The Lady with Blue Lips

by Brenda Franklin

Lexington, once curled against the breast of his owner Olivia, was quick to stir when air in the room shifted ever so slightly rubbing his whiskers the wrong way.

  Olivia lay silently below him like a warm stone in the cold night’s air, but the night should not have been so cold in the month of March. The winter was all but gone and spring was upon the city. People begin to trade in their long coats for thinner jackets, sweaters, or just a few long sleeves. Flowers begin to bloom in all colors and children start to count down the days until the end of school, but turn the room in which the two of them lay in to ice.

  Lexington’s eyes glistered in the room reflecting what little light there was. He could feel something in the air around him. Something uneasy in the darkness drifted towards him pulling from his throat a deep rumble of a growl which still did not wake Olivia.

  His ears were flattened, tail straight and firmly planted against the bed; baring his teeth to the presence he watched like a hawk. Though by sight it was a mere mesh of darkness he knew someone was there, standing at the end of the bed watching Olivia breathing ever so steadily.

  Lexington’s ears twitched sharply to the sound of scratching against the wall. The presence moved slowly around the side of the bed. Lexington released a deep throated growl, but he felt certain there was no stopping it. The presence drew close depressing a corner of the bed and forcing the cat backwards until he slid of the corner of the bed, in surprise, releasing a painful and terrifying cry.

  Olivia awoke matching the cats cry with her own scream out in the darkness of the room before getting enough of her senses to bolt across the floor and slap on the light. She turned quickly clutching her hand to her chest in hopes that she would be able to stop the feeling that her ribs where going to explode or she was going to wet herself out of fear.

  Lexington continued to growl deep rumbling growls.

  “Lexington?” Olivia called her voice an octane higher than she wanted. There was no sight of the cat. “Lexington?” She raised her shaky voice with nightmarish flashed of her delusions for the night before when she was on the couch.

  She rubbed at her eyes and slapped her cheek. It burned and proved she wasn’t sleeping as again she called for the cat.

  Olivia stepped forward towards the side of her bed as Lexington went quiet. She slowly eased down on her hands and knees swallowing the air in gulps and licking her dry lips several times. Her jaw stopped shaking for her long enough to turn on a small flashlight she had stashed in her nightstand.

  She slowly lowered against the floor crawling closer and extending her arm out to lift the blanket out of her way. She flipped the blanket back and was relieved to see nothing. With a sigh of relief and a quick laugh she clicked off the flashlight, but she instantly regretted it as an object rushed passed the other side of the bed across from her.

  Olivia dropped the light and slid several feet back across the floor expecting to look up and find someone standing in the room with her, but there was no one there. She was seeing things. She prayed almost in tears that it was Lexington just as another deep growl emerged sending chills up her spin leaving goose bumps on both of her arms.

  No longer could she manage any noise above her heavy breathing as she sat back on the floor expecting something, anything, to happen that would give her reason to go bolting out the door.

  It wasn’t one of her brightest moments but Olivia decided she needed to move and slowly stood holding firm to the small nightstand. She was set on going to the only spot Lexington could be hiding at, the closet. There was about a four or five inch gap of the sliding closet door open allowing him entry.

  She reached down and scooped up the flashlight, which was still on, and made her way over to the closet one small step at a time. It took her a while to cross the small room and when she did it took her even longer to get up the courage to slide the closet door open.

  She slid the closet open with a little sped to surprise whatever was in there, but found nothing. Just three blank walls, a couple of shoe boxes, and plenty of clothes. She moved several outfits over and out of the way in the search for Lexington hearing his growling clear as day.

  “Lexington?” She whispered answered by a long meow and she pulled her attention above her head where she came face to face with the big white cat.

  MEOW.

  Olivia gasped falling back and out of the closet, Lexington jumping down only to hit the floor running. He bolted to the bedroom door where he scratched and meowed at it several times. Olivia rubbed her hurt butt quickly getting to the door and letting him out.

  “God! You scared me Lexington.” She mumbled holding the door open and stepping one step into the hall where Lexington disappeared into the dark. She looked for him, but the cat was long gone to his next hiding spot.

  Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention back towards the closet. Something moved inside the closet, the door still open from when she got Lexington out.

