Twonder (Completed)

Chapter 4: Hello Again

Nathan walked into the prison yard a day after Cleo's shooting and sized everybody up. He didn't have any real friends in here despite the fact that he'd been in this facility for over ten years, but conversely his enemies were numbered in the hundreds. Being a prized hitman who traveled at will and got the job done without fail was both a commodity and a condemnation. He was a man who didn't need camaraderie or even associates, they could've put him in the hole indefinitely and the man still would've emerged in the afterworld with a sane mind. Solitude didn't bother him one bit, but right now all of that was being thrown out the window.

" Ima need a sick day." Nathan sidled up next to a C.O and said the words with blatant purpose; he didn't give a fuck who saw. Sure enough he saw a couple inmates mean mugging him for talking to the C.O, and in response he threw looks right back that said ' come fuck with me'. Of course no one made a move, no man was willing to play with his life like that.

" How soon?"

" It's going down today. Tonight to be exact." Nathan put his hands together in front of his chest and cracked his knuckles slowly. He looked at the bright sky above and pictured seeing Cleo under a morning sky.

One of those mornings where the sunrise blended orange, pink, and purple all at once. He could see the light reflecting off her high cheekbones and the curls of her hair splayed out over his chest as she slept on him. He would run a hand through that beautiful hair and her eyelashes would flutter innocently as she awoke from her slumber. Her lids would open and her hazel eyes would meet his grey ones in simple sincerity and love. She would be so beautiful, even first thing in the morning. And at the sight of her he would be able to do nothing but pull her close and part those beautiful petal lips of her, kissing her like the real woman she was and always would be.

" Tough order." The C.O wasn't wholly convinced he should fulfill the request just yet.

" When ya shift end? At 1? Check ya account, I already wired it."

" You remembered my account from last time?" The officer was continually shocked and appalled by Nathan's repeated cunning and persuasion, seemed his word was always bond.

" I'm a elephant in mind, remember that." Nathan winked at the C.O briefly before turning and walking up to the meanest looking motherfucker he could find. He looked the man up and down and smiled, he would definitely do.

"Cleo?" Nathan's gaze was partly hampered by the darkness in the hospital room. He was dressed in some ill fitting off brand jeans and a faded POLO shirt, but nonetheless he was here in the flesh. It'd cost him a pretty penny in order for this little visit to be orchestrated, and he was on a time constraint for sure, but all the work and money was worth the pay off.

Cleo had been put in a coma the previous day following surgery and now it was really only a waiting game as to when she would come to. Her left shoulder had been shattered, and was now fitted with a metal plate and pins to save the arm. The second bullet had passed clear through the left side of her abdomen and was easily patched up, and adding to the good news was the fact that the third bullet fired had missed her entirely. Cleopatra Jordan was a lucky woman and she didn't even know it.

" Cleopatra baby, it's Nathan." Nathan's heart and step faltered slightly at the multitude of tubes and wires connected to the beautiful woman he'd always associated with strength. In his eyes she was immortal; a beautiful creature whose composition and powers were classified under a benevolent unknown.

Cleo was currently in a dreamlike state and Nathan's voice sounded like a cruel hallucination. Even though she wished for Kaline she knew his presence was written all over the hours she'd been lost to both herself and the world around her, but Nathan was the one she craved by her bedside. She wanted his strong hand brushing the hair away from her face, his sure-footed words whispering hopes and allowances in her favor, while she took his essence in deep breaths through wide-open nostrils. Through all her loopy thoughts and incoherent wants, she was well aware of the fact that she needed Nathan above anyone or anything else.

" I'm sorry." Nathan was almost positive this whole ordeal was indirectly because of him and the profession he continued to hold. He rued the day he'd let himself show an ounce of affection for the woman that lay before him, because now it was involving pain on her behalf.

Nathan pulled a chair close to Cleo's bed and sat down. He wanted to cry for his part in this horrible situation but the guard's frame illuminated outside the hospital door was enough incentive for him to suppress the real gritty emotions bubbling up inside of him. Nathan ran a hand through his own wavy hair in regret before bringing it down to Cleo's forehead; he brushed her curls backwards and watched as her eyelashes fluttered tentatively. He held his breath cautiously and watched as her beautifully green flecked eyes opened and connected with his own grey ones. He had to fight back tears forreal now.

" Na-" Cleo started to say his name but the words were stopped by the incredible pain she felt. Her faced contorted in agony and her irises disappeared from view again, she was fighting both the drugs and the pain just to get a glimpse of the mirage that was Nathan, once again.

" Shh. I'm here Cleo, just open your eyes one more time for me pretty girl." Cleo did as she was told and stared into Nathan's eyes; as a result tears began to blur her vision. She was so happy that he was here, but wait, this man was an incarcerated man, how could this be?

" All questions will be answered in due time Cleo, you just need to rest now."

Nathan had actively read the question straight from her eyes and answered it as best he could at the moment.

Tap, tap

The light rap at the door signaled Nathan's time with Cleo was unfortunately coming to an end. For a moment Nathan heard Denzel Washington's voice in his head menacingly say, ' I wish- you had -more time', as he had said in one of Nathan's favorite movies Man on Fire. The words were taunting him and he accepted the voice in his head as added punishment for the repercussions of the choices he had made.

" I have to go baby girl." Nathan saw the unrequited reproach and sadness in her eyes; she didn't want him to leave anymore than he wanted to leave her. He bent down and kissed her cheek and forehead with blatant tenderness mixed with care. He'd only bypassed the petal lips in respect to both his son and himself, especially because he'd finally come to the conclusion that staying away from Cleopatra Jordan was  best for everyone involved.

" You ain't coming back either." Cleo's words were strained but sure; she recognized the look in his eye as a resignation from her as if he'd written it clearly in the air with a ballpoint pen. Nathan wanted to turn around and deny her words, he wanted to lie to her and say that she was dead wrong, but his intrigue and genuine care for the girl prevented him from sugarcoating anything. Instead Nathan simply walked out of the room without looking back, he would leave both of their minds to create his final words to her.