Untitled 9000

Evelyn traipsed through the fallen leaves, tightening her coat around her against the cold autumn winds that the bare trees did little to protect against. She was shivering just as hard as the trees- though, not only because she was cold.

The… things, that had been happening to her and her friends lately had wound their way up into her head and rooted themselves in her skull. There was no way to prevent herself from thinking about them when they hammered away at her head all day and night.

It was exhausting, to say the least.

Vinnie and Jeff had tried to cheer her up – they really had tried their hardest. But it just didn’t help. Her mind was still stuck on the last month or so. The hope in coming out here was to clear her mind, somewhere she wouldn’t have to worry about anyone else. She used to hang out alone in the woods as a kid, before she met the guys – there was always something to do, things were always changing, you couldn’t get too bored out here if you were trying hard enough. And god, did Evelyn hope that it still held up.

Coming out here after dark might not have been the best idea – but it wasn’t quite as easy to get the time she used to in middle school, and it was that time of year where it was already practically dark by the time she even got off work.

She tried really hard to ignore the sense of unease crawling up her spine. The woods just looked odd in the dusk light, and she was already unnerved – she tried to brush it off.

But the further she wandered, now preemptively pulling out her flashlight, it grew harder to deny. And after everything she’d had going on recently? Evelyn knew it would be stupid to ignore.

She sighed, slouching against a tree. “Why’s everything gotta be so goddamn difficult?”

“And what did I ever see out here..?” She grumbled, looking around. The whole place was empty and cold – not to mention dumpy. There was trash laying around, a pile of abandoned oil barrels, and off in the trees she could see some kind of a fallen down shed. She shivered in the cold – coming out here just left her feeling more empty than ever.

Just as she was about to head out, a little whimper echoed through the trees.

“Oh shit-“She huffed, looking around. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, body tensing. Something was out here with her.

“Who’s there!?” She called, but couldn’t see anyone. “It better not be that tall son of a bitch again…”

Evelyn began to pace through the trees, searching for who – or what – was in the woods. If it wanted to mess with her, she’d fuck it up. This stupid little game was over – she’d had enough.

A sniffling sound came from behind the old oil barrels. Evelyn stiffened and spun back around to face them, but couldn't see anything.

"Hey - who's out there?" She snapped, hand drifting to the knife in her pocket.

Still, nothing.

"Bullshit," she huffed, slowly making her way around the other side of the barrels. Dread pumped through her veins with each uneven heartbeat. "I know you're there!"

When she poked her head around the barrels, she was met with a shriek.

"Please, oh my God, no-" the brunette sobbed, covering her face and cowering away from Evelyn.

Evelyn tossed her knife into the leaves and crouched beside the girl, holding her hands up to show she wasn't a threat.

"Hey, shh - I'm not gonna hurt you." Evelyn cooed.

The girl moved her hands away enough to peek out at Evelyn, scooting ever so slightly away. "You're one of them, aren't you?" She shook.

The broken look this girl had crushed Evelyn's heart. Jesus fuck, what'd she been through? She seemed so little and terrified, covered in ears and dirt. The beanie on her head was filthy and half-shreded – and it appeared to have a couple burn spots in it.

Evelyn shifted so that she was sitting flat on her butt. "I dunno who you're talking about, is someone hurting you?"

The girl hesitated a moment, unsure if she could truly trust Evelyn. Eventually she did relax and put her hands on her thighs, wiping some of the dirt off on her pants, but she still stayed a reasonable distance away from Evelyn. She nodded softly, eyeing Evelyn with her big wet eyes.

"Yeah," the girl nodded again, sniffling more. "Yeah they... they're trying to kill me. They already killed Matt, and... god..."

"I won't let them touch you." Evelyn assured her, eyes darting around the trees. Who was trying to kill her? And where'd they go? "But how about we get out of here before they *do* find us? Yeah?"

The girl nodded hesitantly and watched as Evelyn pushed herself up and reached out a hand to help her up.

Evelyn was surprised she took it, but beyond pleased. She was also surprised at how soft and warm the girls hands felt. She made a point to brush off the warmth on her cheeks - this was such a horrible time for this.

