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Description
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The yellow square fought with himself to stand up. He didn't want to have to do this, but given everything that happened with the dark being still living within his mind, he knew he had to. As long as that monster was here, his family wasn't safe.

Spongebob looked back down at the couch he'd been sleeping on for the last few weeks. The imprint of his back had sunken the cushions into themselves from the long nights of staring up into the ceiling, pretending to have X-ray vision to view Laura laying her head to rest back in the room they once shared. He could picture her soft breath as she slumbered bristle onto his face. Just the memories gave him comfort. But, they were just memories. It's not like he could ever feel it again. Her warmth, her touch, and her embrace faded from his mind as he continued to glare at the couch in silence. The man let out a trembling sigh, backed with heartache. It was so cold without her, nearly unbearable. Spongebob slowly turned his head towards a manilla folder peeking out from underneath his pillow, before glancing at the front door. He nodded to himself, with a quivering lip. His eyes welled up into banks of tears that rested on his lower eyelids, and he sniffed a little bit of mucus that had already begun to run due to his despondent outcome. He jolted sharply, as he could feel the restless claws of his twisted doppleganger pace within his skull.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" The Beast grumbled lowly in an annoyed tone. The sponge shook his head and scoffed, reaching for the folder. "Wouldn't you like to know, Savage..." Lucius twitched after hearing that name, still not quite used to it, but understood the meaning behind it's use. He could never give them his true name, for they would never earn that right in his eyes. So, he provided a false one to at least have something to be called other than 'Bastard' or 'Asshole'. Having the new name 'Savage', made him feel disconnected, and for the moment, that was fine. The demon still could not give much of a care for Laura or his host. They were the enemy, and he must keep them in eyeshot no matter what. However, his hosts strange actions that evening made him admittingly curious to see what was going on.

"WHAT IS THAT FOLDER FOR?" Lucius asked, as Spongebob shrugged one shoulder as he reached into it and gripped onto a few sheets of paper. "Well, you can see through my eyes, right? There's no way I can hide anything from you, so why don't you see for yourself then..." His voice cracked a little, obviously from attempting to hold back his depression, as he slipped a parchment into view which read in large letters, 'Divorce'. Lucius's eyes widened. His mind rushed with a kind of terrible triumphant euphoria, as a wide smile stretched across his face. This proved him to be victorious, didn't it? His willpower wasn't as great as he thought! However, a small part of Lucius's mind badgered him with thoughts of... worry? "HMM..." The devil hummed as he focused in on that feeling. Why would he feel anything related to pity for this mortal, even a miniscule amount?

"Aren't you happy? You get what you wanted... To tear me away from my family, because of you. Claim your reward whenever you want..." Spongebob wiped his eyes with his large arm, sniffling a little louder before he choked for a moment. He cleared his throat and held his breath, while Lucius watched him intentively as he creaked up the stairs with slow, heavy steps.

The master bedroom hatch squeaked a little as the man entered. He clutched the folder with shaking, sweaty palms, and he neared the angel sleeping in his bed. The yellow square let out a small sound of awe from his perception of her, knowing this may be the last time he will ever see her. His eyes grew more desolate at the thoughts that crowded his mind, whether she would cry or smile at his decision. Either way, it was painful. His heart pounded against his ribs harder, causing it to flutter and skip a few beats. Lucius felt this, and pondered how it identified itself through his feet on Spongebob's cranial floor. He had known this same emotion once, but, from where? The dark skinwalker shook his head clear of his reflections, looking out into the room through his host's vision.

