“janitor’s your superior.”

She takes a measly sip from the vodka in her red solo cup. She can eat and drink human food but it doesn’t satiate her hunger / thirst. It doesn’t affect her health physically. It’s just a dull, bleak taste. Seeing as how she could never drink before due to her meds, she liked to drink now, even if it didn’t really taste the way it did to everyone else. At least now she could masquerade as a normal teenager a little easier. 

Though, maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to start trying to please the student body because a few of her teammates were aware of her medical condition. Jackie (of course), Natalie, Misty because Misty just knows everything, and -

“Should you be drinking that?”

Lottie looked away from Jackie in the distance and over at her blonde angel of a friend. That sweet button nose and innocent cheeks combatted Lottie’s vampire system and filled her with warmth. Lottie smiled back, because how could you not smile at such a sweet girl? 

“I’m on different medication, and I take it in the morning now. It’s safer for drinking. Besides, it’s one drink for one night.” Lottie reassured Laura Lee. 

“Oh.” Laura Lee nodded and smiled cheerfully. Not for the first time, Lottie wondered how someone could be so cheery and have it be authentic. Lottie liked to think that she wasn’t a pessimistic person, but compared to Laura Lee she may as well be Edgar Allan Poe. She tried to be upbeat about life like Jackie and be loving to everyone like Laura Lee, but it was difficult at times. 

“I’m glad, but I will miss my non-drinking buddy.” Laura Lee added on, that smile still in place and those blue eyes sparkling clearly. 

“Well, I’d still rather hang out with you than anyone else at these things.” Lottie says with a smile of her own that reaches her eyes. And it’s true, what she says. Because even as devoted as Lottie is to Jackie and as much as she loves to just bask in Jackie’s presence, Lottie would rather not be around Jeff or Shauna. Besides, Laura Lee is her closest friend after Jackie. 

Laura Lee and Jackie were similar in the most obvious way and that was their warmth. Part of Jackie had to be upbeat in order to hype up and lead a team of competitive teenage girls. But that carried over into her friendships and her outlook on life. Even when Jackie was miserable and just wanting to give in to that darkness that curled around her insides, she would somehow find it in herself to muster up the same encouragement she gave those around her. Lottie saw that and it always kept her going. Laura Lee was the same way, except she got her strength from God. Both girls were full of love and shared it with everyone around them. Lottie thinks that may be why they’re her two favorite people. 

Another thing Lottie liked about Laura Lee was their ability to just chill together. No alcohol or illegal substances were needed to have a good time. They could just sit and talk and would end up with their sides pulsing and their cheeks tense from laughing. And other times they could just sit together in silence and find the beauty in the little things. Those moments were especially near and dear to Lottie’s heart. Other precious moments would be when Laura Lee would explain to her God’s story and even other religions. It wasn’t just Christianity that Laura Lee was gifted with knowledge of. She had played a pivotal role in Lottie finding a connection with the world and her own spirituality. 

In the last two transitional months, Lottie has craved to go to Laura Lee. If anyone could guide her through this tumultuous change in her life, it would be Laura Lee. She needed to know what the right thing to do with Jackie was. She needed to know that she wasn’t a monster because of what she was now crafted to do and to take. Just because she had the swift ability to take a life and the perverted hunger, it didn’t make her a bad person. Where did she go from here? How could she live her life? Lottie needed to talk to Laura Lee but she didn’t know how to start the conversation. She didn’t know how to ask these things without giving away her new identity. 

