floratic:

HE  WANTS  TO  SAY  THAT  IT  ISN’T  TRUE , -- but  the  fact  is  that  it  is , it  is  true , &  there  was  no  smart  way to  deny  it . he  wearily  watches  the  thick ,  black  sludge  puddle  onto  the  earth , &  a  terrible  stab  of  ugly  pain  jolts  through  his  chest .  he  wishes  to  say  that  it’s  alright , – but  it  wasn’t .  it  was  a  common  lie  he’d  told  himself  while  he’d  stayed  with  the  baker  family ,  through  the  gore - fested  ‘family  dinner ‘ ,through  the  night - time  ‘game’  that  lucas  so  loved  to  play .  over  &  over  again ,  he’d  repeated  to  himself .  it  would  be  alright .  

❝ — i  can’t .  ❞   he  states  flatly ,  breathless  &  heaving .  it  feels  sickening ,  because  the  black  muck  sliding  down  the  corner  of  jackie’s  mouth  had  long - infested  within  him  as  well , made  a  snug  home  in  between  his  organs  &  spread  its  branches  out  like  a  parasite .   it  wasn’t  alright -  this  wasn’t ,  nothing  was —       ❝  you  saved  me .   &  i , — i  know  nothing  about  this  place .  can’t  tell  which  path  leads  to  where ,  i’ll  get  caught  again ❞ 

   perhaps  the  laboratories  were  a  far  suitable  condition  than  staying  with  the  bakers ,  this  was  something  he’d  thought  the  first  day  arriving  to  the  pristine  room  of  his  new  confinement .  until  he  realized , they  had  no  intentions  of  saving  him .  it  was  only  the  parasite  in  him  that  they  were  eager  to  understand ,  whether  that  meant  searing  &  tearing  through  his  skin  with  abominable  chemicals  or  experiments  on  daily  basis .  it  was  bitter  to  think  that  it  was  a  bit  too  late  to  think  of  himself  as  a  human  now ,  but  jackie  had …  she  saw  him  as  one ,  that  was  why  she’d  risked  her  life  to  help  him  escape .   

clambering  fingers  grasp  against  her  fingers ,  &  he  tucks  the  wisps  of  her  hair  back  again ,  dark  fawn  eyes  full  of  hope  &  fright .      ❝ let’s  go  together .  please .   ❞   

image

She stares at him for a heartbeat, still unsure, but when he pushes back her hair and stares at her with such fear, when he says she saved him – she knows she cannot just abandon him. That would be more of a death sentence than anything. She flashes him a smile, and although weakened from what she’d just done, there’s a stronger light in her dulled eyes, as she staggers to her feet, standing at her full height. She momentarily thinks about hugging Carson, but thinks perhaps now is not the time for a mushy sentimental moment.

When they were safe, though, she internally promised herself to deliver him the hug of a lifetime.

“Thank you.” She murmurs, and when she grabs his hand to keep running, she’s brought back to a memory, when her little brother would cling to her as she ran through the backyard, screaming at the top of his lungs when she tried to throw him into the sprinklers her father set up to let them cool off during the summer months. He would laugh just as much as he would yell, and his eyes were deep and mournful, just like Carson’s were when he’d stared at her. They were still just as innocent, even as he tried to bring a knife down into her shoulder -

She has to hold back the tears coming up fast, obstructing her vision. She could grieve more when they were out of harm’s way.

A helicopter cuts through the air above them, and Jackie pulls Carson to the side, hiding with their backs to a tree, waiting until the machine is gone, the roar of its propellers getting father and farther away. Her eyes scan the forest, searching for something known only to her. “This way, there’s an abandoned barn off in a clearing not far from here. We –“ She shakes her head, corrects herself. “They would bring experiments – people, goddammit, they were people they’d bring people out there to ‘release them,’ as they said so unkindly.” She didn’t think she had to elaborate on the truth behind the words of her fellow researchers. She recalled how they’d laugh when they’d talk about the recently released specimens, recounting the ones who pleaded for their lives just before the moment of death, and the ones who simply begged to be put out of their hellish existence.

After an eternity of running and feeling like they’re going to pass out, they reach the barn. Jackie has a bit of a struggle in prying open the giant doors, but eventually they open, hinges squealing all the way. The inside smells of hay and something decaying, and Jackie’s heart sinks when she understands why.

“Shit,” she says as she leads Carson into the darkened barn. “Guess they didn’t even bother to give some of them a damn burial. Figures.” She looks to her young companion, frown etched on her features. “This is about as good as we’ll get right now. Just… Be careful where you sit.”

  1. helleborae reblogged this from floratic
  2. floratic reblogged this from helleborae