by C T Scribe
Mari was an amazing swimmer. At times he wondered if she was an ex prodigy like him. He never brought it up. If she wanted to share he’d let her bring that up on her own. She moved through the water as easy as breathing. She easily swam twice his speed during laps. The two never timed themselves, but Tye had never been beaten in a race, any race, his whole life. Still knowing she’d kick his ass if they tried to race was hard to handle. She would frequently switch strokes. Sometimes swimming underwater, and not coming up for air for minutes. He swore she was part fish the way she could do that. No one should be able to hold their breath that long. When she surfaced she never gasped for air. She was always fine. Aside from swimming fast her dives were astonishing. When other people we’re around she wouldn’t do anything fancy. At night when they owned the pool she’d twist and spin her body in the air, as she fell from the high dive over and over. Each time with no splash. He remember watching the Olympics growing up. Tye had no doubt she was better than the divers he was so amazed by then. What impressed him most was how little splash she created from her giant dives. Its as if she pulled the water down with her and it never splashed back up. It was during these late night pool workouts that their friendship started changing into something more.
Sitting on the pools edge with Mari swimming his direction he noticed how hot she was. Knowing there were better words to describe her beauty registered in his mind, but at the moment hot summed it up just fine. In class she dressed more like a lawyer, in her assortment of pantsuits and button up blouses. In the pool she’s more wild. Her hair long and flowing as she closes the distance between them with enormous speed. She wears a dark blue one piece bathing suit, but it shows off her figure too well. Her curvy frame is constantly catching his eye. Making an effort not to look her over too long gets harder and harder each night. She swims right up to him and rest her hands on his knees as his long legs dangle into the water. The thoughts fly from his mind at her touch.
‘”You pooped out already?” She asks with a grin.
“Might be, unless you wanna race,” replies Tye.
Her grin evens out and a seriousness replaces it as she says, “I won’t hold back just because it’s you?”
“No? I thought I could at least distract you a bit and get an early lead.”
“I’d say you’re just as distracted by me from the long looks you’ve been giving me tonight,” her grin returns as she speaks. Damn I’m busted he thinks. She pushes hard against his knees lifting herself out of the water. Her eyes level with his. She’s so close to him. They linger there for a long moment. A moment; a lifetime. Tye wants to kiss her, but she’s the one who approached him. Ruining their workout vibe would also suck. Tye is still recovering. His leg is getting stronger each day, and having her as an indirect workout partner has been a big reason. She pushes him by pushing herself, and the two spend evenings in the gym together. If only they could spend an hour or two in his… She leans in and kisses him, before he can finished the thought. He kisses her back. He is numb to the water as he slides into the pool with her. The world is mute. If anyone sees, he doesn’t care. He kisses her. The longing in his tongue surprising him. How long did he want this kiss? How long had his heart been wanting her? He knows the answer. From the beginning. Maybe before they met. No one else felt right. He gasped for air, finally separating from her tongue and lips. She was breathing as hard as him. Her eyes staring into his. His fingers intertwine with hers. She pulled his hands to the small of her back, releasing his fingers. She wrapped her arms around his neck, before putting her lips to his skin. Time went by. A lot of time, but the moment was brief. Tye realized he could live this moment forever. The darkness in his mind was silent, muted. Her presence seemed to quiet its malice. Tye found her lips once more.
