Chapter 12

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      A sigh slipped past my lips, my mind slow and unresponsive due to the emotional drain. I sauntered over to where I knew Jeff's unconscious presence to be, leaning down carefully. I grabbed him arms and bent my knees down, bracing his weight over my back and lifting slowly.
Surprisingly, Jeff did not weigh as much as I thought. He was pretty thin and bony, though I knew he was stronger than he appeared. The skin of his arms felt stiff and coarse, like they were weathered by years of exposure. Otherwise, he seemed fairly normal.
      I walked heavily towards the distant concentration of minds back at the house, shifting Jeff's weight over my back to alleviate the strain. The slash across my shoulder and the cut in the middle of my chest had almost stopped bleeding, clotting up with dried blood. Although, the rough movement had cracked them open just enough for a few more drops of blood to leak out. Though somewhat ripped, I could tell my clothes and mask were still mainly intact. I doubted anyone would see my disfigured skin if they glanced at me – the body across my back would likely garner more attention than the new slits in my clothing.
      By the time I approached the house, I was practically staggering toward the building. The only thought that drove me on is to get Jeff back in bed – to sleep it off. I absentmindedly hoped that Jeff wasn't severely injured. It was just one hit, so it couldn't be that bad – right?
      I could tell BEN was in the gaming room and most of the others were eating in the small dining room. It must be lunchtime or... dinnertime? I idly registered that I had been gone for quite some time, though I couldn't be sure exactly how long.
      I shouldered open the front door, stumbling into the house and causing quite a lot of noise between my dragging feet and ragged breathe. I heard BEN's game pause and his footfalls approach the front entryway.
      "Shit!" BEN called out harshly, rushing towards us and seeing Jeff still draped over my back. "What the hell happened?" He asked, but his voice wasn't directed at me. It was directed at nothing, he didn't expect me to answer – like I wasn't there. If I wasn't so drained, I'd be angry about his attitude towards me. But since I was so tired and so done with these people, I kept cool and distant.
      I pushed past the gamer and stumbled to our room, tossing Jeff's limp body to his bed and heaving out a great sigh as the weight was lifted. BEN's response was instant.
      My back collided with the wall, making me hiss in pain. I felt both my wounds pull open from the force of BEN's attack, bleeding fresh. I growled and focused on the flickering green presence before me.
      "What did you do?" BEN seethed, obviously concerned over Jeff's lack of consciousness. His whole existence seemed to... glitch? I couldn't be certain; my brain was fuzzy from the previous events and long walk home. I even had the slight feeling of suffocation, like my chest couldn't expand all the way. It was quite frightening, even to my slow mind.
      "Nothing anyone else wouldn't have done." I replied coldly and breathlessly. I would need bandages soon for these wounds, if only BEN would back off.
      "Nothing? Nothing?" BEN shouted, fingernails digging into my shoulders as his hold on me tightened in anger. "How the hell did he get that black eye and pass out, huh?" BEN yelled in my face, making my ears ring. I didn't respond immediately, feeling others' presences approach and gather at the room's doorway. The others must have heard the commotion and came to investigate, I thought dully. Great.
      "What happened?" BEN pressed again, his spoonful of patience evaporating. Just as I was formulating a response, he paused. His grip on my shoulders slackened and he brought one of his hands to his face. It must have been covered in my blood from the slash Jeff gave me. He then put his hand near my collarbone, pulling back the ripped ends of my sweatshirt to see the cut in my chest. I hissed at the renewed pain and felt more blood leak from the cracked scab.
      I flinched and smacked his hand away, scooting out of his grip and bumping into the dresser.
      "You're bleeding..." BEN mumbled, his mood effectively cooled. Several other killers had managed the courage to walk into the room. Some were evaluating Jeff's state while the others were focused on me, debating what had happened.
      "Jeff seems to have a minor concussion and bruising around his left eye, but he should recover quickly." A voice I had come to recognize as Eyeless Jack's sounded quietly from the bedside. I didn't know him very well since he was only visiting the house, but I was grateful for his analysis.
      "What happened, _______?" BEN asked softly now, his fiery aggression smothered and his attention on me. I let out a quiet sigh, thinking through the events.
      "Jeff forgot who I was during our training this morning... and he... well, he..." I stopped talking, realizing again how close to death I actually was. The knife blade had been inches away from my heart.
      "He got me down and had the knife cutting into my chest." I muttered. "I managed to hit him once and he passed out." I finished unceremoniously, my posture slumping as BEN backed off further.
      "Oh." BEN said as he continued to think. "I'm surprised you... survived." BEN mumbled, shocked into honesty. "I thought..." His voice faded off. I heard scuffling and movement. BEN's hand wrapped around my wrist and pulled me out of the room, leading me towards the bathroom.
      "There are some supplies under the sink." BEN told me, still a little shocked. He then walked back over to Jeff's room.


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Lil-magpie
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