Lottie knew that Laura Lee would still love and accept her even if she knew the truth. Frankly, Laura Lee was the only one who Lottie knew definitively wouldn’t change. It was no diss against Jackie, Laura Lee was just built that way. “Love thy neighbor” and “love thy enemy” wasn’t just something Laura Lee read in a book but something that she lived by. And it wasn’t just love but acceptance. At every Yellowjackets event that wasn’t a practice or a game, Laura Lee was asking Van and Taissa if she could officiate their wedding. She was the one who helped coach Natalie into giving Misty a chance. And Laura Lee was the only one who knew about Lottie’s unconditional, eternal devotion to Jackie, they just never spoke about it. But Lottie knew that if she ever needed to, Laura Lee would be there for her. Laura Lee was there for anyone and sometimes it could be scary. (Like how she’s a penpal to a few different inmates at Wiskayok Penitentiary. Jackie had looked terrified, Van looked like shocked Pikachu, Mari made a joke about Laura Lee being on Dateline, Natalie said “cool”, and Taissa engaged with Laura Lee in a conversation about morals and humanity and religion because conversing with a convict was a notoriously bad idea.) 

Laura Lee softly tilted her head to the side in the way she did when she had picked up on something. Lottie assumed that she had been staring too long at Laura Lee in thought. It was probably obvious in her doe eyes that she was struggling with confiding in Laura Lee. 

“Is there something you’d like to talk about, Lottie?” Laura Lee asked kindly. 

Yep, Lottie had been staring too hard in thought. Now she was thinking too hard about how to answer. That wasn’t unusual for Lottie; she had been dealing with feelings for Jackie Taylor since she was thirteen-years-old and had a therapist basically her whole life. Cataloguing different responses and actions was Lottie’s specialty. So really, these new conflicts with being a vampire really shouldn’t be stressing Lottie out as much as they are. 

“If someone has the ability to do something bad, and if they’re tempted by it, does that make them a bad person? Should it stop them from getting close to anyone?” Lottie had to know. She couldn’t keep pushing Jackie away, not if it was the wrong thing to do. And she had to know if her humanity was still intact or if it was lost in the harbor with her past self. She hoped not. 

Laura Lee was a very expressive girl and the team always found it adorable (especially Natalie for some reason) and it was obvious that she had not been expecting that line of questioning from Lottie. Lottie was one of the warmest, groundest people Laura Lee knew and could never see Lottie struggling with those sorts of feelings. But at the same time, it just showed that Lottie still had a conscience. Only a psychopath would claim they were innocent and not see the depravity in their wrongdoings. This was a good sign for Lottie and Laura Lee wanted to share that with her. She loved sharing anything with anyone, but especially Lottie. 

The blonde gestured to a log and they both took a seat. Laura Lee was in a cute yellow jacket over adorable overalls and had two bee clips in her hair. Lottie gracefully crossed a leg over the other and felt like ripping her flesh from her bones when she felt bark graze her bare thigh. She loved nature and she cursed her sensitive vampire senses for ruining that for her. She was in a skirt and fuzzy, pink crop top with buttons. The fuzzy top also bothered her, but it was Jackie’s favorite top of hers so she wore it. She came to this party for Jackie so why not dress for her as well? 

(Lottie loved that about Jackie. How the girl loved unconditionally and would do anything for those closest to her, even if it could potentially harm her. She loved how Jackie went out of her way to do nice things and be positive for others and cheer them up. She loved how Jackie looked out for others. Jackie never ordered Lottie [or anyone else] to do anything. She never dictated anything. But she would say “pink’s your color” or “that red dress would go well with this”. Some people liked to twist that and make Jackie out to be some controlling, selfish bitch, but it was far from the truth. Jackie was kind and selfless, and Lottie loved her. Simple as that.) 

“All human beings have it in them to do bad things because God gave us free will. And all human beings have temptations. That’s why repenting is so important. Doing bad things isn't what dictates being a bad person. How you feel and perceive those bad things is what dictates being a bad person. If you feel remorse and make an effort to repent, then you’re not a bad person. You can’t fault yourself for being the human being that God made you to be. And you can’t let that keep a person out of your life.” Laura Lee preached. 

