Malo and Faye sat in Martha’s living room. Martha had agreed to the ritual, and Uncle PP had arrived. They were in Martha’s room along with Dre.
While they waited for it to be done, Malo was busy eating from the box of donuts he had brought for Martha earlier. To his surprise, when he offered one to Faye, she actually took it. The sugary glaze crunched softly between her teeth as she bit into the pastry, her breathing turning slow and heavy while she stared blankly at the wall.
He smiled, then relaxed on the couch like a happy boy.
"I wonder what kind of ritual they are going to do in there," Faye said. She was sitting on a two-seater couch. She could hear what was going on inside the room, but she just didn’t want to keep her mind on it.
"I’ve always wondered how they turn someone into a Night Walker. I have read a lot of stories online, and they’re all fake. None of them work," Malo said. He leaned his head back against the upholstery, his jaw working steadily as he swallowed his bite, his voice light but curious.
"Did you ever try them?" Faye asked, her voice dropping into a flat, tired rumble as she turned her head slightly to look at him.
"No. I read the comments, and they weren’t good ones.... Drinking blood and never walking under the sun as the price for immortality? No freaking way... unless the blood looks like a donut. But I love the sun," Malo said jokingly. He let out a small, easy chuckle, his lungs expanding with a relaxed puff of air as he tried to break the thick tension.
"Well, everything in life always has a price. Look at the price we have to pay just to have Dre help us... convincing a dying lady to become something she despises," Faye said with guilt...
"You feeling bad about it?" Malo asked, his tone shifting into something softer, his eyes tracking the way her shoulders dropped.
"Obviously, I am," Faye replied.
From where he sat on the couch, Malo glanced at Faye. He wanted to see how she was eating her donut.
Taking big bites meant Faye was in the talking stage, and she would listen to him.
He had been meaning to talk to her for a while now.
"Faye." Malo called out softly.
"Umm?" she murmured without looking up, her lungs pulling in a quiet, careful breath.
"Can I tell you a story?" Malo asked, his voice steady as he shifted his weight to face her more fully.
"If it will stop me from hearing what is happening inside, then go ahead." Faye replied. She took another bite, her eyes remaining fixed on the dark wood of the coffee table.
So Malo began. His lungs filled with a deep, serious breath as he gathered his thoughts, his eyes softening as he looked back into the past.
"There is this girl who had everything... everything one could ask for. Then one day, she lost the two most important people in the whole world. Despite still having people around her, she felt lonely because the only people who truly understood her were gone. The girl jumped into a well to live there forever." Malo explained, his voice smooth and clear in the quiet room.
"How will she live inside a well? She will drown." Faye interrupted.
"It’s a dry well." Malo clarified quickly.
"Oh..." Faye murmured, her chest rising with a small, accepting sigh as she gestured for him to continue.
Then Malo continued.
"She told her friends to close the well forever and leave her there alone. They couldn’t, so they went to call a senior. The senior tried to rescue her, but she threatened to rip apart anyone who came inside. Then this one crazy girl didn’t care about the consequences. She jumped in. Everyone thought the crazy girl was going to die, but hours later, the two girls climbed out alive." Malo said, his breathing turning tight and shallow as he finished the memory.
"The end." Malo added softly.
"Your storytelling is weird... including that crazy girl. Why would she jump? She is stupid. She should have just let the other girl die because that girl was stupid too," Faye said as she picked another donut. She reached into the box with a fast, careless movement, her lungs letting out a short, dismissive puff of air.
"My story is not stupid. It’s a real-life event. And maybe you’re right... that crazy girl was so stupid," Malo said as he sat up.
Then he grabbed the box because Faye was eating too fast, and there was only one donut left. He snatched the package away with a quick, defensive jerk of his hand, protecting the last piece.
"By the way... you are that stupid girl," he added.
Faye stopped eating midway and gave the boy sitting in front of her a silent glare. Her jaw completely froze, the piece of donut held inches from her open lips as her breathing stopped entirely, her eyes flashing with a sudden, dangerous heat.
"What? You said that yourself." Malo said, shrug-shouldering through the intense tension rolling off her body.
"Why the fuck would you say that?" Faye growled out. Her voice dropped into a low, threatening frequency, her lungs pulling in hot, angry gasps as she stared him down.
"I know you don’t remember, which I’m beginning to suspect it has nothing to do with the school water system, but right now... The point is you are hurting Princess, the one thing you said you would never do again. You shouldn’t have gone on a break." Malo stated firmly. He didn’t back down, his own heart hammering a wild, brave beat against his ribs as he forced her to face the truth.
"But she is fine with it. She even looks happy." Faye countered sharply.
"Looks happy? Princess looks happy, but she isn’t. Whenever I go to pick up or drop off the pups, she always looks around, hoping maybe you came with me. Princess Kings is a lonely person. You should have known that by now." Malo said,
"But that girl is hurting, and it’s because you left. She doesn’t show it, but if you look closely, you’ll see it." Malo continued...
"If you had your memory, you would never leave that girl to live by herself." Malo urged, his throat tightening with genuine emotion.
"Please don’t hurt both of you because of my mistakes." Malo pleaded, his hands shaking slightly as he let out a long, ragged sigh.
"Princess won’t interfere for six months, but a lot can happen in six months. I know what I’m saying..." Malo whispered, his voice dropping into a dark, worried warning that made the hairs on Faye’s arms stand straight.
"Lonely people do extremely crazy things." Malo finished, his chest deflating completely as he leaned back, leaving the heavy truth hanging in the air.
After Malo finished speaking, neither of them said another word.
Faye simply sat there in silence, thinking about the decision she had made.