Leaving Scars ››› n.h. au

[0] Prologue

Prologue 

“It’s like real life Romeo and Juliet, you know?” He looked down at me, his grin lopsided and forced. We were alone, for the first time in a while, and I could almost stand the sight of his bruises, just because it meant I was close enough to see them. His left eye was a little too puffy to be normal, and his lip was rusty red in the places it had split- But he was beautiful, and he was mine, at least for now.

Niall held the small of my back with one large hand, his fingers just barely trembling against my t-shirt. I couldn’t tell if he was cold, or afraid, or just relieved to be holding me again; I couldn’t deny that I was overjoyed to be in his arms. I wished I could stay there forever, but we both knew there were barely any days left for us- It was just that neither of us wanted to admit it.

A small smirk formed from the fake smile as Niall registered my words, and he leaned closer towards me. It was clear he was trying to keep the conversation light- As if that was a thing we could do.

        “But only the one where I’m Leonardo Dicaprio, and I have guns and stuff.” I narrowed my eyes and tried not to smile, watching him snicker, his pink lips stretched in a open mouth of silent laughter. Only when I felt ready to burst did I speak. 

“No, you’re the one from the original, with the tights and a botched haircut.” I said snidely, and then let out a hard laugh as Niall’s face quickly changed, his lips flipping into a fake pout. I moved my hand up to ruffle his hair, pushing it into his eyes and watching him desperately try to fix it.

        “Babeeeee.” I dropped my hands and stared into his eyes. He finally seemed to notice the hint of seriousness I’d let underlie my previous comment, and furrowed his brow. His right hand moved from his hair to cup the back of my neck, his thumb brushing back and forth on my left cheek.

“Yeah, maybe we are like Romeo and Juliet- but I won’t let you die for me.” His words gave me goosebumps. I thought back to the last time we fought together, and how close he had been to death then, just because of where I had been. I shook my head and rested my hands on his muscled chest, making circles against his grey shirt. He watched me do it and pressed his lips to my forehead, keeping them there as he spoke. 

        “I’m with you now, Princess. and you know what that means?” I shook my head again and closed my eyes, letting his words wash a calmness over me.

“Princess, that means I won’t let you die for anyone.”