Kill Me With a Thorny Kiss

There wasn’t a single light on in my house and natural I took that as a good sign. I should have known that fate wouldn’t be this kind to me. So why on earth did I ever think that my presence would go unnoticed in that house? I honestly have no clue as I tipped-toed through the threshold. So far so good. “Hello?” I called tentatively, why did I have a pit in my stomach that something bad was about to happen?

“Rose? Is that you?” Oh, no wonder my stomach just dropped down to hell. My father was home, and that never was a good thing, but something was different today. Instead of him yelling and screaming at me, his voice sounded…almost far off? Like he wasn’t really in the kitchen which was visible from the front door where I stood. His voice was calm and quiet; it was as though he measured each word carefully before speaking it, even if the out come was just two questions.

“Er, hey, Dad, yeah it’s me. How are you today?” My instincts were telling me to run, run anywhere but not to stay here. I wish I could listen. I really want to because that pit in my stomach just keeps getting worse and worse, but I don’t dare leave without this man’s permission. It’s at times like these when I can’t help but think that secretly I might just be a masochist after all.

Dad was suddenly in front of me. His honey blond hair pulled back from his golden brown eyes. The collar of his formal button up shirt is left up-turned instead of neatly pulled down. His eyes are slightly cloudy but it was like he could see me perfectly; the way his eyes ate up my body. There really was no warning to it at all, but within seconds there was the sickening sound of flesh on flesh and my mind alerted me to my stinging check.

“Where the hell have you been, you little bitch?!” Dad screeched at me, and I flinched; my thawing hand felt extra cold on my check that was no longer red from the cold. It was only 12:30; school wouldn’t get out for another seventy five minutes.

“I-I was at school, Dad.” I whispered. It wasn’t a lie. I had been at school, and I just left early. He clearly hadn’t bought it because he dragged me be a fistful of pale blonde hair up the stairs and into his bedroom before throwing me down to the ground.

“You’re a liar. The school called me and said that went missing after homeroom. So where the hell were you?” he began kicking at me, and soon his hands were thrown into the mix.

I screamed, but it was silent. I had no voice when it came to punishments for my existent like this. If I did make a sound it would only be worse for me. After all it wasn’t like there was anyone around who could hear me even if I scream so it would be pointless. I only tried to cover my face with my arms and cry silently as I felt my body break under the abuse.

And just as it had started it had stopped. I dared to peek through my now slightly bloody fingers. I heard a click as the in-suit bathroom door was opened. Now was my chance, if I could get out now I could go to some safe place like a café and wait till sunset then go to the cemetery. I urged myself up, but my body felt so heavy it was amazing in my mind that I could get up onto my knees. Dragging myself to the door of freedom from the middle of this hellish room.

I didn’t get very far. “Now, now Rose. Did I give you permission to leave yet?” My horror filled grey eyes met the brown of my father’s. His hand ever so efficiently locking the door, he now stood in front of; blocking it from my path. “You know, a disobedient child must be punished by their parents. Wouldn’t you agree?” He cooed to me cruelly, undoing his belt buckle.

When I regained consciousness it wasn’t hard to tell what happened. My broken body said all that needed to be said. Dry blood lingered on my checks from cuts made by his buckle as well as on my uncovered arms. I did briefly remember my mother coming home. She barged in took one look at me and then began arguing with father. I can’t really recalled what was said but then she came over kicked me a few times until I stood up from where I had been lying on the floor waiting for my punishment to be over with. When I had raised myself from the ground enough to satisfy her; she striped me of my clothes, kicked me with her eight inch heels a few times more before leaving again.

Now here I am broken and bloody. Dad’s asleep on his bed and I’m still on the cold wood floor. I struggle to get up, but my body feels too heavy. I look down at my feet as though I expect to see small boulders tied to my feet to keep me from moving. The only thing I see is my own pale toes. I finally manage to crawl into the hallway, my entire body aches. I just want to curl up into a ball and never move again. I just want to sleep….but I can’t I need to be somewhere. Where though? I flip through my scattered memories but I can’t remember. I needed to meet someone. Who? Everything felt surreal. Why did I feel so broken? This abuse was nothing new to me.

Somehow I had made it up to my room and managed to garb myself into clothes, hissing in pain when cloth touched my cuts. What did I do this time? I don’t remember but it must have been really bad if I got punished this much.

