Sadistic Influence Much?

Flushed and breathing heavily, they panted as the pair ran into took their seats in class. Lethe sat beside Solciro, Lunare having gone to sit with Acherus.
"Can you tell me now?"
"Every relationship has its skeletons, don't they?"
"But neither of us are necromancers."
"Very funny."
"I know I am. But seriously though, any secret that prevents you from having physical contact with anyone and everyone is a secret that you ought to share with me."
"Yeah.." She took a deep breath. "I suppose so. But you won't believe me. I don't want it to alienate us."
"I will believe you, I promise. I wouldn't doubt your word."
"But.... ok. I will. When I come into contact with anyone, I get that person's memories. All of it."
Solciro didn't say anything.
"You don't believe me, do you?"
"It's not that. I just... It's hard to grasp. You get all of the person's memories?"
"From birth to present, yes."
"Woah. How did you get this ability?"
"I don't know. I only got it recently. On my seventeenth. I accidentally brushed against someone and bam. I don't want to know all of anyone's memories because its so... so very hard to process it all. It's painful. And the dreams are the worst."
"How many times has this happened?"
"Once. This ability I have is so very intrusive. Who would want to have their entire past laid bare for me to see? All their thoughts and worries and emotions and actions."
"I wouldn't mind sharing with you."
"You wouldn't? I'm touched."
"Of course I wouldn't, I love you. There is nothing to hide. But if it is really such a bad experience for you, I would abstain from physical contact with you, regardless of how tempting it is to kiss you."
"I... I miss physical contact. I never thought I would. You remember when I first came over to this class?"
"Yeah. That was months ago. You were dressed more revealingly."
"But then I started wearing clothes that obscured my skin." Lethe sighed. "I wish I could just... I wish I could just hug you. I feel so lost. I want to just give in. I want to ignore the consequences and just kiss you. My own memories of the pain have long been dulled so what's stopping me? What is wrong with me?"
"Nothing. If you really want to, I don't mind. Just be sure that you want to."
"Damn the consequences." And she embraced Solciro, their lips finding one another's, giving in to the heat of the moment and Lethe shuddered with the impact of his memories. The first thing she felt was his love for her, his intense and incredible love for her. Not just mere desire, but a possesiveness if it could be called such, a caring, a need for her to be safe and happy that was as tender as it was strong. Exactly what she felt for him as well. This was not the painful, jarring experience she had had before and she felt joy and mirth bubbling from deep within her.

"You what?" Styx nearly shrieked.
"Calm down, Stygian. If anything, I should be the one screaming."
"You and Solciro together? That was totally unexpected."
"I guess we really should have seen it from miles away, Lady Kestrel."
"Yeah sure, I wonder what made it so obvious. Was it the fact that we almost never spent time together until now? That we were total strangers until two weeks back? I know, it must have been the fact that we said hello."
"No, m'dear, it was more likely that you two kept sitting together in the presence of hard wood. Must have gotten both of your hormones up and running."
"Touché, Iceman. So then we kissed."
The response from the group was so loud that they were promptly scolded for being too noisy.
"Already?" Acherus whispered.
"You're missing the point, aren't you." Styx said, frowning. "Lethe, did you... absorb his memories?"
"Yeah."
"But..."
"It was.. I don't know how to describe it. It was enjoyable, definitely."
"Does he know?"
"I told him first. He said that he wouldn't mind, so long as I was sure. I wasn't but it was so... euphoric!"
"It wasn't like the other time?"
"Not at all!" Her voice was full of happiness and energy. "The previous time, it was so shocking and screwed my whole sense of self. But this time, it was more compact, it was gentle, it merged with me, not just crashing into me! And now, when I have further contact with Solciro, I'm pretty sure I'l only get the memories that I don't have yet!"
"Hey, calm down, what are you, high on memory?"
"I think she's high on love."
"Heck yes! I feel as if nothing could ruin my life right now! Except, maybe her."
"What's she doing here again?" The last comment was directed at one of their classmates, the one whom Lethe had first touched by accident. She had been accosting Lethe recently, though 'accost' was not really the right word. A better word would have been 'begging'. Lethe moved towards her before she got within earshot of the rest of the group.
"Begone."
"Please, stop doing this to me!" The girl's words were clearly desperate and full of pleading. Lethe looked away.
"I have no idea what you are talking about."
"You're tormenting me! In my dreams, every night, you torture me! Stop it, I beg you!"
"Go away."
"Please stop it! I can hardly take it anymore, I feel as if I am going mad!"
"Maybe you are. Don't bother me."
"I'll do anything! Just stop doing this to me! I don't even dare to sleep anymore, you bitch! Why are you even doing this to me?"
"Go. Away." Lethe coldly brushed her aside and walked back to the group.
"She looked rather desperate. What did she want?" Cocytus asked.
"She wants me to stop torturing her dreams."
They stared at her in disbelief.
"Why? Why do you do it to her?"
"You tortured her?"
"How in the Archon's name did you even do that?"
"Oh shut up! My life isn't on trial here! I thought you guys of all people wouldn't judge!" She stomped off angrily.
"Oh dear." Kestrel muttered. "I'll go calm her down."

"Greetings, my dear."
"My dear? Since when did you call me 'my dear'?"
The figure shrugged.
"We're pretty much the same. I figured it'd be like talking to myself."
"You call yourself 'my dear'?"
"Only when that 'myself' is a separate entity. Also known as you. Oh and congratulations, by the way."
"What?"
"Congratulations on getting a boyfriend who isn't yourself."
"You mean we've been together before?"
"In past times, yes, where you were so very lonely and I was the only one who understood you. Also when the positions were swapped and you were nothing but a voice in my head."
Lethe was disconcerted by the idea that she had existed in various forms before along with this mysterious person who seemed a part of herself.
"Yeah, it's kinda hard to absorb. Just relax, no need to bother about it for now."
"But, what causes all this?"
"Sorry, but I cannot tell you. Changing topic. Let's go torture her again."
"I don't know, its starting to be boring. And..."
"Is your conscience bothering you?"
"Since you put it so bluntly, yes. My conscience is, in fact, having a great deal of a struggle coping with the fact that I have willfully and willingly tortured another person in her sleep over the past few weeks. What do you think?" Lethe spat out the last word with barely controlled venom and rage.
He remained impassive, unimpressed by her anger. "You enjoyed it."
"I may enjoy a lot of things, but the consequences are not usually so enjoyable. Why did you even show me how to do that?" Lethe shouted at him. "Why? Answer me, damn you!"
"You had to learn." He looked around the dark void of her dream suddenly and gave a sigh. "Time's up, sadly. I wish I could explain. We've had only a little time tonight. Well, got to end this the same way. Once again, sorry about this. See-" The edges of his lips quirked up with the pun. "-you tomorrow night. He took off his sunglasses and lunged at Lethe.
She woke up in a cold sweat. It never got easier. Knowing what to expect just made it worse. As before, she had screamed, though the lack of people waking up indicated to her that the scream was in her dream. She turned over and tried to sleep. But as she turned, she caught a glimpse of herself in her bedside mirror. Her eyes were rimmed with teeth. This time, she screamed and truly woke up.