Act 3 | Chapter 7

As I sat there in the shower, my gaze drifted over to my bandaged hand. The cloth is used to cover whatever wound underneath was now soaked, and clinging to my skin. As I unwrapped it, the sticky substance used to hold it in place wore off, and I was able to see just what had happened. A cut went across the palm of my hand. From what, I have no idea. The wound was fresh and tender, and as water poured onto it, it stung. Burned. I quickly pulled my hand out of the way of the showerhead and shivered a little. My mind was still clouded, and aching. Nothing from last night seemed to make any sense. There were Riley and I... but then also a man. I can't remember what he looked like, or who he was. His face was covered by something. God, it hurts to even think about.

I turned off the shower and stepped out. I didn't have any clean clothes in the bathroom with me, I didn't care to grab any. I just wanted to drink some water at the time. Riley's seen me naked before though, it's no big deal. I dried myself off with the towel and stepped out of the shower. The cut on my palm seemed to stop bleeding for the time being, but I still wanted to wrap it up with a bandage just in case. Riley stared at me as I walked out, though not in the way she usually does. Instead of the usual lust in her eyes when she sees me like this, there was something else. Riley frowned and looked away. She was folding her clothes and stuffing them into her suitcase after changing.

"You almost ready to go?" I asked her. She didn't give me any response aside from a simple nod and a sigh. "Are you okay?" Was my next question. Again, no response. She looked shaken, scared even. It wasn't like her to be acting like this. Quickly, I changed into a simple shirt, and shorts before trying to get her attention again: "Riley."

"Yes?" She finally responded, closing her suitcase and glancing over at me slightly.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Zoey," Riley replied in an almost harsh tone.

"You don't look okay?"

"I'm. Fine."

I looked at her in silence, and she did the same to me. Giving her a silent and subtle nod, I went back to packing my things, but not before wrapping more gauze around my hand to help with the wound. I was starting to get concerned for Riley. She hasn't acted like this before. The two of us were quiet, and it wasn't until I was done packing up, and ready to leave that she spoke again. But it was a question I never expected her to ask me.

"Zoey." She started, "Have you killed people before?"

I suddenly froze. The joints in my arms and legs stiffened, as I slowly turned my head to look at her. "What kind of question is that?"

"W- What?" I tilted my head.

"Have you killed people before?" Riley repeated herself.

"I... Haven't killed anyone," I replied, speechless. In all honesty, I couldn't think of a single thing to respond with. I had to tread carefully, "You think I've...?"

"Zoey. There's a difference between being confident in your daily life and at gunpoint."

Nothing Riley was saying made any sense to me. I couldn't understand it. However, it hit me then. The night before. As I tried remembering, my head started to ache again.

"Riley," I frowned, "What happened last night?"

"You don't remember!" She practically screamed, sounding genuinely pissed off. It took her a moment to calm down, and then she sighed, "Makes sense actually. You were drunk."

"Riley, What happened last night," I repeated myself. She gave me a long and hard stare before speaking in an almost whisper. Her hands shook and her leg's wobbled a bit.

"You... killed someone."

My heart skipped a beat and I felt as though I was going to collapse onto the bed.

"I... I killed someone?"

"You didn't just kill him, Zoey. You..." Riley teared up a bit. "We were just... talking. The two of us. You were drunk after only half a can, and then... someone started walking over to us." She whipped the tears from her eyes and sat down. She needed a moment. The more and more she explained it though, the more it came back to me. I had just stumbled onto my back, my shirt getting soaked by dirty water from the puddle in the alleyway. Riley bent over and helped me to my feet.

"Woah, easy." She said, chuckling.

"I want another~" I could barely speak, my speech impaired and my words slurred.

"No, You've had enough." Riley put the rest of the cans back into the plastic bag, "We'll save more tomorrow or something." she explained with a smile. "Come on, let's head back."

She grabbed my hand and tried leading me out of the alleyway, only for us to get interrupted by some voice. It was a mans. Deep and scratchy. We both turned our heads and watched as the tall figure walked from the shadows. He wore a black beanie over his supposed bald head, judging by the lack of hair sticking out. His beard was a mess and looked like it had just been growing in patches across his face. The coat he had was covered in several bloodstains.

"Where you two off to in such a rush?" He asked. Riley seemed to freeze up at that moment.

"J- Just our hotel." She quickly explained.

"Nah, you don't need to go to one of those fancy places. You have everything you need right here." He held his arms out and chuckled. "Nice warm bed," He pointed to the dumpster full of old bags, "Shelter from rain," His hand gestured up at the scaffolding above the alleyway, "And all the money in the world," The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a small snub nose revolver. I may have been drunk, but at the sudden shock of the man's appearance, the feeling of soberness came over me. "I'm sure you familiar with what's going to happen next."

"Zoey, Run." Riley quickly said, backing up a bit.

"Don't bother." He chuckled, "You two won't make it very far. So why don't the two of you come closer before one of ya gets hurt."

Riley had frozen completely. Her legs were shaking and her lips were quivering.

"Riley... just do as he says," I responded, reaching out into my back pocket to grab my wallet. As I did, My eye spotted an old bottle lying near my feet. It was within arms reach if I could bend over just a bit, but how. With a gun pointing at me, there was no way for me to grab it without him shooting me. My heart was racing. This scenario felt familiar, only I was on the opposite side this time. I looked at Riley as she grabbed her own wallet, and took a step forward, towards the man.

"That's right, come closer. Give me every last cent you two have on ya."

"O- Okay," I said. A plan had formed in my head, and all I had to do was act fast, or both of us could get hurt. His finger was on the trigger, and judging from the look in his eye, he was out to kill someone tonight, whether we gave him the money or not. The bloodstains on his jacket all but confirmed it.

I sprung into action. Quickly I tossed the wallet over to him, and thankfully, it stumbled out of his hand as he tried to grab it. He bent over to reach for the wallet, moving the gun slightly away from us. That's when I reacted, reaching for the bottle at my feet, and lunging towards him. His eyes met mine just as I swung the bottle and smashed it against his arm, causing him to drop the gun. The bottle shattered, leaving a shard of glass on his arm. Blood seeped from the open wound, and he stumbled back.

"Bitch!" But just as he finished speaking, I had already moved. The remaining bottle pieces in my hand, that being the top of it, where jabbed right into his throat. The glass pierced and ruptured the skin, causing blood to start gushing out from the open wound. I left the bottle in his throat and kicked him in the stomach, trying to push him away. The man went limp and stumbled against the alley wall, and soon died from blood loss. His coat now more drenched in blood than before, only this time it was his own. When I looked back at Riley, I could see the expression on her face. She was completely, and utterly terrified. Her eyes wide open, and her mouth gaping.