Lunar's POV
"I'm not going to play games and ask you the usual job questions, Mr. Lunar. Our business is much different, I hope you don't expect a simple interview. If you do, you may pack your shit and leave," Mr. Hayes stepped around his desk and sat on it, folding his arms as he stared down at me. Staying seated encouraged him, "You will be expected to answer with words or actions, and don't think we won't know when you lie. Why are you here? How did you hear about us? What drew you to work with us?"
"M-My mother applied for me," I stammered with a croak, "I-I wasn't aware of this place until Mathis and I entered. M-Ma doesn't do research when she applies for jobs, nor does she allow me to look for myself. She thinks I deserve better than the jobs we have near the house. I-I-I thought she was applying me for some boring desk in the city or something along tho---"
"Enough. You will be expected to alphabetize, clean, deliver, polish, and so on. Do you have an issue with that? Do you have an issue with carrying and lifting heavy objects, organizing files, and counting items? What about cleaning fluids such as blood, diarrhea, or vomit?" I flinched at the last part, still listening, "Can you handle the evidence of abuse or trauma? We do not slack upon such things in this business, nor will we tolerate hesitancy. You will get one warning and that is this, you get one chance in this business. You fuck up, you are gone. Speak."
"I-I'm not the best at lifting heavy things, but I'm certain to try my best. I hope it won't be wrong if I may need assistance. Any form of organizing you will have no doubts about, I love doing it. I-I-I don't think bodily fluids would be best for me to clean. The thought makes me queasy, and I'm sure I'd end up making more of a mess. I-If that deters you from my possible hiring I'm not upset, you need somebody who can do the job and that's valid. Evidence of abuse or trauma is common in my life, so I don't think it'll prevent me from working. However, it does entirely depend on the situation as I may have my personal experiences or history."
"Are you under any physical or mental distress?" I raised a brow, confused by the question, "Pardon my wording. Do you have any disabilities or struggles that affect your day-to-day life?"
"'Struggles' is an understatement," That question ran me over like a train, my leg bouncing and my thumbnail digging into my opposite hand, and my jaw tightened, "I'd rather not discuss it if that is alright with you."
"No shame in that, we will not ever force you to talk. All we ask for is honesty and trust," Mr. Hayes stood and strolled over to Mr. Lincoln, "But we do have more questions and you do have to answer them."
"I can do that," I nodded as I watched Mr. Lincoln sit on the desk this time, looking him in the eye, "Whatever you need to do or ask I will not stray away. You need my cooperation and I'm willing to give it. In return, I only want honesty and delicacy. I'm not a robot. I'm a person. I will treat you with respect if you give it in return."
Something flashed in Mr. Lincoln's eyes at my words. I don't know what it was, but it made the room lighter and his expression softened into something I couldn't recognize. He snapped his fingers and something in me obeyed and I stood. His hand rested under my chin, forcing it up while he used the opposite hand to look along my throat. His nails trailed along my shoulders and checked my arms before he knelt and massaged my thighs and legs.
I tried not to hitch my breath, but he seemed to notice as he cooed, "Relax, it's my job to check your veins and body mass. We have some tasks we have to confirm you can do."
"If I may comment," I tried to not laugh, his simple nod allowing me to finish, "You're doing this makes it seem like you're testing my body for meat processing or worse."
"I can assure you, that will not be happening," He chortled with a shake of his head, "Besides, you're much too thin to eat. Though, you could be snack-sized… That came out wrong. It sounded better in my head."
He sent a dangerous look to Mr. Hayes who fought a smirk as he flipped through his file of papers. I was curious why, but I wasn't going to ask.
"Will you come with me?" He asked, offering toward the door, "We have to see your performance on some things before we make our decision."
They led me to a new floor, my body stiffening and growing tense at what sounded like a banshee screeching. A few people were bloody and their clothes were torn, some kneeling on the ground to take a moment to rest.
"Report, Osiris--"
"If you don't mind, I'd rather observe and find out the issue on my own," I hesitated, looking at them all over. I was given strange looks, but he gave a nod and allowed me to step over to the group, "I-I'm aware I'm a stranger, b-but I'd like to look at what happened with everyone. I don't need anything explained."
