Chapter 25: Ghost in the Shell
"RUN!!! "
I said as the truck was starting to lean forward, while I had a firm grip on Judy's hand, so that we would not get separated. This was the only thing I had come up with so that the imminent explosion of the battery, which I could no longer handle, would blow up the engine and with it blow up the whole truck, not hurt anyone and at the same time be able to escape, with this fucking crazy jumping we are doing.
"You're fucking crazy"
"NOW JUMP "
When we were in the air I hugged Judy, lifting her over my head, grabbing her by the hip with my arms to let me be the first to impact against the water, to protect her as much as I can, which, if I haven't fucked up thinking about all this in my mind, we would have to be able to survive if we hit the water already turbulent from the truck.
Meanwhile having this totally involuntary position, my head was level with Judy's budding breasts, making me, again totally involuntary, smash my face into `the premature twins', with an expression that could make Momonosuke be proud,
Enjoying this too as Judy screamed, oblivious to my face, making me think `if these were my last moments, at least let them be with a smile..... even if it was pervert one. '
BAAAAM!!!(truck crashing)
SPLASH-PUK!
With that last sound Judy and I hit the water, making my legs hurt/sting like hell and feel numb from the contact with the water.
As we were submerged underwater I could see the truck slowly sink as it generated more and more bubbles from under the hood, making me, with a somewhat dazed Judy from the shock against the water in my arms, kick my still numb legs with all the strength they had.
After a few seconds, I started to move away from the truck as fast as I could, surprising myself by the speed I was reaching just kicking the water with my legs that felt a bit numb, but better than when I started swimming. When Judy started making little noises that she was already fully conscious, making me a worried expression, while her cheeks were puffy, making me smile at the way she was holding his breath.
As I was thinking that, the explosion of the battery occurred making a chain reaction with the explosion of the engine and with the fuel.
SBHOOOOM!!!
The truck exploded, causing the underwater explosive to push us hard, spinning us around, disorienting us as the current from the explosion sent us in the opposite direction to the surface.
"AHMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!"
While I made sure not to let Judy go, she screamed from the surprise of the explosion and the strong currents that were generated, making her release all the oxygen she had stored, which in turn increased her initial nervousness making her face of concern change to one of panic, to stop in one dying of fear. making her eyes lose their brightness and a few seconds later giving up for dead, almost losing consciousness by the distressing situation.
To which I simply caressed her face so that she looked at me, surprised by my caress, she calmed down a little, I smiled and kissed her.
Chuk!
When our lips were together I made them open a little and I released the oxygen that I still had in my body sharing it with, A Judy that moved her arms nervously, although a few moments ago she was scared to death, a couple of seconds after our mouths were still in contact she looked at me with some embarrassment on her face, but grateful, for taking her out of that bad situation.
Before I knew it, I had Judy's arms around me, in turn almost making her smaller in mine, while I kept kicking my legs hard to bring us to the surface with our mouths sharing oxygen, although I had done it as a simple mouth to mouth without being embarrassed at first, but the truth is that I could feel my face a little red....After all it is my first kiss in my whole life.
When we had been sharing oxygen for a few seconds, I noticed something in my mouth and when I knew what it was and I looked with surprise at Judy who was looking at me, but there was no shame or nervousness, her gaze was warm with a certain desire mixed in it...
Something that was the first time I felt in all my life, that look gave a kick to my heart making it beat as hard as when we were jumping off the bridge, it made me unconsciously clutch Judy tighter, as if she was never going to let go, while I also used my tongue to search for Judy's ..... My Judy.
--
Pov of Judy
--
SBHOOOOM!!!
-
"AHMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!"
-
'I'M SCARED' as I said that in my mind I realized something.
`The fear I am feeling is the emotion I am most familiar with in my entire life, well it was before I met him' I say to myself in what I thought were my last moments as I drowned in the darkness.
Making me think as I turned fear into a familiar feeling for me to evade my panicked mind.
The first time I felt this way was when my mother passed away, my father was never around, so for me, my mother was the only family I had besides my grandparents and when she died, it was the first time I noticed this fear.
