Chapter Text
The clock had just hit twelve in the afternoon. The booming teenagers all spewed out of the large building, freeing themselves to the range of activities the average teenager does. JD scowled at their faces, finding himself merged with the crowd for the first time in a while. He always waited inside, patient until the last dark painted soul left the generic looking school to go smoke some weed or torment another girl.
This time however, he had been a little too impatient, yearning for a cup of frozen liquid from the best store in the entire universe. He reprimanded himself at the action, having to share air with all of the annoying bipeds that plagued the school.
He had a schedule set, just like any other school the only difference was the locker combination. Except of course, that there was no pretty ocean dressed girl at the end of the hallway. And that this time there was a couple meddling up in his life.
"Heeey there" Speaking of which, the first half of the orange approached him with his usual positive light. JD was partially sickened by the guy's attitude, wanting to brush him off to the abyss of avoiding. He then remember the vital information the little guy had and the important and rather generous mission he had offered without a gain in mind from his part, or so made apparent. He was still on edge on what both young ones would want out of his pockets once the deal was done.
"Caro wants a visit, been thinking we should get there now. No worries, there's a Seven Eleven on the way" Without confirmation, Daniel redirected JD'S steps towards the awaiting appartment, where JD would be led to open up about whatever bullshit was his life. He tried to be cooperative, he really did, but how could he when they were so... something. He appreciated their kindness, but he knew. Nobody had soul, not anymore, just Veronica Sawyer.
"Wanna do small talk?" Daniel's chiming voice spoke, smile as wide as a cartoon. JD just answered with a small nod.
JD had learned various aspects about the boy through the few weeks they had known each other. For starters, he was not able to shut up. There was always some kind of talking with him, most of the time on a one way street. JD thought he would be annoyed by the constant noise, but it was rather soothing to hear another person's thoughts as he walked to his destinations. It made him feel untrapped of his own cage where he was festered by the constant lack of blue light in his life.
Daniel started talking, his mouth running loose on the thoughts and feelings he had inside, sharing every bit of it with JD. He talked about cats, about roads, about trees and about clouds. For a moment, just a moment, JD wished he could just be like that. Not care about the rotten world around them, not care about the demons that plague it, not about his dad, not about the Heathers, not about anything but the good things. To just be able to think about Veronica Sawyer, and make her happy. To be able to enjoy the breeze and the sun, and all the things around and more.
He then shook his head, stopping the train of thought that had that shipment. The worries made him stronger. He eyed the boy by his side, scowling at his smile, his posture, his aura. That guy knew nothing about the world. So much less than what he could be. The pain had thought him so many things, things this guy would never understand. It made him better.
He bit his lip as those thoughts invated his mind.
They finally arrived at the store, it's neon lights standing out from the pale colors of the afternoon. They both entered, the bell dangling on top of the door ringing in a high pitched tone announcing their presence to the other costumers.
Immediately JD's hand twitched, not wanting to be around lower scum that had probably cursed the world with their own hands. That girl over there probably bullied young braces wearing girls at her school, and the man over there may just have kicked out a poor family out of their home for the lack of payment.
They both walked around the store in search of their own products. JD watched his companion go to the chips isle, placing in his hands different types of bags and treats. JD made his way to the back of the store, his line of movement familiar to all the times before. He grabbed a cup and poured the blue sugary liquid onto it, finding joy at the sound of the machine dispensing the delicious drink.
"Why do you like slushies so much? No judgement! Caro has a more than common addiction to caffeine" The question was unexpected, sending JD for a split second to a different Seven Eleven where red licorice was displayed on the counter and BBQ corn nuts were hanging not as far from the slushie machine. He blinked, looking at Daniel in the eyes once again.
Carolina had said to open up, open up how ever much he could to her and her boyfriend. He was never much to tell his tales, but he had already told this story once, and they knew a little bit more than a couple of small secrets.
"They freeze the pain. Blank me out from the weight of the world" He got straight to the point, not wanting to mention the schools, or his dad, or the lack of knowledge of the names around him other than Veronica and these two strangers that may or may not want to kill him. Daniel's eyes scrunched at his answer, seemingly searching for something in JD'S expression.
