The Lunacy Fringe

I was sitting outside working on a school project when Quinn found me. I had a large canvas set out on the grass. My hair was pulled back, and I already had paint all over my hands. Mrs. Black said I could work outside because I needed more room. And even though I would never dare call myself an artist, I was really feeling it.

"Whatcha doing?" I heard him ask. I glanced back at where he was twirling a hall pass and watching me paint.

"Project for art class," I explained.

"Mrs. Black sent you outside to do it?"

"I asked her if I could come out here so I had more room to move around because I was upsetting my table mates. She seemed to think that was very artistic of me."

"It's looking really cool."

"Thanks."

"I miss having that class with you."

"Well, I don't. All of my projects last year had dicks on them." He snickered.

"Good times."

"What are you doing out here?" He held up the hall pass.

"I was bored."

"I see." Instead of going back inside, he plopped down on the grass beside me to watch me work.

"So you and Felix, huh?" he asked. I smiled and went back to the painting. I was trying to enlarge a photo from a magazine. But I'd picked a forest scene, which was more tedious than I thought it would be.

"I guess so, yeah."

"How's that going for you guys?"

"What are you trying to get at, Quinn?"

"Just that you were a pretty big bummer for a couple months there. I want to make sure you're happy."

"Aw. I think? And I am. I promise. Things are different this time."

"He treats you good, right?"

"Like gold."

"Good. He better. Or I'd have to kill him. And that would be a Shakespeare level of dramatic."

"He knows this."

"He's smarter than I thought." I laughed.

"I guess so."

"So—since I have you here alone, I kind of wanted to talk to you about something. I can never really get the chance, and I didn't want to talk on the phone because it's lame. You're my sister, and I shouldn't have to schedule phone calls with you." My heart jumped. If Billie spilled—I'd have to kill her.

"What's up?"

"I know you're not like—a member of our band or anything. But since things are going well between you and Felix again—I was kind of wondering if you wanted to be our unofficial backup guitarist."

"What the heck does that mean?"

"It's complicated. It's not like we want to kick Jack out or anything. He kind of has seniority, you know? But I'm not gonna lie. He's kind of a pain in the ass sometimes. He's literally always in trouble. And we get booked for gigs and then have to cancel at the last minute because he mouthed off and got grounded. Or he can't record because his mom didn't approve of our lyrics or something. And recording last summer was fun, but she was up our asses constantly. And when she was cooperating, he wasn't. I just mean it wouldn't hurt to have someone who can fill in so we don't have to miss out on gigs. Pretty sure Dad can't always get his deposits back when we have to cancel last minute."

"And how does Jack feel about that?"

"I haven't talked to him about it yet. He's kind of sensitive. I'm worried he'll think we're trying to replace him."

"Well—I don't know. I don't feel comfortable with that. You know I love playing with you guys, and I'm always down to jump in for practices or jam sessions. But I don't want to step on his toes. I already think he doesn't like me just because I CAN play his parts."

"He literally calls you 'Hot Ruby' like five times a day. Or at least he used to until Felix popped him in the mouth one time." I glanced at him.

"What?" He laughed.

"It was hilarious. You guys weren't even together then." I shook my head and went back to work.

"I'll think about it."

"That's fine. It's a start. And really, it's only until graduation, anyway. Hopefully, after that, he'll be out of her house, and she won't be able to control him anymore."

"Right."

"But I mean—it never hurts to have a backup anyway. Like, even if Felix has to call out, you know? It'll be nice to have someone to fall back on. Hell, you could even sing for me if you wanted."

"I'm not good at it."

"That's absolute bullshit. I've heard you singing along to Queen in the car at the top of your lungs, and you reach notes I couldn't dream of hitting."

"Yeah—well…."

"Just something to think about. I should get back to class."

"Alright. Bye." He ruffled up my hair and headed back inside.

I played around with the canvas a few times before looking down at my watch for the time. It was probably best to go back before the bell rang. So I gathered up my supplies and headed back inside. I had just turned the corner to my class when I bumped into someone. I barely noticed her before she ripped the canvas from my hands. The tin of brushes and paints went crashing to the floor, sending several primary colors splattering all over my jeans.

"What the hell?!" I shouted.

"You bitch!" the girl shouted back. And then I realized who it was. Candy. Oh great.

"What the fuck is your problem?" The bell rang as we faced off. I wanted to pick up my stuff and get the hell out of there, but I didn't want to turn my back on her. "You can't just run up and take things from people! Who even does that?"

"You did! You took him from me!"

"Who? Felix? You didn't even want him in the first place! And besides, I was only taking him back."

"I did want him, you stupid bitch!"

People were already spilling into the halls and surrounding us as they anticipated a fight. But I wasn't a fighter. She'd probably beat my ass, and then I'd have to deal with that for the rest of the year. Thankfully, Felix said he'd meet me, so I had to hope he was already on his way. His class wasn't that far, but I didn't know if he'd get caught up in something.