  Olivia stayed frozen holding firm the doorknob. She couldn’t even bring herself to breath. Then came a high pitch squealing sound. It was a metal hanger beginning to swing back and forth. At first it was a slight sway back and forth, but then it increased swinging past the open doorway of the closet before finally being ripped from the closet all together and slamming against the wooden bedframe.

  Olivia slammed the bedroom door shut bolting down the hall and into the living room where she slapped on the lights and unlocked the front door almost certain she was going to be touched by something. She could almost feel the breath of nothing around her and just as she unlocked the chain and pulled the door open she released a scream slamming face to face into Austin.

  “Ah!” She cried stumbling back in surprise. Austin covered his nose and held firm onto the doorframe gasping in pain. “Austin?” She asked catching the sight of red oozing between his fingers. “Are you okay? What are you doing here?” She asked dusting herself off and rushing into the kitchen to grab a rag.

  “I’m sorry.” He mumbled holding onto his bleed nose. “I thought you were in trouble and I was about to knock on your door when you came out.” He stepped in taking the rag from her and replacing his hand with it.

  “I’m so sorry.” She apologized looking over her shoulder and down the hall.

  “It’s okay, I don’t mind when a pretty woman runs into me.” He laughed. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, why?” She gasped looking back to him with wide eyes and shook her head. “No. I’m not. Sorry. It’s been freaky.” She rubbed at her eyes. Austin washed his hands and plugged his nose.

  “What’s going on?” He asked his voice altered funnily thanks to the tissue shoved in each of his nostrils.

  “I thought there was someone in my room after Lexington woke me up.”

  “Who’s Lexington?”

  “My cat.”

  “Okay, please continue.”

  “Well, I thought I saw something, than next thing I know a hanger flew out of the closet!” She managed on one breath to say as Austin’s brows furrowed. “I know I sound crazy, but that’s what I saw!” she promised dropping her head into her hands.

  “Okay.” He nodded touching her shoulder. “Stay here. I’m going to check it out. I’ll be right back.” He left her standing in the open doorway to the apartment holding herself. She couldn’t stop her shaking as he disappeared into her room.

  One slow agonizing minute after another eased by. Olivia was on pins and needles wondering what he would find if anything. Soon Austin came around the corner holding in his hand the metal hanger which drew an involuntary inhale of breath and a step back.

  “This was all I found.” He held it up before tossing the bloody rag in the trash on his way over to her. “The only thing strange was--” Olivia started thinking the worse biting down on her bottom lip. “--how clean your bedroom is. It’s spotless.” He joked trying to ease her tension.

  “You jerk!” She gasped, the ends of her lips curling into a needed smile.

 
“Sorry, I couldn’t help it. You look like you needed a pick me up.” He smiled sitting down the hanger. Olivia couldn’t remove her eyes from the small metal object now sitting behind Austin on the couch.

  “So what happened again?” He asked easing passed to shut the door behind her.

  “Um…Well I was sleeping and I woke up to my cat--Lexington!” She gasped instantly darting over to his cat perk on the shelf. He was pressed into a back corner cowering. “Pour baby.” Olivia reached in to pet him, but after a growl she quickly reframed from touching him.

  “He doesn’t sound to happy.” Austin remarked stepping up behind her. Olivia quickly moved giving herself some space away from Austin.

  “You could hear me threw the wall?” She asked.

  “Yeah. I would have been here sooner but I…” He smirked. “I sleep in the nude so I had to put on some clothes.”

  “Thanks.” She said graciously. “Um…well, I’m okay now. So I think I’ll be fine. I’m just losing it a little.”

  “Do you need me to stay?” He offered. She shook her head. No matter how strange things were getting she didn’t need a stranger spending the night. “I’d be on the couch.” He assured.

  “No, I’m sorry. I’ll probably be the one on the couch just because I’m freaked out. It’s only a few more hours before I should get up. I’ll be fine.” Olivia said opening the door for him to leave. He quickly slid out the door.

  “Well, I’m right next door if you need anything.” He said leaving her rising against the door frame a moment longer. She took a deep breath and shut the door. She locked each of the locks, turned on the television, and headed to the couch leaving on all of the lights.

  Chapter Five: