In Love with the Darkness (A ROTG Story)

Chapter 13

Pitch left in the morning, leaving me asleep on my bed. As soon as I heard the door clang, I rushed to get on a fresh pair of clothes and get everything ready for my escape. Pitch should be gone for several hours, but it would take a while for me to crawl all the way to the exit in my condition.

I felt like I was going to pass out from fear as I made my way towards the exit. Each step that brought me closer to freedom felt like an infinite weight on my chest. I tried to crawl faster.

It felt like the door kept getting farther and farther away, taunting my weak state. Why had I chosen to come back to Pitch? He was cruel and everything he said was a lie. He was the selfish one. He hurt me because he liked it, not because it was for the best.

This feeling that I had when I was with him wasn't love. He was a twisted bastard who had tortured me and left me to think that this was all I deserved. He made me think that love was an empty and painful emotion that I didn't want to have. He made me think that I loved him, but I didn't love him. This feeling I had wasn't love, it was hate. I hated him. I hated him more than anything in the world.

My fingers gripped onto the doorknob and tears were pouring down my face, but I felt light. I felt free, like a huge weight had been taken off my chest.

I opened the door and the wind swept across my whole body, practically pulling me from the doorway and into the air. My staff flew right next to me and I thanked the wind for finding it.

I smiled and opened my arms wide. The wind hugged me reassuringly, gently caressing my wounds and holding me in the safety of the air. No one could get to me up here.

I willed the wind to take me to North's workshop, and I laughed happily as I the wind took me there. I could hear the little girl laughing too and it only made me smile more. She approved of my choice for once.

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When I got to the palace, the wind took me to the same balcony I'd landed on before. No one opened the windows this time though. I sensed the wind's hesitation to set me down. It took a few moments, but it eventually maneuvered me to where I could comfortably sit on my knees.

I sat there, staring at my reflection in the glass doors. I looked horrible. My cheeks were hollow and dark circles seemed to swallow my eyes. My ankles were both wrapped in dirty gauze, but I was sure that deep purple bruises still stained the pale skin.

I brought a shaking hand up to knock on the door. Should I leave? Should I do this?

A door squeaked open and I saw North's burly body peek through the opening. As soon as he saw me, he rushed in to open the balcony door.

"Tooth! Bunny! Sandy!" He shouted, kneeling down to my level.

"Jack, are you okay?" He asked worriedly, extending his hand for me to grab.

I pushed his hand away gently, knowing that he wouldn't be able to help me stand like he wanted to. "I ... I'm fine."

Tooth and the others rushed in quickly and immediately ran over to me. Their affections were smothering, but in a good way. I smiled at them all, even though tears rolled down my cheeks.

Tooth's hands fluttered around my face, marking every scratch she could saw, looking for what was wrong. She spotted the gauze on my ankles and horror seeped into her eyes. She looked at me sadly and reached out to touch the injury.

Even a touch as gentle as hers sent a wave of pain through my entire body. I violently lurched away from her touch, crying out in pain. Everyone backed away at the noise, giving me some much needed room.

I winced, squeezing my thigh, trying to draw the pain back to a manageable level. Normally, the drug Pitch gave me would still be in my system, but he'd skipped yesterday's dose. The pain was worse than normal, the dull ache roaring just under a manageable level.

Tooth sighed, ushering me inside the workshop so that she could shut the door from the cold. "Jack, you're clearly not alright. What did he do to you?"

I leaned up against the wall and closed my eyes, "He said it was the only way. That it would fix everything. That the reason we were both unhappy was because I kept running away."

Bunny scoffed, "Well that's a load of bullshit."

I grimaced as Tooth started to gently unravel the gauze around my ankle. The deep purple bruise was already visible, and my skin was knotted up in odd ways, like the bone was trying to heal incorrectly.

"Jack, how did this happen?" Tooth asked. She looked like she was on the verge of tears.

I looked away from her, "He used a sledge hammer. Told me not to move or he'd have to do it twice."

I paused for a minute, not daring to look back at any of them, "Then he put his nightmare sand in the wound so it wouldn't heal. Said he'd fix it when he could trust me again."

"Bloody hell," Bunny muttered.

I looked back at Tooth and she stared at me with tears in her eyes. I felt connection when I looked at her, like she actually cared what happened to me. I felt love.

I reached out for her and she wrapped her arms around me in a loving hug. I smiled widely and hugged her back, tears rolling down my face.

I sputtered out a bitter laugh, "I hate him. I fucking hate him."