The Boy Savior - Ekko x Reader | DISCONTINUED

Season 2 - Chaper 24

Worry clenched your insides as your eyes widened . Rei shouldn't have been here... He was supposed to help with the evacuation of the kids and silly you were hoping that he would leave the cities with them... So that, at least, you wouldn't have to worry about his life on top of everything...

Ekko noticed the shift in your mood and his gaze automatically followed yours to see the cause. When he saw Rei, his eyelids flickered. He sighed in his concealed frustration but remained silent as you stood up from the windowsill to leave him behind.

"I have to go..." you said and moved to turn your back on the young firelight, but he gently reached for your wrist to stop you, also standing up from the window.

"Wait," he said quietly and you halted in your movements, preparing yourself mentally in advance. You were sure he was about to get jealous one more time and unfairly call you out for having Rei there. For even choosing to leave Ekko now to talk with him instead. But when you looked at the young firelight, he wasn't angry at all. There weren't any puckers around his nose, nor his brows knotted as they so often did when he was pissed...

"I will find the one who hurt you -, I will find Viktor and make him pay for it," he said in the end and you had to blink in your surprise because those were not the words you were expecting from him now. Your heart weakly fluttered inside your chest as you searched his face.

He was determined under the heavy coat of guilt and sadness, and for a second, you were able to believe him that he wanted to make it all right. That he wanted to make up for leaving you for so long. For not being there when you lost your brother. For Jinx...

For everything.

And even though you felt like there wasn't anything he could have done to make it right, him wanting to at least try felt enough for you for a brief moment. He was there with you now, after all... He said he came back to you from a life that was so perfect...

And despite him wanting to run straight into danger once again for you - which you hated -, you valued the intent... Because you knew that was how Ekko was... He always believed that the first and only way he could help someone important to him was going head first into trouble...

Your eyes traveled to look at his fingers curling around your wrist and for the first time in a long while, hundreds of shared memories flooded your mind. You had to deal with so many things while he was gone, only to witness that damned kiss just before he finally returned, that you almost forgot that there were good times too...

Your heart sadly beat up, as your brows ran to meet each other. Your stupid heart was beating uncomfortably fast by now as you gathered your thoughts, still searching his face.

"Just promise me you won't die, okay? " you asked him quietly. "I don't... I don't need you to try and solve another problem of mine... I never needed that..." you sighed as you kept your eyes pinned onto his hand and you felt your chest tighten around your heart.

"I know," Ekko replied the same sentence he had been repeating so much lately.

"I just don't want to lose you..." you added, almost unconsciously and you hated the shake in your voice. The growing lump in your throat made you swallow once again, in a desperate attempt of trying to remain put together but it was so hard...

You felt stupid - pathetic even - because at that moment, all you longed for was to be back to where you were, barely just a year ago... When everything still felt normal... He might have loved Jinx back then too, but at least you weren't sure about it...

And you hated to feel like it was all on you... That you were the one who had to decide whether you'd forgive him or not... Because you weren't the one who caused this and yet you felt the weight of a responsibility that didn't even exist...

Ekko hesitated for a few seconds, before he carefully pulled you closer, embracing you in a longing hug, and you didn't pull away.

What if this was your last chance to ever see him again? You had no idea what you were marching into soon. All you knew was what you saw with your own two eyes - an army of trained soldiers that seemed oblivious to fear...

No. You definitely hadn't forgiven Ekko yet. But that didn't mean that you didn't love him anymore or that you weren't scared for his life, too...

You sighed as your arms moved to hug him back, letting yourself truly absorb his presence for the first time in so long. And for maybe the last time ever... And this time, you were finally able to shut her - them - out of your mind as your nose funneled with the familiar scent that always calmed you before...

Except, now it made you sad. Sadder than you already were, if that was even possible.

"There's no chance to convince you to stay...?" Ekko asked quietly and you tiredly furrowed your brows for his words.

"Don't even start that..." you grunted weakly against his shoulder for which his hug desperately tightened around you, almost as if he was scared to let go of you...

"I know... I'm sorry... I just... I promise only if you won't die either," he said and you couldn't help but roll your eyes at that, annoyed to notice the tears in your own eyes. You felt the stubborn lump in your throat grow for the strange, sentimental feeling that nested itself into your chest.

Because for a moment, the circumstances made it so hard for you to believe that the past year happened. A light breeze sneaked inside your little room, stroking your hottening cheeks as Ekko's arms wrapped around your back, just like they used to do so many times before... Even the sounds that made their way inside the premise sounded so normal, especially after months of silence...

But there was this ever-present emptiness, eating through your chest to constantly remind you that Neo was dead. Then your eyes fell onto the empty branches of the tree that used to be so lively... And then there were her drawings all along Ekko's clothes too, as a last, painful reminder that nothing would be the same ever again...

"It's a deal then..." you replied blankly, trying to blink away the tears when Ekko finally let go of you -, and you felt... disappointed? You weren't really sure...

You reached to quickly wipe your eyes with the back of your hand and stepped away from the boy.

"I- I really have to go now..." you said as your eyes met his, and for a second, you just stood there, watching each other. There were so many unsaid things hanging in the air, making the silence almost too crushing to bare...

You turned your back on him to walk to your door. Maybe you'd really come back to this conversation one day.

But it was too much for now.

//A/N.: Hey guys!! Sorry it took so long! I'm having a little writer's block plus some major, unplanned renovations are happening in my home at the moment which makes it even harder to write 😭😭 I think it will sadly last for at least 2 weeks but I'll try to post when I can! (Also the next few chapters might contain more errors than usual because I won't be able to use my pc for grammar and spell chech that often :c ) Thank you so much for your patience and so sorry again! //