After I had finished the painstaking task of dressing in the cleanish pair of black jeans and the black spaghetti strap shirt I found in an old wooden chair. I felt the need to go outside. I don’t know why but I needed to leave this place. I had to go somewhere important.

I manage to stumble down the two flights of stairs without making to much noise. Each step I take brings me closer to the outside world and for some reason that makes me feel better. Like I’m getting closer to what I need. I wish I could remember it. I opened our front door looking at the moon that was just about visible over the horizon a few stars were streaming after it. The sun was still visible though, just a tiny, fiery dot, but still there.

I keep trying to remember each time getting a little flash of memory. I was going to see Sarah’s grave again. I promised I would meet someone there. She had red hair…it was long. There was something about the sunset, but that’s all I remember.

It hurts to walk, and I feel like I’m in a daze, just wondering around with no where to go. Yet I know I need to get to the cemetery. The desire and need to go there is to much I feel like I should be running there but my legs can’t carry me that far or fast. I have to settle for this lopsided hobble.

Something catches my eye. In the corner of my eye is a single, peach color rose, tossed on the cold asphalt ground like a rag-doll; some of its petals were wilting. Naturally I reached out and picked the dying flower up gently. “Ah…!” A thin gasp crawled past my lips as the thorns bite into my pale skin. I could only stare at the rose in my hand stupidly, thick, red, liquid spots began to appear every place that there was a thorn on the green steam. Even though I barely touched the rose its thorns sought to rip through my skin and to touch my blood.

“Oh, shit,” I breathed as memories flooded into me. I had to see Melody, she promised to meet me by the grave at sunset. Would it still be considered sunset? Would Melody leave, thinking I wouldn’t come? No, surely she knows how bad I wanted to come.

I force my legs into a run, never letting go of the rose once, in fact, I actually tighten my grip, choking the thorns with me hand. My burning legs screamed as I kept pushing on and on. The wind brushing back my hair as it came into my eyes. My grey orbs were watering up; if it was from the pain or the wind I couldn’t tell. My lungs burn with the need for air and my muscles burned, but I couldn’t stop now. I was so close to the cemetery.

I have no clue how I am going to jump the wall with my body in this bad of condition. Maybe I could just use the front gate like a normal person…? It could work if the gate was ever opened for people to use. I decided that I might as well see if I can try to scramble over the wall. I think I could be desperate enough to try and build something like a staircase just to get over that wall if I had to. The old brick wall wasn’t that big actually, it only roughly came up to just short of my chest, and I was just three inches short of six feet tall.

“Melody!” I breathed a short raspy sigh of relief, my eyes closing, so she didn’t leave, thank God. I had reached the wall and could see from where I stood just a thin sliver of an outline among the graves. There was no doubt in my mind who it was. Who else was there? No one ever comes here not during the day, and sure as heck no one ever comes at night.

“Good God! What happened to you Rose? You’re late but besides that you look like you’ve been run over by a truck! Is that blood I see on you?” My grey orbs flew open, how did she get here so fast? I thought Melody was way over there by the markers and now here she is right in front of me with an eroded brick wall between us. I automatically took two steps back nearly tripping on my own feet in the process.

“Err, nothing happened to me. Why do you ask?” I can’t keep her gaze. I think if I look her in the eye everything will come tumbling out without me giving it a second thought. To keep myself from saying the dark secrets that took place in my own home I tighten my hand around the peach colored rose in my hand. Looking for a comfort that hardly existed except for when there was a rose in my hand.

Melody’s only response was jumping over the wall herself she looked even more graceful than when I do it. Her slender body moving through the air silently with a grace that was, dare I say it? Inhuman. Her landing just as noiseless.

“Well, you’re here now and that should be all that matters right now.” She says, but I can tell she’s upset that it’s basically dark and I am only now just showing up now, but I can’t tell her why I am late. Thankfully Melody seems to understand that and doesn’t bring it up. She begins to march away her gait purposeful and strong. I could only stare after her for what felt like was a life-time. It was as though I was under her spell and I couldn’t say anything or do anything, I could just watch her. Watch as she turns with the same grace that she had when she went over the wall. Watch as her fiery hair came alive when a freezing when blew towards us. It was enchanting…

“Rose! Are you coming or not?” and just like that. The spell had been broken. I found that I could move again and talk again. It was as though nothing had happened. Melody was already halfway to a flashy, yellow, convertible I had not notice before.

