Morganville (Justin Bieber)

Chapter 28

It was a long, long day. I eventually stretched out on one side of the bed, Eve on the other, each wrapped in our own separate cacoon of misery and heartache. We didn't talk much. There wasn't really anything to talk about.

It was almost dark when the doorknob rattled, sending me into a heart pounding terror seizure; I advanced slowly, and whispered, "Who is it?"

"Justin" the voice replied.

I unlocked it fast and opened it up. Justin came in, carrying a tray on which sat two bowls of chilli - which made sense, because it was the only thing Justin knew how to fix. He set it down on the edge of the bed, next to Eve, who was sitting like an unstuffed rag doll, limp with grief and dejection.

"Eat something" he said. Eve shook her head.

Justin picked up a bowl and shoved it in her direction; she took it just to avoid wearing it, and glared at him. I saw her expression turn into something else. Blank at first, then horrified.

"It's nothing" Justin said as I came around to see. It wasn't nothing. It was bruises, dark ones, spilling over his cheek and jaw. Justin avoided looking at me. "My fault"

"Jesus" Eve whispered. "Your dad-"

"My fault" Justin snapped back, got up, and headed for the door. "Look, you don't understand. He's right, okay? I was wrong"

"No, I don't understand" I said, and grabbed his arm. He pulled free without any effort at all and kept walking. "Justin!"

He paused in the doorway and looked back at me. He looked bruised, beaten, and sullen, but it was the desperation in his eyes that scared me. Justin was always strong, wasn't he? He had to be. I needed him to be.

"Dad's right" he said. "This town is sick, its poisoned, and its poisoning us, too. We can't let it beat us. We have to take them out"

"The vampires? Justin, that's stupid! You can't! You know what'll happen!" Eve said. She put the bowl of chilli back on the tray and got up. "Your dad's crazy. I'm sorry, but he is. And you can't let him drag you down with him. He's going to get you killed, and Anastasia and me, too. He already-" she caught her breath and gulped. "He already got Micheal. We can't let him do this. Who knows how many people are going to get hurt?"

"Like Jazzy got hurt?" Justin asked. "Like my mom? They killed my mom, Eve! They were willing to burn us up in this house, yesterday, don't forget, and that included Micheal"

"But-" she tried.

"This town is bad" Justin said, and looked at me, almost pleading. "You understand, right? You understand that there's a whole world out there, a whole world that isn't like this?"

"Yes" I said faintly. "I understand that. But-"

"We're doing this. And then we're getting out of this place" he says.

"With your father?" Eve managed to put a whole dictionary of contempt into that. "I don't think so. I look good in black, but not great in black and blue"

Justin flinched. "I didn't say...Look, just the three of us. We get out of town while my dad and the others-"

"We run?" Eve shook her head. "Brilliant. And when the vamps have a big party and roast your dad and his buddies, what then? Because they're definitely going to come looking for us. Nobody escapes who had any part in killing a vampire, you know that. Unless you really believe that your dad and his idiot muscle are going to be able to take down hundreds of vamps, and for all I know, the U.S marines"

"Eat your damn chilli" Justin said.

"Not without something to drink. I know your chilli" Eve said.