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While I’ve always found living women attractive, they’re terrifying beings. They’ll cut you deeper than any blade ever could and laugh while you bleed.
“I wish I could make you come alive so I don’t have to pretend to have intimacy anymore.” That’s something I would never admit aloud to anyone that could repeat it. My being with women whose souls have left this earth is not only a large part of who I am, but it’s also my only source of affection.
It’s been ten years since that day, and my infatuation has only grown. I know his preferences, so it’s likely I will never feel him while alive, however, once I muster the courage, I plan to ask him to be with me when I die.
With the shadows from the lanterns dancing on his skin, the haunted beauty of our surroundings, and the poignant effect of his skull-painted face in the moonlight, he appears exactly as his nickname suggests. A king.
When I put on the paint, it’s as if I become someone else. The moment the skull is on my face, I transform from John Skelver to Skeleton King.
Although Hallows Grove cemetery hasn’t had a new body buried in it in years, it’s a peaceful place to me. Graveyards are my playground, my safe place.
“Everyone sees me as this,” I gesture to my painted face, “but I just want to be John.”
Breaking our kiss, I whisper through heavy breathing, “I don’t want you cold.” She blinks a few times, stuttered puffs of air coming from her lips. I’d never noticed the pretty, light freckles sprinkled across her nose before. Panic constricts my chest as I finish my confession. “I want you just like this.”
“I’ve wanted you for years, John. Not Skeleton King, not who everyone thinks you are. You.”
“I’m scared,” he whispers. “Why?” After several long moments, his gaze finally meets mine. “Because you’re breathing.”
A grin that brightens his face and reveals his dimples tightens me to my core. While he’s always been gorgeous, his smile makes him look ethereal.
I am Skeleton King. Gravedigger, taxidermist, and necrophiliac. The industry of decay is my kingdom, cemeteries my solace. I’m a nightmare merchant that thrives in the darkness. I belong in the cold, not with her light and warmth. Her beauty would only deteriorate in my presence.
That’s who we are as residents of Hallows Grove. Giving in to our deepest and darkest desires regardless of the effect on others.
Although I am truly grateful to her for what she gave me, the memories she left behind will haunt me until the day I’m put into the ground.
“You’ve ruined the dead for me, Sarah. I’ll never desire them as long as you’re in my bed.
Though I know it was my choices that brought us here, it’s still so unfair that I could lose her when it feels like I just found her.
“I’ve loved you since I was nine years old. All I’ve ever wanted was to hear you say that.”
Every dark and damaging thought festering in my mind evaporates the moment I process her words. Expelling a relieved breath loosens my every muscle, and my own grin raises my cheeks. I hold her hand, kissing every scar on every finger as I tell myself once again that she’s trustworthy. So many years were spent overlooking her.
She’s so…intense. There’s never been anyone in my life to affect me on every level—emotionally, mentally, physically—like she does.
With one last kiss to my head, he says, “I love you. I’ll be back soon.”
