A/N: And this is the last chapter! It's been quite a ride and I want to thank all of you for making ti such a wonderful, exciting one. And who knows, there just might be a sequel…
May The Devil Come
He was here.
He is here.
On her bed.
With her.
And as she lay on his chest in comfortable silence after many, many apologetic and feverish kisses, she finally felt that she was in the place that she had been searching for all her life – home.
She stroked his face, rough with stubble, because she was afraid, even still, if she didn't touch or maintain contact with him through some way, he would slip through her fingers like sand or smoke and she would be all alone again. She shivered at that unwanted thought, causing him to pull her even closer to his chest as though he knew her thoughts and wanted to assuage her fears.
"Do you want to hear a story?"
She lifted her head to look at him and his deep brown eyes still took her breath away. His fingers lightly tickled her sides and she let out a sound that was half giggle, half sigh.
"Let me guess, you won't give me a choice."
He kept tickling her, a genuine grin breaking out on his face, and even though she had cried so much that day, she could still feel the tears gathering at the corners of her eyes. He noticed and she could see the concern in his eyes, but she smiled at him and he seemed to relax once he understood she meant the tears were from happiness.
How could she be anything but happy now that he was back in her arms and she was back in his?
"Of course not."
"Even though you're not giving me a choice, I'd love to."
I would love to listen to your voice forever because that means you are here, really here, next to me for as long as I want you. And I want forever.
"Once upon a time, there was a troubled prince who was locked away because he didn't behave. He thought that he would never find anything to live for, no purpose, no direction. But then one day, a princess as beautiful as he was troubled walked by. He suddenly knew that he had to meet her, so he broke out of his prison and somehow found her. He convinced her to let him stay and soon, her icy exterior towards him melted. They fell in love."
She opened her mouth to speak, but his finger gently pressed against her lips to silence her.
"But many people were looking for the prince and wanted to separate them, so he had to run away to protect his love and newfound happiness. But he made the princess very sad, so sad that it broke his heart. She thought that she had imagined him because he had been gone so long and her pain was so great. He came back as soon as he could and after he showed her that he was real and would never leave again, their love was as strong as ever. They lived happily ever after."
She reached up to peck him lightly on the mouth before smiling at him.
"That's our story."
"It is."
"You make it sound so beautiful, like a fairy tale."
"Because it is. You're my fairy tale, Violet. You are my purpose."
"And you're my prince."
"For forever, if that's what you want."
"That's all I'll ever want."
Waking up in his arms, she decided, is the best feeling in the world.
It was a beautiful, perfect day in paradise. It was the kind of day that remains ingrained in your memory until you're old and wrinkled, when you don't remember anything else, both brain and bone riddled with holes, but this memory is so strong it defies every decay and sickness life can throw at it. It was the kind of day that novelists write an entire book about. It was the kind of day that defines your life, your whole being, your outlook on life and love and everything in between.
It was full of laughter when her father left for the day and they made pancakes for breakfast and had a batter fight.
It was full of kisses when he licked the batter off her nose.
It was full of moans and gasps when he took her on the kitchen counter as their pancakes sizzled nearby.
It was full of playful punches when he and she played cards and she bragged about beating him again even though he told her he let her win.
It was full of tender words when he tickled her to the rug, cards scattered everywhere, and her hair was splayed like a halo, befitting her status as an angel in his mind, and he told her how she was all that was good in the world, how he admired her strength and courage, how she continued to be his light even in the darkest of his days apart from her.
It was full of warmth when they snuggled under her covers, cradled around her favorite depressing novel by Tolstoy, Anna Karenina because she just loves the self-destruction, and she made him read Vronsky in a Russian accent.
It was full of lustful gazes and sinful smirks when he began playing with her underwear while she was reading a sensual scene and soon the book was thrown on the floor as he made love to her again.
It was full of fun when they made a dinner of chicken parmesan and she drizzled the cheese in the shape of a smiley face on the food.
It was full of comfort when he made her hot chocolate and cuddled with her as they watched her favorite movie, her lips mouthing the words as he nuzzled into her hair.
It was full of love when he kissed her good night.
"I love you. I will always be here."
