She got him laughing again. They were so back and forth from rigid, to casual threats, to teasing, and laughing.
âNo. No.â He made fun of her no because the way her no sounded so offended that he would make such a preposterous claim in very quick rejection. He laughed with a smile that split his face completely in two as he said, âThe lady doth protest too much, me thinks.â He almost hated that he was having a good time and would have to ruin it. But, he wasnât feeling guilty enough to have not following through enter his mind.Â
Just to tease and be silly a little more he leaned in like he was going tell a secret and spoke soft right after she rolled her eyes at him, âBut, thatâs what I would have been because I thought about it.â Then he smirked as if the next line was funny before he even said it despite it leading to her ultimate demise. âMy bad though, let me rephrase. You probably wouldnât have minded the hot bad boy asking you out if heâd have been the hot bad boy with the sensitive sweet side OR even better the hot bad boy with the sensitive side with an abused, neglected, or traumatic past suffering on the inside, and you get to be the one that heals him.â He giggled. âI guess I didnât fit the profile. OH DAMN.â He mocked playing into a typical girlâs bad boy dream of all cliche dreams. âDonât worry. No shame Shy. I have the same dream all the time. Thatâs what Jetâs for.â Then he actually made an odd face like heâd come down out of his joking around for a split second and was having a real thought. âI just havenât healed him yet. Iâll get there.â He said that very adamantly then moved along because his mind refused to stay in the saddest spaces of his dark heart.Â
After the next round of conversation though he noticed her face falling into a sadder space herself. He hadnât actually meant to do that one so he considered it as he watched her. He was confused actually. She took his words in the form of trying to give her advice. He didnât really understand she was taking it the way she was as if he was trying to shove it all in her face. She spoke softly when she finally did. She even said she hated herself for it and reminded she was cooperating now. This was the point he where was finally catching on. Then she actually asked him to stop throwing her stupidity in her face and he sat there for a quiet moment. He didnât let that part of the conversation end like that. She seemed to get the best most emphatic responses out of him when she snapped at him. He was just far more used to the blunt and tactless being very direct in his life. It was like they were speaking the same language when that happened. He understood more clearly and didnât take it in as being reprimanded as many other people might. His skin wasnât that thin.Â
He thought about just moving on, but he felt the need to explain, âHey girl. I didnât really mean it like that. Youâre a little or more like way over-sensitive about shit, but I didnât mean you were stupid for real, like an actual stupid person. It was just more me explaining how I work through things even if you couldnât have known. I already even said people do dumb things when theyâre scared. You were scared. You were at the disadvantage like that. Just because you couldnât analyze someone you didnât even know correctly enough, in a high adrenaline moment, while being fucking terrified, to make all the right decisions to manipulate us in a way that would have saved your ass better, doesnât actually mean youâre stupid. It just means you were scared. Around us, thatâs pretty normal okay? Iâm not offended. Excuse you for being human and not expertly practiced in the art of war, battle scenarios, crisis situations, or hostage negotiations. Oh how dare you? Not. Youâre cool girl. Itâs okay. For real. Itâs all things that have to be learned. Just consider yourself lucky that you havenât had to learn them before this through experience. I canât possibly be much older than you and Iâve been dealing with that kind of shitty information in theory and practice my whole life, childhood included. So, ya know, I donât know, just⌠not just be thankful, but feel⌠um⌠special. Yeah. I think itâd be nice to live a whole life never thinking of all the shit I do every day and Iâm not saying that for pity. I donât want that. My life is way too awesome to be pitied. I just⌠just enjoy your life when you go home. Thatâs all Iâm saying. Thatâs sort of the point of this.â
He was glad for some reason that she explained him as not evil but an asshole. There was part of him that didnât want to be thought of as evil even though he usually just laughed when it came out of someoneâs mouth. It would usually just inspire him to do something worse just to prove to them they were right as punishment for judging him. So, her continuously pressing he was an asshole and not evil made him smile. He knew he was an asshole and didnât care. Thatâs what made him an asshole. But, when she brought Jet into the mix saying he wasnât evil either caused him to pay very close attention because that rarely happened. As a matter of fact the only people who ever thought anything good of Jetsam outside the encampment (who would never cross or question a Loaâs partner of choice) was Ariel, Cinderella, and Sparky. Clopin and Kuzco never had anything negative to say, and Jet was welcomed into their home, but the subject of their moral differences were never really brought up with Kuzco. Clopin on the other hand hadnât discussed his personal thoughts on morals, but they had bonded extremely over the concept of how it was for both of them to love someone the world didnât understand and never could. Flotsam and Clopin both were in situations where they spent their whole lives in secretive situations that sometimes could even reflect on their own reputations, and would have to stand proudly there in defense. Being ashamed was never an option, not when it came to love. Clopin protected Kuzco the same as Flotsam protected Jetsam with a vengeance and would cross any moral line to do so. That was where Flotsam and Clopin connected.
