Five

She's drunk. And not the cute, giggly kind that I'm usually drawn to, but the sloppy, fall on your face type. To say that puts a dent in my night is a wild understatement. Tonight was supposed to be about us, me and my Callophrys rubi. She's been a hard one to snag, but even with this latest hindrance, she's worth it. I watch as she comes stumbling over to where I'm sitting, practically falling into my lap as she comes to a stop. She ditched her heels an hour ago, her feet now dirty from stomping around without them. My hands gripping her upper arms are the only reason she doesn't fall onto the floor.

She's a fucking mess.

"Just... just one more dance. And then we can go to my place." She grins up at me, the minty-sage hue of her eyes settling the annoyance tightening my limbs. She has the most beautiful eyes, my butterfly. Bright green just like a Hairstreak's wings. I knew she would make such a stunning addition to my collection the moment I saw them.

Removing a hand from her arm, I use my fingertips to push some hair away that has fallen into her face. The soft brown is so lackluster compared to those eyes of hers. Shame. "One dance." I return her goofy little smile with one a little less ridiculous, keeping her in place while I swipe my glass of water from the table. "Drink this first."

She rolls her eyes, but doesn't argue, her hand sloppily taking the glass. I try to keep my face neutral as I watch her spill half of the fucking glass down her chin, taking a deep breath through my nose. I've spent far too many fucking nights planning this to have to wait any longer. Priming my butterfly for this took longer than anticipated, and I'm growing dangerously low on patience. She tries to set the glass down before it's gone and I grab the bottom of it, forcing her to finish. She sputters a bit, but eventually swallows it back. Taking it from her hand, I wipe my palm over her chin, slicking away some of the water that missed her mouth.

Nodding toward the dance floor and the other girls she's made drunken friends with, I curl my fingers into my wet palm. "Go."

She drops a messy kiss onto my cheek, missing my mouth, then stumbles away. Fucking ridiculous. I should have known better than to let her drink tonight. I've seen how she gets; it's how she was when I first spotted her. Fucking train wreck of a woman. But not for too much longer. Soon, very soon, she'll be as flawless as the rest. I wipe my hands off on my thighs, ridding them of the water my butterfly left behind. Resting them there, my thumb swipes over the frayed edge of one of the rips in the fabric, using the rough feel of it to keep myself levelheaded as my butterfly flaps recklessly around the room.

I can hear the song nearing its end and I lean over to scoop up her discarded heels, standing and walking into the mess of bodies toward my Callophrys rubi. Her new friends see me before she does, one grabbing her arm with a pouting look on her face. My eyes narrow on her fingers, teeth grinding as the piece of shit woman dares to touch something as precious as my butterfly with her filthy hands.

"Can't she stay? We've just found each other!"

Sage eyes collide with my gaze, her hand softly pushing away the other woman with a shake of her head. She falls into me, wrapping her arms around my waist with another smile. The action is the only thing that saves that vile woman from the anger making my hands shake. Even so, my butterfly's skin feels tainted and dirty. The nagging in the back of my brain wants me to deviate from the plan and take care of this new woman, use the pointed heel of the shoe in my hand to shred her carotid artery right here on the dance floor.

"Can you take me home now?" I realize we're still standing there, my eyes leaving the woman I didn't even notice I was staring at to look down at my butterfly. This close, she looks slightly better than before she drank water, but still not great. Fuck, I need to get her home before she does something stupid like passes out.

I'd fucking lose it.

Forcing my feet to move, I take her hand and start to lead her toward the exit. My sneaker steps in something wet on our way, and I grind my teeth once more. She's fucking barefoot still, getting even more filthy and disgusting. Startling her, I yank her over to a vacant chair and make her sit. "Can you walk in your heels? The ground is dirty."

She shrugs, looking down at her feet like they might have the answer. Breathing through my nose, I rub the side of my head with my knuckles. It's fine. This night isn't ruined. We just need to get to her place and I'll handle it. It's fine. Crouching down, I untie my sneakers, ripping them off one at a time to slip onto her feet. I'll be fine in my socks, and although she looks fucking ridiculous, she won't get any dirtier now.

