone killed." I toast. I raise my bottle, take a sigh then quickly swallow it. It seemed to last forever but when I'm done I shudder and place the bottle down. I start to pick at the dried fruit and seeds. Definitely not bad.

I collapse on the mattress after my last bite. Mitch had managed to make eating exhausting, just another way he was ruining my life.

Dane clapped slowly "Well done." He praised as he picked up my empty plate and bottle. "I'll be back shortly."

"Don't bother." I say.

"Why?" He quizzed.

"I'm not worth your time." I mutter, losing every ounce of self-worth I had.

"When the time comes, I'll spend my last days with you. You are most certainly worth my time." He whispered.

"Last days?" I ask getting concerned.

"What do you think happens when there's no one left you love for Mitch to kill?" Dane muttered casually as if he wasn't talking about his demise.

"I'll make sure that day doesn't come." I promise. Cheesy? Yes, but what else was I supposed to say? "Oh yeah, sorry about the fact that you could be dead soon."? Not exactly reassuring. He leaves and i finally have some peace from his constant questioning. I sigh and get into a comfortable position, no doubt I'll be too tired to keep my eyes open soon. I think about tomorrow. One of my friends will be dead, I'll face the disappointed kids who blame me for their death and I'll be training to become a murderer. I wish I don't wake up. After a couple of minutes Dane returns and for once doesn't say anything, he probably thinks I'm asleep which i should be soon. He sits in the corner of the room and twiddles his thumbs. I turn over so I don't have to face him and soon enough, as predicted, I drift off.

-Just a lil teeny tiny chapter of pointless.... Banter 😂 to fill in some gaps in the story. However, I hope you enjoy/enjoyed it! 👍-