Alicia peered out from behind a tree as she followed Jack deeper into the woods. She'd been walking home from her fencing club when she'd spotted Jack, her old enemy. Even though she'd been feeling like trash recently, she'd still been much sharper about things now that she'd finally broke through her plateau in fencing. She could just tell by the way he was walking: he was up to no good. Jack turned around suddenly. She ducked back behind the tree, her heart racing. She waited for him to start walking again before she followed at a further distance.

Just by the tension in the air, she knew it was more than just his usual hijinks. Since his pranking days in summer camp eight years ago to starting fights in middle school and the dangerous crowd he'd found in high school, he'd never missed a chance for mischief. He'd always been a troublemaker but she was sure he was into a different kind of trouble this time.

Her palms were sweaty, holding her phone, ready to record whatever school rule he was violating, or maybe, if she was lucky, the law itself. She couldn't wait to catch him messing up. She'd moved a bit further back still, not wanting him to notice her but his pace had picked up. She adjusted her pace too late. Her stealthy speed walk was no match for the loping stride of the over six foot boy and she lost him in the twists of gnarled trees and dense brush.

She swore quietly, trying to follow where she last saw him. She looked down at the ground trying to see if he left some sort of a trail she could follow. Of course he didn't. Her breath quickened as she stalked forward. This patch of wood wasn't terribly big, she comforted herself. As long she kept walking she'd be able to find him.

 

The migraine she'd been ignoring flared up with the stress of tailing him. Alicia clamped her hand against her head for a second, pausing as the pain died back down. She heard a slight whoosh behind her and a soft thump on the ground. Alicia jumped.

“Nice day for a walk,” Jack said. “I thought fencing was your thing, not cross country?”

Alicia spun around, glaring at the boy towering over her.

“W-What the hell is wrong with you?” she asked. “Jumping out of trees and scaring people like a maniac...”

“Just making my grand entrance to save a damsel in distress,” he said. “You look a little lost.”

“Really?” she asked. “You wanted to help me?”

He held his hands up in surrender.

“Alright, jeez,” he said. “I'm not looking to hash it out with you today. I come in peace.”

He split his fingers into a vulcan salute. Alicia stifled a smile, increasing the intensity of her stare.

“I bet you don't even know where that's from,” she said.

“Don't be ridiculous,” Jack said. “Even I've seen Star Wars, nerd.”

Alicia closed her eyes for a second, clenching both her fists and taking a deep breath before letting her irritation get the best of her. Jack regarded her like an amusing kitten. Alicia looked at him again, scrutinizing the boy, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

“What are you doing here, Jack?” she asked.

“Nothing in particular,” he said. “I'm just a troubled soul wandering aimlessly. What about you?”

“I'm just making sure everything is alright over here.” she said. “I'm going to join you.”

“You want to walk alone in the woods, with me?” he asked. “How many fingers am I holding up?

He held up four fingers. She rolled her eyes.

“Four.”

“Alright. Are you feeling lightheaded? Can you tell me who the current president is?”

She smiled sweetly.

“Why do you not want me to come with you? Got something to hide?”

“You followed me into here,” he said. “What's your deal? You gonna' do one of those fake rape accusations? Gonna' run me through with one your little stabby sticks, sword girl?”

“Quite the criminal mind you've got there,” she said. “As expected, of course.”

“You can't just accuse people of crimes because you don't like them. What is it with you? Don't you have better things to do? If your looking for company just ask one of your mindless simps and stop bothering me.”

“That's ridiculous,” she said. “I'm saving myself for someone who cherishes me.”

“Really?” he asked. “While you're saving yourself, How about you walk in the other direction and save me while you're at it too?

He walked off into the forest. She followed. She knew she'd made the right choice when she noticed the added tension in his stride. He looked back at her and quietly sighed. He sent off a quick text and suddenly he seemed much more relaxed.

“Well, since you insist, I guess it's a date,” he said.

“Gross.”

“I don't want a hardcore masochist calling me gross.”

“I- well-”Alicia sputtered. “H-how can you sneak into a girl's room like that? That's breaking and entering!”

“You know what you did, you poisonous, blackmailing bitch,” he said. “You're lucky I took it easy on you. Or maybe you were hoping I'd do something out of your twisted little fantasies, you fucking degenerate.”

She stuck out a tongue at him.

“It's not my fault you can't keep it in your pants,” she said. “Someone was bound to catch you sooner or later fucking all over the school like that.”

They walked though the woods, ending up on a side road. Jack turned to the girl.

“Thanks for the company,” he said. “Why don't you go home and have a nice time tying yourself up? Then do everyone in your life a favor and don't untie yourself.”

He turned back, heading into the woods. She followed him back into the forest. He turned around, looking at the smug latina.

“Seriously,” he said. “Make like a banana and split.”

“What are you hiding?” she asked.

“Lots of things,” he said. “A six pack, eight inches of hard-”

“Stop. Please.”

“You first,” he said. “I can't take all of this.”

He made a broad gesture towards her.

“All of what?”

“All of you. Maybe some other guys think you're some princess, because of your grades and your fencing trophies and your little Ms. Perfect act but I know better. You're still the same petty, violent nerd I used to know. Doesn't matter if you have nice tits and dress like a human now.”