"Weight of the world?" They started walking towards the counter, seeing a line with a couple of people just before them. A wavy haired woman, left her spouse and kids for a rich man and life of luxury. A bald man with a mustache, a despicable man with no remorse for firing everyone under him.
"Yes. Having to deal with scumbags who think they are better than everyone else. Dudes who think they just can go up and take advantage of pretty little damsels. And spoiled girls who have life in a silver platter and decide to ruin everyone else's just to be served in golden silverware" His lips made contact with the bright red straw that connected the liquid in the cup to his aching brain. The rush numbed the thoughts, for a moment making him forget everything but the freezing that laid on top of him. And then the picture of a blue blazer being discarded in the light of the moon appeared on his mind and he was back on reality, acknowledging that the image was real, and that she was no longer there.
"And what about guys who feel the world is theirs by just the presence of death in their fingertips?" The wavy haired woman moved through the store, leaving the building and residing in her brand new shiny car. JD turned his piercing eyes at his companion when he heard his words, obviously picking up on the message behind them.
"What are you implying?" His voice was dark pitched, a wall forming around him as the feelings of a threat reached him. JD'S chest rose in defense, his grip on the cup tightening. He was being compared to the garbage of the world, the insult punching him in the chest and making his eyes turn a metaphorical shade of red.
"Isn't that right? You caused them pain just as they did to their subjects" Daniel's look never shifted to JD, fixated on the man before them setting the smal collection of items he had acquired. JD bit his lip, annoyed by the tranquil look on his face. The room around them started spinning a little as his heart ached, though precisely why he did not know.
"It's different. They were evil" He retaliated through his clenching teeth. He closed his eyes tight as he went back on memory lane, finding those moments. Spots of yellow green and red walking down the hall, scaring everyone into their dens like little rabbits. The same blurs sending a mean letter to an innocent girl, removing all her hopes and dreams. The red smudge screeching from far away when Veronica was there- and the last remaining Heathers and their stupid puppets shrinking his beautiful Veronica into the tears he so vividly remembers.
"A tyrant is a tyrant" Daniel stated as his hands moved to his pockets, finding a couple of ten dollar bills to pay for the goods in their hands. The bald man finally exited the store, having cash in his wallet thanks to his overpriced apartments. JD scowled as he saw him go and turned back to the debater. He was exchanging the money for the objects, smiling to the cashier as he did so.
"They didn't deserve happiness. They spread misery through the world, they had nothing good to offer" JD said once the cashier turned back to get something that was asked for, giving him time to talk.
Daniel did not answer immediately, too preoccupied in his exchange with the cashier to answer right way. They finally stepped aside with all their things, letting the bully girl pay for her Gatorade and Seventeen magazine.
"And you get to decide their fate? What are you? God?" Silence. They stopped walking, JD stopped walking.
"Isn't that what Heather Chandler thought? Her superior majesty got to rule the world because she had a nice pair of boobs and a 100 in charisma" Daniel said as he continued to walk, expecting JD to follow. Said boy's feet seemed to move on their own, interested on the words that were spilling out from Daniel's mouth.
They walked towards their destination, JD zooming out as he heard Daniel's voice.
"You think you are on top because you have a couple of guns and smart girl by your side" JD flinched at the mention of Veronica, going back to her hurt state after his maniacal rant at the undergrounds of the school. He remembered, their love was God. It was much more powerful than anybody around them, but there was no love anymore. He hurt her, he made her suffer.
"Let me get the keys" They had arrived at the entrance of Carolina's apartment. They were standing just in front of it, the golden numbers '618' engraved into the closed door. Daniel was seeking for the golden keys in his backpack, too disorganized to be able to find them in less than a minute. JD could hear the chiming of the keys in the distance, his eyes still perplexed on the door looming over him.
