I slammed against the water, with enough force to reopen most of my wounds. I sank quickly, not even trying to fight against the currents. Water filled my mouth and my lungs screamed in protest. I closed my eyes, waiting to drown.
Someone seized me around the waist. I felt myself being pulled up to the surface, and the crisp air felt like a slap in the face. The water was blinding my eyes. Yuki finally reached a depth that he could stand at, and carried me to the shore. He set me down gently, before collapsing and coughing. There was still too much water in my lungs and I was too weak. I couldn't hope to breathe. I simply lay there, waiting for the lack of oxygen to take my consciousness away.
"Don't you dare give up on me now, Rara!" Yuki gasped. He pinched my nose closed, and them pressed his mouth against mine, giving me as much of his vital air as he could. His hands pushed forcefully against my chest. He repeated the process several times until I gave in to the irresistible urge to cough. I rolled to my side, spitting up the water and gasping for air. Yuki rubbed my back until I was breathing normally.
"Feel better?" He asked, smiling at me. I noticed that his arm was covered in a vivid bruise from hitting the water. His hands were scratched and his pants had been shredded. And still he smiled as if this was the happiest day of his life.
"I swore to protect you, Yuki…" I whispered, my voice breaking. "And you've been hurt, because of me…"
I couldn't bear to look at him. I didn't want him to see how dirty my soul was. I was crying now, my shoulder shaking with the force of the emotions I was feeling. I loved him…I loved him so much…
Yuki's hand reached up and brushed away the tears on my cheek. I opened my eyes in surprise, the tears stopping almost instantly. Yuki brought his hands to my cheeks, and leaned over and kissed me tenderly.
"You don't seem to understand." Yuki breathed once he pulled away. He was still so close to me that our breath mingled together. "I need to be with you. Together forever. Or else I know I'll die. When I said my freedom was almost the most important thing to me, I meant you were the first. I am willing to deal with any pain Akito or this curse can dish out, just as long as you are by my side. Please, Rara, let me love you."
Suddenly I felt lightheaded. The area around us began to spin. For the first time in my life I felt redeemed, free from Akito. Forgetting momentarily about the curse, I threw myself onto Yuki, clinging desperately to him. It took a minute before I realized that I was still hugging a human, instead of a rat.
I drew back from Yuki in shock. He looked as surprised as I.
"You're…Not changing," I said, doing an excellent job of stating the obvious.
"I'm not," Yuki said, looking down at himself. He looked up at me joyously. He grabbed me, pulling me back into a tight embrace.
"The curse is broken, Rara! We're free!"
I held him, laughing happily. His joy seemed to be contagious.
"Please, Yuki, stay with me forever." I breathed into his ear. He chuckled slightly, one of his arms wrapped around my waist, the other pressed against the back of my head.
"Always, Rara. Always."
Ah, so this is the last chapter before the epilogue...I think this story might have been too short for my liking, so I'm working on another.
Anyways, thank you all so much for your support! It was so wonderful!
Lark