" "Man, have you lost your mind? What the fuck are you talking about? What's the deal?" I repeat, I haven't seen your face before. Get out of here, otherwise I won't vouch for myself. I don't have the inclination or time to deal with some idiot from Dremois right now." Derek was using his last bit of self-control. However, he felt that any moment now he would unleash on this guy all the anger that had been building up since Jeremy's disappearance.
"Hehe, good riddance, idiot from Dremois. It just so happens that this idiot helped you complete a certain cleverly devised plan. And this idiot can now go to the police and recant everything. Say someone blackmailed him into giving this statement. Threatened him with death and such. In any case, it could end badly for you. Give me the money and it will be over. I'll never see you again, and you'll never see me again." The words were spoken precisely, in a confident and decisive tone.
"Dude, don't drive me to..." Derek uttered these words, and suddenly, for some reason, he felt a searing pain in his temples radiating throughout his head. He fell to his knees and clutched his head with both hands. The man in front of him didn't know what to do and decided to maintain the several meters of distance that had separated them since the beginning of this surprising exchange.
He stood and stared at the kneeling Derek, waiting to see what would happen. Perhaps he feared this was some kind of trick and preferred to wait rather than take even a step closer.
"Help me..." Derek whispered with the last of his strength, still clutching his head, which was searing with excruciating pain. He was simultaneously astonished, not knowing what was happening, and completely stunned by the absurdity of the entire situation. Him kneeling where Jeremy had last been seen, the maniac in front of him posing as a man giving a statement, and on top of that, the unimaginable pain ripping through his skull. If he could, he would surely have burst into laughter. And so he knelt and had no idea what was happening to him.
"Dude, don't try to fool around with me. You think I'll come over, so what? I'm not as stupid as I seem. Let's end this farce. You give me money, and I'm not here, and I never was," the man said, but his voice no longer sounded so confident.
"Please... I don't know... what's wrong with me... help..." Derek muttered the words, barely audible to the man standing before him. Dark spots began to appear before his eyes, and the man's silhouette slowly blurred. A moment later, a black curtain covered his eyes.
When he awoke, he was in Jeremy's house. There was no trace of the pain. He lay in front of the unused fireplace and heard voices coming from the next room.
He stood up, completely disoriented. How he had gotten here and what it all meant? He had no idea. However, he gathered himself as much as he could and moved towards the room from which the men's voices were coming. He stopped in the doorway and was frozen in place. He opened his mouth to scream, but not a single word emerged. In the living room, on the couch in front of the TV, sat Jeremy and... himself. They were laughing and watching some movie. Derek was now certain that this moment was the final sign that, after losing his friend, only a thin line separated him from madness. What he saw now proved that he had crossed it. He wanted to scream, but no sound came out. He also realized that they couldn't see him. Disoriented, dazed, and exhausted, he sat down in the doorway, unable to take another step. Meanwhile, Jeremy and Derek Number Two began exchanging opinions about the movie they were watching.
"Hehe, man, I've never seen such shit. I guess the only laughable thing was the pathetic acting," Jeremy said.
"Right, it's complete crap." Let's turn this off and put on another movie or switch to the game. It's about to start," his Phantom Doppelganger said on the couch.
"Oh, you don't know I hate football. Tennis, volleyball, even basketball, but not a football match, it doesn't appeal to me at all.
" "Fine for you, anything Jem, no football today then. I love you more than life itself, you know that. So if you don't want to watch, there's no match," said Derek Number Two, turning off the TV. Out of nowhere, Jeremy burst out laughing.
"Hehe, you say you love me more than life itself, and I love you too, Der. Like a brother. But you said those words like you were talking to your girlfriend. Hehe, it sounded like you were talking to your girlfriend. "Hehe, it sounded like you were talking to your girlfriend any minute now..." said Jeremy, slightly tipsy. Derek noticed that there were at least eight empty beer cans on the table on his side, and he was holding another one in his hand. On Derek Number Two's side, however, there wasn't a single empty can, and he was holding a bottle of Coke in his hand. - And what... wait a minute and what will I eat? - said the Phantom Double, and in his voice one could hear signs of anger.