7
Chapter 7
That night lying awake in his bed Tye couldn’t stop thinking of Mari. That kiss, well those kisses were on replay in his mind. How long had they stayed in the water together? An hour at least, judging from the time he returned to his dorm. He hoped things wouldn’t be strange for them tomorrow. He wondered if she liked him enough to kiss him, or if she wanted to go out. She came off as the type to date exclusively, but he’d assumed wrong before. All the “what ifs” floating around his mind converged on a bigger question to him. What would happen if he returned to the field? What if he became a sports star again? Would she support him? She didn’t seem like the type to go to football games and cheer like a lunatic, but maybe she was. There was hope in that last “maybe” he realized. Things just seemed to fit when she was around. The darkness in his mind was quiet when she was around. He didn’t understand why, but he noticed her effect from the very beginning. Another reason he felt drawn to her. Even still, she had layers. Her crazy athletic ability for one. Her private tendencies made it seem as if she was trying to hide. Well not from him. He was certain of that much. She was herself when it was just the two of them. Tye was learning more and more how complex people are. So many layers and experiences to each person you meet. She was always pushing and helping him. Tye decided she would be fine at a football game. If he started to play again, he felt she would support him. They definitely needed to have a talk soon. Perhaps it was the excitement from the pool still flooding his mind, but Tye could not get to sleep. He rolled over in his full size bed. He flopped back and forth as quietly as possible. He didn’t have a roommate, but he still felt wrong for being too loud at night. It wasn’t an easy task in a small dorm however. Although the fit was too snug he had grown accustomed to the dorm life. Small room, small desk, small bed, and community bathrooms had him missing home daily. He noticed his mind racing even more, and tried to think less. He just couldn’t get to sleep tonight. The moon was full and bright in the night sky. A blood moon he noticed. The crimson tinted moon filled the darkness with a chilling aura. Tye thought about that Michael Jackson song thriller. This was a thriller kind of night. On cue with his thoughts a thick fog began rolling in from the distance. Staring out the window as the fog thickened, he pictured corpses dancing the pop music. It was late, and he couldn’t sleep. He decided to let his imagination go for awhile as he watched the spooky night manifest before him. He almost missed something real among the fog. He almost allowed himself to attribute it to his own imagination. Tye caught a glimpse of something he hadn’t mentally created.. In the thick of the fog was a man. He was tall Tye approximated from the distance. But what was he holding in his hand? A gun. It was pointed at another figure in the fog. This one hairy and large. The second figure knelt on the ground. At first Tye had mistaken it for a bush. He still didn’t know what it was. Definitely not a man. Bang! The gun shook Tye from a place in his heart. A place of grief. He searched for the man, but he was gone. So was the the thick fog, and the hairy dead thing. All gone. Tye definitely wasn’t sleeping now. Uncertainty crept over him. Just witnessing an animal killing in the middle of the night on a bloody full moon felt unreal. Cursing under his breath he threw on a shirt and some shoes, and opened the door to head out. His red sweatpants got caught on a loose screw in the door frame. The cut was minor but Tye felt the blood dripping down his thigh. He continued down the hall to the steps. Glancing outside he noticed the red had mostly seeped out of the moon. He started to wonder if he had dreamed the whole thing. The loud shot however still rang in his mind. If it was a dream that noise would have woken me, he thought.
