World delivered to my Psycho Ex - Chapter 2

Rhodes drives to his ex's house to pick up his laptop.

Rhodes pulled his car into the driveway of the familiar house that had been his home for five years. He took off his sunglasses and peered through the window, remembering all the times he and Angie would spend on the porch in the evenings, laughing, discussing their beliefs about life, or indulging in juicy gossip about others.

Startled by a knock on the window, he quickly turned his head to see who it was. It was the friendly neighbor from across the street, old Joe. His grin revealed his crooked teeth, and the wrinkles on his face were plentiful as always.

"Good to see you here again, man," Joe said. "Are you here to make up with Angie again? I sure hope so; you were such a lovely couple."

Rhodes shook his head with a wry grin. "No, not this time. I'm just here to retrieve my laptop."

"Oh," Joe said. "Come to think of it. I saw Angie this morning at the mall. She was like a dog with two tails, smiling at everyone who was willing to receive it—never seen her like that. Do you think she won the lottery or something?".

Rhodes shrugged. "Beats me. Guess I'm going to find out in a minute." He climbed out of his car and headed towards the front porch. After agreeing to meet up with Joe someday for a beer and to watch their favorite baseball team play, Rhodes found himself standing on the doorstep of his old house.

Ringing the doorbell and waiting for someone to open the door at a house he had called his home for the last five years felt surreal.

He gazed at the porch swing, where he and Angie had spent countless hours. He could still picture himself lounging on it with a cold beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other, his feet propped up on the nearby end table. Angie would always be curled up next to him, engrossed in one of her books, while he mindlessly scrolled through his phone.

The door clicked open.

With a frown, Rhodes pushed open the door, peeking. To his surprise, no one was standing there waiting for him.

"Hello?" He stepped inside and looked around but saw no one in sight.

Unable to shake off the feeling of unease, he took a few more steps inside.

"Angie?" he called out, louder this time. Shrugging and assuming this was an invitation for him to enter the house, he stepped inside. He surmised that perhaps the door had not been shut tightly, and a strong breeze had caused it to swing open.

"Hi!"

Rhodes jumped when he entered the dark living room and heard Angie's voice.

He narrowed his eyes and waited for them to adjust to the darkness. Eventually, he made out a silhouette sitting on the couch.

"Angie?" Rhodes asked, still trying to fully grasp what was happening.

The lights blinked on, making the living room and Angie's beaming face visible. He immediately noticed two things. Angie looked dangerously hot while wearing a red dress that left nothing to the imagination, making him almost regret ending their relationship.

Almost. For at the same time he also remembered her behavior, the way she would insensitively declare her disapproval of things he saw as normal.

Like greeting a female coworker on the street or interacting with people of the opposite sex in general.

The other thing that struck him was that Angie truly did have an unsettlingly joyful demeanor, just as old Joe had described, almost in a scary way.

"Is that better?" Angie asked.

Rhodes nodded. "Why were you sitting in the dark, by the way? Never mind, I don't wanna know. Can you tell me where my laptop is so I can leave?"

"It's over there," Angie pointed towards the dining table, where everything was still arranged as she had set it up for the dinner that never happened last night.

Rhodes walked over and resisted the urge to make a witty remark about the idiocity of preparing a table for two.

He retrieved his laptop from the table, and as Angie had warned him, he noticed deep bite marks covering its surface. Images flashed through his mind of Rufus, their neighbor's dog, having a field day with his poor laptop.

"Is it still operational?" he asked Angie with uncertainty.

Angie shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not sure. I haven't tested it."

Of course, you haven't. Rhodes thought.

He pushed the button, and as expected, nothing happened. He sighed.

"I could make the thing function if you like," Angie said as she idly kicked her foot back and forth and twirled a strand of hair with her finger.

Rhodes looked up from his laptop. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean this." Angie snapped her fingers, and miraculously, Rhodes's laptop turned on and displayed the startup screen.

Rhodes was left speechless, staring at his ex with wide eyes.

"The finger snap was just for show, by the way." Angie beamed. "And look, your laptop is new again!"

And indeed, as Rhodes inspected his laptop with perplexity, it appeared just as flashy and neat as the day he bought it several years ago. All Rufus' bite marks were gone.

