A Little Fall Of Rain
The gun was pointing directly at his heart. So she did what anyone with a heart full of unrequited love would do.
She snatched at the gun and pulled it away from Duncan, giving a tiny jerk as it misfired.
"Fall back!" Duncan shouted. He was holding a torch next to a barrel of gunpowder. "Fall back or I blow it all to smithereens!"
"You'd take yourself with it!" the guard retorted, believing Duncan to be bluffing.
Duncan gave an almost delirious looking smirk. "And take myself with it," he agreed, holding the torch closer to the barrel.
The guard motioned for the soldiers to fall back away from the barricade. Geoff pulled the torch from Duncan's hand. Duncan descended the makeshift stairs, shouts pouring in from all sides. To his right, Tyler was shouting, "What were you thinking, Duncan, you could've gotten us all killed!" To his left, DJ congratulated him: "Well done, Duncan, you saved us all!"
But he only had eyes for the dark-haired figure leaning against the barricade. He realised it was the young man who had pulled the gun away from him. So, like any concerned revolutionary, he went to thank him and make sure he was ok.
But as he drew closer he realised it was not a young man at all. It was Gwen.
"Gwen? What are you doing?"
She held up a letter. "I kept it from you. It's from Courtney. I'm sorry." It was as he took the letter, he noticed the red stain that was spreading across her chest. He realised she'd done more than pulled the gun away – she'd taken a bullet for him.
"What have you done?" He put his hand to the wound, attempting to staunch the flow of blood. "Oh God, Gwen – you're bleeding! It's everywhere…" He felt a drop of rain on his cheek. "And now you're getting wet."
"Don't worry, Monsieur Duncan," Gwen whispered, "I don't feel any pain. A little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now." She laughed slightly. "You're here, and that's all I need to know. Because you will keep me safe and close, and rain will make the flowers grow."
He shook his head, unable to comprehend the idea of his best friend dying. "You're going to live, Gwen! You can't just – you'd live for sure if I could close your wounds with words of love…" They both knew that he couldn't though – even if words could heal, they wouldn't be true words that he spoke.
She smiled in understanding. "Just hold me now, and let it be. All I need is shelter and comfort from you." Even though she was dying, she looked happy. "This rain must be heaven blessed, it brought you to me. The skies are beginning to clear now anyway."
"I promise I won't leave you now," Duncan whispered, taking her hand.
"You'll keep me safe and close?" Gwen asked. When he nodded, she beamed exhaustedly. "I'll finally sleep in your embrace."
She took his hand and together they started to sing a sort of lullaby. "So hush-a-bye, dear Gwen –"
"Don't you fret, M'sieur Duncan, I don't feel any pain."
"A little fall of rain can hardly hurt you now."
"A little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now."
"I'm here."
"That's all I need to know."
"And I will stay with you 'til you are sleeping."
"And you will keep me safe, and you will keep me close, and rain –"
"And rain?"
"Will make the flowers…"
"Will make the flowers?"
Gwen went still.
"Grow," Duncan whispered. He kissed her limp body softly on the forehead. DJ put his hand on Duncan's shoulder and carefully lifted the girl up, taking her body somewhere it wouldn't be damaged any further.