Loud beeping makes me jerk upwards and all sleep leaves me in less than a second. Eric groans next to me and slaps the alarm clock.
"What time is it?" I breathe out, my hair no doubt piled on top of my head like a nest.
"Five in the morning," he groans and sits up bringing me with him. I flop my head back on his chest and look up at him, my dress feels way to tight and that's when I realize I slept in my dress with all my makeup and can't even imagine how demonic I look right now with my winged eyeliner that most likely flew off my face last night.
"On a scale of 1 to 10 how dead do I look?" I ask him and a grin spreads across his face as he lets out a husky chuckle.
"Well," he rubs something off of my face which I'm assuming to be makeup.
"You can shower first," he nods to the shower which means getting up, I groan and soon realize what he just said. Wait did Eric just offer me a shower in his apartment? Oh jeez.
Standing up I stumble to the ground as I realize I didn't even take of my shoes off last night.
"Oh crap," I mutter and untie the boots while pulling them off my swollen feet. Eric just chuckles from his bed then plops back down making the bed creak.
"Why do you get to sleep in?" I grumble while standing up on sore feet.
"Cause I think you need a shower just a little more than I do," he smirks and I glower at him most likely looking like a pissed off raccoon.
Stumbling into the bathroom I look in the mirror and let out a shriek. Eric's booming laughter is heard from the other room as I look at the monstrous being in front of me. My makeup is smeared all around my eyes and acne has formed on my nose due to not taking my makeup off last night. My hair which was hair sprayed into curls last night and half up is now sticking in odd directions and holding it's position due to the hair spray.
"I look possessed!" I shout and Eric's laughter only grows. Well I guess if he's seen me like this and didn't run away screaming for the hills then I can count on him. Untangling my hair I rip the band out and half of my hair with it, then I go onto my dress and practically peel it off of me along with my bra and tiny panties which I will refuse to call a thong.
Pushing my aching feet into the shower I run the hot water all over my face rubbing it with soap and then move onto my hair. For once in my life I am actually tempted to go and chop all of my blonde locks off just because it seemed to decide to turn into a bunch of unbreakable friendship bracelet's in my sleep. Due to Eric not having any conditioner I decide I can finish my hair tonight and throw it into a braid while still in the shower.
Sliding out I dry my body off and throw on the undergarments and then slide into Eric's shirt that falls to my mid thigh and pull on his shorts that go past my knees. Walking out I see Eric sitting up in his bed and can tell he's suppressing a smile. Gliding over to him he pulls me into his laps so I straddle his waist.
"You can laugh if you want," I comment and his face breaks out into a grin as he chuckles looking me up and down.
"Well you know if you weren't so darn tall I might look normal," I retort with a small smile on my lips.
"Well maybe if you weren't so darn short," he laughs and pulls me in closer, "No I like the way my clothes look on you," he smirks and I lean in to give him a gentle kiss. We stay like that until I realize I have to get back and get into actual clothes in the dormitory.
"Eric," I sigh a I pull back, "I'm going to need to walk through the halls in these clothes." He wheezes a bit with a small smile on his face then goes to biting his lip.
"That really sucks for you," he nods his head and I smack his chest standing up.
"Or you know I could just walk back in nothing," I shrug and watch his eyes darken slightly.
"You're going to walk around the halls in nothing but your undergarments with men all over the place," he growls and I smirk at what I'm doing to him.
"Or you know I might even skip the undergarments, they're pretty dirty," I nod from the other side of the room and in less than a second he has me pinned to the wall, his figure now a foot taller than mine.
"How about no one gets to see you naked ever but me," he says lowly and I let out a small gasp as a blush creeps onto my cheeks.
He smirks as he sees the red tint on my cheeks and then presses his body closer to mine so I'm wedged between him and the wall. I know that due to our beliefs neither of us would have sex before marriage but something about the comment suggests that he wants to be with me that long. Then in a moment he's gone and in the bathroom.
"I can walk you to the dormitory so just wait in there for a little bit!" I hear him shout from the bathroom.
"Okay!" I shout back but it's pitchy and high and I realize how dazed I am.
Falling down on his bed I undo my hair and attempt at brushing it out. Finally huffing with satisfaction, and half my hair in Eric's hair brush, I set it down and get a whiff of it. It smells exactly like Eric no doubt because I used his shampoo, then I sniff my shoulder a little bit and I realize I'm literally a walking perfume of him.
The bathroom door flies open to reveal a half dressed Eric, his dark pants hang loosely on his hips and my eyes rake his abs as a perfect eight pack is suddenly in front of me.
"Enjoying the show?" Eric's voice knocks me out of my gaze and I glower up at him.
"What if I told you I'd seen better?" I smile.
"Then I'd say which Greek god, Zeus or Poseidon?" he remarks.
"Does that make you Hades?" I grin.
"Ah so you do think I look like god," he smirks and I roll my eyes.
"Yeah I do, the god of hell," I smile.
"Is that cause I'm so hot?" a large grin break onto my face as I run out of witty comments and just shake my head.
I watch as he slides on a shirt and then throws on a coat, turning to me he flashes a smile and nods his head towards the door.
