Status: Slow updates but still going
Soft Soul
Demon
Sam began to stay at the Washington household more than her own. Her house made her feel lost and out of control and a week after her rekindling with Josh a call from the local hospital had him running to her side. She’d overdosed on her medication and pain killers and wanted no one but him near her. Her family were constantly asking her about what happened, always bringing up the memories she didn’t want to think of and belittling her illness, telling her she was just using it for attention.
When Josh made it to her bedside in her ward she burst into tears and sobbing that she was so sorry. She hadn’t meant to hurt him, she hadn’t meant to do it, but she kept hearing the screams of the wendigoes and the image of Hannah’s mutated figure. With all that clouding her mind all she wanted to do was to end it all, Josh was a fleeting thought, and she couldn’t apologise enough for causing him so much pain when he was going through more horrors than she could ever imagine.
He stayed by her side for two days in the hospital and then another two weeks in the rehabilitation centre before they deemed her no longer a suicide risk and could go back into the world. Josh had already taken all of stuff to his house, an invitation of safety that Sam desperately needed. They were safe in this house, no one could hurt them when they were together.
“The first trailer for Wendigo came out.” Sam murmured, looking up from her laptop at Josh who was reading on his bed.
Josh grimaced and walked over to the desk where she sat. He wrapped an arm loosely around her shoulder as she clicked play on the video.
It was a short clip, only forty seconds long, but it was filled with the darks of the mines and random flashes of fire and screams. There wasn’t much of the characters in it, only Cara Delevingne and Alex Pettyfer who would be playing the now famous couple that was Jess and Mike; but then the end shot came.
Sam gasped as she saw it, reaching up and grasping Josh’s hand as she heard a small sound escape his throat. The picture was a medical picture from when Josh was first recovered from the mines. His eyes burned deep into the camera and his face was covered with blood and dirt. His cheeks were hollow from the starvation and there was the sharp teeth causing his mouth to bleed as they began to grow through his gums. It was demonic, terrifying, and barely looked like the handsome boy that Josh had once been.
“Josh,” Sam whispered as she felt his hand leave hers and he slumped to the floor and began to shake. “Josh, I’m here, it’ll be okay.”
“How?” Josh wept, his voice breaking as he spoke.
“I don’t know.” Sam replied as she crouched down next to him and softly brushed her fingers along his cheeks to wipe away the river of tears.
She comforted him as he cried and shook. How could his own father betray him in such a way? He took his pictures and exploited his trauma to make more money. It was sick, twisted, and Sam finally understood why Josh had reached out to all his old friends again. His parents didn’t care for him, the effort they put into making him well again was nothing more than a front for him to be ‘healthy’ enough for them to make more money. Josh had no one but the ones he turned against him, and only Sam was the one with enough heart to forgive him. How she had turned to loving him, Josh didn’t know, but all he knew was he needed her more than he ever could have imagined.
“I don’t even remember them taking that photo.” Josh whimpered, his voice barely audible from the tight ball he had curled into on the floor.
“It wasn’t you.” Sam replied softly, “It was the demon inside you, you know that Josh.”
He slowly uncurled himself and crawled towards the bed. He pulled the blanket off it and wrapped it around his suddenly pale body. He felt sick. He wanted to stop existing but as Sam crouched in front of him and pressed her soft lips against his forehead he knew he had a purpose to stay.
He grabbed her waist and pulled her towards him, holding her slender body tight as he shivered and let himself cry.
“How can we live when they do this to us?” He eventually chocked out.
He looked up into Sam’s saddened eyes, seeing how much this hurt her as well as him. His eyes were bloodshot and his face wet as Sam let her tears drip from her eyes.
“Because we have each other.” She replied as she held him tight.
They woke the next morning curled on the floor of Josh’s bedroom. Sometime during the night the pillows had been pulled to the floor too and they had fallen to sleep holding each other whilst the tears ran freely. Sam’s throat felt dry, and she quickly got a glass of water for herself and Josh as she knew he would feel as bad. His eyes were still red when she roused him and the skin around his eyes was puffy and dark, a contrast to his unusually pale complex and hollow cheeks.
“Here,” Sam said as she handed him the drink.
He took it, drinking enough but leaving some for Sam who quickly finished the remaining liquid.