That was it. Those were the only people. So, it seriously threw him off and for a moment he worried he was being manipulated again to save her life. But, he didnât say it out loud. He was too intrigued by the conversation. How could he not be fascinated by a girl who was nearly raped and killed by his brother claiming she didnât think Jetsam was evil? He couldnât. It was fascinating to no end. Her main explanation was she didnât understand how their minds worked. At one point she even said how they thought was above her.
So, in conclusion even while being held hostage and with the threat of death or memory erasure looming over her she still had the sort of mind that wouldnât call Jet evil? She even blamed herself for not being able to understand them. It reminded Flotsam of an intimate conversation with Clopin and how the world couldnât understand. The problem was the world tried to act like they did and cast judgement. This girl wasnât. It struck Flotsam so hard in the chest that this girl somehow identified she was part of that world of misunderstanding and categorized herself with it. But, the instant she didnât judge it all Flotsam took her out of that category. Shiloh wasnât part of that world he hated anymore, not to him. She wasnât exactly part of their world either. He wasnât sure what to make of her now. She was⌠something else entirely.
Heâd never met someone like that before. Everyone always fell into one of those two categories. But, he let that part of the conversation go with little response. That was because he really didnât know what to make of it. She was more than just some girl to tease in the mudbog. Girls really didnât exist to him considering he had three he claimed to love. But, that was because most girls were of the first category of people of a world he didnât belong to. Thatâs how he thought of Shiloh when he first met her. Heâd have fun with girls from the outside, but they werenât real people that counted. They werenât even real people to him at all if they didnât come from the swamp encampment. It was also how he easily dismissed any evil Jet might still rampage on the world outside of them. None of those people ever counted to Flo. If this girl meant it and wasnât just trying to stay on his good side while being his captive Flo wasnât sure what to make of her at all. God damn she just confused him. So he stayed quiet.
He was glad the next round of jokes led them to lighter subjects because he was too confused to even talk about the last after she gave her answer. Suddenly, they were in a conversation all excited about spoon art. But, even in this conversation she kept teasing him in a more playful way that he wasnât evil instead of the more serious tone of their real conversation prior. He could handle that. Even then he might have appeared awkward as she teased just from the pure confusion about her then. He kept seeing her more as an alien from another planet than a girl.
 Ariel was the only human to ever get near them, but the truth the twins had done nothing to her to put her in a position of fearing them in the way they had Shiloh. Flotsam warned her once if he really wanted her body, heâd just rape her ass and be done with it, because he lives life doing and taking whatever he wanted, and to get her big teasing ego out of his face basically. But, that was about it. Who knew at the time if Ariel even believed he meant it. Flotsam wasnât really the rapist type though. He wasnât about to hold someone down for his own pleasure when the other person wouldnât enjoy it. That wasnât actually pleasurable to him. He wasnât about to do it for control reasons either to say he had the power to take anything from someone. He wouldnât give someone the pleasure of his dick as if that was punishment. It didnât simply take from people, it gave away part of himself. He wasnât into that. It made no sense to him despite watching Jetsam and rationalizing his reason in a way that normalized it all. He had to less go crazy.Â
Anytime he ever engaged in such a thing was for his brotherâs pleasure, never his own, and even then, he was never fully okay with it and circumstance would dictate details of his reasons for being involved. But, these were issues he had to deal in with his brother once upon a time. It felt so long ago now. Maybe that was even one of the reasons he stopped his brother with Shiloh? He wasnât sure. But, he wanted his brother to stop it all even though he knew something was different in Jetsam that didnât seem to have as much control of himself as a normal person. Flotsam often thought he might be a sociopath or some strain of the same limbic system issues. He didnât want to know because it wouldnât change how much he loved him and that was all that would ever matter.