She pulled the girl up and reclaimed her knife from the ground, making sure to keep a tight grip on it.

"Car's that way," Evelyn pointed off into the trees. "Not too far."

"Okay," the girl forced an awkward smile.

Evelyn headed off through the trees, waving at her to follow. Questions bubbled up as she went - what the hell was this girl into, and what was Evelyn getting herself into by getting in the middle of this? And who the fuck was Matt??

The sun began drifting below the naked branches, bathing the woods in a blue/gray haze. And bringing with it even colder winds.

Glancing back at the girl, Evelyn didn't think her long sleeve seemed quite thick enough. At least she had her hat, if nothing else. Not that it kept her from shivering.

Evelyn sighed and took off her coat, fighting back a grimace as the cold wind nipped at her flesh. "Here." She handed it over to the girl, who froze and stared. She kinda reminded Evelyn of a deer in the road.

"Oh, it's okay." The girl shook her head.

Evelyn kept her arm extended. "You're cold as fuck, hurt, and your heads gotta be all fuvkrd up after whatever you've just been through. Take it."

The girl relented and took it, letting out a satisfy sigh as she slipped it over her shoulder. "Oh my God, it's so warm." She hummed, hugging herself.

She hopped up beside Evelyn, quickening her pace a little. The top of the hill was in sight now, and just beyond that was the car.

The girl seemed to deem Evelyn a friend now, staying close behind and looking around the woods rather than having her gaze trained on Evelyn's skull.

"So, what were you doing out here?" She asked.

Evelyn shrugged. "I was just out for a walk, needed to clear my head, ya know? Good thing I did, too."

The girl giggled a little. There was no real humor in it, concidering the circumstances.

Evelyn shot her a smile. "Im Evelyn, by the way."

"Elowyn." The girl smiled back.

Once they made it to the car Evelyn opened the passenger door for Elowyn to get in before she climbed in herself, promptly locking the doors.

She started the car and turned the heater on blast, holding her red fingers in front of the fans to warm them up for a moment. For only being fall, it sure was cold as a dead man's dick.

"Do you live around here?" She asked Evelyn, gaze stuck to her fingers as she moved on to rubbing the cold from her joints.

"I, uhm...." Elowyn hummed, shifting in her seat befire going quiet.

Evelyn glanced over at her - Elowyns lip trembling. She raised an eyebrow.

"I don't.. I don't know." Elowyn stuttered out, trying her hardest to keep the shake from her voice, but all the effort she could muster wasn't quite enough.

"You live in New Jersey? Around Princeton?"

Elowyn bit her lip, looking out the windows with a distant look to her gaze. "I don't think I can ever return to my house..." she whispered, more to herself than anything. "Or my family - my mom... oh..." she trailed off, hand coming up to grip her face as all these realizations dawned on her.

What happened was unclear, but even Evelyn knew this poor woman's life was over, the life she knew anyway. She placed a hand on Elowyns shoulder, giving her a firm grip.

"Hey," Evelyn spoke softly. "Its gonna be okay, alright? I've got you. We're gonna figure this all out. How about we get you back to my place until we can see what’s going on?"

She wasn't truly sure she could keep all her promises to Elowyn, but she sure as hell was gonna try. Though - getting the police involved would probably be worthless, so they'd have to get creative. But no way was she gonna let Elowyn get any more hurt than she already was.

Elowyn finally looked over at her, blinking tears out of her eyes. "Yeah. Yeah, okay." She nodded, sinking into her seat (and into Evelyn's touch) a little further.

Elowyn fell asleep on the drive back to Evelyn’s house. Evelyn felt bad waking her – she seemed so small and tired right now – but she didn’t wanna stay out in the dark any longer than she had to, either.

Did the people who were after Elowyn have something to do with Evelyn’s own situation?

Evelyn watched her a moment, taking her in. The girl’s hair gently fell over her pretty features, and with as peaceful and soft as she was in her sleep, you could almost forget how terrified she’d been only 20 minutes before if it wasn’t for the darkness beginning to creep under her eyes and the tear-stained streaks that were fading against her skin. She was snuggled up against the door of Evelyn’s car, tucked away safe and sound from the rest of the world. Exactly where Evelyn wanted her to be.

