Stockholm

‍‍‍‍‍‍‍Rue throws her body back and forth trying to free herself from the restraints. Her body hits the ground with a hard thud. Rue’s eyes fly open to see daylight seeping through the blinds covering her window. Rue’s back in her bedroom at the manor, but that brings no relief. 

She untangles herself from the blankets desperately, she needs to clean the blood off her. Once freed she finds her body blood free with only a sheen a sweat over her bare skin. She is wearing her black lace panties from last night and an oversized tee shirt she does not recognize. 

Her door swings open as Alexander enters her room. Rue jumps to her feet knocking a glass of water from her bedside table to the ground, shattering it in the process.  She holds Alexander’s bewildered stare for a moment before grabbing a piece of broken glass from the floor.

Rue: Stay back!

Alexander: Rue, Rue it is okay.

Rue is squeezing the piece of glass so hard her hand begins to bleed. 

Rue: Not a step forward you blood sucker!

Alexander: Just take a breath, everything is okay. 

Rue: You can’t have me! No, you can’t suck my blood!

Alexander backs away with his hands in the air.

Alexander: Rue, are you still high?

Rue: What! No! I’m protecting myself from your vampire brother. 

Alexander: Valor’s a vampire?

Rue: Yes! I saw him...well not him. But there was a girl tied up, and he made me...

Rue chokes on her tears.

Rue: I was covered in it!

Alexander: Rue darling, I think you had a bad acid trip.

Rue: No! I felt it, I tasted it! There was so much blood!

Alexander: You’re not covered in blood now.

Rue looks down at herself, it is true. There is not a drop of blood on her. Not to say she is clean, but she is not soaked in red liquid. Rue swallows, tasting around her mouth with her tongue, it is not pleasant, but not bloody. Rue’s eyes go back to Alexander.

Rue: I don’t taste blood.

Alexander: Well you through up multiple times last night.

Rue: What?

Everything from last night was so vivid, it had to be real.

Rue: My dress! Where’s my dress?

Rue knows she has gotten them now. She might have vomited up the taste of blood, and the boys must have cleaned her body, but no washing machine could get those blood stains out.

Rue: I want to see my dress!

Alexander takes a deep breath then slowly walks to the edge of her bed and sits down.

Alexander: When I picked you and Valor up, well, you didn’t have a dress on anymore.

Rue shakes her head.

Rue: Bullshit!

Carefully and gently, Alexander takes Rue’s hand, setting the piece of glass down. He takes off his sweater and wraps it around Rues wound. Rues exhausted and does not fight the comfort.

Alexander: Darling, I know Valor wanted to show you an enjoyable time, and this is probably his fault. But you went hard, and I’m honestly thankful you are alright today.

The shame hits Rue so hard it cuts through her migraine. Alexander leads her to her bed and pulls a light sheet over her.

Alexander: I’ll get some more water for you.

Rue’s conflict is brutal. She feels the kind of pain you experience after a breakup, the kind of pain that makes you question life. It was not just shame, though that was there, burning into her skin like being on a beach without sunscreen. It was all too clear. Yes, she was drunk, yes, she took a pill. But the slickness of the blood, the smell of sweat, the shimmering of the girl’s silver skirt. And those eyes, those fast-moving brown eyes.

Alexander enters her room with a large cup of water that is made of plastic this time and a small plate of crackers. Rue must look pathetic, because Alexander sits next to her like she is a child that has just had a nightmare. 

Alexander: Don’t worry Darling. Just sip the water and snack on the crackers. By tonight you might even feel half human.

Rue smiles, his tone is reassuring. 

Alexander leaves the room, turning off the lights. Rue waits a moment before turning on her bed side lamp. She painfully slides to the opposite side of her bed, pulling one of her suitcases to her. In every suitcase and bag Rue owns she keeps a small stash of pills, in case of emergencies of course.  Her pink polka dot suitcase is no exception. After digging through the case, she finds what she is looking for.

She holds it up in the dim lamp light, Rue is mesmerized by the pills blue color; for good measure she grabs a second blue pill. She takes them both with her plastic cup of water, glancing at the clock. In ten minutes, everything will be better. Each tick of the clock brings more relief, the pain and shame melt like ice-cream.

Rue can feel the drowsiness and repositions herself on her side. She feels a sharp pain in her wrist, she lifts her arm to examine it. Even in the darkness the bruises are define. The sharp lines left by the leather strap and a scrape from the metal clasp. 

Rue: No.

Her voice is so weak the whole word does not make it out. Rue’s heavy eyelids let her know that she has reached the ten-minute mark.

When Rue awakes it is dark outside, but that does not mean anything in Sweden during Winter. Rue slides out of her warm bed, taking her phone with her to the bathroom. She sits in her empty tub, phone on her lap. She carefully inspects her bruised wrist. Then picks up her phone and dials the studio office number. Rue does not know what time it is in LA. After a few rings Shelly, Benny’s assistant answers.

Rue: Shelly! It’s Rue! I need to talk to Benny, like emergency need to talk!

There is a pause on the phone.

Shelly: I’m pretty sure he’s in a meeting Honey.

Rue knows this game.

Rue: Shelly this is big! I would hate if he heard it from someone else, I’m sure you would to.

Another pause.

Shelly: Please hold.

Rue is normally able to get Benny on the phone, even when she cannot, Shelly always passes along Rue’s messages.  This has caused tension between her and some of the other writers at the studio.

Benny: There’s my star writer, I don’t have much...

Rue: Benny I need to come home, like now!

Benny: What the hell happened? Did you fuck one of the brothers?

Rue: No, we went out and there was this girl, and they were sucking her blood; like vampires Benny! I don’t care what they say, my dress is gone and my wrist...

Benny: Rune are you calling me because you saw a little blood play?

Rue: What?

Benny: Grow up! Once in Berlin I shit you not, I saw a midget fucking a donkey, or it was a miniature horse.

Rue: These boys are dangerous! I’m scared!

Benny: Are you drinking again Rune? Mixing it with your colorful dolls.

Rue: No, No I just need to come back, maybe someone...

Benny: NO! You’re going to stay your skinny ungrateful ass there and get me a script! And then you are going to suck every dollar possible out of those rich bastards’ dicks! If you don’t do that you’re done! I will call my brother and get your scanky cunt blacklisted!

Rue hears the line go dead.