Page 80 of Doesn't Count

On the bright side, she didn’t lose her job. Her boss wasn’t happy about the other media outlets eating this up like we served them with the fattest cake on the planet, but he seems to think she can recover from this.

She spent half the drive to New York conjuring up fake news about my mystery girl, using it to her advantage and now, we’re both lying in bed, the gloom of winter weighing us down. We have just over a week of the tour left before the holidays and a long three weeks of separation looming ahead of us.

Her voice fades as her beauty entrances me. Like wolfsbane with vibrant, luscious petals so captivating to the eye, but deadly to the heart. The worst part is knowing how poisonous Ash is for me and I can’t seem to stop myself from drinking her in and letting her kill me.

She’s gushing about all the things she’s excited to see in the city, her words crawling in one ear to fall out the other. All I can think about is how hard I've worked to tarnish something so pure, but even the dirtiest things we do together can't seem to ruin the halo hovering over her pretty blonde head.

“Khaos?” She waves her hand in front of my face.

“Sorry, I was distracted.”

“What’s going on inside that head of yours?” She smiles, rolling over on her side to face me.

I run my hand down the length of her body, resting on her hip.

“Just thinking about how much you’ve ruined me.” I admit.

“Hey-”

“And how much I love it.”

“Well, only two more months before I’m gone, then you won’t have to worry about it anymore.” She teases.

My head nods despite my lungs aching inside of me, air turning to rocks, every inhalation like an avalanche. I’ve barely accepted the fact that we’ll go our separate ways temporarily in just a week let alone permanently in two months.

“Who will quiet my nightmares?” I ask her, my fingers rubbing circles against the exposed skin of her hip.

“Hypnos is a great cuddle buddy, maybe he can help.”

With the air around us taking on a solemn vibe, I decide to change the subject. I’m losing Ash in just a couple months and if there’s any chance of keeping her, any at all, then I need to confide in her. I need to test the waters to see exactly how much she can accept of me, the real me.

“Can I tell you something? Off the record.”

“Of course.” Her smile is enough to shatter my heart.

My eyes find hers and that smile falters, her lips dropping into a grimace. She’s nervous, afraid of the words that will come next, and she should be. I release a heavy sigh knowing that everything is going to change now between us. There’s no way it can’t.

“Remember when you asked if we worshiped the devil?”

Khaos

13 Years Old

Fuck, Fuck, Fuck!

I’m fucked.

I’m so thoroughly fucked.

I suck in my own breath, the oxygen turning into carbon monoxide, the burlap bag over my head cutting off more than just my sight. Rope cuts into my wrists like razor blades, my skin rubbing raw with every attempt at twisting free.

With a sharp turn, my body is thrown down to the seat of a car, landing on my shoulder. There’s a searing pain that shoots through my muscles at the impact. I wriggle myself, trying to sit back up, but it’s useless without the help of my arms. The adrenaline coursing through me has only heightened, making me feel like a caged animal.

It might be stupid, but I kick the seat in front of me, hoping it’s the driver’s side. Rough hands capture my ankle, squeezing until I’m squealing in pain.

“Wouldn’t do that if I were you.” A deep voice threatens.

I never even saw them coming, too distracted by my own woes that I let someone sneak up behind me before I could evermake it home. Now, I mentally kick myself at being so unaware of my surroundings.

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