Chloe woke up, throat constricted, tears running down her pale face, a slight sticky sweat on the back of her neck. She had that dream again. The one that she's had almost every night since it happened.
*Dream*
"I know we have our difference, but there has to be a way we can figure this out." Chloe stood firmly next to Alek and Valentina.
"There will never be a way to fix this. Not unless you are dead." Whitley Rezza stated sternly. Next to him, was Brian Rezza. Chloe's ex-everything. The one she thought she loved. He was holding her mother at gun point.
"So, you're telling me the only way to fix this is you killing a human. One of your own kind?" The blonde's claws sheathed, as if on cue. She started to step forward, but Alek caught her arm.
"Don't," He whispered, only low enough for Chloe to hear.
"Just let her go!" She shouted to both of them. Whitley only laughed.
"I don't think so," She heard Brian's cold voice, nothing like it used to be. He cocked the gun, and everyone heard her mother whimper in fear. That was all it took. Everything went by in a flash; one minute she was standing with Alek and Valentina, the next she was in front of Brian, pushing her mother out of the way. She heard her mother's voice yell, along with Alek's. Valentina was at her side as she fell. She glanced down at her abdomen. She'd been shot. There was so much blood, no one could tell you at that point how many injuries she really had.
"You'll be fine," Valentina's voice rang in Chloe's head, but all she could see was a fading black.
And that was the 3rd time Chloe King died. She saved her mother, but she had been taken anyway when everything went down. When Chloe woke up, she was at the penthouse with Alek standing over her, telling her everything that happened. The curse had finally been lifted because she saved her mother from death.
"There's also something else you should know," He shifted, not looking at her anymore. She sat up a little straighter. "Brian's dead." Chloe saw his brown eyes flicker through his wild blonde hair.
"What happened?"
"I killed him. After I saw you were down, that he had killed you and took your mum -" He paused. "I snapped. The next thing I knew, he was lying on the ground. I cut his throat." He gulped. He wouldn't look up at her. She placed a hand on his neck and her other on his cheek, forcing her to face him. "I can't stand it when you're mad at me, and I know this isn't some stupid thing. You had feelings for the guy, and I killed him. If you are mad, I completely understand. I can leave you alone until -" She cut him off with a kiss. He was completely shocked.
"Thank you, Alek." It was the only thing she could truly say.
From then on, She wished she could say everything was rainbows and butterflies, but it wasn't. Her mother was still missing. Though, after that day, Chloe and Alek were as one, never leaving each others side.
Alek and Valentina found out a week later, where they were holding her mother. They went to try and get her back.
"Are you sure /this/ is the place?" Chloe asked Alek. Valentina sent her and Alek, among other Mai to try and retrieve Meredeth. They were in an abandon warehouse, down near the Waterfront. It was sort of near where Kai and his family were.
"This is the place Valentina said, pictures and everything." He stepped in front of her and opened up the gate without making a sound. She followed him inside, signaling the others to follow. They did as told and once everyone was inside, they all started off in separate directions. Chloe and Alek went, along with two other Mai named Dylan and Jason. It seemed like hours before they came across a room that had two men in front of it. Both of them were definitely packing weapons.
"Alek," She spoke quietly and nudged his arm. He turned to her and she pointed to the doorway. He nodded and whispered something to the other Mai. The two walked off, but Chloe was too entranced in the doorway. She needed to get into that room and save her mother. She took a step forward without really meaning to, but Alek caught her arm.
"Chloe, the last time you did this, you got hurt. No, scratch that - you died. We're not going in there without protection." He didn't let go of her arm. She shook him off a bit and slid her hand into his.
"I'm not going anywhere without you," His face softened and he nodded. She smiled. Not even a minute later, 7 Mai who Chloe didn't know the names to, came into their view. They were on the other side of the hall. Alek nodded, giving an unspoken signal before two of them walked out to the guys and started to make some kind of small talk with them. A couple of seconds later, the pair of members who were guarding the door walked off in Chloe and Alek's direction. Alek grabbed Chloe around the waist and held her tight against him, sliding himself into a small pocket between the walls. Chloe closed her eyes, not wanting to know if they were going to get caught. Alek nudged her forward a couple of seconds later, pushing her into the hall again.
"Okay, come on. We have to get in there fast." He grabbed her wrist and they practically ran into the room. Once they walked in they didn't know what they would expect. Meredith was tied to a chair, blood running down the right side of her face. There were two pair of handcuffs that had each hand hooked to the back of the chair. Her feet were wrapped up with duct take, also trapping her to the chair. She was obviously knocked out.
