Love-Love || OLD DRAFT

five - five

A/N

I'm waiting for someone to notice/figure out how the chapter-name-scores are scored, lol.

(adding up the two scores gets you the chapter number btw. So here's chapter 10 - woohoo we reached double digit now aaaaand shit might get real too, I dunno)

....

Being a criminal only had one rule – stay the fuck away from prisons.

I wondered how hard it was for Garnet to forget this one simple rule, as I stood in a self-made tunnel underground, 1.7 metres away from the heavy steel gates of Haynorr. I could feel the footsteps of people rushing, along with a lot of fuss and scuffle.

I stood where I was, breathing heavily, adrenalin coursing through my veins, as I wondered how – just how – to get her out. Haynorr was impenetrable. Most of it was underground but that didn’t mean shit because its steel walls were made of the same stuff they use in spacecrafts. In other words, I couldn’t crush them, or melt them. Even now, the vibrations I felt from inside the facility were greatly muffled and muted by the steel walls.

A familiar pair of footsteps perked my attention. Right above me, I felt a pair of feet land on the ground, and I didn’t need powers to know it was Super Storm. There was another person with him. I pressed my ears against the earth to hear them.

“I’ve come to help,” Super Storm said.

“No one asked for it,” the person – the man – replied in a strained voice. “Go away.”

“I don’t have time for this nonsense,” my nemesis growled. “Let me in, right now. There is a Super in there that you have no resources or capacity to fight –”

“You don’t have to tell us what we can or cannot do,” the man said. “The prison is in complete lock-down and no unauthorised person is allowed to enter. Go back to your playfield, Mr. Superhero. We don’t need your help.”

“You – you’re making a big mistake.” I felt a gush of pressure against the ground and I knew Storm was gone.

With him gone, I waited with bated breaths wondering what to do. There was no way I could break in on my own. And if they weren’t letting Super Storm in, it only meant greater danger for Garnet. Storm was annoying for sure, but he had never tried to mortally endanger me or Garnet. Ever.

That only left me one option.

Super Storm landed on one of the hillocks a hundred and twelve metres away from Haynorr. I pulled myself out of the ground in front of him.

The moment he saw me, he willed the air to come grab me in an immovable hold.

“Don’t,” I hissed. “I haven’t come to cause any trouble.”

“Yeah?” I felt him glowering at me. “Tell that to the people after you let loose all the prisoners of Haynorr.”

“Trust me, Storm, neither of us want that,” I said through gritted teeth as his hold on me tightened. I could’ve broken free if I wanted to, but that was not what I was there for. “For once, I’m on your side.”

Super Storm snorted. He brought his hand to his ear and I knew he was going to call for backup to come restrain me.

“Listen to me, Storm, please. Garnet is doing this all on her own; I have no part in this. I only want to save her.” I let some of my desperation leak into my voice. “They’re going to kill her.”

Super Storm’s hand froze midway, and I knew I had to act fast if I were to change his mind.

“I swear to you, none of the inmates will get out,” I said.

He studied me for a while. “Why is she doing this?”

I knew the question was coming but I was still not ready for it. I felt an old ache return to my heart. “She thinks – she thinks one of our – she thinks a friend is in there. He’s not, but she doesn’t know that. Please Storm, they’re going to kill her.”

I saw my enemy clench his jaw. “Then I’d say she very much deserves it.”

He let go of me all of a sudden and took a step back. I knew him well enough to know what he was going to do next, so before he could fly off, I made the ground latch onto his feet.

“I’m asking for your help,” I hissed, anger suddenly flooding through my veins. It wasn’t him I was angry at. It wasn’t even Garnet. I was angry at myself. At that one mistake that had caused it all, that won’t leave no matter how much I tried to bury it. “Have you ever been in love, Storm?”

He stopped struggling to get out of my hold and looked at me. “I don’t have time for your games, Gravel.”

“I have,” I continued. “Couldn’t save him. Garnet is the only one I have left, Storm. Tomorrow I’ll go back to robbing banks, and you to stopping me, but today... I really need your help.”

Super Storm did not reply immediately, simply kept staring at me. At length he said, “How do I know I can trust you?”

“If I wanted to,” I let a smirk slip before I could help myself, “I could’ve killed you long ago.”

To my surprise, I saw him fight a smile himself. “That makes it easier for me to trust you,” he added sarcastically in his usual disciplined voice.

I dropped my grip on his feet.

“So,” Super Storm asked me, “what’s the plan?”