MTU: Hard To Look At - Chapter 18 (Patreon)

I thought the prior Monday had been unusual. The atmosphere at school was unreal. Everyone already knew that Jenny had dumped Tommy. Neither of them would tell anyone why and the number of often conflicting rumors were unreal.

I had to stop a few of the rumors: Jenny had caught Tommy in bed with me; I had petrified Jenny because Tommy wouldn’t date me; and the funniest one: Tommy, Jenny, and I had had a three-way and now Jenny only wanted to date me.  I had heard that last rumor with different woman and a couple different men in my place. I must have told a dozen people to leave me out of the Jenny and Tommy drama.

I was dreading biology and I was right to do so. As soon as Ryan saw me, he was in my face, “How’d you get Jenny to dump Tommy?”

“I didn’t do anything. Tommy got her to dump him all by himself.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“What you believe doesn’t mat--” Suddenly my head weighed a ton and I dropped to the floor. My own hair snakes felt like baseball bats as the struck my head. I squeezed my eyes shut in pain.

Mr. Heinz shouted, “Let her go.”

“Fuck off, you simp. Get out of here. I need to talk to the monster here.”

I heard the room clear out. My right arm lay across my chest and made it hard to breath. I couldn’t even slide it off and I felt a rib break. I cried out.

Ryan was shouting at me. And I couldn’t do anything.

I couldn’t do anything. There was ringing in my ear canal. I couldn’t do anything. I could taste blood in my mouth. I couldn’t do anything.

I – I could do one thing. I opened my eyes. Instantly all the weight crushing me disappeared.

“Fuck. She zapped him,” Jared said. He ran for the door.

I zapped him and whoever else was in the room. I got up. Ryan stood there like a statue. I placed my palm on his chest and took a couple sips. My head cleared a little and my breathing hurt a bit less. Enough for me to shuffle out of the room. My right arm hung limply at my side. I wheezed when I inhaled and there was a metallic taste in my mouth. I wasn’t sure if my inner eyes were closed. I pushed the door open. The rest of the biology class were all standing right there. Several of them shouted to call the nurse.

Mr. Heinz got in front of me and said, “Where do you think you are going?”

“Move.”

He muttered something and got out of my way. I was limping toward the nurse’s office when Ross appeared and picked me up. Next thing I knew I was in a chair in the nurse’s office. Mom was there. I heard the words concussion and bruising before I lost consciousness.

* * *

I woke up. Carefully, I opened only the outer lids. The light in the room was too bright. My snakes formed a light barrier over my eyes.

“She must be awake.”

“Who’s there?” I said.

A masculine voice said, “I’m Cynthia. I’m a nurse here at the Clinic. I’ll get Dr. Lewis.”

“I’m here, too,” said Ross. “I’d kiss you but it would probably hurt. Your face is all bruised. You bruise in a kind of sickly greenish color.”

“I never needed to know that.”

“The first thing they’re going to ask you…”

“The first things I’m going to ask you,” Dr. Lewis said, “Is why is Mr. Cairns still a statue? He assaulted you nine hours ago.”

“Yes, that,” Ross said.

“I may have drained him a little when I got up.”

“Probably a good thing you did. Your brain was near the consistency of pudding after being subjected to more than ten gravities of force by the foolish boy.”

“I don’t really remember anything but yelling at the useless Mr. Heinz.”

“Jameson already put him on probation,” Ross said. “A lot of students complained that he had never done anything to stop Ryan from bullying you, myself included. Ryan will probably get expelled as well.”

“Can you speak to a police officer?”

“Not without a lawyer present,” my mother said, arriving suddenly.

“Can you turn off the lights?”

“Yes, we can do that.”

“Where’s Elliot?”

“There’s a limit on the number of visitors,” Ross said. “He said he could talk to you later.”

* * *

After the police interview, I was famished and human food did nothing to curtail the hunger. Dr. Adelaide caused me to destroy a dozen more cameras as she tried to capture what was happening as I partially drained over two dozen lab rabbits and mice. It was barely enough. But my mind was much clearer afterward.

Ryan was a statue for a day and a half. I must have taken more than a few sips. Every time I think about that I realize I must been near death when I drank from him. He was charged with attempted murder I believe.

My arm was still in a cast when I left the Clinic two days after the incident. Even the healer at the Clinic said she couldn’t do anything until it was set properly and allowed to heal on its own for a week. The contusions on my face healed and, aside from the cast, I looked like I did a week ago.