Suddenly the golden number slowly shifted from 618 to 922, simultaneously darkening the area around him until it was nothing but blackness and the door. JD felt an awful dreading sickness as he heard the chiming again. He led his hand to his stomach, yet discovered that the chiming came from his hand, pestering him even more. His eyes traveled to the hand, a reflective object trapped between his fingers.
A newly found copper key laid in his hand, the metal item clinking with the hoops and small gadgets connected to it. JD looked at it, transfixed with its meaningless presence. The object was telling him something, something he did not grasp or comprehend. He was terrified by it's existence, its arrival to his hand puzzling him to no avail.
His eyes then shifted towards the doorknob, more specifically the dark opening underneath it. The keyhole. His hand was drawn to it, like opposite magnets that could not be stopped. He tried to stop it. The hand- No, the key was moving on it's own, set to arrive to its destination. JD gulped down, unsure of the situation he was in.
The fingers that held the keys quivered in their path, making the objects collide into high pitched noises. The noises echoed through the empty nothingness that surrounded him, the waves reaching nothing but his own ears. His hand finally arrived at the entrance, penetrating the mechanism with the lonesome copper key.
The world, his surroundings, they seemed to spin in chaos as the key was turned, unlocking the bars that kept the wooden barrier shut.
The door was unlocked, then with a small push of the wind, it opened. It was slow, and JD did not dare to touch it, his eyes hypnotized by its steady movement. The door was now fully opened, and upon it, parallel to JD, was a mirror. A shiny mirror with rough edges and a clear surface. JD'S boots approached it, leading him directly to see upon it. It was like a mountain, ominous in existence, an idea much bigger than him, unmoving and true.
On the surface he did not find his own unfamiliar face. The reflection showed a much different picture. It was a strawberry blonde girl that was framed on the mirror, the girl wearing nothing but red. Her blue eyes followed him around, a perfect synchrony with his own movement. It was his reflection, it was Heather Chandler.
"JDDDD? JD!" The dark brown eyes of the boy gained focus at the sudden movement in front of them. A panela colored hand moving across his field of vision, hoping to catch his attention. He looked around, the world not as black as it had been. The door was now open, Daniel far long inside it, rummaging the place for a plate to pour the snacks. In the frame of the door was Carolina, her small hands going back to their normal position after regaining JD from the dimension he had blacked out to.
"Come right in! Make yourself comfortable. I'll serve some coffee" She made her way to let JD pass. He walked through, feeling not yet completely in his body, as if watching a movie about himself yet still controlling the body. He walked to the sofa he had previously settled in, the one near the window where he could see the city rumble in light of the afternoon.
In the background he could hear the couple muttering and chitchatting. Sounds to accompany the taunting thoughts that were peeking out in his head.
JD pondered back to that event. That vision? He closed his eyes and remembered. The taunting key that seemed so much larger than him, the perpetual door that could have been closed for an eternity, the solitary mirror that stared back at him. Those eyes, eyes following his every moment, limbs coordinating with his actions, lips that moved at the same time. It was a view to himself, a view he had not seen since forever and beyond.
He hadn't seen himself in the mirror for a long while.
Had Veronica seen him like that? Like a bitch who wanted to destroy everyone? He was going to that though, wasn't he? He wanted them all gone, all under his feet to show the world the mindless society they lived in. But those were Heather Chandler's steps as well, weren't they? He looked back at everything, his actions, his thoughts, his feelings. Veronica. She had been so sad, so distraught. He had hurt her, he had hurt her just as much as Heather did, if not worse.
Had he been wrong?
"Here ya' go" A cup of coffee was shoved into his face with not much delicacy. He looked up to the woman offering, her smile confident as she sipped on her own serving. He took upon the offer, letting the cup reach his lips, but not drinking, just blowing on it, making the grey smoke fly above and dissipate.
"Now, why don't we start the sessionsl" The girl sat down in her own chair, her clipboard and papers all by her side. He finally introduced the coffee in his system, feeling the warmth spread all around his body, almost as the blanket Veronica Sawyer once was. He looked out the window once more, hoping that if he concentrated enough he could see his own reflection rather than the bright lights of the city.