Labelled by Blood

      We left the parlor shortly after. It was time for the forest. Jesse packed lunch for us. Leftovers his Dad made from last night. It was cold, but it was better than anything I had before.       We were sitting in a small plaza in the heart of town. There was a fountain that I liked, and it was singing a softer song than usual. Then, Jesse told me something that made me freeze.       "So, I told my parents where I'd be today," he said, taking a bite out of his bowl.       "Mm. Yeah?"       "Yeah. I told them I was going to be with you all day."       Oh. He hasn't done that since I first met his parents. I played with the mixed fried veggies in my own bowl. A smile crept up my face, a heat rose from my heart up to my ears. I hid my face.       "I'm sorry," he said.       "Right. I am, too."       "What for?"       I didn't answer. But I was sorry for being needy. He'd tell me I wasn't and that he liked spending time with me. Then I'd ask why he didn't just make us public. He'd lead the way and then we'd move on.       An arm wrapped around my waist. That was new. We haven't left the city, yet. He pulled me closer and I leaned into him. We finished lunch on the bench. I loved it when we just clicked with the silence. I didn't want to talk, he didn't either.       Lunch wrapped up. We moved on. The forest waited, and I felt a lot better after all of this. We moved quickly through the city, not wanting to draw attention to ourselves. And, by now, all church services were over and so the streets were teeming with life. But Duscadon was big enough that seeing the same face twice was pretty rare. Unless you frequent the same places. Then it was expected. That wasn't a problem right now.       We got to the edge of town. A car turned out the gate, passing by us. It headed down the dirt road into the unknown. That had to be the twins. They lived out there, somewhere. I wondered what their biggest worry was. Had they seen Collectors? They lived right next to the forest. I doubt we were the only ones seeing them, but no one else had mentioned them. Not the news, not other people.       Jesse urged me forward. We dove right into the forest and found our clearing. No Collectors. Jesse scouted for us, this time. He said no signs of anyone else being there. We set up camp and I reached for my stapler.       The world cracked before my eyes. My hand glitched. My heart spiked. My breathing picked up. My face snarled and I wanted to hurt something. Lightning flashed in the far distance.       Jesse's voice brought me back. "Alex, hey. I need you with me."       I took in a deep breath. I was scared. Is that what that was? "I'm fine," I said.       "Let's watch some fizzy fireworks," he said with a nod.       "Right."       That asshole was living in my head. He probably knows my name, too. He knew Jesse.       Jesse was stretching when I asked him my latest fear. "Hey. Jess?"       "What's up?"       Another strip of lightning. It was far, though, so we ignored it. Then, I just went for it. "That guy...." Nope. Never mind. I couldn't. The thought crawled back down my throat and along my spine.       "Alex. Don't let him control you like that."       I shuddered. He was right. I needed to man up and just move on. I wanted to. But it wasn't that easy. Jesse had to hear me out. Just for my sake.       "Does he go often? Like, did you recognize him?"       Jesse didn't have to think. He nodded. "Yeah. He comes around kind of random. I can usually piece people's schedules pretty easy. He just comes and goes whenever. I didn't know he was going to do that, though. I'm sorry."       The wind picked up and the temperature dropped. Lightning strikes in the horizon seemed relentless, but they still weren't close enough to clap. I felt like a kid. Like I was about to ask my friend's cool older brother to stand up for me. That was pathetic. I had to stand up for myself.       "No. You didn't make him do that."       Jesse shrugged. Silence blanketed us like the clouds that turned the sky a gray void. My fear was confirmed. That creep probably knew Jesse. And now he has both of our names. I had to let it go for now. It was high time we shot up some metallic and glossy cans. We made our own rain. At least until the real stuff came pouring down. A few hours later.       We were in the middle of drilling something new when the torrential rain caught us: hand gestures. They were the closest we had to silent communication. And because of my range, I would almost always have Jesse at the forefront and in my sight. We had a few basic ones to start: a flat hand chopping down meant push forward. Going up meant back away. A closed fist was stop or ease up. A finger twirl meant scout around. If it shot up with the twirl, then I had to pack it up and get ready to move out. Then there was the one Jesse insisted on having: a closed fist splaying out. A firework. It meant to let loose and gun down whatever was in our sights.       Rain came in sheets. We made great progress on getting used to these hand signs. Really, Jesse used them and I was on standby until he needed me to take action. It was feeling like I was his shadow. Not in a bad way. But in the way that a shadow is an extension of you and gives the sun meaning. Whoa, okay, Alex, that was a bit much. I was just playing support. He was the Frontline, I made sure to cover his back. And sides. And pick off any other threats. While also being aware of everything around us.       We started for home. The walk back through the forest was flooded. Patches of grass and mud mixed into a boggy marsh that caked my boots with every step. My clothes were soaked by the time we exited the forest's edge. We ran back to the city. I slipped on the bridge, nearly twisting my ankle and busting my head. Jesse caught me and pulled me back to my feet. I chose to admire his reactions than think about how close I was to ending up in the hospital.       The rest of the way to the city was less nerve wracking. We found an alcove right outside the arcade and sat down at some metal tables set out. Through the rain-spattered windows, I saw flashing swirls of purples, teals, reds, and oranges. The sounds of the rhythm games booming was nearly muted through the walls, but we could still hear the windows shake from the bass and the sudden bursts of applause and cheers made us laugh. I noticed two figures that hung close to the window near me. The shorter one, presumably a girl, had a sling around her shoulder. Ouch. I wondered if they hurt their arm because of some slick rain.       