EDDIE.
Sighing into his pillow, Eddie mumbled, “What, Vee?”
WHAT IS WRONG? Venom asked.
“‘M sad.”
SAD?
Oh, right, Eddie remembered; he didn’t know much about human emotions yet. He was about to explain it, but judging by how Venom had gone silent, he was probably looking in his head for a definition.
After a moment, Venom’s voice echoed in his head. YOU ARE UNHAPPY. WHY?
“Can’t you just look in my head for a reason?” Eddie grumbled, turning on his side. He felt Venom form on his shoulder, and then he was face-to-face with the parasite.
I AM NOT A PARASITE, EDDIE. WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS, he hissed.
Eddie sighed. “Yeah, whatever.”
Venom frowned. WE DO NOT LIKE TO SEE YOU THIS WAY, EDDIE. WE CAN FEEL YOUR PAIN. WE DO NOT LIKE IT. WHY DO YOU FEEL THIS WAY?
“Why do I feel this way?” Eddie threw his head back, laughed humorlessly. “Okay, sure, let’s look into it.” Venom looked worried as Eddie began, his dry humor disappearing, eyes clouding.
“I have a lot of regrets in life. But Annie has got to be one of the biggest. I-I miss her. Real bad. I think about her all the time, play different scenarios in my head about what I could have done differently. I want her back so bad, but I know that she’s happy with Dan. And I’m glad that she’s happy, but it hurts. It hurts bad, Vee. I used to be human. I used to have a job, a fiancé. We were going to get married, you know? But then I fucked up. I fucked up real bad, Vee.”
He gulped. “I went to the lab with Dora, and when she told me not to touch anything, I didn’t listen. And then you… you chose me to be your host. I got her killed because of it, Vee. I killed a person.” He choked up a bit, adding quietly, “She wasn’t even the only one.”
Venom lowered his head as Eddie stared at him, tears threatening to escape his eyes. “I have to think about it every day,” he whispered, voice pained. “Why didn’t I just mind my own business, Vee? Why did I have to fuck my entire life up?”
Venom stayed silent as Eddie continued.
“I’m tired of everything, Vee. You’re the only one I have left, and I get scared that I might lose you, too. And sometimes…” He sighed shakily. “Sometimes I wish that you had just killed me back in the lab like you had done with those patients.” His voice cracked. “Why did you have to choose me, Vee?” He stared at Venom pleadingly. “Why?”
EDDIE… I AM SORRY. All of the emotions that Venom had put into those words crashed into Eddie, and he knew just how sincere Venom was.
“I know, buddy, I know.” He said softly, dropping his head onto the pillow as Venom wiped a few excess tears from his face before retracting back into his skin. He thanked him silently, and earned a soft rumble in response, almost like a purr.
He then drifted into an uninterrupted sleep, a little less weight on his shoulders.