(Archived) Poth Short Stories and One-Shots

The Road to Hell - Chapter 1

Just a warning guys, this chapter deals with some pretty heavy themes, so read the warnings and tread carefully.

The featured song is 'Farewell Life' by Nights Amore and Arn Andersson.

Chapter Warnings: Depression, Suicide, Swearing

***

"You're a bastard, you know that?!" Lotus screeched as his housemate walked through the door. Rurik's star-shaped eye lights narrowed at his tone.

"What the hell are you on about now?" Rurik growled, slamming the door, kicking his boots off, and trudging over to the kitchen seeing as dinner wasn't prepared. The smaller skeleton followed him as he began rummaging through the cupboard.

"You know full well what I'm 'on about'! You were screwing around with my pansy alternate again!"

Goth wasn't the only monster or human Rurik would fool around with by a long shot, his partner had always been promiscuous... but he was definitely the one that pushed Lotus' buttons the most.

Is Rurik really that dissatisfied with my presence that he feels the need to seek out someone that looks just like me?

"Oh stars, not this shit again," the taller grumbled, grabbing a bag of chisps from the cupboard when nothing else appealed.

"Yes, this shit again!" Lotus retorted, his single red eye light wisping with agitated magic, "You're always out at all hours of the day messing around or fighting, then you come home and expect me to cook, clean, and give you everything you want as if everything's fine! Why can't you-"

The smaller skeleton's tirade was cut short as Rurik's temper snapped, his hand making contact with Lotus' face and sending him to the linoleum floor with a throbbing mark on his left cheek.

"Don't you ever tell me what to do, you whiny little bitch!" Rurik's voice rumbled, his expression dark as he glared at the cowering figure on the floor, "I'm the one in charge here, not you! One of your jobs in return for living here is to have dinner ready when I get home... so yeah, I expect dinner, not a lecture! In case you forgot, this is Underfell! If you're so damn unhappy with the way things are, then do the world a favor and go kill yourself 'cause nobody wants to hear it!

Rurik stalked off to his room, slamming the door as Lotus laid motionless, the fight sapped from him, clutching his stinging cheek as he fought the tears welling up in his sockets.

It took a minute before the skeleton was able to pick himself up from the ground and stagger to his room, flinching at the sound of crashing from the other skeleton's room.

Wrenching his door open, he stumbled through and let his back press it closed once more. Within the silence of his room, he slid down the wood, letting his tears fall.

What the hell am I doing here?

That one was easy enough to answer. He spent the first sixteen years of his life being tormented and beaten by his parents, supposedly to toughen him up and make him strong enough to survive the hardships of life. 

He eventually ran away from home, unable to cope with the stress.

Their LOVE did nothing to prepare him for life on his own. He was small and looked weak, a perfect target for bigger, stronger enemies. His only saving grace that fateful day in the alley had been Rurik happening by and running off the monsters trying to dust him.

Afterward, Rurik had given Lotus a new place to call home away from his abusive parents. The small skeleton did everything in his power to show the other his gratitude... even giving up his first time when it was asked of him.

As the years wore on, though, Rurik grew colder and more violent, rarely showing any emotion that would be considered positive.  

Why would he? I'm useless... nothing but dead weight.

Sure, Lotus could cook and he made a decent income as a reaper, but meals would usually pass in silence if they even ate together at all, and Rurik really didn't need money since the house was already paid off by his absent father and utilities were a non-issue.

Put simply, he was nothing more than a burden. Lotus had no purpose or ambition outside of pleasing Rurik, and he couldn't even do that right anymore. 

My parents hated me and so does Rurik... what's the point in anything...

'do the world a favor and go kill yourself'

The words echoed in his skull, driving him to a grim conclusion. 

That's the only thing left that will make Rurik happy.

Pushing himself off the door, he reached back to flip the lock before shuffling over to the worn desk next to his bed. Pulling out a piece of paper, he sat in his chair and began to write. The words flowed alongside his tears as he poured his final thoughts out onto the paper.

Signing his name, he tossed the pencil and stood. The question now was how he planned to carry out his final act. 

Rurik keeps all the medicine in the master bedroom's bathroom... and he's currently in there. I can't stand knives and blood would just make a mess for Rurik to clean up after I'm gone, so stabbing or cutting myself's no good.

His eye light fell on the closet and an idea popped into his head. Opening the sliding door and searching the shelves revealed a length of rope, an old prop previously used for the pair's 'roleplay sessions'... back when Rurik had considered him appealing.

Pulling out his phone, a quick internet search and some scrolling past pointless warning labels provided him with an easy tutorial for a hangman's noose.

He followed the steps, throwing the end of his finished noose over his ceiling fan once he completed the knot, securing the end to a bedpost.

Grabbing a chair, he stepped up and grasped the loop in the rope, taking one last look around his room. It was sparsely decorated, only holding objects that held sentimental value to him and some books.

One such item, his most precious, was the first rose Rurik had gotten him, dried and pressed in a frame alongside a small picture of a grinning Lotus and a grumpy Rurik. It was also his last.

The evening had started off fine, but one mishap got the proverbial ball rolling. One thing led to another and by the end of it, the taller skeleton had gotten up and left in a rage, leaving Lotus alone at the table for hours before he finally went home by himself. They never went out again after that.

That probably should have been the first sign...better late than never, I suppose.

Slipping the rope over his neck, he was nearly startled off the chair when the door rattled with a resounding bang.

"Lotus, you piece of shit, open the door!" 

Rurik... no, I can't handle this... not now... not when I... I...

"Just go away!" Lotus howled, his voice descending into a scratchy sob toward the end, "I'm giving you what you want..." Taking a final shuddering breath, he slammed his foot into the back of the chair, upending it and letting gravity take over.

Farewell, life...

***

The research for this story was pretty sobering. Apparently, it only takes the average person 10-30 seconds to lose consciousness completely while choking... that's pretty damn fast. Also, googling how to make a noose (because people use the knot to secure their boats to a dock) comes with a slew of warning labels, though I have to wonder how much good they really do, considering the person they're intended for is already researching the means and probably wouldn't be dissuaded by a generic warning label (like Lotus)...

Like I said, sobering. Stay safe guys~

Word Count: 1,172