Jesse looked at me, his eyes lingered in admiration. I giggled, my heart skipping a beat.       "Let's go in," he said, motioning towards the arcade with his head. "Have some fun."       My face grew tense and I shook my head. "Arcade? And Me? No."       "Why not? I'll win ya a big stuffie and maybe some sour straws."       I scoffed. "I can win those myself. I mean the sour straws."       He laughed and ruffled my wet hair. The warmth of his hand sent a shiver down my spine. I shook my head.       Arcades seemed perfect. They were dark. They were usually loud and crowded. I'd blend in. Be just another face to the world around me. But their pros where also where my problems with them came from. They were too loud. Too crowded.       "Fine. Where, then?" He asked.       I smiled. It was like he read my mind. "Let's just go out to dinner. Cheap pizza sounds kind of awesome right now."       There was a perfect really bad pizza buffet place just down the ways a little. It's what I needed. Nothing fancy, nothing flashy.       He stood up and offered a hand. I took it without a second thought. Just like how he didn't bash me for wanting something trashy. We left the arcade and got to the pizza parlor pretty quickly and found it pretty empty. The rain probably scared off a lot of people who weren't already out. We stood out a bit with how sopping wet we were, but we didn't care.       We paid for the buffet and put it away. Slice after slice. Dessert pizza after dessert pizza. We must've been there for a while because an employee asked us if we were doing okay. Not in a malicious way. But they also never did that. Jesse and I couldn't help but laugh about it after we left. From there, we headed home. I recharged our vestiges on the way, and then we made it. My house.       "Alright," Jesse said, clicking his tongue. "Guess here we are."       "Right." That was all I wanted to say.       "Okay."       We stood in the rain. It was getting lighter. But the quiet between us drowned out the pattering rain. I wanted to say something. Invite him in. Mom and Dad didn't care, anyways. Why not?       But my question never came out. And I didn't know why.       "I'll make sure you get inside safe," he said.       I swallowed. Nodded. "Right. Thank you."       He put an arm around my shoulder and kissed my cheek. I was sure my face made a tomato look pink. I snuggled close. Then he pulled away. I took a step forward. Then another. I found my stride, as much as I didn't want to. I got to the door and my hand rested on the doorknob.       "I'll see you tomorrow at school," Jesse called out.       "Tomorrow," I echoed.       Then I twisted and knob and stepped inside. I didn't even know what time it was or anything. I just know that I ate a home cooked lunch and hot pizza. The rain didn't even get in the way of us hanging out. This was an, almost, perfect Sunday.       My parents were in the living room reading books. They didn't read a lot, and I couldn't see the covers of their books. When I walked into the kitchen to grab a glass of water, Mom spoke up.       "Alex? That you?" She asked.       "Just me, yeah."       "Right. You're home earlier than usual."       I nodded to myself. "Right, the rain didn't let us do a whole lot today."       My parents didn't answer. I gulped down my glass and then went to my room. I was halfway through closing the door when Dad spoke.       "You know. Jesse's allowed in the house."       I froze. I knew that, duh. But Dad never mentioned him by name. And they were actually talking, today. I didn't know what to do or say. It'd been so long since we had a normal conversation.       "I know," I started, "but he has stuff to do today."       I jinxed it. They didn't answer me again. I looked out my window and sighed. The flowers in my bouquet were as beautiful as ever. And the rain had started to really pass. But I was freezing. Somehow I didn't feel that cold when I was out walking in the cold wind with Jesse. But now? I felt as though the house was set colder than usual. I needed a shower.       I grabbed some cute pajamas with little bears on them. They were soft and really comfortable. And I didn't have to worry about someone being a creep in my own home, so I could really wear whatever. I got to the bathroom and peeled of the cold and damp clothes before stepping into the shower and turning on the faucet. That turned out to be a big mistake when an arctic spray of water danced down my body. It got warm eventually, but it took too long.       The hot water was lovely and the steam filled the room, making it harder to breath in but making each breath feel like a hug. I stood in the near-boiling water for far too long but it was the perfect way to scrub away the filth.       My bangs hung over my eyes when wet, and it reminded me that people see me the way I want them to. I'd been hiding behind baggy clothes for so long, I forget what I looked like underneath it all. I looked at my array of scents. From concrete smells like "jasmine waves" to concepts so vague it was best not to think about them, like "blue sports rush."       I went for something right down the middle: "sweet clouded dreams." Vanilla. It was vanilla. But it was damn good. And not overpowering.       With the faucet now shut, I dried myself off and lotioned. I had a matching set for each scent. Body wash, lotion, and the matching perfume or cologne. Mom used to buy me so many different ones for any occasion. Nowadays, I get birthday and Christmas.       I got dressed and looked at myself in the mirror. I was feeling good about myself, again. A pang of guilt washed over me. Then I felt disgusted. I left and crawled into bed. Jesse texted. He wanted to know if we had any homework due in calculus. I told him "duh." Then sent got out of bed and sent him the answers.       He hearted my text. I smiled like a fool drunk on liquid courage. But it made the disgust vanish. I passed out pretty shortly after.