*HEY GUYS! WELCOME TO ANOTHER CHAPTER OF C&B! NOW, I WILL SAY THAT THIS CHAPTER IS SLIGHTLY SHORTER THAN THE NORMAL CHAPTER (chapters usually range from 7,000 to 8,000 words, this one is about 5,000, not including this author's note). I HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY IT BECAUSE I FEEL THAT THIS CHAP MAY NOT BE THAT EVENTFUL. IDK, THAT'S JUST ME. I'M MY OWN HARSH CRITIC, YA KNOW THE SAYING. BUT THE GOOD THING IS IS THAT I'VE GOT CHAPTER 53 ALREADY SET UP AND READY! YAY! ANYWAY, HOW ABOUT WE START THE FIRST CHAPTER OF 2016 WITH SOME QUESTIONS?!
Questions!!:
-What are your 2016 resolutions? (My resolutions are to not procrastinate on my responsibilities and to finISH THIS FUCKIN BOOK AFTER TWO YEARS JFC.)
-If this series had a soundtrack, what songs do you think would be included? (Tbh, I'd pick a bunch of EDM songs. Maybe I'll post a list of songs that I like because why the fuk not?? Let me know in the comments if you'd like to see that.~)
ALSO, BECAUSE I LOVE THIS SONG SO MUCH, YOU ALL GET TO CHILL OUT TO THE VID IN THE MULTIMEDIA. SONG IS Lark by Direct. ENJOY THE CHAPTER, EVERYONE!*
Stay Creepy, My Friends!~
Chapter 52
Jeff's POV
My blood was boiling, my head was spinning and my fist ached from landing a hard punch to Toby's cheek. He stumbled back slightly but didn't seem fazed by the hit at all. If anything, he was calm, while the girls lost their shit.
"You son of a bitch!," I yelled at Toby, right before Clockwork rushed over and shoved me away.
Next thing I knew, everyone was scrambling to get the two of us away from each other. Clockwork was being stubborn and clawing at my face while Elizabeth pried her away. I didn't bother hitting her and only tried pushing her off. Ben was at my back, arms wrapped under mine as he tugged on me. Toby was in the squabble in an instant and helped Elizabeth.
Once the two of us were far away, Clockwork spat, "You've got some fucking nerve!"
Toby turned to her and said in a calm tone of voice, "Clock, i-it's fine, I'm alright. You know I don't feel a thing."
"Doesn't matter," she hissed. She glared at me and said, "He fucked up..!"
"So, did he," I remarked, nodding at Toby. He looked at me with big eyes as I continued, "How could you?! You knew how much she meant to me and you took her! You were my friend, practically like a brother, and you go and fuck me over!!"
"What the hell is he talking about?," Elizabeth asked. Toby didn't answer her, he just kept his eyes on me.
"Two years," I continued, "two fucking years!! Because of what you did that night you left me to be alone, you left me to question myself, you left me to suffer without the closure that she was alright! I spent those two years trying to find answers, hoping one day I could kill the bastards who took her. Now, I'm disgusted to see that one of those bastards is you..!"
Clockwork suddenly sprinted out of Elizabeth's grip and grabbed at my shirt. This time when she hit me, I hit back. The both of us tumbled to the ground, jabbing each other, while everyone else hovered over us, trying to separate us. Eventually, Ben got a hold of me and picked me up while Toby and Elizabeth had Clockwork. As soon as Clockwork was up, she spat at the ground near my feet and growled at me, "After two years, you still hit like a bitch..!"
I jerked forward a bit, causing Ben to tighten his grip but I yanked myself out and growled, "Get off! I'm not going to do anything..!" He just raised his hands and took a step back.
After taking in a few deep and steady breaths, I glared at Toby and said, "Why'd you do it?"
He gulped and murmured, "It's a...lengthy explanation.."
"Long, short, clear, impeded, give me something," I said. "Besides, I'm not the only one who needs an explanation.."
Toby glanced over at Elizabeth, who stared at him with confused eyes. He sighed and mumbled, "Jeff, please, let's at least settle everyone down."
I looked around at everyone; Ben stared nervously at me, Elizabeth had a mix of confusion and anger on her face, Clockwork looked like she could rip off Satan's head with her teeth and Toby had a look of guilt in his eyes. All of them stared at me. I clenched my jaw as I stared down at the fading grass. I hurrumphed and responded, "Fine."