"I overheard you talking about him in the bathroom, you moron! You said you only wanted to screw him!"

She let out some horrible screeching sound and made a move. I jumped back and threw my hands up to defend myself. I'd expected a punch and maybe some hair pulls, but she'd lifted her hands like claws. Her nails dug into my face anyway. I tried to jerk away, but she caught a handful of hair.

"Get off of me!" I yelled, trying to push her back. She wasn't relenting, so I did the only thing I could think of and shoved my arm against her face to push her off.

Then there was a very sudden, intense, agonizing burst of pain in my arm. And this time, I was the one who shrieked. Someone yanked me back by my shoulders. Her teeth were dug deep into my skin enough to rip.

"What the fuck?!" I screamed as Felix guided me away from her.

"What the hell is your problem, Candice?" Felix shouted, shoving me behind him.

"She bit me! She fucking bit me!" I held my hand over the wound, but it was very clearly a wound. Like she had vampire teeth.

"How could you leave me for that bitch?" she yelled, pointing at me like I was some garbage he'd picked up on the street.

"What did I tell you? Stay the fuck out of my life! And don't come near me or Ruby again, got it?"

"You told me you didn't even like her anymore!"

"I was lying! But it wasn't her fault!"

"She bit me," I repeated, still in shock. He finally heard me and turned around to take my arm and drag me off. I didn't even get my art supplies. He kept his hand around my arm, and I held my hand around my bite wound. "What the hell, Felix? She bit me!"

"I know. Come on," he said, staring ahead.

"Where are you taking me?"

"The nurse. They'll probably have to call your dad to take you to a hospital."

"You really think it's that bad?" He gave my arm a pointed look.

"You're bleeding. So I'm going to assume it's not good."

"Why the fuck did she bite me?"

"Because she's psychotic? I don't know."

"I gathered that. I just don't understand why she snapped. She told her friends she didn't even care about you." He shrugged.

"I can't really say. Just that she definitely wasn't happy when I broke up with her."

"Did you guys talk about it after?"

"She's called once or twice."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"What would I say?"

"I don't know. A warning would have been nice."

"Trust me, I didn't think she'd come after you. She made it seem like she wanted to murder me. Not you."

We continued down the hall, weaving through students until we came across Billie and Quinn. Both of their eyes went wide at the sight of us. My face was scratched, my hair had been partially yanked out of its already messy bun, and I was cradling my arm.

"What the fuck?" Quinn asked, immediately switching into defensive brother mode.

"She bit me. She fucking bit me!" He looked at Felix for an answer.

"Candice."

"She—I'm sorry—she what?"

"I'm taking her to the nurse before she—I don't know—bleeds to death or something." Quinn took me by the other shoulder, and they led me to the office like a pair of bodyguards. Billie followed along behind us, clutching her books to her chest as she shuffled along on her short legs.

"She bit her?" she asked as if this was the most absurd thing she'd ever heard. It definitely was. "How did she make it bleed? Does she have fangs?"

"Is it really bleeding?" I asked, too afraid to look at it.

"She might as well have," Felix replied, ignoring the rise of panic in my voice. They led me into the office, and the secretary jumped out of her seat.

"Oh my goodness! What happened?"

"Another girl attacked her. Bit her," Quinn explained.

"Good heavens. Come inside." She ushered us into the adjacent nurse's office, where I was shoved down onto the bench. The nurse jumped into action and handed me a towel.

"Here, hold it tightly," she instructed. I pressed it to the wound and hissed, and bit my lip. The pain wasn't sharp, but deep into my muscles like a painful bruise turned up to eleven.

"Oh, God, it really hurts," I said.

"What happened?"

"Some stupid—Cookie or whatever her name is."

"Candy," Billie supplied.

"She attacked me in the hallway. I was on my way back to my art class, and she went nuts on me. She bit me."

"She bit you?" She turned to the three of them in disbelief. "She bit her? Were you there?"

"I was," Felix told her. "Candice went for her face, and Ruby tried to push her off. That's when she bit her."

"We just got a call about the fight a moment before you came in," the secretary said. "The principal just left to check it out."

"Goodness, let me see it." The nurse sat down beside me and pulled the towel off my arm. It wasn't bleeding as bad as I thought it was, but there was no mistaking the shape of teeth on my arm. It was already bruising. She wrapped it back up again. "Why did she attack you?"

"Um…." I glanced at Felix, and he cleared his throat.

"She used to be my girlfriend," he said. She looked back at me.

"And now you are?" she asked. I nodded. "I see. Well, let me call your parents, okay?" She went to the phone on her cluttered desk beneath the window.

"Do you really think that's necessary?" I asked.

"They'll probably want to take you to a hospital. They might have to stitch you up."

"For someone who watches a lot of crime shows, you sure don't know what to do in an emergency situation," Quinn said. He clearly thought this was amusing.

"She bit me," I repeated.

"I think she's still in shock," Felix remarked.

"She bit her," Billie pointed out.

"Billie too."