Work Text:
***Trigger Warning: Alcoholism***
"I ruined everything." Chase sits on the couch, tears in his eyes as he stares at the image on his phone. It was a picture of his family. His two beautiful kids standing at the front, beaming at the camera. Stacy was kneeling behind them, her lips curved into a beautiful smile. Next to her was handsome man with a grin on his face. His left arm was around Stacy and his right hand was on the shoulder of Chase's son. Tears stream down Chase's face, falling onto the screen. He hasn't seen Stacy so happy in years. They all look happy. "Do they even miss me?" he sobs.
Chase trembles, his fingers clutching his hair. He wants to... No. ***Needs*** to drown them out. He glances at the whiskey bottle on the table across the room. He shouldn't. He told himself to be strong...
*Don't you dare look at him in the eye.*
But he can't take it anymore. He has to wash the pain away. Chase stands up and walks to the other side if the room. He feels the smooth, cool glass of the bottle as he twists off the cap.
*Hold on.*
Chase puts the bottle up to his lips and takes a big swig of whiskey.
After drinking a full bottle, Chase stumbles to the bathroom, whiskey bottle in hand. He puts the bottle down on the counter and looks into the mirror. His vision is fuzzy around the edges, as he looks at his reflection. He looks like crap. His eyes are red from the tears and there are bags under his eyes. As Chase looks into the mirror, he swears he sees his reflection shift.
*Say goodbye... *
He notices a sinister smile on his reflection's face, and he takes a step back. It blinks and its eyes turn pitch black. A cut forms on the creature's neck, spilling blood down its throat. The creature chuckles as a pained expression forms on Chase's face.
"Pathetic. You were doing so well, too. You were sober for a week. What would Stacy say?" the demon growls.
"Leave me alone, Anti," Chase mumbles. Anti glitches and tilts his head. Then, Chase hears Anti begin to hum softly.
*As we dance with the devil tonight.*
He's hasn't noticed before, but something about Anti is off. Chase can't put a finger on it. Why was he holding back? Why doesn't Anti kill him? He shakes away his thoughts. It doesn't matter.
"Get out of here, Anti. Don't you have anything better to do?" Chase grumbles.
"You were never good enough for them," Anti continues, "You are a failure, and that's all you'll ever be." Anti's voice surrounds Chase, his voice ringing out in a calm, clear tone.
"Sh-shut up," Chase stammers. He shakes and clenches his fists. Why can't Anti leave him be?
Anti stares at Chase, a wide grin forming on his face as the drunken man fell deeper into insanity.
"They don't love you. They never loved you. And why should they?"
"I said SHUT UP!!!" Chase snapped. He reaches over, grabbing the empty whiskey bottle by the neck. He raises it high above his head before slamming it into the mirror, the shards of glass showering over him.
*I won't last long. In this world, so wrong.*
Chase collapses on the ground, weeping as he covers his face with his hands. He lies on the ground surrounded by the shards of the mirror that caused him so much torment. If only he had recognized the face in the mirror.