Lucian Boom: Invisible Head Case

HiTanner85

Chapter 18: The apartment in the Lowlands

I was holding Lucian's hand, staring into the direction in which we were walking. The sky churned over head, a mixture of blacks and grays. Lucian tugged me along, his hold so tight on my hand I scarcely felt my fingers. The others were behind us, following close. I wanted to wake up from this nightmare. The air smelled of smoke and death. It felt like the end of the world. I had to be. My eyes shook inside my skull.

"Where are we going, Lucian?" Mr Bear's deep voice echoed from behind. The wind was picking up, whipping around our bodies, pushing against or clothes. Lucian replied, but I didn't hear him. I was too wrapped up in my own foolish inner monologue to hear what he said, otherwise I might not have been so comfortable with following him into the fire.

"No," Fern's hysteria woke me up from my stupor. I turned around, looking at her through the darkness. "No. I can't follow him over there. I can't go there." She had stopped walking, even gone so far as to stumble backward. "Jackson I can't do it. I can't do it."

Jackson had a hold of her arm. She tried to wrench herself from his grasp.

"What is she going on about?" I looked to him. He managed a tight lipped smile, a sad one if anything. I hated to see him sad. A swoosh of air left my lungs. I hated sharing these kinds of feelings, especially when I wasn't quite sure what he meant by them.

"I can't do it. I can't make myself go. I need to be somewhere else. I can't even breathe now, Jackson." Fern's knees were buckling, and had it not been for Jackson's arms, she would've hit the ground. Her face was shiny with tears. She repeatedly shook her head. Mrs. Bear took her face in her hands, and spoke softly. It was all happening so fast. Jackson looked alarmed, panicked even. He was on her level, taking her feelings as his own. All the while, trying to calm her. It was nearly impossible to do. The world boomed with thunder. More rain would come soon.

"I can't do it. I can't. I can't. I can't. I can't." Fern chanted, allowing herself to be enveloped in Mrs. Bears arms. Mr Bear shook his head solemnly. Gray was withdrawn. His sullen eyes watched on from a few feet behind, hands in pockets, eyes nearly closed.

"If you can't go then I'll find somewhere to leave you," Lucian spoke calmly. I looked at him.

"Go where, Lucian?"

"To my apartment in the Lowlands," he replied confused. He wondered why I hadn't heard before. I didn't bother to look appalled, but questionable. "The gates are down and I have weapons there. We're as safe there as we are anywhere." His eyes bore into mine. "You don't have to come if you don't want to. I'll understand."

"But what about the monsters?" Gray spoke up. "What about all those evil fucking things that we're warned against. Do you really think it's a smart idea to walk right into that?"

"They'll be over here soon enough," Lucian mumbled.

"How do you know that?" Jackson, for once, didn't sneer at Lucian's knowledge about the dark place.

"That smell," Lucian motioned to the air around him. "That burning smell, that's the evil. The gates are down, the storm has covered the sun...They will be here soon enough." He repeated. He had the look of one who knew things, of a wise yet saddened individual. My arms broke out in chills.

"Oh my gods," and Fern was sobbing into her husbands chest. "I can't go Jackson. I just can't go." And while Jackson consoled his hysterical wife, whispering comforting words that were meant for only her ears, I watched my own soul mates calm facade.

"I'm going with you." I whispered to him. He ran a thumb along my cheek. Was I crying? His thumb glistened with tears. I must've been.

"You don't have to, midget." And that smile brought one of my own out from behind the frown.

"I do have to," I whispered. "Who's gonna nag you the whole way?"

"Think Gray's coming," he chuckled at his own joke.

"Who's gonna distract you then?" He held my jaw in his hands. I think I shocked him sometimes, at least that's what it felt like. His own lips silently closed across one another and he really looked at me. I wanted him to tell me what he was thinking, but I knew better than that.

"Guess you're going then." He finally replied, leaning forward and kissing my hair. I nodded, vaguely aware of the acute shift in the wind. Gray was standing still as a statue, arms crossed over his chest.

