RUN BOY RUN- reader x Five Hargreeves

Part Thirty-Nine

As Kitty ventured deeper into the alleyway, my heart plummeted, sinking further with each step she took. The narrow passage seemed to swallow her whole, its grimy walls closing in like the jaws of a beast. Just as she was about to disappear from view, Charlie emerged from around the corner, his face a mask of confusion and urgency. "Dottie?" he called out, his voice echoing off the brick walls. His eyes darted around until they found me perched above. "What in heaven's name are you doing on the roof?" I crouched lower, the pebbled up concrete digging into my palms. "Nothing that concerns you," I replied, my tone nonchalant despite the growing unease in my gut. "Now, is there a particular reason you two have decided to grace this delightful alley with your presence?" Kitty's voice trembled as she spoke, fear weaving through her words like a poisonous vine. "Yes, we do have a reason. Would you mind terribly coming down here? We can't be certain who might be listening." I rolled my eyes, the gesture lost in the shadows cast by the overhanging eaves. "Don't be so dramatic, Kitty. I'm sure it's perfectly fine. Just spit it out already." Charlie, ever the impatient one, barked out the words that would shatter our world: "The theater got raided last night."

My eyes widened to saucers, and without a second thought, I leaped from the roof. The wind whistled past my ears as I fell, my body instinctively preparing for the impact. It was a trick our father had taught us long ago, one of the few useful things he'd ever done. I landed with catlike grace, my knees bending to absorb the shock.Dusting myself off, I stood to face them. "What exactly do you mean by 'raided'?" I demanded, my voice barely above a whisper. Charlie scoffed, a sound filled with bitterness and rage. Without another word, he turned on his heel and stalked away, leaving Kitty and me in his wake. Kitty watched him go, her eyes filled with a mixture of concern and resignation. I sighed, exasperation coloring my tone. "Come on then, I suppose you'll have to show me." It was only then, as Kitty stepped into a shaft of sunlight filtering through the alley, that I truly saw her. The sight before me was heart-wrenching: eyes rimmed with red, cheeks puffy and tear-stained, hair a tangled mess that spoke of a night filled with terror and chaos.

"Kitty," I breathed, reaching out to touch her arm. "Did they... did you get caught?" She nodded, a barely perceptible movement. "Charlie bailed me out," she murmured, her voice hoarse. "We should go. You know how Charlie gets when he's angry." With that, she turned and began making her way down the alley. I followed, maintaining a respectful distance, my mind racing with possibilities, each more horrifying than the last. Charlie and Kitty were waiting for us at the entrance to the theater, our home away from home. The place that had sheltered us, nurtured our dreams, and given us a family when our own had failed us. Charlie's face was a storm of emotions as he stepped aside to let me pass. "It's quite a mess in there," he warned, his voice uncharacteristically gentle. "And the smell... just be careful, alright?"

I nodded, steeling myself for what lay beyond those familiar doors. But nothing could have prepared me for the devastation that awaited. The theater, once a palace of dreams and laughter, had been transformed into a nightmare. Chairs lay strewn about, ripped from their moorings as if by some monstrous force. The grand curtains, which had framed countless performances, hung in tatters, their edges blackened and curling from the flames that had licked at them. But the most horrifying sight of all was the bodies. Our boys, our family, scattered like broken dolls across the floor. The air was thick with the acrid stench of ash and the sickly-sweet odor of decomposition. It was the smell of dreams turned to ash, of hope extinguished as cruelly as a candle flame.

Tears stung my eyes, blurring the hellish scene before me. "Where is everyone else?" I choked out, unable to tear my gaze from the carnage. Kitty's voice was barely audible, a whisper that seemed to come from miles away. "They came at night, while we were sleeping. Most managed to escape to the secondary location you and Ace built." "Those who got away, that is," Charlie added, his gaze fixed on the lifeless forms that had once been our friends, our brothers-in-arms. "Some were arrested. Or worse." As my eyes roamed the devastated theater, something caught my attention. There, center stage, was a hole, as if someone had punched through the very heart of our sanctuary. Drawn by some inexplicable force, I made my way towards it, my footsteps echoing in the eerie silence. Peering into the darkness, I spotted a flash of white. An envelope, pristine amidst the destruction. With trembling fingers, I reached down to retrieve it.

"What is that?" Charlie asked, his voice tight with suspicion. I didn't answer immediately, too focused on tearing open the envelope and unfolding the letter within. As I read, fury bloomed in my chest, a fire that threatened to consume me whole. Turning to Kitty and Charlie, I struggled to keep my voice steady. "I'm sorry, but this... this is important. I have to go." Without waiting for a response, I bolted from the theater, my feet carrying me swiftly through the streets. My destination was clear: Elliot's apartment. The only place I felt truly safe anymore. "Five! Five! Five!" I shouted as I burst through the door, my voice echoing off the walls. He appeared around the corner just as I reached the living room, concern etched into every line of his face. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hey, what's wrong?" It wasn't until that moment that I realized tears were streaming down my face, hot and angry. "Dad," I choked out, the word tasting like ash in my mouth. "He went into the theater. He killed them, Five! He killed y friends, and then he left this. This stupid fucking invite to a goddamn dinner!" Five's expression hardened as he took the invitation from my trembling hands. Without a word, he crossed the room and retrieved a similar envelope from a drawer. As he held them side by side, his face darkened like a thundercloud. "That son of a bitch," he growled, his voice low and dangerous. "Do we go?" I ask, my voice timidly shaking. "Do we have a choice?"