Pulled Within by Marni Mann

“You’re coming with me.”
    I didn’t resist. I just followed, hoping whatever was on the other side wouldn’t ruin my high. I was too tired for this shit. I didn’t even know if I’d bother to bleach anything before crashing.
    “What’s up?” Jeremy said, cracking the door a little. It was too dark to see anything.
    “Turn the fucking light on, you idiot!” Caleb shouted.
    Jeremy opened the door a bit more and moved inside. He flipped the switch and filled the room with light. The glow from the bulb was so mustard-yellow, it made the blood look almost green…and it was everywhere: All over Caleb’s neck, stuck to the hair on his chest, the tips of his dreadlocks and splattered on the mismatched pillowcases. It was coming from the girl’s head, dripping down her brows and into her face. Her eyes were as wide open as her legs; the top of her head was still inside the drywall. She said nothing. She didn’t even cry out from the pain, which must have been incredible.
    “Dude, you fucked her through the wall,” Jeremy said.
    Caleb stood from the bed, completely naked except for a pair of wool socks. His dick was no longer hard enough to fill the condom. It hung from him like a dead balloon. He yanked it off, threw it in the corner, and reached for his jeans. “No shit,” he snapped. He pulled a shirt on over his head and moved closer to me. “You’ve got to take her to the hospital, Rae.”
    My neck tilted back like he’d slapped me. “Me?”
    “That blood ain’t stopping,” Jeremy said. He had taken Caleb’s place right next to the bed, looking at the wall and inside the hole. “Yup, she definitely needs stitches.”
    I turned toward Caleb, who now stood a few feet from me, and leaned against his dresser. “So why the hell would I take her?”
    “I can’t,” Caleb said. “They’ll think I fucking beat her. And Jeremy’s too high to drive.”
    “I ain’t high,” Jeremy yelled back.
    “Then why are you inspecting her like she’s a piece of bud?” Caleb asked.
    Jeremy stumbled back and held onto the window, but he kept his eyes on the girl. “Cause she’s got nice tits. Shit, at least I didn’t crack her head open with my dick.”
    Caleb was right: Jeremy was too messed up to go anywhere. With so much blood coming from her head, she definitely shouldn’t drive herself to the hospital. I wasn’t sure I was the best person to take her, either; even though this had shaken me out of my high, I was still tired from the weed.
    But Caleb was letting me stay at his house—for free. It was probably the least I could do.
    The girl wobbled and swayed as she sat up. Blood dripped down her nose and into her mouth. She wiped it like it was a tear. “Stop staring at my tits, you flamer.” Her voice didn’t match her words. She sounded like a cartoon. “And you—Scarface? I don’t want you taking me anywhere.” She tucked her knees against her chest. “Caleb, you fucking asshole, I’m not going to be seen with some meth head that slashed her face open while she was tweaking.”
    Something dark began to fill my chest, like the gathering of a storm. My back stiffened; my eyelids narrowed. There was rage swirling inside me, ready to burst from my mouth. “What the hell did you just call me?”
    “Caleb,” she whined, “that thing is looking at me like she wants to eat me. Tell her to stop.”
    My nails dug into my palm. My pulse quickened, my heart pounding as if it was trying to break through my skin.
    I wasn’t a fighter. I’d slapped Drew once because I resented her. I couldn’t stand the way she looked at me, like she pitied me, like she was sad for me. And aside from a few situations in high school, I didn’t normally react with my hands. This girl wasn’t going to get my open palm. She was getting my fist.
    I took a step forward and was ready to take another when Caleb moved in front of me. His chest pressed against mine, his outstretched arms preventing me from going any