Lottie did feel remorse, and she did repent. She felt remorse for things that she didn’t even do. Just the thought of drying someone up and flatlining them left her feeling nauseous and wanting to rip her own heart out of her chest. When she fed off of animals and took from God’s creation, she repented. Every meal she thanked God for his creation and the animal for sacrificing itself for her (even if it was obviously not consensual), and then she apologized for doing it. Lottie never took without acknowledging it and being grateful and she always tried to give back.  

But Lottie wasn’t a human being, not anymore. Even if she wasn’t a bad person or a monster, how could she in good conscience keep Jackie in her life? If anything were to happen to Jackie it would be her fault. The blood would be on her hands (literally) and coating her throat and lining her build. That would be her gravest sin and unforgivable. No amount of remorse or repentance could undo killing another - not to Lottie. She knew that God loved and forgave all of his children, and they would still be welcomed into his land if they acknowledged and accepted his existence. But Lottie disagreed with God and didn’t think she deserved that. She didn’t deserve Jackie. 

“But what if you could hurt someone without meaning to? Shouldn’t you take necessary precautions?” Lottie phrased. 

Laura Lee smiled sympathetically, sweet and kind like honey. “Accidents and mistakes are a part of life. You can’t go through life without messing up along the way. Showing remorse and repentance, and hoping to be forgiven is all you can do after the fact. But you can’t hold yourself back from being happy and forging meaningful relationships based on fear. There’s being cautious and there’s acting based on fear.” 

Right. Laura Lee was right - of course. And that was all good and well, but Lottie wasn’t human. She was no longer “going through” life because she had no life to go through. Her life had ended two months ago in the harbor. So did all of this still apply to her? That was her final question, and one she couldn’t ask Laura Lee. She would have to figure out the answer for herself.

“Thank you, Laura Lee.”

Laura Lee smiled. “I hope I was helpful.” She said, almost worriedly. 

Lottie smiled, warm and sweet. “You were.” 

The two smile at each other a little while longer and just bask in the moment of trust and intimacy. For as long as Lottie survived as a vampire, she would carry Laura Lee in her heart and live by her teachings. 

The red solo cup of vodka had kind of just become a prop in Lottie’s hand, her long fingers wrapping around nearly the entire thing. She had gotten bored of tastelessly slipping it and just went for performative. After chatting with Laura Lee for a while, Jackie had found them and dragged them over to dance. Laura Lee wasn’t the best dancer, but she was enjoying herself and looked cute so no one really cared. Lottie was an excellent dancer but sparsely showed off that attribute. It was rare and used mostly to get girls in bed (who she then pretended to be her best friend, sick right?). So she was just smiling as she watched her two favorite girls dance. 

Eventually Laura Lee was pulled away by Mari and Akilah so that just left Jackie and Lottie. There was no Jeff or Shauna around, none of their other teammates. It was just them. 

They held each other’s gaze as Jackie walked back over to Lottie. There was something about this certain eye contact that littered Lottie’s body in goosebumps. (Which was…weird, because her body was only supposed to react like that to danger. Her body was no longer supposed to react like a human’s would. Maybe her body was misinterpreting Jacki as danger.) Jackie sipped her red solo cup, still staring into Lottie’s eyes. They were so close now that Jackie had to peer over the rim of her cup to stare up at Lottie’s smokey gaze. God, what was Jackie doing to her? Was she trying to kill her - again? She was being a little too foxy for Lottie’s sanity. Lottie just wanted to shove that drink away and plant Jackie against the nearest car and kiss her senseless. 

“Should you be drinking that?” Jackie asked, her gaze finally leaving Lottie’s to flit towards the drink in Lottie’s hand. There was so much concern in her voice that it soothed Lottie’s heart like a little kid clutching their security blanket. 

It was different from Laura Lee asking for some reason. Maybe because Lottie couldn’t lie as easily to Jackie, even if Jackie couldn’t tell (not because she was naive, but because Lottie never lied to her therefore she didn’t know what to look for). Or maybe Lottie was just so fed up with the situation and needing to lie to Jackie. This wasn’t what she wanted for their friendship or for her life. Afterlife, fuck, whatever. But instead of answering, Lottie tried to just…walk away. Which she only did when she was too pissed off. 