"I love you. Always."
The next day, however, the real world intruded like an unwelcome, nosy neighbor who can't stand the thought of anyone being happy when he was so miserable.
They awoke to a frantic knock on her door, and she barely succeeded in shoving a still sleepy Tate under her bed before her father barged in.
"Jesus, Dad, where's the fire?"
"Violet, you're going to be late for school! Get up!"
"Okay, okay, I'm up. Cool your jets."
He shot her an exasperated look before he closed the door. She waited until she heard the car start – her father probably was making another trip to the hospital to visit her mother – before she let Tate come out.
"Don't go to school. Stay with me."
"I'd love to, you know that. Yesterday was amazing."
"But…"
"But I should. Gabe would ask questions, you know."
"I hate that fucker."
"I know, but I don't want anything spoiling this for us this time."
"Okay."
He looked down for a second, and when his eyes met hers again, there was a devious glint in them.
"But at least let me shower with you."
He ducked as she threw a pillow at him.
"You'll make me late!"
"That was the plan, yes."
"Pervert."
"But you love me."
"I do."
She got to school a bit late, but she didn't really care since she felt like she was floating on clouds. He was back, he loved her, and he was never going to leave. What could possibly stop her? What on earth could threaten her? She felt powerful, infinite, and so crazy giddy with delight she almost ran into the police officer at the front doors.
"Oh, I'm so sorry."
"That is okay, Miss Harmon."
Suddenly her stomach dropped and she could feel the ice-cold adrenaline of fear run through her veins.
"How…how did you know my name?"
"Do you know a kid named Gabe? Gabe Ramos?"
"Yes."
Be cautious, Violet.
"He has been missing since Saturday. Have you seen him or have any idea of his whereabouts?"
"No. He hasn't called or texted me. I just assumed he was busy with schoolwork."
"We have reason to believe that he has been murdered."
WHAT? What reasons?
Show nothing, Violet.
Poker face.
"Excuse me?"
"There was some blood splatter left at his house despite someone obviously trying to clean it all up. I'm guessing the killer did not have time to get rid of all of it. It is being sent to the lab to be tested. I would advise you to be careful, Miss Harmon."
She gave him a guarded look.
"Why, may I ask?"
"Since people have claimed that you and he were good friends and hung out a lot, many questions will be coming your way."
He walked into the principal's office and it felt like all her systems finally came back online after being short-circuited.
And suddenly she knew.
They were going to find Tate.
She rushed home as quickly as she could skip out of math during second period. She knew it would shifty to the police, but she hoped her explanation to the nurse – that the policeman's reveal of her friend possibly being dead made her so upset that she was feeling physically ill – would throw them off for a little bit. She burned rubber as she swung into the driveway, only thinking about how she was going to protect them this time.
She knew he knew instantly what had happened by the look on her face when she barged into her room.
"The police are coming, aren't they?"
"Yes."
He crossed the room and swept her up in his arms, and she found that she didn't even care that he had killed Gabe – she knew without a doubt that he did – and as horrified as she should be, she knew it was because he didn't want to lose her to him. He just eliminated the competition in the most final way possible.
She was surprised how much she was just like him on the inside. Maybe that's why she fell so far in love with him.
"Do you trust me?"
She just buried her face in his chest further.
"Do you trust me, Violet?"
And she looked up into his eyes and said the answer that she knew was true in her heart all along, way back when he shot those robbers for her, probably even when he climbed through her window the very first time.
"With my life."
The test results came back that evening. The sample had two blood types. One was Gabe's. The other was Tate's.
And all hell broke loose. News channels, police, everybody knew his face that night.
And when the cops came busting down the Harmons' door that evening, they broke the lock only to find an empty house.
Because this time, Violet went with him.
And as her car flew down the freeway out of LA to another life, her hand slipped into his and he uttered the words that she would always remember as the ones that brought her back to him, forever.
"I will never leave you."
And she whispered back the words he had longed to hear, that he imagined her saying every night that he was away, staring up into the bland ceiling of some no-name motel and picturing her beautiful face instead.
"Because I will always be here."
A/N: Reviews make me so happy!