"But getting up means I have to go to training," I whine plopping on the bed. I hear his footsteps and then feel his hands rest on my upper thighs as he hovers over me.
"What will I have to do to get you to go," he sighs and I smile.
"Nothin' cause I ain't going," I smile up at him and he gives me a deadly smile, that's when mine drops while my eyes widen in fear.
The next thing I know I'm slung over his shoulder screaming for my poor life while I nearly have a heart attack.
"Eric put me down!" I shout while gripping onto his shirt to keep me from falling to my death. He's so freaking tall falling off of him would be like falling off a skyscraper. The next thing I now I'm watching us leave his apartment and the swaying motion makes my head hurt, most likely from the small amount of alcohol I had last night but I'll just blame him.
"Eric! What if someone sees us!" I exclaim and he just keeps walking.
"Would you rather have people stare at you cause you're wearing clothes twice the size of you or stare at me because I'm carrying you?" he asks and I can hear the grin in his voice.
"Just hurry up I think I might throw up all over your backside if I'm not put down soon," I wheeze which just earns a chuckle.
Entering the hall of the dormitory I brace myself to be put down but am surprised as I hear the door open.
"Is that...?" I hear Boyd say when suddenly I'm slung back over his shoulder and my feet are on the ground.
"Be in the simulation room in 30!" Eric booms using his authoritative voice once again and then he's out the door. Looking around I feel my face heat up as everyone stares at me with bewildered expressions.
"Did..." Fauna starts.
"I... I'd rather not talk about it," I interrupt and she nods slowly.
"Well ok then," I hear Bailey sigh from behind me as I head over to my bunker to change out of the gigantic clothes.
+++
My breathing picks up as I watch a sobbing Quincy leave the room, there are only five us left and I glance up at Eric as he calls Bailey in. Now only four. My knee bounces at the speed of light as I know what's going to come once I go behind those doors. I inhale through my mouth and exhale through my nose just as Bailey walks out. She walks out with her head high and I realize she was barely in there for five minutes.
"Mercer," Eric's cool voice makes my head spin in his direction. Standing I wipe my sweaty hands on my pants and quickly go into the room, the sound of the door closing behind me makes me jump and I whip around to see Eric working on the machine.
"Alright you remember what to do?" he asks me and I nod sitting down. I clench my jaw as the needle goes further into my neck and the feeling of liquid being pushed into me makes my head spin.
"Hey," Eric soothes and my head rolls to the side to look at him as he places a hand on the side of my face, "calm down princess." I try to give him a soft smile but the simulation overcomes my thoughts and soon I'm spinning in a different world.
I stand in the Pit with no one there, just me. That's when I look to my side to see Ryley starring at me, my jaw drops and I try to bolt towards her when I'm stopped my own feet. Looking down I see that nothing is attached to my feet but they still refuse to move from their current position.
"Autumn?" she asks, her voice barely above her a whisper and a look of fear on her face.
"Hey Riles, just... just come here ok? Come here and everything will be fine," I instruct her but she doesn't move, she just stares with a look of betrayal in her eyes. The Pit seems to darken everywhere but on her, a small light beaming down on her body making her the only thing visible.
That is until two dots float around us like fireflies, except they move in sync way to much to be bugs, and the devilish glow in them makes me doubt that it's anything good. I watch as the glowing spots float towards me, hot wet air blows on the back of my neck as they pass by, moving towards my little sister.
"What?" I wheeze as I watch it move towards her, "No! No! Get me! Get me!" I scream knowing that whatever this is it isn't good.
A soft growl fills the air as the dots float ten feet up in the air, then all at once the beast is visible, the bear stands ten feet tall on it's hind legs, it's fur so black it seems to suck in light like some sort of black hole.
"Ryley run!" I scream but she doesn't listen, no she doesn't listen she just turns to the bear and watches as it takes it's monstrous paw that must be a foot long and whips it's death ridden claws through the air and I swear I can hear the air rip in half.
It's large paw lands on my sisters head making her body fly towards the ground and blood squirting through the air. I let out a deafening scream at the sight of the bear hovering over my bloodied sister. I try to move my feet again but now I can't even move my hips, only my upper body and I scream louder.
The bear seems to be smiling, like a doll's haunted smile that had been stitched sloppily onto it's face as it opened it's treacherous jaws and cuts it's pasty white teeth deep into my baby sister's leg making her tiny voice cut through the air like a blade.
"Ryley!" I feel hot tears seep down my face as I can't move a single part of my body I can only watch the little girl I practically raised get torn apart.
I let out a horrified cry as I see more blood seep out of her fallen and torn body, looking like an old doll that a dog tore apart.
"Please no!" I cry and feel sobs wrack my body and nausea runs through me making me feel like I'm about to throw up. This can't be happening, this can't be happening. As the thoughts run through my mind I notice I have mobility in my arms now.
I need to save her. I can move my hips. I will die protecting her if I have to. I can move my knees. I will die protecting her. My feet pad against the stone floor heading straight for the bear, I leap over my sister's disheveled body and lunge for the bear and in a moment the world spun around.