[004] you're the only boyfriend i need

                              Suki's haunted by another terrible dream.

                             She's wandering around in an unfamiliar wilderness, one that feels both terrifying and familiar to her. It feels so real, even down to the scent of earth and nature quickly filling her senses and the feeling of dirt in between her bare toes. Suki has doubts as to whether this was all a dream or not. She kept walking straight ahead, but she wasn't exactly sure where she was going. Suki felt as though someone or something was luring her deeper into the wilderness and she was powerful to stop it.

                             Suki paused when she saw one of the trees, noticing a symbol engraved into the bark. It looked exactly like the symbol she had drawn in the dirt back at the party. She reached over to touch it, letting her index finger trail along the line. She felt a shiver go down her spine when she touched it and that was when she noticed something absolutely strange.

                             There was no wind. It had suddenly become silent, so silent that Suki could hear a pin drop. 

                            Suki looked around, seeing a shadow dart out the corner of her eye. She decided to chase after them so she could see exactly who it was. Suki was hopeful that it could've been Courtney. There had been a couple of times where Courtney had been in her dreams, so it wasn't completely farfetched. 

                           "Court! Hey, Courtney, wait up!" Suki began to chase after her.

                           She ran as fast as she could, eventually catching up to Courtney. Or who she thought was Courtney.

                          "Hey, where are we?" Suki asked, stopping to catch her breath. When Courtney didn't answer, Suki looked at the blonde with a frown. "Uh, are you okay?"

                          Suki then reached over to touch Courtney's shoulder, shocked when she felt how cold her shoulder was. Suki pulled her hand away, glancing down to see that her hand was now wet too. When Suki looked up again, Courtney was gone. In her place was her mom instead, wearing the exact same outfit she had been when she had died. The only difference now was that she was soaking wet, a puddle of water surrounding her feet. Suki immediately gasps before taking a step back, her eyes welling up with tears at the sight of her dead mother.

                           Her skin looked grey, and it was also bloated, her eyes pale and her lips blue as well. She looked like a monster straight out of Suki's worst nightmares as she reached out for Suki, causing her to stumble backwards and fall onto the ground. Suki looked up at her mom who had now gotten on her knees, crawling towards Suki.

                            "Please don't hurt me," Suki cried. She felt absolutely paralyzed by fear, too afraid to move. "Please!"

                            Her mom grabs a hold of Suki's arm, making her entire body feel cold to the touch. Suki doesn't know how but she just knows that this was what death felt like. 

                            "Don't give in," she immediately warned Suki. She sounded just as serious as she had the day she had tried to kill Suki and ultimately killed herself.

                            "What? I don't understand," Suki shook her head.

                            "Whatever you do, don't give in. Don't let the wilderness take you," her mom insisted.

                            "How?" Suki frowned.

                            "Fight it, Suki. Fight it for me. I tried to protect you, but I failed. It's up to you now. I don't want to lose you," her mom replied, putting her head down. She could hear the pain and regret in her voice which broke Suki's heart. Suki didn't even realize that she was crying until she felt fat, warm tears rolling down her cheeks.

                           "Mom, I miss you so much. I wish you were still here with me," Suki sobbed.

                           "I miss you too. But I'm always here. I'm always watching. I will never leave you," her mom assured.

                          "Promise?" Suki inquired.

                          "I promise," her mom nods.

                          Before Suki could say anything more, she saw a tall shadow beginning to cover her. It not only covered her but it also covered her mom too. She looked up in horror, backing away from Suki as she stared behind Suki. Suki swallowed hard, feeling a tear roll down her cheek, as she turned around to see who was behind them.

                          She saw what appeared to be a woman, although her face was covered by some sort of mesh headwear. Suki couldn't tell who it was. The woman was wearing some sort of crown, although it appeared to be antlers. It was an antler crown which Suki had never seen before. She was also wearing a white dress which appeared to have dark hair stuck onto it. Suki got onto her knees, suddenly feeling as though she needed to bow down to whoever it was.

                         "Do not let her in," her mom warned from behind her, causing Suki to suddenly open her eyes.

                         "Suki."

                         Suki instantly recognized that voice. It could only belong to one person. "Natalie?"

                        Suki looked up and suddenly the strange woman was lunging after her, making her scream as loud as she could.