Shaking his head he exited the last door, and walked towards the lawn for the spot he saw the shooting take place. The animal was gone, as well as the tall cloaked figure. He almost doubted what he saw again until he spotted the blood. So much blood soaked the yard. There was no denying the crimson liquid. making everything real. Was it a dog, wolf, or hairy person? His stomach knotted. He just watched from the window. He could have stopped this. The thoughts swirled violently in his mind. The black hole returned again. Spiraling with this new information. Rampantly growing as it consumed his warmth second by second. Lost in thought he barely n
oticed he was throwing up and crying. He didn’t register himself on the ground shaking. So much blood. He needed to call security. Fuck! How could he regain himself to do it? He wanted his bed. He wanted his safe place. He wanted to never look out a window again. He fumbled in his sweatpants and found his phone. Security wasn’t the number his mind settled on. Ring. Ring. Ring. He needed her to answer. Ring. He nearly hung up when the voice began. “Hey what’s wrong,” the female voice said. How did she know? Mari always knew things. Tye had grown fond of her nonjudgmental clairvoyance. He told her everything. Tye didn’t know why he rang for Mari not security. He felt his mouth moving. Saying the words that he thinks someone had been killed. He told her everything about the blood and the man. His head was spinning, and the black hole continued to grow. It wasn’t until a man touched his shoulder that he returned to his body and regained focus. “Boy what happened here?” This wasn’t the man from before. His features were more muscular and stout. He wasn’t the tall figure he saw in the window. But why was he here? Who is he? Tye didn’t speak as he knelt over his pile of spit and vomit. The man stared deep into Tye. As if he was seeing past his body and into his inner being, his soul. “Your bleeding”, he bellowed. His eyes seemed to enlarge as his nose flared. He looked around the area. Was this an associate of the first man. Perhaps his job was to clean up the blood. Tye needed to run, but he hadn’t the energy. He had lost the battle in his mind. Whatever happens would just happen, and he wouldn’t stop it. He closed his eyes waiting for the gun he assumed the new man had to click and shoot. He felt the end, his end, approaching from this strange man. Today was a good day. Perhaps better than he deserved. A happy day before its all over. There was no click and bang, but instead he felt the light touch of Maris hands. His mind snapped to focus. Why had he told her to come. Panic swept through him. She would die to if he couldn’t focus.
“Hey you, why are you still laying here, and who’s your friend?” Tye struggled to find his voice, but the man answered her question directly.
“My name’s James,” he offered.
“Okay James.” There was something sharp in her voice. She looked at me and grabbed my face. Bending down she whispered in my ear and grabbed my hand. “You need to take these right?” She placed my bottle of mini sun’s in my hand. Then grabbed a bottle of water from her pack. Planting a quick kiss on my cheek to help snap me from my daze. She then rounded on James. “Have you called the police?”
“No”
“What kind of instructor are you? You find a kid in shock and a pile of blood, and you do nothing but watch? Call security already.” The words a clear command.
A grin appeared on his face, his features maddening. “I’m no instructor.” His mad gaze shifting to Tye. “Kid how much did you see?” his voice deeper and forceful. Tye felt warmer, but the fight in his mind was ongoing. The mini sun’s began to slowly push away the darkness. He blankly answered the strange man. “There was a man and a beast, and I heard a gun fire. Then you see the blood. So much blood.”
“I see, you saw that much. Odd, your kind shouldn’t have noticed these things.” The man puzzled over Tye for a moment, his features smoothing over. Snap! The man had snapped his fingers, and the blood soaking the lawn sparked to life. Crimson droplets gravitating upward into the sky. It was terrifyingly magical as they rose from the ground. Every drop swirled in the air. How was this possible? Tye looked to Mar,i but her face was blank, unreadable. If she was freaking out like Tye was he couldn’t tell. There was no bewildered amazement in her gaze. Her body tensed. Her muscles bulging in a way Tye had never seen. How could she remain so calm? Tye took another mini sun, needing control of himself now. Mari’s stare intensified at James. Snap. Making the noise with his fingers again sent the droplets swirling towards him. Opening his mouth wider than what should be humanly possible, the blood rushed down his throat. It was disgusting, but Tye couldn’t look away from any if it. This strange man James, the floating blood, or Mari’s calm despite seeing this all just like him baffled him. They needed to run or grab weapons. Mari had her bag. An umbrella hung from the side. She could maybe swing it like a bat. But James, whatever he was, could probably handle a few umbrella swings. They had to run. Tye looked to Mari to tell her to run, but her eyes showed no fear. He was trembling, but she remained