That worried Jackie. She frowned and reached out, gently wrapping her hand around Lottie’s bicep. “Are you…are you seriously walking away from me?” Jackie asked, more bewildered than anything. 

Resisting the urge to sigh with an attitude or roll her eyes, Lottie slowly turned around. But even without sighing or rolling her eyes, the annoyance and frustration was clear as day. It left a sour taste in Jackie’s mouth, like lemon juice, and it left a dull ache in her chest. It was as if one of those gwapping hammers you used at the fairground had been smashed into Jackie’s chest. It was deep and achy and she couldn’t breathe. She didn’t understand why Lottie was looking at her that way or behaving this way. Her Lottie would never dream of being this way. 

And it killed Lottie to do this. But she was so frustrated and stressed out that she decided to use it to push Jackie away. That’s what she had originally been doing and she needed to stick with that. She had relapsed that day in French class and at practice, but she wouldn’t do it again. No. No, now she was on the straight and narrow. Protecting Jackie was her number one priority and she would do that even if she had to be a bitch to her. It pierced her dead heart but she did it anyway. 

Jackie parted her lips and shifted her feet as she let go of Lottie’s arm. Her wide eyes were shining with betrayal and her lips were parted in a confused pout. She looked exactly like a kicked puppy and it utterly destroyed Lottie. It felt like her soul was being sucked out and extinguished. All she wanted to do was change her mind and fix this before it could be irreversible. But she stayed strong in her conviction. She had to do this, she had to do this. She had to- 

There was a commotion going on behind them that sparked both of their attention. Lottie knew exactly what was happening and to who, but Jackie of course didn’t. Furrowing her eyebrows and frowning, Jackie turned around to try and decipher what was going on. There were sounds of shouting and a crowd seemed to be forming. That combination was never a good thing. When the shorter brunette turned to the other for confirmation, Lottie was already striding across the deserted field to the crowd. 

“Hey, wait for me.” Jackie squeaked and hurried to catch up to Lottie’s long strides. 

If Lottie’s heart could work, it would be pounding right now. As badass as Natalie was, she was still a girl and picking a fight with a dude was never a good thing. Even if technically this douchebag started it and Natalie was going to end it. Natalie could handle herself but Lottie didn’t care. Lottie worried anyways, which was what you do with someone you love. 

Natalie’s lips were parted and her eyebrows were furrowed in outrage as she stared at some dude. It was clear that he was wasted. He had a hat on sideways and an ugly grin. A flannel with the sleeves ripped off and a dirty gray monster truck shirt. He was wearing jeans and dusty boots with the ugly shoelaces. His face was red and eyes were shiny. His buddies and their girlfriends behind him were giggling and cheering him on. Natalie looked ready to murder them all. 

Meanwhile Misty was crying and the other Yellowjackets were getting involved. Laura Lee was hugging Misty while Taissa was trying to diffuse the whole situation. Van kept looking back and forth between Misty, Natalie and Tai, and the boy and his group. Shauna was nowhere to be found. That just left Lottie and Jackie - who were coming up on the group. They could both see everyone and hear what was being said. 

“Don’t fucking touch my girlfriend!” Natalie spat, shoving the guy.  

There was the annoying cliche chorus of “ohhh”’s and more laughter. One of the girls wrinkled her nose and raised her eyebrows at Natalie. “That’s your girlfriend?” 

The slight confusion and disbelief vanished from Natalie’s eyes and was overwhelmed with anger. Her face smoothed out and her jaw ever so subtly clenched. As cool as a cucumber but raging, Natalie stepped forward and decked the bitch in her face. She went down with a cry and clutched a hand to her cheek. Her friends joined her on the forest floor as she sobbed. Half of the guys looked amused while the other half looked pissed off. The main guy, the one who had pushed Misty and was originally beefing with Natalie, stepped forward towards her.

