Breaking the Hold

The giant of a demon before me started to laugh, inaudibly at first then rising furiously into a crescendo of insanity that rose up and choked my whimpers until I was too horrified to breathe. I scrambled backwards as I fought to breathe, keeping one hand pressed tightly to my neck that was quickly becoming slick with blood.

The metallic tang made me dizzy as I fought to get to my feet. I heard footsteps coming quickly from the other hallway and, scared, I stumbled as fast as I could back to my room. It took me three tries to get the handle to open properly, my hand glossing over the brass knob and staining it a deep crimson. Panicking, I quickly tried to wipe it all away with my shirt so none of the nurses would notice and become nosy and concerned.
The door hit the wall causing the resulting bang to resonate throughout the room. Jimmy shot up in his bed and turned on the light.

“What the fuck dude?” he asked sleepily.

I whipped around and stared at him with wide eyes. I couldn’t let him see. He would ask questions and Brian would get involved. Feeling myself beginning to hyperventilate I darted through the nearest door, and locked myself in. The cold seeping into my legs from the bathroom tile made me start to feel numb as I fought to control my breathing. I was beginning to get lightheaded and dizzier than ever. Sudden pounding on the door caused me to jump out of my skin and look up making sure the door was locked.

“Zacky? Are you okay? What happened?” It was Jimmy, his pleading sounding concerned.

“Zacky! Zacky open this door and let me help you!” Brian’s voice chimed in through the wood of the door.

“G-go away!” I yelled feebly, moving away from the door.

“Zacky, please we just want to help.” Jimmy was trying to be calm and soothing but it made me become even more frantic. There was more pounding on the door and for a second I was afraid the door would come off the hinges.

“Zacky!” Brian snapped in a cold, hard voice. “Open this goddamn door right this fucking second or so help me I will kick the mother fucking door down and drag you out by your goddamn ass!”

Even through the door I could tell he was seething and it scared me. The demon man’s face flashed before my eyes. I whimpered and pressed myself as hard as I could into the wall under the sink. I wanted to disappear. I heard muffled arguing outside, every now and then hearing a distinct swear as Brian lost further control. After, there was a strange silence that hung just beyond me. Had Jimmy gone to get a nurse to break the door down? Did Brian give up and go to bed?

A strange scratching noise started up then causing me to look up from where I was curled into myself. The doorknob jiggled a few times before the door burst open with a bang like a firework and Brian stormed in, Jimmy getting up off his knees and following him. He flicked a piece of wire into the trash can and looked down at me.

His face looked hollow, dark circles rimming his eyes and his lips stained a dark cherry purple. Brian looked absolutely enraged. His face was tinged red and his brown eyes that were so kind looking just hours ago were lethal, sharp and unforgiving.

“Get off the goddamn floor.” He grit out through clenched teeth as soon as he saw me. I whimpered and backed myself further under the sink. I felt a tear trickle down my stinging cheeks.

“B-Brian, you’re scaring me.” I whispered, hugging my knees closer to my chest.

“Do I smell blood?” Jimmy wondered aloud, lifting his nose in the air for a minute before hurriedly crouching down. “Zacky, are you bleeding?” He looked me up and down, squinting his eyes against the dim light below the sink. His eyes stopped and immediately widened as he saw my hand stained and crusting with dried blood as I held it against my neck. Brian followed his gaze and recoiled slightly before booming,

“What the fuck happened?”

His tanned arm shot out like a viper striking and grabbed me roughly by the leg. Giving me a yank he pulled me, crying and terrified, from my hiding spot.

“What fucking happened?!” He screamed in my face.

“Brian! Back off!” Jimmy yelled, towering over the pair of us even though he was crouching. I curled my head between my knees and pressed my hands over my ears. Brian, it seemed, was hell bent on getting answers and came towards me again, but as soon I felt his hand on my shoulder again I heard a sickening crack and the hand was thrown off of me. I looked up to see Brian stumbling back into the shower door clutching his jaw. Jimmy was on his feet, shaking off his hand with already bruised knuckles. The look in Brian’s eyes was furious, set ablaze like a California wild fire. It was like the day we first met.

“Stop it, stop it, stop it...” I whispered out loud over and over burying my face back into my knees. A tattooed hand grabbed my bloodied hand and pulled.

“STOP IT!” I shrieked as soon as my hand came free. The air stung as it hit the open wound and I hissed.

Jimmy gasped, his mouth gaping and his eyes just as big. Slowly, his hand recoiled from my own and hung in the air while shock flooded into the small room.

“Zacky...” he started quietly, shocked. “Zacky…did…did he do this to you?” He finally asked gesturing weakly to the marks on my neck.

I hung my head and barely nodded, my cheeks flaming. There was no use in lying. I was weak, defenseless and ashamed. Why couldn’t I take care of myself?

“I’m going to fucking kill him.”

I heard the livid whisper leave Brian’s mouth and snapped my head up. His eyes were unfocused on the wall behind me, eerily serious and calculating without a trace of humanity behind them.

“W-what?” I squeaked out, not really believing him. As if he snapped out of a trance, Brian blinked and looked back at me, seeing me this time.

“I’m going to kill him.” He spit, seething and shaking with rage. “I swear to god I’m going to keep him away from you once and for all!” he yelled. I flinched.

“Stop it, Brian.” I said quietly. “That’s not going to solve anything.”

He didn’t say anything, but glared at me coldly and made his way to the door. Jimmy jumped up and grabbed his wrist, not letting him leave the confines of the bathroom.

“Brian, man. Just chill out, okay? You’re not thinking straight. Just go back to my bed and sit, okay? I’m going to bandage Zacky up and then we can all come out and talk.” Jimmy voice was careful and it was obvious he running everything through his head before he said them.

“There’s no time to talk.” Brian said gruffly, breaking Jimmy’s hold on his wrist with a snap. “It’s what he deserves.”

Jimmy took a step closer, and for the first time all night he looked as scared and helpless as I felt.

“Don’t make me do it, Brian.” He whispered. Brian hesitated then, looking at the door then back at me. He stared at my neck that had started to congeal before swallowing and staring back at Jimmy. He had made his decision.

It all happened so fast after that. Before Brian even put his hand on the door knob Jimmy had lunged towards the sink and pushed the panic button attached to the wall. Instantly a nurse shot into the room surrounded by a following of doctors and some security men.

“He’s going to kill someone.” Jimmy said quietly, his voice wavering and I saw a glimmer of a tear in his eye. The nurse nodded and instantly the team of buff security men had Brian in a headlock, restraining him as he fought tooth and nail to get them off. He was screaming profanities, kicking at them, lashing out, and even going so far as to bite one man in the arm. Looking at them, I felt like I had been stabbed in the heart and all the air rushed out of my lungs. The scene before me was too much to bear.

It was like watching someone desecrate a puppy, punishing it for fighting back when it was only doing so because it was scared. They were treating Brian like he was an animal, one that needed to be put down. I knew something within him had switched, but he was still a human. He was still significant to me.

“I’LL FUCKING KILL HIM!” Brian screamed, his voice echoing down the hall and causing the air in the bathroom to crackle. I shivered and began to silently cry. The nurse had stayed behind and was now crouched next to me, looking at me with kind, sympathetic eyes.

“Let’s get you to the infirmary, okay? To bandage you up?” I sniffled and nodded, standing up shakily. She held me by the crook of my elbow and guided me out of the room. I paused at the door when I felt Jimmy’s gentle hand on my shoulder.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered. I looked up to see his tired, defeated face. “It was the best for everyone.” I nodded.

“I know.” He dropped his hand and the nurse guided me away.