Elm Street

A soft melody woke her from her sleep. Ruby tossed and turned, trying to ignore it, but inevitably it drew her from her warm cocoon.

She slipped from her covers, grabbing a jacket to keep herself warm in the cold weather. Darz and Meers were nowhere to be seen and the more Ruby focused, the more it appeared nobody was in the house at all. Not even the smallest snore could be heard.

Ruby waited for a few minutes, impatiently jumping from one foot to the next before she decided to knock on Brad’s door. There was no response. Surely, this couldn’t be a dream. Last time, she had run out of the house in preparation for her attackers only to find that there were none and injured her leg in the process.

Ruby followed the lullaby down the stairs, past the kitchen and out onto the deck. Nobody sat there like she expected. The entire backyard had been deserted.

At the snap of a twig just in front of her, Ruby jumped to attention, backing up to the sliding door. The figure approached under the cover of night, unseen but heard.

More footsteps.

A growl.

It had reached the deck steps.

She threw open the sliding door, locking it just in time before the beast launched itself into the air. It slammed heavily against the glass, cracking it.

Not bothering to stick around, she swiveled on the ball of her foot and made a mad dash up the stairs. As soon as her feet hit the second floor, the glass below shattered with a fearsome boom.

Ruby stood stock still, listening as it growled about in the kitchen below. Taking her chance and counting her blessings, she crept up the stairs, careful to keep on the balls of her feet.

No one came to investigate, only adding to the strange suspicion that the house had become abandoned overnight. Even dust stuck to her skin as her hand trailed up the smooth railing.

A floorboard creaked underneath her, fear stopping her from moving. The creature below heard it, turning its attention up the stairs and inevitably, her.

Ruby continued her trek up the stairs, no longer caring how much noise she made. She tried the first door to her right but the door didn’t budge. Neither did her own. Or the one after that or the next.

Sadly, her time had run out. The creature had made it to the third floor and with no options left for her, Ruby ran to Brad’s room.

She had never been inside, never even been close to his door before, but now, she only hoped it would be her saving grace.

The door handle jiggled under her fingers, hinges unmoving as she shoulder slammed the door. Behind her came more growling, but it steadily approached, no longer in a rush. Its prey had nowhere to go.

She tried again. And again. And again. It was as if the door had been an illusion and she was wasting time on an actual wall.

The growl came from just a few feet away. Terrified but surrendering, Ruby turned to face it.

It lunged forward, causing her to knock against the door and fall hard to the ground. Teeth sank into her ankle, growling as it tried to drag her from the door.

No sound came from her, none could. A lump had formed in her throat, keeping her from screaming for help. Ruby was forced to fight it off alone, but no matter how much she kicked or grabbed the carpet trail, it dragged her across the floor and down the stairs.

Her head bounced like a basketball as she went.

Eyes blinking, he shifted uncomfortably in the chair. Brad had only slept next to her twice: one sitting on the floor, holding her hand; the other had been just a few nights ago on Christmas Eve when she decided to trust him, let him sleep next to her. After that night, she didn’t ask him to return.

His wolf paced inside him. Something smelt off inside the room. A musky scent circled around but the mixed convey of emotions it brought with it, confused him more than being informative.

He widened his nostrils, taking in more information, sorting it out in his brain. Fear. Anxiety. Confusion. Betrayal?

Brad looked towards the lump on the bed, unmoving excluding the small rise and falls of her breath. Stretching in his spot, he came to his feet and moved around the bed where he could see her face in the blackness.

Her nose scrunched up, fists nearly ripping the blankets they had under hold, and strangely enough, her mouth was opened, breathing in quiet gasps of air before expelling them in terror filling anticipation.

“Ruby?” Gently, he shook her shoulder, but that only stiffened her body before she went completely limp.

Her face relaxed, but her trembling hands painted a different picture.

“Ruby? Wake up. It’s me, Brad. Come on.” This time, he shook her more roughly, still trying to be gentle.

Instead, his added roughness had the opposite effect. Ruby awoke, choking on a scream at seeing the black figure peering over her.

