~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Hold and speak to me
Of love without a sound
Tell me you will live through this
And I will die for you
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Anzu sighed. Her nerves were greatly rattled. Tomorrow would be the day they would end this mess. Even after all the reassurances she had been given, she still felt nervous, a foreboding settling deep within her stomach that refused to leave. Something unplanned would happen. Sighing again, she lifted the teapot from the stove, turning it off, and poured the hot liquid into three cups. Dropping a tea bag into each cup, she picked up two of the cups and brought them out to Malik and Bakura, who were sitting on the porch steps in the backyard. They were speaking animatedly about the plan for tomorrow. Heading back into the house, Anzu grabbed her own cup of tea and sat down at the table, letting her thoughts distract her once again. If they succeeded, everyone could restore their lives to their previous state, as if nothing ever happened. If they failed...
Anzu felt the blood drain from her face.
She didn't want to think about that outcome. They were so ready for this to be over. She knew Malik and Bakura wanted it to end more than anything. They would probably leave as well. Her heart wrenched painfully at that thought. Despite how everything started, she had become used to the two guys. Bakura, despite his quiet yet frightening demeanor at times, became easy to talk when Malik got on her nerves. He gave her useful advice on how to deal with the short tempered blonde and he was a wonderful cook. She'd miss the food and the talks.
Malik, on the other hand...
Anzu frowned. Her feelings towards him, romantic or not, were still undecided. He could be infuriating at times but it was usually because his stress would get the best of him and he'd blow up. She learned to stop taking it personal and step back long enough to let him cool down. But other times he would pull her into an argument for the sake of an argument, just to get her riled up. A couple occasions occurred when he would tease a bit too much and she would get so flustered and upset that it seemed nothing would calm her down until he kissed her. The first time he did it in the middle of an argument shocked her into silence so bad he thought she might pass out from it. Until her eyes narrowed and she reeled back at him for kissing her without permission. The second time had a less violent reaction. Anzu merely blushed and clapped a hand over her mouth then she ran upstairs to her room but not before hitting him in the shoulder on her way past. They flirted constantly, often without realizing it. Though the last few weeks they started to get more touchy-feely with one another but only at night before bed. Nothing sexual. Mostly they would kiss or he would hold her as they went to sleep with his arms wrapped tightly around her waist, his hand threaded in hers. Though she happily welcomed the attention, it confused her to no end as to where it would go. She was scared to death of losing him, knowing that her feeling of dread centered around him and Bakura.
The sound of the door shutting startled her and tea sloshed over the edge of the cup, landing on the saucer. Frowning, she stood and got a paper towel to wipe up the mess. Putting a smile on her face, she greeted Malik and Bakura as they walked in. Bakura headed to the stove where the meat for dinner was cooking and pulled it out.
"Are you ready for tomorrow?" Malik asked as he sat across from her spot.
"As ready as I'll ever be." She responded after getting a glass of juice to replace her tea then took her seat.
Anzu brushed her hair from her face and took a drink. Two plates were set on the table then Bakura left the room with his.
Anzu frowned. "What's going on?"
"I can tell something is still bothering you, though you say otherwise." Malik told her.
She scrunched her face up in annoyance. It was too easy for him to read her.
"It's nothing...really, just something silly." She said as she began eating.
Malik arched a brow as he also began eating.
"You're too quiet, it bothers me. What is your problem?" He asked.
"It's just a nagging feeling is all."
"Like what?" He frowned.
"It's nothing to worry about, honestly." She insisted.
"If it's nothing then why are you obsessing over it?" He asked.
Anzu swallowed her last bite and stood up from the table. Dropping her plate off in the sink, she left the room. Growling lightly to himself, Malik finished the remainder of his dinner and followed after her.
"I'm not through with you." He snapped as he entered the room.
He stopped short when he saw Anzu lying face down on the bed, her shoulders giving a slight shake. Closing the door behind him, he pulled off his jacket and shoes and stretched out beside her.
"Anzu what is it?"
She didn't answer. He laid a hand on her back, rubbing soothing circles. She turned to him, cradling into his chest and continued to cry. One arm slid beneath her to wrap around her back while he laid the other along the length of her spine to cradle her head with his hand. After a few moments, she settled down.
"Now that you've soaked my shirt through, you have to tell me what's wrong. I don't think there's any other way of getting over this." He said with a grimace.
Anzu giggled. He wasn't sure what he said that made her laugh but at least she stopped crying.
"Now what is it?" He repeated.
She hesitated at first but knew that he would continue to pester her until she spoke so she did.
"I just have a really bad feeling about tomorrow." She whispered.
"That's it?" He asked before he could stop himself.
Anzu snapped her head up to glare at him. "That's it? That's it?! Of course that's it!" She exclaimed as she stood up to lean over him, hands on her hips.