“Nat, watch out!” Jackie warned. 

Taissa jerked Nat back and Lottie slid in, decking the guy right in the nose. There was a crunch and then he fell to the ground like a sack of useless, rotten potatoes. Taissa and Van’s eyes widened and their eyebrows rose to their hairline. Natalie’s eyes widened more softly and then she chuckled. Laura Lee’s jaw dropped and she stared at Lottie. Misty’s crying had paused and she just stared at the boy unmovingly, almost like she was paused. The other girls on the opposing side gasped and stared at Lottie like she was some freak. The boys stared at her in rage and disgust. Some of the boys kneeled to check on their unconscious friend. Lottie could hear his heart beating and knew that he was fine, but his nose was bleeding. 

His nose…

The blood was sharp and tangy. It filled her nostrils and traveled up to her brain, lighting it up. Every hair on her body stood up and she started to feel unbearably warm. Her fangs were struggling against her gums and her throat was starting to scorch. It felt like there was a hole in her stomach, clawing out to reach that blood and digest it all until there was no more to digest. And then she would just go on to the next body - the next blood pump. And she could keep going until her thirst was satiated. Until her entire body felt like a bottle full of blood. Even her talons were itching to extend. 

God, she hadn’t felt this tempted since the moment she opened her eyes as a newborn vampire. 

“Lottie.” 

Like her own personal guardian angel calling her back from the brink of no return, Lottie turned and faced Jackie. Her reaction was the worst of all because it was the most important to Lottie. Jackie’s lips were parted and she looked so…confused. So full of shock that she could barely believe what she saw. She couldn’t believe what Lottie had just done and with such ease. It wasn’t that Lottie defended someone close to her or that she was violent, but the power it possessed. The dark undertones to the action. 

Lottie hated herself more than she ever had before. That look on Jackie’s face would never go away. It would always be imprinted in Lottie’s mind like a tattoo you get as soon as you’re of age and instantly regret. If Jackie was looking at her like this now, she couldn’t possibly imagine how she would look at her if she did something worse. If she showed her real colors. The blood that would be spilt and shown. 

The blood…

Lottie took off before she could make that mistake and to get away from Jackie’s probing stare. She could hear Taissa and then Van, and eventually Jackie, calming down the shouts of the other people. She could hear Natalie calling Misty “babe” and checking her over for any damage. (Misty was okay. She smelled humiliated but physically fine. Lottie knew Jackie, Natalie, and Laura Lee would cheer her up.) She could smell the anger, confusion, love, betrayal, frustration, hesitance, and pain from everyone. But mostly she smelled the blood and heard the heartbeats. Lottie had to get out of there - she had to keep going. Going and going until she couldn’t hear or smell them and want to rip into their jugulars. 

Duncan instructed her through this situation several times before but it still wasn’t helpful enough. She didn’t really like his method anyways. Lottie needed to focus on the possible outcome of her possible sin. She had to imagine the sobs of family members losing their loved one. She had to imagine watching them grieve at the funeral. Most importantly, she had to imagine losing Jackie. She had to imagine how repulsed and terrified Jackie would look at her if she ever saw the brunette commit murder. Emotions helped ground Lottie’s bloodlust. 

She rests a hand on the bark of a tree and leans against it. Despite not being a creature that breathes or even needs to breathe, Lottie closes her red eyes and takes some deep breaths. She keeps her mind focused on the gruesome images to put out the fire in her stomach. Despite her heightened senses, she didn’t hear anyone coming up on her because she was so focused on not going on a rampage. Her body was still warm and wound tight, but she was slowly coming down from the high. Just a little longer and she’d be good to go. 

“Geewhiz, Maths. I know your legs are long but how’d you get all the way out here so fast?” 

Oh, no. Not her. Anyone but her. 