Grabbing her hand, I pull her to a standing position; her smile making me pause. "You're so sweet to me."

I lightly squeeze her fingers instead of responding, moving us back to the exit. I'm not sweet, I'm selfish.

She almost falls onto the floor while opening her apartment door, but I catch her arm, shaking my head at the back of hers. Thank fuck, she lives on the ground level. I would have completely lost all control having to watch her clamber up a set of stairs. Pushing her farther into the space, I step behind her and shut the door. I close my eyes instead of watching her practically fall out of my sneakers, shoving my hands into my jeans' pockets to hide the tremble of irritation.

This night is redeemable. I just need to calm down.

I open my eyes at the feel of her hands on my forearms, her beautiful gaze swallowing me up to cool the anger that was trying to take over. My butterfly smiles up at me, her slender arms circling my waist. I can tell she's going to try to kiss me, so I grab her face in my palms, stopping the progression of her lips. I don't want to kiss her while she's still so filthy.

"Why don't you take a bath?"

She laughs, a confused smile on her face when she realizes I'm not kidding. "Really? A bath?"

I nod, shifting out of her arms as I move her toward the bathroom. She watches me as I push her pink seashell shower curtain to the side and crouch to turn on the tub faucet. I raise a brow at her until she rolls her eyes and shrugs out of the thin straps of her dress. She's leaning a little farther than necessary as she steps from the fabric and I reach out, grabbing her leg just below the knee to make sure she doesn't topple over. If she breaks her neck before I can, I... I don't know what I'd do, but it wouldn't be good for anyone within a five-block radius.

Shutting the water off with one hand, I stand, looking down at my butterfly as she rubs her arms. "It's cold." She's smiling again—always so happy, my butterfly.

"Get in." Leaning against her vanity, I watch her test the water with her palm, hurriedly getting in when it proves to be fine. I reach over and grab her pink loofah, pump some of her bodywash onto it and hand it to her. Smirking, she takes it, rubbing it along her arm at a snail's pace. Breathing through my nose again, I drop to my knees and take it from her. She giggles at me, leaning her head back to relax against the lip of the tub as I run the soap along her body.

It's taken me two months to get my butterfly so trusting, almost two and a half, actually. I almost gave up on her around the third week, but something kept calling me back to her, those minty-sage eyes of hers taunting me in my dreams. She's far too beautiful to be allowed to run amuck like she's been doing. No, she belongs pinned to my wall, strung up and admired. After some persistence, her weak little walls fell, and I slipped into her life seamlessly. I was the poisonous fruit she couldn't resist biting, her naughty secret that she kept hidden from her other friends or family. Unknowingly, she made that part incredibly easy for me. We only went to parts of town where we wouldn't be seen. I wasn't ever introduced to anyone she associates with. From any one of her friends' and family's perspective, I don't exist.

Dropping her soapy loofah into the water, I slide my hand up along the inside of her leg, my heart picking up its pace. My Callophrys rubi knows she belongs in my collection, even if only subconsciously. Her legs shift in the water, the pink of her lips titling in a small smile as my palm presses along her wet skin. She set up everything for me so perfectly that we were clearly meant to be. My fingers skim past her belly button as one of her wet arms rises to grip the back of my nape. Water drips down the front of my shirt and splats onto the tile near my knees.

My fingers find the dip at the bottom of her throat, letting her pull my face to her lips. She's clean now, her touch no longer feeling contaminated. I suck her tongue past her lips and lap at the sweetness of her mouth. My hands are shaking again, but this time it's not from anger. I almost can't breathe, my other hand moving to cradle her cheek. Pulling my face away from her, I fall into the mint of her eyes. I was right not to give up tonight.

"You're so beautiful, my butterfly."