He had applauded this yellow sponge once, for besting him the night of his first appearance. His willpower held him back, which was something none of his other host's were able to do. Ordinarily, they all perished by the injection of his oily blood. But, for some reason, this man lived, and continues to live. If he were honest, he would admit he was impressed. Lucius watched carefully at Spongebob as he leaned in to give Laura one last kiss on her cheek, making it last for as much as he could. The demon looked away, lowering his eyelids to stare on at a vein pulsing beside his heel. He became lost in his thoughts a few seconds later, thinking again of his precious Laurel. 'What do I really hate of this Laura, anyway...?' He thought to himself, surprised he'd never really contemplated that notion before. What was it about her that made his blood boil? Could it have been her eyes, or perhaps her skin? Maybe it was her innocence and kind-hearted mercy. No... None of those could make him rekindle his bloodlust from the thought of it. It must have been something else entirely. Maybe it was because, deep down he knew, she could never be Laurel. The demon trailed his dead eyes up the fleshy walls before him, continuing to analyze his visions by his lonesome. All the while, Spongebob stood back up gradually, and pet the side of Laura's soft face. She shifted in her sleep under his touch and hummed cutely, causing him to smile for the last time, in a long time.

Spongebob placed the dreaded farewell note within the folder on her lap, and stared down at his wedding band decorating his left hand. He let out a soft hiccup of a sob as he reached with a shuddering hand to slip it from his finger and stare down at it with fresh, pained tears. Lucius glared out in disbelief of what he was seeing. Could this be the same man as he'd faced and lost to? He's truly giving up? Why? All because he put himself on the couch for her safety? Such a stupid reason, he thought.

The soft 'tink' of the metal ring being placed on the dresser rang through the room louder in the beast's ears, and he sat back in great wonder. This was happening...

Spongebob stepped back to the door and pivoted on one foot to look back at her glowing face one more time. She looked so beautiful in the moonlight shining in from the window. The yellow square couldn't keep his whimpering back anymore, and as a result, he broke down as he stood in the doorway. "Huhh... Hhn... I-I love you, Laura... I'm so sorry for everything I've done to you... I wish you... and our children... a better life... hhnn... wi-- hhnn... without me..."

Lucius perked up at his words as his host strode back down the stairs with an almost meloncholy shamble. '...What you've done...?' Lucius thought to himself.

The recollections of that night flooded into his mind. What he did... what he had forced Laura to do with him... He felt sick all of a sudden. He had never done that before in his life. Never, in 643 years. Why then? What caused him to lust after her like that? To be so desperate for pleasure? His brain throbbed at that moment. Nothing made sense anymore. It was as if he no longer knew who he was, which, was impossible.

The front door swung open swiftly, and Spongebob breathed in a heavy breath of the cold air that rushed in to greet the warmness of his living room. He closed his eyes, and let his tears fall wherever they may.

------

Spongebob's eyes fluttered open. The roar of a train horn not failing to catch in his tired ears. He was dreaming of the night he left again. It's been a week since, and it's been the only thing on his mind, besides an unwelcome demon of course. His eyes grew fresh tears from his reddened face as he glared out the window of his train compartment. The chilling breeze outside thwacked heavy clusters of snowflakes against the cart like ashes from a frigid hellscape. The man sat, practically inviting the cold as he was frozen in thought.

"YOU SHOULD GO BACK HOME. I'M SURE YOUR FAMILY MISSES YOU..." Lucius spoke up, breaking the ice, so to speak. "And you care about that, why?" The sponge asked, huffing a short chuff to himself followed by a cough. Lucius shrugged his shoulders, and rolled his neck. "BECAUSE I KNOW WHERE YOUR HEART LIES, YOU MORON... YOU DON'T REALLY WANT THIS, AND I'M SURE, THAT NEITHER DO THEY. THEY'RE TOO... LOVING, TO ALLOW YOU TO CONTINUE YOUR STRUGGLES ALONE." "Oh, I'M not alone," Spongebob cut in quickly, "I have YOU, don't I?!" He spat, chuckling lowly, as Lucius blinked at his action. "HMM... SEEMS YOU'RE BECOMING A BIT UNHINGED THE LONGER YOU STAY AWAY." "Oh Reeeeeeally? And, who, exactly do I have to thank for that?!" The yellow square mocked, whilst folding his arms and slumping in his seat a little more. Lucius twitched his tail in irritation, before he sighed and sat on a piece of beveled flesh. "NEVERMIND..." He mumbled, to which Spongebob retorted, "Yeah, that's what I thought..."