I ignored more weird faces I got, looking through every scratch and bite as I listened to the Banshee Screams in the next room. Delicately I used tissues and a water bottle to clean their cuts and patch them up. Each mark tugged at my heart, I hated how I recognized them.
"May I have a deck of cards, and let me into that room, please?" I murmured, reaching for the door. One of the men went to protest, blocking my path, "I will not work here if even one of you cannot trust me, and let me handle this."
"He'll be alright, we're all here," Mr. Hayes ordered, the man backing off as I hesitated. My eyes closed tight and I took a deep breath. Barely an inch of the door opened and a chair was thrown to shut the door.
"Al-Alright," I mumbled, sitting with my legs crossed as I shuffled my cards and took out a Joker, King, and Queen, "I-I-I know you're afraid. You're probably really stressed and pissed off. All these weird guys and gals out here poking and prodding and trying to touch you…It's…It's terrifying. I'm sure I know why. You're laughing or scoffing in there, I know, but trust me… I know more than you may think. You've done the same scratches and bites I once did."
My breath was shaky as I got another Joker, King, and Queen out. Flipping the cards around to keep myself from bad thoughts.
"Listen, I'm not going to make you talk. I'm not going to do anything unless you allow it. All I'm going to do is slip three cards under the door. I'm sending Joker for Non-Binary, King for Male, and Queen for Female. Could ya let me know which one you are? I'd love to give you the correct pronouns. I'll even slip a fourth card showing what my pronouns are," I carefully slid the cards under. It took several minutes and many shuffled sounds before a Joker card was shoved back. It'd been folded into a cat, getting me to chuckle, "Origami is pretty badass. I think people who can do it are pretty sick. I once met a Senior in high school that decorated the principal's office for a prank with origami. Coolest shit I'd ever seen. I'll slide some more cards under. Ya think ya could make more animals, or tell me your name? My name is Lunar Floid, and I love Deer, Doves, and Koi."
We spent the next hour this way, only stopping because I ran out of cards and had given them the last ones. I was a silent mess through it all, hugging my knees tight and scratching until the back of my hand bled.
The door opening had me immediately on my feet, as somebody peeked out and whispered, "My name is Aiden Walsh. I'm sorry for taking so long and causing such a mess. You get it, and I'm so sorry that you do."
"I'm sorry that it's something we have in common," Slowly tears danced down my cheeks as I gave Aiden a nod, nervously looking at the marks on him. I recognized each and every one, "And I'm so unbelievably sorry he hurt you. I-I-I know you want to hide and cower, but it won't do any good. You are so much stronger than you may think, but hiding lets them win. When you have people to help you, abusers mean nothing. I don't know these men out here very well, but I think they're more than capable of your trust to get some help. You have to let them."
Something in Aiden faltered as they stepped out, their arms wrapped tight around me before they hugged and lifted me off the ground. A smile chimed through their tears as their voice echoed, "My pronouns are They/He/It. I'm sorry for being such a downer, I'm over it. I'm done. I'm good."
It was a cover, I knew that better than anyone, but I returned the hug before watching them chatter away. I didn't turn away until they were out of sight with the other men, Osiris bowing to me as he smiled and winked at Mr. Lincoln, "I think you'll be a wonderful application to our group, Mr. Floid."
"I think we've seen enough, don't you?" Mr. Hayes questioned Mr. Lincoln with a grin, "Shall we decide?"
"I believe we already have," Mr. Lincoln was warm and soft, bliss in his eyes as he looked at me, bowing with a delicate kiss of my hand, "We welcome you if you'll have us."
"So, how'd it go?" Mathis stared at me, shaking me out of my thoughts. My face felt cold with paleness, my throat dry and my body shaking. My silence only encouraged her, "Speak, Dumbass! Speak!!"
