?'s POV
Pant. Pant. I ran through the torrent of the icy rain. Mud splashed up onto my long overcoat, my disguise. As I ran, I yanked my hood further down to cover more of my face, as well as to prevent myself from getting completely drenched. My pace slackened, and I faltered over an unnoticeable pit in the dirt road, almost falling face first into the shelter of a canopy of overgrown leaves and branches.
I patted the left side of my waist. Desperation filled my mind. I had lost my only weapon, my protection, my silver dagger given to me by that one person... Squeezing my eyes shut, I shoved that thought out of my mind with great effort and thought of everything else I was about to leave behind... One tear fell and created a dot on the dry dirt I sat upon. Still panting, I leaned my back against the side of the tree and slid down until I was sitting. Hugging my legs, I rested my head on my knees. Tears started streamed down my face. I was not sobbing, nor was I sad at all, but for some odd reason the tears wouldn't stop. Why...?
Just seconds after I had settled down comfortably, I heard yelling in the distance. My eyes shot open and I stood up quickly, making a jolt towards the expanse of woods just beyond the tree. Tripping a few times, I continued to run-no sprint- through the woods. My heart seemed to triple in size and beat abnormally fast, and I felt like both my head and chest would explode. Bang! A shot rang out through the woods. I stumbled, but my body was already so numb with pain and exhaustion that I could not register that I had just been hit.
Blood soaked the right side of my overcoat and dripped down. I was unknowingly creating a path leading my pursuers to me. I was leading myself to my own death. I heard more yelling, though my brain and thought process was already so blurred by confusion that I couldn't understand what was being said. All I understood at that time was that I had to escape. There was nothing left for me here. Those past few years of happiness had all been a lie...
My eyes widened and I skidded to a halt, almost flinging myself into the water. I could no longer feel anything throughout my whole body, only numbness. I couldn't even feel the rain pouring down on my head. There was a lake right in front of me, and of course, I didn't know how to swim! Should I try going around it? The lake was like a vast space of emptiness, the water itself dark and nebulous. Very welcoming. I quickly surveyed the area. Running around would make me too conspicuous, and the only trees to provide me with cover is from the direction in which I just came! As hard as I tried, it was too difficult to keep that nonchalant, tough girl mask...
Suddenly I heard nothing, nothing at all. I turned around. All efforts of persuading myself that everything would magically work out vanished. I saw one man about twenty feet away with a gun aimed at me point-blank. Still I heard nothing. I could not tell who the man was. Maybe it was the tears or the confusion that fogged my thoughts. As if in slow motion, I saw the man pull the trigger, and his arm recoiled. I felt a tension surge through my chest. Something passed through me. I saw specks of some sort of gooey red fluid splat onto the ground in front of me. This is where my life ends. I don't know if at this very moment I feel happiness or sorrow. I no longer have to drag myself through the world and continue living this life weaved of disappointment and lies. As I fall backwards into the water, I look up at the droplets of rain dropping onto my face. The rain, dyed red with blood, rolls down my face. A faint smile reaches my face...
I love you, Len.
Splash!