Another hour went by in the grueling train ride to Neptune knows where. He'd know his stop when he sees it, and that, is wherever he pleased. The sponge could take 3 trips around the world and pass by the same spots until he'd get off for all he cared. It didn't really matter, did it?

The train made a stop at another station to pick up more passengers. Spongebob, now realizing he looks like a train car bum, fixed himself up a little bit and wiped off his dried tears and snot. After all, he might have to share his compartment soon, and, speaking of which, his door opened to reveal a new passenger. A fish stood at the door, looking to the Sponge moping in the corner. "Hi, is this seat taken?" She gestured to the seat beside him, and he swiftly glanced at where she pointed and shook his head no. "Go ahead..." he shrugged, sitting up a little. The fish smirked and stepped over to the seat, moving his belongings to the side so she could sit right next to him. Spongebob stared over to his bag, now on the far side of the bench, and blinked down at this random woman sitting beside him. "Um... Thanks for... moving that... how thoughtful..." he tried to muster a smile, but it came up looking really awkward. Even though, she didn't seem to mind that. The scent of her perfume wafted into his nostrils and he choked a little. It may have been just too strong. So much so that even the demon could smell it. But he took a deep breath in and took in her musk under the mask of artificial smells. The demon snorted at her, showing a grotesque expression. 'Huh? What was that all about?' The sponge thought so only Lucius could hear. "SHE STINKS OF MANY MEN... I'D BE CAREFUL IF I WERE YOU..." The demon warned, growling silently at the woman.

Spongebob looked to his phone, unknowing why, other than it may have been habit. But as luck would have it, his phone was dead, and there wasn't a charger in sight. He sighed, slipping it back into his pocket and placing his left hand over his right on his stomach as he sat, waiting for the ride to be over. The fish woman ran her eyes to his hand, grinning as she didn't see a ring, before she looked up at his face. The yellow man could feel her eyes presence, but decided to ignore her as he didn't really know what to say anyway. "My name's Collene." She introduced herself, to which he looked to her after he heard her speak. "DO NOT ENGAGE IN CONVERSATION, SPONGE..." Lucius grumbled, but Spongebob raised his brow. 'If I don't answer back, that would be rude...' "DID YOU NOT HEAR ME? I SAID DO NOT SPEAK WITH HER!" The demon heeded, but again, the sponge rolled his eyes and spoke up, "My name's Spongebob. Nice to meet you..." he said politely, and lightly gripped her tiny fin for an introductory shake. "DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU..."

TWO HOURS LATER...

Spongebob trailed his hands down his face, taking some of the bags under his eyes with his fingertips. What the demon had said had come to pass. The woman wouldn't stop talking about herself, about topics he didn't ask about or things he never wanted to hear. He cringed at the annoying tone of her voice, gripping the sides of his head like he was going crazy. Lucius shook his head at Spongebob's inability to trust his judgement. After all, the week of being gone from everyone had made him think a little more. There wasn't anything else to do but to listen to his own mind.

The woman laughed at something the sponge was no longer paying attention to, mentally begging for the torture to end, until she turned to him suddenly and got him to listen again, "Wow, you're really good at listening. No one ever usually listens to me." "Gee, I wonder why..." he said sarcastically, and she lowered her eyes a bit, glancing at his thigh which she took no more hesitation to stroke a little firmly. His muscles became stiff instantly in discomfort and alertness. He looked to where her fin was and awkwardly giggled while brushing her away, his face was flushed in red up to his eyes as the sudden contact was unexpectedly uncomfortable. "You're really cute, you know that?" She said, leaning closer to him, as Lucius hopped up from his spot, growling even louder, "GET AWAY FROM HER, JOKER. SHE REEKS OF DEPRIVATION, AND TRUST ME, YOU DON'T WANT WHAT SHE'S GOT..." 'I never said I did! She's just being really weird now suddenly!' He thought to the demon, and he cleared his throat. "Th-Thank you for your... kind words?" Spongebob shrugged, sliding himself closer to the window, but she soon followed suit. He began to sweat like mad. He was so uncomfortable with all this. "Say... Any idea where I can get a little... fun, around here?" Collene seductively asked, biting her lip. "Uh, Um--" Spongebob scooted as close as he could to the window, just as Lucius shouted through his mind, "YOU WANT SOME FUN? THEN GO BE A PROSTITUTE, BITCH! IT'S AN ALL YOU CAN EAT TROUSER BUFFET! YOU'LL GET ALL THE FREE DISEASES YOU WANT AND MORE!!" Hearing the way the demon formulated his sentence, somehow, actually made Spongebob snicker out loud. The devil stopped growling and listened to his host laugh at something he said. It was almost... flattering. That was, until the woman's eyes glimmered with thoughts unlike what the sponge was truly thinking.