"I-I st-start t-tomorrow," I finally spoke out, those very words making my legs weak as she squealed jumping up and down. My entire world felt like it was spinning, I was a nervous wreck, ready to drown and plummet into the abyss of an anxiety attack. We'd been out of the building barely ten minutes, I was still processing the whole interview. I was confused but also terrified. Some things raised more questions, but they also raised this thrill in me that made me feel giddy. Like how Mr. Lincoln acted at the end…
"We've got to celebrate, Dude!!" Matty danced, shoving my bag and my board at me, my hands trembling as I followed her away from the building. My legs were Jell-O. I had to fight the urge to collapse and curl into a ball.
"C-Can we walk?" When she attempted to hop onto her board I breathed out, "I-I feel like I might faint if we start skating."
"Let's get you something to drink and find us a place to sit," She chortled as she tugged me forward. My entire body was trembling, my breathing quivering as I tried to settle myself down. I tried to brush off this strange feeling of us being watched, sitting in front of Wendy's while Praying Mantis went inside. The feeling of eyes on me didn't recede, but I kept trying to ignore it because I was certain I was being paranoid. I put my elbows onto my knees, leaning my face against my hands as I took slow deep breaths. I jumped at Mathis' return, leading her to cackle, "Holy Fuck, you are a mess right now."
"A-A little bit. Wh-What did you get us?" I released a shaken breath, leaning back. I grimaced at the two Frosties and Baconators, my stomach turning to knots, "I'm on a diet."
It pained me to lie to her, but I couldn't tell her the truth about food being so disgusting to me. The thought made nails puncture my digestive organs, and the feeling kept growing.
"Well, today you're not," She ordered, shoving the burger at me. I swallowed down the vomit that threatened to spew, staring at it in my hands. The smell alone made me dizzy, the sound of her taking a big bite drilled into my skull as the knot kept growing. Gleeful shrills left her mouth as she kicked her feet like an overjoyed child, "My Beloved Elysium, I love Wendy's!"
I kept staring at my food, the pit in my stomach growing larger, heavier, and thicker by the second. Her attention started to turn towards me as my throat started to cave. She had never really seen me eat. I hated eating, it made me feel gross. Choking back a wretch, I breathed, "I-I've got to use the bathroom."
Launching off the bench I rushed inside, running into the restroom and a stall before hurling out my insides. After about ten minutes of throwing up, I dragged myself to the sink, washing my mouth and face. Once finished I wiped myself off and slowly trudged out of the bathroom, shoving a couple of mints into my mouth as I came back over to her.
"You alright, Lune?" Mathis questioned concern and worry filling her voice as she stood up. She came over and looked me over before embracing me in a warm hug. She rarely hugged so when she did it always meant she cared. That only made lying to her hurt more, "You're not sick, are you? I'll take you home if you are."
"I'm alright, Praying Mantis. I-I probably ate something bad this morning. I'll be fine," I hugged back tight, reassuring her with a hair ruffle, "Why don't we head to the park or something, huh? Loosen up our joints and have some fun?"
This changed her worry to joy within a heartbeat, her head vigorous as she clapped. We hopped onto our boards and started to roll to the park. The feeling of being watched never faded, it only seemed to be getting more profound but I refused to let it get to me as I connected my phone back to Matt's speaker.
"We are…," Mathis instantly sang out loud with the song as soon as she heard the music. I laughed as she looked over at me and jammed out. Hollywood Undead was our band. The band that brought us together. There wasn't a single song we didn't like, we could cry or party to any of them the same. It was amazing.
"If you can lose it all…," I rapped, grinning at her as she clapped her hands in ecstatic bliss. She loved it when I rapped. I kicked the board faster, trying hard to not laugh as I continued, "...when I breathe!"
She watched me jump over a few flights of stairs, doing the same as she cackled, both of us passing a large group of teenagers. A few of them yelled as we passed them, chanting some of the lyrics, "...so baby don't tempt me!"
"OHHH!" We hollered while raising our arms in victory. After six years we had finally succeeded in getting a group of teens to sing along with us. We chortled more as we heard them yell along with us, our screeches chaotic and goofy, "We are made from broken parts!"