Toby nodded and turned towards Clockwork. She looked at him with wide eyes and said, "You're not even considering tolerating him, are you?" He nodded and answered her, "He's an old friend, Clock."
"Some friend," she grumbled.
"Please, don't act up. No attitude, no fighting, nothing. Just be calm," he begged her. The tension in her body left her as she muttered, "Fine, but if he tries anything, I'll break his face in..." She slipped out of Elizabeth's grip and trudged off inside the house. Elizabeth followed her, but flashed me a deathly glare before disappearing inside. Toby entered next, leaving only Ben and I standing outside.
It was quiet for a few moments, until a bird chirped far off. Ben looked up at me and murmured, "Snake people probably would've been better.."
I slowly turned my head and gave him a hard glare. He shifted in his place, rubbed his nose and said, "J-Just saying."
I stared at him some more. He grew more uncomfortable. "I'll stop," he said, and I rolled my eyes.
"Let's go," I grumbled, as I lead the way towards the house. Before I entered, I stole a glance at the wooden cross to the side. Ben walked past me as I kept staring at it, remembering a lot of things that I shouldn't right now. I wonder what she would think of Elizabeth and Toby if she were still here...
"Jeff?" Ben's voice broke my trance. I shook my head and saw him standing in the doorway. I cleared my throat and said, "I'm going.." I pushed the thought of the wooden cross out of my mind and finally entered the house.
The first thing I noticed was the scent. A honeysuckle fragrance hung in the air. Looking around, I saw that everything was just about the same as it was two years ago. The intricate decor, the rug in the living room, the couches, even the coat hanger by the door. The only thing that has changed is the placement of the furniture and, of course, a new resident. Clockwork stood behind one couch where Toby and Elizabeth sat. Toby gestured toward the couch opposite of him, and his arm and head twitched momentarily. Yes, I remember, he has Tourette's.
I scrutinized the couch for a few seconds while Ben just up and took a seat. Soon enough, I sat down with him, placing my hands on my knees as I concentrated on not looking at everything else and letting memories wash over me.
"W-Would you like something to drink?," Toby stuttered.
"No," I answered immediately as I stared straight at him.
He nodded awkwardly and turned to Ben. "How about you.?"
Ben thought for a moment. "Water would be nice," he responded.
Toby gave him a collected smile and turned to Clockwork. "Would you mind...?"
She didn't have to reply to start walking off into the kitchen. After a few seconds, we heard her move things around. I stopped staring at Toby for a brief moment and realized that Elizabeth was doing just the same with me. I didn't tell her anything, I only stayed quiet as I held eye contact with her for a few moments before diverting my attention. Clockwork came back into the living room with a glass of water in hand. Despite her obvious nerves, she delivered the glass to Ben's hands calmly. "Thanks," Ben said with a carefree smile. It seemed to take her aback as she cocked an eyebrow at him. Ben didn't seem to notice as he coolly took a sip of his water. Clockwork then returned back to her original spot, standing behind the other couch.
Toby finally looked at me again and said, "W-Where would you like me to start..?"
"From the beginning," I said, "tell me everything."
He thought for a moment as his hands twitched. Looking up at Clockwork, he started, "A few months after you had left, I ran into Clock out in the nearby town. She was..." He faltered.
Clockwork sighed and murmured, "Go ahead."
He continued with her permission and said, "She was homeless for a while. I visited her in this abandoned shop often, gave her food and entertained her every f-few times a week. After a while, I finally decided to let her stay here and she's been living with me ever since. It's been a lot easier here with her around."
I would think so. I had been shocked and a bit heartbroken to know that he had decided to stay here by himself, what with Maribel Umber passing. A part of me felt relieved knowing he found someone, even if that someone almost strangled me outside.
"And, Elizabeth?" I asked.
Toby twitched again and said, "Y-Yeah, that part. Umm..."
Clockwork waited until he went silent to add, "Someone came to us one day with a mission."
Toby nodded. "That mission was to retrieve Elizabeth's body and bring her back here. Afterwards we were ordered to keep her here so she could recover from her...injuries."
All of us, even Elizabeth, glanced at her metal arm. I looked away and inquired, "Who was this person that came to you? For what purpose?"