"Like what you said, man, since we've known each other, you've had like three girlfriends, all of whom you dumped very quickly. I didn't say anything; you said you were giving up on women for now. You've been avoiding answering why to this day. I'm not getting into that. It's a conversation I'm not entering, because I can see you don't want to talk about it. Maybe you'll finally blurt out why you don't want to see anyone for now..." Jeremy said it clearly, articulating each word, but he was almost drunk.
"Finish your thought, Jem, I'm waiting..." Derek Number Two's impatience was already clearly audible.
"I would never have suspected you of that, after all. You're the brother I never had, and you know the bond we share." But when you said those words "I love you more than life itself." Hehe... somehow I didn't get the joke. Oh Der, I love you too, but I have a girlfriend, Lin, I love you more than life itself, and I can't marry you... Hehehe." Jeremy burst into manic laughter and almost choked.
"You know I never liked it when you called me 'Der,' and I don't like it now either. So stop calling me that. You've had enough. I'll at least put you to bed.
" "Oh no, my friend, I know exactly what you mean. What would you like to do with me there? Hehehe... no Der, look for partners elsewhere. I'm crazy straight. Hehehe..." Jeremy continued to laugh, his alcohol-soaked laughter.
"Jem, please, give me a break, it's not funny, give me back that can and we'll go upstairs." Derek remained seated in the doorframe, unable to get up, but something about his Phantom Doppelganger's behavior was starting to give him a distinct twinge of anxiety. He wanted to shout again, but to no avail. Meanwhile, Jeremy continued his tirade.
"Hehe... oh Der, I won't believe it, I simply won't... Hehe, and I'm not going anywhere with you. Don't even think about it. Upstairs, into any bedroom.
" "Jem, please, this isn't funny anymore, let's go..." said Derek Number Two, and tried to grab Jeremy by the waist. But he wrenched himself away and shouted, still laughing. "Der... faggot... hands off, don't touch your beloved friend... Heheh, just a friend, and nothing more.
" "Stop it, I've had enough, I told you not to drink so much beer, you see, you're not yourself after this." The Phantom Doppelganger was struggling to control his anger.
"Oh no, Der, maybe now it's much easier for me to ask a question that's been on my mind for a long time. Maybe right now, in this state... Hehe, I'm very, very honest. Oh yes, Der, I am. So kindly answer this question: is your esteemed person... Hehe... Oh, Der... tell me... although it's probably just my imagination, if so, I'll apologize and you'll forgive me, but you must be hiding something... from me..." Jeremy paused to catch his breath. "Der, those words 'I love you more than life itself' and the way you said them... Hehe... don't tell me, I'm begging you, it's impossible, okay... Hehe, Der, you're not a pussy... Hehe, you're not, so don't talk to me like that again... because you're not." He looked at Derek Number Two and made a long pause. The man didn't say anything, and they stared into each other's eyes for a long moment until Jeremy, no longer laughing, said,
"God...it's impossible, it can't be true, my friend, whom I treated like a brother...for so many years...so many years...you hid it from me. God, no, this is some kind of paranoia, this beer must really be it." He got up from the couch and staggered over to the window.
"You want to hear it from me, Jem, you want me to tell you. Yes... I'm a faggot, a queer, and whatever else you want to call me. And so, those three girlfriends I've had since we met were just camouflage. I've known what I am for a long time and I've accepted it." The Phantom's voice began to break.
"And when I met you, Jem, it's indescribable, we connected so much, we had and still have so much in common, we became each other's support and we need each other. I loved you from the very beginning, I can't help it, Jem. I don't want to fight it." I know that because of this, I'll be alone for the rest of my life, because I'll never love anyone the way I loved you. And I also know that you... Jem, I don't want anything from you. You love that bitch Linda, but you don't even know how much she loves you...
"Shut up, don't you dare talk about her like that. Don't you dare say such words, you understand, don't you... You have no right. The man I treated like a brother for so many years hid from me that he was... It's just, no, I can't believe it." The shock of Derek Number Two's words seemed to completely sober Jeremy. His words were spoken in a very firm voice.
