Gluttony

Gluttony

Gluttony
The teeth are the problem. She loves him but she doesn't know how to deal with his teeth. At first, she noticed the small row of them growing at the base of his wrist. They were walking through the park. She grabbed his arm and she felt them.
There are teeth growing out of your wrist.
What? Don't be ridiculous.
He yanks his arm away and rubs at it as if it itches. He's eating a hot dog he bought from a vendor. A few minutes later she reaches over for his arm again. Nothing's there.
I love you.
They're making out on the couch with South Park on mute. He caresses her face and she feels hard enamel and sharp points instead of soft flesh.
Now there are teeth coming out of your hands.
It's a skin condition. They'll go away.
He grabs a potato chip to munch on. His mouth presses against hers and distracts her from asking more questions. He has potato chip breath.
I love you.
They don't go away. More keep growing. She sees them on his elbows after he pulls on his shirt. She feels them on his chest as she hugs him at night. They dig into her back as he presses against her in his sleep.
They go to see a movie about murderers and CD cases. She grabs his hand as the killer slaughters his lover. She feels the teeth like always, but something's different. There's a hole between them. She spreads his fingers and looks at it.
What's wrong with your hand?
The movie screen goes dark. She can't see anything.
Nothing's wrong with it. Be quiet. I'm trying to watch the movie.
He takes his hand away and rests it on the bulging bag of popcorn. He doesn't move it for the rest of the movie but she can hear him chewing. As they leave the theater he throws the empty bag in the trash.
She's fixing hamburgers in her apartment. He reaches down to pet her dog. The dog yelps and makes her drop a plate. The dog is bleeding.
What happened?
I must have opened up a cut she had.
She bends down to look at the dog. He grabs a hamburger with his bloody hand.
Looks like another dog bit her.
Guess so.
He puts the hamburger on his plate. There's a bite taken out of it. The dog's blood looks like ketchup. The dog won't come near him.
Wash your hands.
The teeth growing from his skin are really mouths growing from his skin. She can tell. Every day there are more and more. He doesn't let her touch him anymore. He doesn't want to kiss her. He doesn't want to go anywhere. He just eats. She doesn't care. She loves him.
One night she's asleep. And then she's awake. There's a noise in the kitchen. He isn't in bed. She gets up to see what it is.
The lights are off. And then they're on. She sees the blood first. How can she not? It's everywhere. The fridge is open and empty. He's kneeling on the floor. The blood isn't his. The dog is dead, its stomach half-eaten.
She stares at him. He stares back at her covered in blood that isn't his.
I was hungry.
His voice sounds weird as it's spoken from all of his mouths at once. He scares her. But she loves him.
She wraps the dog in a bag and takes it out back. They'll bury it in the morning. She'll go grocery shopping. Everything will be fine.
She goes back inside. She's tired. He's in the bedroom waiting for her. He's clean now. He comes close and kisses her like she'd wanted him to. She kisses him back. Then he turns and throws her down on the bed. He climbs on top of her.
She rests her hands on his shoulders. One of his mouths bites her hand. He strokes her cheek, and teeth scratch her skin. She tries to kiss him. He bites at her lips.
I'm still hungry.
He kisses her face and her chest and her arm. Everywhere he kisses he bites and tears.
I love you.
His hand closes around her throat. She feels a mouth clamp around her neck and draw blood. The lights are on but the room is going dark.
I love you too.