𝕮𝖔𝖇𝖎𝖊 𝕾𝖒𝖚𝖑𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖘 𝕴𝖒𝖆𝖌𝖎𝖓𝖊𝖘

Poisoned Arrow | D.P.

[Angst]
Inspired by Arch Enemy's 'Poisoned Arrow'

The apartment was silent, too silent, and it unnerved you. It was the kind of silence that follows a storm, thick and suffocating, like the calm after a tornado has ripped through, leaving nothing but broken fragments in its wake. The echo of the last argument still lingered in the air, an ugly reminder of how far things had fallen.

Dex was leaning against the wall, arms crossed tightly over her chest. She looked down, her gaze fixed somewhere on the floor as though it held answers she hadn't been able to find in you. You wanted to reach out to her, to break the space between you, but the weight of everything unspoken held you back.

Every word you'd exchanged over the past few weeks had felt like a poisoned arrow, each one landing with brutal accuracy, tearing you both apart, piece by piece. It wasn't supposed to be like this. You'd fallen in love with Dex because she was strong, passionate, fierce in a way that drew you in, like a moth to a flame. And you knew, deep down, that she loved you just as much, or at least she had. But somewhere along the way, you'd lost each other.

She raised her head, and her eyes met yours. There was a sadness there, a deep, hollow ache that mirrored your own. "Is this... is this even worth fighting for?" she asked, her voice so soft it was almost lost in the silence.

The question hung between you, heavy and unforgiving. It was the kind of question that didn't have an easy answer, and you hated her for asking it because it forced you to confront the truth you'd been avoiding. There was a part of you that wanted to say yes, to tell her that you'd fight until your last breath to make this work. But there was another part of you, a darker, colder part, that knew you were both already too broken to put back together.

"Or even... dying for?" she whispered, as though the words were too painful to say out loud. You flinched, feeling the weight of those words settle over you, pressing down on your chest, making it hard to breathe. This was Dex. The woman you thought you'd spend the rest of your life with, the woman you'd once believed would be there to catch you when everything else fell apart. And now here you were, standing on the edge of losing her, unsure if there was anything left to hold onto.

You took a shaky breath, trying to steady yourself, but the words caught in your throat. "I... I don't know," you admitted, hating yourself for the weakness in your voice. "I don't know if we can keep going like this."

Dex's jaw tightened, her fists clenched at her sides. She looked away, blinking rapidly, and you knew she was fighting back tears. Dex never cried. She was the strong one, the one who kept it together when things got tough. Seeing her like this, so vulnerable and raw, made your heart ache in a way you hadn't felt in a long time.

"Maybe... maybe we're just lying to ourselves," she said, her voice barely more than a whisper. "Maybe we've been lying for a long time."

You wanted to deny it, to tell her that it wasn't true, but deep down, you knew she was right. You'd both been holding on to something that had been slipping through your fingers for months, refusing to let go, even as it slowly tore you apart. Every argument, every angry word, had chipped away at the love you once shared, until all that was left were jagged, painful edges.

Dex's gaze drifted to the window, her eyes distant, as though she was already somewhere else, somewhere far away from the pain of this moment. "I loved you," she said, the words almost breaking her. "I still do... but it's different now. It doesn't feel the same."

Her words hit you like a punch to the gut, stealing the air from your lungs. She still loved you, but it wasn't enough. It wasn't the kind of love that made you want to stay, to keep fighting, even when everything felt hopeless. It was the kind of love that felt hollow, like an empty echo of something that had once been beautiful, but had since faded into shadows.

You opened your mouth to say something, anything that might make this right, but the words failed you. There was nothing left to say that hadn't already been said, no promises you could make that you hadn't already broken. All that was left was the silence, thick and suffocating, wrapping around you both like a shroud.

Dex looked at you then, really looked at you, and you saw the resignation in her eyes. She knew, just as you did, that this was the end. There was no going back from this, no fixing the cracks that had splintered your relationship beyond repair.

She took a step toward you, her movements slow and hesitant, as though she was afraid that any sudden motion would shatter the fragile peace between you. When she reached you, she lifted a hand, brushing her fingers gently across your cheek, wiping away a tear you hadn't realized was there. Her touch was warm, comforting, and for a moment, you allowed yourself to believe that maybe, just maybe, you could hold on a little longer.

But even as her hand rested against your skin, you could feel the distance between you, an invisible chasm that no amount of love could bridge. She was here, but she was already gone, slipping through your fingers like sand.

"I don't want to hate you," she whispered, her voice trembling. "I don't want to look back on this and feel nothing but regret."

The words pierced through you, each one landing with brutal accuracy, like another poisoned arrow burying itself deep within your heart. You wanted to promise her that you'd both remember the good times, that you'd hold on to the memories of laughter and love, but you knew it was a lie. The pain was too fresh, too raw. Every moment you'd shared was now tinged with bitterness, and you couldn't see past it.

Dex pulled her hand away, her touch lingering on your skin, and you felt the loss acutely. She took a step back, putting more distance between you, and you realized that this was it. This was the moment you'd been dreading, the moment when everything you'd built together would finally crumble.

"I guess this is it, then," you said, your voice barely more than a whisper. It felt surreal, standing here in the place that had once been your sanctuary, your home, and knowing that it would never feel the same again.

She nodded, her eyes glassy with unshed tears. "Yeah... I guess it is."

You wanted to reach out to her, to hold her one last time, to feel her arms around you and pretend, if only for a moment, that everything was okay. But you knew that it would only make things harder. You had to let her go, even if it felt like tearing a piece of yourself away.

Dex turned and walked to the door, her footsteps heavy, each one echoing in the silence. She paused, her hand resting on the doorknob, and for a moment, you thought she might turn back, that she might give you one last chance to make things right. But she didn't. She only stood there, her shoulders slumped, her head bowed, and then she opened the door and stepped out into the hallway, leaving you alone in the empty apartment.

You listened to the sound of her footsteps fading away, each one another poisoned arrow buried in your heart, until there was nothing left but silence. The realization hit you like a tidal wave, washing over you, drowning you in grief and regret. Dex was gone, and she wasn't coming back.

You sank to the floor, your hands covering your face as the first sob broke free, raw and ugly, tearing through you with a force that left you breathless. All of the pain, all of the anger and sadness that you'd been holding back, came crashing down, and there was nothing you could do to stop it.

You'd fought for this relationship, clung to it with everything you had, but in the end, it hadn't been enough. All of the love you'd shared, all of the promises you'd made, had been reduced to ash. And now, as you sat alone in the silence, you were left with nothing but the echoes of what could have been.

You thought about Dex's question, her final words lingering in your mind, haunting you. Is it worth fighting for? Or even dying for? You'd told yourself it was, that love was worth any sacrifice, any struggle. But in the end, you'd been wrong. Love wasn't enough to keep you together. Love couldn't heal the wounds you'd inflicted on each other, or erase the memories of every harsh word and cold silence.

And so, as you sat there, alone and broken, you realized that the feeling was gone, buried beneath the weight of everything you'd lost. The love that had once burned so brightly had faded, leaving only darkness in its place.

<3