"Francis!"

The scream echoed in the otherwise empty room. The white-washed walls of rock confined the desperation and anguish of the broken voice into the claustrophobically small room, the sound resonating until it hollowed out. By that point, the owner of the voice had thrown himself forwards, trying to reach the glass - break, tear, claw, dig his way through the crystal-clear pane there, the thin sheet of glass that was separating the room in two, that was separating them from each other. Arthur tried to find an opening to the glass, find a way through, to the other side, his vibrant green eyes blurring with tears of anger, joy, pain, hurt, every emotion he knew and could name and then some. His legs gave out, and he collapsed onto his knees in front of the glass window. On the other side, he saw the one person he wanted to see, touch, feel, the one person he needed, and the one and only person he would probably never again reach. Scintillating, azure eyes looked back at him, emanating warmth and love from their depths, and there was a soft, sad smile on his lips.

Arthur placed a hand on the pane, trying one last time to push it, maybe it would give out, maybe, he had to try... Tears rolled down his cheeks as he saw Francis trying to say something, the words visibly falling delicately from his mouth but no sound coming through, not a word nor a whisper could be heard. Arthur shook his head, mouthing to Francis just how much he loved him, how he could hear nothing or do nothing. He pressed his forehead to the icy surface, closing his eyes for a breath, calming down his heart and breathing, trying to pull himself together.

He was the one who was supposed to be strong. He was the one who was supposed to stand tall, and proud, of his partner, his best friend, his lover, as the events soon would unfurl in front of him - no, he was most definitely not supposed to fall apart, break down, lose his composure, especially not when it was he who would walk out of this place alive, who would see another day, who would continue with his life. He was not the one who had endured weeks of hell, he was not the one who had been brave enough, he had not been the one who was on the other side of the glass, the dangerous side of the glass. He let out a deep breath, and looked back up at Francis, and had to choke back a sob that was threatening to immediately spill.

He could make out more and more of the words Francis was saying, as the other slowed down, similarly calming himself, and telling Arthur what he most wanted to hear.

It's okay.

It will all be alright.

We'll be fine.

Darling, don't worry, I love you. You know that.

Arthur smiled a smile betraying the hurt and the sadness going through him. "Of course I know. I love you - I love you too, so, so much." He said, though he could only hope the other could decipher the nearly frantic words of the Englishman. But form the gentle nod, Arthur deemed his words to have been heard and understood. He tried to find something more to say, something more deep, meaningful, but his mind blanked - nothing came, he felt hollow and empty, drained from every emotion except those involving Francis. He gazed into the deep blue eyes for another moment before a melody made its way softly from his throat, his heart. It was their song, the one they slow danced to on so many lazy afternoons, the song they had once heard on the radio and thought to describe them. It had accidentally stuck, and it was one that Francis would recognise though he did not hear the melody.

"And so it is," the words were soft, the melody delicate, barely audible even to Arthur. "Just like you said it would be." He could see the sapphire-coloured eyes shine in recognition. Neither could look away from the other, as Arthur kept going.

"Life goes easy on me
Most of the time
And so it is..."

A door opened on Francis' side. Arthur's eyes widened in slight panic as he heard the door behind him open, the guards entering, telling him that time was up. This was it, this was the last time, this was how much time he'd gotten with the one person he truly cared about?

"The shorter story
No love, no glory
No hero in her sky."

The men behind Arthur moved to drag him away from the window, but Arthur shook them, fought them off and away, clinging to the glass for dear life, as Francis on the other side was forced onto his knees, his hands tied behind his back. Both had tears staining their crimsoned cheeks, their eyes holding onto the other's as they knew their last moments together were approaching. He saw one of the faceless, nameless guards on the other side pull out a gun, and he began to pound on the glass, screaming for them to release Francis, there was a mistake, there had to be, had to-! But as he caught his lover's eyes, he knew that it was lost. It had been lost the moment they met, the moment they crossed paths. Arthur whispered the lines, more to himself, as Francis smiled his most beautiful smile.

"I can't take my eyes off of you,
I can't take my eyes-"

The finger twitched, the gun jerked, and as red stains scattered onto the sterile-white floor, Francis' lifeless body crumbled like a folding house of cards, laying still on the floor. Arthur stared, almost as lifeless as his other half behind the glass. As he began screaming, shouting obscenities, and cursing every person inside and outside the room, they dragged him out of the room, out of the building, and forced him back into a miserable, lonely and grey life - the one he had led before he met the only streak of colour in his world. It had all seemed to go black and white and grey and dull again - but Arthur guessed that because he fell in love, this was his side of hell.

A/N: This was a very short piece. I don't know what it is with me and character deaths, but I think it's more that I love to write pain and hurt, more complex emotions, than something simple. Love? As personally, I don't know it, who am I to describe it? And for me, a happy ending is just too simple perhaps - it's the darker side of things that I seem to like. And as for what the background behind this story is, it's more up to personal interpretation. I see it as any setting ranging from dystopias to criminal AUs or such. The lyrics are from the song "The Blower's Daughter" by Damien Rice. Not my best song so far, but it was the best I found if I did not want to use the slightly honestly over-done and cliché-ish "You Are My Sunshine".

For those who are reading M.A.D., I am absolutely still working on it, just having a slight block with it. Fret not, it is not abandoned, most certainly not - I like it too much to leave it hanging. Well, until next time then!