We left the Bears, along with Jackson and Fern in the towns center. A large concrete structure had been erected, the words "SHELTER" written in script, etched along the top. We didn't spare much time for goodbyes. I thought it'd be bad luck to push it too far, hugging was the least we could do, and it's what was done.

It was a good five miles before we reached the Lowland gates. The huge iron structure that usually kept separate was bent so far down it looked as if someone had come and taken a huge bite out of it. The air smelled of burning smoke and charred hair. My hand went instinctively to Lucian's, his long calloused digits curling around my own.

"You know, this is insane." Gray was murmuring, glancing over at our calm facades. "We're running toward them. We should be going the other way."

"No one begged you to come," Lucian stated firmly. We took a few more steps over misplaced rocks and pieces of house and hill. Gray nodded, then shook his head, stopping in his tracks.

"I can't do it."

"Gray, come on." I tutted. "Make up your mind. We're running out of daylight here. We need to do what we got to do."

"Where are we even going?" He had his hands crossed tight across his chest. I didn't feel any sympathy towards the boy, only aggravation. It took me a full twenty to seconds to realize it was Lucian's emotions pulsing through my veins.

"We're going to my old apartment." Lucian replied, tugging me closer to the gate. "And Ezra's right. We need to get moving. Get hidden somewhere for the night."

"For the night?" Gray's voice went up a note. "Spend the night...over there?"

"Yeah," I interrupted, though the plan was new to me. "Just shut up and walk. We're safe with Lucian. He's been here before. He's survived all of this before."

"Spending the night over there will be just as bad as over here tonight." Lucian's eyes pulsed with black. I pretended not to notice the patterns stretching just a bit further from under his sleeves.

"And how do you know that?" Gray asked defiantly. He stood just a bit taller than before, chin raised high. I felt Lucian tense. He would lose his temper soon.

"Because, boy" he started, venom leaking out from behind his words. "I grew up here. These streets, these filthy fucking people raised me. I'm practically one of them. I sometimes even think like them. If the gates down, they will come. They will find and destroy every kind heart they can. It's only logical to think they'd be over here. Take a few more seconds and wrap your tiny little brain around it. Stay here and run back to the shelter, or walk with us. Your choice."

Gray decided to come with us, something I was almost proud of him for. We all took a while climbing over what was left of the gate. It's edges were sharp and Lucian took great time jumping over and coaching Gray how to help me do the same. When it was done, the sun was low in the sky, and rain had once again started making dark marks along our coats.

Taking my first real look at the Lowlands was a shock, to say the least. The entire scene was distorted, almost as if someone had painted a picture of a broken city, then dunked it into a bucket of water. The skyline was dark, sharp, jagged against it's stark gray backdrop. Smoke rose from almost every building. The entire place smelled of bad. My skin erupted in chills. Lucian grabbed my hand.

We started walking toward the smudgy blackness, Gray making sure to keep in step. Once inside the city limits, I was shocked at how quiet everything was. Though I thought this a good sign, Lucian felt otherwise. His palm was clammy against my own. We walked down a series of labyrinth styled alley ways, all of which looked the same. There were bits of broken glass sticking out from the walls, ripped flags showing a scribbled letter v hung from almost every window. I ignored the dark puddles of red we tread through. I didn't really think I wanted to know what they were. I could hope I didn't assume right. Suddenly, we had all stopped walking. I felt the tip of my shoe slam into Gray's heel. He didn't bother wincing. A group of witches had walked by. Lucian dragged us all to the side as they passed. There were three of them, all similarily dressed in faded black garb. Their hair was a mess of barbed curls. Their eyes were completely white. I know this, because the last one seemed troubled as she passed. Her head wobbled back and forth as if she were going to faint, before she looked right into the shadows of which we stood. She brought her nose into the air and sniffed. She resembled one of those cartoon rats on a mortal cartoon. Her pointy nose was tinged pink with cold. I stopped breathing, tightening my hold on Lucian's fingers. The old woman's hood had fell low then, her broken white curls cut like razors into her neck. Thin streams of blood trickled down into her clothes. Her eyes searched the darkness, her tongue came out serrated like a snakes.