“Coming, Melody,” I could hardly hobble after her; I was just to tired. It had taken all of my energy just to run here. Apparently Melody must have been more in a hurry than I first thought because she pretty much jogged, at least I think it could be called jogging, it was pretty hard to tell with her blood red dress on, over to where I was.

“Here, sweetie, let me help.” Melody didn’t even give me the chance to refuse her help. She stiffened a little bit when she saw just how deep some of my wounds were, but I pretended not to notice. I don’t even think seeing my own blood or bone bothered me anymore, but I guess from Melody’s viewpoint it would seem pretty bad, if not gross.

She slid me into the passenger’s seat before moving to take the driver’s seat. I sank into the comfy seat gratefully; I don’t think I have ever been so thankful for a seat before. I just wanted to sleep now more than anything in the world at that moment, but sadly I just can’t get what I want, can I?

“Rose, face me.” Melody ordered me firmly, but gently taking my downcast chin in her hand and forcing me to look at her. She made a ‘Tsk, tsk’ sound in the back of her throat and in that moment I felt like a mere animal being shown and judged. “I am not going to ask what happened since you obviously don’t want to talk about it, but you aren’t going to Peccatores Volunt looking like that.”

Peccatores Volunt, the way she says it…are there any words to describe it? All thoughts empty from my head as I felt Melody’s hands gently trail over some of the cuts on my hands. A fuzzy, warm feeling drizzled from those cuts soaking me in an unfamiliar, but fully welcomed way. Her small hands moved up towards my arms and the warmth followed tingling through out my whole body. I could feel myself sink into a complete bliss of safety. I had never felt this before and I was slightly afraid of losing this, this strange sense of safety. “Melody…” I whispered, her gaze which had been on her work suddenly switch to look me in the eye. Her eyes…they’re yellow ! How could I have not notice that earlier?! Her entire body now seemed to emanate an unearthly glow; her aura is so different now too…

A whimper escaped my lips when she touched my face. This time instead of the warmth I had been expecting when she touch the wounds there was ice. The ice ate my whole being. Starting with the warmth and continue with sliding down my back bone eating any fire it could find. This ice… It was eating me alive! I can’t breathe, I can’t move, I don’t even know if I can think straight.

And just as it appeared when Melody touched me it disappeared when she removed her hands. Her abnormal yellow eyes never leaving my grey ones. The only emotion in her eyes is one I can’t even begin to fathomed. She took a deep breath, looked downwards at her hands which were now in her lap, and seemed to be having a conversation in her head before she turned and faced the wheel of the car. I then examined my body where Melody had touched me. It was all healed. Everything, no blood, no scab, no scar, there was nothing. My skin was as pale and unmarked as the day I was born. Back to how it was before the years of abuse…

“You’re not human. I don’t know what you are, but you are not human that’s for sure.” I whispered in the midnight silence of the car. Even my low voice sounded too loud at that moment. My eyes were trained on Melody watching for her reaction at my statement. The accused woman didn’t say anything for the longest time, but her hands did tighten on the steering wheel.

“You’re right. I am not human.” She final says, her voice is just as quiet as mine, but it doesn‘t seem to disturbed the silence in the same way. Her yellow orbs never leaving the road as she drives through the darkening world.

“Are you going to tell me what you are? Did Sarah know that when she met you?” Questions bubbled into the open air before I could stop and think about what I was going to say. When I finally managed to shut my mouth, I glanced at Melody but she didn’t seem offended by my questions to my relief.

Again Melody didn’t answer; the road taking up more and more of her interest. “Yes, Sarah did know that I was not, and still am,” she says giving me a small glance that would have been miss had I blinked. “far from a human being. I’m an angel, a fallen angel, to be said more correctly.”

I didn’t say anything, just letting it all sink in. Could Melody really be an angel? Well, why not? She wouldn’t gain anything from lying to me. And I saw for myself that she isn’t human. So then the people at Peccatores Volunt aren’t human either then. Are they fallen angels like Melody? Only one way to find out…

“So, then, the people at Peccatores Volunt… they’re fallen angels too…?” My latest question hung in the air for a mere heartbeat before Melody started to laugh.

“No, they aren’t fallen angels, or even angels for-a-matter-of-fact.” she giggled

“Then wha-” I tried to ask.

Melody smiled, really, fully smiled her pearly whites showing and all. “They’re demons, sweetie. You are going to get your wish granted by a demon.”