Toby rubbed the back of his neck and answered, "H-He told us to call him Dr. Smiley. We just refer to him as Doctor, though, but that's besides the point. He gave us this mission because he was ordered by someone else."
"Who?"
I caught him gulping before he murmured quietly, "Zalgo..."
Heart racing, I hissed, "And, you listened to this doctor creep?!"
"W-Wait," Toby pleaded, "before you jump to conclusions, we didn't do this to aid that monster..! In fact, Dr. Smiley two-timed him."
Clockwork took the reins of the conversation and said, "He was asked to come to us to give us the mission so that Zalgo could have Elizabeth, but the Doctor wasn't going to follow through. He decided it would be better to have Elizabeth come back to take her place as this proxy once again."
Toby jutted in and stated, "Zalgo wanted Elizabeth so that she would serve him, but that can't be allowed to happen. S-So, in order for the Doctor's true actions to stay hidden, he decided to have Elizabeth lay low while she recovered. This process, though, it required suppressing her memories."
Shaking my head, I muttered, "Why..?"
Clockwork frowned and said, "If she remembered everything before, then she would run back. It would be obvious that the Doctor had gone against what was asked of him and his intentions would be failed. Zalgo would catch her, and would manipulate her weak state. We couldn't allow him to suspect that he wasn't getting what he wanted."
"He can't still be oblivious though, right?," Ben interjected.
Toby shook his head. "Of course, not anymore. But, Elizabeth is in a much better state now to protect herself from his influence."
I glanced at her and noted her metal arm and her eye. Nodding at her, I asked, "How was she restored?"
Toby scratched his chin and said, "The Doctor offered the new arm and the surgery for it. It took a while though. Maybe two to three days for it to be completed. We asked him where he got the prosthesis once but he never gave us a decent answer."
"And the eye?"
Toby, Clockwork and Elizabeth gave each other sour looks, as if they all drank the same spoiled milk. Elizabeth rubbed her shoulder and answered, "We don't know where it came from..."
"It just showed up in a box at our doorstep one day," Clockwork added.
Toby cringed and he said, "Elizabeth had been the first to grab it. As soon as she opened the box, the eye, like...jumped out and into her--." He gagged.
Elizabeth shook her head at him and said, "We couldn't remove it. Dr. Smiley tried everything but it wouldn't come out. Eventually I got used it, since it only acted as any normal eye." Her expression dropped and I knew she was thinking about how she's gone berserk. Not such a normal eye after all.
Ben finished his glass of water and asked, "So...how does she remember some stuff...? Like, about being the proxy and Zalgo being her main enemy?"
"There were some things that Dr. Smiley told her," Clockwork explained, "such as her dying before, the passing of her parents and the decimation of her home."
"The Doctor wanted her to have a purpose for wanting to defeat Zalgo without overwhelming her with the rest of her memories," Toby said, "It was a gradual process, though. Wasn't easy at first."
Elizabeth stared down at the floor hard and said, "I had mental breakdowns every few times a week. Toby and Clock were given sedatives for me."
Toby tugged at his ear and murmured, "I hope this is somewhat understandable but you can see why we allowed p-portions of her memories. Her mind in the beginning was fragile, especially coming back from the dead."
Ben scratched his head and asked, "How's that possible, anyway?"
"It's simple," Toby replied, "She was practically sleeping. We just had to 'wake her up'."
"She had a bullet in her head..," I remarked.
"It couldn't affect her. Dr. Smiley said she's been dead for a long time. The only way she's alive is because Zalgo's alive."
Clockwork's eyes went wide and she said, "T-Toby.."
He didn't seem to hear her as he explained, "Apparently they have a deal and are bounded together, which had Ellie stay alive after she died at some other point in her life."
Elizabeth stared at him with a strange look. Clockwork glanced between them and said again, "Toby."
"It was a pretty detailed explanation and I'm not even sure how the Doctor knew all this," he went on, "I forget most of it. But, I was surprised to find out that in making the deal she actually became the guy's daughter--."
"WHAT?!" Elizabeth screamed, bolting up from the couch, moving it by half an inch. Ben and I reeled back, startled. Toby blinked at her, then his face went paler than it already was and he covered his mouth. "Oh sh-shit, I never told you that...!"
Clockwork suddenly smacked him upside the head and scolded, "You idiot!"
