Just as I began to charge after Alexis, a stray belt snaked up my body, wrenching me back into the comforting embrace of soft grey leather upholstery. All around me, baristas and customers evaporated into thin air, walls cluttered in the coffee shop’s minimalist décor crumbling in the blink of an eye to reveal grimy car doors. Derrick sat hunched over the steering wheel beside me, humming a faint tune as he drove along an empty highway.

The setting sun drew a line of fire across the horizon, stretching off into infinity thanks to the endless flat fields of dirt surrounding us. Stars began to glitter high above, brighter and more vibrant than any in the city. Still, there was an eerie sense of discomfort brewing in the pit of my stomach, morphing and tangling into stiff knots the longer the silence between Derrick and I persisted.

“You came back,” he mused suddenly, noise from the ragged road nearly drowning him out. His face was hidden beneath a dark hood, concealing whatever emotion was there to be witnessed.

“Didn’t have a choice,” I muttered, glancing out the window and spotting a dust devil lazily cruising across the deserted field. A heavy sigh escaped my lips.

“How much have you pieced together?” he asked curiously. “It couldn’t have been much or you would’ve woken up by now.” You mean besides our whole relationship being orchestrated by a sociopath? Turning away from the window, I shifted my gaze back over to him, irritation demonstrated by the twitch of my eyebrows.

“I know she coerced you into pursuing me. That you saw her behind my back, invited her on every date, pretended she had other guys to see, and lied about your identity to get me to sign a sublease. The only thing that doesn’t add up is why? It seems like a lot of trouble for no reason! It’s not like I did anything to either of you!” I retorted, hurling daggers with my eyes. A cruel smirk lifted the corner of his lips as he turned his head towards me, hood drooping to rest against his broad shoulders.

I was met with ravenous crimson eyes, ash-colored scales adorning his once flawless cheekbones. His hair, wriggling and squirming, appeared to be made entirely of giant black ants, one or two occasionally crawling dangerously close to his mouth. Lips curling up unnaturally, my frightened gaze fell upon rows of jagged yellow teeth, his slimy forked tongue gliding over them to taunt me.

Panic gripped me like a vise, a million thoughts simultaneously racing through my mind. Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, what is that thing?! A scream wedged itself in my throat, and I slunk down as low into my seat as humanly possible in a feeble attempt to escape the burning hatred of his gaze.

“We were in an open relationship,” he started, voice booming through the car like thunder. “And you were there, so sexy and vulnerable,” Derrick continued, barely above a whisper yet easily overpowering the road noise. Chills ran down my spine, the edges of my vision cracked and faded like a fever dream. “Who was I to resist such a delectable treat?”

That wicked seatbelt crept up my throat while he spoke, twisting around my bare neck and arms so that I was left with little choice but to listen. When he once again wet his revolting fangs, I averted my eyes to the car’s gauges, watching with increasing dread as the speedometer steadily climbed. This psycho is going to kill us both!

“P-Please,” I managed. He silenced me, pressing a clawed finger to my quivering lips.

“Alexis knew you’d be a fun little toy...it’s really too bad you couldn’t get with the program. I thought the three of us might sound more appealing to you, considering you have nowhere else to go,” Derrick muttered, taking both hands off the wheel to tease his unruly ant hair. His lips curled into another sickening smile. “Throwing you out was a blast though. You should’ve seen the look on your stupid face! Ha!”

I flinched when he slapped the steering wheel in amusement, adding, “You were so gullible! I mean, you practically rolled over when we told you to leave! And for the record, Alexis didn’t coerce me into anything. I sent her pictures of you on our first date to show you off, told her about your housing situation, and she came up with the rest to get back at you for all those years you bullied her in school. Everything after the donut shop was rehearsed—I only went along with it because I figured two girls on my arm sounded a lot better than one. Two times the overnight visits, you know what I’m saying?”

Cringing when he stuck out his tongue again, I squirmed away in my seat, desperate for some kind of escape. They really are a perfect match, aren’t they? Psycho meets sociopath!

Huffing in frustration, I finally stopped and faced him.

“All my life, I’ve been nothing but kind to her!” I screamed, surprise registering in the way he raised his eyebrows at me. “Never once did I ‘bully’ her, Derrick! When she was sad, I bought her ice cream and comforted her! When she spent the night at the hospital because her brother was hurt, I brought her blankets and pillows! When she was threatened by some guy at school, I gave that sorry slime ball a black eye!” I shouted, the belt pulling at my tense neck.

“But when she got accused of cheating on our SATs, I was the one she let take the fall! I was the one banned from every college in the nation, all because she was more concerned about sucking face with freak shows like you than actually studying!” I spat, tasting blood after accidentally biting the inside of my cheek.

But I wasn’t going to let a little blood slow me down now.

“And just when I think she’s ready to make amends, she finds some new sick way to torment me! So, how’s that for bullying, Derrick?!” I snarled, wrinkling my nose in disgust at him.

“Geez, just let it go already!” he snapped and leaned away from me, casting an irritated glance out the window.

“No, Derrick,” I scoffed, “I’m not going to ‘let it go!’” Sitting up straight, I forced him to meet my steely-eyed gaze, dropping my voice low. “You two are going to live to regret all that you’ve done. Maybe not today and maybe not tomorrow, but one day…you’ll get exactly what you deserve. And when you do, I promise you, you’re going to realize you screwed over the wrong girl. So, you’d best watch your back…you know what I’m saying?” I whispered softly, ignoring the cracks forming on the windows behind him and smiling coldly at the end.

With a snap of his fingers, I was once again yanked back into my seat, the belt squeezing my windpipe to death. My hands were still bound to my sides, rendering me useless. A low growl rumbled from deep within Derrick’s chest, the car’s speedometer maxing out over 150 miles per hour.

“You really think that’s how this works?” he murmured, angling his body towards the road. “Oh, sweetheart…” he chuckled, “you don’t get the satisfaction of having the final word while I’m here. Smart mouth or not, I’ll always get the last laugh—and it sounds just like this!”

A concrete median erupted from the asphalt directly in front of the compact car, headlights reflecting briefly across the grey mass before everything smashed and crumpled around me. Metal tore, glass disintegrated, and a distant scream was cut short, swiftly replaced by the sound of debris scraping down hundreds of feet of dusty pavement with no one left to witness but the stars.

“Wake up!” Myung shouted, startling me out of my dreamscape and whapping me yet again with the pillow he wielded.

I can't believe I'm about to say this, but...I could totally make out with him right now.