"As soon as the bus stops, get up as fast as you can and run." He murmured, barely audible. She nodded, and stole a glance at the four men. That's when she noticed something new. She had understood before why he had wanted to lead them away from the loft, and why he wanted to lose them. But she hadn't understood his urgency. Now she did. Each had a gun, concealed by their jackets, strapped to their hips. She began to quiver and played with her necklace hesitantly. She let her hair fall in front of her face and tried to hide her wide eyes, and trembling lip. She felt him tense beside her. The bus began to lurch to a stop, but she was already standing and rushing to the door. He was hot on her heels. As soon as the doors opened, she jumped onto the sidewalk and ran. She turned down backstreets and alleys and finally she barreled into a small bookstore. She dared a glance behind her and saw that he wasn't behind her. She dodged behind some shelves and stopped to catch her breath. Shit. Where had he gone? She tumbled down onto the floor and pressed her hand to her forehead. What was she going to do? She felt herself begin to hyperventilate. She needed to calm down. She blindly reached for a book and ripped it off the shelf. She opened it clumsily and began reading. The book trembled in her hands and she could barely turn the pages. She wasn't really reading whatever book she had grabbed. Thoughts raced through her mind and she couldn't contain them. What if they found her? What if they found him? What if they killed her? Or him? She gasped loudly and tears rushed out of her eyes. She was trembling all over, uncontrollably. The book fell out of her hands and she pressed her back against the shelf harder to stop her trembling. She choked down her sobs and leaned her head back against the shelf. She would find him. She always did.
But what if he was dead by now? The thought made her shake violently and she gasped again. She clamped a hand over her mouth and felt sobs form in her chest. She pushed them down deep into her gut and tried to forget they were there. She closed her eyes tightly and took deep breaths. She desperately reached around with her free hand for the book. He was fine. He wouldn't let anything happen, he was stronger than that. She tried to calm herself down, but it was such a real possibility. She imagined V, slumped against that walk, but it wasn't V. It was him. She almost cried out when she was roughly jerked into a dark corner. Her fingers found the book and she gripped it tightly. Now she had a weapon.
She was about to yell, when the person flipped her around.
"Suga!" She gasped. He nodded and signaled for her to be quiet. She nodded in relief and let him pull her behind a pile of books.
"I think we lost them." He sighed in relief and leaned against a wall. She nodded shakily and crawled into his lap. She scolded herself for getting so upset, she knew he could handle himself. Just the thought of losing him scared her so much. But maybe she was already losing him.
"It's alright now." He whispered, breaking her from her thoughts, and cupped her face in his hands. She nodded slowly and tried to steady herself.
"Where'd you go?" She mumbled.
"I doubled back, so they wouldn't find you." He whispered, leaning his forehead against hers. The weak light of the sunset filtered in through the windows of the shop. They were just shadows. Shadows, hiding from the scorching light. That was their life now. Reduced to ashes and smoke. Just shadows, hiding from the things that hurt. But at least they weren't alone. His nose brushed against hers and his lips slipped across hers. She took a deep shaky breath and gripped his shoulders tightly.
"You're okay now." He promised. She nodded, saying nothing. She felt a prickle of doubt stab at her. Was she really? He was floating away from her. She could feel it. She had to pull him back. She felt her breath begin to quicken as she considered the possibilities.
"Nari!" He whispered firmly. She nodded and tried to slow her breathing. He moved his chin forward to kiss her, but she moved away. It wasn't real. It was only because it was necessary. She could take care of herself too. He grabbed her chin and jerked her face back to his. Tears fell from her eyes. He stared at her coldly and his eyes gradually softened. He wiped away her tears and pressed his lips to hers. He pulled away slowly and looked back at her. She began to nod, but stopped.
"I'll protect you. You don't need to be afraid." His voice shook slightly.
"That's not what I'm afraid of." She sighed.
"I'll. Protect. You." He promised with such certainty, she knew she couldn't argue with him.
He'll protect me.
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(A/N)
yo yo yo
