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Brian couldn’t see much of anything. The darkness in the forest was deep and foreboding. It felt kind of good. He didn’t know anymore; stumbling, exhausted. He could feel every single cut on his body burning and throbbing, but wasn’t paying attention to it. Thomas was running ahead, Bonnie was running behind, and Brian had no choice but to keep running. Thomas was shouting and crying and he just kept talking.

And eventually, there came a point where he couldn’t keep running anymore. His lungs were burning, his legs shaking and his head spinning. He didn’t know if he fell or just stopped, but suddenly, he was on the ground, and Thomas was standing over him, impatient.

“What are you doing?” the young man asked him, panic seeping through every word, “We have to go!”

Brian just shook his head, drawing his knees to his chest and wrapping his bloodied arms around them. He could hear Bonnie panting next to him, doubtlessly as exhausted as he was. She stayed a good ten feet away. She whined alarmingly a few times, but didn’t dare to interact in any other way. Putting his head on his knees, he listened to Thomas, who was frantically pacing in circles around him.

“Okay, okay, we can figure this out,” Thomas mumbled, “She deserved it, you know she did. She had to know what you’ve been through. She had to get a taste of what it’s like, right?”

Brian looked up at the uncertainty that was suddenly laced through Thomas’ voice. “I didn’t do it,” he said weakly.

“But you did!” Thomas said, laughing nervously, “You did! And you had every right to! She had to know! They all have to know! It’s not good to keep it inside!”

“No,” Brian shook his head again, the forest spinning around him, “No, I didn’t do it. I would never.”

“Where’s the knife?” Thomas asked.

“There was no knife,” Brian said, not looking at the younger man.

“If they find the knife, they’ll find you,” Thomas said, his words jumbling together with the tempo of his speech.

“I didn’t do nothing!” Brian cried out, eliciting a nervous bark from Bonnie, who was still awkwardly standing and watching from a distance.

“You could have killed her,” Thomas grunted, grabbing him by the arm, “Her and the baby, your baby.”

“No,” Brian sobbed, tears rolling down his face now, “No, it didn’t happen.”

Thomas let him go, releasing a frustrated groan, “We have to keep going.”

“I don’t think I can,” Brian muttered wearily.

“You understand we’re in huge trouble, right?” Thomas said, then knelt down “Let me see, how bad are you hurt?”

“I dunno,” Brian replied, his words slurring together, “Just leave me alone.”

“Shit,” Thomas moaned, dragging a hand through his short, black hair. Then he started pacing again, “Alright, alright. We’ll figure this out. I think we got a good distance from the house, it should take a while for anybody to find us. We can rest up for a couple of minutes. Jesus, man, you are covered in blood. You’re lucky nobody saw you last night. Although, then again, I would stay the fuck away if I saw a madman running head over heels over the road.”

Brian shivered, “Would you just shut up?” he said, miserably.

“I’m the only one thinking clearly here,” Thomas replied, “What are we gonna do next, huh? Are you just gonna lay down and roll up and die?”

Brian shrugged, returning his attention to his knees. “I don’t know what to do. I mean, I can’t go back. I can never go back.”

And that thought was maybe scarier than anything he’d ever come across. When he’d been locked in the basement, for weeks, months, he’d dreamt of going home. He’d seen himself embracing his wife and never letting her go. He’d be fine, if only she was there. And now...

“What did I do?” he mumbled.

Thomas nodded slightly, sitting down next to him. “We’ll just have to come up with something.”

“Thommy?” Brian said, looking up finally to meet the younger man’s eyes, “What have I done?”

“You stabbed her, Brian,” Thomas said, no emotion showing on his face whatsoever, “The thing you dreamt about for months. The thing that felt more right than anything else in the entire world. You did it, Bri.”

“No,” Brian breathed, “No, why?”

“You know why.”

“I’m a monster.”