Remember Me

2020. 12. 26

It felt good.

Oh, Eddy had definitely heard Brett's screams. That was a given. But he had something else to do first and that was cleaning up the mess that he had created on the couch. He stood in the shower, letting the cold water wash over his entire body; the stickiness swirled down the drain until all traces of his night was gone.

He felt relaxed. Relieved. Perfect. It was a way for him to relieve stress, no matter how questionable it was to him at first. Yet, once he had decided to go for it, he realized that maybe it wasn't as bad as people made it out to be. Brett was stressful sometimes - more specifically, the reminder that there would be a day where Brett would disappear and never come back was stressful. This was merely just a way to relieve stress. Nothing more.

His hands ran over his lips. Smudges of red came off on his fingers, only to drip away in pink as they were washed away. He shut off the faucet and headed outside, towel wrapped around his waist.

Tina's eyes were shut; she was completely still and quiet, even after Brett's screaming and banging on the door. Eddy ran a hand through her hair, a small smile on his face at how peaceful she looked, unlike the nosy, over-energetic girl that he had dinner with. What a shame, though, that he would never see her again, for there was an underlying beauty that she rarely showed thanks to her personality-

The door banged again. Brett screamed again.

"Eddy, please!"

He reached for his phone and deleted her number. His hands grabbed the clothes that were scattered all over the floor, and he threw them on quickly, before carrying her out the door and into the unknown.

***

Brett continued to scream.

He screamed until his voice was raw and his hands were numb from banging on the door, and even then, he continued on. But he was so, so tired; his eyelids felt as if they were ready to drop and stay shut anytime soon, and the more he slammed the door, the heavier his arms felt.

I-I have to keep going!

He could see the living room inside his mind. The roses - where would the roses be this time? Scattered over the floor, the table, the couch? Or was Eddy careful enough to cover his tracks, destroying all the roses before crawling into bed with Brett, giving him a kiss on the forehead and reminding him that it's safe, you're safe in my arms, i love you with all my heart?

The door swung open. Brett felt himself falling backwards.

Standing there was Eddy, hair tousled and messy, hands unbuttoning white shirt that - Brett would always remember, even if he forgot everything else - he had worn for their wedding. In the faint moonlight, he still looked sharp, his eyes piercing with a wild, animalistic energy.

Brett swallowed.

"Hey," Eddy glanced down and frowned, "are you alright?" His hands reached out to Brett as he kneeled down.

"Get away!"

It was sometimes a miracle that he could have that much power in his voice, when everything else was on the verge of collapse. He didn't have enough energy to physically move backwards, instead resorting to the desperation in his voice in hopes that Eddy would take the hint.

However, it was clear that he didn't when Eddy reached over and pulled Brett into an embrace. He couldn't resist.

And, feeling the warmth of Eddy against his small body, he secretly wasn't sure if he wanted to.

"What is it, Brett?" His voice was gentle, a mere low whisper. "What happened?"

Brett fidgeted. "Outside... you- you-"

"Oh. Did I scare you with the noise?" He ran his hands through Brett's hair, chuckling to himself. "I'm sorry. I was just watching something - a movie of sorts. Non-PG, of course. I'll wear headphones next time."

What?

"No, you were with someone else-"

"It was just me, Brett. Maybe it's just your memory."

But Brett was awake. He had the glint in his eyes that he knew wouldn't last for long, and he was completely aware of anything and everything that had just happened. Or, at least, he thought he was - the drowsiness was making it hard for him to think straight.

What if Eddy is right? I'm just... sick?

Eddy hummed as Brett's eyes began to flutter shut. "Go to bed, alright? I'll be there shortly."

He felt himself being carried into bed and placed under the warm blankets. It wasn't long before Eddy crawled under the sheets and wrapped his arms around the half-dazed Brett, and it wasn't long until the two of them had drifted off into the night.

***********
-vilopan_