Vote!! Video to the right! (Explanation of vid at bottom of chapter)
~To breath the name, of your Savior in your hour of need. And taste the blame, if the flavor shall remind you of greed. ~In all these turmoil, before red cape and turmoil, come closing in for a kill. ~Don't walk away, don't walk away, oh when the world is burning. Don't walk away, don't walk away, oh when your heart is burning.
~It's all a game. Avoiding failure, when true colors will bleed.
**********************************************************************************************************
“David I’m so sorry,” I whispered for the third time as I leaned heavily against the wall. David stood with his back to me and aggressively rubbed his jaw.
“I can just get this suit jacket dry cleaned,” he said in a husky voice and shrugged out of his suit jacket. I watched his muscles in his jaw move as he dangled the jacket in front of him and then flopped it to his side. He turned to me then, and motioned to his barf-stained shoes. “These I can’t fix. They’re ruined.”
“I’m—“
He put a hand up, his eyes on the ground. “I need to walk to the office. I’m not getting any throw up on my car. You can stay here and I’ll come back when I get changed,” he said dismissively and began to take long strides away, his white button down seeming more of a grey against the dark, gloomy sky.
“Wait! I’ll walk with you,” I yelled after him, but it hadn’t come out as loud as I needed it to be. I felt tears sting painfully against my eyes when he didn’t turn around. He was leaving me and I didn’t even get to ask him if he saw what I had seen, the clown, and if what I had really witnessed was true or if I was just imagining it all.
One thing’s for sure, the humility of the situation was having an major impact on me.
I took a careful step from the car and light-heated, weak. I stumbled a little and caught myself on the metal pole of a stop sign. I was going to burst in tears at any moment I just knew it.
David turned around and walked backwards, his hands in his pockets. Where I had thrown up on him seemed minuscule to the rest of his body and was at the top of his left leg and the edge of his left rib. He clearly was obsessed with his car and didn’t want to get a drip of dirt on it.
He stopped about twenty feet away from me and just stood there staring at me. I tried to take a step forward but my legs wouldn’t respond. I swallowed and I tasted bitter acid that made me quench for something—anything to drink. My skin was feeling more and more hot by the second and I was sweating. I felt my eyes water and the world blurred. David was in front of me now. Standing there once again and just staring at me with narrowed eyes.
What was he thinking?
I felt myself slip backwards and then I felt David’s hand fist itself into my sweatshirt at the last moment and I was suspended in the air. I heard him chuckle deep within his throat before he pulled on my sweatshirt and hoisted me back onto my feet.
“I don’t care what anyone says. You can’t walk I a straight line without going a bit cross-eyed,” he mumbled by my ear making my eyebrows twitch a little. I didn’t want to be a damsel in distress! His hand circled my back and then he bent me backwards. My back hit the freezing cold car and I strived to stay against it I was so burning hot.
David took off my sweatshirt and threw it inside the car as I lay against the ice-cube surface of the vehicle. I was starting to cool off and began to feel Goosebumps.
“Faith, please don’t lick my car. You need to stop licking my things,” I heard David say in almost a whine and then I was held again for only a moment, my feet off the ground. I didn’t even know I was licking the car….again?
Now I remembered, I had licked David’s shirt that one time when I was given drugs by that taxi driver. David told me not to file a complaint because there were so many instances just like my own that the police wouldn’t even care.
I heard the passenger door click open and my butt hit a squishy leather seat.
The driver’s door opened and in came my Boss with a deep sigh. He put his hand on the back of my seat and backed the car out of the spot before speeding down the narrow road. It was obvious this was the last place he wanted to be with a glob of throw up on his pants. Cool air blasted into my face and I felt the rumble of the car as it turned on. I rolled my head gently over to the window and blinked a few times before shutting my eyes completely.
“Don’t fall asleep yet. We’re almost there and I don’t want to carry you inside.”
I carefully angled my head so I was facing David and asked in a soft voice, “What’s wrong with me?”
“You’re a tad feint,” he replied, his hands tight on the wheel. “Your skin was pretty warm before so I took you out of your jacket. Did you eat this morning?”
I shook my head. “I…don’t think so.”
“Well there we go,” he said and slipped on his aviators. The car’s speed slowed down and we pulled into a large parking lot. David got out of the car and came to my side where he opened the door and got to my level.
“Can you walk?”
I put a hand to my forehead and swiped it down my face. I was starting to feel a lot less sick and more stronger now that we were away from the street were the clown was.
