{Better run, better run; Outrun my gun}
Since the very first introduction of Time, mankind has always sought a way to reverse it. The coveted ability to defy the laws of the universe in favor of travelling back to a fatal minute to choose the other path or that one euphoric moment to bask in the glory of its good-natured warmth forever was always in the back of everyone's minds, whether they admitted to it or were even aware of it or not.
Until now, Blake had never given it a thought.
Until now, she had never needed to.
As she sat outside her school, bundled tightly in a blanket seated in the back of an ambulance, her shirt crusted with blood and eyes weary with grief, staring at the asphalt with an expression one could only liken to an unseeing corpse, she wished for a way to turn back the clock, to undo what had been done, to reverse her mistakes and hope for a better outcome.
However, her mind was torn over which moment she should go back to. There were many that led her to this place, to this spot.
Perhaps she could go back to when she was a small child and refuse to befriend the neighbour's troubled kid. The one who hid behind sunglasses even on cloudy days, the one who showed no remorse for anyone's misfortunes, not even his own. She wanted to take back all the kind words she offered, all the gentle gestures she shared and instead treat him like the monster he was, the psychopath he would grow to be.
Or maybe instead she just need to go far back enough to where she had agreed to date him, in their early years of high school. Having been friends for so long she had naturally said yes, even if it may have been for all the wrong reasons. Her attraction to him was undeniable at the time, but now she saw there had been an underlying fear of what might have transpired had she said no. There may have been an ounce of pity that weighed on her decision as well, the quiet thought in the back of her mind of his inability to find anyone else with his harsh demeanor that no one seemed to understand but her.
But maybe….she only needed to go as far back as this morning.
"Blake…why don't we just skip today?"
Blake squeezed her eyes shut, the lump in her throat cutting off her air as she shoved down the sobs that wanted to rip out of her chest. Her eyes burned with tears and she pulled the blanket tighter, ignoring the EMT who asked if she was alright.
She should've said yes.
They should've just stayed home.
"Yang you have that test in Government today! If you don't take it now you'll have to come back for exams!"
It had made sense at the time. Yang was never concerned about her grades - she knew she was smart enough to get by in life. She believed that she had nothing to prove to some stuffy academic workers that sat and dictated the lives of minors as part of their careers. She was an intelligent young girl, but if not for someone to look after her, she probably would've ended up dropping out of school ages ago.
That was where Blake came in.
They had met near the end of their freshman year. It wasn't an orthodox meeting - Yang had been in detention and Blake was assisting the teacher with after school errands. The blonde had been the only one there, something she vehemently complained about because she hadn't even "thrown the first punch".
The teacher had stepped out for a few minutes to attend some faculty meeting, and Blake had stayed behind to finish sorting through their papers when Yang had struck up a conversation with her. The brunette had been reluctant at first, but quickly relented to the blonde's never ending charm and resilience.
They had become best friends after that day.
Blake's heart ached at the memory, set in such a simple time where their ignorance of the future blinded them.
Maybe she could go back to that moment and live in it forever. To escape the harsh reality of now and revel in Yang's glowing presence beyond the limits of time, to laugh and talk with her forever and more.
Somehow, Blake had convinced Yang to come to school anyway. They drove together, like they did everyday. Of course, with all the time spent arguing, they were a bit later than usual. Yang hadn't seemed to mind, but Blake was a bit more frazzled over her worry of Yang missing her test.
It was the least of her worries.
The halls were silent when they entered, something that seemed off initially but a fact easy to ignore as Yang continued to crack jokes and prodded her sides, making her giggle and laugh despite her supposing to be upset with her.
Tears rolled down Blake's cheeks, unable to hold them back any longer.
They hadn't made it very far down the hall when Adam made an appearance, briskly walking through the halls, his eyes crazed and wild. Blake had hesitated upon seeing him, a nervousness in her system freezing her in place. At this point it had been a year since their breakup, but she still found herself cowering under his heated gaze that intensified once she announced her relationship with Yang. As children Adam always had a rash way of acting out, something that followed him into early adulthood, and it always put Blake on edge with the knowledge that, despite all that had happened between them for the past year, he had done nothing about it.
She had expected an explosion, a fit of rage…something.
She didn't have to wait much longer.
Yang had noticed him walking down the hall too and reached down to intertwine their hands and whisper a word of soft encouragement. That was right about when he noticed the two of them.
Blake could remember the heavy weight of dread and the freezing fear that paralyzed her when those crazed eyes turned towards them, the rest of his body following as he faced them completely.
And revealed the gun he held in his hand.
The two girls had frozen in place, finally realizing the intensity of the dire situation at hand. Yang had squeezed her hand tighter but stepped forward slowly, discreetly, moving in front of Blake. She remembered wanting to pull her back, the words of protest stuck in her throat, frozen by the fear that kept her grounded.
Everything after that had been a blur, her fear addled mind unable to comprehend the words that Yang and Adam exchanged, only able to pick out the cautious and slow tone that Yang used, like someone coaxing a wild animal ready to spring, and Adam's harsher, louder voice shouting at the both of them.
Her eyes flicked away for a brief second, back to the front doors to judge the distance between them and the exit, wondering if they would be able to outrun a bullet.
And then a gunshot rang throughout the halls and the grip on her hand loosened as Yang fell to the ground like a rock.
Blake had watched with wide eyes as Yang fell onto her back, her mouth open in shock but no sound being uttered. She watched as the small red dot on her chest got bigger, spreading across the fabric and fanning out beneath her as the blood pooled on the linoleum floor.
She hadn't even given a second thought to Adam at that point, instead immediately dropping to her knees to cradle Yang to her chest, screaming her name between sobs and squeezing her, pinching her, slapping her gently to get her to respond.
Her own chest grew warm with the blood that dripped down on it, but she ignored it in favor of watching the life and light seep from Yang's eyes, shaking with fear….the fear of dying.
Yang shuddered underneath her, chest heaving as she struggled to stay alive, her breath wheezing in her chest.
"B-Blake?"
The EMT was coaxing her now, holding her steady as the emotional turmoil gripped her again, the sobs ripping from her chest as she recalled the events of the past hour.
"Blake…I can't breathe…I can't breathe!"
The police showed up shortly after, apprehending Adam who had made his way over to Blake and aimed the gun at her head to off her as well. But they were too late. By that point, Yang was already gone.
And now she was sitting here, crying as she relived that painful moment, watching from the corner of her eye as Ruby, Yang's little sister, was sobbing on the school steps, her hands pulling at her hair as her father and Weiss comforted her as well. Adam had been taken to the station awhile ago, but Blake remained bitter that the one who had caused her so much pain was sitting safely in a jail cell while the one she loved more than the world itself was wrapped up in a body bag.
All her life, Blake had never thought of going back to undo what cannot be undone.
But now, drowning in her grief, it was all that was on her mind.
A/N: Another prompt I got a tumblr. It was part of an angst masterlist with little phrases. This one was "I can't breathe"
I want you all to know I hate myself for writing this. I really do. So if you hate me for it I 100% understand and agree with you.
Also sorry if it gets a bit confusing. I tried something new with my style and I'm not sure I like it. Oh well. Trial and error.
