Sally's Portal Ch. 02

Kendra and Bren looked at each other in the dim candlelight, listening to Sally catching her breath.

"Is it gone?" Kendra asked Bren.

"Looks like," he agreed.

"No," Sally breathed out, trying to find enough for her lungs, "he's still here. Just quiet. Invisible again."

"Christ," Bren said. "How do we get rid of it, then?"

Sally shook her head, "I don't think it'll ever go away, honestly. I just have to get used to it."

Kendra shared a worried look with Bren before turning back to Sally.

"Sal," she pitched her voice soft and maternal, "how do you know that?"

"I don't know it," Sally shrugged. "I just feel it. He's attached to me, now, somehow, ever since Halloween."

"But you feel safe now?" Bren asked. "Can you sleep?"

"I think I could sleep for days now," Sally sighed with relief.

"But what happens the next time you get horny?" Bren asked. "Is it going to come back?"

Sally rolled her eyes and laid back on the bed, unconcerned. Her expression became relaxed and Bren realized she'd fall asleep soon.

"Sal," Kendra said. "Listen to me!"

Her friend blinked her eyes open.

"Don't you dare masturbate without us here," Kendra scolded. "You call us both. You got it!?"

A touch of fear went through Sally's eyes, and she nodded.

"Promise?" Kendra leaned into Sally's face.

"Promise," Sally whispered back, her voice already starting to fade.

With a grimace, Kendra looked up at Bren and shrugged.

"You think she'll remember?" Bren asked.

"I hope so."

Kendra opened the door a crack as Bren blew out the much shortened candle and the two of them left Sally to sleep.

"No one's home yet, thank god," Kendra whispered.

"Do you think we can trust her?" Bren asked.

Kendra shrugged as they made their way to the kitchen, immediately clicking the kettle on.

"Tea?" she asked.

"I could use something stronger, but sure," Bren agreed.

The kettle began to hiss, and Kendra sat down to wait for the water to boil.

"What did we see today?" Bren asked the room at large.

"What do you mean?"

"We need to be thorough," he explained. "We need to remember everything that happened."

"Our friend summoned a demon from hell," Kendra deadpanned.

Dammit Kendra.

"Do you have a notebook or something?"

"Um, sure."

Her backpack, recently discarded under the table, yielded up to a small, ringed notebook. From this, Kendra tore out the first few pages, keeping to herself whatever she'd written in the book already, and handed the remainder over to Bren.

"What are you going to do?" she asked.

"Observe," he said. "We write down everything we can think of. About Halloween. About tonight. The lighting, the timing, the room, the... the way the candle flared up. The, I don't know..."

Kendra rolled her eyes, "The phase of the moon?!"

Bren stared at her.

"Yes, definitely," Bren narrowed his eyes. "The fucking phase of the moon, too."