Which was different from what I had felt so far at that time, of darkness or my nightmares or of hurting myself, this was different, I had never felt this way, in my short life, it felt dense almost as if you could feel it as it embraced me, while it restrained me, always with me, accompanying me as I grew up, changing me inside without anyone noticing it doing so, even my way of acting changed without realizing it with my arms crossed almost hugging myself to comfort me.
Almost consuming me when I moved to NC because of how terrifying that city seemed to me.
Making me, from a very young age, a part of me, lived in hiding, almost in reclusion, like an image of a ghost locked in a shell, that when I saw it I felt represented by, it as if it were a visual metaphor of myself. That's how I felt since my mother's death, as if I was, that ghost and the fear that embraces me, the shell. Wishing to slip away and be free from her prison/embrace.
Making me be aware now, in this desperate situation, of how much fear I had since the beginning of my life.... and how much I've grown since I met him.
That feeling that embraced me, restricting me, changed without noticing it or was it me making me less susceptible to the point that I didn't even notice if it was still there.
For me everything changed, when I moved to the NC that I was so afraid of and met my first real friend.
NO! He is much more than that, sometimes he was like a big brother who protected me when the fear came back, sometimes like a friend we talked about our hobbies and made jokes, sometimes like a bad influence, to do things I wouldn't have dared to do, if it wasn't for him, freeing me little by little.
For me everything changed when I met my sky or my haven!
He had managed to make me leave that cold shell feeling released, giving me courage and giving me back my smile, without anyone noticing, not even the sky itself noticed, what he had achieved only with his presence in my life.
I changed little by little, with him being there, in my day to day life, recovering what had been lost locked in that shell, healing me, making me laugh again just by looking at the 'sky', like when my mother was alive and every breath of terrifying air of this world didn't scare me, like when I was a little girl who didn't know fear.
I think.... as my sight darkens.....that I could only do everything I have done so far in this whole chase, without cowering in fear, because Sora was with me and I had a feeling that everything would be fine, as long as Sora kept acting silly like he always did, infecting me in doing all kinds of crazy things, like jumping from the top of the bridge, and screaming as we fell, realizing now, that I was only doing it, to silence the part of me that was dying of fear. ..... but, even though I was picking on him, I was grateful to him, for making me feel that way, for him being my friend ... for him being my role model making me face my fears, making me live with a happy as long as I live.
When I was thinking all this, after I had inadvertently let out all the air I had, because of the sudden explosion of the truck, which had dragged us into the darkest depths of the water away from the surface.
As I felt desperate/drowned, I felt defeated/no-oxygen...`So up to this tiny height I will reach?.... as I followed Sora's back I wished I could reach and be at his side..... NO! I don't want to DIE! NO!...I...am...GOING...TO...DIE! FUCK! WAKE UP DON'T SLEEP! I WANT to keep seeing Sora's back, to reach him, to make our grandparents proud with us, I WANT TO LIVE-'.
When I was raving because of the fear I felt and I was shouting to myself, not to fall into despair.... In order not to give up, in order not to close my eyes, I noticed that something warm was caressing my face softly, among all this wet and cold darkness, when I turned my gaze that goes out little by little, I could see Sora who was looking at me serenely with his smile making my desperate heart react by force, before.
Chuk!
He kissed me, placing his lips on mine and after a few seconds he put a little force on his lips so that I opened mine while he shared with me the oxygen he has left inside, making me move my arms nervously, with my energy and hopes revitalized.
Watching him nervously for our connected lips, but grateful that he had pulled me out of my despair with a breath of air.
Making me without my noticing my arms hugging tightly against Sora's body that seemed to radiate warmth even in the depths of the water, as I shrunk into his embrace that he also tightened while unable to contain myself I stuck my tongue inside his mouth, the mouth of..... my sky.... making him surprised by what I was doing, but I don't care, nothing does, right now, I just want to be like this, close to sora while his body warmed me and makes me feel safe even in the darkest and coldest parts.
--
With our mouths still intertwined, I kept kicking hard until we reached the surface, when we both reached we parted our lips to catch our breath.
"....."
"...."
"Oi Judy, it's-"
Chuk!