"I smell a broken child," she whispered, she sniffed the air. "I smell...a scared little baby boy." And she walked closer, her eyes moving at an angle. "I smell a bad little boy who doesn't remember. I do. I smell you." She smiled, a jagged crooked smile that burned into your soul. "I can taste your fear." It was when the other two startled cackling that I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand straight up. Lucian lurched forward, plunging a piece of broken bottle directly into the old witches eye. She screamed, cursing, and calling out his name. She knew his name! I didn't realize that then, it was all too much. I screamed, my mouth opening on its own accord. Before I knew it, we were running. Gray and Lucian both were sprinting across those old streets, each holding one of my hands.

We only stopped when all was quiet, when there was no one around to hear us pant. It was then I noticed we were standing in front of an old building that looked far too gone to live in.

"In here," Lucian mumbled, hopping up three steps and stepping to the side. He held open a small gray door. Neither of us said a thing as we climbed inside. Spiderwebs stuck to our coats and hair. It smelled stale in there, as if it had been dormant for years. The old wallpaper looked as if it were once pretty, maybe even grand. The furniture, all turned over and nearly destroyed, was covered in a thick layer of yellow dust. Lucian grimaced.

"Is this your place?" I asked him. He nodded, not feeling talkative. Gray fell onto a nearby sofa, ignoring the puff of lemon colored dust that erupted from under him. He looked as if he might cry. I ignored it, walking further into the apartment, looking at where my Lucian spent his life.

The kitchen was relatively untouched, an ugly purple table sat pushed against a wall. There were at least fifteen dirty tea cups scattered about the place and a good many cracked plates in the sink. A small picture of a flower was stuck to the refrigerator door, a flower I had colored and given to Seb the day before he left for Madsy. My name was scribbled underneath. The flower was brown with a yellow stem.

"That's why I knew your name," Lucian stated from behind me. I didn't jump. I had felt him walk in. I smirked, taking it from the cooler door and holding it out in front of me.

"It's really ugly," I chuckled.

"Yeah," Lucian agreed, smiling. "But that's why when I met you in the woods...I knew your name."

"Didn't Seb mention me?"

"Seb didn't mention anyone to me." Lucian made a face. "He only mentioned Madeline when I asked how he got here. I didn't like to talk or hear about another place."

"And why is that?" I asked seriously.

"Because it's just a reminder that there's a better place and you're not there." Lucian licked his lips. "But yeah, I knew your name. For the longest time, I couldn't figure out from where."

"I knew your name too." He smiled then, a bright caring smile that he reserved for me. "But that's just because you were the talk of the town."

"Still am."

"Oh! A bit cocky are we?" He shrugged, leaning back and resting on the ugly purple table.

The clock struck an odd note. The earth rumbled a bit. Lucian didn't seem to notice.

"What was that?"

"Moons shifting," he replied. "We're stuck here for the night. I already packed up what was left of the weapons." He stood up from his casual stance. "There's no food and no water. We'll just have to rough it for a while."

"Sounds alright," I nodded. "Want to tell Gray?"

"He's passed out on the couch." Lucian yawned. "I'm about ready to sleep myself."

"You have a room?"

"I have all the rooms," he smirked. "Let's go."

Lucian's old room was small and dark blue. There was a bed pushed against the far wall. A board covered, what I assumed, was a window. Apart from the ratty black comforter, it was what I assumed. Lucian shook out the blanket before stripping off his outer layer of clothes and turning to me. He smirked, pushing my jacket off my shoulders and helping me out of my sweatshirt. I smiled as he pulled me close, placing a small and semi innocent kiss on my mouth.

"I thought it would be harder to come back here," he stated truthfully. I nodded, placing my hands on either side of his face. "Not so bad."

"Maybe it's cause I'm here."

"Maybe so," Lucian squinted in my direction. "It's weird you being here, almost like you're not real."

"I'm real," I smiled.

"I know I-" his words cut off, lips jumbling over that silly thought. His eyes went black, then back to blue. He blinked and when he saw me again, he wasn't there anymore. He shook his head as if shaking off a bad dream. I felt his hands on my hips, digging in painfully hard, causing immediate bruises there. The lines on his arms stretched to his fingertips, up his neck, along his jaw. I didn't try and pull away, not yet. His back arched and his head snapped back with an alarming click. The whispers flew from his cracked lips. I wrenched away. I broke free.

