Eyeless Jack
Even with the odd encounter with a mumbling Jules during the night I still fell asleep the moment I was back under the covers, Chelsea's body snuggling tightly into my side and staying there the whole night through until I woke up late into the next morning. Drool puddled on my shirt beneath Chelsea's lips and I was just glad that she finally felt safe enough to sleep this hard. I glanced down and saw that Jules was already up and moving, meaning it was probably time we got up as well.
"Hey pretty lady," I whispered as I tucked her hair behind her ear, tracing her temple with my thumb until she blinked and looked up at me, "sleep well?"
"After you finally came home, yeah," she mumbled as she hugged me tightly, "feeling better?"
"Lots," I assured her as I brushed my lips against her forehead, "no more pain. Now just to wait until I get the third one out of the way and we can get Jeff back for Kit-Kat."
"It's not just for Kitty and you know it," she teased, sitting up and stretching her arms into the air.
"Yeah, yeah, I miss the fucker too," I waved her off with a smile before I pried myself out of bed, stretching and sorting through my closet to grab one of my long-sleeves to wear, "want to head back to your place?"
"I'd like to. Kitty probably wants to go home for a little while, I'm sure she's pretty eager to bring Jules along."
My mind flashed back to the night prior as I listened to Jules' voice in the kitchen, low and full of a darkness I'd never known from her. Something was very, very wrong, and I was glad Nina was there to see it too. I agreed keeping it on the down-low was the better idea until we could figure out what happened but until then she was the same Jules as ever.
Chelsea stole another one of my band shirts while giving me a cheeky smile and I practically melted as I watched her pull on a pair of jeans. This girl really had my whole heart and as I wrapped my arms around her again I was thanking whoever blessed me enough to be able to have her. Not to mention putting up with the fact I was a man-eater but that was another topic for another day.
"I need to go and fix my hair," she grumbled to herself as she looked in my mirror; it hadn't been a bad cut but it was definitely lopsided and the color was starting to fade to a gentle turquoise over the usual royal blue.
"You should keep it this color," I hummed, kissing her cheek before reaching for the door, "looks good on you!"
I smiled to myself as I walked down the hall, the other girls all lounging in the living room with cups of coffee in their hands. Suddenly I was craving that caramel coffee Chelsea always made me and I had to keep myself from drooling as I thought about it. Nina had already procured her jacket from the dryer and I reached in to grab mine, already noticing stains on the gray fabric and reminding myself I needed to find a new black one soon.
"I'm heading over to Chelsea's with her," I told them as I took a seat beside Nina on the couch, "want me to drop you guys off anywhere?"
"Might as well go and see if mom's home," Kitty suggested just like I thought she would, "you two okay with that?"
"I miss Aunt Ginny," Nina groaned quietly, "yes please!"
"Does she know about...you know...?"
"She walked in on Jeff cleaning up mine and Tom's mess from our big fight and surprisingly she actually heard him out," Kitty snorted while Jules nodded along, "she knows there's things out there well beyond her understanding. I think she'll just be happy to see you both."
"Oh God you assholes make me want coffee," Chelsea finally emerged with her bag over her shoulder, glaring at the three of them much like what I'd done, "let's swing by the Café on the way back, I'll make Sara slip me a cup."
"Now those are the magic words." I grinned as I got back to my feet, the girls doing the same. All of a sudden I realized I felt like a dog in a cat house being the only guy around and I deflated on the walk outside.
The drive to Kitty's was pretty quick and I watched her peek into the garage before giving me a thumbs up, Chelsea backing out of the driveway and heading back into town while I lounged in the passenger seat. When she parked I hopped out behind her, catching the cigarette she tossed me before I took a seat on the bench to relax. I hid behind a pair of sunglasses and took a deep breath, aware of a strange sensation as I inhaled and exhaled. It almost felt like I was more in tune with the inner workings of my body. I noticed things with a lot more detail and while slightly uncomfortable I'm sure the sudden awareness was apart of the transformation.
"It's so weird to see you in something other than black," Chelsea laughed to herself as she re-emerged from the coffee shop, handing me a cup before I got to my feet, "boss man was in today so he knows I'm home. Gave me shit for my hair but he's glad all's well and good."
"Good, take it that means you'll be picking up the usual schedule again?" I sipped at the lid while we walked back to the car and the taste of salted caramel washed over my tongue, a smile crossing my face as I settled into my seat.
Chelsea nodded and we took off toward her apartment, glad to find everything still in order and untouched as she walked back to her bedroom, dropping her bag off while I left my shoes at the door. Her little multicolor macrame tapestries that hung above the couch tickled the back of my head as I sat down, kicking my feet up and giving her a warm smile when she joined me again.
"Oh, you poor thing," she tsked as she crouched beside one of her plants, "I knew this was gonna happen, and I know just what will help."
She grabbed for a glass of water before drizzling it around the pot, whispering under her breath as she traced a different sign in the air that glowed a lively green. The sigil sunk into the pot and I watched before my very eyes as the wilted leaves grew healthy again, small, purplish blooms unfurling to her delight before she got back to her feet.
"I've been trying to get this plant to bloom for years!" She laughed triumphantly as she sat beside me, "I'm honestly so, so thankful Delilah gave me that little book. I wouldn't have been able to save you without it and I don't know what I'd do if I lost my favorite alien up there on that mountain."
"We actually took a peek at the pages while you were gone just to see what was there," I told her, "have you tried out fireball yet?"
"I wanted to but decided to let myself learn a few more easy tricks before trying that one. Lord knows I am the dumbass who will burn down her own apartment trying to play with fire."
We shared a bright laugh as she curled closer into me, her body warm and comforting; this was the first time to ourselves in a couple weeks and I was enjoying it. My new normal was about to be a lot different but hey, different was definitely welcome.
