the nymph ☼ sean diaz ✓

- twenty four .

•

Sean watches with careful eyes as Honey applies lipstick.

"I don't get why you need to do makeup." Sean puts the book that he had in his hands to the side.

Honey smiles, deep red framing her crooked white teeth. "It's technically my birthday." She closes the tube of drugstore lipstick and stuffs it into her pocket.

"You're right." Sean adjusts himself in his seat. They were sitting in their car parked at an overlook. The land around them grey and gloomy. "Can we just do some birthday shit today?"

Honey shakes her head. "We'll wait til morning."

Sean yawns and nods. He hasn't slept, afraid of what his dreams will showcase to him if he does.

"You look like shit." Honey crinkles her nose up. She swipes her finger under his eyes, at his dark bags.

"Thanks." He swats her hand away.

Honey digs in her small bag. She pulls out a blush. "You're welcome." She says, opening the new package. "Maybe for my birthday present I want you to sleep."

She looks at him from the corner of her eyes, her face in front of the car visor mirror.

"Is makeup not satisfying for the queen?" Sean asks.

"I demand more!" Honey says, faking a posh accent. "Maybe I'll get you drunk enough so you black out and sleep for twenty hours."

"Please." Sean says with emphasis. He grabs the book, suddenly wanting to read again.

Honey smiles at the view of him with a book in his hands.

"I feel like you're one of those geeky book kids secretly." Honey grabs a tube of mascara.

"No way." Sean scoffs. "I only started reading this book out of boredom."

"What part are you on by the way?" Honey stuffs her head between him and the book, reading the lines on the page.

"Oh shit, Jefferson kidnapped Victoria too? I think to myself, panicked. This is so bad."

"I look closer to the unconscious girl beside me. Her hands and ankles are bound with thick grey duct tape. "Victoria, wake up!" I plead, my voice weak."

"Oh I know this part." Honey sits properly. "Mark Jefferson is shit."

Sean nods, his eyes glued to the page. He notices how hard it is to focus on the words with a sleepy mind.

"Mark Jeffershit." Honey says quietly to herself. She lets out a quiet laugh, finding herself amusing. "Anyways I cried at the last part when-"

"I'm not on that part." Sean says harshly, interrupting her.

"Oh sorry." Honey squeaks, covering her mouth with her hand.

••

Sean wakes up in his dream again.