(Untitled)

[boss_ofme]

In the early afternoon, John Skillpa stumbled into the hall of the Compound's fourth level, his arms leaden with clothes. A bundle of dresses, stockings and undergarments, grabbed hastily and held in a tangle against his chest. Dangling from one hand was a pink vanity case, and tucked under his arm was a softly curling brown wig

Comments

[turnedoutfine]

Parked at another table with homework and a snack of fruit, Alexis looked up when the man came in and dumped a big pile of what looked like women's clothing onto another one. She frowned slightly, puzzled, and was about to ask if he was okay when she spotted a familiar object among the fabric.

"Hey, that's Emma's," she said, standing and going over to it, pulling it out slightly from under the pile to uncover it completely. "This is Emma's case."

She tugged on a familiar-looking purple fabric, holding it up to reveal the pretty dress Emma had said she could borrow. She looked over at the guy rummaging through drawers, still frowning. "These are Emma's clothes, too. What are you doing with Emma's things?"

[boss_ofme]

"Emma's gone," he said with as much confidence as he could muster, his head ducked, hoping to hide his face.

The people of Peacock had taken Emma under their wing, accepted her as one of their own, turned a blind eye to all of their strangeness. But John knew who she was. He knew Emma was taking over his life, but he couldn't trust that when people realized what she was -- what they were -- that they would be as accepting of him as they'd been of his so-called wife.

With his eyebrows plucked, his face waxed, his hair growing long, he looked more and more like her, every day. Soon, there might be nothing left of him, and he couldn't let that happen.

[turnedoutfine]

"What? Gone?" Alexis' eyes widened. She hadn't heard anything, and most news traveled pretty fast on the island. Had it just happened? "When? And that doesn't explain what you're doing with all her stuff." All of Emma's pretty, carefully picked clothes, her case - it didn't seem right, whatever he was doing with it all.

[boss_ofme]

"Just now. This morning," he said, but already he was doubting that she was gone for good. She'd be back, as long as there was a reason for her to return. Her clothes, her things, were tying her to this place. Just like these people were.

"I'm getting rid of them." Then, after a moment, he decided, "Here, you can have them, if you want."

[turnedoutfine]

Alexis frowned, silent for a second. Something still just seemed...wrong, and it wasn't the fact that Emma seemed to have disappeared. There was something about the guy, and she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was. "I - okay," she said, and automatically started separating out the clothes and folding them up neatly. She wasn't entirely comfortable with it, but it seemed like a better alternative to whatever he was going to do with it all. "Sure, I can take them."

[boss_ofme]

Nodding, he opened his mouth, about to thank her... It lifted an enormous weight from his shoulders, just to be rid of them, but instead, he closed his mouth with a snap, taking an awkward, shuffling step backward.

"I think that's all of it."

[turnedoutfine]

"Okay," Alexis said, continuing to fold and stack the various articles, but she paused and looked up when the guy took a step back. "Are you okay?"

[boss_ofme]

"Yes," he answered immediately, clearing his throat and glancing toward the door. "I'm fine. She's... important to me, that's all."

But it was a lie. She'd been important, once upon a time. He'd needed her to survive. But now, all he wanted was to be rid of her.