Title: Sweetest Downfall

Synopsis: It was frightening to love someone who was like a bomb waiting to go off. When the time comes to admit her feelings, Lenalee is at a loss and does not know how to the handle the situation, to love and be afraid, or to run and be safe. Allen/Lenalee.

Rating: T

A/N: I had this sitting on my computer for a while half finished. It's kind of boring; a lot like my other cliché Allen/Lenalee stuff. I want to write another fic based on this song where Lenalee steals Allen's Innocence and destroys it to save him. I'm going to start that once this is posted.

Disclaimer: I don't own DGM, because if I did, we would know what that sneaky 14th is up to already.

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"The history books forgot about us and the bible didn't mention us, not even once. You are my sweetest downfall. I loved you first."

-'Samson' by Regina Spektor

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What was a world without Allen? Lenalee had spent a good chunk of her life not being with him, but the moments that she had spent without his smile in her life seemed dull and gray compared to the ones with it in it and were almost forgotten about. The times in her life that shined brightest in Lenalee's memory were those that had Allen in them.

But things were changing, far too quickly.

"Lenalee, are you alright?" Startled, Lenalee looked up to see his smiling face next to her. A few minutes ago he hadn't been there; she hadn't noticed him sitting down. Lately her mind had been flying around, never quite able to find a place to stop. There had been a lot of times when she had just been staring off into space and someone had to wake her from her daydreams.

But it was fine; just being near Allen put a smile on her face. "Yes, I'm okay. Just a little tired, I think."

Without hesitation, Allen put a hand to her forehead. A rush of blood went up to her cheeks resulting in a blush that went unnoticed by Allen. "You've been really out of it lately; do you think that you have a cold?" For a moment he paused, trying to gage the temperature of Lenalee's forehead before moving his hand to her neck.

"Um, Allen, what are you doing?" She asked, thinking that if since he moved his hand there, it was bound to be warm, just like the rest of her face, and it would be no help at all in determining whether or not she was sick.

That small, sad smile that was so characteristic of him returned as Allen removed his hand. Lenalee had not been aware that she wasn't breathing the entire time that he had been holding it there, but nonetheless, filling her lungs felt rather good. "I'm just checking to see if you're sick. You feel a little warm." His eyes were full of concern for his friend. "Do you want me to take you to the head nurse to see if you're okay?"

Knowing that she wasn't sick, she was just a little worried, Lenalee shook her head. "No, it's nothing that serious."

"But what if it is serious? Wouldn't you want to find out about it before it was too late to do anything?" Lenalee wondered if he could apply those words to himself; there was so much that he didn't care to know about the… person living inside of him. It was possible that he could be gone before she could blink. If anyone should be worried, it was he.

It was that thought that brought a few tears to her eyes, and it was the thought of losing Allen forever to some mysterious malevolent Noah that made those few tears flow from her eyes. "Of course I would, why wouldn't you?"

Shutting her eyes, Lenalee wiped her cheeks, hoping to clear any traces of the unwanted tears. The last thing that Allen needed was for Lenalee to be a burden to him; she was determined not to add to his worries. A warm hand was placed on her shoulder and a warm voice was sounded gently in her ear. "Lenalee, let me take you to your room."

Slowly, she put her hand over Allen's and nodded. Using the other hand to wipe the tears off of her face, she let Allen guide her out of the cafeteria, where they had been sitting together, and through the labyrinth hallways of the Order until they got to her bedroom. The entire walk there seemed to be no noise except for Lenalee's occasional sniffle. She still refused to open her eyes.

"Lenalee, I…" Words escaped Allen; there was nothing that he could think of to say that would help this situation. He didn't even know why she was so upset; it had just happened suddenly. "Lenalee, please… Stop crying." Hesitantly, he placed a hand on her head and gently guided it towards his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and held her for a moment, just savoring the sensation of her warmth on him. Moments like this didn't come by often; emotion was something that he could not afford to have. Any moment the evil lingering within him could escape and he didn't want his friends to be the casualties of anything that he may do.

As much as she enjoyed being so near to him, she was still so afraid. There were times where Allen became someone different, and she was so frightened that would happen now and ruin everything. It was these moments that she lived for, but because of that darkness that had unfairly decided to make Allen its home, she could not even feel at ease in his arms anymore.

"Allen, I don't know what to do." It was her confession, the thing that she had not wanted to tell him for all of this time. "I'm so scared when I'm with you now that I don't know what to do." Though muffled slightly by Allen's chest, Lenalee's words still stung Allen like an arrow. "There are these times where you seem fine and then you just change, and it makes me so frightened that I can barely breathe."

"It's the same for me, Lenalee." He placed a hand in her hair; it was growing out. That was nice. He missed her hair. "I'm scared, too." His arms tightened around her, and he realized that she was holding him up just as he was holding her up. They helped each other without even realizing it. "But you give me strength. You and everyone else here."

The thought that had been bubbling in Lenalee's mind spilled forth. "I wish that you never had Innocence! I wish that you were born normal and could live a normal life! I hate that this has happened to you; I hate all of this pressure that is being put on you. I want you to live happily, is that so hard?" Her eyes opened to see a tear falling from Allen's eye.

"Lenalee, if I had been normal, then I would have never met you." His hands weaved through her hair, pulling her in closer, smothering her. "Is that what you really want?"

There was silence. Her breath was warm against Allen's neck. "No. I don't want that. I want to know you; I just wish that there had been some other way."

His grip loosened just a bit. "Even if this is all wrong, and my life is some sick cosmic joke. I won't give up." Finally, he put his hands on her shoulders and pulled her away, so they could face each other face-to-face. "I will fight to save this world and even if I betray everyone and am written in the history books as the person who doomed humanity, I don't care. Until that time…" His eyes dug into hers; they were strong and determined when hers were weak. "I want to be with you."

Those were words that she had always wanted to hear. In her imagination she had replayed them over and over in his voice, pretending that they were real. "I can't." She squeaked. "Not with… Not… No." She backed away. Allen's arms fell to his sides. "Not with you like this."

And she ran, too afraid of what he may become to accept who he was.

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Fin