Shilohâs teases brought on so much deeper thought than Flotsam had been prepared to have right then. He supposed he deserved that on some level for putting this girl through all this that she hadnât asked for either. So, he tried to just go with it. He smiled quite awkwardly actually with all her next little teases. But, he was very glad to hear Shilohâs take on girls and flowers. He really was worried about it being repetitive and boring. He chewed on the side of his lip messing with his lip ring as he thought about it. âI probably will give it to her then. But, if she looks bored Iâm looking you back up and finding you again just to say âfuck you for making me look lameâ even though youâll have no idea why.â
It was turning into a strangely unexpected decent time as the joking back and forth kept going. He noticed her wince some when she smiled from the pain. So, he shoved the sculptures in her hands so she could see them better while he went for the herbs in the bowl almost forgetting he was trying to help her wounds. So, he said, âHold still hon.â Yes hon, he used this term naturally without thought or tease same as he would anyone from his community he might have been serving that happened to be softer spoken females or a very young children. When he was serving his people, helping them with whatever they might need he held a softer composure. âIt shouldnât sting really, maybe on first contact, but no more than water. It should feel very cooling pretty quickly actually. Itâll help with the swelling too, so you donât wake up in the morning like you grew a softball in your face.â He reached up to apply the homemade salve heâd prepared. It was a mucky color. âJust think of it like a mud facial. It looks silly but leaves you beautiful when itâs taken off. You can just pretend youâre in a salon.â Heâd apply with a gentle touch too. âYou can help if you want. Put this on any spots that are bugging you. I can make more if I didnât make enough. Iâll get the spot on your back where you canât reach.â
But, it was right as he was attempting to deal in her wounds she mentioned her condom balloon art and his hand fell to his lap from her face out of pure laughter. âA snake? Really?â He even held the back of his salve dirty hands up to his mouth he kept laughing so much trying to stop himself from laughing and getting it on himself.
 "Loa fuck I havenât used a condom since I got together with my girl. I donât really slut around anymore man. I only fuck with Jet, Cinderella, and Sparky. Plus, Sparky hardly counts when sheâs dead. Her body isnât real.â Then he realized how he said it might actually hurt Sparky and he called up into the ceiling, "I didnât mean you donât count Sparks so donât take it like that. You were the electric Barbie of my dreams and you know it!"Â
Then he aimed his conversation back at Shiloh, "Sheâs not about to pass me an STD or get pregnant. Jet and Cinderella know better than to whore around, I trust âem. I mean, I know he was about to rape you and all and you could be full of herpes for all I know, but mind you he hasnât gotten like that in a long time. Heâs not just some kind of serial rapist of everybody and anybody. You just set him off. I thought he was gonna kill you not rape you. I wouldnât have given him the nod if I had. I donât feel like explaining it and Iâm not gonna. Speaking of the fam though I should probably text them before they show up and find me chained to a girl on my bed and think Iâm fucking around on them and cheating or something stupid like that. But, Iâm sure if I dug around thereâs bound to be some old condoms around here somewhere hiding in this mess for you to play with. You would be great at parties.â He laughed. âYou could be Klappy the Condom Clown, Strap it up for safety says the always smiling Kooch Kissing Master of Kama Sutra. And you could have some crazy clown make-up on your mouth smiling making the thought of kissing you all gross and creepy. Itâs be hilarious.Â
âSuper Slippy Sperm Slide open for business but you have to go through fun house maze of her baggy pants. But, oh gosh look at her giant shoes! You know what they say about guys with big feet. So maybe thereâs more than a spunk dump in there after all? Fuck! That clownâs a whole mystery theater playing Snakes on Plane in her crotch. See actually, being named Klappy people can think itâs cause the clown has the clap but itâs double meaning. During your showing of Snakes on a Plane it can be audience participation and they can clap the condom snakes to pop them. POP! POP! POP! Yeah you go Klappy. You go. For booking please call 1-800-Scratch-My-Snatch for all your Sausage Party needs. Safe sex included. Wink Wink.â
He was going way overboard with it but he couldnât help it. He was having fun. âBut, now that itâs on the table inquiring minds want to know, Is Shiloh full of stdâs? If I went finger surfing at the beach are the waters contaminated?â He asked with a voice mocking a sports commentator then continued to try to apply the salve without all his giggling making his hand shake.