"Now just a minute-"
"Here I am worried something might happen to one of you and all you can say is 'that's it?'!" She continued, her eyes tearing up again.
"Anzu let me-"
"I'm scared to death of losing you!"
Silence fell over the room at her words. Shock appeared on Malik's face but was quickly replaced by a smirk.
"Aw you're worried about me?" He said.
Anzu glared at him.
"Then you have the nerve to do that." She muttered as she picked up a pillow and smacked him with it before dropping off the bed to head out the door.
"Anzu, come on. I was just kidding." He said as he reached out and grabbed the back of her shirt to pull her back.
"Let go." She bit out.
Ignoring her, he yanked her backwards into his arms, wrapping them tight around her to keep her from moving.
"I'm sorry, ok?"
She didn't respond. Smirking to himself, he lowered his mouth down to her shoulder and trailed his tongue alongside her bra strap. Coming to the top of her shoulder, he began to place light kisses as he moved to her neck. Trailing upwards, he came to a rest at her ear.
"You know you can't stay mad at me." He whispered, his voice dropping in tone.
Anzu's body gave a slight jerk and she shook her head as if to erase the reverberance of his voice in her ear. Malik blew lightly into her ear. Anzu stifled a moan, her arm involuntarily jerking from his grasp. He snickered in silent. He slid his arm from her waist, his fingers grazing the skin of her stomach that peeked out from under her shirt.
"How are your legs?" He asked.
"T-they're f-fine." Anzu cleared her throat. "I can walk around fine now."
He smirked. She had become flustered now. He knew if he continued any further she would start to panic so he let her go.
"You know I was only picking, right?" He asked as he turned her around to straddle his lap.
"Yes, even though it wasn't funny." She said.
He smiled. "We appreciate the concern Anzu but don't worry. Everything will be fine." He told her.
"I'll still worry." She whispered, her brow creasing.
"Yeah I know." He replied, leaning forward to put his forehead against hers.
He watched her eyes close, her fingers tightening around his as they rested in her lap. Untangling their fingers, he raised his hands to her neck, his fingers winding in her hair as his thumbs rested against her cheeks. Her eyes opened then, staring directly into his eyes. The fear still lie within and he knew nothing would make it go away until tomorrow ended with the three of them walking away in one piece. She moved suddenly, her mouth closing over his with almost a sense of urgency. Her hands moved up to mirror his own as she pushed him back on the bed. He let go of her head and closed his hands around her hips in an effort to keep her balanced. The act was sudden and surprising. And not good. He realized now why she was so upset and it hurt deeply. She had become too attached to him. What made it even worse was that he felt the same but couldn't tell her that. She slid off him and laid beside him, her head resting on his chest with her arm looped over his waist. Within moments she fell asleep. Malik continued to stare at the ceiling, his fingers running absently through her hair as his thoughts took most of his concentration.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The next morning came quickly and certainly unwanted. They moved silently around the house, getting ready for what was to come. In the car they made sure Anzu knew her role through and through. They couldn't afford any mishaps. Arriving at the location, they set to work quickly and in silence.
The plan they set up was simple. They would leave Anzu sitting alone in the middle of the largest part of the abandoned building, seemingly chained to a pole. Dirt had been rubbed on her face, arms and legs to look as if she'd been roughed up a bit prior to the arrival of Mack and Boss. Anzu sighed deep as she tried to remain calm. However, any such resolve flew out the window, so to speak, when Mack and Boss showed.
"Hope you've enjoyed your life so far, dear. It will end when I'm through with you." Mack promised.
'I hope the same for you, you bastard!' She thought angrily.
Anzu shifted slightly in discomfort. The hard ground started to hurt and she wondered when Malik and Bakura would show.
"It seems they've left you for dead, girl." Boss finally spoke.
Anzu said nothing only shrieking out as blood splattered across her front and Boss fell to the ground dead. Mack whipped around, his gun pointing ahead of him only to stare down the barrel of another.
"Did you really think we'd pass up the opportunity to finally rid be rid of you?" Malik asked as he slowly approached Mack.
Mack shifted the gun to his left hand and jerked his right arm. Anzu gasped as he pressed the barrel of another gun against her head.
"Put down the gun or she dies."
Anzu whimpered as he pushed harder against her temple. Malik hesitated for a moment. This certainly was unexpected. Mack never before carried back-up, never believing he'd need it. He would choose today of all days to start. Malik held up his hands and dropped the gun, kicking it over to Mack. Anzu began to shake. She knew something would happen. She just knew it!
"You were always such a fool Malik." Mack said as he cocked the gun in his left hand.