"Mom," Chloe's voice cracked. She let go of Alek's hand and ran towards the chair. She put her hand on her mother's face, trying to wipe away the blood that was staining her skin. "Mom, please wake up." Chloe's voice was cracking more and more and her mom wasn't making any movements.
"Chloe, we just have to get her out of here, okay?" He came over to the both of them and started to free her mom.
"I don't think this is going to go the way you planned." Everyone's heart stopped at the sound of the deep voice. Chloe recognized it instantly. It was Whitley.
"I think we're leaving. With my mother." Chloe stood in front of her, trying to block her from any further harm. He smirked.
"Chloe, I know how you must feel. You must feel so betrayed. If you just stayed here and let your friends go, I'll let your mother go too. All I care about is you." He stepped forward and stood in front of Chloe. Her heartbeat was steady, but she felt like running out of her own mind. Could it really be that easy?
"If I stay. . ." She trailed off. She looked at Alek. His face was pleading her not to do it. Looking at his face, into those brown eyes she's grown to love so deeply; she looked away. She knew what she had to do. "I won't do it," She looked at Whitley, his face had fallen. "I can't stay. I love my mom, with everything that I am, but I can't." She felt one tear trail down her face.
"Now, Miss King would really love to hear how much you care for her." Whitley walked in front of Chloe, but she stood her ground. "Get out of the way," He growled at her. She barely moved. "You made this choice for yourself." Whitley slapped Chloe across the face and she almost fell to the ground. Alek caught her, wrapping his arms around her.
"No! Stop! Please," Chloe was sobbing in Alek's arms, fighting to get back up to protect her mother.
"You made this choice! You're the one who killed your mother! Remember that!" Whitley yelled before pulled out a gun. With his other hand, he hit her mom across her cheek. She snapped up with alarm, still very groggy.
"Chloe," She whispered out.
"Here! Mom, I'm right here!" Chloe yelled out, still crying. Alek kept her tight in his arms. Her mothers eyes drifted to her, to Alek, and back at her.
"What. . .what's going on?" Her mom wasn't stable, she could barely speak.
"Well, you see Meredith, Chloe had a choice. She had a choice of saving you, or saving herself." Whitley's face brought her to look at him. "Let's just say that it doesn't look very good for you." The gun in his hand raised to her head.
"Ch - Chloe? What is going on?!" Though her voice was still weak, they could hear her loud and clear. Her face was full of fear, her eyes were huge.
"Mom, I wish I could explain." Chloe's crying calmed, and she no longer fought against Alek. She wanted to wrap her arms around her mother, but knew she never could. "I'm so sorry, mom." Chloe turned away as she saw Whitley adjust the gun.
"Now that we have all of that covered, say goodbye to your daughter, Meredith." The gun cocked.
"Chloe, I - I love you." And that was the last thing Chloe heard of her mother. The gun went off. Alek stood up with her in his arms and ran. She heard Whitley's voice yelling at her from a distance, telling her would kill her one day, that he would avenge his son. Alek ran all the way home with a sobbing Chloe tangled in his arms.
*End of Dream*
Okay, so maybe it wasn't that detailed. But either way, Chloe felt a pang in her heart every time she saw that replay in her mind. With a sigh, she stood up and walked out towards the kitchen. She saw Alek sitting and drinking something out of a mug, she smiled.
"Hey," She said softly. He looked up at her and smiled, but then he saw her face. His smile dropped.
"You okay?" He got up and set his drink down, he walked closer to her. She felt like she was going to start crying all over again. She just nodded and walked into his open arms. "Another nightmare?" She nodded again.
"Though it's kind of the same one." She sighed into his chest. His fingers were dancing along her back. "I just wish I could forget."
"I know," He whispered against her hair. She always felt so safe in his arms, like nothing could ever happen to her. Though she's never had the guts to tell him, she loved him. She loved everything about Alek. She just hoped he knew that. "Valentina wanted to talk to us, she wanted me to let her know when you got up." Chloe nodded and pulled away.
"Should we go and let her know?" He just nodded and slid his arm around her waist. She blushed a bit, for some crazy unknown reason. They walked down the hall to Valentina's office. Alek knocked on her door, and she opened it on the first knock.
"Hello," She smiled and opened it wider for them to have a seat. "I'm going to make this short and sweet. Whitley Rezza wants to meet with Chloe. I told him there is no way she'd be going alone, even if he isn't actually implying a threat." Chloe glanced at Alek.
"I know you won't take no for an answer so I might as well just give in. As long as I go with her, she can go." He paused. "And as long as she takes some sort of weapon. There is no way I trust Rezza." He glanced back at Chloe. Her lips twitched into a small smile.
