Illya
We found Sylvie on the second floor, and I tried not to touch anything as I crouched down to get a really good look at her face just to be sure. Theo flashed the light from his phone right at her, but she was totally knocked out. Her gaunt features after just a few days, the red rings around her eyes— the crackling of her lips . . . Sylvie was probably jacked up more than ever, and guilt stabbed my chest even as I jerked my head in a nod.
“That’s her, for sure. One hundred percent.” Standing up, I nodded again, and Theo passed me his phone before bending to hoist her over his shoulder. The shirt around my face gave me some protection from the stench, but he grimaced as he held her by the backs of her legs. “Let’s get the Hell out of here.”
“Yeah.” The floor creaked under Theo’s weight, and I left the room first to illuminate all the trash on the floor. I was positive a few dead animals were lying around, and I could hear mice digging through the garbage piled in the corners of the place. Taking the stairs very carefully, so I didn’t have to touch the railing, I paused to glance back at Theo cautiously.
Seconds ticked by like hours before we were out of that wretched house, and I pulled down the shirt to take a huge, blustering breath of fresh air. Theo walked briskly past me to his car, and I flipped his phone awkwardly in my palms while he opened the back seat door and shoved Sylvie in none-too-gently.
“I’ll drive you back. Come here.” Rounding the back of the car, Theo popped the trunk, and apprehension gripped me in a vice as I shuffled forward on lead feet. I wasn’t sure what I expected, but him pulling out a bunch of disinfectant wipes wasn’t it at all. Exhaling heavily, I glanced over my shoulder at the house, and a shiver of disgust rattled my spine. “Here.”
Theo’s call rose the hairs on the back of my neck, and I tensed when he snatched my wrist to start wiping my hands. I didn’t dare breathe, my heart stopped beating, and I watched through wide eyes as he held the wipe around his lonely pointer finger with his thumb.Wow . . . wow . . . what the fuck . . . what the fuck! The fuck is he doing!
I did not fucking sign up for this weird, creeper shit! He’s washing my fucking hands!
“I can d— ” My declaration died on my tongue at the downright ugly, intense glare that Theo shot me, and I ducked my head. He wiped the bottom of my palm and between my fingers, and anxiety curdled my blood. This . . . this . . . thiswas fucking weird!
“Close your eyes.” Prickles rippled through my cheek at his gruff demand, but I didn’t resist, and goosebumps swept over my shoulders and down my arms and chest. He wiped my face where his shirt hadn’t covered, and I trembled as apprehension gorged my muscles. “You never know what you might need until you need it and don’t have it.”
“This is really weird, okay.”
“I seriously don’t give a fuck what you think, Illya.” Theo’s sharp snarl echoed on the otherwise quiet street, and I flinched back involuntarily. Squeezing my eyes shut, a whimper clogged my throat, but nothing happened for the longest moment until he growled deep in his chest. “That’s what I thought. You’re not gonna do shit.”
Grabbing my face, Theo squeezed threateningly, and I clenched my jaw hard as he tilted my head back to wipe my neck. The fine hairs on my face stood up, and my goosebumps swelled as he wiped down my arms.
“Why do you have to be such a pain in the ass, huh?” I refused to open my mouth anymore, and Theo guffawed softly, the warmth of his breath rolling down my nose. “Get in the car.”
Shaking my head, I scrunched up my face in preparation, but Theo only stiffened. The air became deathly still, and I held my breath as apprehension gripped my spine in a vice. I couldn’t get a handle on what Theo was trying to do, and his palm slid down to wrap around my throat. My pulse ran wild under his fingertips, and my lungs cried out for air even though he wasn’t putting any pressure on my airway.
“Get thefuckin the car, Illya.”
“J-just leave me alone . . . please.” I made the mistake of opening my eyes, and Theo’s narrowed as hurt flashed across his face like lightning. My mind ran a mile a minute, and I tensed when he released my throat, his fingernails scraping my skin. “Please . . . you got Sylvie. You don’t need me anymore.”
“Fine, walk back.” Spittle splattered my face from the viciousness of his words, and I shivered from the breeze of Theo storming past me. He slammed his car door shut and peeled off, the wheels screeching shrilly to ring in my ears. I couldn’t make myself move, but when he turned off the street, I took a shuddering, shallow breath. My dry lips stuck together, and I reached to hold my throat where the imprint of his fingers still burned my skin.
“Holy shit.” Covering my mouth, I gulped down the dense lump that had formed, and my mind circled around and around as confusion tightened my chest. Turning on my heel, the world spun slowly, and I rubbed my neck and rolled my head. Blinking hard, the image of Theo’s face when I asked him to leave me alone flashed behind my lids vividly.
Was he really that upset about me wanting him to go away? Theo didn’t have a good poker face, but that . . . what did he have to be hurt about? I was the one he practically held hostage, for Christ’s sake! He showed up at my apartment, and I couldn’t say ‘no’ and risk getting on his bad side!
And, now, I was all the way across town with no bike and no way home, and I had work in two and a half hours.
“Ugh . . . ” I scuffed the concrete with my heel and ducked my head to glare at the sidewalk. Why couldn’t I have toughed it out and gotten in the stupid car?
Because Theo is friggen weird, and if I got in the car, who knows what might’ve happened. He would’ve gotten the wrong message or something. I don’t want to be around him. He has what he wants. There’s no reason for us to ever see each other again.
Even as the thoughts whirred in my head, I couldn’t help but feel a little bad. Theo didn’tmeanto be a little creepy, and I was positive that he didn’t see himselfwashing my hands and faceas anything other than he intended.
But, of course, what was that old saying . . . the road to Hell is paved with good intentions? If he thought he was doing me a favor, I wasn’t obligated to oblige him just because he wasmeaningto be nice. He creeped me out. That should be the end of it.
Finito. Done. Goodbye.
“So, why do I feel like I did the wrong thing, not him?” My grumble was loud on the otherwise deserted street, and I rolled my bottom lip between my teeth. I dealt with real creeps all the time, guys from the club that would follow me around and try to touch me when there were signs everywhere. Guys that tried to get me to blow them in the private booths. Guys that looked at me like it’d be fun to beat me up and rape me and then brag about it.
Theo didn’t seem like any of those guys. He just was really awkward and rough. There was a huge difference between being truly creepy and just not knowing the nuances of something. He’d just dragged me in and out of drug dens looking for Sylvie, and he realized how disgusting it was for me.
“Rationalizing creepy behavior is bad, and I’m going to Hell.” Clenching my hand, my intended fist only sent surprise rattling up my arm, and I tore my eyes off the pavement to pause. Theo’s phone sat in my hand, big, with a bulky case and a smooth, uncracked screen, and I pursed my lips thinly. Every time I thought he’d leave me alone, he had a reason to come back at me. “Maybe he’ll just get a new one, and I can pawn this one.”
