Young Writers Society

Alright three, counting the collision with the terrain in the corridor just beyond the entrance of the restroom. The oversize blade leapt from my grip and skipped across the floor. There was no pain, nothing that felt like the dull impact of knuckles or puncture of a claw, but something had me bottled up, something soft winding around my arms in gentle constriction.

Tentacle? Giant snake! Overgrown earthworm? The bird couldn’t have gotten in here in silence! ...Could it? Too much monster on the mind of late.

All there was to go on was a streak of purple that zipped through my peripheral vision right before I got trucked. With far more than a pat, my body cruised to a stop, pinned between the wall and my assailant, who I was finally going to get a chance to process.

Okay, why the hell was Pheonix on me?

She didn’t look mad, in fact much to the contrary. More relieved, reassured. Her head was snuggled into my chest. The hair, the warmth, both reminded me of a large tabby cat. Pheonix was hugging me. Was this some kind of joke?

I breathed a little bit, an action that today so punitively pronounced was taken for granted, and unwound for a second. Apparently I had been rigid the whole time.

“Goodness girl, I about knocked your block off. You’re insane.” I charged.

But because I couldn’t scrape the laughter frosting off my words the accusation was tainted. It couldn’t be helped, this day was so farcical and surreal. I had lived an unadulterated, and by all means mundane existence up to this point.

Guess you’re kissing that goodbye. Perhaps I was mistaken to have wanted a pinch of adventure to come into my life.

She looked down at me with grateful glowing eyes and whispered, “You, who nearly knocked the door off its hinges when you crawled in, are honestly trying to label me insane?”

“Whoakay, that was different.” I drew distinction. “I was under a ton of pressure, literally, and simply had one interest in mind.”

She smirked. “And I’m not?”

“Hmm, I didn’t look at it like that.” I said, musing. “Desperate times, desperate measures and all that jazz.”

Worry was freely prancing around every corner on ordinary days. Right now Stress would be celebrating a holiday. Merry Christmas to you too, I hated your gifts, but I hope you enjoy mine: everlasting sarcasm.

Nearly cackling I adjoined, “Fear and regret are awfully unpleasant.”

That’s right, it’s a rivalry.

“Don’t remind me.” Pheonix warned, expression souring.

I wished I could take back that last bit. Curse you Angst, child of Worry and Stress, you make my present backfire! Or is that family the other way around? Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

When I returned to Earth, Pheonix was regarding me peculiarly.

“Oh, sorry.” I faltered. “Quarreling with, err warring. Forget it. Got carried away.”

Following an incredulous look she stated, “We should hang out more.” Then with a wink, “Weirdo.”

“Hey,” I protested. “I’m not a weirdo.” Pretending to be disgusted, I started to pry my arms loose. “Keep your hands to yourself creepo.”

She made one of those disturbing faces with the shifty brows, wide eyes, tongue, and decadent smile. “You haven’t seen creepy yet, Buster. Don’t tempt me.”

So being my fool “Buster” self, I gave her motivation.

“Pheonix, with a lot of effort people can disgust me. But they can’t creep me out.” Especially a person as beautiful as you. “Especially when I know they are trying.”

Her eyes slanted. “OH no?” Her voice grew surreptitious. “Maybe the average person doesn’t know how to effectively execute it, in all honesty.”

Her body went lithe and she slithered over my stomach, edging towards my face. Some part of me had intended to spark such a reaction. Then again I wasn’t sure that I truly wanted to witness a creep show right now. Why was she even doing this in the first place? She’d never come on to me before. It was so out of her character. Coming from her though, this failed to be completely discomforting, regardless that I was oblivious to the vast amount of Pheonix’s nature. Somewhere, maybe at the primordial level, it was also exhilarating, much like the conflicting emotions of thrill and trepidation that a roller-coaster ride generates. And it shouldn’t have been. Yet something else was tugging at me, something that reminded me to not become side-tracked, advising that this was a foolish waste of critical time, that my curt appointment was mutating into an unaffordable excursion.

This could end up being the costliest mistake of your life: the last one.

“I, uh, just remembered.” Those eyes were a wall of fire. A delicious, inviting fire. “The reinforcements shouldn’t be far behind.”

“The reinforcements,” the air hummed as she spoke, “can wait.”

“B-but they” I was melting away. “they don’t know, they’re running into…”

Her voice sounded distant. “Shh…”

Hands more like silk and feather than flesh or bone traced over my collar and chest, then down to my side, and where she touched, frost bubbled up before erupting into lava. The cold, stiff ground had vanished from my corporeal radar. For all I knew I was floating.

And then it stopped. No hands, no movement. No weight upon me any longer. I cracked an eye, which caused me to shoot up in disbelief and flounder backwards, palms slapping the stony floor to push away. But I wasn’t going anywhere imprisoned between the wall and Pheonix spanning the girth of both my legs--armed with knife.

The machete gleamed in her two-handed clutch. Pheonix was ruminating upon it as if it were a crystal ball, and as it twisted back and forth it was evident from the reflection of glistening teeth within her taut lips, that the degenerate demeanor had returned.

The tip of her tongue emerged to gradually slide between her lips. The blade sauntered down to trail beside my leg, moving up to my hip. “Where are you going?” she said smugly. A devilish grin cheerily accentuated a point as she swiveled her head, treasuring the room’s emptiness. Abruptly her head snapped back and she chuckled. “That’s disappointing.”

I swallowed. “Excuse me?”

One wagging finger stretched out and passed over my nose, trickling onto my lips. A silent mandate for silence. “Dear me, it looks as if you’ll be the only witness.”

The sword’s edge lingered over my belly and ruffled my shirt. I could feel it sink into the skin, but the pressure wasn’t enough to draw blood. My heart was a string of vibrations so quick that it seemed a whirring pocket of vacant air, so if Pheonix meant to spill blood it just might gush out and scald her.

Leaning down over me again, I felt her smooth, free hand dive underneath my shirt, right as she plunged towards me, swallowing me with hyperactive eyes like the Cheshire cat. I heard a maniacal squeal, “Let’s paint the town red.” and could only fret silently as the scimitar came rushing up to tickle my neck.

It was like a flaming demon descending upon me. My mind blank, too stunned to act.

Arriving at its goal, the knife came to a halt near enough to deforest short neck whiskers and render me stock still while she, propped on her elbow, brushed over me and progressed until her cheek leaned against mine.

Every letter was crisp and hot with saliva as she lowered her lips to my ear and uttered, “Quite the turning of tables wouldn’t you agree?”

I didn’t speak.

“Fool,” she called me. “Do you honestly think that I would be your pet? Pleasing you, serving you?” she spat in resentment. “Who do you think I am, your willing little princess?”

I said nothing.

“I want an answer, stupid.” she decreed, and an elbow struck my rib cage.

A little too lightly.

Right, Right. You let her change the atmosphere and misdirect you.

“A control freak.” I growled, deadpan.

Lips still throwing moisture into my ear, she said in an austere whisper, “Good answer.” Then promptly rose with a giggle and retracted the overbearing steel, sticking it into the socket where it belonged. Pheonix jeered in a lower timbre, “Nothing really creeps me out.” Then patted my arm as if that was going to reconcile the whole stunt. “But you forgot I was trying, dinchya?”

I sat up some more and rubbed at the spot where the knife had kissed. “I knew that.” I huffed. “Just playing along.”

There was a thump and the door opened with a scuffle of feet. The shadow of Rocky’s thick form fell upon us. He blinked. “What the hell is this?”