The grin on Shilohâs face widened with each word that Flotsam spoke about his theory on how she âwould have loved to have found a bad boy to saveâ, although her head was shaking slowly the entire time and she clearly thought that he was missing the mark with his playful assumption. It was funny none the less though, and she could appreciate his witty teasing even though it was at her own expense. âWhat?â She asked rhetorically, still laughing through the conversation as she allowed the boy to finish relaying to her his thoughts about what he figured her romantic hopes and dreams were. He was basically handing her the plot to a couple hundred different clichĂŠ teenage romance movies, all of which she would have rolled her eyes at, so she had to assume that he was insulting her. Perhaps calling her âtypical?â She didnât know, but she didnât take offense to it. It was just good fun. Or at least, it was until Jetsamâs name had come up in the conversation. It was at that point that she noticed the goofy expression on Flotsamâs face waver slightly.
âI have the same dream all the time. Thatâs what Jet is for. I just havenât healed him yet.â
Shiloh didnât know exactly what was going on with Flotsamâs brother that made him act and think the way that he did, but the comment was enough to confirm for her that something wasnât quite right. There was something there that needed fixing, according to Flotsam, but she wasnât about to pry as to what exactly it was. It was none of her business and she felt that she had no right to stick her nose into it. It would be disrespectful, considering she was in above her head: they were both blessed with magical abilities, and she was just a human. She didnât think that they owed her, nor anybody else, any explanation at all. She would be lying if she said that she wasnât curious though.
The conversation had soon taken another turn down another less-than-happy path when Shiloh felt as though Flotsam was trying to rub salt in her wounds by reminding her of the mistakes that sheâd made, which had inevitably led her to her current situation. Maybe she was being a little too sensitive, but it was hard not to be when the threat of having her memory erased was looming right over her head like a heavy, black cloud. She was just sensitive in general now, because sheâd never felt worse and nothing so terrible as this had ever happened to her before. Knowing that all of this could have been avoided if she simply would have done one thing differently was absolutely crippling, and being reminded of it over and over again made her wounds sting. In an attempt to keep the last of her composure from crumbling, she had asked the boy, as softly as she could, that he stop reminding her of it. She didnât exactly know what point he was trying to prove, because it wasnât as though sheâd remember it later anyways, but she had to assume that he was trying to hurt her with guilt. She could still remember everything that heâd said to her earlier, so she knew that he was bitter towards her, and she wouldnât have been entirely surprised if a small part of him still wanted to see her suffer. To her surprise, however, she was wrong.
The young girlâs dark brown gaze raised from her lap to settle on Flotsamâs bi-colored hues when he began explaining to her the real meaning behind why heâd reminded her of her mistakes. If heâd wanted to, he could have not said anything at all and just let her continue to beat herself up over it, but heâd chosen to stop her and set things straight: she wasnât stupid, but she was scared, and she couldnât help that her fear had skewed her judgement. She appreciated that, and by the end of his speech heâd managed to bring back a hint of a smile onto her face and make her feel a little better. Heâd told her to feel special and to enjoy her life when she got home, and while she wasnât sure if that would even be possible, considering the fact that she might not even be herself when all was said and done, she nodded to let him know that she understood him and to thank him. Maybe she wouldnât know how to walk anymore and she would be a cripple? Or maybe she would forget how to speak, and she would forever be a mute? But sure, she would try to enjoy her life.