"No no no, my darling girl," the evil boy said, reaching out and dragging me closer once more. My back was pressed firm against his chest, his breath cold on my neck. "Where are you going?" I shook in his arms. "It's so close," he licked up the side of my face. I shivered. "Can you feel how close you are to losing him completely? I know you can feel it, being his...soul mate- and all." The creature laughed, pressing his face hard into the side of my throat. He kissed me there, even managing a decent nip into my flesh before asking me once more, "Can you, little one? Can you feel him slipping under?"

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice more stable than I felt as a person.

"I am the one that sleeps inside his head," he whispered. "I am always here yet I'm not here at all."

"Stop with the riddle bullshit," I hissed. "Tell me who you are!"

"Don't speak to me that way, dear girl." He tugged me tighter against his own hips, letting out a small moan at the contact. "I'll have to punish you next time."

"Just tell me who you are."

"I'm the one that owns his soul."

"What do you mean?"

I was whipped around so fast I reached out to his forearms for support. He grinned when he saw my stunned expression, leaning in and pressing his ice cold lips to my own. I stood unmoving for the longest time, pleading inwardly for him to explain to me exactly what he meant.

"I mean his daddy wasn't so clever. Taking your own life, so selfish... don't you agree?" He smirked. "Now I'm going back inside. Try not to miss me too much." With another bothersome crack of bone against bone, Lucian crumpled to the ground. I fell with him, shielding his head from the floor. He woke almost immediately, straining to sit up, while I pushed him down.

"I can't," Lucian fumbled with his words. "I can't go."

"It's okay," I lied, pushing his hair from his forehead and placing a kiss there. "It'll be fine."

"No," he blinked. There was a thin outline of red surrounding his pupil. I didn't bother telling him though. He'd find out soon enough. "I'm getting worse."

"You're not," I lied once more. "And even if that's the case, what's the point of worrying right now. Let's just sleep."

"I can feel your unease."

"No you can't," I argued. "You can feel your own."

"No," Lucian interrupted. "Mine is nothing compared to this... this is yours. It's a physical pain."

"It's going to be fine," I ignored him, standing up and tugging at my jeans. I unbottoned them and let them slide to the floor. I crawled into bed, pulling the musty comforter over my bare legs. "Let's just sleep it off. Tomorrow we'll talk about this."

"I'm running out of tomorrow's."

"Don't say that," I stated plainly. "Not yet."

Lucian agreed, tugging off his pants and climbing into bed. There was a long moment of silence in which we both stared at the ceiling. I could feel his concern radiating off him like heat to a flame. I reached out and touched his hand. There were course grooves along his knuckles. The markings were still there, soft and rough at the same time. Lucian seemed to noticed my stillness as a sign to explain but I cut him off.

"I love you," I stated. The silence in the room was deafening. I felt him calm for a minute before the tension came back full force. "No pressure to return the words, Lucian. They are only words. I've felt that way before now but I didn't say anything... at least not right out. I just wanted to tell you because it seems the right thing to say."

"Ezra you don't have to say the right thing all the time."

"I want to say it then," I squeezed his hand tighter. "I love you, even if this thing takes over..."

"You're a dumb girl, Ezra." I heard the humor in his voice, as light as is it was. It brought me comfort.

"And so are you," I smirked. "We'll get this done."

"Sure we will," Lucian's voice was tight against the darkness. I heard Gray shifting in the living room, turning over on the old sofa.

"Sure we will," I repeated to myself.

Authors Note: There are SO many mistakes. Don't point them all out to me please, cause believe me i know HAHA. I just figured if I didn't go ahead and put this out, I would never do it. It's coming along. This is just a tiny bit of answers given (if you look close that is). Please stick with me. Hopefully I'll get my head straight and itll be faster next update.

ps. Moon child will be posted soon.

Thanks so much for those of you who voted for SEB! he won another skow! whatsssuupp

Love, brittany terese.