She kicked wildly, rolling away and off the bed. In the middle of the sudden chaos, her legs had become entangled and she fell to the floor with an ungraceful thud. Ruby struggled harder at the feeling of her legs trapped, leaving her immobile.

Brad dashed over to her, grabbing her in a bear hug and pulling her from her blanket made net. He set her in the middle of the floor, holding her despite her struggles. Eventually, she tired out and stopped beating against him, though not soon enough as bruises formed along his torso and arms from her abuse.

“Ruby?” At the sound of her name on familiar lips, she stilled completely, stiff, like the cold from outside had managed to freeze her.

Then, she collapsed into him, gasping for breath she hadn’t realized she needed. Tears swam in her amber eyes, the only thing that really glowed to him in the dark, and fell down her cheeks and onto his shirt.

He hugged her close, rubbing circles on her back as she cried. Her hands grabbed the back of his shirt in a fierce grip and refused to let go.

Brad had never seen her like this before. She’d been angry, scared, confused, and hurt. No matter, she never shed an actual tear. Her eyes may have teared up uncontrollably and maybe a rogue tear would tear a path down her cheek, but never had she ever let them fall like this.

The level of subconscious trust she had to clutch onto him, to cry openly and be vulnerable, astounded him. She let him share a bed with her, granted only once, but once was enough. She didn't check her food or drinks, though still hesitant with the pills - vitamins - Smith kept her on.

Awkwardly, Brad tried to lift her from the floor. She wouldn't cooperate, just cling blindly to his shirt. Her braced leg didn’t help much either, being bulky and awkward in his grasp.

“It's alright, Ruby. Let me lift you up.” She sniffled, letting him lift her from the floor.

Unable to lay her back down on the bed, Brad kicked away the scattered covers and sat in the chair, despite his protesting joints. He’s sure he fell back asleep before her, but when morning came at last, Ruby rested peacefully in his arms. Safe and sound.

Brad kissed her forehead, letting his lips linger longer on her skin than he should have, before pulling back and resting his head back on the chair.

“Brad?” Startled, he jumped, shifting in his chair quickly to cover it up.

“Yeah?”

“Thank you.” He didn't say anything to that, just shifted her closer in his arms to bury her head beneath his chin.

Anytime. Anytime.

“The house was empty again.” Brad didn’t expect her to share, she had only done so once and that was when she had run out to the woods, believing she had been dreaming. Other times, she told Darz and Meers that she needed a glass of water, and would sit in the kitchen until day break before returning to her room to sleep for another hour or two. Never had she shared.

“Really?”

“Yeah, dust was everywhere. It was so quiet. And none of the doors opened. Mine wouldn’t, even though I had just come from there. Yours wouldn’t budge either.” His heart leaped a little, but not out of joy. She had turned to his door and it didn’t budge…

“What happened?” She never shared that sort of information, but today, he was hoping she just might.

Ruby didn’t answer, but pull herself from his grasp and to her bathroom.

“I’m going to shower now.”

“Can you tell me anything? Anything about those dreams at all? Anything that you feel would be good to get off your chest?” Brad stood, stretching, intending to get dressed for the day as well.

“I…” She gazed straight into his eyes, searching for something, but if she found it or not, she didn’t say. “I can’t scream.” She sounded just as shocked, in complete disbelief over that one fact, much more so than he was.

“But I knew. Even though you didn’t make a sound, I knew something was wrong.”

His words made Ruby stop for a moment, contemplating that. Then, she continued her original course. Brad left, heading back to his room to shower and dress as well.

When he came back out into the hallway, Ruby awkwardly stood by his door, ignoring his presence at first.

“Thank you.” Ruby started away, then stopped, half turning to look back at him as a second thought crossed her mind. “Thank you for knowing. I need someone to know.” She headed downstairs, equally looking to be in a rush and yet not.

Her words made Brad hope that he could one day know everything. That perhaps from here on out, he’d be included in her little circle a bit more. When she needed something, maybe instead of trying to sort it out herself, he’d be the first she’d call. At least, someone to talk to, even if she wanted to handle it herself.

Brad followed after her, grabbing a quick breakfast before heading out to work. He preferred to work from home, that’s why there were office spaces in the house to begin with, but there were things much better handled at the office a few hours away.