“How are you feeling?” She asked as she refilled the cup in his en suite bathroom and took their pills from the medicine cabinet.
He quickly took the small handful of tablets, handing Sam the water so she could do the same. “I’m good, surprisingly.”
Sam grinned as he said this, he hadn’t replied with that since before his sisters’ disappearance. “What changed so suddenly?”
Josh stood, wrapped his hands around her wrists and led her towards his bed. They slumped onto it, Sam falling back lazily as she always did and dragged the smiling boy down with her.
“I have you now.” Josh replied, leaning towards the blonde and kissing her deeply. It had been almost a month since their first kiss and since then it had been nothing more than delicate kisses and hugs that felt like they lasted for centuries. This was the first time there had been a fire in their romance, and it was quickly causing Sam’s head to buzz.
Josh slipped his tongue along Sam’s bottom lip and she gasped slightly, and the kissing became more passionate and breathy. Josh nipped at Sam’s lips playfully, giggling lightly as she pulled him on top of her. One hand went to her hair and the other to her hip as he began trailing kisses down her neck, occasionally mouthing and biting at the pale skin.
“Josh,” She moaned as his hand tangled in her hair and pulled it gently. She pushed up against him, causing Josh’s brain to bleep dead for a moment before erupting into a light show like he’d never experienced before.
Sam wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him even closer to her and slowly grinding against him. She reached to him and began pulling his shirt up but Josh suddenly jumped back, pulling his shirt back down and hiding his body from view.
“I’m so sorry, Josh. I didn’t mean to push you too far.” Sam quickly said, pulling her knees up to her chin and looking at the quilt rather than at Josh’s face.
“No, I started this.” He replied, running his hands through his hair and tugging at the strands. The little bit of pain that came from it was enough to pull him back to reality and stop him from spiralling down. It was the control he needed to move back towards Sam and stroke her blonde hair to comfort her.
“I’m sorry I freaked out, I just don’t know how you’d react to…” he drew off and began playing with the edge of his shirt.
Sam looked at him sympathetically, reaching up and gently turning his head to face her. “Whatever is wrong, I will be here for you. Take your time. We’re not like any other couple and we both know that it’ll take time to be at that level of intimacy.”
Josh sighed in relief and rested his head against his girlfriend’s shoulder. “Thank you.”
“Don’t worry about it,” She replied with a smile in her voice, “Let’s go have breakfast, okay?”
“Okay.”
When Josh made it to her bedside in her ward she burst into tears and sobbing that she was so sorry. She hadn’t meant to hurt him, she hadn’t meant to do it, but she kept hearing the screams of the wendigoes and the image of Hannah’s mutated figure. With all that clouding her mind all she wanted to do was to end it all, Josh was a fleeting thought, and she couldn’t apologise enough for causing him so much pain when he was going through more horrors than she could ever imagine.
He stayed by her side for two days in the hospital and then another two weeks in the rehabilitation centre before they deemed her no longer a suicide risk and could go back into the world. Josh had already taken all of stuff to his house, an invitation of safety that Sam desperately needed. They were safe in this house, no one could hurt them when they were together.
“The first trailer for Wendigo came out.” Sam murmured, looking up from her laptop at Josh who was reading on his bed.
Josh grimaced and walked over to the desk where she sat. He wrapped an arm loosely around her shoulder as she clicked play on the video.
It was a short clip, only forty seconds long, but it was filled with the darks of the mines and random flashes of fire and screams. There wasn’t much of the characters in it, only Cara Delevingne and Alex Pettyfer who would be playing the now famous couple that was Jess and Mike; but then the end shot came.
Sam gasped as she saw it, reaching up and grasping Josh’s hand as she heard a small sound escape his throat. The picture was a medical picture from when Josh was first recovered from the mines. His eyes burned deep into the camera and his face was covered with blood and dirt. His cheeks were hollow from the starvation and there was the sharp teeth causing his mouth to bleed as they began to grow through his gums. It was demonic, terrifying, and barely looked like the handsome boy that Josh had once been.
“Josh,” Sam whispered as she felt his hand leave hers and he slumped to the floor and began to shake. “Josh, I’m here, it’ll be okay.”
“How?” Josh wept, his voice breaking as he spoke.
“I don’t know.” Sam replied as she crouched down next to him and softly brushed her fingers along his cheeks to wipe away the river of tears.
