Chapter 24 The Vigilante #2
“I find it in poor taste that you would think I’d sink so low as to imitate the lunatic who is actually stalking you.
Besides, I’d be much better at it; you’d never know I was out there.
” She laughed, a beautiful sound given the topic was a rather serious one, but her dark humor was something I could appreciate.
“You’re too big, you’d stick out in a crowd,” she helped herself to more tortilla chips.
“That’s where you’re wrong, it’s all about blending in, knowing your victim, and knowing how to remain unseen even when you’re in plain sight,” I liked teasing her, getting her to argue with me.
“Well, yeah, you’d have to blend in, can’t exactly go around in a hockey mask, wielding a machete and expect your target not to notice you.”
“Those movies should have ended after the third one. No way should that giant psycho ever have made it to Manhattan, let alone outer space.” I ate a little bit myself, enjoying her company more than the food.
“Which is why only losers who like the gore instead of an actual story love that franchise. There’s way better out there, both visually and psychologically stimulating. Stalking babysitters, for example, now that’s a classic setup for a Halloween horror movie.”
“You mean the ones where they’re always making the mistake of running upstairs, never checking to make sure the killer is really dead, and surprised when he pops back up again in the final scene to kill the last girl standing?
” She made a face at me, obviously a little displeased that I used a little logic against her argument.
“He doesn’t always kill the last girl. Virgins always survive.”
“I wouldn’t want to live if I were that old and still a virgin, at that point I’d just let him impale me with the knife,” she laughed, nearly dropping some of the white sauce on her black sweater from a chip held precariously in her hand.
“What about you? How would you die in one of your beloved films?”
Rae sat for a moment, mulling it over while eating, and I found myself realizing I could easily fall into a comfortable habit with her.
I could picture us outside these walls, eating in a real restaurant, or at my apartment.
The scenes played out like a movie in my mind—how she could be someone I wanted to be around for both the exciting and mundane times.
“Is that a trick question so you can psychoanalyze whatever I say?”
“Consider this a less formal therapy session. Besides, we’re only discussing a world of fiction, right?”
“Fictionally, then I wouldn’t survive past the initial outbreak if it was a zombie movie, especially if it was those unrealistic ones where they move like they’re amped up on steroids and shit.
Serial killer movie? I think I stand a decent chance.
I watch enough documentaries—I think I could at least survive until the final scene. ”
“You’re forgetting about all the paranormal ones.”
“Easy, I’d bathe in holy water and get a crucifix tattoo before saging the place.
Ouija boards are strictly forbidden, and if anyone acts possessed, they’re going to be left to fend for themselves.
I hate to say it. Most of those plots are easily avoidable and are only made because of people’s sheer stupid choices. ”
“Fair enough, although I always like it when the tough guy tries to intimidate the entity and ends up getting his ass kicked. Those scenes are always funny to me.” She snorted, my statement apparently amusing.
From there, the conversation flowed almost effortlessly. With my profession, I’d always found it easy to get a read on people, know how to engage with them, and pick up on subtle body language that helped me better converse with them. Around Rae, I found she picked up on me almost just as well.
Throughout my life, I’d always found people shied away from engaging too much with me.
My size was intimidating to say the least, and maybe people knew there was something more than just a little dangerous beneath the surface.
I’d had friends growing up; I had a small handful of friends now, but it wasn’t new to me when someone didn’t want to disagree with something I said.
I liked to think it was my charisma that swayed them, but I wasn’t that self-absorbed, people were influenced by others' outward appearance.
Rae wasn’t a stranger to that. Maybe that’s why she was so open and combative with me, providing me with stimulating discussions and amusing arguments.
She was used to being judged by her outward appearance as well.
When people looked at her, they saw the scars; they formed a skewed perception of what type of person they thought she was without being privy to her history.
Her heart, that lay beneath the flesh she’d ruined at her own hands, was something I was glad most people didn’t get to see.
It was selfish, the way I thought about hoarding it all to myself, but I honestly didn’t care.
Let me be selfish. I was willing to put in whatever effort it was going to take to see her smile without reservation.
When she did, when she thought no one was looking, her smile was unrestrained and the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.
It glowed now, under the light of the artificial candles as we discussed her favorite movies, books, and her dreams. Not just for when she got out of the clinic, but her real dreams, what she wanted out of life.
This stay was just going to be a tiny blip on her radar; soon, it wouldn’t even register with her.
She'd come to realize that this incident wasn’t going to be what defined her.
We talked and ate until the hour dwindled down, and I had to take her back to the group before my next client.
Stashing the candles and tablecloth in my bag to take home, and throwing out the take-out containers, I took her back down to her ward, safely depositing her in her room with her new stuffed animal.
It was the best I could do under the circumstances.
If I could provide her with her real animal, I would have in a heartbeat, just to give her that peace of mind that he was with her.
The stuffed animal would have to be a good enough substitute for now.
Her face was soft as she hugged it to her chest and told me goodbye, almost innocent in the way she clutched it.
I wished more than anything I could have reached out and kissed her, or held her, before I had to get my next patient, to let her know that I wanted to comfort her during this time as well.
Soon enough, I’d be able to.