My Guardian

Napkin Memories

Unedited

"Take that you black eyed, son of a bitch!" I yell after I finish the exorcism, watching the black smoke go down into the floor. I wipe the sweat from my brow and lean down to check the man's pulse. Nothing.

I groan before hauling the body over my shoulder. This guy weighs a freaking ton. I take him out back and dump him with the couple that the demon killed. I pour gas and salt over the bodies and light a match, turning away so as not to see the poor people burn to ashes.

I've been out her for weeks. Will they kick me out of college? Do I even care? Hunting is so.. So reviving. Not that it's fun or anything, I just feel as if I'm meant to do it.

When the mess is cleaned up, I load everything in my car and drive back towards the city. I need more clothes and a shower, and the hotel beds suck. And where do hunters get money? Like I'm going to have to rob a bank or something.

My phone has been off since I left. Maybe Catherine and Jeremy didn't even call. That would be nice. It's not like I can go back and be like, "Yeah, I discovered that monsters exist. I know how to kill them, and it feels great to make a difference. I think it has something to do with my past."

They would lock me up right then and there.

I'm not sure if I should even be doing this. My note told me not to dig into my past, but this is so much more important. I'm fixing people lives, saving them from the scary things that shouldn't exist in the world. Why did I think art school would be more rewarding than that?

The fields are so much prettier than the city is. Trees and grass, so much lighter than the skyscrapers and factories.

I park my car towards the end of the city and take a taxi to my apartment. The car's too flashy, and I don't really want anybody to know I'm back. I might even take some more of my stuff this time, just in case I don't come back.

Where would I go, though? Hotel rooms every night for the rest of my life. It's not exactly the glory ride. Maybe that's why I ran from my old life.

What all do I need? My leather jacket, some more clothes, and what else? I'll get my laptop for research and maybe a book or two. Oh, and my favorite pillow.

I should have never bought all of this stuff. Maybe I won't tell the renter I'm leaving. I could pay more out on the place and then come back if I ever needed to.

I left a couple hundreds on the counter and took some food from my fridge. I'd have to figure out a money source real soon. Maybe there are some checks in my car.

I took my bags and everything downstairs and threw them into a taxi. I glanced around the city one more time before I climbed in, telling the guy where my car is. When we got there, I put my bags in the trunk of my car and climbed behind the steering wheel.

Why does this feel so weird?

I sigh and lean against my seat. What was it I was going to look for in here? Checks?

I rummage through my purse, under the seats, and in the visors before I open my glovebox. I dig through the thing, coming up mostly empty handed before I find a brand new checkbook at the very bottom.

"Awesome," I say to myself with a small smile. Then, something else catches my eye. It's just a napkin, wadded up with blue ink scribbled over it.

I open it to see the words "D.W. & C.V." Written on it with marks all over the rest of it, as if someone couldn't get the pen to work.

D.W.? Why does that feel so familiar? And with my name?

Was.. Didn't I know somebody named.. Named Dean or something?

Then, I suddenly feel dizzy. I pass out in the driver's seat of my car, my mind beginning to whirl with my past.