“I don’t want to get up,” I said honestly. “I just want to go home… or go to the doctors. There’s something wrong with me--”
He made a face. “You’re already here, Faith, and I have work to do I can’t chauffer you around the—“
“David,” I said firmly as I massaged the sides of my nose. “Please just—“
“Can’t.”
“Then I’m not leaving this car,” I protested.
Suddenly, I was yanked out of the car. He wrapped an arm under my knees and one around my back and kicked the door shut. His long smooth strides made my stomach uneasy and I gripped the lapels of his shirt as if he would drop me at any moment.
The flashes of the clown burned into my mind whenever I closed my eyes. Had I imagined the whole scenery? Was the David the one who got rid of it?
“There’s something wrong with me,” I mumbled over and over again into David’s shirt. He gripped me a bit tighter but made no move to speak to me. We were walking on a curb and I could see the beginning edges of the Devin & Son building. The rhythm of his steps started to make me drowsy and I closed my eyes once again, willing the images to leave.
David laughed. “You're just having a sugar low. I use to get those all the time. Whenever I step on a bump on the sidewalk you make a little noise.”
“Then stop stepping on the stupid bumps,” I growled crankily and dug my face into his armpit. He smelled delicious, like an assortment of spices and soap and I couldn’t help but want to snuggle closer to him. I heard the ding of the elevator and a whisper of voices moving past me but I refused to open my eyes.
I was then put on my feet. I rubbed my tired eyes and scowled at David. Somehow during that long walk I managed to fall asleep. “You could have carried me the rest of the way you know.”
“I could have.”
“You’re a jerk. And we need to talk because I know you saw what I saw today.”
David shrugged. “Not sure what you’re talking about. I think you need a long ass nap and someMidol to calm those monthly moods,” David muttered under his breath and then side-eyed me. “And a hair brush would be nice.”
I went to pull at his hair and then stumbled backwards a little when he swiftly moved out of the way. The elevator door opened and when David took a step forwards I was still find my balance. “I hate you almost as much as I hate these damn flat shoes!” I roared, and bent down to rip the converse from my feet.
“Stop making a fuss you look like a five year old who dropped their lollypop on the floor, Crazy.” David pulled on my t-shirt to make me straighten up and snickered.
I slapped his arm from behind me and jabbed a finger in his face once I walked out of the elevator. When he looked amused that I was so angry I grabbed his shirt in both hands and pushed him as hard as I could against the wall. I let loose one hand to bring it back and prepare to punch him. “You know what you are? You’re a big, fat, di—“
“What is going on here?” a deep voice chimed in.
Devin.
“—d you just get that shirt? It’s so nice it looks great on you.” I finished and smoothed David’s shirt where I had grabbed it. David’s eyebrow twitched a little and he fought against a smirk. His eyes lowed to the floor for an instant before he took a small step forward and gave my shoulder a pat as if I was a dog.
I watched David straighten a little as he spoke to Devin, and his tone became more formal, grown up. “Faith here is a bit ill. She also forgot to eat breakfast. I’m going to let her take a little nap because she did try to come to work today instead of being an indolent employee that wanted to skip a day of work by pretending to be ill.”
“I can speak for myself David I’m not a rock. I’m capable of speaking for myself,” I blurted out and instantly felt like I shouldn’t have said anything at all.
Devin’s blue eyes drifted to me, his jaw clenched. His eyebrow rose as if he was expecting me to say something in reply. Then his eyes locked with David’s and I felt the air thicken with tension.
“She’s right. Wonderful story, really, but I do believe Faith can speak for herself. You tend to be quite the odious bastard whenever you can, and it’s starting getting on my nerves,” Devin stated and I fought the urge to start clapping and cheering for an encore.
Devin and I shared a smile. “Devin, you just took the words right out of my mouth, except you forgot the words egotistical and merciless.”
“Your right,” Devin laughed
David rolled his eyes and put his hands on his hips and faced Devin. “I’m not going to just stand here and be harassed by a five foot eight loud-mouth who trips on air, and you. Now if you’ll both excuse me.” He made a move to walk around Devin but he threw his hand out to stop him.
They shared an icy look until Devin tore his eyes away to look at me. “I deeply apologize for my son’s lack of manners. He’s not one for sweet talk but I’m sure he means well.
Yeah right. He’s mean to me because he enjoys it.
“David, apologize and get this young lady and get her something to eat if you’re saying she’s so hungry,” Devin continued. “What do you think about that, Faith? You hungry?”
David snorted. “I really hope you weren’t talking to me because I’m not doing that. She can get food for herself its right downstairs. She has legs.”