Kitty
My shiny new key slipped into the lock with ease and I took a deep breath as I threw the door open, the house as gray and gloomy as ever. It was like there was a dusty film over the lens I was looking through and I couldn't help but feel hollow about the whole ordeal. I was happy to be home but it had come at a cost, one I never agreed to.
"Mom?!" I raised my voice, waiting to hear the inevitable sound of footsteps or the bedroom door opening while we walked further into the home.
"Kitty?! Are you guys home already—?"
She appeared from around the corner to the kitchen and stopped about five feet from me, her eyes flickering between the two girls stationed at my sides and I gave her a shaky, teary smile. Her phone slipped from her hand before she lifted them to cover her mouth, moving toward Jules first while the redhead stepped closer and reached for my mother. She seemed surprised that Jules was actually tangible and huggable but she quickly pushed that aside to squeeze Jules with all her might.
"I missed you too Mama Kitty," Jules laughed through her tears as she squeezed my mom, "I know this is so, so weird and we have so much explaining to do."
"H-How...you died..." she stuttered as she pulled away and wiped at her eyes.
"Someone we encountered had the ability to do just about anything we asked of him," I started, "so we got Juliette back."
"I haven't even aged a day." She cracked a grin. "Kitty's technically older than me now!"
"My God, this is the most wonderful thing," Mom laughed but her eyes drifted to the other girl who was now hiding behind me, a sudden nervousness having overcome her.
"It's okay," I reminded Nina as I reached back to squeeze her hand, "she's not going to think of you any differently, I promise."
"O-Okay..." she took a deep breath before walking forward, "h-hi Aunt Ginny, I, um, I know I look a lot different, but—"
Before she could finish her sentence Mom shut her up with a hug, even more tears flowing as she squeezed Nina while my cousin just about cried her eyes out. Mom had been the only other family member she really felt a connection to so I'm not surprised she was so emotional over the warm reunion. She pulled back and cupped Nina's cheeks to get a good look at the cuts, laughing as her fingers gently traced the stitches.
"Holy hell kid, I knew you were in trouble but I didn't think you'd come back looking like this!" She laughed, "did you have to go to the hospital? These stitches look well done. Did Jeff do this to you?!"
"N-No! I...did it to myself," she admitted sheepishly, "figured if I was going to look like a murderer might as well go the extra mile. I wasn't quite um, all there when I did it."
"Oh, that tracks with this family's history," Mom snorted as she gestured my way. "Are you girls hungry? You look a little worn out, how long have you been in town for?"
"Just a day," I told her, "a lot happened this week."
"Then come sit down, I'll make some breakfast for everyone while you tell me all about it. I'm glad you showed up today, I've got a full carton of eggs about to expire."
Jules and Nina rushed ahead of me excitedly while I looked behind, hands stuffed in the pockets of my jacket and my eyes on the ground while I took a seat at the island. Everything was as neat and tidy as always and Nina rooted around the fridge for a drink while Jules took a seat at the dining table. I kept expecting to feel a body sit next to mine and I clenched my teeth as I tried to push the thought out of my head.
We went through the story starting when we left for Tempe, finding out only when we got there that Nina had wiped out two out of three of her high school bullies. She picked it up there and told us about Claudia pulling a gun and really having no choice when Yoni tried to corner her. We all winced when she got to the part about the bleach and waking up in the water further downstream. I picked it back up from there and talked about Chelsea getting kidnapped and finding out Liu had killed his girlfriend when we finally got to Colorado. By the time we got to the fight with Habit and his monster the food was done, scrambled eggs and sausage that made my stomach howl. For some reason I was edging around telling her Jeff was gone for now but once we reached the climax of the story I knew I had to say something.
"Jeff...after trying to protect us for so long realized he was never going to leave us alone if he didn't do something." My throat squeezed as I choked down my eggs. "He offered himself up in exchange for the bounty. Operator can do just about anything and he chose to bring Jules back so that he could try and fix the mistake he felt like he made when he killed her. Now here we are..."
"Oh, Kitty," Mom whispered as she reached for my hand and I hadn't realized I'd started crying until I felt the tears hit my fingers. Uncontrollable shaking had overtaken me and I excused myself as I sat up, catching the sympathy in Nina's eyes and the genuine surprise in Jules's.
I put my empty plate in the sink before walking to the staircase, dragging my sorry carcass to my bedroom and closing the door behind me. For the first time since we got back I really let the emotions flow, painfully sobbing as I sunk to the floor and clutched my head in my hands. My room felt so barren where it had been so full before, the dust having returned to my bed and my desk as I saw the disturbed gray powder from when we'd been here last. The sobbing faded eventually and I was left with silent tears as I stared at the empty knife slots on my wall, my eyes catching on something I hadn't realized was left here. Clipped where my pictures used to be was the one I took of Jeff and I at the river, my writing on the back still as fresh as the day I scribbled it. 'Partners in crime', it was when I saw that phrase that it really clicked why I was so distraught.
I loved having Jules home but she could never replace the person who kissed me while I was covered in blood, the man who chased my crimes for a whole year across the country with the full belief that he'd never give up. That's what it had felt like when he handed himself over to that monster: it felt like he'd finally given up and admitted defeat. I was pissed. I was hurt. Jeff never backed down from a challenge but this all felt like he'd done exactly that. My partner in crime was off in who the fuck knows where. In a way I hoped he was miserable just like I was but I already knew that he was suffering. I sat down at my desk and hung the photo back up before resting my head on my arms, finally admitting defeat to myself. Jeff had gotten what he wanted back in July. A chance to give me a better life without him.
Except that, this wasn't better. This was so, so much worse.