Shiloh took notice of how Flotsam had described his childhood, mentioning that heâd been dealing with things such as hostage situations and war ever since he was young, and she couldnât help but to feel all the more curious about him, his life and the people in it. It was a shame, really, that any child would have to go through such things, but she didnât pity him. In fact, she was a little envious. She wished that she could have grown up surrounded by magic, out in the swamplands where all of the fun was. Of course, though, she was naĂŻve and she had no idea of all of the true tragedy and terror that came with the twinâs lifestyles, and she knew better than to assume that it was all sunshine and rainbows all of the time. She herself, and the hell that sheâd been through that day, was a prime example.
Much to Shilohâs relief, the conversation had soon shifted over to the topic of spoon sculptures when sheâd suggested that she might have magical abilities, and almost instantly, the mood in the room lightened again. Flotsam had brought out a beautiful flower ornament that heâd hand-crafted for Gem, and after that she couldnât stop smiling. She had absolutely no clue that Flotsam was as lost in his head as he was about everything sheâd said to him, or that sheâd managed to invoke such deep thoughts within him when sheâd casually tried to explain to him that she didnât think him, nor his brother, were evil. Truthfully, she didnât think that he would have even given anything that sheâd said a second thought, considering the fact that she was practically a bug beneath his shoe and her opinions didnât mean shit to him. If he was showing any signs of awkwardness, they were all flying right over her oblivious little head as she complimented him and offered him girl advice on the flower that heâd handed to her. If she would have known that he was comparing her to an alien though, she would have had a good laugh. She often compared him to one too, so they had something in common.
A laugh cracked out of her when Flotsam warned her that heâd look her back up and find her to give her a âfuck youâ if giving the flower to Gem backfired on him, and she nodded her head. âAlright, thatâs fair. If you can ever find me again, I give you my full permission to give me shit for making you look like a dumbass with my bad advice.â She grinned, taking the sculpture into her hand when it was offered to her. âTrust me though, sheâll love it.â Truthfully, whether she walked out of here or she was wheeled out in a wheelchair, once she was gone, she doubted that they would ever cross paths again. She didnât know how much longer she would be sticking around this place, and she didnât know where her life was going to take her. She was a lost soul, almost entirely void of direction and purpose, and now that she didnât even have a place to call her home, she had no idea where she was going to end up. Sheâd always hoped that it would be somewhere that could make her dreams of becoming a singer come true, but she doubted now that that would ever come to fruition. Even if all of this had never happened, she didnât know if she ever would have made it. She was sure that there was a place out there for her somewhere, but as of yet, she hadnât quite found out where she belonged.
With all of the smiling that she was doing, she was being reminded of just how badly her face was hurting, but it seemed that she didnât have to say anything to get Flotsam to realize that too, for the expressions that she wore and the way that she touched her cheek were enough. Perching herself back onto the bed with the sculptures still in her hands, she allowed him to begin applying the homemade salve to the injuries on her face, although sheâd flinched slightly upon the initial contact of his fingertips against her skin. It was just instinctual to expect pain when somebody was touching a fresh wound. Aside from the initial sting though, she was pleasantly surprised to discover that it didnât hurt too badly; it actually felt quite nice, and she appreciated Flotsamâs gentle touch and his soft-spoken voice. She had to try not to smile when he told her to pretend that she was in a salon though.
As Flotsam carefully spread the mixture on her face, Shiloh continued to admire the spoon sculptures in her hands, and before long an offer about condoms and balloon art had popped out of her mouth. She hadnât expected the comment to be as funny as it was, but as soon as she saw Flotsam laughing, she started to laugh too. Sheâd always been the type to believe that laughter was contagious.
Flotsam had gone on to tell her that he only had sex with Cinderella, Sparky and Jetsam. Jetsam. His brother. One of her eyebrows quirked ever so slightly in response, but she didnât say a word about it. Sheâd realized a long time ago that the way that these people lived was far different than anything that she was used to, so she wasnât completely blown away with shock. Actually, she wasnât very surprised at all to find out that they were incestuous with one another, as sheâd pegged them as having a close relationship right off the bat. She hadnât expected them to be this close, but who was she to judge? If she was being honest, the thought of them together wasnât as repulsive as she thought it might be. Maybe it was because they were both physically attractive, or because the act alone would be taboo, which made it all the more exciting, but it was somehow appealing. Of course, those thoughts didnât linger in her head for much longer than a few seconds, as she had a lot more important things to think about. Flotsam getting it on with his brother didnât quite make the list.