"I'll go if he goes." Chloe nodded to Valentina.
"I was hoping this would go easy. You're meeting at 1. There is something I couldn't quite figure out. He wants to meet at the cable car museum." Valentina stated and Chloe bit back a gasp.
"Why there?" She spoke up.
"He wouldn't say," She shook her head. "Anyways, I trust you two will take care of the other." She looked at both of them. They nodded. "Good, I'll be going. I have a meeting in New York. I should be back by Monday morning." She gave Chloe and Alek both small hugs before stepping out of her office. They both heard the door close.
"Are you really okay with this?" Chloe asked once they shut the office door.
"As long as he doesn't try anything, I'm completely fine." Chloe smiled. Even though they'd been "together" for a while, she was never sure if he truly trusted her. She knew he did now.
"Well, better go get ready. Meet you back here?" He nodded and she kissed his cheek before running to her room and getting out of her pajamas and into jeans and a classic band t-shirt. She stepped into her converse and almost left her room before she remembered something; a weapon. She walked to her dresser and pulled out a small dagger. It might of been small, but it packed a punch. That's exactly what Alek said when he gave it to her. He said it reminded him of her. She smirked. She strapped the dagger to her calf in a holster Alek also gave her. The blonde walked out of her room and saw Alek waiting for her with her car keys in hand.
"Ready?" He questioned once he saw her. Chloe nodded and went for the keys but Alek held them higher. "Weapon?" She smirked and lifted her jean leg, revealing her strapped in dagger. He smirked when he saw that she had it.
"You never know when you might need to pack a punch." She winked and snatched the keys from his hand, racing out the door and for the elevator. Chloe waited a couple of seconds before Alek jumped in with her.
"You know, this is the third time we're getting involved with Rezza." He stated once they were leaving inside the car.
"Yeah, but third time's a charm, right?"
"Chloe, I can't really imagine anything good coming out of this." Her fingers played on the steering wheel while they waiting at a stop light.
"I know." She told him truthfully. The rest of the ride was silent until they finally hit the abandoned museum. Chloe was just about to open her door when Alek grabbed her arm. Before she could actually respond, he kissed her. Chloe could definitely say it was one of the greatest kisses she's ever had. When they pulled away, they were both breathless.
"What was that for?" She asked him.
"I love you." His voice was in a whisperer and Chloe found that to be one of the most amazing things she's ever heard. Had he really just said that? She hadn't realized she'd been sitting there with her mouth wide open until he cleared his throat awkwardly and let go of her. He stepped out of the car and waited for her to do the same. Once she was beside him, she grabbed his shoulder to turn him to her and kissed him, maybe a bit rougher than she intended. Not that either of them minded. . .
"I love you, too!" She said once she pulled away. "I should have said it in the car, or even way before that, I just didn't know if you actually felt the same way." She looked into his eyes. He smiled, almost smirking.
"Chloe, I've loved you for a long time now. You remember Mimi?" She almost rolled her eyes, but didn't. She just nodded. "She kept telling how completely distracted I was from her. All of my attention was on you. It made me realize I'd fallen in love with you." He was smiling again. She was shocked. She obviously knew he had feelings for her back then, I mean, hello! They had two, very close, very deep kisses! But love? She felt herself blushing.
"Then I'm glad you waited up for me," She smiled and grabbed his hand, making her way to the entrance of the museum. They both stepped in, careful to check their surroundings. It was almost too dark to see, but they were Mai. They could see at anytime of the day. The walked into the same room where Chloe was shot in, and she felt the chills run down her spine. She also felt the way Alek stiffened beside her. She just couldn't tell if it was because she died, or the other incident that took place.
"Miss King, Mister Petrov?" Whitley's unmistakable voice rang from behind them. They both spun around to look at him. He looked the same, though he looked like he hadn't slept it days.
"Yes," Chloe stated simply. Whitley stepped closer to them and Chloe felt Alek's hand rest itself of Chloe's waist, pressing her to him.
"I'm extremely glad you came to meet me. I didn't think you were going to show up." He stepped even closer, and Alek's hand was now pressing into her hip bone.
"Can we just get to the point of why you wanted to meet us?" Chloe stated, getting annoyed. Whitley sighed and looked down.
"Chloe, my dear girl, do you remember what I told you when you left your mother to die?" Chloe's breath hitched. She knew she didn't really just leave her mother, though she knew she also did. Either way, it hurt like hell.
"Why don't you refresh my memory?" She said bitterly.
