The Psycho Is Innocent | ꪜ

Chapter 26: The Devil Is A Liar

So when the authorities were at her bedside, she fabricated a story: claiming that she was jumped in an alleyway on her way home by an unidentifiable man. Melissa apologized till her tear ducts were left dry but still, she couldn't find it within herself to reveal the truth behind Tobias' condition. Ariel didn't care, she wanted to find out for herself. So as she stood on his porch with her knuckles pressed against the door, she knew there was no turning back.

It hadn't been a second later before the door cracked open. Tobias' blue eyes peeked through the space and their gazes immediately interlocked. The anger, the confusion, the dark void which had made his body its temple was long gone. Now he was just a shell of a guy, too broken to pick up the pieces he had shattered all over his life. His nails dug into the wooden frame as his gaze flickered down to her neck where his fingers imprinted. Though it had been an entire week, the purple marks remained, not yet fading into her flesh.

He swallowed hard and prepared to slam the door shut, too overwhelmed to be in her presence. However, Ariel had anticipated that move and before he could do so she shoved her foot in between the door, preventing him from closing it fully. "Don't shut me out," she said in a deep raspy undertone. Other than the visible wounds around her neck, he had also partially damaged her voice box, leaving the sound emitting from her lips unrecognizable.

He raised his head slightly but refused to meet her eyes. However, Ariel had already seen the tears brimming his eyelids, threatening to fall any second now. He seemed to be visibly shaken up, too distraught to even say a word as guilt racked through his body like never before. It was a basic human feeling but the emotion had invaded his body to the point where he found it difficult to even stand on his own two feet. He leaned against the wall for support and swallowed the bile threatening to rise from his throat.

"Tobias. . ."

"Why are you doing this? Why are you here, Ariel?" He managed to say. His voice was small, timid as if it belonged to a child caught doing something he shouldn't have. Ariel shifted on her feet, "what? You think I'd just leave and call it quits because you had a mental breakdown? We're all going through shit in our lives, Tobias but it shouldn't define us." He scoffed, "it shouldn't define us? If you knew who I was–who I truly am you'd know that everything that is wrong with me defines who I am." She took a step forward, "I don't think that's true."

"Are you crazy?!" He snapped as he pushed himself off the wall, his eyes suddenly narrowing. Frustration rippled through his flesh and he wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and hug her, but he knew he couldn't, not when he was the one who shattered her to pieces. "I hurt you, Ariel. I put my hands on you. I–I choked yo–" he could barely finish his sentence as his throat contracted and a sob racked through his mouth. Tears tumbled down his face like a rain shower, clouding his already distorted vision.

"It wasn't your fault, you didn't know it was me," he flinched back as her hand outstretched towards him. Tobias was the embodiment of guilt, shame and pain but he knew what he felt couldn't amount to the horror she had been through that night. "It was my fault. I wasn't taking my meds and I–even if I didn't know it was you it doesn't change the fact that I hurt you. I put–" he hesitantly raised a hand towards her face but before she could reach out, he tugged it back swiftly, "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, Ariel."

          As his eyes flickered shut, Ariel took this opportunity to shove the door completely open. He hadn't a second to react before she crashed into his arms, hugging him tightly, afraid that if she let go she would never find the opportunity to do it again. The entire week had been nothing but torture away from him. Ariel didn't know why she felt this way when they haven't been dating long but she felt a weird connection between them that she couldn't ignore. That she won't ignore.