"So, you want it too, huh?" She giggled coyly, as Spongebob looked at her and halted his laughter, now realizing his snickering gave her the wrong idea. "Uh, N-No, I uh, I didn't mean uh--" He studdered, but all of his thoughts converged into one as she got up to sit in his lap. He groaned, distressed at the thought of this woman trying to become a concubine. She inched her face closer to his slowly, and she grabbed his face with her flippers. His eyes shot open, now extremely scared, and his hands shook. He was always trained never to hit a woman unless they're supposed to be in a sparring match. "I SWEAR, IF SHE KISSES US, I WILL TEAR HER GILLS OUT AND MAKE HER EAT IT THROUGH HER TAIL FIN!!" Lucius bellowed, about ready to burst through the skin of the sponge and rip somebody a new one.

"HOW DARE YOU?!"

The woman sat back, "Huh?" She questioned, looking into the angered sponge's face as it got redder from pure anger. Lucius released his grip on the wall of flesh around his host's eye socket, and stood up in confusion. An incredibly unsettled Spongebob stood up, and shoved the woman off of him. "How DARE you try to come onto me like that! I'm not into you!" He shouted down at her, but, instead of being offended, she only scoffed and chuckled, "Well, if you give me some time, i'm sure I can get to know you--" "I am MARRIED!!" He interrupted her, with his pores practically fuming with rage, "I've been in love with my wife for a little over 50 years now!! And my wife is ten times better than some whore on a train!!" He took a second to catch his breath, while she processed what he'd said. "50 years? What, is she dead?" She scoffed, and Spongebob froze. His face retreated it's blood flow to reveal a ghostly yellow. The man in his mind blinked, then halted all movement as he'd begun to read his thoughts.

"...NO... DON'T DO IT..." "I can't... I can't live in a world where she's not living..."

Those words brought up a memory where he'd felt the same about Laurel. When he tried to kill himself to follow her, only to find out he'd been cursed never to die. It was as if... History was doomed to repeat itself.

The sponge slammed the door of his compartment open and headed straight down the cabins in coach class. In one of the train's compartments was a large full body boarding door. He didn't hesitate to force it open. He had to get out. His mind was set... Immediately, the refridgerated waters slammed chunks of snow and ice into the open corridor, alarming some of the guests, while the sponge stood gazing over the edge below the bridge they were riding atop. "DON'T DO IT... THINK OF YOUR DAUGHTER, YOUR WIFE AND SON... THEY AREN'T DEAD, YOU KNOW THAT, BUT IF YOU KILL YOURSELF NOW, YOU'LL JUST LOOK LIKE THE BIGGEST FOOL FOR DYING WITHOUT REASON!" "How should I know they aren't dead?" Spongebob croaked, with salty tears flowing from his face again. "Or what if it's worse... if... if Laura already moved on from me... and my kids are calling some other man their dad... I can't bear to live with these thoughts anymore!"

The Sponge stepped up to the metal plating of the door, holding his arms out to his sides, as if he will give a warm hug to the winter frost. "YOU'RE SUCH A FOOL..." Lucius spoke, lowly. "Maybe... But i guess that's just something i'm going to have to die with..." He smiled softly, blinking his wind blown tears from his eyes as he'd stepped off of the train.

