Skip to main content

BORRASCA - Bagian 5 - Chapter 4 (English)

We spent the rest of the drive avoiding the topic of Drisking. We talked about people we knew, movies we’d seen; hell, we even made a few jokes that didn’t fall totally flat. It reminded me of those days when we would sit in my car in the Drisking High parking lot, listening to music and getting stoned. It made me miss Kyle…and weed. I’d given it up for the harder stuff years ago. Or to put it more eloquently: if pot was a gateway drug, I’d left it at the gate.

The closer we got to Drisking, the quieter the car became and by the time we hit the Missouri border, we were in complete silence. It had started to snow and Kimber was completely focused on the drive. I stared out the window until the dread of familiar things passing by made me look away. We were almost there.

Kimber pulled into the Prince Ridge within the hour and got out to check us in. I stayed in the car, eyeing the other vehicles in the parking lot. Nothing I recognized, but seeing as how it had been almost a decade since I’d been home, I wasn’t sure that mattered. The first exit for Drisking – and there were only the two – was only four miles down the highway. If Kimber considered this safe then there was no reason to worry, right? She’d always been the smart one.

I jumped as Kimber jerked the car door open and got in. She noticed. “You know I’m traveling with you, right?”

I rolled my eyes. “Pardon me for being a little on edge.”

“209,” she said, pointing up to the second floor. “I’ll drive around; you look for it.”

The room was at the front of the property facing the highway. I brought our bags upstairs and then stood shivering outside in the cold while I smoked a cigarette. When I was finished I flicked the cigarette over the railing and watched it fall into the bed of a maroon Dodge Ram. Oops. I followed Kimber inside and was relieved to see that there were 2 beds and 3 locks on the door. So far not a complete disaster.

Since it was around six Kimber wanted to go grab some dinner.

“Fairtoli’s? Christian’s?” She suggested. “They’re both only a few miles away.”

“Ah, no.”

“Prescott Artisan Sandwiches then?” She winked at me.

“No,” I said again, ignoring her joke. “I mean we shouldn’t leave. We should order delivery or something.”

Kimber’s casual smile fell off of her face. “You’re worried for no reason.”

“And you’re homesick.”

Kimber’s eyes slid to the floor and she sat down on the end of the bed. “Probably.”

“I just…I think we need to lay low as much as possible right now.”

“No, you’re right,” Kimber said, and tucked her feet up underneath her. She turned to watch the snow fall through the window.

I rubbed my temples as an ache began to ebb in like the tide around my eyeballs. I needed a fix. Soon.

“It doesn’t snow in Riverside, where I live. I miss the snow.” Kimber said.

“Move to Chicago,” I said in-between deep, measured breaths. “It snows five months out of the year.”

Kimber was silent and I prayed she was studying a menu. The sooner she got on the phone for delivery the sooner I could excuse myself to the bathroom and take the edge off.

“I miss Kyle.”

I looked up to see Kimber still watching the snow, her head leaning against the wall. “Me too,” I said after a minute. Her eyes snapped to mine as if she’d forgotten I was there.

“You look hungry. I’ll order pizza from Dominoes. I remember what you like on it.” She said, before glancing at a menu next to her on the nightstand. She picked up the phone and began dialing the number.

I got up to use the bathroom and took my entire duffel bag with me. If Kimber noticed, she didn’t say anything.

*

I forced a slice of pizza down for Kimber’s sake, though I wasn’t hungry in the least. “So tomorrow,” I said, taking the bed nearest the door. “What time are we meeting this person?”

“Um, well it’s just going to be me this time.”

“Yeah, Kimber, there’s no way am I letting you meet with some random Drisking fuckwit by yourself.”

“I have to go alone or they won’t talk to me.”

“Who the fuck is this guy, Kimber?”

“I can’t tell you that yet.”

“Is it a woman or a man?” I asked. She shook her head at me. “And just what is he giving you tomorrow? The files on Borrasca?”

“No.”

“Then what?”

“I…don’t actually know.”

“Kimber, this is crazy.”

“I have- “

“I can’t let you go into town alone.”