She smiles at my compliment, her mouth opening with a response I don't let slip out. Her words disappear underneath the rippling of the water's surface, her head pushed under with the part of her lips, round bright eyes shining like diamonds in the sea. There's always a moment of stillness when they go under the water, a moment of confusion and maybe even disbelief. It's important to get a good grip in that split second or risk them getting free. I adjust my hands slightly, shifting my body farther over the tub as she thrashes. Her hands are grabbing at my arms, her nails sinking into them deep enough to draw blood. A knee comes up and knocks into my elbow, almost making me lose my grip, but I press down harder.

I can feel her heart pounding against my fingertips, banging a tune of terror that burrows in my gut. Her eyes haven't closed once, round saucers shimmering the prettiest shade of green below the rippling of the water's surface. It coaxes my blood to boil beneath my skin, the stunning beauty of my butterfly the best aphrodisiac on the planet. My hips press against the side of the tub, her arms slapping up toward my face, jerking me around in the same rhythm of her body. Water is splashing all over the floor, her bare legs shining as they kick the sides of the tub. I can't help but allow myself to give in to the intimacy of it all. My head rolls back as her nails drag along the skin of my arm once again, lips parting on a moan as her heel hooks over the side of the tub.

Her movements are slowing, her limbs looking heavy and weak, but her eyes never close. Those beautiful minty greens stay locked on mine as her arms drop into the water and the last air bubble leaves her parted lips. My fingers unwrap from her, a hand trailing to rub along the slit of her lips as my hips knock into the side of the tub. I press my thumb roughly against her mouth, blood welling up in a small streak I can barely see as the water rocks with the shift of my hips banging it back and forth. Feeling the cusp of my release, I yank my butterfly from the water and press her wet, slack lips to mine. I moan into her mouth as I lick the edge of her teeth, pounding my release into the tub as I breathe air into my butterfly's limp form.

Letting her slip through my grip, I watch her splash back below the surface, my breaths ragged as I stare at the rippling form of my Callophrys rubi. Lifting my arms, I see several deep cuts from her nails and drop to my forearms on the edge of the tub. I'm tired, but I have to clean up. No one ever tells you how exhausting it is drowning someone, especially the ones who like to fight. Forcing myself up, I open a drawer in the vanity and grab out a pair of fingernail clippers. Going back to the tub, I kneel back down and grab one of my butterfly's hands.

I clip each one of her nails down as far as I can, scraping the bits of skin under fingers off as I go. She was able to get a few good scratches in. I want to make sure I leave with no evidence of me being here. Dropping her hand, I grab the other and give it the same treatment. I reach and grab a washrag from the top of her towel rack, going back over her hands with the remaining soap in the tub, making sure to really scrub what's left of her fingernails. Wringing the wet rag into the water, I bunch it into my fist and stand, taking a minute to admire the way my butterfly's hair floats around her face.

It may have been dull before, but it's nothing short of gorgeous now. She's as beautiful as a sea goddess, floating just below the surface with her unblinking green orbs. Walking from the room, I grab the pale-green origami butterfly from underneath a magnet on the fridge and bring it back to the bathroom. I'd made it for her weeks prior, a gift that reminded me every day of what was to come. Kneeling beside her once more, I place the origami butterfly on the edge of the tub next to a small puddle of water. Careful not to knock it into the water, I lift my butterfly's hand once more and place a kiss onto her fingers before lifting the plug in her tub. I observe the water swirl down the drain for a moment, then watch my butterfly's pruned flesh kiss the air as it sinks from her skin.

I don't like to play favorites, but I think tonight's little butterfly might just be. Letting her arm slip back into the retreating water, I stand and leave the room without another glance. My clothes are still wet, but I had left extra here in anticipation of needing them. I go and get them now, replacing their spot in my bag with the wet ones along with the rag. Thankfully, my shoes aren't wet because I didn't pack a spare pair of those. I pause outside the bathroom door, tempted to open it up and take another peek, but I force myself to move, to walk down the hall and put my sneakers back on. With my backpack full of wet clothes, I open the front door and step out into the night.

I'm proud of myself for not letting this night get ruined. That wasn't exactly what I'd had planned, but it was even more beautiful.

Nothing short of utter perfection.