Swan Song || The Lost Boys - & The One Who Found Them...

Chapter XIII ~ ᛇ ( Eihwaz ) Part I - Pale Tortured Blue

" Don't even try, bonehead. She ain't gonna fall for that!
Unlike you she has a brain & knows how to use it ~ "
Marko replied, making his way around the water fountain.

Paul shook his head.
" Don't believe him, little flower ~
he's guilty as charged!  "

" Yeah?
Do you have proof for that? "
I asked while spinning the ball between my palms, one brow arched at the frizzy-maned bloodsucker.

He paused for a brief moment, his front teeth pinching his bottom lip before he crooked a smile. He already knew that I had seen through him.

" Drat…
Guess ya got me, little flower ~ You are good! "

" No, Paul. You are just bad at lying. "

I tossed Marko the football with a subtle wink, mostly because I wanted to come off as polite.
During the past few hours the two of them had in fact been acting way more civilized towards me, much to my own surprise, & even though I was still somewhat skeptical I was at least no longer in a constant state of internal tension & fear around them.

If only I could say the same thing about David…

" Hey, precious ~ you wanna join us? "
I looked up to see Marko arch a brow at me, resting his shoulder against the bedpost.
" You could replace Dwayne as the third player! "

" Hell yeah, you absolutely could! Maybe you're even a way better pitcher than he is too!
I mean… it wouldn't surprise me to be honest ~ "
Paul rubbed his jaw with a vicious grin.
" ~ given your… iron fist & fiery attitude. "

" You were literally asking for it & you know it…  "
My still sore & slightly bruised fist flared up at the memory of me punching both David & Paul in order to get away from them, the for the most part unpleasant images of my first encounter with Paul quickly flooding my mind.

His brazen laugh drew my way.
" Other than that little unfortunate mishap we had a pretty magical date that night, wouldn't you agree? "

" Shut up, Paul.
I'm not going to 'play' with you ~ "

" Oooh boy, I love it when you say my name like that ~ "
Ignoring my loud eye roll he flopped down onto the couch, facing me while playing throw & catch with himself.
" Can you do it again, please? Just for good ol' Paul? "

" Ignore him ~ "
Marko replied, smacking the back of Paul's head before taking a seat right next to him.
" He tends to be obnoxious when he's around pretty girls… & sometimes even around pretty guys…

and basically any other time! "

I felt a smile stretch across my face.
" I will keep that in mind if I ever feel the urge to punch him again… "

Although Marko's attitude towards me had significantly changed in the past few hours & he seemed much more laid-back than when we had entered the cave I still found him darting a curious, sometimes voluptuous glance at my shoulder, admittedly making me feel uncomfortable.
I checked the band-aid for possible leaks at least every two minutes, feeling the area around for moisture of any kind, but all seemed well.

Could he actually smell the blood underneath all those layers of mull & tape?

" How is your shoulder doing? "
I flinched at Marko's voice, or rather at the question.

" It's… alright, I guess. Dwayne took care of the wound & it doesn't hurt as much anymore, so I assume it's already healing…"
I covered the band-aid with an open palm, rubbing it carefully. A dull prickle was all I got in response to my touch, it wasn't even painful.