Freak ~Juuzou x Reader AU~

Chapter 8: Believe

Hope.

There's hope. Even if it is a small, little shrivel, it is there. Like the breathing embers after they've been stomped on. It's still there. It's still alive.

Rui. They think – they believe – she is still alive. Her and those other kids. Juuzou is convinced they're alive, out there, somewhere. He believes that at this very moment, she is out there, scared, but alive.

And that's the little thread of hope I need.

That's the piece of hope I needed, and now it's here. Dangled down in front of me, shimmering like gold in the dark. And I reach up and I grab it and I hold onto it. I white-knuckle that hope and I don't let go.

Rui is out there. She is alive. And she will be brought home. I might not know when, but I know she will be. Juuzou's confidence tells me so.

Then my heart sinks.

Rui isn't the only kid that's been taken. From what I've learned, there are three other kids – two boys and another little girl. All young. All relatively close to Rui's age. All coming home to – as I've gathered – no mothers.

Those other kids...their moms are dead. Two women, gone. Lives snuffed out. Just like that. In the blink of an eye. A twinge pulls at my chest.

I can't think about that. I shouldn't think about that.

Those kids, despite how horrible as it may sound, I can't think about them. What'll happen to them after they're rescued, it's a depressing thought. They might be saved, but to what homes will they return to? I don't know, and that's the sad part.

I inhale, taking a deep breath as I center myself.

Breathe.

Concentrate.

Think positive thoughts.

That's what I keep telling myself. Over and over, like my own little mantra, but even so, my heart still beats vigorously. This twinge still tugs at me, nudging me, almost as if it's trying to tell me something. And it is. Deep down, I know it is. It tells me to restrain some of my hope. To try to lower my expectations. That there is no guarantee.

And I know there are none. I've known from the start. Still, I want so badly to believe in this – in them. I want to believe in Abara and Juuzou. I want that more than anything.

So, I try to ignore the nagging in my chest. I try to look forward. I try to believe.

I want to believe.

**Ello lovelies! A shorter (filler) chapter today. Honestly, it's been a couple of days since I've last typed (I was busy reading One by One by Ruth Ware – which I finished – and it was amazing) so that's where I've been. So, I apologize for this lacking chapter. Hopefully, the next will be better. In good news, at the time of typing this (02/25/2022), I finally got my new phone and my late birthday present from my sister. She got me some new keys for my keyboard. They're this pretty lilac. I love them. But yeah. Here's to hoping the next chapter won't suck lol. Thank you so, so much for everything! Wuv yous!! <3**

-Noel Ross