Elizabeth stood rigid, eyes wide, face pale and mouth agape from utter horror. In a quivering voice, she muttered, "I'm that filthy animal's daughter...?! But, I thought...! M-My parents...!" She looked down at her trembling hand with an expression of absolute distress. Shaking her head, her mood shifted from devastated to enraged and she exclaimed to Toby and Clockwork, "What else have you not told me?! What other important things are you hiding?! What, i-is my mother a fucking succubus now?!"
Clockwork started towards her and said, "Ellie--."
"Don't Ellie me!," she snapped. "Don't even try to calm me down!! What else is there to know?! Tell me!"
After silence dictated the room, I took this chance to finally speak up after a while and say, "Do you remember that night at the hideout, the night before we left on this trip?"
Elizabeth stared at me, the frustration still present on her features. I looked up at her and said, "Do you remember when you asked about my ring...?," --I lifted up my hand to show her my wedding band--, "How you teased me about it? How I told you why I wear it? And, the other ring..." I pulled out the necklace and held up the shining, silver and blue ring for her to see.
She glanced at it, pursed her lips, then murmured, "Yeah, I remember.."
This was it. This was the moment I would tell her everything. My heart was racing in anticipation, to the point where I couldn't bear it any longer. A part of me screams to not continue, the other part begs me to tell her. I'm keeping a calm composure so far but inside I'm scared. I know what I tell her will screw her up, but I'm terrified of losing her completely. I don't want to give up on her. I don't want to let go.
Frowning, I continued, "I was engaged to someone whom I loved very much, but had lost. It was a brief time but meant so much to me, put so much hope into my life. She meant the world to me. She still does." I looked straight into her eyes with a determined gaze. Her frustrated expression slowly faded to make way for slight confusion.
I stood from my spot on the couch and walked up to her. Out of the corner of my eye, Clockwork tried to step around the couch but Toby caught her arm. I ignored everyone else in the room as I held the diamond ring in my palm to show Elizabeth. With a deep breath and a knot in my stomach, I finally admitted, "This ring was supposed to be yours."
Elizabeth scoffed, narrowed her eyes and murmured, "Wh...What..?"
Her slight laugh hurt me just a bit but I ignored it quickly. In a quiet tone of voice, I retorted, "You were going to be my wife...but you died before you could ever come back home."
She stared up at me, then looked down at the diamond ring in my hand. She hovered her fingers over the ring, hesitant to even touch it. When she did, she rotated it so that the engraving inside was visible to her. "Sun...shine..?," she whispered slowly. Her eyes bore into me as I watched the emotion in her irises change to distress once again. It was almost as if something was intensely triggered in her thoughts.
She shook her head almost unnoticeably and pulled her hand away. She took one step back, glanced at me, opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. Instead, she pressed her lips together and cast her eyes down to the floor with a saddened air. Then, to my dismay, she turned away and stormed down the hallway. The sound of a door opening and slamming closed echoed into the living room and I sighed. What else should I have expected...?
A few moments later, Toby interrupted the quiet by clearing his throat and he retorted, "Why don't we leave this conversation for another t-time..?"
I didn't protest. If anything, I agreed with the idea as I needed time to cool off. Toby stood from his seat on the couch and made his way down the hall, most likely to wherever Elizabeth had gone. Clockwork took a step to follow, stopped, turned her gaze toward me and muttered, "Those rings don't mean anything to me until they mean something to Ellie. Watch yourself." She then continued down the hall to meet with Elizabeth and Toby.
With a tired groan, I plopped down onto the couch next to Ben and let my body go limp. The blonde man beside me turned to me and said, "That took guts, man.."
"Thanks," I murmured.
Ben brushed the hair out of his face and said, "Is it just me or are things getting more complicated day by day...?"
Shaking my head, I murmured, "Nah, it isn't you. This stuff just comes easy to us."
Ben sighed and grumbled, "It's a bitch to get answers, though.."
"When isn't everything a bitch.." I muttered. I fiddled with the diamond ring necklace habitually.
"I hope Elizabeth is okay after all of this...," Ben said quietly.
Clutching the ring in my palm, so tight it could leave a print on my skin, I replied simply, "Me too."
...
