Page 24 of Creepy
“Is there anything you don’t know?”I asked, my eyes feeling heavy as I let my head rest against his shoulder.
“No.I’m a know-it-all,” he started.He carried me all the way to the diner since he knew where it was, talking about himself, just to keep me awake.I could tell by the way he peppered the one-way conversation with, “I don’t know if I should let you fall asleep or not,” and, “stay awake, Sissy.”At the diner, he sat me on the stainless-steel island.He doctored me up there, cleaning the bite as best he could.
“Got water?”
Then I told him about the generator, the cooler, and the freezer.I wanted a can of Pepsi I’d stolen from his garage.He handed me some Motrin to take with it.On account of my ankle looking like a ham, he also got a bag of frozen peas.
The freezing pack snapped me out of my shock-induced torpor.“I’ve kept it going all this time.Not sure how I’m going to now.”I spoke of the freezer.
Troy seemed pleased I was more alert.“Just ask.”
“What?”
“Just ask me to, and I’ll do it.”
“I wouldn’t expect you to.”
Wrapping my ankle, he gazed up my leg, his dark eyes kind but strong.“You sound like someone who’s not let anyone take care of you.”
Thinking of all my past relationships, I said, “I guess that’s sort of true.Certainly not since the pandemic hit.”
Luckily, I’d kept a first aid kit and was lucid enough to point it out.Although there was no gauze, Troy MacGyvered a tampon into some.
“Nice trick,” I complimented his resourcefulness.
Troy stood, wiping my arms with a wet cloth.It was doing no good.“First of all, you’re going to need someone to help clean you up.”
I nodded my head.I was pretty much covered in guts.
Troy went on, moving my matted hair out of my face.“Help you out while this ankle’s healing.You can’t survive out there with an injured foot.”
“You’d be talking about staying with me all day and night kind of help.”
With Troy leaning in, willing, I let myself fall against him and rest for a moment.It felt good to be comforted; him stroking my hair and back, not caring I was nasty.“Yeah, bathe you, feed you, sleep in your bed kind of stuff...”
I began to argue.
“No, baby.I won’t try anything.I promise.That’s unless you want me to.”
I gave him what he wanted.I spoke into his chest, “Will you help me, Troy?At least until I get a boot on this.”I thought I saw one while raiding Mr.Winslow’s drugstore.
“You forgot the magic word.”
“Please.”
“My pleasure, baby.I like to hear my women beg.”
Embraced by him, his words rang sexual.I swallowed, and Miss Mary let out an inaudible please, too.
Feeling safe inside the diner, with my gun in hand, I let Troy leave to get the Camaro.I smiled a proper smile, thinking about him.He was forward, yes, calling me baby and such, but in a funny, charming way like that was just part of his personality, not scary at all.He wanted to help.I remembered him wanting to be part of my group when I first met him.He’d been all too correct that he could’ve done anything he wanted to me already.I didn’t get any Ted Bundy vibes from him either like he had more evil plans.Worrying about the people Arlo said were coming this way, I knew I needed all the friends I could get.I could use a good man, a strong, big, and built like a brick shit house man like Troy in my corner.As much as I’d been falling for the calm sexiness of Arlo, I wasn’t sure anything would come of it.It’s not that I’d wanted Arlo to take advantage of me, but for fuck’s sake, it was the end of the world.We were consenting adults, and I didn’t have the patience to wait and see what would happen.Troy’s forwardness was refreshing.I felt like I could ask him to fuck me and he’d ask how hard.
He was back before dark, just like he promised.Once he helped me inside the sleek machine, I told him if he planned to stick around and help, we might need to go to his place.“Dillon knows where I live.”
“I’m not scared.What do you want to do?”
“I want to go home.But not tonight.You can meet Arlo tomorrow.”
“Who?”
