Henry Creel - Short Stories

Henry x Chrissy // Modern AU

Henry hated crowds. And he hated games.
He paid no attention to the speech of the school's basketball players, until the leader of the team mentioned his popular girlfriend, the cheerleader crowned the Queen of Hawkins High. Chrissy Cunningham.
Henry scanned through the crowd until he spotted a pretty face under golden hair.
He felt sick.
Henry was one of the first people to leave the building, but not even the open air allowed him to recover.

It's just human nature. He reminded to himself. Things flowing in his body affected his thoughts too. Puberty was worse than he ever imagined. He believed to be immune to certain emotions. But he never learned how to stop feeling.

He was used not being interested in anything of that stuff.
So why he couldn't stop thinking of the cheerleader? And of how she was wrongly matched to the most popular player?
He couldn't stop thinking of the secrets that were haunting her.
He felt an unexplainable need to protect her, to help her.
And he knew that her boyfriend knew nothing of her nightmares so he couldn't help her.

It took time before Henry surrendered to his weird ideas and bumped into the pretty cheerleader in the deserted corridors. She clearly looked upset, low shoulders, hugging herself.

"I'm sorry. I didn't see you" she said quickly after walking straight against him. She didn't notice that he stepped on her way on purpose.
She didn't even look up at him.
"What's troubling you?" he asked, but of course she wouldn't share her secrets with who was barely an acquaintance.
"I'm fine. I'm just in a hurry".
Henry grabbed her arm before she could stride away and said to her "It's alright not being fine, you know?".
She looked up with wide eyes "What are you talking about? It's just...female problems".
He tilted his head, knowing that she was lying.
It made her uncomfortable.
She marched away like a prey who sensed the presence of predator.

Later in his solitude, Henry picked his phone and got an idea.
He had no interest in socials, but now he was curious to check them, just to see Chrissy even when he couldn't meet her in person.
And he found out that it wasn't bad at all to get the chance to see her private pictures and save them.
He made an anonymous account and eventually messaged her.
"What a torn soul hiding behind that pretty face".
"Sorry, I don't accept spam" she replied hours later.
Henry smirked and typed "You don't accept truths about yourself. That's worse".
Later he couldn't access to her profile anymore.
She had blocked him.
It amused Henry.
He reviewed the pictures he had saved, fragments of her life.
She was a splendid actress.
And she looked like a delicious prey.
How could she not realise that?
Did she need to post that kind of pictures to pretend she was like everyone else? That she was confident?
When she was barely able to hold up the world that was breaking and crushing on her?

In the following days Henry kept an eye on her. He needed her. He needed to help her. Or just, he needed her for himself.
"It's not poisoned" he whispered to her ear when he got the chance to walk past her and notice how she struggled to eat her meal in the school's canteen.
He bet that she would faint at the next basketball match if she kept struggling with food.
She looked perfect. But what was the price of that perfection?

Chrissy dropped the sandwich she was holding "I have no appetite".
"Your body needs food. Can't you see how skinny you are?" he said undelicately.
"Leave me alone!" she exclaimed, moving her chair away from him.
Her friends at the table tried to catch his attention but he waved them off like they were flies.

"Hey! What are you doing?" a male voice addressed him with hostility.
Henry rolled his eyes at the annoying boyfriend coming to mark his territory.
"I'm talking to you, Henry Creep".
Henry clenched his fists to prevent his hands from grabbing Jason's neck.
"She's letting herself starve to be your precious, pretty doll".
"What?" Chrissy exclaimed.
"How dare you?" Jason said at the same time, menacingly stepping too close to Henry.
Fighting the stupid boy was a waste of time, but Henry knew that soon he would get his fun.
He looked down at Chrissy and nodded at her food.
Jason shoved him away "Stay away from her, freak".
Henry glared at him and held his stare. Oh, if he could use his powers and hear the sweet sound of his breaking bones...
But the little boy didn't deserve his attention now.
Henry was planning a bigger revenge. Using Jason's girlfriend.