(A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter than the others, but please bear with me. ;D)
I sat on Spiral Hill, waiting for Lock. We always met up there once a week, and he was usually there before me. But tonight, I had arrived first.
I knew Dad was leaving tonight but I didn't find it worth it to be there. He was just going to be zoned into it and wouldn't care as to what I did.
A few minutes passed, and a sudden fog emerged. I sniffed, smelling the slight odor that came along with it. Fog juice...
I stood up and exited the graveyard, deciding to look for Lock. I saw Shock and Barrel walking my direction.
"Shock!" I called.
Shock and Barrrel stopped and turned, clearly not happy at the sight of me running up to them.
"Have you seen Lock?" I asked.
Shock picked under her nails. "He can't meet up with you," she said.
"He's in a little bit of a...crisis," Barrel replied.
"Why, what's wrong with him?" I asked, feeling worried.
"We found out about you two," Shock said. She smirked.
"You...you didn't...you didn't..." I stammered.
"If you're trying to ask if we told Oogie Boogie, we did," Shock said. "And don't go trying to rescue Lock."
Feeling my eyes tearing up, I ran off, but not to home. I ran to Oogie Boogie's home. I knew something Lock's cohorts didn't, and that was the fact that Lock could escape himself. He didn't need my help.
(Lock's pov)
I threw up blood as Oogie Boogie smashed my head into the wall, causing the bricks to break.
"I hope you learned your lesson," he whispered, then pounded back to Sandy Claws.
My vision was altering from blurry to doubled. I had to get to Skelly. I had to.
I managed to sit up enough to look around. I looked at the crack that Oogie Boogie had made by smashing my head into the wall. It wasn't a pleasant sight at first, but now, even with my more than likely concussion, I found it as an advantage to my escape.
(Skelly's pov)
I waited anxiously. If Lock didn't come out within the next five minutes, I would go in there and snatch him up myself.
Soon, I saw a piece of the wall being pushed forward, and I knew it was Lock. I stood up, ready to grab him and run before anyone noticed. The wall broke, and it made a loud noise that Oogie Boogie had to have heard, but I didn't hear him yelling at Lock. Soon, I saw Lock crawling out of the lair, crying and shaking. I saw him lean over and throw up.
I gasped and ran over to him. "Lock," I whispered.
"Skel....Skelly..." he whispered, then he collapsed into my arms.
I quickly scooped him up and ran down Halloween Town, but screeched to a stop when I saw Sally entering the graveyard. I snuck into my house, managing to not be spotted, and I carried Lock up to my room and set him down on my bed.
He whimpered, and his broken finger twitched ever so slightly. I sat beside him and leaned down, kissing his forehead. He whimpered again.
"Just rest, Lock," I whispered. "Just rest."
My eyes welled up in tears. It had happened all over again. His past had repeated itself...but this time, I was there. This time, when he woke up from this beating, he wouldn't be alone. He'd be with me, the person he needed most.