Why was Evelyn inviting this stranger into her home without question? Why was she inviting more trouble when she’d already had her fill? She hadn’t even bothered to get half the story – or any of the story, really – and there was nothing to go off of that truly made Evelyn feel this girl was partaking in the same struggles that had been plaguing the Hybrid group. She didn’t need to get some other mess tossed onto her, or worse – her friends. And yet she couldn’t, in a million years, imagine this girl being anywhere but safe beside her.

It was undeniable, the Evelyn already felt warmth towards her. She had to protect this girl – even if it was probably a bad idea to pile more on her plate. Even if she didn’t know why she wanted to protect her so badly. And goddamn it – did she need a reason to care so deeply about a stranger?

“Hey, Elowyn,” Evelyn whispered, gently shaking her. Elowyn jumped awake, looking around. Her brown eyes were wide in a panic, illuminated by the golden overhead light in the car ceiling. Evelyn cringed internally. “Sorry… Didn’t mean to scare you.”

Eloywn relaxed a little, focusing on Evelyn with a sigh, but still seemed a bit hesitant. She kept her back against the door, hand resting just above the handle. It was a move Evelyn readily recognized, as much as she taught it. Elowyn shook her head, waving off Evelyn’s apology. “No, no- it’s okay.” She sat up in her seat, turning to inspect the house in front of them. “…Where are we?”

“My place,” Evelyn explained. “If you still think it’s a good idea?”

Elowyn rubbed her face, sighing. “Oh, right. Yeah that makes sense, I’m sorry…”

Evelyn gently nudged the girl’s shoulder before stepping out of the car. “You’ve been through a lot – don’t worry about it.” She gave her a reassuring smile before closing the car door and heading up the steps. She unlocked the door for Elowyn, who was hurrying after her now, and let her slip inside first, taking a good look around before she followed – locking the door behind her.

Elowyn quickly found the light switch, flicking it on and making her way around the room, taking a look at everything.

It must be scary, having been through… what ever all that was, and then having to trust a stranger and their home. Evelyn watched her, wishing there was more she could do. Elowyn very obviously didn’t trust anything, understandably. The way she watched the halls and doors as if hell itself was about to come barreling out and picked through the shelves of comics and Xbox games for any hidden ploys made Evelyn’s chest ache.

“You can have a look around, and I’ll set up the basement for you, alright?” Evelyn hummed, slipping her thumbs to rest just inside her pockets. If she went elsewhere on a clear mission, she figured, Elowyn would have time to more comfortably pick through the rest of Evelyn’s house until she felt more at ease.

Elowyn jumped, spinning around to face her. She was met with Evelyn’s gentle smile. “Yeah, okay.” She nodded, fidgeting with her fingers.

Evelyn nodded back. “Help yourself to anything, okay?” She hummed, looking her over before slipping down the hall and into the basement.

She made her way downstairs, humming softly to herself. Sure, maybe shoving the girl she picked up in the woods would be an interesting choice on any usual occasion, but this way, she got a whole level of the house to herself complete with furniture, a bathroom, and entertainment – and a door that she could lock as she pleased. Hell, Evelyn didn’t even know where the key was, so Elowyn would really be untouchable down here if she wanted to be.

Evelyn dug around in the cabinet and pulled out a stack of blankets, rifling through them until she found the softest one to lay out over the couch’s worn cushions. As she got to making up the makeshift bed, she wondered what the next morning would be. Obviously they’d have to work at figuring out what to do for Evelyn – which already felt like a daunting task on top of her own problems, which were leaving her so exhausted as it was – but also, she’d get to hear the story. What had transpired to leave the woman so alone and scared in the woods, chasing her from her home? Evelyn could already imagine a few things.

And somewhere deep down, she wanted to hear more of the girl’s voice, a little bit of hope bubbling in her chest at the thought of Elowyn opening up to her, being more relaxed. Maybe they could be friends, maybe Elowyn could hang around sometimes. She’d love to have Elowyn join the group. –But that was fast and selfish. She hardly had one conversation with this woman, and she was going through a lot (clearly), why was Evelyn concerned about a potential friendship coming out of this?

