HEY HEY! IT'S ME! I'm still breathing in case you're wondering! Well, last week's been hella crazy and I'm glad I made it out alive!
I had more planned for this chapter, but the word count would have reached 5k
Anyway, the wait is over, HERE! A NEW CHAPTER! ENJOY! I won't warn you about the contents, that would spoil all the fun... ;)
Total word count: 3341
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"Six, wait!" Mono called. He wasted not a single moment. Mono was running after her in a blink, skipping past the massacre left in her wake. No matter how tempting it was to look at it, Mono'd sooner keep his eyes forward, lest he wanted to see the gored corpse of the woman laying there drowning in the puddle of crimson.
He kicked through the shattered porcelain pieces on the floor as he made for the exit. He was careful enough not to step on anything sharp. As he was about to step outside, a violent gust of wind blew past him, snaking through his clothes and freezing him to the core. The rain was pelting down from a starless black sky. Fat droplets of rain blew about haphazardly around the flickering street lamps and beat down on the roofs of the cars. Some even managed to sneak through the gaps of his paper bag and slap him across the face.
She's insane! She's out of her mind! Mono was already shivering. He placed his hands under the armpits of his jacket, warming them. He had to find her quickly. Mono looked about for a bit and found a small cardboard box laden with sodden sealed letters. He pushed the box over, spilling its contents all over the wet stone. He then grabbed it, ripped off a few of its edges and cut a gap for him to see through, and raised it above his head.
Mono hopped down the steps and ran under the rain. He felt the droplets drumming the cardboard overhead. Soon enough, water started leaking through the gaps. They bounced off Mono's paper bag and slid down to its edges, falling off and snaking their way through the collar of his jacket. Before he knew it, Mono was already soaked through the bone, and his soul had grown cold. Goddamn it, Six. What were you thinking?
He strode across the streets. At first, he followed where the street lamps had led him. Past stores with shattered windows, down the hills, where rivers of black waters ran down. Around several square blocks. Where nothing more than a pile of wrecked and tumbled-over cars and the howling of drain pipes awaited. This was getting him nowhere. He had been running around aimlessly for twenty minutes now, and now the cardboard box was so soaked with rain that it tore apart as Mono adjusted it over his head. He cursed inaudibly, turning back to find shelter from the rain. There was a stone canopy just a few feet away on the other side of the street. It hung over the entrance of yet another abandoned building. Mono rushed and crossed the street, keeping what was left of the cardboard box over his head. Soon, he hopped onto the pavement staggered under the stone canopy, safe from the rain. He left the box back there in the streets to be swept away with the flowing waters.
He sat there shivering. He took off his coat, and he shook the rain off it, then placed it aside. He then pulled his white blouse from under his trousers and wrung the water out of it. His fingers were numb, and his feet... were they still there!? He couldn't feel them at all. He looked down to see that their color had turned pale blue. He let his fingers drift across them and tangling them between his toes. He felt nothing! If he kept this up, he was going to lose them.
He stood on shaky legs and pushed the door to the building open. Cold... so cold! He looked around and found himself standing in the middle of a lobby, where a reception desk stood tall right in front of him, and behind it, hanging on the wall, were small rows of filing cabinets, each had its own number attached to it. On his left was a cart filled with luggage. Leather bags with clothing spilling out of them. Next to it was a stand where several umbrellas hung, but of course, they were too big for Mono to carry...
What he was looking for was right there, atop the desk, the lamp was all the light there was in the room, and he could feel its warm glow all the way from where he was standing. He didn't waste time climbing up the desk, hooking his fingers in the handles of the drawer, and firmly placing his feet in the gaps in the wood. He lifted himself until he grabbed onto the edges of the table and pulled himself to the very top.
He crossed the reception desk and made his way towards the lamp. Carefully grabbing its wooden handle and tilting it sideways, and slowly laid it down. He kicked off the lampshade and sat there huddled next to the warm light. His great shadow was cast across the room behind him like a hulking beast.