“So that's how it is?” she asked. “Well, you're still the same jackass, destructive, immature clown you always were. Nobody actually cares about you. They're just along for the ride until you start your inevitable spiral downward. Just because you found some tacky groupies and started taking steroids doesn't mean anything.”

Jack snorted.

“It's called weight lifting and martial arts, I wouldn't put that garbage in my body.”

“I see you didn't deny that your groupies are tacky.”

“You trying to start a fight?”

“Oh no! The big bad delinquent is threatening me once he realized he can't beat me with his words.”

“God, you're lucky you're a masochist,” he said. “Even if I beat you senseless, you'd just enjoy it. Then you'd film a video and share our little sob story with everyone and get me in trouble. I bet you'd probably be rewatching it every night, getting yourself off to being assaulted.”

They kept walking around the woods until sunset trading increasingly heated quips.

“Starting a family?” he asked. “You're actually delirious if you think a man will put up with you long enough for that to happen. Forget being good at fencing, you're going to be pound for pound best in the world at divorces.”

“Take that back!”

He shrugged his shoulders.

“They hated Jesus because he told the truth. You've got a pretty face but that's not going to be able to cover up how poisonous and insufferable you are. Don't worry, you'll be able to enjoy yourself while they're still clueless. That's why you'll need to keep divorcing, so you can keep enjoying that little bit of time again and again.”

Alicia's face was red and shaking, her eyes teary but ferocious.

“Not like you'll be any better,” she said. “You're too much of a jerk, and you'll never form a meaningful connection with anyone. Even if you somehow find your fairy tale princess, the one true girl, you'll never be anything more than a fling. Just a quick bit of excitement. Once the flash and glitter fades she'll see you as the violent, criminal deadbeat you are and drop you like a smelly diaper.

“Pfft,” he said. “Your delusions are showing again. I'm very happy with my love life, what good would I get from settling down? I've got a fucking rotation. What the hell do I need a wife for?”

“You'll need one because she'll be the only one preventing you from sinking deeper into your depravity and getting gunned down like the dog you are. I know the crowd you're hanging around. I saw the way you texted your accomplices to run before I came in with you. You think you're cool now that your groupies are slobbering over you because they're high on your supply and you beat up their ex-boyfriends? Guess what? None of them are going to visit you when you're locked inside a cell. Hope you like prison food and back rubs from Bubba.”

“Alright,” he said. “I'm done talking with you. Scram.”

Alicia felt the atmosphere around the boy change.

“Uh oh,” she said. “I think I touched a nerve. Hurts because it's true, right?”

Jack spun on her and pinned her against a tree. She looked back at him, dazed and with a slight blush on her features. Her breath came fast, her pupils dilated in excitement as they stared at each other in silence for a moment. Alicia schooled her face back into an unaffected, smug smile.

“You're not going to do anything,” she said. 

Jack's jaw tightened. The boy leveled his gaze at the girl with a pair of hard, squinted eyes.

“Looks like I didn't bully you hard enough back in the good old days. You're still such a stuck-up, mouthy busybody.”

Alicia pursed her lips, fixing her hair before letting out a light sigh.

“Jack,” she said. “If you don't get your fucking hands off me this instant, you're going to be in so much trouble.”

“Good to know,” he said.

As he was contemplating how best to put her in her place, he froze.

Reality tore itself into a perfectly circular portal of hazy blue and green right in front of him.

“What the-”

“Relax,” an undulating, female voice said. “Please do not resist.”

The portal swelled in size to half the height of a tree. The two of them backed away, but as if sensing this, the circle lurched forward, swallowing them.

Jack felt like he was a golf ball being sucked through a straw, an impossibly strong pressure compressing and sucking his body through the unknown. Then the pressure vanished and he was sitting. His chair seemed to grow out of the dark ground below him, faintly glowing like the rest of it. He looked around, finding Alicia sitting right next to him.

“What the hell?” she demanded. “Jack, what did you- oh my god.”

They were both naked. Alicia quickly crossed her arms and legs then glared at Jack.

“What?” he asked. “I didn't do this!.”

She sniffed.

“Whatever,” she said. “Don't fucking look at me, pervert.”

He did the exact opposite, taking in her petite and toned figure, observing her subtle curves and smooth tan skin. While her hands covered up her private areas, he stared at the rope marks all over her body.

“Goddamn,” he said. “You tied that by yourself?”

He sucked in a breath, ducking as two fingers jabbed towards his eyes.

“Don't dodge,” she said. “You need to be punished. Only my husband is allowed to look at me like that.”

“You prissy little bitch-”

They both felt a presence appear, although their surroundings didn't change from the murky, starlit darkness.

“Welcome Jack and Alicia,” the female voice said, its voice soft, but shaking the entire space. “I've been observing you both for quite some time now. I'm glad we can finally meet.”

“You don't think you could've brought our clothes with us, Miss- what do we call you?”

“Weaver,” the voice said. “Wanda Weaver. I'm afraid not Jack, I cannot bring anything that is not part of you here. I'm sorry for this inconvenience but I'm afraid it's a matter of life or death for Alicia.”

Alicia gulped.

“I'm going to die?”
“That's correct, Alicia,” Wanda said. “As it stands, if you continue your life as normal, you'll die within two years.”