                        Courtney had been watching Suki sleep at the time, waking up before her in the morning. Granted, Suki had ended up drinking a lot more than Courtney did. She had really gone overboard, passing out by the time they arrived back at Courtney's house to go to sleep. She knew that it was a bad and weird habit of Courtney's, but she often found herself sneaking glances at Suki. She'd watch her as she slept, admiring how beautiful she was. 

                         Obviously, Courtney didn't want to just keep staring at Suki all the time. She wanted to do more. It drove her crazy just how much she wanted Suki. But Courtney held herself back, afraid of what might happen if she got what she wanted. It felt so tempting to cross the lines with Suki, going from friends to something much more. But if things went wrong, Courtney was afraid of losing Suki. She'd never let Suki go even if Suki wanted to leave. Courtney loved her so much; Suki was a part of her, and she wouldn't be able to live without her.

                        Courtney would rather die than let go of her. And if she was dying, Courtney would take Suki with her. In Courtney's mind, that was what true love was all about.

                        Just as she reached over to touch Suki's hair to brush it out of her best friend's face, Suki suddenly screamed and sat straight up in bed. Courtney jumped back in surprise, watching as Suki cried and screamed. She was having some sort of insane nightmare and it was up to Courtney to wake her up. She grabbed Suki's shoulders, trying to shake her awake.

                        "Suki, wake up!" Courtney shouted. But that didn't work.

                        So Courtney decided to go to extreme measures. She slapped Suki hard across the cheek which immediately made Suki snap out of it. She instantly woke up, feeling the left side of her face violently sting.

                        "What the fuck?" Suki held onto the left side of her face which was now on fire. "Why did you slap me?"

                        Courtney scoffs. "Are you serious? You were the one freaking out and having a nightmare. I tried waking you up but it didn't work so I got desperate. At least it worked."

                        Suki looks away from Courtney, rubbing her face. While she did so, memories from the nightmare played back in her mind. Her mom's words continued to haunt her mind, and she couldn't get the image of the other woman out of her head either. Suki had never seen anything like it before. It was terrifying but it was also intriguing.

                        However, Suki quickly remembered what her mom told her. Don't let the wilderness in. Don't let her in. Was she talking about the woman with the antlers? What did any of this fucking mean?

                        "Suki?" Courtney waves her hand in Suki's face, causing the brunette to turn around and look at her. "Hey, are you okay? What were you dreaming about? It must've been something bad if it made you scream like that."

                        "It was -," Suki began to say.

                        The door suddenly opened, revealing Courtney's mom. She was dressed in a light pink bathrobe, her hair still in rollers and a cigarette dangling between her lips. Suki groans, suddenly hit with a wave of nausea.

                        "What's going on in here? I heard screaming," Courtney's mom asked, blowing a large cloud of smoke over to the side.

                        "It's nothing, Mom. She just had a bad dream," Courtney quickly answered.

                        "I think I'm going to puke," Suki shook her head, beginning to feel the vomit rising up in her throat.

                        "What?" Courtney frowned.

                        Suki rushed into Courtney's bathroom, vomiting inside of her toilet. All of the booze she had consumed was now coming right back up. Courtney kicked her mom out of her room and then she rushed into the bathroom, eager to help Suki as she finished vomiting. When she finished, she flushed everything down the toilet and sat on the floor. Her head felt like it was spinning and she suddenly felt a weird sense of dread in the pit of her stomach.

                        She didn't know what she was dreading but Suki couldn't get rid of it.

                        "I think you've learned something valuable today, Suki. You have to control your fucking liquor," Courtney brushed Suki's hair out of her face, her fingertips brushing against the reddened skin of Suki's cheek. It tingles but Suki enjoys it, leaning in a little closer to feel more of Courtney's touch.

                        Courtney smiles softly, deciding to give Suki exactly what she wanted. She stroked Suki's cheek and gave her the soft and comforting touch she had been craving. Suki felt all warm inside, feeling rewarded by Courtney. If Suki did exactly what she asked, Courtney would give her exactly what she wanted: love and affection.

                        That was the same thing Courtney wanted, even if she kept it more of a secret than Suki did.

                        "I'm sorry for slapping you," Courtney then apologized.