She comforted him as he cried and shook. How could his own father betray him in such a way? He took his pictures and exploited his trauma to make more money. It was sick, twisted, and Sam finally understood why Josh had reached out to all his old friends again. His parents didn’t care for him, the effort they put into making him well again was nothing more than a front for him to be ‘healthy’ enough for them to make more money. Josh had no one but the ones he turned against him, and only Sam was the one with enough heart to forgive him. How she had turned to loving him, Josh didn’t know, but all he knew was he needed her more than he ever could have imagined.
“I don’t even remember them taking that photo.” Josh whimpered, his voice barely audible from the tight ball he had curled into on the floor.
“It wasn’t you.” Sam replied softly, “It was the demon inside you, you know that Josh.”
He slowly uncurled himself and crawled towards the bed. He pulled the blanket off it and wrapped it around his suddenly pale body. He felt sick. He wanted to stop existing but as Sam crouched in front of him and pressed her soft lips against his forehead he knew he had a purpose to stay.
He grabbed her waist and pulled her towards him, holding her slender body tight as he shivered and let himself cry.
“How can we live when they do this to us?” He eventually chocked out.
He looked up into Sam’s saddened eyes, seeing how much this hurt her as well as him. His eyes were bloodshot and his face wet as Sam let her tears drip from her eyes.
“Because we have each other.” She replied as she held him tight.
They woke the next morning curled on the floor of Josh’s bedroom. Sometime during the night the pillows had been pulled to the floor too and they had fallen to sleep holding each other whilst the tears ran freely. Sam’s throat felt dry, and she quickly got a glass of water for herself and Josh as she knew he would feel as bad. His eyes were still red when she roused him and the skin around his eyes was puffy and dark, a contrast to his unusually pale complex and hollow cheeks.
“Here,” Sam said as she handed him the drink.
He took it, drinking enough but leaving some for Sam who quickly finished the remaining liquid.
“How are you feeling?” She asked as she refilled the cup in his en suite bathroom and took their pills from the medicine cabinet.
He quickly took the small handful of tablets, handing Sam the water so she could do the same. “I’m good, surprisingly.”
Sam grinned as he said this, he hadn’t replied with that since before his sisters’ disappearance. “What changed so suddenly?”
Josh stood, wrapped his hands around her wrists and led her towards his bed. They slumped onto it, Sam falling back lazily as she always did and dragged the smiling boy down with her.
“I have you now.” Josh replied, leaning towards the blonde and kissing her deeply. It had been almost a month since their first kiss and since then it had been nothing more than delicate kisses and hugs that felt like they lasted for centuries. This was the first time there had been a fire in their romance, and it was quickly causing Sam’s head to buzz.
Josh slipped his tongue along Sam’s bottom lip and she gasped slightly, and the kissing became more passionate and breathy. Josh nipped at Sam’s lips playfully, giggling lightly as she pulled him on top of her. One hand went to her hair and the other to her hip as he began trailing kisses down her neck, occasionally mouthing and biting at the pale skin.
“Josh,” She moaned as his hand tangled in her hair and pulled it gently. She pushed up against him, causing Josh’s brain to bleep dead for a moment before erupting into a light show like he’d never experienced before.
Sam wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him even closer to her and slowly grinding against him. She reached to him and began pulling his shirt up but Josh suddenly jumped back, pulling his shirt back down and hiding his body from view.
“I’m so sorry, Josh. I didn’t mean to push you too far.” Sam quickly said, pulling her knees up to her chin and looking at the quilt rather than at Josh’s face.
“No, I started this.” He replied, running his hands through his hair and tugging at the strands. The little bit of pain that came from it was enough to pull him back to reality and stop him from spiralling down. It was the control he needed to move back towards Sam and stroke her blonde hair to comfort her.
“I’m sorry I freaked out, I just don’t know how you’d react to…” he drew off and began playing with the edge of his shirt.
Sam looked at him sympathetically, reaching up and gently turning his head to face her. “Whatever is wrong, I will be here for you. Take your time. We’re not like any other couple and we both know that it’ll take time to be at that level of intimacy.”
Josh sighed in relief and rested his head against his girlfriend’s shoulder. “Thank you.”
“Don’t worry about it,” She replied with a smile in her voice, “Let’s go have breakfast, okay?”
“Okay.”