Blood and Sweaters

Chapter 16

Litost
A state of agony and torment created by the sudden sight of one's own misery

The pink-tinged water flowed down the shower drain as the scalding hot water pelted against Aria's cold body. The frustrated assassin laid punch after punch on the black marble tiles until she successfully shattered the rectangular glass and busted open her knuckles.

All her years of self-control, rage, and hatred were starting to get the better of her. In all her years of being an assassin never had her body ran cold but this wasn't just any mark. These were the marks she had been after her entire life. The reason that she woke up in the morning, her reason to live was solely to destroy the Cabrera family. Now she was just one member away from her goal. But what after that? What was she going to do?

Just then two strong arms wrapped around her, pulling her out of the water.

"DAMN ARIA! YOU'RE BLEEDING!" Ransom screamed turning the water off.

Grabbing a towel, he wrapped it around the girl's body. He picked her up in his arms and walked out of the bathroom. Placing her on the bed he retrieved a first aid box and started cleaning and wrapping up her knuckles.

"Ran, all my life I've chased behind this revenge of mine, and now when I'm knocking on the door of the end, why am I terrified?" Aria cried, her body shaking uncontrollably.

"Dew-" Ransom started but Aria was so lost in her thoughts, in her grief that she could barely hear him.

"I feel like if this ends I'm going to have no reason to live. After my family died, this has been all I've been living for. This revenge. The end of the Cabreras."

Ransom reached out for Aria's hand but she pulled away from him causing him to frown.

"And then there's you. I love you with all of my cold broken heart. But what happens after I kill Marta? And you get your baby brother? Do I lose you too? All my life I've lost the people I love so I closed my heart off to feeling anything."

Tears ran down Aria's face as she took a step closer to Ransom, bringing her hand to caress the long stubble, he had taken her advice seriously. A small sad smile made its way to her face.

"You came along with your smart-ass mouth and irritatingly perfect smirk and your sickeningly sweet ocean blue eyes and the glacier around my heart melted."

Ransom smiled at the girl's words. He encircled her in his arms but for the second time, she pulled away, taking a step back to put some distance between them.

"At first, I hated it but now I can't imagine my life without you. No matter what I do, all I think about is you. Just like how the sun and stars make the sky and the world shine bright, that is how you lighten up my life."

Ransom didn't even realize that he was crying until the brown-eyed girl run her thumbs across his face wiping the wetness away. He opened his mouth to say something but Aria shushed him.

"You want to know what's the worst part. I don't even hate this person I'm becoming. It's like I'm unloading the burden off my shoulders and just being normal with you. Well as normal as you and I can be. I'm amazed when I look at you, not just because of your looks, but because of the fact that everything I've never wanted but always needed is right in front of me. But I want you to know that after you get the baby if you want to leave and live a normal, simple family life I won't stop you. I know what it's like to live without family and I'll never want to do that to you. So just know I'll be okay if you decide to leave."

Aria wrapped her arms around Ransom's torso holding on for dear life. She felt pain shooting through her body from her multiple wounds but at that moment she didn't care. For the physical pain, she felt right now while holding Ransom, was nothing compared to the pain she had felt in her chest, those few weeks when he was away from her. He was the calm in the chaos of her life but she would give all that up for his happiness, and a chance for him to have a family.

"I'm never going to walk out of your life Dewdrop. My family starts with you and the baby will only be an addition to our family. My world starts and ends with you. I'm going nowhere. You're going to have to kick my ass to get me out of your life," Ransom chuckled as he hugged the girl a little tighter.

~~~