The night I got home I walked out into the woods alone. I didn’t turn into my snake form because of the cast on my arm. I created a large menagerie of stone woodland critters. I didn’t drain any of them dry. Just enough to make sure I wouldn’t turn into my snake form by accident.

Elliot was on the back porch as I returned from the woods. He pointed back into the forest and said, “How many experience points did you get?”

“Probably none. I’m too high a level to benefit from squirrels and birds.”

“I meant from Ryan.”

“More than I ever wanted.”

“Where’s Marie?”

“She figured you’d just want to talk to me. Not that you don’t like her company,” he quickly added. “She just thinks there are some friendships that are extra special. Like ours.”

I sat next to him and leaned my head against his shoulder.

He rubbed my shoulder and patted a few on my headsnakes. “You okay?”

“Fine. Just need a shoulder for a few minutes.”

“Take your time.”

* * *

I was actually cheered like some kind of hero when I returned to school on Thursday. Everyone wanted to sign my cast and thank me for getting Ryan expelled. I heard a lot of tales of heavy clothing falling off of the women and guys having their balls suddenly weigh a lot in the most painful manner.

At lunch, my new girlfriends had me sit down while they fetched my lunch. I was sitting there alone when my snakes saw Tommy heading toward me. I couldn’t read his intent.

He stopped at a respectable distance and loudly said, “Medusa, I want to apologize to you for any grief I’ve ever caused you. I don’t expect your forgiveness. I don’t deserve it. But after what Ryan did to you, I feel awful. I don’t remember which of us decided to pick on you all those years ago. But, if it was me, it was the dumbest thing I ever did. I’m sorry.”

He stood there a moment and then turned and walked away. Behind him a dozen guys, including Elliot and my old crew were standing waiting for something to happen.

“Thank you, Tommy.” I said.

He turned back and said, “No. Don’t thank me. I don’t deserve it.”

“Okay. I acknowledge what you said.”

“That is more than I can ask for.” And then he left. And the crowd dispersed.

“Did that really just happen?” Melody said, holding two trays of food.

I took the one she was holding toward me. “Thanks. Yeah, it really happened.”

* * *

It was May, the night was the prom. My stomach was in knots. I was positive this was not caused by my feeding hunger. I had just fed a few days before. The high school I attended had one prom for the seniors and juniors and one prom for the sophomores and freshmen. It had been six months since my twist and almost four months since the incidents with Jenny, Tommy, and Ryan.

None of that was on my mind as I was tying cream and scarlet bows around the necks of my hairsnakes. Even Dirk submitted to getting a bow – he preferred the red one. I was wearing the beautiful dress I had Mom buy when I first twisted. My makeup was more prominent than I usually would wear. My nails were freshly painted and I was wearing the tallest high heels I’d ever worn.

I still had at least five minutes until Ross would be here to pick me up. I was standing in front of the mirror on the inside of my closet door. It was the safest place for a mirror in my room. Mom suddenly appeared in my doorway. “They’re here,” she said. “Oh, those bows are adorable.”

“Thanks. I’m ready.”

She was downstairs before me. I started down the stairs as Ross entered the house. He was wearing a full tuxedo with an orange cummerbund. I was fully aware of how my black nylon sheathed legs poked out and tucked back inside the folds of my dress as I descended the stairs. When I reached the floor, Ross was still half a foot taller than me.

“Are you wearing platform shoes?”

“I knew you’d wear those heels.”

“I wanted to be taller than you.”

“Fat chance.”

I laughed.

“Let’s get a pic, dear.”

I stood on his left and he put his arm around my waist. Just before the pic was taken I kissed his cheek.

“Medusa!” Daddy said. “This time look at the camera.”

I just smiled bigger and Daddy took a couple more pics.

“Sorry, I’m late,” Elliot said, walking in. “Woah. I feel like a munchkin. Oh, you finally did the little bows. The girls are going to be jealous.”

“We should get going,” Ross said. “Marie was expecting us ten minutes ago.”

“I’m sure she’s glad for the extra time.”

She was. Marie was wearing a scandalous, for high school, red dress with a plunging neckline. The four of us posed for pics taken by Marie’s aunt.

From there we went to the dance. It was being held at a local country club ballroom. As we passed through the lobby, I spotted someone I had to say hello to.

“Dr. Hauser,” I said.

He was talking with an older gentleman and a woman I didn’t know. “Medusa,” he said. He put his arms around me and gave me a gentle hug. “It’s good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you looking happy.”

“I’m sure the last time you saw me, I was devastated. Gillian, this is Medusa and her boyfriend?”