It was starting to get colder than before, enough to have me rubbing my hands together while simultaneously holding them within my jacket pockets. I probably shouldn't be outside considering how desperate I am for warmth. Inside the house may be warm but it doesn't put me at ease. Ben decided to talk to Toby, tell him about everything we've been through ever since we found Elizabeth. I barely realized that this is the first time they ever meet. Sucks that I started it out with a punch to Toby's face and a cat fight with his friend.
Speaking of Clockwork, she's one of the main reasons why I don't like to stay inside the house. Even when she's in another room, it feels like she's still watching me, judging my every insignificant move. Maybe I'm just letting her get to me. She definitely doesn't like me, I know that much. Aside from her, the only other reasons I don't want to go inside are because I don't want to look at everything, and I'm too restless to sit around. Plus, something has been nagging me ever since I saw it.
Maribel's cross stood in front of me, leaning slightly, already looking worn after a couple of years. Her name still stood out on the wood, reminding me that it was possible by Toby's handiwork and sorrow. "Even in death, you still put me on edge," I muttered to the air, a sentence that'll never be heard or responded to. "Is it weird to say that I actually miss getting sprayed with water like a cat?," I said with a light chuckle. Huffing, I let a cloud of steam form in front of my face.
"It's been a while, Grams," I murmured longingly. I paused for a moment, thought and then added, "That would probably sound more personal if I had called you that when you were alive... Either way, it's been a while."
I looked around for a bit before saying, "I wish I had flowers and stuff," --a pause--, "Honestly, I'm out here for closure more than to mourn you. I really wish you were still here, alive, being a pain in the ass. At least then maybe things wouldn't have gone this way."
I stifle a chuckle and mutter, "I shouldn't be so ungrateful. You'd think so, too. Elizabeth is alive, like I always wanted her to be. Things just could've been better, ya know?" Staring at Maribel's name, remembering everything, caused a sort of emptiness in my chest, a crushing kind of emptiness. "I feel I should cry or something," I croak, "but I don't have it in me to do it. I'm too tired. It's cold. I'm being dumb. ...Fuck it's cold...!" I groan loudly and pull the jacket around myself tighter.
"Hey," someone called for me and I turned around to see Ben a few ways away. "Come inside, Toby's got something to tell you."
"Be right in," I hollered. He nodded and returned back inside. Before leaving, I turned back to Maribel's cross and said, "I hope you're doing okay, wherever the hell you are. Goodnight, Grams." I waved at the wooden cross, as if it were actually her, and walked back to the house.
Toby was waiting by the couches and Ben was no where to be seen. I shut the door behind me and said to the twitching boy, "You needed to talk..?"
"Yeah," Toby murmured. The both of us walked closer but not too close. Judging by Toby's tense stance, I could tell he was still a little unsure about being near me. I said nothing about this.
He cleared his throat and said, "Okay, so, I managed to get in touch with Dr. Smiley and he said that he could come here with a newer and improved arm for Ellie."
"That's great," I said, exhaustion fading to make way for a little relief.
"But," Toby interjected (there's always a damn catch), "He's b-busy with his work. Plus, he has to actually make the arm and get it prepped. With all of that, he won't come until about five days."
"Five days?," I repeated, a bit shocked.
"Six, if the weather gets bad," he added, "also, it'll take him some time to remove Ellie's current arm and implant the new one. Once that's done, she's going to have to get used to it. This process takes a while s-since a prosthesis like this may not respond correctly at first. All of this would take about a week."
"T-Two weeks..?" I muttered, mouth twitching.
Toby shrugged. "That's the estimated time until you all can go back to Virginia and continue with what you need. Maybe it'll be less if Ellie makes a quicker r-recovery."
I rubbed my temples and released an exasperated sigh. We can't stay here two weeks..! Ao and Jack are waiting for us back in Virginia. Besides, who knows what kind of trouble they could encounter while we're gone. We already took a week to even get here, although that was with the addition of complications. We can't be away for so long but what choice do we have? Elizabeth needs her arm.
"Crap," I groaned as I took a seat on the couch behind me.
"I-I know it's asking a lot..," Toby started.
"It's fine," I replied with a sigh, "Elizabeth is what matters most. Speaking of whom, how is she?"
Toby twitched momentarily before lifting a hand to rub the back of his neck. "She isn't in shambles but I w-wouldn't say she's taking everything easy. She's been cooped up in her room, sitting around on her bed or pacing. Clock and I talk to her but she never says a thing. Sometimes she stares off into space and we can't snap her out of it. It's kinda s-scary."