                        "It's okay," Suki shakes her head. No matter what Courtney did, Suki would always forgive her. Courtney often tested her limits, seeing how far she could go with Suki. But no matter how far she went, Suki always forgave her. She always went back to Courtney no matter what. "I'm sorry for throwing up in your toilet."

                        "Anytime," Courtney chuckles, causing Suki to do the same.

                        However, Suki quickly sobers up when she remembers what they had to do today. "Oh, fuck. We have to leave today and I'm absolutely hungover."

                        "I'll sneak into my mom's stash and get you something to fix the pain. And then you're going to get a proper breakfast before we leave for the plane," Courtney offered, reluctantly letting go of Suki's cheek.

                        "I have to go to my house first. I need to get my things," Suki replied.

                        "Yeah, don't worry. I'll make sure you'll get your stuff before we go. But first, I think we should get ready," Courtney adds before getting up, even helping Suki up to her feet.

                        "Hey," Suki suddenly adds, causing Courtney to look at her, "Are you sad about breaking up with David? Even a little bit."

                        Courtney shakes her head. "Nah. I'm just happy to finally get rid of him. I'm officially done with boys entirely."

                        "No, you're not," Suki rolls her eyes. She didn't believe Courtney for a second.

                        "I'm serious! When we get back from nationals, I'm not dating another boy. Besides, you're the only boyfriend I need, Suki," Courtney replied.

                        Courtney and Suki got ready together and Courtney gave Suki the right pills to cure her hangover. Suki felt a little better afterwards but she couldn't let go of that dread inside of her. It was a sinking feeling and Suki felt as though she had a chain wrapped around her ankle, holding her down by an anchor. Something was making her feel as though she shouldn't leave.

                        But Suki swallows that down along with the scrambled eggs Courtney's mom made.

                        "The both of you are so lucky," Nancy remarked, looking over at Suki and Courtney as they ate. "You get to travel out and go to a completely new city."

                        "Yeah, it's gonna be pretty amazing," Courtney smiles.

                        Nancy frowned. "I wish I could go with you guys."

                        "I'm sure you'll have lots of fun here," Courtney shrugs, her tone venomously sweet, and causing Nancy to narrow her eyes at her older sister.

                        "Make sure to take care of Suki while the both of you are out there," Courtney's mom responded.

                        "I will," Suki nods.

                        "And Nancy, I hear you're doing pretty well in your literature class. You're doing so well that they're even putting one of your short stories in the newspaper, right?" Courtney's mom added, turning to look over at Nancy who immediately smiled.

                        "The school magazine. My teacher really thinks I have a gift for writing. She says I could become an accomplished author when I grow up if I keep at it," Nancy replied, looking so proud that it made Courtney upset. How dare Nancy try to steal her spotlight?

                        "Showoff, " Courtney rolls her eyes.

                        Nancy frowns but Suki sends her a sympathetic look.

                        "Don't take too long. You guys need to leave pretty soon or else you'll miss the plane," Courtney's mom reminded her.

                        Courtney knew that her mom was eager for Courtney to leave just so she could have more of an empty house. Nancy was usually so busy with school that she was hardly ever home. With Courtney gone for a little while, their mom could bring home her different boyfriends and go on nice dates and be spoiled for as long as she could.

                        "Oh, please. There's no way they'd leave without the two best players on the team. We have more than enough time. Besides, I have to drop Suki off to her house first," Courtney replied.

                        "Yes. How is your dad doing? I haven't seen him around town for a while," Courtney's mom asked.

                        The bacon in her mouth suddenly tasted acidic in her mouth and she has to wash it all down with orange juice. "Um, he's fine. He's just been really busy with personal projects so."

                        By personal projects, Suki really meant getting drunk.

                        Courtney's mom hums, not necessarily buying Suki's story. But she was kind enough not to push it. Courtney decided to shift the focus from Suki by grabbing her and Suki's dishes to put them away in the kitchen sink, signaling that it was their time to go. Suki was so grateful that Courtney knew her so well.

                        Even after they leave Courtney's house and they head to Suki's house, the feeling of dread never goes away.

( 🌲🔪🦌 )

word count: 2500
notes: here's chapter four! i promise chapter five will be the end of episode one. i just wanted to add this dream sequence and more of courtney and suki being gay. let me know what you thought in the comments!