“Sam.”

“Stop being in such a fucking hurry to die!” I snapped at her. Kimber’s face paled and she moved further away from me on her bed.

“We’ll talk about it in the morning.” She whispered, and then turned off the lamp.

“Fine.” I laid in the dark for a while and when I was sure she was asleep; I went back into the bathroom for another hit. By the time I woke up the next morning, Kimber was gone.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Expressionless

Pada bulan Juni 1972, Seorang Perempuan muncul dirumah sakit "Cedar Senai". Perempuan itu memakai gaun putih. Gaun putih itu menutupi darah yang ada di badan perempuan tersebut. Perempuan itu muncul di rumah sakit dan orang-orang sekitar memperhatikan keanehan perempuan tersebut. Sampai-sampai orang yang memperhatikannya dapat muntah dan merasa tidak enak badan. Yang pertama dipertanyakan adalah, apakah ia benar-benar seorang manusia? Tubuh dan Mukanya lebih mirip mendekati seperti mannequin (manekin atau sesosok patung menyerupai manusia, baik dari segi bentuk badan, kaki, tangan, kepala, bahkan wajahnya bisa diserupai dengan wajah manusia aslinya) tetapi memiliki ketangkasan dan fluiditas manusia normal. Wajahnya sesempurna manekin, tanpa alis dan dioleskan make-up. Ada anak kucing dijepit di rahangnya sehingga tidak ada gigi yang bisa dilihat. Darah masih menyemprot di atas gaunnya ke lantai. Dokter kemudian menarik kucing itu keluar dari mulutnya, kemudia melemparny...

Luka

Darah di dinding. Di pahaku, bajuku, lalu lantai, di dalam bak mandi, juga di wajahku, dan di rambutku. Di mana-mana. Menatap nanar kedua tangan yang berlumuran darah, aku lalu mengusap wajah menggunakan tanganku yang lengket dan berbau besi ini. Meski gemetaran, aku selalu merasa ini semua belum cukup. Kemudian aku meraba-raba lantai, mengambil cutter yang belum lama aku letakan. Mengangkat bagian bawah baju untuk kumasukkan ke dalam mulut sendiri. Lantas cutter itu mulai aku gunakan kembali. Menyayat. Menciptakan garis luka lebih panjang lagi di tangan kiri. Di bagian dalam lenganku. "E-emmh! Nggh!" Mengerang, merintih sendirian. Sobekan pada luka itu terasa amat memilukan. Perih. Dan tangan kiriku terjatuh lemas begitu saja. Padahal aku pernah mendapatkan luka yang lebih parah dari ini. Kenapa kali ini aku begitu lemah? Tak Cutter yang kupegang terlepas. Luka yang baru saja kubuat aku remas, membiarkan darahnya mengalir lebih banyak lagi. Karena semakin banyak darah ...

Kuchisake-Onna

Kuchisake-Onna Kuchisake-Onna adalah wanita bermulut robek yang menyusuri jalan-jalan di Jepang, ia mengenakan masker bedah dan mengincar anak-anak. Apabila kau melintasi jalannya, ia akan memberhentikanmu dan mengajukanmu sebuah pertanyaan. Jika kau memberikan jawaban yang salah, maka kau harus menanggung konsekuensi yang mengerikan. Suatu hari, kamu berjalan menuju ke rumah sepulang sekolah dan arah jalan membawamu melintasi jalan kota yang sepi. Tiba-tiba, kamu mendengar suara samar-samar yang datang bersama bayangan. Kamu melirik ke arah bayangan tersebut dan tampak seorang wanita cantik berdiri di sana. Ia memiliki rambut yang hitam dan panjang dan mengenakan mantel berwarna krem. Sebuah masker bedah menutupi bagian bawah (setengah) dari wajahnya. Di Jepang, mengenakan masker bedah biasanya digunakan jika sedang musim flu untuk mencegah penyebaran kuman. Ia melangkah keluar dari bayangan gelap dan menghalangi jalanmu. “Apakah aku cantik?” Tanyanya. Sebelum kamu menjawab, ia m...