"I told you I would avenge my son's death," He stepped closer, once again and this time Chloe was pushed directly behind Alek. Whitley stopped at looked at the two. "Oh, I see." He smirked. "The Uniter and her Protector have fallen in love." Alek pushed Chloe further behind him so she couldn't see a single thing except him.
"Alek," She whispered, trying to tell him she was fine, but he wouldn't budge.
"Oh, Alek, listen to your girlfriend. Let her go." Alek was silent, but Chloe could hear his heart racing. She placed both of her hands on his back and leaned up to whisper to him. "Just relax," She pushed herself out of his hold, settling herself right behind him.
"Then take me, and leave him alone." She told Whitley. Alek's head whipped around and he was staring at her like she was crazy. She wouldn't turn to look at his face.
"I wish I could do that, but you see - Alek is the one that actually killed my son." He stepped closer and Chloe and Alek both noticed he had a gun in his hand. The same one that's killed her mother and herself twice before.
"If you want to kill me, just get it over with. I'll just come back to life and kill you too." All the sudden, Alek was taken from Chloe's side. Two Order members were holding his hands behind his back, preventing him from doing anything. He tried to get away, but they wouldn't move. "I said let him go!" Chloe shouted at Whitley. Now she was angry.
"And I said not until you're dead!" He came at full force, and just when Chloe thought to go down for her dagger, he came up behind her and held her arms behind her. She felt the cold metal of the gun against her temple. She tried to be strong, but a whimper left her mouth.
"Don't you dare hurt her or I'll rip you're body apart!" Chloe heard Alek shout to Whitley. She had never heard him so angry before. If it weren't for the situation, she would have been touched.
"Alek," Chloe found her voice. "Just let him do it." When she stated that, the air shifted. It became completely uncomfortable. Chloe focused on the one thing she knew best; Alek's heartbeat. The way it was beating so fast, she didn't know if that was actually possible.
"So I see you came to your senses. You're finally giving yourself up?" Whitley spoke into Chloe's ear, and she almost became sick with how close she was to him.
"If it means saving Alek, then yes." She said without hesitation. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see Alek's face and how he'd react.
"Chloe, don-"
"You heard her! Her mind's made up!" Whitley yelled, interrupting Alek.
"Just do it already!" Chloe screamed at the top of her lungs. She felt like crying, but knew that would make Alek react even worse. "Just do it," She whispered this time.
Chloe felt no pain as the bullet soared through her skull.
-Peak Break-
Chloe woke up, extremely groggy, with a horrible headache. She didn't want to try to get up because of her head, so she tried to readjust herself in her warm bed. She was okay until she found something that was a little too warm for her. She jumped up, almost falling off of the bed in the process.
"Chloe!" A familiar British accent rang in her ears. Alek. Why the heck was she in the same bed as Alek?! She opened her eyes and found herself in an unfamiliar setting. She looked over at Alek.
"Where am I?" He looked shocked for a second then a smile came across his face.
"Ha-ha very funny," He smiled at her and leaned in closer to her. So close, Chloe found herself leaning towards him too. Then she caught herself. She placed her hands on his chest pushing him back.
"Woah, woah, woah. What are you doing?" They both looked at each other like they were crazy. His face went through different phases of emotion, some that Chloe couldn't place.
"Chloe, I need you to be completely honest with me." He moved to sit up, and helped her sit up straight with him. Chloe felt really odd being in the same bed, under the warm covers, with Alek Petrov. "What's the last thing you remember?" He spoke carefully.
She tried to rack through her thoughts. Her mind went through many things before she found what she last remembered.
"Going to bed after the whole break in, after you saved me and my mom." She looked back up at him and his face turned pale, even in this light. "A - Alek, what's going on?" She searched his frozen face for answers. He opened his mouth and closed it several times, trying to find the right words to say.
"Chloe," He stopped speaking. He shook his head over and over again. What was going on?!
"Alek, what. Is going. On?" She spoke very seriously, getting sort of scared.
"Chloe, I think you lost your memory." He didn't know what else to say besides the brutal truth. Did she really not remember anything?
"Alek, what are you talking about?!" She shrieked. She tried getting off of the bed, but he kept her down. He didn't want her to hurt herself or fall.
"Chloe, I - I have no idea what's going on." She sat with her back facing him. Her back was rising and falling fast, Alek guessed because she was trying to calm down.
"This can't be happening," He heard Chloe's voice break. His heart broke right along with it. He heard her breathing become so uneven, he knew she was about to cry. He reached forward for her, wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her to him. She fought it at first, but let her defenses down and started crying into him. Alek realized she didn't remember anything. She didn't remember any of their relationship. When he came to that, he felt like crying himself.