He placed his hands on the lightbulb and then his legs. He felt them warming up almost immediately. He let out a sigh of relief as the cold gave way to warmth. Before long, he stopped shivering, but that's when the pain came. Now his feet felt like they were burning, and the joints in his fingers spasmed horribly, but this sure beats freezing to death.
He couldn't stay here long. He had to go back out there, back into the unforgiving rain. He thought about Six and shuddered. She went under the rain without so much a shelter. Was she trying to get herself killed!? Mono felt the rage curdling inside him. She could've saved him a whole lot of trouble if she only talked to him. Why wouldn't she talk to him? If only you'd talk to me...
Back there, amidst all the chaos and slaughtering, when she stood above the teacher, her clothes all splattered in blood with flesh dripping from her teeth. He didn't see a monster... no such monster would have that look in its eyes, the look of dread, the look of sorrow and regret. What he saw was just a tormented soul, one that was screaming for help. He knew that because deep down, he had that feeling, that once upon a time, he'd been there too... Ah yes... deja vu.
Mono pried himself away from these thoughts. Now was not the time to think about that. Once he finds her, he was going to hammer all of that into her brain. One step at a time... Once he warmed himself and felt that he was strong enough to journey once more under the rain, he hopped back on his legs and stretched his limbs, thinking of some way to make it through without freezing his soul off. Now that he'd lost the cardboard box. There was no means of shelter from the relentless downpour... wait a minute. Yes, there is! The triangle-shaped lampshade. That could definitely do the trick!
He kicked the lampshade off the reception desk and hopped down, landing with a soft thud. Mono dug with his fingernails and ripped the fabric apart, just enough for him to see through. The lampshade was made of linen. It would avail him so much before the water starts leaking through it. He dragged it along the floor and crossed the room towards the door he had left slightly ajar. He hooked his fingers to the edges and dragged the door open. The wind outside had died out a bit, but the rain was pelting down still.
Mono rolled back the sleeves of his jacket and grabbed the lampshade, and held it high above his head. At first, he followed the wall to his left, staying under the cover of the stone canopy for a little while longer. Once he reached the end of the pavement, he stood there and shouted out her name, "SIX!? SIX! WHERE ARE YOU!?" He crossed to the other side of the street, stopping for a few moments where the rain couldn't reach him, then he would call her name again and again. After crossing another city block, he came upon a clue. A bandage stained and black crimson. It lay there by the trash bins at the entrance of the alleyway. Mono rushed over and picked it up, keeping the lampshade steady above his head. She must be close... Mono thought. He looked around the alley, the once pale stones of the buildings turned dark by the rain, the electric wires hanging low and tangled, the hissing of pipes and rush of waters through the drain system.
He shouted again, "SIX! CAN YOU HEAR ME? SAY SOMETHING!" She was close. He could feel it. But he knew Six wouldn't just answer back... there had to be some way to draw her out. He kept on going, skipping past the trash and the crumpled soda cans scattered across the wet stone. Before long, water started leaking through the lampshade, so Mono had to leave it behind. Without thinking, he bolted through the alleyway, desperately looking for somewhere to hide.
As he ventured deeper into the alley, he came across a small wooden shed where garbage cans used to be stored. Luckily, the shed was empty, sparing him from the horrendous smell. He made for it, creeping through the tiny gaps in the wood. He sat there back propped against the wooden wall with a full view across the alley. This is taking forever... Mono thought. He hugged his knees and waited.
The rain subsided a bit. The heavy drumming became no more than a soft pitter-patter. "Finally... lucky break." Mono thought aloud. He decided to wait a few more minutes before leaving his spot. Maybe the rain would cease completely by then...
For some reason, Mono's thoughts went back to the shed. Back to where he first met her, down in the basement, locked in a room with torn plushies scattered all about and scribblings on the walls as if she were a prisoner counting the days past. Why did he remember all this now? He didn't know... So instead, he started humming to pass the time, her song... he may have gotten a few notes wrong. Well, Mono only ever heard it twice anyway.
