floratic:

THE  BARN  WAS  STIFLING , thick  with  the  musky  scent  of  all  thing  unpleasant ,  of  course ,  he  couldn’t  miss  the  decomposing  piles  of  …  whatever  they  could  have  been  when  they  were  alive .  &  he  thought  better  than  to  ask  jackie  what  exactly  they  were ,  &  he   was  certain  that  he  wouldn’t  have  liked  the  answer .  yet  the  questions  remained  hung  in  heavy  air .  but  who  were  they ?  humans ?  were  they  like  me ?  how’d  they  get  here ?    

 ❝  they’re  searching  for  me .  ❞     he  comments  instead ,  a  heavy  swallow  going  down  his  throat .  it  almost  burns ,   &  a  small  irk  of  panic  rises  through  his  chest  .  whatever  it  was  that  resided  in  him  now ,  he’d  forgotten  his  control  of  it .  the  longer  he’d  stayed  in  the  lab ,  the  more  the  lab - coats  had  tried  to  bring  the  thing  outwards &  each  time ,  they  had  succeeded .  now ,  he  was  uncertain  of  how  the  thing  worked  within  him  now ,  a  part  of  him  was  certain  that  it  had  a  mind  of  its  own .   &  eveline … .  

she’s  searching  for  me  too . ❞   it’s  said  in  a  fearful  breath ,  &  he  stalls ,  ❝  she — she’s  searching  for  you  too .  ❞  it  had  been  made  evident  from  the  black  sludge  that  jackie  had  been  spewing  only  moments  earlier .  it  was  how  it  all  began ,  before  it  began  to  progress  on  towards   the  whole  consumption  of  the  body .  before  you  became  like  the  bakers . 

his  stomach  still  churned  by  the  memory  of  it  all ,—– how  he’d  clawed  against  the  doors  until  his  fingers  began  to  bleed ,  &  the  hollow ,  evil  stares  of  each  family  members ,  &  the  indescribable  stench  that  rotted  through  the  house .    but  carson ,  weren’t  you  like  them  as  well ?  you  were   a  family  once ,  too .  

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❝ you —  shouldn’t  have  helped  me  out .  it  might  have  been  better  for  me  to  stay  there ,  i  don’t  know  what  will  happen  now . eveline  will  find  her  way  to  bring  us  back  to  her  family ,  & . .  then  we’ll  be  a family  again . ❞     he  sifts  through  the  dampened  hay  piles ,   carefully  picking  his  way  through  the  dilapidated  plants  of  rotted  wood ,  and  dusts  the  space  next  to  jackie   before  crouching  down .  

he  couldn’t  go  back  to  that  house  again .  no .  he  had  somehow  escaped  once , but  he  would  not  make  it  out  for the  second  time .  eveline  would  eat  her  way  through  him  entirely ,  he  would  only  become  a  mindless  creature  to  play  out  the  role  of a   brother  for  her .    ❝ but .  but  thank  you .  you  let  me  out , because  you  see  me  as  a  human ,  don’t  you ?  ❞  

“They’re searching for both of us, I know. Really not helping to keep reminding me, buddy.” She says in a very defeatist tone, setting herself down on the ground beside Carson, legs crossed like a pretzel in front of her. She rests her chin in the palm of her hand, sighing through her nostrils. “That little bitch, Eveline – Yeah, and I hope you hear me talking shit about you, you teeny tiny whore!” She seemed to be screaming at no one, eyes cast off in the distance, staring at one particularly darkened corner of the barn.

She just knew the freak was spying on them from some far off place – or maybe she wasn’t far away at all, and was hiding out in the bunker of the barn ceiling, just waiting to pounce. Paranoia was taking a heavy toll on her sanity. Her hands were trembling, and she wasn’t sure if that was because of the nerves, the virus within her, the withdrawal she was experiencing after being off stolen Umbrella Corp. painkillers for so long… Perhaps a deadly trifecta of all three.

There’s a deep set frown that only grows the more Carson speaks, and by the end of his worrywart sentiments, she’s shaking her head violently, putting her hand on his shoulder to steady him through her touch. “Listen, let me tell you something. No one, and I mean fucking no one on god’s green earth is ever going to hurt you like you’ve been hurt. I fucking promise you that. Not Umbrella Corp., not Eveline, not her freakish demonic zombified slaves – As long as I’m holding on to you, just like this –“ She motions in between them with her index finger, emphasizing their physical closeness. “Eveline’s gonna need a goddamn crowbar to pry us apart. We got this, Carson. We. Got. This. Together. You’re more human than any of the researchers in that lab, who burned and cut you open without a second glance. I think you’re just as human as anyone; in fact, probably more so. You actually feel things, and that’s more than most so called people can honestly say in this day and age.

 While she says her motivational speech, she can hear the warble of her shaky voice. She knows Carson can still detect the fear, the uncertainty looming in her dark eyes. But, if they were going to make it out of here alive, or at the very least, sane, they needed to hear something encouraging. She’s quickly started to realize just how detrimental self-deprecation and hopeless words led to hopeless thoughts. And the last thing they needed was to show Eveline just how hopeless they’d become.

She’s quiet for a moment, listening to the rustling of hay in the background that signified the presence of rats, or other small critters lurking there in their nests. “Hey,” She can’t help but laugh, attempting to lighten the mood just a bit, despite the darkness surrounding them, literally and figuratively. “If I turn into one of those monsters, will you still promise to call me pretty if I ask? Even spongy, black goo monsters need a little self confidence booster.” She nudges Carson’s shoulder with hers as she giggles, so much that she misses a larger, more distinct rustling in the hay, more exaggerated than before. When she calms herself, she manages to catch it, and her heart is spinning into overdrive again. So much for a lighthearted moment.

She squints her eyes, trying to make out something, anything in the pitch darkness. It seems to be coming in the direction of the decaying smell, where the bodies were most likely hidden poorly underneath some straw. “Oh fuck…” She whispers, instinctively grabbing Carson as though she were suddenly his protective mother. “I hope that’s not an experiment they didn’t put out of its misery all the way…”

As if on cue, a monstrous growl resonates from behind a bale of hay, as a short, humanoid figure creeps out and into view. It’s a hideous sight, made even more horrific from the lack of sufficient light. It’s missing an arm, and seems to be hobbling on a lame foot, but still,is coming toward Jackie and Carson with deliberate malice in its moaning and groaning. It’s setting its black eyes directly on the pair, single arm outstretched as it shuffles closer. It almost looks more pitiful than intimidating, and if one looks close enough, humanity is not entirely lost from the orbs stuck deep within the deformed mass that is supposed to pass as its skull.

“Jesus, should we just finish them off?” She turned to look at Carson, biting at her bottom lip with indecision. “I’m sure we could take them… They look like shit, no pun intended.”