A Choir Of The Coldest Hearts

I Wanna Feel Weightless

"What the hell even is this?" I ask, examining the strange green pills. "Can you even eat this?"

"Venenum," Craig replies. He sees my confused glance. "Potion. Or venom, depending on the translation. God, Fuentes, I thought you were acing Spell Casting."

I just roll my eyes. "Does it work?"

Craig shrugs. "Works like a charm if you want every worry knocked clean from your head. Blocks out the memories for half a day usually. I'd take two a day at most."

"I'll take a bottle then," I say. "How much?"

"Pay me later," Craig says.

"You got it," I nod. "Thanks."

I'm turning to leave when Craig stops me.

"You want to come out to the woods tonight?" Craig asks. "We're throwing a party."

I hesitate, then nod. "Why not?" I'm already screwed anyway, that's why I'm here talking to Craig. What's one more thing gonna do?

~*~*~*~*~

I'm honestly doing okay. For the past week, two pills a day keeps me going, keeps me moving through the day. No one notices, or maybe they do and I can't pay attention enough to know they are. I've been more irritable lately, headaches coming and going. Jack and Alex have noticed, I know, but they don't press me when I tell them it's nothing. But I'm honestly doing alright, at least that's what I tell myself. I'm doing okay, for now at least. That's all I need, to make it through the next hour, the next day. The future can wait for now, at least until I'm able to breathe through the memories on my own.

Every night, I sneak out through the dark hallways, a light cradled in the palm of my hand. I've perfected an invisibility spell, allowing me to slip past the teachers patrolling the hallway and into the cold air. Sometimes, I don't go to the parties, just spend the night wandering through the forests. It's probably the fault of the venenum, but I don't really care anymore. I can defend myself well enough if I do happen to get attacked by any spirits. If not, well, I guess that's the end for me.

But some nights, I do go to the parties. There are several places they meet, usually once or twice a week. The forests are filled with abandoned buildings, hidden just well enough foremost of them to never be found. Craig's found a lot of them though, enough for us to rotate between them each night.

I pull my hood up as I walk through the woods. The music and voices grow louder as I climb up the hill, looking down at an abandoned structure at the bottom of the dip. It seems to be a small group today, just Craig and a few other people.

Some people lift their hands in greeting as I walk through the crowd, grabbing one of the red plastic cups.

"You came!" Craig calls from where he's sitting around a roaring fire.

I let a smile come onto my face as I sit down between him and another boy. "What's going on?" I ask.

"Did you hear that the school is haunted?" Craig asks.

"Haunted?" I ask, taking another sip of the sweet liquid from the red plastic cup. Earlier, I took the venenum. It gives me a light feeling, like a buzz, relaxation filling me. I feel like I can float away, the memories and pain no longer weighing me down. I'd be lying if I said I didn't love it. That being said, it's only good for a few hours, before everything starts to crash around me.

"Yeah," he says nonchalantly. "Some kid hung himself in the east tower."

"No he was murdered," a different kid pipes up. "Dragged into the forest and stabbed."

"He just ran away," the boy sitting next to be groans. He's in my class—I think his name is Oli, but I've never really talked to him. "Stop spreading the rumors."

"What happened?" I ask.

"No one really knows what happened to him," Oli explains. "He just disappeared."

"You know," Craig says. "They say that if you go to the tower, you can still hear him sometimes."

"What kind of shit legend is that?" I ask, taking another swig.

"A true one," Craig protests. "No one knows exactly how, but a kid died here, a long time ago."

"Why would you even care about that?" the other boy asks. "People die all the time." Oli elbows him sharply and he flashes a guilty look at me.

"Because they say he's the son of the Ghost King."

"Yeah right," I scoff. "That's impossible."

"Is it?" Craig asks, sounding hurt.

"Course," Oli says dryly. "Haven't you been paying attention. Our father, the great GK is above everything, above all of us. He's almighty."

I shift uncomfortably at his words, unease running through me. I highly doubt the Ghost King actually cares about what a group of teenagers is saying, but still, sometimes I worry. He could appear at any moment, killing us with a snap of his fingers. Anyway, we should be grateful to him. He is kind and benevolent, no matter what Oli says. He provides for us, gives us our powers, gives us life. Without him, we'd be lost, right?