I cast my eyes down at my boots, examining the scuff marks on the black exterior. Elizabeth's behavior is what I thought would've happened but it's better than the thought of her raging on me. Still, I can't help but feel a bit guilty for putting her through this in such a sudden and short time. But, I don't regret my decision to tell her about us, or more correctly, what used to be us.
"Were you really going to marry her..?," Toby murmured, cutting through the silence.
I lifted my head to look at him, and I nodded. "Yeah. The decision was kind of in the moment but I definitely wanted to. I would've. I could've."
Toby's eyes dulled significantly and his head hung just a bit lower. My last sentence wasn't supposed to affect him that much but it was kind of what I was going for at the same time.
I stood up from the couch and said, "It's getting late out. Is there anywhere that I'm able to rest?"
"Y-Yeah, I've got a room set up for you and your friend," he answered. I almost wanted to groan because the way Toby phrased it, it sounded like I'd be sharing with Ben. I shouldn't complain, though.
Toby motioned me to come with him and the both of us walked down the hall. My eyes traveled to everything, my mind reaching back for the memories of when I used to walk through here. There had only ever been four bedrooms. Maribel's room, or her old room, Toby's bedroom, and guest rooms for Elizabeth and I to have each when we had stayed here the first time.
"Here's your room," Toby stated, an open palm pointing to the second door on the left. Upon walking in I immediately recognized it as the old room I had slept in, with some slight redecorating.
"I'm the first door on the right," Toby told me, "Bathroom's next door to this room. Clockwork's room is on the other side." So, then that means Elizabeth must be across from me, in Maribel's old bedroom. I wondered if it was cruel coincidence.
"Thanks," I said, as I began taking off my jacket. As I turned to set it down on a recliner in the corner, Toby spoke up behind me, "Jeff, listen I...I'm s-sorry. For screwing you over for the past two years. For everything. I wish I could've told you, could've saved you the trouble, could've given you closure. But, I did what I had to."
I took a seat at the foot of the bed and propped my leg up on my lap to remove my boot. Pausing and staring up at him, I told him, "We all do what we have to, even if it hurts the people we call 'friends'."
He was quiet after that, a glint of defeat in his eyes. Afterwards, he turned away and walked out of the room. He closed the door, leaving me alone in silence again. Again, I put him down, and again, I don't feel bad. Toby can say as many apologies to me as he wants, but nothing is going to erase the years spent wondering, grieving, feeling weak inside; the years I can never get back. Nothing can change that.
Without any regard to where Ben would sleep (if he even wants to), I laid down on the bed and stared up at the speckled ceiling for a while. Then, I turned onto my side, grabbed a pillow and plopped it over my head, muffling my breathing just a little. And, I stayed like that, curled up on the bed, head covered, breathing being the only sound to lull me into sleep.
Sleep came easy but I paid a price with nightmares. Nightmares filled with sadness, hate and desperation. Reliving that night that Elizabeth had been kidnapped, only now I can truly see the culprits after countless dreams of faceless people. I can see Clockwork hitting me, subduing me, and I can see Toby with Elizabeth in his arms, climbing through that window. The ring --her ring-- slipping into my fingers as I made a desperate attempt to save her one last time. But, I failed. I had failed and I had lived with that burden.
The last thing I dreamt of was running toward a figure. The Elizabeth I first met. She stood so far away, staring at me, begging for me to reach her with silent pleas. I ran and ran and ran, and as I came closer, I watched her slowly fall apart into ruin. Her skin grew paler, eyes grew sadder, blood, dirt and bruises showed up all over her. Before I knew it, she had no left eye and no right arm anymore, and the side of her head was caked in nothing but blood. Still, I ran and ran, needing to reach her, to save her, to free her. But, just as I finally made it, the ground beneath her feet gave out, opening up into blackness. I jumped, grabbed onto her only hand and held on tight. Something was pulling her down and I tried my hardest to resist it. Sadly, my efforts were futile and she fell from my grip, flashing me one last look of sadness and utter betrayal. Then, I laid there on the edge of nothing, screaming, crying, seething, hating myself. That was the last thing I dreamt before my nightmares were replaced with silent, crushing darkness.