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Description
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The yellow square fought with himself to stand up. He didn't want to have to do this, but given everything that happened with the dark being still living within his mind, he knew he had to. As long as that monster was here, his family wasn't safe.

Spongebob looked back down at the couch he'd been sleeping on for the last few weeks. The imprint of his back had sunken the cushions into themselves from the long nights of staring up into the ceiling, pretending to have X-ray vision to view Laura laying her head to rest back in the room they once shared. He could picture her soft breath as she slumbered bristle onto his face. Just the memories gave him comfort. But, they were just memories. It's not like he could ever feel it again. Her warmth, her touch, and her embrace faded from his mind as he continued to glare at the couch in silence. The man let out a trembling sigh, backed with heartache. It was so cold without her, nearly unbearable. Spongebob slowly turned his head towards a manilla folder peeking out from underneath his pillow, before glancing at the front door. He nodded to himself, with a quivering lip. His eyes welled up into banks of tears that rested on his lower eyelids, and he sniffed a little bit of mucus that had already begun to run due to his despondent outcome. He jolted sharply, as he could feel the restless claws of his twisted doppleganger pace within his skull.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" The Beast grumbled lowly in an annoyed tone. The sponge shook his head and scoffed, reaching for the folder. "Wouldn't you like to know, Savage..." Lucius twitched after hearing that name, still not quite used to it, but understood the meaning behind it's use. He could never give them his true name, for they would never earn that right in his eyes. So, he provided a false one to at least have something to be called other than 'Bastard' or 'Asshole'. Having the new name 'Savage', made him feel disconnected, and for the moment, that was fine. The demon still could not give much of a care for Laura or his host. They were the enemy, and he must keep them in eyeshot no matter what. However, his hosts strange actions that evening made him admittingly curious to see what was going on.

"WHAT IS THAT FOLDER FOR?" Lucius asked, as Spongebob shrugged one shoulder as he reached into it and gripped onto a few sheets of paper. "Well, you can see through my eyes, right? There's no way I can hide anything from you, so why don't you see for yourself then..." His voice cracked a little, obviously from attempting to hold back his depression, as he slipped a parchment into view which read in large letters, 'Divorce'. Lucius's eyes widened. His mind rushed with a kind of terrible triumphant euphoria, as a wide smile stretched across his face. This proved him to be victorious, didn't it? His willpower wasn't as great as he thought! However, a small part of Lucius's mind badgered him with thoughts of... worry? "HMM..." The devil hummed as he focused in on that feeling. Why would he feel anything related to pity for this mortal, even a miniscule amount?

"Aren't you happy? You get what you wanted... To tear me away from my family, because of you. Claim your reward whenever you want..." Spongebob wiped his eyes with his large arm, sniffling a little louder before he choked for a moment. He cleared his throat and held his breath, while Lucius watched him intentively as he creaked up the stairs with slow, heavy steps.

The master bedroom hatch squeaked a little as the man entered. He clutched the folder with shaking, sweaty palms, and he neared the angel sleeping in his bed. The yellow square let out a small sound of awe from his perception of her, knowing this may be the last time he will ever see her. His eyes grew more desolate at the thoughts that crowded his mind, whether she would cry or smile at his decision. Either way, it was painful. His heart pounded against his ribs harder, causing it to flutter and skip a few beats. Lucius felt this, and pondered how it identified itself through his feet on Spongebob's cranial floor. He had known this same emotion once, but, from where? The dark skinwalker shook his head clear of his reflections, looking out into the room through his host's vision.