His right hand faltered, the gun lowered from Anzu's temple, and he leveled the gun in his other hand at Malik's chest. Anzu tore herself from the pipe, diving for the gun Malik discarded.
Two shots rang out.
Both men fell to the ground.
"Malik!" She cried as she ripped the remainder of her binds from her wrists.
Standing up, she ran over to him and dropped beside him. Blood gushed from his chest. She quickly pulled her jacket off and pressed it against the wound to stop the bleeding. He groaned out at the pressure, the only sign of life from him. She nearly cried. She had to get them out and had no idea where Bakura was as he set up the bomb.
"Malik, please get up!!" She begged.
He shifted, as if trying to sit up. Anzu wrapped an arm around his back and rose him into a sitting position, tying the sleeves of her jacket around him to keep the compression on the wound. It was a struggle but she managed to stand with him and started to walk towards the hidden door, supporting Malik's weight as he tried to move with her. Pushing open the door, the two of them stumbled out into the sun. Anzu looked around, hoping to catch a glimpse of Bakura but he, still, was nowhere in sight. Adjusting her hold on Malik, she continued on.
'Get away from the building. Get away from the building.' This thought became her mantra as she struggled to move faster.
Finally, after what felt like hours, she spotted Bakura coming around the side of the building.
"Bakura!"
His white hair whipped around his shoulders as he quickly turned his head. His eyes widened when he saw Anzu trying to carry Malik, who was virtually unresponsive. He ran over and took the semi-unconscious man from her, relieving her aching shoulders and back.
"What happened?" He asked as they got back to the car.
"Mack came with a back-up gun and forced Malik to surrender his gun. I managed to break from my bonds to get the discarded gun and shoot Mack before he shot him again." Anzu rushed out.
"He's losing a lot of blood. Stay here and keep your hand pressed to the wound. I have to finish the job." He said and ran back towards the building.
Anzu climbed into the backseat with Malik and pressed down on the make shift wrap. She gnawed on her bottom lip as she watched his face anxiously, hoping against hope that he would open his eyes and say "just kidding". But he didn't. He remained motionless, except for the movement of his chest from his labored breathing.
Bakura returned several minutes later and told her to start the car and drive. Reaching down to the floorboard, he pulled up a first aid kit. Opening it up, he pulled out all the necessary tools. He removed the jacket and opened the peroxide, pouring half the bottle onto the hole. Malik cried out, his hand shooting out to grab the back of the passenger seat. Ignoring the cries and protests, Bakura put his hand to Malik's chest and inserted the large, narrow tipped tweezers into the hole. Malik's sharp cry turned into a deep, agonized groan. Anzu had to force herself to keep her eyes on the road but hearing him made it hard to do so. She saw a cloud of smoke in the distance through the rear view mirror and knew it had been the building.
After several terrorizing moments, Bakura finally pulled the bullet and poured the rest of the peroxide onto the wound, quickly moving to sew up the wound and get the bleeding to stop. By the time he finished, Malik passed out. But the bleeding had stopped and that was all that mattered. Not enough had been lost to ensure a trip to the hospital which they had wanted to avoid. Night had fallen by the time they reached Anzu's house, granting them the cover of darkness as they carried Malik into the house. Anzu said to put him in her room and she would watch him. She and Bakura took turns showering so that one could keep an eye on Malik. She accepted his offer for dinner without so much as a glance in his direction and he headed downstairs.
Silence.
Stillness.
Each moment that passed with no noise or movement cut like a knife. She could hardly stand it. She still expected him to just sit up and be fine.
But she knew he wasn't just fine. He nearly died. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes, threatening to spill down her cheeks. Thunder rolled in the distance but the storm moved quickly and soon a downpour began. Bakura returned again with her meal. Setting the tray on the nightstand, he stood behind her.
"He will pull through." He whispered to her.
"I know, I just-" Anzu bit her lip, trying to control her emotions. "Seeing him like this just seems unnatural."
Bakura nodded his head, even though she couldn't see him.
"Did you set aside something for him when he wakes?" She asked after a few silent moments.
"Yes I did. You should eat as well while he is resting." He told her.
"I don't know if I can." She said as she looked at the plate.
She was hungry, having not eaten much that morning due to her nerves.
"Take this time to recoup yourself. You will need your strength." He reminded her.
Anzu sniffed. Reaching to her nightstand, she plucked a tissue and blew her nose. Then she decided to tackle the task of eating to replenish.
"I will be back in a moment with some painkillers for him. He will need it before he eats." He said then left the room with her now empty plate.
Sighing quietly, Anzu stood and carefully slid into bed beside him. She took his hand in hers, lacing their fingers together. By the time Bakura returned, Anzu had fallen fast asleep beside Malik.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Cast me not away
Say you'll be with me
For I know
I cannot bear it all alone
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
