I Am A Monster (David Escamilla A.U.) (#Wattys2015)

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"Breathe You In, Breathe You Out When It's All Too Much, Breathe You In, Breathe You Out, You're My One True Drug. I Can Hardly Wait To Float Above The Angels. I'm High Again Off Your Oxygen. Calling In The Dark For You, Pull Me Through The Stars, I'm So High Again Off Your Oxygen" - Oxygen ~ Crown The Empire

FOUR YEARS AGO

         

There were many things I didn't know about David. I didn't know his favorite color - and as of right now, I'm pretty sure he doesn't even have one. David was his own breed; his own creation. I didn't know anything about David's family, but he seemed to know everything about mine. Granted, he did steal my file from the front office on the day we first met, but he also seemed to know intimate things about my family as well. 

Benn has been working hard at finding a job to help support Danny and I. He actually found some work at some construction company. Sometimes when they're short-staffed, Danny's allowed to go with Benn and skip out on school. It did help around the apartment. I suggested that I find work at a cafe or something, but both of my brothers refused; Benn told me that he wanted me to focus 100% on school and Danny told me he didn't see college in his future, so he wasn't going to waste his time and energy in school. He's more of a 'hands-on' kind of guy. 

Since Benn and Danny were never home, David took advantage of it. David would drive me home when Benn and Danny both took the cars. He'd also take me home. He would show up unexpectedly with dinner on the nights that Benn and Danny had work a couple states over. Sometimes, when David wasn't waiting in the school parking lot that day, I'd come home from school (on the days Danny and Benn carpooled to work) and I'd find him sleeping in my bed. I tried not to think about this new infatuation David seemed to have with me. I tried not to get my hopes up, considering the probable fact that he only wants to have sex with me. I tried not to have feelings of intimacy towards David.

Who am I kidding? I've always had feelings towards David. He's just...there's something about him that makes me want to be something more with him, but at the same time, everyone around me wants to convince me otherwise. 

Sometimes he worried me though, he was a very violent person. I've seen him act out before against others who pissed him off, but he promised me he'd never ever put his hands on me in that way. I just wish that he would talk to me about what was going on in his head. I wish he would just-

"Holy shit." Andy mumbled. I glanced up from my laying position on Hayden's flatbed Ford. It was a bit uncomfortable, but Hayden always kept a couple of blankets in his car, so we wouldn't be laying on the hard surface of the truck's bed. It was lunch time, so the usual group were all hanging out.  Andy made plans to meet up with David, Hayden, Brent, and Brandon for lunch off campus and invited me and Lynn to tag along. "Are you fucking kidding me?" I scrambled to my feet, feeling the truck wobble a bit. I also slammed my notebook shut before anyone could read it. 

I hadn't seen David in forever. It seemed like just yesterday that he was a senior in high school, looking after the younger kids. But he, Brandon, and Brent all graduated together and threw one hell of a party in celebration.  Since it was now just me and Andy still in high school, we grew a lot closer.  Of course we all hang out after school, on weekends, sometimes the pretend they're relatives on the phone to get me and Andy out of school early.

Hayden, Brandon, and Taddie were already here, and we were just waiting on Dave.

David had pulled up in his old mustang and he was slowly getting out of his car. I noticed he was limping a bit, but I thought it was my mind playing tricks on me, and he was wearing a long-sleeved shirt despite the weather. I knew right away that something wasn't right. Andy stormed over to David, shouting something at him - I couldn't hear it because I was too far away. I was about to hop off the truck when Hayden stopped me.