He had applauded this yellow sponge once, for besting him the night of his first appearance. His willpower held him back, which was something none of his other host's were able to do. Ordinarily, they all perished by the injection of his oily blood. But, for some reason, this man lived, and continues to live. If he were honest, he would admit he was impressed. Lucius watched carefully at Spongebob as he leaned in to give Laura one last kiss on her cheek, making it last for as much as he could. The demon looked away, lowering his eyelids to stare on at a vein pulsing beside his heel. He became lost in his thoughts a few seconds later, thinking again of his precious Laurel. 'What do I really hate of this Laura, anyway...?' He thought to himself, surprised he'd never really contemplated that notion before. What was it about her that made his blood boil? Could it have been her eyes, or perhaps her skin? Maybe it was her innocence and kind-hearted mercy. No... None of those could make him rekindle his bloodlust from the thought of it. It must have been something else entirely. Maybe it was because, deep down he knew, she could never be Laurel. The demon trailed his dead eyes up the fleshy walls before him, continuing to analyze his visions by his lonesome. All the while, Spongebob stood back up gradually, and pet the side of Laura's soft face. She shifted in her sleep under his touch and hummed cutely, causing him to smile for the last time, in a long time.

Spongebob placed the dreaded farewell note within the folder on her lap, and stared down at his wedding band decorating his left hand. He let out a soft hiccup of a sob as he reached with a shuddering hand to slip it from his finger and stare down at it with fresh, pained tears. Lucius glared out in disbelief of what he was seeing. Could this be the same man as he'd faced and lost to? He's truly giving up? Why? All because he put himself on the couch for her safety? Such a stupid reason, he thought.

The soft 'tink' of the metal ring being placed on the dresser rang through the room louder in the beast's ears, and he sat back in great wonder. This was happening...

Spongebob stepped back to the door and pivoted on one foot to look back at her glowing face one more time. She looked so beautiful in the moonlight shining in from the window. The yellow square couldn't keep his whimpering back anymore, and as a result, he broke down as he stood in the doorway. "Huhh... Hhn... I-I love you, Laura... I'm so sorry for everything I've done to you... I wish you... and our children... a better life... hhnn... wi-- hhnn... without me..."

Lucius perked up at his words as his host strode back down the stairs with an almost meloncholy shamble. '...What you've done...?' Lucius thought to himself.

The recollections of that night flooded into his mind. What he did... what he had forced Laura to do with him... He felt sick all of a sudden. He had never done that before in his life. Never, in 643 years. Why then? What caused him to lust after her like that? To be so desperate for pleasure? His brain throbbed at that moment. Nothing made sense anymore. It was as if he no longer knew who he was, which, was impossible.

The front door swung open swiftly, and Spongebob breathed in a heavy breath of the cold air that rushed in to greet the warmness of his living room. He closed his eyes, and let his tears fall wherever they may.

------

Spongebob's eyes fluttered open. The roar of a train horn not failing to catch in his tired ears. He was dreaming of the night he left again. It's been a week since, and it's been the only thing on his mind, besides an unwelcome demon of course. His eyes grew fresh tears from his reddened face as he glared out the window of his train compartment. The chilling breeze outside thwacked heavy clusters of snowflakes against the cart like ashes from a frigid hellscape. The man sat, practically inviting the cold as he was frozen in thought.

"YOU SHOULD GO BACK HOME. I'M SURE YOUR FAMILY MISSES YOU..." Lucius spoke up, breaking the ice, so to speak. "And you care about that, why?" The sponge asked, huffing a short chuff to himself followed by a cough. Lucius shrugged his shoulders, and rolled his neck. "BECAUSE I KNOW WHERE YOUR HEART LIES, YOU MORON... YOU DON'T REALLY WANT THIS, AND I'M SURE, THAT NEITHER DO THEY. THEY'RE TOO... LOVING, TO ALLOW YOU TO CONTINUE YOUR STRUGGLES ALONE." "Oh, I'M not alone," Spongebob cut in quickly, "I have YOU, don't I?!" He spat, chuckling lowly, as Lucius blinked at his action. "HMM... SEEMS YOU'RE BECOMING A BIT UNHINGED THE LONGER YOU STAY AWAY." "Oh Reeeeeeally? And, who, exactly do I have to thank for that?!" The yellow square mocked, whilst folding his arms and slumping in his seat a little more. Lucius twitched his tail in irritation, before he sighed and sat on a piece of beveled flesh. "NEVERMIND..." He mumbled, to which Spongebob retorted, "Yeah, that's what I thought..."