"And there's more," Angie chimed in before Rhodes could even say a word.

She rose from her seat. "I can do even more than that. Are you parched?" She snapped her fingers, and a tall glass of Sprite appeared in Rhodes's hand. "Your favorite," she said, smiling. "Just like that." She snapped her fingers again, and the dish from last night materialized right in front of him on the table. It looked freshly cooked, its delicious aroma making his mouth water.

"Wow! I can't believe how easy this is now." Angie chuckled. "Last night, I spent hours in the kitchen trying to make your favorite dish without realizing this shortcut existed. And you know what?"

"What?" Rhodes said.

"You never showed up!" Angie snapped.

"Angie, sweety."

Angie's tone was sharp and full of anger as she snapped, "Don't you even think about calling me 'sweety,' mister!" She glared at him. "You promised to be here with me, but you left me waiting in vain instead. I shed a lot of tears because of you. Did you know that? But then I discovered something else: I could control the weather. And suddenly, I couldn't stop laughing."

Rhodes contorted his face into a frown.

"Hey, you know that massive oak tree on the crest of the hill? Yeah, well, it got struck by lightning. And guess who gave the order for that bolt to strike? Here's a hint: it wasn't God." She winked.

"Uhh, you?" Rhodes guessed.

"Bingo! Not some supreme being or higher power. Just plain old me, myself, and I. Apparently, I can summon lightning bolts from the heavens. Want me to show you?" Angie boasted.

Rhodes shook his hands in a dismissive gesture. "No need for that," he said quickly. "Anyway, it was nice talking to you, but now that I have my laptop back, I'll just be on my way and leave you alone." He turned and walked towards the front door at a slightly faster pace than he originally intended.

"Stop!" Angie said.

Rhodes's body suddenly froze, halting in mid-step as if stuck in time. Despite his efforts to move, he remained locked in place.

"Look at me," Angie said.

Rhodes's body obeyed Angie's command, turning around even though he didn't want it to. He felt like a marionette, with Angie pulling the strings and controlling his every move. As she approached him, her eyes glinting mischievously, Rhodes was powerless to resist as she planted a long kiss on his lips.

"Kill her," Angie said.

Rhodes looked perplexed. "W-what? Who?"

"That bitch you were fuckin yesterday when we were on the phone!" Angie snapped.

"I did not–"  

"Don't try to deny it," Angie said, cutting off Rhodes's words. "I don't want to hear any excuses. You have 48 hours to get rid of her or else…" With her hands clasped behind her back, Angie walked over to the window that overlooked the city skyline in the distance. "I will unleash my fury upon this entire city."

Rhodes's eyes widened with alarm as he saw dark clouds gathering in the sky, looming over the city like a menacing army. An ominous blanket of roiling gray clouds now obscured the once-clear blue sky. Lightning bolts flickered within the mass, illuminating the darkness with their sharp, electric brightness. Suddenly, a deep rumble shook the ground beneath his feet, sending shivers down his spine.

In disbelief, Rhodes watched as the bolts struck buildings with fierce precision, igniting them into blazing infernos. What had started as a seemingly ordinary thunderstorm had evolved into a chaotic and destructive display of nature's power.

"Stop it!" Rhodes screamed. The thunderstorm raged on, growing even more intense.

"Please, Angie! These people haven't done anything to you."

Fireballs rained down from the sky, causing chaos as people scrambled for shelter. The blaring sound of sirens filled the city as authorities mistook the rain of fire for an assault from a hostile nation.

"Okay, I will kill her. I will kill her!" Rhodes said, desperation in his voice. The thunderstorm dissipated, and the fireballs from above ceased.

The city was still burning, though.

Angie turned to face Rhodes. "That's great!" She said with a smile.

"Can I leave now?" Rhodes asked timidly.

Angie put on a thoughtful expression, resting her chin in her hand. "Hmm, alright. But your car has to stay here." Just like that, Rhodes saw that his car was suddenly held in Angie's hand, looking not bigger than a toy.

"I'll keep it on my shelf. Now hurry up and go kill that woman." Then she waved her hand at him dismissively.

Rhodes barged through the front door and ran as fast and as far away as he could while fully aware that there was no escape from Angie's wrath.