Not Jackie. 

Jackie may be the spearhead for keeping Lottie from sinking her fangs into as many teenagers as possible, but having her in her close proximity at this moment is only distressing Lottie more. If she still had a working heart, Lottie thinks it would be beating out of her chest right about now. It felt like she was having a panic attack. Could vampires still get those? Lottie was never sure if panic attacks really did leave you breathless or if that was all in your brain since you were panicking. 

“Go away, Jackie.” Lottie ordered, surprised by how collected she sounded. 

Jackie scoffed and stomped closer to her best friend. “That is it, Lottie Matthews. I have had it up to here with your mysterious attitude and flaky attendance. I know you’re going through a hard time but this is unacceptable!” 

You have the faintest idea of what hard time I’m going through right now, Lottie bitterly thought to herself. 

Lottie groaned but Jackie persisted. Of course she did, because she was a persistent fucking little puppy with a bone when it came to the safety and wellbeing of those she cared about. Jackie could be that knight from that one dumb movie with all her limbs cut off saying, “it’s merely a flesh wound” and keep on going until Lottie told her what was wrong. The image of Jackie saying that was, well, adorable. It almost made Lottie smile. But then she thought about the realism and all the blood there would be in that situation and - yeah. 

She wanted to taste Jackie’s blood more than anything. Just a drop on her gums - that would be enough. But she had to know what Jackie tasted like before her lifetime was over. But that was wrong and Lottie couldn’t do that to her Jackie. No. No, Jackie needed to get away. As far away from Lottie as fast as possible. 

“Look at me, Lottie. Come on. It’s just me.”

Just me. Yeah, that’s the fucking problem. Lottie groaned again and winced as her incisors protruded out of her gums, breaking the skin and aching. The moon flashed against her silver fangs as she bowed her head. Oh, fuck. 

“Go!” Lottie shouted. 

“Lottie, what is wrong with you? It’s me!” Jackie implored, grabbing Lottie’s arm and turning her around. 

Lottie slammed her eyes shut and turned her head from Jackie. She tried to close her mouth and clenched her hands into fists. Her talons embedded themselves through the palms of her hands, causing blood to drip through the crevices of her fingers and shower the grass. It stung but she didn’t give a shit. All she cared about was trying to escape from Jackie without hurting her or causing a scene. 

Frowning, Jackie reached up and cupped Lottie’s face with the utmost care. It was as if she was handling a newborn baby and didn’t want to drop it. It was as if she was handling her own newborn baby and could never even fathom causing an ounce of harm to her. In the past, Lottie was always warmer than Jackie, but now Lottie got to be the one to feel Jackie’s warmth. Even if Lottie never got hot or cold, she could still feel the temperature. She could still feel Jackie. Her Jackie. 

“Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, isn’t this how you get aids?” Jackie asked with stitched eyebrows as she watched Lottie. The latter always loved when the former made that face because it was so adorable. The way a crease formed above her eyebrows and her lips were slightly puckered, as if she was disgusted when really she was just confused. Though in this situation, Jackie was definitely both. 

Lottie grinned slightly as she looked up from the towel on the wooden floor of their treehouse. “We’re fourteen-year-old rich girls that get their yearly vaccines and monthly checkups. We’re both healthy as a horse. Besides, it’s just a little blood.” 

Jackie huffed as Lottie reached behind her. “Just a little blood.” 

In Lottie’s (divine) hands was a knife in a sheath. The sheath was an authentic native american sheath that Mr. Matthews had inappropriately bought. There were a few knives Lottie could have chosen for this occasion, but she chose this beautiful one because she knew it would piss her father off. In a moment of obscurity due to being unmedicated, she felt bold and wanted to fuck with her father. And be connected to Jackie. So here they were! 