I shook my head. “Its fine Devin, I already know how rude he—“
Thump!
Devin smacked David upside the head in one solid motion. I covered my mouth in both shock, and horror. That thump made it sound really painful. David winced and clutched the back of his head before throwing me daggers at me. When he removed his hand his blonde hair was sticking up in the back and he was frowning.
His brown gaze shifted to me. “Sorry Faith, I’m not having the best day,” David said slowly between clenched teeth and gave me a shockingly bright toothy smile. But his eyes told me he was anything but sorry.
Devin glared at David one more time before he nodded at me. “Have a nice day, Miss Williams. If David here gives you any more trouble all you have to do is have Tiara or Carol call me and then you can come to my office over there on the other side of the building.” He motioned to the hallway in the opposite direction David’s office.
I gave him a thumb up and felt David’s eyes try and spark a fire on that particular thumb. “Will do.”
Devin turned on his heel and walked into the elevator, looking at David with his head tilted down.
***************************************************************************
“You can sleep here or go home,” David said, and threw a pillow on the floor of the vacant office.
I crossed my arms over my chest and rolled my achingly tired eyes. “You’re acting ridiculous, David.”
“How am I acting ridiculous?”
I motioned to the floor. “You have a couch in your office and you’re making me sleep on the floor!” David’s expression remained blank and serious so I added, “Not to mention it’s creepy and that closet creaks open from any sort of draft.”
He crossed his arms over his chest, mimicking me, and raised his eyebrows. “Any other arguments you have that will have absolutely no effect on my decision?”
“Yeah actually I do,” I snapped and shifted my weight on my legs. My eyes roamed around the room as I tried to make up something to say. I really wanted to be with him so I could ask him about the clown, about how he made it disappeared. After David gave me two chocolate chip muffins and a vanilla latte I was back on my feet and slowly getting more and more hyped up.
Think sexism! Think fast! “I’M A GIRL!” I shouted. “And girls…have needs!”
David’s chocolate eyes side-eyed the door and he said, “Yes well, now that we have clarified that you’re a girl and you have needs…I have to get dressed—“
“No!” I ran in front of him and blocked the door. “I’m not staying in here alone.”
“Do you hear what you’re saying? It’s just an office.”
An office where the closet is super sketchy and held Mr. Wiggles not too long ago!
“Hey do you still have that teddy bear we found in that closet?” I blurted out.
David made a face at the quick change in conversation. “What teddy bear?”
The teddy bear that we found in the vacant office closet after fifty spiders crawled out of it towards me. The teddy bear with the Grim Reaper outfit and the threatening letter that was made out to you because the Angel of Death hates you and wants to murder you whenever he has some spare time!
I stuck with something simpler. “The one with the threatening note…” I trailed off. “It doesn’t matter! The point is…is I want to talk to you.”
“About what?” He brushed back his blonde hair with his fingers and took his blackberry out his pocket, scowling at the stain that still sat on the upper part of his slacks.
I took a slow breath out before I could respond. “About how I got this job, how I just happened to get in a car accident with Devin when I was confused and didn’t know what to do with my life. About how even though you hated me you said I could work for you. About what you said to me at the carnival. How you told me to watch out for myself, to avoid someone who was following me. You told me not to look into their eyes, to stay out of the shadows; I still remember how I felt once you told me that. I felt like you would…almost protect me. You were there when I was running away and I never asked you about it. I blew it off like I do with everything else and it got worse for me…the person that was—the thing that was following me kept trying to kill me.
I put my hand to my forehead, feeling the beginning of yet another headache. “There’s so much more I could say to you. But I don’t even know what I believe. I don’t know where to even begin.”
I lifted my eyes to see that David was staring directly at me, his head tilted a little. He took a step towards me, beckoning me into the hallway. “She finally says something,” he whispered by my ear in almost a mocking tone and waved his phone towards his office.
I felt myself loose the rush of sugar I was having and suddenly I felt nervous, so nervous that I turned away from his office and faced him. “David. I want to go home—“
He put a hand over my mouth and leaned in. “Not yet. You and I need to have a chat about your new friend--“
David cautiously turned over his shoulder before he mouthed the last part to me.
Death.
****
EXPLANATION OF VIDEO TO RIGHT SO YOU UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE:
The woman with the gas mask on is 'Blinded' and approaches the man with the white makeup who allures her into the carnival and the guy with the doll is suppose to be 'The Devil' and his minions are around him. Basically she's selling her soul to the Devil and the ticket guy loves her and doesn't want her to leave.
;)