Little did he know that a certain someone was listening to him. At the far end of the alley, hiding in the shadows inside a draped wooden crate, was Six... Pushing the torn tarp away, Six peeked her head through and saw where the sound was coming from. His paper bag was peeking out of the tiny gaps in the wooden shed. She made a small sound in her throat. She couldn't face him. She just couldn't... not after what he saw. She drew back and retreated into the dark, but as she did, she accidentally kicked a plastic box filled with glass bottles, they made a loud clanking sound. Six gasped and drew back, hugging her knees, shivering.
Mono's head snapped to his right. What was that? he thought. "Six?" he said, pushing himself through the gaps and hopping down to the sodden stone. "Is that you?" He added with a kind tone. When he saw her feet poking out in the moonlight, he became sure. Mono let out a sigh of relief. Here he thought he had more searching to do, but it turns out she was right under his nose. "Well, this takes me back..." Mono said, smiling. "Back when we first met, when you bit my fingers and ran..." he walked closer, and stopped a few feet away from the crate, and knelt there, "We gotta stop meeting like this, Six..."
"Why did you come?" Six said, voice low and quivering. He couldn't tell if it was from the cold or something else.
"Why do you ask questions you already know the answers to?"
At that, Six only huffed.
Mono took a few more steps and pushed the tarp to the side. He saw Six sitting there, shivering. The red glow of her eyes had dimmed. The rain had darkened the blood on her blue sweater to the color of crimson, "May I come in? It's brass monkeys out here..." He said. Six nodded reluctantly. Mono stepped through and placed the tarp back. Then went to sit beside her.
"How did you find me?" Six asked.
Mono reached for the pockets within his jacket and pulled out the bandage, "You left this back there..." He said, then sighed when he saw that the rest of the dressing had been soaked and soiled, "Did you really have to ruin all the hard work from before...?"
Six looked at him, then began undoing the knots that held her bandages in place, and the heavy black and white cloths slithered from her arms and legs to fall in a heap on the floor.
"Wait! What are you doing?" Mono cried.
Finally, she tore away the bandage on her head and tossed it away with the pile. "I don't need them anymore..." She said, extending her arm to Mono for him to see. He held it and traced with his thumb where her wounds once were. Nothing...
"You-" Mono breathed, his forefinger drifting against her knuckles, "I see... you can do it too. Now we have something in common..." Mono said. Six was silent, her head turning the other way, avoiding his eyes. After a moment, Mono reached for her face. His hand hovered just a few inches away from her hair. She pushed it away and cowered back. "Six... I want to see you."
"Believe me. You don't..." She said.
"Please..." Mono said as he tried again. She drew her head back, but this time she didn't push away his hand. "Look at me..." He gently slid his thumb under her hair and pushed them away.
Her eyes darted everywhere for a moment before setting them on his. He saw her face clearly. Her features were daubed with melancholy, and her crimson eyes were puffy from crying. Then he noticed the gash in her forehead had also disappeared. Her lips twisted, then pursed, "Well...?" She spoke.
"Well, what?"
"What do you see?"
Mono was silent for a moment, "You're a mess..."
Six gritted her teeth and pulled away, her hair falling back on her face. "I'm a monster." She said, shaking her head, "A freak!"
"We've been here a hundred times before, Six..." Mono said with a cold voice, "You're just saying the same things over and over again. Seriously, I'm getting quite sick of it. How long do you think you keep this up? How far can you go like this? I tried to help, I offered to carry this heavy burden with you, but you insisted on fighting this battle alone..." Six looked up at him, eyes wide with shock as she saw that side of him, "You're a mess...? Yes! You're an imperfect being who makes mistakes...? Undeniable! But you're no monster, Six... I'm not blind. I've seen how you've been trying to right your wrongs... well, in the worst possible way... But come now... what kind of monster feels regret or has that look in its eyes...?"
