ꜱᴛᴜᴄᴋ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴍᴇ- ᴋɪʟʟᴜᴀ x ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ [OLD]

27- 𝘔𝘺 𝘹 𝘛𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵

I sighed, walking back towards Gon and Killua. "Hey, guys!" I smiled nervously. Gon waved back and Killua just nodded his head.

"Where'd you run off to?" Killua smirked.

"Ah, don't worry about that. What were you guys up to while I was gone?" I asked, trying to think about anything other than who my target was. I sat down next to the two and held onto the strap of my bag.

"We were just talking, nothing too interesting." Killua sighed. 

"Hey, where's Quinn?" Gon asked.

I looked around, looking for the kid who usually clung to my side. Much to my surprise, they were nowhere to be found. It was kind of concerning in all honesty. "I dunno. Should we look for them?" I suggested.

"No!" Killua shouted. "I mean...they're probably fine. Besides, we know they're still on the boat, right?" He scoffed, his cheeks a bit pink.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." I chuckled at his sudden outburst.

We had finally gotten on Zevil island, and I felt so incredibly shaky. Thankfully, I was able to go earlier than most of the other examinees, which took off some stress. I ran through the woods, looking for a safe hiding spot until I figured out what to do. It was absolutely nerve-wracking knowing that Killua, my best friend, the one who had enough training to qualify as a professional assassin, was my target. I mean, it's not like I was gonna kill him, but he could easily take me down without even trying.

I sat in a tree and looked at the ground below me. I was half-expecting some random stranger to pop out of a bush, climb the tree, and stab me to death, but luckily for me that didn't happen. I waited for a while, still having no idea of what I should do. "God damn it." I sighed.

"Who's there?" I heard a familiar voice ask. "I have a weapon!" I crawled over to the source over the voice and gazed upon familiar brown eyes.

"Gon!" I smiled. "What're you doin' here? I thought for sure you'd be off with Killua." I giggled.

"Well, I can't find any of our friends so I'm just kinda on my own!" He smiled. "Oh, did you figure out who your target is?"

"Yeah. It's Killua. Don't tell him please!" I pleaded. Gon just nodded. "I have no idea how I'm gonna get him though," I whined.

"I'm not too sure either. I'm sure you can figure it out though!" Gon encouraged. "Well, I gotta go. My target's super strong, so I gotta get trainin'!" He grinned, disappearing from the leaves. I let out a small hum and continued staring at the ground below me. I got down too and walked around for a little bit. I glanced around, looking at the trees surrounding me.

~

I looked around for Killua, but I had no luck finding him. "Killua?" I shouted, hoping that only he would hear it. It was probably a really stupid decision, but it was the only thing I could think of. "Kil?" I heard no response. I let out a loud sigh. I felt someone jump onto my back and I let out a scream.

"Woah, Woah, calm down! It's just me!" Killua chuckled. 

"Why would you do that?" I huffed, pressing my hand against my chest in an attempt to calm my racing heart. 

"You did it to me, ya moron! Now ya know how I feel." He cackled. 

"But I didn't do it to you during one of the most dangerous phases of the exam!" I scoffed. Killua just continued laughing. "You're such a jerk." I giggled. 

"Yeah, Yeah, I know." He smirked. "So why were you looking for me anyway? Did you miss me that badly?"

"You wish" I chuckled. "I just wanted to find some friends before this phase gets too crazy."  I explained.

"Yeah, guess that makes sense. But why'd you look for me specifically?" Killua asked, tilting his head a little bit.

"Not sure." I lied. In actuality, I only looked for him to negotiate a way to get his badge, while he could still pass, but I chickened out. "I just need a big strong ex-Assasin to protect me." I teased, posing dramatically. He chuckled and shook his head.

"You ever figure out who your target is?" Killua asked, motioning for me to follow him. We began to walk.

"Yeah I did..." I said after taking in a deep breath.

"Who?" He inquired. I remained silent, and I just looked at him. "Hello?" Killua smirked, after a while of silence. I just kept staring, my heart pounding in my chest. "Oh don't tell me..." He sighed, after finally realizing. I just nodded. "Okay, that's okay. We can figure something out." He smiled slightly.

"That's the real reason I came to find you. I wanted to negotiate. I'm sorry for lying to you!" I felt tears prick my eyes.

"Hey, don't cry! I get it, you felt a lot pressure." Killua said in attempts to comfort me. I rushed to him and held him in a tight hug. His arms were wrapped around me after a bit of hesitation and he rubbed circles on my back. "It's okay." He whispered.

"Looks like the tables have turned." I chuckled, remembering the previous phase where I hugged him in the hallway.

"You sound so stupid right now." He chuckled. "But I like it."

"Oh shuddup." I smiled. "What I'm thinking is that I could help you take down your target and grab 3 more badges for you. Sound fair?" I offered.

"Only if you want to. Here, take this." Killua let me out of the hug and removed his badge from his shirt. He handed it to me. "I know how you are, so just don't feel guilty about taking my badge. It's not like we could've prevented this." He pat my head.

"Thanks Kil." I smiled, looking at the white pin I held in my hand. I put it in my bag and pat the top of it. "What did I do to deserve a friend like you?"

"People like you shouldn't have to work for basic kindness."