Another hour went by in the grueling train ride to Neptune knows where. He'd know his stop when he sees it, and that, is wherever he pleased. The sponge could take 3 trips around the world and pass by the same spots until he'd get off for all he cared. It didn't really matter, did it?

The train made a stop at another station to pick up more passengers. Spongebob, now realizing he looks like a train car bum, fixed himself up a little bit and wiped off his dried tears and snot. After all, he might have to share his compartment soon, and, speaking of which, his door opened to reveal a new passenger. A fish stood at the door, looking to the Sponge moping in the corner. "Hi, is this seat taken?" She gestured to the seat beside him, and he swiftly glanced at where she pointed and shook his head no. "Go ahead..." he shrugged, sitting up a little. The fish smirked and stepped over to the seat, moving his belongings to the side so she could sit right next to him. Spongebob stared over to his bag, now on the far side of the bench, and blinked down at this random woman sitting beside him. "Um... Thanks for... moving that... how thoughtful..." he tried to muster a smile, but it came up looking really awkward. Even though, she didn't seem to mind that. The scent of her perfume wafted into his nostrils and he choked a little. It may have been just too strong. So much so that even the demon could smell it. But he took a deep breath in and took in her musk under the mask of artificial smells. The demon snorted at her, showing a grotesque expression. 'Huh? What was that all about?' The sponge thought so only Lucius could hear. "SHE STINKS OF MANY MEN... I'D BE CAREFUL IF I WERE YOU..." The demon warned, growling silently at the woman.

Spongebob looked to his phone, unknowing why, other than it may have been habit. But as luck would have it, his phone was dead, and there wasn't a charger in sight. He sighed, slipping it back into his pocket and placing his left hand over his right on his stomach as he sat, waiting for the ride to be over. The fish woman ran her eyes to his hand, grinning as she didn't see a ring, before she looked up at his face. The yellow man could feel her eyes presence, but decided to ignore her as he didn't really know what to say anyway. "My name's Collene." She introduced herself, to which he looked to her after he heard her speak. "DO NOT ENGAGE IN CONVERSATION, SPONGE..." Lucius grumbled, but Spongebob raised his brow. 'If I don't answer back, that would be rude...' "DID YOU NOT HEAR ME? I SAID DO NOT SPEAK WITH HER!" The demon heeded, but again, the sponge rolled his eyes and spoke up, "My name's Spongebob. Nice to meet you..." he said politely, and lightly gripped her tiny fin for an introductory shake. "DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU..."

TWO HOURS LATER...

Spongebob trailed his hands down his face, taking some of the bags under his eyes with his fingertips. What the demon had said had come to pass. The woman wouldn't stop talking about herself, about topics he didn't ask about or things he never wanted to hear. He cringed at the annoying tone of her voice, gripping the sides of his head like he was going crazy. Lucius shook his head at Spongebob's inability to trust his judgement. After all, the week of being gone from everyone had made him think a little more. There wasn't anything else to do but to listen to his own mind.

The woman laughed at something the sponge was no longer paying attention to, mentally begging for the torture to end, until she turned to him suddenly and got him to listen again, "Wow, you're really good at listening. No one ever usually listens to me." "Gee, I wonder why..." he said sarcastically, and she lowered her eyes a bit, glancing at his thigh which she took no more hesitation to stroke a little firmly. His muscles became stiff instantly in discomfort and alertness. He looked to where her fin was and awkwardly giggled while brushing her away, his face was flushed in red up to his eyes as the sudden contact was unexpectedly uncomfortable. "You're really cute, you know that?" She said, leaning closer to him, as Lucius hopped up from his spot, growling even louder, "GET AWAY FROM HER, JOKER. SHE REEKS OF DEPRIVATION, AND TRUST ME, YOU DON'T WANT WHAT SHE'S GOT..." 'I never said I did! She's just being really weird now suddenly!' He thought to the demon, and he cleared his throat. "Th-Thank you for your... kind words?" Spongebob shrugged, sliding himself closer to the window, but she soon followed suit. He began to sweat like mad. He was so uncomfortable with all this. "Say... Any idea where I can get a little... fun, around here?" Collene seductively asked, biting her lip. "Uh, Um--" Spongebob scooted as close as he could to the window, just as Lucius shouted through his mind, "YOU WANT SOME FUN? THEN GO BE A PROSTITUTE, BITCH! IT'S AN ALL YOU CAN EAT TROUSER BUFFET! YOU'LL GET ALL THE FREE DISEASES YOU WANT AND MORE!!" Hearing the way the demon formulated his sentence, somehow, actually made Spongebob snicker out loud. The devil stopped growling and listened to his host laugh at something he said. It was almost... flattering. That was, until the woman's eyes glimmered with thoughts unlike what the sponge was truly thinking.

