Deranged [REWRITTEN]

Chapter Eight

The leaves swirl around the sidewalk as the bass coming from behind the brick wall booms louder with each step I take. My hands are in my green jumpsuit pockets and my head is down watching feet pass me by.

I stop at the door where the music is coming from. I look through the window and watch people dance with each other. Guys are swinging their partners around, grinding against one another and pulling their lips together.

Something possesses me to grab the handle and yank open the door. I step in and the music is loud. I squint my eyes when a strobe of light shines on me before it moves away. I stick to the wall and press my back against it. I can feel the stares, but I ignore them in favor of watching people dance.

I press my hand against the left side of my abdomen, hissing at the pain.

"Fuck," I curse, letting go of my side. There is a dull ache in my head and I clench my eyes, sliding my body down the wall.

They are staring at you.

I shake my head, not daring to look up at crowd dancing.

They know who you are. They know your secrets.

Pathetic boy. I bet you're too much of a coward to defend yourself.

"M'not," I mumble, reaching up to scratch my hair.

The music slowly fades and I can't hear anything but this voice. Something's not right. It's dark in here and I can't see my hands.

Look up, they are staring, the voice taunts me. You know you want to. Do it.

I know what it wants. Everything is pitch black except I can see a figure dancing with a cup in their hand.

I know you want to hurt him.

I can feel my jaw clench and my hands turn into fists as I glare at the figure. I can see the face turn to me and smirk. I slowly stand up and step away from the wall towards the man.

"Hit me coward," He laughs at me. "You won't do it."

I glare at him and in with one punch I watch the man fall to floor yelling.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!" Out of nowhere a girl starts screaming at me. I blink a few times and the music is back. The strobe lights are still shining on the dance floor and the crowd is still here. I look around, everyone is watching me with wide eyes.

The girl shoves me and I look down at the ground noticing a man unconscious and laying on the floor. Everything clicks into place and I turn around to make my swift getaway. Everyone quickly moves out of my way as I find the exit and push the door open. I look behind me to see if anyone is following me as my walking turns into jogging.

I find an alleyway and hide behind a dumpster, giving myself a minute to breathe. The pain on my side is getting worse.

"Which way did he go?" I hear a voice ask.

"That way!"

I clench my eyes shut, waiting for the footsteps to vanish. They get closer to where I am hiding and I have to open my eyes to see where the man is. I curse when I see the shoes peek from around the dumpster.

"Got you, bastard," The big security guard chuckles, stepping around the dumpster. I slowly stood up, watching as he pulled out his phone. I took a big sigh, sizing him up before I threw a punch. He didn't suspect it coming because he stumbled back and dropped his phone. I stomped my foot on it, crushing the phone before I was shoved against the brick wall.

"You'll pay for that, dumbass!" He yelled at me. I clench my jaw, staring at him. I can feel the anger taking over and my vision becoming hazy. I feel myself blacking out, but when I come to it I'm not on the ground. The security guard is lying on the floor, his blood spreading on the pavement.

"Shit," I whisper, breathing heavily. I fall to my knees and grab at my hair. "Leave me alone!" I scream in agony. I'm hurting inside and out. I need help. "Fuck."

I look back at the unconscious body in front of me before I slowly stand on my shaking legs. I run as far away from the body as I can. I'm in a familiar part of town. I recognize the neighborhood and I push myself closer to the house that I know. It takes me a second to notice a cop car sitting outside of the house.

I clutch my side when I feel the blood seep into my jumpsuit. I look down at the hole in my jumpsuit where there is a stab wound and I groan in pain. I sneak around the back of the house and find the trellis to climb onto the roof. It takes forever and a lot of effort to climb onto the roof before I slowly make my way towards the window with the lights off.

The window is locked. I sit next to the window, closing my eyes for a second. I'm losing a lot of blood and I feel dizzy and nauseous. It doesn't take long before I see the lights turn on in the room. I'm familiar with the figure stepping into the room and I quickly knock on the window, noticeably scaring her.

She looks at the window and her jaw drops when she sees me. I shake my head at her to tell her not to yell. She covers her mouth and looks behind her at her door. I quickly point to the wound I have and I try to speak through the window.

"I'm hurt. Please... please help." This is the first time I ever had to beg someone for help. I'm so desperate for someone to listen to me.

What surprises me is that she slowly walks toward the window and hesitates for a solid five minutes before she unlocks the window and pushes it open. But not enough where I could fit my body through.

"What are you doing here?" She asks.

"I'm not here to hurt you," I pant, out of breath and feeling even more dizzy. "Please, I'm hurt."

"I don't know what you want from me, leave me alone or I will call the cops. They are sitting on my couch downstairs, you know." She bites out, raising her arm to close the window. I stop her from closing it, using all of my strength to keep the window open.

"Grace, please, I'm begging you," I plead. "I just need help with my wound." I let a few tears slip, the pain taking over my entire body. She stares at me for what feels like eternity. She does something that takes me by surprise. She opens the window.