Insidious ✖ Theo Raeken

e i g h t

~

I walked through the school yard, trying to resist the urge to scratch the itchy wounds on my body from the night I got attacked. It's been getting worse – my well-being and sanity. I can't spend half an hour without travelling back to the incident and freaking out about it all over again. Constant anxiety like this really wears me out...

Suddenly, I winced as I felt my shoulder tingle and looked around, hoping that no one heard my whimper. I reached the wound and stroked it, furrowing my brows. Automatically I adjusted the hair so it would continue to hide the gash on my temple, which had started to heal properly.

Before I could continue to walk, I idly lifted my eyes to see Scott and Theo eyeing me from the second floor balcony.

My feet sank to the ground as I watched them approach me, exchanging a few sentences occasionally.

"Hey, Silvie," Scott greeted me anxiously. "You feeling okay?"

My breath hitched as my eyes jumped from Scott to Theo in search of their true intentions. "Yes, I'm fine."

"What's with your shoulder?" Scott didn't budge as Theo looked down with a little smile on his face.

"Nothing." I snapped after gulping anxiously. "I-It's just my backpack... heavy..." I mentally slapped myself for being such an awkward stutter.

"Oh." Scott breathed out, his eyebrows furrowing in worry. "Let me carry it for you." Before I could object, he snapped my backpack from my shoulder and hooked it over his. 

His face slowly contorted into an amused scowl when he realized that a backpack of mine couldn't be any more lighter. "You need to eat more, Silvie." Scott noted with a breathy laugh, causing me to force out a freakish smile.

I looked up at Theo who tried his best not to burst out into a fit of laughter.

We walked back to school together, Scott still insisting on carrying my backpack. "We plan to meet at my place this evening, to read the book."

"Do you really think it's a good idea?" I asked, knitting my eyebrows in worry. "Considering that Malia almost got hit by a car yesterday after reading it..."

"That was exactly what I said." Theo snapped, making me look at his argent eyes and swoon a little. "But Scott's right, we need to read it and remember something that might help."

I sighed quietly as we continued to move, not really wanting to remember my past, while all I tried to do lately was to forget it.

~

"My mom's book club usually has more wine." Lydia murmured as Scott, Stiles, Malia, Kira, Theo and I looked down at the copies of the book on a glass coffee table.

"Well, they also probably didn't read books that cause violent hallucinations." Stiles cracked a joke, making me roll my eyes slightly.

"That's why Malia's here." Scott noted, seeing that Malia had already read the book.

"So none of us go running into traffic?" Kira asked sheepishly, turning her timid eyes to her boyfriend.

"Or worse." Scott muttered, eyes set on the copies.

"Like what happened to Judy." Malia mused thoughtfully, staring into oblivion. We all looked at her, considering that none of us read the book. "Chapter 14."

Lydia took the original book and observed it. "Maybe I should have my mother read it. She might remember a girl with a tail leaping off the ceiling and attacking everyone."

"Yeah, if it works." Stiles murmured skeptically, looking around.

"It has to." Lydia retorted, as though she hid something.