"Rhea, come get me."
The room was dimly lit and crowded with empty boxes of takeaway meals and bottles of several different alcoholic beverages, ranging from cheap beer to expensive red wine. There was an old atmosphere in the air, contrasted by the modern furniture that adorned the room- maybe due to the fact that a window hadn't been opened in that room in months. Art on the walls, art on the coffee tables, and replicas of his accolades in a glass cabinet next to the expensive LED television that hung on the wall, facing the bright white couch that probably cost just as much as the house itself, so white it was clearly visible in the dark room.
Sat on said couch, in a black tank top and jeans and holding his dying phone to his ear, albeit slowly letting go of the equipment, was Damian. Or at least, what was left of him.
He had become a shell of himself- whoever he was now was unrecognizable. His once carefully trimmed beard was now wild and overgrown, like the forgotten grass at the entryway to the house; his hair that once was held in a ponytail or in a bun was loose and draped down his shoulders, grown way past the length he preferred; and his dark circles, once from lack of sleep, leveled up due to his paranoia, exhaustion and maybe even fear.
Things had changed dramatically since the incident that took everything from him. That one faithful day where his guardian angel became his worst demon. The man he cared about the most in his life was gone, and for the first time in his life, Damian couldn't shove his feelings to the side: he had to take them head-on, like he did everyone around him. But unfortunately, Damian found out really quickly that he couldn't fight his psyche using his strength, which ironically showcased his biggest weakness.
Things were so good. Two years of being almost attached to each other, conquering the world together, bringing accolades, glory, success to both parties. Both men are on the same pedestal, at the same height, at the same time. He was over the moon, sharing the spotlight and the glory with the one he loved the most.
But greed, envy... are deadly sins, and become a deadly cocktail when mixed. And Finn was drunk off of it. He always wanted more, he wanted to be above all. Having the equal ground to Damian filled him with blinding rage: sharing space with another means less space for him, and Finn liked it spacious and big. There was not a doubt that Finn loved him, but he loved himself so much more. And Damian... Damian learnt that loving oneself and loving Finn was his preferred cocktail.
And then the catalyst happened. Damian found success on his own. And due to the nature of his success, Damian had to do it alone. There was no room for Finn, unless they went against one another. Damian didn't want that, Damian would never want to resort to that. Finn was special, Finn was one of a kind. Finn was his angel. Damian would rather fight the world and burn the ashes than hurt his beloved. So he did what he could: he kept Finn in the loop, taking him with him so Finn could feel present, feel seen and heard. Damian didn't share the success with Finn, but he wanted Finn with him for his journey.
But Finn had a different mindset. Damian's newly acquired success was a failure to Finn's eyes: twice he had tried to reach those heights, and twice he failed. Damian however was conquering. And Finn hated to see it, Finn hated to see the man he loved become better than him, superior than him, and worst of all, Finn hated feeling like the sidekick. Finn soon realized he had no room in his heart to fit another emotion: the love he felt was morphing, the muscle turning pitch black as his adoration for his beloved turned into raging hatred and loud envy, and Finn couldn't control it.
But above all, Finn was hurt. Badly. In pain. Alone in his home, Finn would cry and scream, in the pitch darkness. How did such a beautiful pair become so ugly? How did it happen so fast?
Finn blamed Damian. He'd always blame Damian. Because Damian had the nerve to accomplish what Finn couldn't.
That mix of hate, envy, hurt... it awakened something within Finn that no one had seen before, not even Damian. Damian knew there was something within Finn- he knew that all too well,- but Finn kept it at bay, controlled and encaged. But the locks were broken beyond repair, the bonds were severed, and the uncontrollable personification of his deepest feelings came out that fateful night.
