Rupture // h.s au

14. "We have men down."

Autumn

The blue eyed man from earlier sat where Harry previously was, flipping through some sort of book to read, while Raine sat by the end of my bed, her legs trembling, causing the whole bed to stir. At first, I thought I could handle it, let it go, because the poor girl must have been nervous, but come on, how many continuous hours of shaking could someone take?

" Mate," I exclaimed, laying a hand to her shoulder to ease her down. Her eyes widened, in fear, I supposed, as she retrieved backwards.

" I'm not going to hurt you." I assured her, releasing a frustrated sigh.

" Why not though?" She questioned, and I couldn't deny the relief that coursed through me at the fact that she believed me. I moved my eyes from her to the blue eyed man –Tomlinson, I believed Harry called him- to affirm that he was still lost in his book to pay attention to our secretive conversation.

" I'll tell you a secret, okay?" She nodded, scooting slightly closer to me.

" I kind of like you, kid." I shrugged nonchalantly, offering a small smile.

" You're Autumn Griffin, you don't like anybody." She whispered, her tone matching my own. I couldn't help but laugh at the truth behind her statement, shaking my head to myself.

" See? You should feel special then."

" I do." She nodded, her chest straightening with the sudden rush of pride, offered by my simple statement.

" You're going to go far, kid, I have a feeling."

" Like you?" Her young face lit up with hope, as if I, was a dream of hers, an achievement that all young people aimed to reach. A pang of sadness coursed through me, as I pleaded for her to escape the destiny awaiting me.

" Please no. Don't ever become anything like me, kid. You're better than that." Her eyebrows furrowed, her lips pulling together, as she opened her mouth, before closing it again.

" But you're a legend, everyone will remember you."

" They'll remember me as the one who destroyed their family, took away everything they've ever loved, leaving them with eternal grief. They'll remember me, but they'll wish they didn't, they'll wish they never met me. What kind of memory is that, Raine?"

" But you do this for your own people, you keep them safe."

" No one is ever safe from me. I am a curse, a sinking ship, and I take it all with me, because I want to go with a bang."

" You make it sound like you're the worst thing to become."

" I am."

" Then why are you the way you are?" The question caught me completely off guard, and I could have sworn I saw the smallest of all smirks forming onto Tomlinson's lips.

" I... would it be completely unbelievable if I told you that I don't remember anymore?"

" Do you want to be the way you are?" I didn't.

" It's easier."

" Then why can't I become that, if it's as easy as you make it seem?"

" Because easy isn't always right."

" Then why do you do easy, if you know it's wrong?"

" Jesus Christ, Raine, you're stubborn." I rubbed my temples in exasperation, receiving a mere shrug from her.

" I'm just trying to understand." She offered, as I shook my head at her undying curiosity.

" Well, there's not much more I can tell you, and this whole conversation is making me hungry, so, how about we go find something to eat?"

" And how exactly do you plan on doing that with those on?" She pointed at the handcuffs attaching me to the bed, and my despise towards Styles was renewed all over again.

" Son of a bitch." I hissed under my breath, rolling my eyes in irritation. Tomlinson's laughter filled the air, as he rose from his seat, walking towards the cupboards lining the walls.

" Anything humorous about this?" He shook his head, continuing to laugh, which of course, absolutely enraged me, but I couldn't show him that he had gotten under my skin. Feeling, no matter what that feeling might have been, always led to weakness.

" I just knew he couldn't wait to get you cuffed to his bed." I thought I heard him say, before retrieving some chips, and throwing them to Raine. She put them to her nose, all her features twisting with disgust, before she put them to my own nose. They smelled of rotting cheese, and I doubted their validity to be edible.

" Yeah, I'm good." I announced.

" Yeah, not so hungry after all." Raine replied, throwing the chips back at Tomlinson, who shrugged, before devouring them in half a minute. Before he could properly swallow them, shouts came from outside the door, and I recognized one in particular.

" Louis, come to the clinic, we have men down!" That was Harry. His voice was strained, devastated even, and again, something unfamiliar aroused within me, reminding me of my decaying humanity. Tomlinson's – or, Louis', as Harry now called him- eyes widened, before he stared between me and the door. Raine stood from her seat on the bed, her eyes already drowning in tears, as her petite figure trembled with the horrid thoughts of her father being hurt.

" Hey, kid," I called, immediately, redirecting her attention towards me.

" Come here, and let me tell you a story, so that Tomlinson can go help your dad out, alright?" I offered, nodding encouragingly at Louis, who cursed under his breath, running out of the room, and closing the door behind him. Raine shakily sat herself down where she once had been, but her spirits had fallen, her light had dimmed, and I found myself remembering the times when I was as little as she was now, so innocent and unknowing of the world's true colors, deceived by the thought of being out of harm's way, until the day had come, when man turned into inhuman monster, who killed, slaughtered, and tortured, to satisfy his most basic needs. The day I lost all I ever was, all I ever stood for, and was raised upon. The day I lost myself to the eyes that hungrily stared at me, promising me that I was next, that there was no escape, and it was only a matter of time. A tender touch, from which I flinched away, retrieved me from the dreadful memory lane which I was imprisoned in.

" Are you okay?" The little girl, who was a despicable image, of what I could have been, if I wasn't taunted by the bloody image of what the world had come to, stared worriedly at me, and I found myself wanting to murder all the innocence inside her, yell and scream, for her to not be so caring and pure, to be evil, to be ruthless, or else, they'd destroy her, as they had me. Yet, I wanted to beg her, to not lose herself, because they weren't worth it, because she couldn't allow them another win. In the midst of that inner struggle storming within me, the door was opened, after hearing a few gunshots, and out, ran Raine.

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A/N: let me know what you think

ily x