Shinigami Haken High School (Black Butler)

Chapter Twenty Five: Movie Night

I snuck up until I was directly below Grell's window. I reached down to pick up a smooth pebble, then tossed it to Grell's window. She opened the window and looked down before giving me the 'All Clear' signal. I nimbly climbed up her tree and tossed my pack through her window. Then I stretched out to hop safely on her window sill and drop into Grell's room. 

Grell's eyes were red, most likely from crying. She was dressed in fluffy red and white kitten print night pant. She wore a Black Veil Brides t-shirt that was obviously too big for her. I glanced a little closer and noticed that it was the t-shirt of mine that had gone missing in tenth grade. I tried to hold back a smile. After two years, she had still kept my favorite band shirt. 

"Don't smile and tell me 'I told you so'!" Grell cried as she clutched a teddy bear in her pale arms. I realized that the smile had slipped out. I mumbled an apology as I held my arms open. She sniffled and dove into my hug. "Thanks, Will," she said through small tears. 

"It's okay, Grell," I said petting her hair. "It'll all get better soon." Then I slowly separated us and reached for my bag. I pulled out Hercules and a couple Kit-Kats. "Doctor William has prescribed Kit-Kats and a movie marathon."

Grell laughed a little. It almost reminded me of the twinkling of tiny bells. Then she set down her teddy bear to grab Hercules and put in the DVD player that was connected to the TV in the corner of her room. Grell had saved up the money for her own TV in ninth grade. According to her, it was the best investment she had made. 

"Do you want me to some stuff to sit on?" I asked her. She nodded. I grabbed the pillows off of her bed as she rummaged through her closet for spare blankets. After building two small nests of pillows and blankets, we collapsed. The movie began to play, but I was too distracted to watch it. All I could focus on was Grell.

She would be unconsciously moving her hand up to wipe tears from her cheeks every other minute. Grell would bury herself under blankets and cuddle with her teddy. She even snuggled up to me for a minute. Then she would realize whose arm she was cushioning her head on, and mutter an apology while shuffling away. 

After 90 minutes of pure awkward, we decided to take a short break. Then I asked the question. "Hey Grell," I started, "did you want me to stay with you? Or do you want me to leave?" 

She looked a little shocked at first. Then a small smile reached across her face. "If you're staying, you're sleeping in the bathtub. I really don't want my parents finding a boy sleeping on my floor." I nodded to show that I was on the same page as her. 

"I have a bunch more movies in my backpack," I said, nodding to my pack on the floor. "You wanna choose one while I make my bed?" She got up to choose the next movie as I took my nest of blankets to her bathroom. 

Luckily for me, Grell had her own bathroom. She was an only child after all. What's even better is, to get to the bathroom, you have to go through Grell's room. It's private. 

I was lost in thought as I tossed blankets on the floor of the tub. I layered one carefully and then tossed my pillows on next. Lastly I laid a small quilt over top of the stack. I then hastily made my way back into Grell's room. 

"How do you feel about The Texas Chainsaw Massacre?" Grell asked as she held up the older horror movie. I shrugged, I wasn't fond of the movie, but hey, it was Grell's pick. She wasn't having the best day, and I was sure that I wouldn't make it any better by denying her.

We both went to sit on the floor and Grell noticed my lack of pillows and blankets. "Hey," she said nudging me, "where's your nest?" I pointed to the bathroom. "Oh yeah!" She said hitting herself lightly in the head. "I'm sorry, Will. I'm kind of out of it today." 

She stood up and spread her blankets out a little and then plopped back down on them. "Here," Grell said as she pulled me closer, "we can share. Just promise not to try anything funny."

"I promise," I said, holding up three finger, "scouts honor."

"You were never a boy scout," Grell said bluntly. I shrugged and cuddled up to one of the pillows. I generally liked horror movies, but The Texas Chainsaw Massacre scared me to death. 

Halfway through the movie I was hiding behind a pillow as she watched in utter awe. I peeked back from behind the pillow and screeched in terror. Without thinking I dropped the pillow and lunged to hide behind Grell. However, I kind of tripped over her teddy bear and fell on her lap. 

"Does this scare you that bad?" Grell asked. She then laughed, really laughed, for the first time that night. She pushed me off of her lap and got up to take out the movie. 

I sighed in relief as she chose a Disney movie. She chose one of my favorite ones from the stack, The Aristocats. She sat back down and we giggled as we watched the three little kittens cause trouble.

The movie was almost over when Grell had fallen asleep. I maneuvered her so that she was pillowing her head on my lap. Sighing, I began to stroke her long, red hair. Then, I fell asleep too.

-

"No," I heard Grell mumble. My eyes shot open to see Grell. She was curled up into my chest. What was she saying 'No' about? Grell began to claw at her arms. Her long nails were drawing blood. It was smearing on her upper arms, staining her pale skin. 

Instantly, I began to panic. "Grell, wake up!" I said loudly. I jerked her up and pulled her hands out away from her. She opened her eyes and looked dazed for a minute. "Are you okay?" I asked softly. 

"What happened?" Grell asked as she looked at her hands. Her eyes widened, staring at the blood. She covered her mouth so suppress a scream and I shushed her.

"You were having a nightmare," I said as I picked her up off of the floor. "Now let's go get you cleaned up." I carried her to the bathroom and set her down on the counter. 

"What time is it anyway?" She asked as I riffled through her cupboard for Neosporin and a washcloth. I paused to glance at one of the clocks. 

"About 2:30 in the morning," I replied as I got the washcloth wet. I slowly wiped the blood off of her arms and cleaned the small, but many scratches. She hissed in pain as I began to spread Neosporin on the tiny caw marks. "Man, you must have been having one bad dream," I muttered. 

"It was terrible," Grell said. She hopped off the counter and landed lightly on her feet. I put away the Neosporin and threw the washcloth in the hamper next to the toilet. 

"Do you want me to wait with you until you fall asleep?" I asked her. Grell nodded and I followed her. She jumped up in her bed and I tucked her in.  

She rolled so that she was facing me. I watched her until she fell asleep, then I softly kissed her forehead. "Love ya, Grell," I murmured into her red hair, smiling to myself.

Then I made my way to her bathroom. I crawled into my makeshift tub-bed, and fell asleep. It was cramped, but it would have to do. I let weariness overtake me, and I fell asleep. 

-Nat