Shilohâs gaze followed Flotsamâs up to the ceiling when he started talking to Sparky as though she was there and could hear him, and it was then that she realized that the girl that sheâd watched decay and die in front of her might still be around. Back at the mud bog, heâd called her Sparky too, so she had to assume that it was the same person. Was she a ghost or something? After everything that sheâd seen, that wouldnât have surprised her. Before she could ask, however, Flotsam was beginning to ramble: first about Jetsam and the near-rape incident, and then about texting his lovers so that they wouldnât be shocked to find him chained to her in the bedroom, and then about what her condom creation business would be like. It got more and more elaborate and dirty as he went on, and before long she was laughing so hard that she had tears in her eyes. Her whole body ached, especially her face, but she couldnât stop herself, and the fact that he was laughing too was only making her laugh harder.
Shiloh had only just begun to calm down when.. Flotsam asked her if she was full of STDâs. Finger surfing at the beach? Contaminated waters? That was a new one. Her head quickly turned to look at him and another laugh cracked out of her, her facial expression made up equally of amusement, confusion and surprise. She liked the commentator voice a lot. âIt was less weird when you asked me to choose between dying and having my head fucked with. Finger surfing? Really?â She laughed, shaking her head. âNo.â She finally answered him, exhaling a long breath as she tried to calm herself down, although the smile never left her face. It was starting to really hurt now, but she couldnât stop grinning. âNo, Klappy doesnât have any STDâs.â She rolled her eyes, accepting the nickname.
Reaching forward after setting both of the spoon figures down, Shiloh dipped one of her fingers into the mortar, scooping a small amount of the salve out before lifting her shirt up just enough to expose the injury on the front of her upper ribcage. Carefully, she began to apply the mixture to it. The wound had barely begun to scab over, so it stung a little more at first, but it was bearable. As she tended to the areas that she could reach, she shifted closer to Flotsam so that he could finish applying the salve to her face, her dark eyes finding the bright blue and yellow hues in front of her. She held his gaze. This time, she held it for longer than she usually did, but she inevitably looked away before too long, her focus falling to nowhere in particular. Just somewhere that wasnât his face. She wanted to study him, to figure out how his mind worked, or to at least find some comfort in all of this, but somehow all she ever found in his eyes was defeat and a reminder of the hell that she would soon be put through. She wanted to stay positive and believe that things might actually turn out okay, but it was hard, especially when Flotsam wasnât confident that he would be able to perform the ritual without any mistakes. Besides, even if everything did turn out alright and she left here with all of her other memories intact, she was sad that she wouldnât remember that all of this existed. She would never know that magic was real. Sure, she didnât want to remember Jetsamâs hands all over her body, or being chased through the woods, but the rest of it? The magic? The spoon art? The laughter over condom art and Klappy the clown? She wanted to hold onto that. Of course, she understood why she couldnât though. In her heart of hearts, she knew that she would never tell a soul if they were to let her go, but she couldnât expect the Laveauâs to trust her with such important information. She understood why she was given the options that sheâd been given, and she felt fortunate that she even had options. They both sucked, but they were options nonetheless, and she knew that there were some people who might not have been lucky enough to have any at all.
âSo,â Shiloh began, deciding to keep making conversation. âThe shirt that Iâm wearing; itâs a band tee, right?â She asked, shifting away a little after Flotsam seemed like he was done applying the salve to her face. âElectric Voodoo? Are they any good? Or did you dress me in this as your final revenge, knowing that when I walk out into public in it, people are going to think that Iâve got a really bad taste in music?â She turned on the bed as she spoke, assuming that the boyâs offer to help her with the injuries on her back was still open. With her back now to Flotsam, she lifted her shirt further, exposing the various injuries on her soft flesh so that he could apply the salve for her.
