Amycus’s head tilted slightly to the side as Rosemary cut her sentence off and he watched her hand fly to her chest to grab onto the cross pendant hanging around her neck. But why? He could see her breath every time she exhaled, and they seemed to have quickened. Then he realized it was because now they were only inches from one another. When had he moved this close to her? Why didn’t he want to take a step back upon realizing this? Then he remembered how warm she had been when she embraced him. How, despite her red, frost nipped nose and rosy cheeks, if he were to move in even closer, her warmth would envelope him. It was calling out to him now, and he was leaning in. You shouldn’t be doing this, the voice in the back of his head warned him. He’d only kissed someone on the lips once before, nearly four years ago, and it was also his last time doing so. But her parted lips seemed inviting, and he was tired of being made of ice. The space between them was getting smaller, and he shut his eyes out of anticipation.
The silence was cut through by Rosemary’s yell, and although her push wasn’t hard enough to physically move him, her certainly received the message to move back. One, two, three steps to put more distance between them. There was a pang in his chest that he’d felt a handful of times. When his mother would slam the door in his face, ignore him as he spoke to her, walk out of the room holding Alecto’s hand. He’d grown accustomed to that feeling of rejection, but god did he not expect to feel that any time soon, especially not with Rosemary. Rosemary who was his secret friend, whom he had to share with no one. Who wanted him to be vulnerable yet he was just at his most vulnerable point with her and she shoved him away. Was he really that repulsive? Not a simple, ‘stop’ or ‘wait’, but an exclamation of the word NO and a push backwards as if he wouldn’t understand if she had done it any other way. Like he was a monster who would’ve forced her to kiss him even if she didn’t want to. Dejection was clear in Amycus’s eyes as she started to go off on him.
It actually hurt him that she thought he saw her as some girl to mess around with. An emotional pain that became physical as he felt another pang in his chest. He didn’t kiss anyone, and the one person he wanted to rejected him. This was why he didn’t, because he knew he wasn’t lovable or wanted. He didn’t want to open up that way because he didn’t want to get burned when his feelings went unrequited which they sure to be. There was nothing redeemable about him, he told her, girls didn’t like him, so why would she be any different? Before Amycus could get a word in and tell her that that was not how this was, he heard footsteps and panic set in. Who would be walking behind this bloody tea shop? But as the footsteps grew louder, and a figure rounded the corner, he knew exactly who it was. Rodolphus. He must’ve been looking for him, there was no other way to explain it. And he found him, behind a bloody tea shop with Rosemary Applebee who he was nearly just kissing. Turning his attention away from the boy and back to Rosemary, he knew he had to keep his cover, he had to make this believable. Rod could never know about this. and so his expression turned into a snarl. “Watch yourself, little girl,” Amycus sneered, knowing that the harshness would be enough to scare her, enough to get a true reaction from her. If this is how she sees me, then I’ll show her what she believes, he thought to himself. “Speak to me that way again, and next time you won’t be so lucky to get off with a warning. Get the hell out of my sight before I change my mind!” Amycus barked at her, his teeth bared, just as Rodolphus emerged from the shadows. Maybe he should’ve felt bad for speaking to her that way, even if it was fake, but there was a pain in him now that he got just from looking at her, and that pain felt better as he tore her down in front of his friend.
This was it. Everything Rosemary had been anticipating was now playing into effect and the worst part of this all was he warned her. She knew it would happen like this. First she would act out thoughtlessly, then she would get embarrassed and cry. Next he would prove himself right. The first slew of words cut her down to size as she stood there in front of him, a small mess of trembling curls. Watch yourself, little girl. A sharp whimper escaped her mouth and she pressed herself flat against the barrel he’d lifted her onto. No this wasn’t making sense, only moments before he was soft and shy and intrigued by her. Who was standing in front of her now was the boy she heard tales about around the castle. It took her a moment to notice Rodolphus was standing only feet from them, a completely stoic look on his face as he motioned for his friend to leave with him. Rodolphus and Lucius had always terrified Rosemary the most, because they didn’t even seem real. They had more money than anyone she’d ever met, they seemed untouchable. Like royalty. Seeing him was what caused the first sob to leave her chest.
Because now her embarrassment wasn’t confined to just herself, it was now this other boys entertainment as well. Once the first sob hit the air the rest followed freely, freezing her in her spot. Amycus threatened her. It just sank in as she tried to look at him through blurred tears that if this happened again something bad would happen and he was yelling at her to get out of his sight, and in this moment, Rosemary felt disgusted with herself for being this foolish. She knew that they said ‘secret’ but she was sure this was more about being shoved back. Maybe the physical contact struck a nerve in him. Rosemary agreed to secret, but not vicious words when other people were around. “W-what?” She tried to ask, but all she could think about was how her face already felt chapped from the hot tears pouring into such cold temperatures and she couldn’t get the words out. He said he’d never hurt you-- he said that I could trust him and-- Rosemary felt dizzier than she had when his face was pressed close to hers.
Then a memory danced into her head, it was a Wednesday night and the girls from the choir were all standing outside, listening to a roaring humming of cicadas as they gossiped about other people. It wasn’t uncommon for women to be treated a lot like this, and she was sure she’d heard the same words escape the lips of deacons of her church when they thought no one else was listening. Watch your mouth, little girl and then later, in moments like hot Wednesday nights, it’d get repeated by eavesdroppers. She shouldn’t have done what she did-- they’d say, and Rosemary would feel her mouth go dry. Was this one of those situations? Sure... She could have tried to react better when she thought he was going to kiss her, but boys were never that close to her, she was never that close to letting them kiss her and she panicked. Now he was yelling a slew of cruel words at her and she didn’t know what to do. “I-I-I’m sorry A-Amycus-- I--” she paused, sucking air into her lungs before looking for the nearest exit and bolting towards it.