The knife was…long. It was at least six inches and was thick. It was definitely a heavy duty buck knife that Mr. Matthews liked to show off to his buddies even though he never once went hunting in his life. The sheer size of it left Jackie’s chest feeling tight and her breath stuttering. Her lips parted and there was a subtle sheen of fear gleaming in her eyes. 

Lottie reached out with her free hand and placed it over Jackie’s right wrist. Her long fingers curved all the way around Jackie’s small wrist and gently squeezed. Her thumb was scalding to the touch as it gently brushed Jackie’s pulse point. Her doe eyes were bright and kind as she gazed deeply into Jackie’s eyes, straight through to her soul.

“Hey, you don’t have to be scared. It’s just a little cut on the palm of your hand. They do this in Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries all the time. We’ll be okay. It’s just me.” 

It’s just me. That’s what had been enough to soothe Jackie’s fears and quell the nauseous churning of her stomach. Her wide eyes clung to Lottie’s and the truth burning in them. There was no one Jackie trusted more than Lottie. Her life and her safety was never once a concern when Lottie was involved. 

“Okay. Just make it quick.” Jackie grimaced.

Lottie smiled in relief and brought her hand back. She picked the knife back up and squared her shoulders. With her left hand facing palm up, she gripped the knife in her right hand and brought the blade over her hand. Jackie’s face was wrinkled, nerved, as she watched Lottie practically take delight as she glided the blade across her palm. Lottie cupped her hand to keep her blood from dripping onto the towel and then wiped the blade on said towel. Then she passed the knife to Jackie. 

The other girl hesitated before taking the blade with trembling hands. Swallowing hard and breathing heavily, Jackie gripped the handle of the knife and let it hover above the palm of her left hand. Her spine was as straight as a rod and her shoulders were tensed as her breathing became labored. She couldn’t believe she was doing this. She was fucking crazy for cutting herself! She gulped before shakily dragging the blade across her palm. It hurt worse than they made it look on tv - worse than Lottie made it look. She was already nervous and the pain didn't help, so her cut was jagged whereas Lottie’s was neat. 

Gasping, Jackie thrusted the knife back at Lottie (carefully). Lottie wiped the knife off again and set it beside before reaching out to Jackie. The taller girl had the softest, sweetest smile on her face as she looked at Jackie with hope and love. It was a small smile but it caressed her face and made her look so young and innocent. It made her dark eyes twinkle. Jackie was helpless and gingerly grasped hands with Lottie. She hissed again but not as badly. Lottie’s smile widened. 

After almost a few seconds of clasping hands, Lottie pulled away. She turned around and retrieved some gauze before she started wrapping up her hand. Then, wordlessly, she did the same to Jackie. There was so much care and practice when Lottie bandaged up Jackie’s hand, it was obvious to even a blind person how devoted the girl was to Jackie. She would do anything for Jackie Taylor, be anything for her. As long as Jackie Taylor was safe and happy, then that was all that mattered to Lottie Matthews. 

Lottie gently kissed Jackie’s bandaged palm then sat up. “Now we’ll always be connected.” 

Now, Lottie was officially Jackie’s and Jackie was officially hers. Even if Jackie didn’t see it that way. Even if they never got together romantically. They were forever intertwined now. 

Lottie’s eyes fluttered open without her permission, seeking out Jackie’s gaze. She lifted her head and couldn’t help but melt into the hold Jackie gingerly had on her cheeks. Jackie’s already big eyes widened and she gasped. Her hands fell away from Lottie’s face and she backed away. Immediately, Lottie’s heart (metaphorically) began to race and her breath (metaphorically) got stuck in between her chest and her throat. It felt like her chest was caving inward and her shoulders were being squeezed. She felt out of control with panic. 

Jackie’s heart was racing and her blood was rushing, Lottie could hear and smell both. The shorter girl’s breath picked up speed and became slightly choppy. There was a slight tremor to her body that was barely noticeable. Shock was slowly filling her body and contorting her muscles. 

“You, your ey- your te-. You’re a fucking-!”