"Listen, Jem, you don't even know how many times I wanted to tell you, so many times, but I couldn't. Despite what we had, how great and unique our friendship was. I couldn't tell you the true nature of my feelings for you... I couldn't. Understand... Jem... And Linda is really deceiving you, you'll see... you'll remember my words... She's mean and calculating..."
At that moment, Jeremy exploded and lunged at the Phantom Doppelganger, which surprised Derek, still sitting in the doorway and unable to move, immensely. But at the same time, he felt deep inside as if he already knew what would happen next. But it was just a strange premonition, he thought, I'm going crazy, God, I really am going crazy... When he turned his gaze back to the room, he saw Jeremy and Derek Number Two struggling.
"Jem... stop, what are you doing..." Before the other could finish, Jeremy delivered a powerful uppercut to the man's jaw, knocking him to the ground.
"Get out of here, you're the last person I want advice from about my relationship with Linda. Get out, get out, you hear me... Everything between us is over. You lied to me; we weren't supposed to have secrets from each other." And you've been here for so many years... No, I don't even want to talk about it... Get out, Der, get out...
- Jem, hear me out... - The Phantom Doppelganger stood up, wiping blood from his split lip . -
Don't do this, let me explain. I don't want anything from you. That 'I love you more than life itself' was sincere, but I never intended to say it in such a way that you'd realize it. I don't know why it came out this way today. But understand...
- No, no, no... - Jeremy walked up to Derek Number Two, his arms still tense. - I don't want to listen to you anymore, get out, I don't want to see you anymore. You're a fake, a liar... so this crush on Linda was also an act? You couldn't tell me directly what you thought of her. This sneaking around, all this... Get out, I can't stand to look at you.
"Jem, you don't understand, she took you away from me...she's not worthy of being with you...I want nothing from you, I know you don't feel the same way about me as I do about you. You don't feel that way, but Linda...I don't know why I pretended to tolerate her or even like her, it's all for you. I know how you feel about her, but that's going to change, she doesn't deserve you, Jem, please...she's a slut who's after your money. She's leading you around...God, don't you..." At that moment, Jeremy lunged at the Phantom Doppelganger again.
"Don't you dare, don't you dare...that's enough, I don't want anything to do with you anymore, get out, you fucking pederast, Wooon..." Jem threw a hard punch, but this time the man dodged and the fist only grazed his cheek.
"Jem, stop it, I don't want to fight you, calm down, let's talk, I'm begging you... don't ruin this, all these years... we need each other..." Saying this, Derek Number Two gently pushed Jeremy away, but the alcohol he had consumed finally took its toll on him and he tripped over his own feet, falling to the ground. What happened next was the final sign of the madness that had entered his mind for Derek, who was sitting in the doorway.
In that moment, he began to see everything through the eyes of the Phantom Doppelganger. They became one. Derek was now trapped within Derek Number Two's mind. The words that followed were those of the man who had pushed Jeremy away.
"Jem, please... Don't destroy this... I know I deceived you. I should have explained this to you earlier. But I couldn't, I didn't know how..." He approached Jeremy, who wasn't moving. "Jem is what is, Jem..." He rolled him onto his back and saw that the other had lost consciousness, but was breathing steadily.
Derek Number Two was acting, and the other, trapped in his mind, could only observe. They were one body now, and the mind of the Phantom Doppelganger became a prison for Derek, the one who, from the moment he awoke in Jeremy's apartment, had felt himself slowly sinking into the abyss of madness. He wanted to scream; he saw everything through the other's eyes, but it couldn't be him. He didn't remember the incident in Jeremy's apartment.
"No, it's just some sick figment of an overworked psyche. It couldn't have happened," Derek told himself with the last of his inner strength, having lost consciousness over the "Black Lady" and regained it here...
His analysis of the situation was suddenly interrupted by the words spoken by the Phantom Doppelganger, in whose mind he was now trapped with no way out.
"Jem... come, I'll take you away. Oh Jem, what was all this for?" And as he uttered these words, he turned to the mirror hanging on the wall behind the television. Derek the Imprisoned thought he saw a strange grimace, something like a smile, on the face that was his own, and for a split second, he saw a glint of madness in the Phantom Doppelganger's eyes.
Brak komentarzy:
Prześlij komentarz