High-fiving, Mathis and I kept rolling, jumping over a railing, and landing back on the ground. My attention was still on her when she shrieked, "You Idiot, pay attention!"
My board slammed against a fountain, my body flying forward and landing into the water of said reservoir, "Shit!"
"You fucking dumbass!" She giggled as I stood up, shaking my hair. Her hands were on her hips as she shook her head at me, "You look like a wet dog. You probably smell like one, too. How's it feel looking like a soppy old mop, Looney Tunes?"
"Come give me a hug," I stepped towards her, holding up my arms, "We can be mops together. Won't that be fun?"
"No!" She squealed at me, running as I stumbled from the fountain, "Let's hope your phone's alright."
"FUCK," My hands frantically whipped out my phone, sheer panic haunting me as I flipped on the screen. It worked. I got lucky. I shoved it into my bag, pulling my focus back to Matty with a smirk, "Now, that it works… Come here!"
"No, Stop!" She tried to run, my hand gripping her wrist and pulling her into a hug, "Lune, no! You idiot!!"
I laughed as I smiled at her, shaking my hair in her face, "Haha, Dipshit."
Her force was strong as she yanked from me, shoving me so hard I fell back into the fountain as she held her hand to her mouth and pointed at me, "Haha, Loser!"
My face scrunched as I sat up and spat water from my mouth, wiggling my jaw with a pout, "You're such a dick."
"I love you," She teased, holding out her hand, "Let me help you out and then we can dry off."
"I love you, too," I smirked, grabbing her hand and pulling hard. I watched as the water swallowed her with an evil grin plastered on my face. She splashed me, turning it into a splashing war as the air filled with laughter all over again. We grew tired, our breath heavy as we managed to crawl out from the reservoir. My hands slowly unbuttoned my shirt before draining it, "That was fun."
"I wish the water wasn't so damn cold, though," She shivered, watching as I opened my bag and tossed her a hoodie and a pair of shorts. Her cheeks cherried as she held the dry clothes, "What about you? Aren't you cold? I don't want you to suffer that much if you're chilly."
"I'll be fine, go change. I've got a plastic bag you can push your wet clothes in," I rolled my eyes at her with a chuckle, watching her run into the bathroom to change. I took a quick stroll around and picked up garbage and put it into the trash cans. I hated litter. Don't people know how important the planet is to our survival? Pulling a small bottle of hand sanitizer from my pocket I used some of it to cleanse my hands from germs as I headed back over to Praying Mantis exiting the restrooms, "Better?"
"Yes, thank you," She smiled, handing me her wet clothes before I tucked them into a plastic bag and rested it with our stuff. We peacefully walked around the park, admiring the silence since the kids were still in school. This time was always the best time for us to come to the playground. It meant we could hang out and talk about anything without the fear of interruption or kids trying to annoy us.
We could also be ourselves without comments about people assuming we were dating. Then we say we're not, they get offended. For a short period, it put a strain on us, and we were too afraid to hang out. Those were the worst four months for us. Yeah, we have some weird moments or conversations, but we're friends. We're almost like siblings and I couldn't ask for anything better. She's my ride-or-die.
My eyes wandered to her puffing her vape, looking at her in disapproval as we plopped onto the grass, "That stuff is bad for you."
"I only do it every so often," She blew smoke at me. That was code for when she's stressed and needs an escape. Her body leaned back as a sigh left her lips, frustration in her eyes as I lay with her, "Pops is up my ass, again. He's giving Mom a hard time, too."
Her father was an abusive prick. He never hit her or her mother… He's been getting worse, though. I can't help being afraid, but because he's only verbally abusive the police won't get involved. I hate it so much… I watched Matt hit her vape, using her arm as a pillow as we admired the clouds.
"That one looks like a penis," She pointed to a cloud, instantly getting the both of us to burst into a pit of laughter, "and that one looks like a vagina. I wonder if they'll get it on."
"Mathis, that's inappropriate!" I shamed her, "What the fuck is wrong with you?
"Then why are you laughing?" She taunted me as I struggled to calm down, "You're no better than me if you're laughing about it!"
"Because it was unexpected."