"No... I-" Six said, her voice quivering, "You don't get it! The thing that I've done... I can't... You don't understand-"
Mono felt a spasm of anger surging through him, "I don't understand because you do not talk to me!" He cried. He stood and grabbed her firmly by the shoulders, making her gasp, "Listen..." His voice became kind again, "I don't know what it was that turned your life upside down. But maybe... I think I might have been there before. Six, all this time we've been friends... trust me as you did before, we could do better together. Please let me help you..."
Six's lips quivered, but she didn't cry. Her head fell, and her shoulders drooped. "I don't deserve your help, Mono... I don't." she breathed, "I was never meant to survive until now... I shouldn't even be here... I've done some very horrible things, Mono... I was just a child, I-" She took a deep breath, "I didn't ask for any of this..."
Mono sat there listening.
"Back there. In that room in the shack. I was ready, you know... I was ready to pay for it all. I didn't care what would've happened to me. I thought, 'This is what you get.' I lived like an animal. Why shouldn't I die like one?" Six swallowed hard, "But then you came, and you gave me your hand... and told me that you would show me the world... what you saw before was the only world I knew, I didn't want to drag you into it, many have already suffered because of it, Mono."
Mono smiled then, a smile so tremulous and sweet that it cut the heart out of her, "But you still came with me."
"Part of me..." Six said, then paused, blinking hard, "part of me still wanted to live... still wanted to... love." her voice was thick with sadness, "After all that's happened, I thought maybe I had learned my lesson. But I didn't, Mono. Like the selfish beast that I am, I came with you, knowing that I might just hurt you, the same way I hurt so many..." She heaved in a shaky breath, "I was happy... I was happy, even though I didn't deserve it..."
Mono sucked in a breath, feeling tears stinging his eyes.
"I don't deserve any of it..." Six whimpered, tugging at her sleeves and wiping her eyes, "Not the promise... not the berries... not the warmth of your hand... not that time on the boat-" Six said, laughing a little at the memory, "Not even the time you wrapped your coat around me... none of it. It's all wasted on someone like me..."
That felt like a slap to the face, wasted, you say? Mono let out a sigh of disbelief and knelt a few inches away from her, staring her straight in the eyes. Oh, I've always wanted to do that...
"M-Mono?" Six said curiously. It happened almost instantly. Mono brought his fist down on Six's skull, "OW!" Six yelped, placing both her hands on her head, and looked at Mono incredulously. Tears brimmed in the corner of her eyes as she made a small whining sound. Oh, God! That felt horrible, that felt so horrible! How does she even do it to me?
He quickly rushed to pull her into a heated embrace. He cupped the back of her head with his hand and pulled his other arm around her shoulder, whispering soft I'm sorry's in her ear. Six let out a shaky breath, burying her face into his coat, her arms going up, reaching for his own shoulders. Whispering incoherent words of her own.
"I'm sorry for hitting you, but don't give me that rubbish... Nothing is wasted on you. You're far more precious than you could imagine. It's not up to you to decide whether you deserve something or not, no matter what. I'll say this again and again, as much as it takes for you to understand, you're not a monster..."
Six sighed in his neck, "You're still gonna say that after everything you've seen?"
"Yes..." Mono said. He pulled back a bit, then brought his forehead closer to hers until they connected, "You're not a monster."
"Idiot, as always..." Six said, closing her eyes, savoring the moment.
They sat there for a while until the pitter-patter of the rain could no longer be heard. Then Six opened her eyes again and said, "Could you... could you sing that song for me again?"
"Yes."
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OH! FINALLY OVAH! *Drops to the floor snoring*
This took way longer than it should have, the college is dragging me to an internship next week so let's see how this goes.
So, Whaddaya think? Any mistakes sulking about? missing words... anything? Do let me know!
UNTIL NEXT TIME!