I was interrupted by Judy as she gave me, a really passionate kiss that made, more than just my heart go pitter patter, when she suddenly stopped and looked at me shamelessly saying.
"From now on you are mine, agreed?"
"What?"
" AGREED?"
"Eh yes, of course!, but what the hell happened to you, where's my somewhat scary and huggable Judy?"
"I-I have realized that if I want to be able to..... and be by your side I can't let fear trap me in a shell, I know what I have to do or rather who to be with, to feel free of that fear, to feel happy, to... make you mine."
"SHELL? free yourself, what are you talking about woman? And then you dare to laugh at my beliefs, when your spouting all those things with that straight face you're talking with. HAHAHAHAHAAH!"
I said to irritate Judy, to make her relax a little after the bad time she has had, thinking she was going to die and reevaluate her own life, something that happens when you think the dead is embracing you... Thought that from my own experience, I decided to make her distracted to lighten his overloaded mind... not that I still kept it, for the one before when she laughed at me.... not at all, I'm not that Childish
But from what she had said about the shell, the gaps in her sentence, where she had resolved herself, of her fears, and the image she liked to use in the game to represent herself, the ghost and the Shell..... I can get an idea of what Judy was saying, well now it's MY Judy too.
"YOU DARE to laugh at me in our romantic moment, after I've resolved myself and we had our first kiss, seriously, it makes me want to break up already, you know?"
"PuffHAHAHAHAHAHA, forgive me Mrs. Inuzuka but who is the one who said it was yours out loud, hahahahahah if `you were dying' to taste my lips Judy...tch you just had to have asked before woman.... you didn't have to jump off a bridge to get it, you know, are you crazy? Jumping off a bridge just to taste my lips, tch what a girl!"
"PffHAHHAHAHAHA"
"YOU YOU DAMN DEMON, you bastard who dares to laugh at me even-"
Judy said as she tried to get away from me, which we kept hugging as she raged like a little girl while I interrupted her.
Chuk!
Returning the kiss she had given me earlier, calming her tantrum. Now we're even.
"Come on Judy we still have to get to shore, how are you feeling? do you want me to keep carrying you?"
"Hum! I'm not talking to you now!"
She said as she turned her head acting indignant and hugged my neck from behind.
" GO MINION take me home" saying with a tone of amusement in her voice and a smirk on her face.
To which I could only act indignant at what she was saying, but glad inside to see her so happy as we approached the shore on the Watson side of town.
As we got to the nearest shore, I think we were close from pinewood street south.
When we got to dry land we lay on the ground for a few seconds just chilling out about everything that had happened, while I was taking off my soaking wet jacket.
PAK!
Making a loud noise as I fell, because of all the shit I had installed on the jacket, which had probably been fucked up.....shit.
While I was taking off my shirt so I could wring it out a bit from all the water it had absorbed leaving my top which I have to say I'm proud of after the amount of beating I take from the old man when he trains me, I noticed that Judy had been staring at me almost hypnotized with a somewhat lost expression on her face.
Which made me smile inside, knowing that she liked me not only for helping or saving her, but also liked me as Sora.
"You know Judy at times like this I'm glad to see you with that face you're making, you know...I've often wondered if you were really attracted to me or just batting for the other team you know, if you were just hanging around on the other side of the street, what else what else, AH yeah, you just liked playing with scissors. You know there's nothing wrong if you're like that, Puffhahahahamm I'm just laughing like.....boyfriend?"
"You have to ask? because truth be told listening to you, I'm glad to hear you hesitate to define what you are to me...I don't want to have anything with a homophobe."
"AAHHH don't be like that, it was just a joke, don't let the rings fall off princess.... what a thin skin we have with those things...besides if you weren't interested I would treat you the same, we could even, have gone to some strip joint together, in 4 years so that's not where you get me, I can even say that I love that you are attracted to girls too...wait.... We can go to strip joints when we're of age, right? You like them too, FUCK! YEAH! Best girlfriend in the world!"
"You're an idiot you know!"
"I'm YOUR IDIOT you know?"
While I was thinking about a mind-blowing thing, something interrupted us with a shout.
"HANDS UP THIS IS NCPD! YOU ARE UNDER ARREST FUCKING BRATS!"