Chapter 33: Erin

I never thought I’d miss my boring, white-walled apartment and its lackluster furniture, but I could’ve cried after we landed on my living room floor. Well, I was crying, but it was mostly from the pain. Dez and Cal’s blood might have stopped me from bleeding out, but it sure as hell didn’t make it hurt any less.

Saya’s blood-soaked figure stained my carpet, but I didn’t care at that moment; I was just happy to be alive. Alive and back on Earth.

I’d done it. I’d made it back, but I still had one more thing to do.

“I have a shower you both can use.” I glanced at the purple-haired girl, who looked close to Saya’s size. “I’ll gather some clothes that you’ll both fit into as well.” Saya gave me a grateful nod and ushered the other girl into my bathroom.

My bedroom was as I left it. My black comforter, which I got on sale, was in a crumpled heap, and half my pillows were on the floor. The only thing off was my dresser drawers which had been opened. I always closed them when I was done.

I pulled out several pairs of clothes and knocked on the bathroom door, handing the lump to Saya. The other girl stood a head taller than me, even more so than Saya, her purple hair wet from showering. I swore her face shifted, her imperfect features smoothing into something more ... unnatural, but I could have imagined it.

Saya withdrew the silver coin and a piece of folded paper—more than a little bloody—from the pile of discarded clothes on the floor. “Here, these belong to you. I ... I tried to use the coin. Just to see, but nothing happened.”

I didn’t ask her what she had tried to use it for, but I nodded. “I’m sure it’s because Earth works differently from there. We’ll figure out how to get you back.”

“No!” she screeched, and I flinched.

I shook my head. “No, I mean, of course not.” I nervously laughed. “I meant a place you were comfortable with, but you’re more than welcome to stay here with me. We’ll figure something out.”

The purple-haired girl remained silent, drying her hair with a towel and looking like a normal human again as I closed the bathroom door.

The rest of the apartment didn’t seem out of the ordinary—except for more open drawers in my kitchen, as if someone had rummaged through the place. Had the cops come and investigated when me and Megan went missing?

I grabbed what I needed and limped back into my living room with a tin of salt. I remade the salt circle that now had footprints all over it as if someone was trying to figure out what it was. Exchanging the dirty plate for a new one, I unfolded Llewyn’s note, the words still legible even with blood staining half the page. I repeated the strange language, different from when I first performed this ritual with Megan. My final words called on Llewynelle.

The room went quiet. Then, my skin pricked as if the air had turned electric. Fire and spice permeated the room, and I rubbed my arms as a coldness swept in. Smoke bloomed in the middle of the circle before solidifying into Llewyn—and Megan.