Desolation Row

A dark figure stood in the graveyard, peering out from behind a large tombstone to watch the black car pull away and out of the street. Its nail bitten hands curled into fists as it quickly followed the car, standing the centre of the road as it watched the two lovers escape far away from its clutches. A thin smile spread across its lips from under its hood. “There is no escaping this” It said quietly before turning back towards the town centre.

*****
Pete sat on the 9:55 train into London, a copy of Metal Hammer in one hand and a cup of starbucks coffee in the other; cautiously sipping it as he read the latest article on My Chemical Romance. “Shame they had to split up” he thought to himself, carelessly taking another sip of his coffee and burning the end of his tongue. He winced at the sharp pain at the end of his tongue, almost spilling his drink down his suit. “For fuck sake” he murmured, placing his belongings on table as he tried to sort himself out. It had been almost two weeks since Frank had disappeared and he had been unable to think of much else since he walked out of the coffee shop, never to be seen again. He always wondered, maybe if he had just spoken up about what happened that night, he saw inside his friend’s house, he could of stopped it somehow. A shiver went down his spine. Shaking his head, trying to rid himself of the horrific thoughts about the possible death of his friend which taunted his mind, he went back to his magazine.

The train choked up to Harlow Station platform. Pete kept his eyes on the magazine as various people got on and off the train, failing to notice a young girl sit in the seat opposite him. He listened as the doors slid shut, feeling the sharp jolt of the train as it pulled away from Harlow and continued on its journey. The train was surprisingly warm, judging by the murky weather outside, he had expected it to be colder. “Stupid thing” a voice said quietly, which was quickly followed by a loud thud. He looked up over the pages of his magazine and saw a young blonde trying to open the window. He raised an eyebrow. “Need a hand?” He asked politely, watching her struggle to push the window open. She looked back at him, offering him an embarrassed smile as she silently accepted his help. He stood up, wrapping his hand around the black handle of the window and pulled it towards him; the cool breeze which wafted through the small opening was almost heavenly.

They sat back in their seats, the girl’s cheeks flushing a hot red as combed her long blonde hair out of her face. “I’m so sorry, that’s so embarrassing” She said, eyeing his copy of Metal Hammer. Pete shook his head, smiling back at her. “Its fine, we’ve all done it” He replied, going back to his magazine. She shrugged in agreement, leaning back in her seat and looked out of the window. They sat in silence for the most part of the journey. Pete kept his eye on her, studying her as she sat before him. There was no denying that she was beautiful, with long blonde hair and piercing blue eyes as deep as the ocean itself. Her skin was pale, wearing little make up upon her flawless, yet somehow familiar, face. He noticed that she was wearing a blue knee length dress that clearly amplifying her cleavage. He was almost mesmerised by her appearance for he had never before seen a girl so beautiful.


“It’s so sad that MCR split up” The girl said suddenly, breaking the silence and the thoughts which clouded Pete’s mind. “Sorry?” He questioned, his eyes refocusing upon her glowing face. She was staring at him intently, a small grin spreading across her lips. “The magazine... I was saying how horrible it was that My Chemical Romance broke up” She replied, beckoning at open copy of Metal Hammer in his hands. He felt his cheeks burn red as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat; laughing quietly to himself. He had been so focused on her appearance that he had failed to hear a word she had just said. “Er yeah, I was gutted when they split, they were such an amazing band” Pete said nervously, taking another sip of coffee.

The girl sighed, running her fingers through her fringe and brushing it out of her eyes. “I miss them. You know it’s funny, I’ve never met someone who’s been a fan of Metal Hammer or MCR” She said, playing with her hair as she continued to smile at him. Pete blushed. He felt guilty for acting like this around her, of course he was in love with Patrick, he always had been, but she was intoxicating and interesting too. “You don’t look like your usual Metal head” Pete replied, unable to remove the stupid smirk from his face. She gasped, holding her hands up to her face. “Oh my god stereotyping much! God you’re such a conformist” She shrieked, laughing hysterically as she caught his eye. Pete laughed; he had never met someone so melodramatic. They sat there for a while, laughing until tears ran down their aching jaws, blissfully unaware of the staring and scornful looks from the surrounding passengers. “So what brings you on the 9:55?” She asked, wiping away the tears as they finally managed to stop laughing. Pete cleared his throat, rolling up his magazine and placing it back in the satchel he borrowed from Patrick. “I’m heading up to London for a job interview. My boyfriend’s been trying to help me get my life back on track, what brings you up here?” Pete asked, nervously fiddling with his fingers. The girl opened her mouth to speak but was quickly interrupted by the overhead speaker:

The next stop is Tottenham Hale; please mind the gap between the train and platform.

Pete glanced at his watch, 10:15. He knew he had plenty of time, but that didn’t help his nerves. He took another swig from his coffee cup, suddenly craving a cigarette. “I have some business to attend to” The girl added quietly, glancing out of the window. Pete nodded, he had now stopped listening to the girl before him as his mind wandered back to the nightmarish thoughts he hoped he had, for a moment at least, forgotten about. She offered him a sympathetic smile, reaching out to hold his hand. He stared at it for a while, her warm touch was almost comforting but he was almost unsure of how to react.

“Pete you need to stop doing this to yourself, worrying isn’t going to help is it” She said reassuringly. He nodded in agreement; a smile crept across his face as he looked up and into her beautiful blue eyes. Suddenly a thought occurred to him. He snatched his hand away, his face twisted into a look of horror while she continued to smile sweetly back at him. “I never told you my name...” He croaked his voice cracking up as he found himself unable to move from his seat. The train hauled up to Tottenham Hale station, jolting to a halt as the doors slowly slid open. The girl stood up and walked towards the doors without looking back. “I’ll be seeing you Pete, I’ll be seeing you all real soon” She called out behind her as she walked off the train. Pete jumped from his seat, striding towards the doors only for them to close in his face. The train began to pull away from the station as he stood there, trying to find her face, trying to see where this stranger was going.

As the train finally moved away from the station, he slammed his fist against the door; his hands shaking as the familiar feeling of terror began to course through his veins. She was gone.

Notes

Let me know what you think of this chapter xxx

There's still a lot more of this story to come- not everything is as it seems...