Page 12 of Creatures Like Us

A flush creeps up my neck. “No. I told you, I just—”

“Want me to get clean? Yeah, not gonna happen.”

“Not if I let you go, it won’t,” I argue. A pretty good point, if I do say so myself.

“This isn’t right, you know,” Asher mutters, staring up at the ceiling.

I tilt my head to the side. “It’s illegal, you mean?” Asher doesn’t strike me as someone who cares that much about the law.

“It’s illegal, yeah, but it’s immoral too.”

“Wouldn’t it be more immoral to let you go and let you destroy your life? You’ll end up like I found you, and next time, I won’t be there to save you.”

A darkness like storm clouds descends upon his face. He looks so angry. I don’t want him to be angry with me; I want him to like me. How can I make him understand the quiet desperation in my heart?

Don’t you get it, Goldilocks? Without you, I have nothing. Without you, I’ll give up, just like I was about to give up the night I found you?…?You’re the sign from the universe that I should remain here, that I should keep fighting. You’re my only reason to cling to life.

I could tell him all this outright, but from my experience, although limited, oversharing my thoughts doesn’t usuallyimprove people’s opinion of me. Maybe later on, when my Goldilocks has calmed down, I’ll tell him. He doesn’t seem susceptible to my arguments right now, anyway, no matter how true they are.

“How am I going to piss and shit, huh?” he asks with a sharp glare.

“I’ll bring a bucket.”

“Nice,” he scoffs, pulling his knees up to his chest. “People will start wondering where I am, you know.”

I fish his phone out of my pocket. “No, they won’t.”

“Hey! That’s mine!” He jumps from the bed, lunging at me, but the chain prevents him from reaching all the way. Good. I’d rather avoid using violence, but if I have to, I will.

“I unlocked it while you were passed out. With your fingerprint.”

“Fuck, you’re a creep,” he snaps, but the next moment, he pouts and asks, “Did Lilith text me?”

I nod.

“What did she say?”

I squint at the screen. “‘Where the hell did you go?’”

“That’s it? What did you reply?”

“‘It’s over. Don’t contact me.’”

“What the fuck, dude.” He settles down on the bed again and pulls his knees up.

“You don’t seem that upset.”

“Well, it was kind of over between us anyway. She cheated on me.”

“I figured. She wouldn’t have left you alone like that if she still cared about you.”

Asher buries his face in his knees, refusing to look at me.

“Are you cold?” I ask. This basement isn’t insulated properly, so the cold is always a problem in wintertime.

“No,” Asher says, voice muffled by his knees. “Fuck off.”

My Adam’s apple clicks audibly as I swallow.