I'm alive.
Where am I?
It's cold. So, so cold. Every exhale I give in to stings my lips. My teeth should be chattering, but I can't open my jaw.
It's so dark. I can't see anything until I look straight down, where I can only find my pale, lifeless torso—yet I'm upright, and I can feel my heart beating more than I ever have.
It beats... And it won't stop beating.
It beats forward.
I heave myself through the black cold and follow where it brings me.
It's... Getting warm.
Hope is enveloping me.
I move with a slight energy now, improving my stance and dreaming of the outside.
It's almost comfortably warm.
My mind wanders. Why is it getting so hot?
A sudden presence halts me right where I am.
Arms. Arms protruding from the dark, offering to hold me.
I hesitantly give in. Stumbling forward, I fall toward the bright, warm hands.
They're silken and homely. I feel saved from the piercing breeze.
Not yet saved from the dark...
...And as I open my mouth to thank, I see her face.
Her wide, sharp grin stretches from one ear to the other, and her beady, brown pupils stare through and into my heart.
The relief in my body swiftly melts into a paralyzing fear.
No.
Help me.
Help me!
Lizz's heart races as she attempts to shake him out of his sleep.
"Damnit, Chris, wake up!"
"HELP ME!!"
The room falls silent, and the two people in the room are at a standstill. Throughout the silence, she slowly loosens her grip on Chris's forearms. "I'm... Sorry. Did I shake you too hard?"
Chris pants harsh and rapidly. Looking up and around, he finds the warm, brown living room and himself on the wine-red, cottony couch with a red-haired Lizz kneeling to the side of him. When the silence starts to include the lack of panting, he takes a deep breath and, with a groan, opens his mouth to speak. "No. No, you're fine. I just..."
"Were you having another nightmare about her again?"
"Her?"
"Brittany."
Chris lets out a deep sigh. "Brittany... Yeah. I was."
Lizz follows suit with another sigh. "Chris, I've been meaning to talk to you about her."
"Did you kill her?"
Lizz chuckles. "No, no. I haven't killed her."
Chris whispers a 'damnit' and lightly slams his fist against the couch.
"...But I think I know what's troubling you two."
Chris opens his eyes a bit. "I know what's troubling us. She's an asshole."
"No, Chris. I know why she's an asshole."
"She finds it fun."
Lizz presses her finger against Chris's lips. "There's more to it than that. I know it seems like she does this for her own enjoyment, but..."