"So, you want it too, huh?" She giggled coyly, as Spongebob looked at her and halted his laughter, now realizing his snickering gave her the wrong idea. "Uh, N-No, I uh, I didn't mean uh--" He studdered, but all of his thoughts converged into one as she got up to sit in his lap. He groaned, distressed at the thought of this woman trying to become a concubine. She inched her face closer to his slowly, and she grabbed his face with her flippers. His eyes shot open, now extremely scared, and his hands shook. He was always trained never to hit a woman unless they're supposed to be in a sparring match. "I SWEAR, IF SHE KISSES US, I WILL TEAR HER GILLS OUT AND MAKE HER EAT IT THROUGH HER TAIL FIN!!" Lucius bellowed, about ready to burst through the skin of the sponge and rip somebody a new one.

"HOW DARE YOU?!"

The woman sat back, "Huh?" She questioned, looking into the angered sponge's face as it got redder from pure anger. Lucius released his grip on the wall of flesh around his host's eye socket, and stood up in confusion. An incredibly unsettled Spongebob stood up, and shoved the woman off of him. "How DARE you try to come onto me like that! I'm not into you!" He shouted down at her, but, instead of being offended, she only scoffed and chuckled, "Well, if you give me some time, i'm sure I can get to know you--" "I am MARRIED!!" He interrupted her, with his pores practically fuming with rage, "I've been in love with my wife for a little over 50 years now!! And my wife is ten times better than some whore on a train!!" He took a second to catch his breath, while she processed what he'd said. "50 years? What, is she dead?" She scoffed, and Spongebob froze. His face retreated it's blood flow to reveal a ghostly yellow. The man in his mind blinked, then halted all movement as he'd begun to read his thoughts.

"...NO... DON'T DO IT..." "I can't... I can't live in a world where she's not living..."

Those words brought up a memory where he'd felt the same about Laurel. When he tried to kill himself to follow her, only to find out he'd been cursed never to die. It was as if... History was doomed to repeat itself.

The sponge slammed the door of his compartment open and headed straight down the cabins in coach class. In one of the train's compartments was a large full body boarding door. He didn't hesitate to force it open. He had to get out. His mind was set... Immediately, the refridgerated waters slammed chunks of snow and ice into the open corridor, alarming some of the guests, while the sponge stood gazing over the edge below the bridge they were riding atop. "DON'T DO IT... THINK OF YOUR DAUGHTER, YOUR WIFE AND SON... THEY AREN'T DEAD, YOU KNOW THAT, BUT IF YOU KILL YOURSELF NOW, YOU'LL JUST LOOK LIKE THE BIGGEST FOOL FOR DYING WITHOUT REASON!" "How should I know they aren't dead?" Spongebob croaked, with salty tears flowing from his face again. "Or what if it's worse... if... if Laura already moved on from me... and my kids are calling some other man their dad... I can't bear to live with these thoughts anymore!"

The Sponge stepped up to the metal plating of the door, holding his arms out to his sides, as if he will give a warm hug to the winter frost. "YOU'RE SUCH A FOOL..." Lucius spoke, lowly. "Maybe... But i guess that's just something i'm going to have to die with..." He smiled softly, blinking his wind blown tears from his eyes as he'd stepped off of the train.

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