“Ross,” Ross said extending his hand.

Douglass shook Ross’ hand.

Gillian said, shaking my hand “They get bigger every generation.”

“Gillian O’Malley owns an art gallery downtown.”

“Did she do the statue of Duke?”

“Both of them,” I said.

“I meant the fake one. It is such an uncanny likeness of the original Duke.”

“I hope your father told how touched I was when he passed along the replica statue you made.”

“He did.”

“Could you do more works like that? I’m sure I could sell them.”

“I don’t have anything finished.”

“Here’s my card. Call me when you have five or six items you want to sell. We’ll see how it goes from there.”

“Thank you, Ma’am. It was good to see you, Dr. Hauser.”

“You, too.”

Ross took the card from me and put it in his pocket. As we were entering the ballroom, Marie was waiting for me to enter. “Did I see you talking Mrs. O’Mallory?”

“Um, yes. Why?”

“Does she want you to do an exhibit at her gallery? Can I be a statue at the exhibit?”

“Marie, she saw a sculpture I made and asked if I had any more.”

“To display?”

“To sell. I don’t think you want to be sold as a statue.”

She didn’t agree immediately.

“Marie?”

“Well, obviously I wouldn’t want it to be forever. I would miss Elliot for one thing. But, you know I’d like to be in a gallery as a statue. Just for a week. Maybe two.”

“Aw, you’d miss me,” Elliot said. “I could deal with a week or two as well. While you were in the gallery I could tell people my girlfriend is a real work of art.”

Several of us groaned.

“What? It’s not like I’d take her for granite.”

“Elliot…”

I looked up at Ross. “We could be dancing.”

He bowed and then held out his hand to me. He said, “Would the lady do me the honor of her first dance this evening?”

“Of course.” I took his hand and he led me away. I heard someone complain about their boyfriend not being as gallant.

The song playing was a slow song. I was glad to be wearing the high heels as we could dance cheek to cheek without one or both of getting a stiff neck.

As we slowly swayed to the music, Ross said, “Elliot is a wonderful goofball. I’m glad he’s your best friend.”

“I’m glad you like him. Do you have a best friend?”

“I have an opening in that department if you’d like to fill it.”

“I can’t be your best friend. I’m your girlfriend.”

“You are? We’re a couple?”

“You don’t think so?”

“I wasn’t sure what you thought.”

“Could have asked.”

“I thought I just did.”

“Could have asked sooner than at the dance.”

“I didn’t want to spook you.”

“I’m scarier than anything that merely spooks.”

“Not to me.”

He tilted his head toward mine and the room got dark. Our lips met. I realized later all my hairsnakes had surrounded our faces so no one could see us kissing. And they’d all closed their eyes to leave me in the dark like a proper kiss. At the moment, I just enjoyed the softness of his lips and the flutter in my stomach as we kissed.

A few songs later, we met Stacy, Melody, and Tess and their dates on the dance floor. Melody could not stop talking about how cute my hairsnakes looked in their bows. As the song ended, we all sat down at a table on the perimeter of the room. The guys asked the ladies if they wanted drinks and disappeared to get them.

“Does everyone have condoms?” Tess said. She had an assortment in her bag.

“No. And I won’t need one,” I said.

Melody removed a couple and put them in her own bag. “Thanks, I always forget.”

“Just in case,” Tess said.

“I’m good.”

“She’ll be fine,” Stacy said. “Ross is unbelievably considerate.”

“Isn’t he?” Melody said.

Pete and Jim waved and walked over to talk to me. They usually didn’t come around when I was with the girls.

“Hi, Medusa. Ladies.”

“Hi, guys. Here stag?”

“Yeah,” Pete said.

“I didn’t want Pete to feel lonely.”

“That’s very thoughtful, Jim.”

Jenny Wu sat down at the table. “I hope you don’t mind if I join you.”

“Not at all. These gentlemen were just expressing their feelings for the other,” Stacy said.

“Don’t feel bad,” Jenny said. “If I can end up going to a dance alone, going stag can’t be all that bad. It does make it harder to dance.”

“Pete is the least creepy of my old friends.”

“Is he? Are you?”

Pete stuttered out, “Not creepy at all.”

She got up and took his hand. “Let’s dance.”

“Later, Medusa.”

“I should be upset,” Jim said. “But, yeah, Pete’s less creepy than I am.”

The guys returned. Elliot gave Jim a hug hello. “Where’s Pete?”

“Dancing with Jenny Wu.”

“Really?”