Billy Loomis has never cared about anything in his life until Stu Macher changes that. Afraid that his strange thoughts would make the only person he's ever cared for leave him.. instead Billy and Stu hatch a plan that will turn their little suburba...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
May 1995, Woodsboro, CA.
I can feel the sunlight burning at my eyelids as I lay with my head back on the bleachers, I can hear the birds singing somewhere in the distance and students cheering each other along from somewhere below us.
"You could at least open your eyes" Stu's voice next to me, low and sarcastic. I hear the click of a lighter and the smell of the smoke as he exhales. I sit up and look at him with my fakest smile.
"That's better" He places the cigarette close to my face and I inhale one breath as he takes it back for himself, putting it back in his mouth, speaking with it between his lips "You gotta at least pretend you're interested in her"
I roll my eyes and look out to the field and track; Sidney, Tatum and their team are practising for some big race that's coming up. I can't remember what it is exactly, I struggle to retain information that is useless to me. They're currently doing warm ups, fifteen students all lined up just in front of the bleachers doing stretches and jumps as the coach whistles and shouts instructions at them. School finished 30 minutes ago and the girls asked if we would wait for them until they finished practise. Of course we would, that's what good boyfriends are supposed to do.
I lay my head back in the sun, the warm wind rustling my hair "I'm here, aren't I?"
"You've barely even looked at her lately, let alone touched her. Tatum said-"
I snap my head back up and look at him "Tatum said? You've been bitching about me with your girlfriend now?" I can't help but mock the word. I sound like a dick, no I sound like a spiteful jealous girl. I didn't know I was capable of this. Stu Macher keeps bringing more and more out of me, some more negative than others.
"No it's not like that. She talks, I listen. She just said that Sid noticed things changed between you two, since.. you know, last month. You're more distant than usual and she doesn't know why. And a part of the plan was to carry on as normal, right? We don't wanna raise any suspicions man. We need to play our parts" He speaks quietly, pleading with his eyes. Shit, since when has he been the level headed one?
"Yeah well one of us clearly finds it super easy to play their part" I take the cigarette from his mouth, grab my denim jacket from the bench and turn to the steps.
"What? You can't be serious, this isn't easy for me!" He launches himself after me, off the bench and follows me down the steps.
"I don't know man, you seem pretty into her to me" I keep walking down the steps and past the line of girls, I see Sid stop stretching and look at me confused. Tatum stops too and shouts "where you going jackasses?" The coach blows the whistle right next to them.
"We're heading to the car, meet us there!" Stu shouts from behind me as I reach the path which leads us to the parking lot. I hear Stu following me, keeping a slight distance. I take a few more breathes of the cigarette and outstretch my arm behind me so he can take it back, he does. I reach Stu's car and he unlocks it and we both get in.
"You're actually jealous, huh?" The idiot says with that funny tone, he uses to get laughs.
"I'm not jealous" liar "ever since, you know. I find it hard to be with her, It's hard to fake. I'm not even good at being nice to people I genuinely do like"
He laughs, too loudly "You can say that again, but seriously Billy. You need to get your act together if you want this all to work. If the boyfriend suddenly starts to act strange before the girlfriends mother is murdered, you're gonna be a suspect. You need to play the doting boyfriend. And I know it's not easy, you think I enjoy being all over Tatum? I've just gotta do what I gotta do. It's all going to be so worth it in the end man" He smiles, that big goofy smile but with a tiny hint of darkness in those blue eyes. Like a blue hole, beautiful but terrifying.
"Shit, I know all that Stu. I'll go back to hers tonight, I'll make amends. Say my Dad has been on his usual bullshit. She'll buy it" I actually feel nauseous. What is wrong with me?
"Good. Just think in four months time, everything is going to come into plan"
"I know, I can't stop thinking about it. It's perfect" I mean it, this time my skin prickles but not in the usual skin itching/crawling sensation I've experienced for as long as I can remember which matches the speed of my racing mind. No, this is a feeling like no other, like I've finally subdued the thing inside me that's terrorised me for years. This feels so right, everything feels good. I feel happy. I'm fixing myself, I'm putting all the broken pieces back together with the help of Stu. Even if that means breaking other people apart to do that, I don't care. It's the only way.
In four months time Maureen Prescott will die for making my life even more intolerable.
In sixteen months Casey Becker and Steven Orth will die for embarrassing Stu. Mr Himbry will die for a decoy. Randy Meeks will die for being annoying. Tatum Riley will die because she's far too close. And lastly Sidney and Neil Prescott will die, the perfect scapegoats.
I can see it so clearly in my mind, my mind is slow and calm for the first time. My thoughts are clear and I am in control.
I don't care that much for the Prescott's; I don't particularly hold any ill will towards Maureen. What she did, made my life harder, having to live alone with my father and being abandoned by my mother probably lead to me being the way I am. So I figured it was only fitting for her to be the catalyst, as she was to me.
We have been sitting in the car with the radio playing, just sitting and enjoying the setting sun enveloping the car in an orange hue, passing the cigarette between us. I couldn't help but watch him taking a drag and watching the veins in his neck move. His jawline, his collarbones. It was taking every part of my self control to not get on top of him.
The car door next to me swung open "Move over, I'm shotgun" Tatum's high-pitched voice, easily audible above the music. Stu leant over and turned the radio down. I tried my hardest not to roll my eyes and crawled into the back of the car just as Sid opened the back passenger door and got in beside me.
"How was practice babe?" Stu said leaning over closing the distance between him and Tatum, she matched the distance and giggled before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him. The nausea returns. I look away from them and then look at Sid sat next to me; she shudders, she's in her gym clothes. It gets colder in the evening, even in May. She's looking down at her hands which she's twisting together like she does when she's uncomfortable. Play the part.
I take my jacket and wrap it around her shoulders and then place my arm there too, pulling her closer "can I come over tonight?" she looks up at me, I instantly see her smile. Her brown eyes have a warmth mine never have.
"Sure Billy, I'd love that. My Dad's out of town again and my Mom is out with her sister tonight so we could maybe pick up a movie?" She flutters her eyelashes, it's a nervous trait of hers that any other normal guy would find attractive.
"As long as I can pick the film" I tease and kiss the top of her head. I glance up and see Stu's blue eyes staring back at me in the wing mirror. The darkness in them, all encompassing.
Oh so it looks like psychopaths can experience jealousy.