calm. The rest happened so fast. Mari looked Tye in his eyes and said, “don’t move.” He was grounded, but not from fear. He just couldn’t move. He was stuck in her command. Even his trembling stopped on her command. His lungs moving with as little motion as possible provided him short breaths. He could move his eyes to watch. Looking towards her he saw the Mari she had been hiding all this time. She stepped to James. His muscles somehow bigger than before. He also seemed taller somehow. Had he grown since arriving there. Perhaps he was slouching. Mari said something in a different language. Tye couldn’t understand the words. James however took a step back. Mari turned her back to him. She began walking to me so she didn’t see James’ smile return. He swung his arm in her direction. In the moonlight it looked as if it grew in the air closing the distance and reaching her, when it shouldn’t have been possible. The blow sent her flying as it connected across her back. I had to help her. Willing myself against her command I moved. Jumping forward I cradled her from the fall. Instantly she was up. She closed the distance in a second. So fast. How could she be that fast? He swung again wildly. Mari danced around his blows. Where did she learn to fight like this? It was as if she was ice skating around James, weaving in and out of every attack. He tried a double handed overhead pound. Mari spun in a mix between a ballerina and pro running back, then bent at the waist and extended her leg up into a high split kick. James went flying into the air. How high up was he? 20 yards at least. The impact of his landing boomed in the otherwise silent night. Quickly James was too his feet, but he staggered. He looked to Mari. There was a long pause filled with tension and blood lust. He charged her again. Rushing her like a linebacker, but she stood her ground. Tye screamed for her to move. Nothing came out. His body once again frozen. As James lunged in the air Mari grabbed her umbrella. Tye lost sight of when the object was removed from her pack, but he saw her strike James, now airborne, with the tip. Not just one strike. Mari hit him again and again. No less than a dozen strikes before his body fell to the ground at her feet. His blood dripped from her umbrella. The weapon proving more effective than Tye previously assumed. Again she spoke the odd language. James now cowered at her feet. Was he groveling? Tye captivated by the fight in front of him he didn’t notice the girl behind him. Not until the umbrella flew directly over his head. His heart leapt as the makeshift weapon nearly impaled his brain, and struck the wall directly behind him. Hitting the wall with such force it penetrated and stuck into the concrete slab. The woman behind him dodged the umbrella in time. Tye barely glimpsed the back of her as she fled into the woods. Mari looked back to James, but he too ran off. Tye suddenly noticed how heavy his eyes were. The back of his head now wet with blood. The crater created from catching Mari had done more damage than he realized. His eyes were failing him as they fought to remain open. He saw Mari running towards him, and then darkness.
8
Chapter 8
Tye awoke in his dorm. The alarm on his phone screeching in an attempt to wake him. His head was pounding and foggy. He slowly moved his limbs to silence the noise from his phone. Sitting up in his bed he found himself forcefully becoming alert. Wiping the crust from his eyes and smacking his cheeks gave him a jumpstart. His mind was slowly starting to focus. Sharpening itself around the details of last night, his mind began piecing things together. The tall man, the wolf, James, Mari, and the fact that he nearly died were a lot of puzzle pieces to piece together. He was nearly murdered by a blood drinking asshole named James. Everything last night was impossible. It could be a freakish dream. A vivid hallucination, but as he searched for a logical explanation he knew it was all real. It all happened. Reaching for the back of his head as evidence of his impossible
night, he felt a bandage that was now helping to mend the wound. Every muscle in his body screamed as he shuffled in his bed. So he wasn’t crazy. He hadn’t imagined it. It was real. As real as the sheets covering his legs in this bed. As real as anything he’d ever known . So that means what Mari did was real too. All the questions of the night before flooded his mind. None of them changed the way he felt about her. There were questions though. Lots and lots of questions to be answered. He looked around realizing he was alone. Wait, where’s Mari? As he reached for his phone to call her, he noticed something move in the corner of the room. A shadow at first that took the form of a woman. He should have jumped. He should have been scared, but after last night why wouldn’t there be a shadow woman in his bedroom. Tye felt his sanity slip slightly. Before his mind completely took a dive into the darker recesses of his mind the shadow woman spoke, “hey Tye how you feeling?” Maris voice soothing to his ears and mind. Some of the worry left his body at the sound. Some. The overwhelming fear remained in him. The pain chipping away at his sanity. His lips formed the question on their own.