Unfocused eyes looking at the picture.
Whumper entered the basement today. This time with a photo album in hand. He looked happy and cheerful, while Whumpee just stared at him with a blank look. Sitting beside Whumpee and pulling them closer towards him, Whumper opened the photo album.
"Aww, I miss you when you are still new." Whumper said. Whumpee peered over his shoulder, staring at their picture.
It was them, on their first day after being kidnapped. They looked so scared and helpless, knees pressed to their chest. Their fresh skin, without any scars or blood or bruises. Only tears were streaking down their faces at that time. How pathetic, they thought.
Whumper flipped open to the next page. This time it showing Whumpee with a collar wrapped around their neck. Whumper giggled,
"Oh, I still remember this time when you tried so hard to push me away because you don't want to wear this collar. Now, look at you. All pretty with it…" Whumper gently caressed the tag that was attached to the collar, smiling fondly at the memory.
"Think we should get you a new one, yeah?"
Whumpee just nodded. What else could they do anyway? Whumper patted their head, trying to cheer them up a little. It's been a long time since Whumpee last spoke, they could barely remember their own voice anymore.
Whumper turned to another page, leaning in closer to Whumpee to show them the picture. "Can you tell me what happened in this picture, Whumpee?"
Whumpee tried to gouge out the memory from their head. Oh, that's the day Whumper marked them with the branding stick, leaving an ugly symbol burned on their back. How could they ever forget that?
"Are you still mad at me, Whumpee?" Whumper asked, eyes glinting with amusement. "Aww, don't be. It's not even that bad." He slapped Whumpee's back, making them flinch along with the pain.
Whumpee stayed silent, not daring to utter a word. They watched as Whumper turned over to another picture and this time their eyes widened a tad bit at the sight.
Whumpee turned their head away almost instantly. They bite their lips tightly, holding back tears that were threatening to fall.
"Oh dear, it's not your fault…" Whumper said, pulling Whumpee into a hug and caressing their hair. Whumpee's fingers curled up tightly around Whumper's shirt, tears flowing down their face. It felt so wrong to cling on to him like this, but it was so…so soothing and comfortable.
"Shh…shh…hey, it's okay…"
They still remembered how Whumper's hand gripped tightly around Caretaker's neck. How Whumper ordered them to whip Caretaker until they passed out…and how pressured and cornered Whumpee at that time that they accidentally killed Caretaker in the process.
That's what Whumpee kept uttered for every lash they did on Caretaker's back. It still haunted them in their dreams. If only they had enough strength at that time, they would kill Whumper instead.
"Let's look at another picture then, hm?"
Whumpee nodded. They were still clinging tight to Whumper, sniffling as Whumper turned to another page.
Whumper kept talking and talking and talking, all about their memories together. Whumpee's eyes started drooping low, they barely could register what Whumper was saying. They turned their head to the window, wondering what Whumper would cook for dinner as his voice fading into the background.