The Smell Of Spray Paint

Thirteen.

I only came to a halt when I had made it out of the building. I put my hands on my knees and panted hard, I wasn't going anywhere else until I saw Gilbert safe.

I looked around; I was incredibly relieved to be out of there. I looked around the daylight and my eyes landed on something I had almost forgotten about.

Gilbert's dark painting, it was still there and if I learned anything from his interactions with Judas today, Judas being able to see this painting from his room wasn't a coincidence.

I felt energy slowly come back to me and I stood up. I started to move closer to the painting on the wall but was interrupted with a crash and a bang behind me.

"Fucking fuck!" I knew who this was.

I gave a sigh of relief as Gilbert came out of the building loudly, still clutching the bloodiest part of his arm.

I rushed over to him, "Are you okay?"

"Huh?" He noticed me and stood up a little straighter, "Mattie... You waited for me."

I blushed a little but only nodded, "Yeah... What happened in there? What about your chest?"

"I am fine." He dropped his hand that was slick with blood, "It was not a deep scratch... Hurts like fucking hell though... You are bleeding too."

"Eh?" I felt my collar bone where Judas' knife had scathed me when I first lashed out at him, "It doesn't hurt... What about Judas?" I didn't want to think about him, but right now we were still in danger of him chasing us.

Gilbert smiled a little, "I was pretty awesome and took him out."

My eyes widened, "He's dead?!

"What?! No! He is unconscious. Will be for a while." He looked down and noticed something, "You are still holding that knife."

I looked down at my hand, he was right, "Oh..." I opened my fingers and let it clatter to the ground.

Gilbert watched it fall before looking at my face again, picking at one of his lip piercings in thought.

"Were you really going to kill him?" He asked calmly, like if I had done he'd be totally cool with it, which he had already proved was a total lie.

I was going to say no, I couldn't kill anyone; I didn't have it in me! But then I remembered my rage the adamant feeling that I was going to do it. I wasn't myself but I was still... Me. I made the decision to at least threaten his life.

I shrugged, "I don't know... I don't wanna think about it. I almost dropped the knife and listened to you but at the same time, I almost brought it down on him. Why didn't you stop me?"

"I tried." Gilbert said, referencing him trying to talk me out of it.

"Not like that!" I leaned against a wall, I had so many questions to ask him, so much to say but I could wait just a little longer for that, "You could get me off him; you proved it when he had the glass... So why didn't you do it when I had the knife?"

"Well, Mattie," He slung his arm around my shoulders, he was being so annoyingly cheerful for a guy who had been boiling fury a few minutes ago, and was now bleeding from a flesh wound, "I think you are the most naive and stupid person I had met,"

"Gee, thanks." My voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"But," He carried on like I hadn't said anything, "I somehow respect you... I still hate you a bit for not telling me who you were and putting me in danger for being with you but I do respect you. I did not interfere by pushing you away because I knew that you were able to make the decision if we just talked it out a little!"