She groaned and shook her head, clearing her thoughts as a distinct sense of guilt wormed its way through her belly. That’s not the reaction Elowyn needed – right now all she should be offering her is help, not her own baseless hopes.

It’s certainly not that Evelyn was starved for friends – so why couldn’t she shake the desire to get to know this girl more?

Once the couch was all fixed up, decorated with the best blankets and pillows Evelyn could manage to find (which were still rather scrappy, as she’d had them quite a while. She hoped Elowyn wouldn’t mind much), she made her way back up the stairwell.

When Evelyn came back, she found Elowyn in the kitchen. She leaned against the door wat, sticking a hand in her pocket. She was trying to be as casual as possible, even if noting felt too casual right now. “Hey, the basement’s ready. You can lock the door down here if ya want, I don’t even know where the fucking key is.”

Elowyn sniffled and brought a hand to her cheek, wiping at it. “Okay, thank you.” She hummed.

God. This girl.

Evelyn made her way to Elowyn’s side, tiliting her head with interest. Elowyn was obviously fighting down her tears, eyes red and puffy again.

“I’m sorry.” Evelyn breathed. “I don’t know what you’ve been through, but its been hell. I know that much.”

Elowyn turned to face her, eyes glassy, bottom lip trembling. She nodded softly, hugging herself as tight as she could muster. Her mouth opened and closed a few times, but no actual words came out. And Evelyn could understand – I mean, what was there to say? What the hell did you say in a situation like this? And Elowyn’s current state told enough, anyway.

Unable to deny the tears rising in her own eyes, Evelyn wrapped the girl in a hug, completely enveloping her. “It’s okay,” She mumbled. Elowyn got out of her initial shock and buried herself against Evelyn’s chest, finally breaking down completely and sobbing into her. Evelyn squeezed her tighter, buring her face in Elowyn’s hair. “Not anymore, no more of whatever happened. You’re here now. God, I promise…”

Elowyn’s frame shook in Evelyn’s arms. “I was so scared,” She sobbed. It sent a jolt straight through Evelyn’s chest, like she’d stuck her finger in an outlet.

She sniffled, trying to clear her face so she could reasonably talk. It didn’t do much to help her, though – the constant onslaught of tears and snot and he way her voice shook left her nearly incomprehensible. “So scared… I don’t know why they wanted me so bad. I didn’t do anything! And then, and then Matt got involved, and…” She trailed off into another fit. “I didn’t know. Evelyn, I *didn’t know*.” Her words trailed off into what could only be described as a wail.

Evelyn just held her, tight as she could muster. Because, what else could she do?

“Hey,” She murmured, hand running up and down Elowyn’s back. The girl blinked up at her through her teary eyes. “How about we go sit on the couch and I’ll make us something to drink?”

Elowyn nodded, pulling away from Evelyn. She pulled her sleeve over her hand and wiped her face. “Yeah, alright.” She nodded, clearing her throat.

When the girls were finally sat down, it wasn’t long before the drinks were forgotten and Elowyn was curled up in Evelyn’s arms, retelling the events that had transpired over the last few months. Evelyn was crying herself, no longer able to hold it back while she sat there, arms wrapped around this girl. Jesus Christ, and she thought she had it bad?

There were thoughts to go and get the police involved. People would be hurt. This wasn’t gonna stop. She knew that the police wouldn’t do anything anyway, from her own experience. And besides, they’d already threatened her – there’s no way she’d ever ask them for help with shit like this again.

Elowyn’s face buried into Evelyn’s chest, her cries easing as she exhausted herself.

“I’m here.” Evelyn murmured, voice cracking. It felt so empty, so useless to say, but what else could she say? She couldn’t help Elowyn in any way other than to sit with her and do her best to protect her, should the cultist freaks ever show up.

She could offer her a room.

And she would, eventually. When Elowyn had the chance to settle in.

Before long Evelyn realized the brunette had gone still in her arms. She craned her neck to take a peek, heart fluttering at the sight of Elowyn asleep on her chest.

Guess she would be staying on the couch tonight, too.