#gr0tesques

he had gone out following the blood trail, terrified at what he would find at the end of it and yet he hadn't been prepared for a lack of something. remy had thought there would be a person gravely injured, but there was nothing. the blood stopped, the phone retrieved. at least they could guess whose blood it was and yet when he returned back to the cabin he was told there was more than one person missing.

the relief when he saw julian and knew he wasn't among them was almost overwhelming, the guilt that followed equally so. he had wished it to be anyone aside from julian, and his sister, and he felt horrible for that. now though, all he could focus on was getting warm. he sat by the fire, changed out of wet clothes he'd gone out in, blanket around his shoulders but he was still shivering. remy shouldn't have stayed out as long as he did, it had been at least two hours, but he wanted to find answers.

"there was nothing. . . it all just, stopped." maybe the snow had covered the rest of it, but if not, what could cause the blood to just stop? even transporting the bodies, blood would still drip. they can't have disappeared without a trace. "what do you think it meant? the message on that phone? i. . . god, i've got a bad fucking feeling here, julian. like we should all leave even if it means hiking out of here and risking frostbite." he paused to look up at the other, chewing on his lower lip for a few moments. "please sit with me. we need to try and talk this over, gather the facts. you know everyone here better than i do." a beat, "i was worried. i thought maybe you or ellie and i--" he cut himself off, swallowing thickly as he looked down. "you both still mean a lot to me, despite the years."

he had gone from someone remy actively avoided, to someone he made excuses to spend more and more time with. smoking with him, getting high, it was what he looked forward to the most in the world. bad days after bad days, but nothing could rain on them if he knew he'd be seeing julian later, getting high with him and managing to actually unwind. their dynamic had shifted so heavily so quickly, even if the other didn't feel it, remy did.

he followed the usual schedule, and found himself in julian's room by eight that night, pulling out some spliffs he'd pre-rolled. "i've been practicing." he grinned, handing one to the other, "what do you think? gotta be better than the last time, right?" the last time, when the joint had practically fallen apart when lit. he was used to buying pre-rolled, but it was a worthy skill being able to roll your own, and one he'd endeavored to learn. "i brought groceries too, for when your munchies loving self inevitably gets hungry. you know, so i have more than ramen at my disposal to make you something with."