Hey guys! I haven't dropped off the face of the planet! I am here! (DERP. IT'S ONLY BEEN FIVE DAYS, FALLEN. SHUT UP ;A;!) Okay! Anyways, So FF has revamped a lot. Hm. Hm. Yes I enjoy the plastic surgery mucho! BUT LIKE. I CAN UPLOAD COVERS FOR MY STORIES? YEAH. OKAY. /TRIES TO FIND A COVER FITTING OF MAXED OUT. /COMES OUT EMPTY.
Derp ;A;
Warning: Guys... Guys. I troll you so hard o.o. BUT THAT'S OKAY. BECAUSE YOU'LL ALL LOVE ME, RIGHT?
Dislcaimer: I DON'T OWN ANYTHING BUT MY BLOG /CLUTCHES IT TIGHTLY.
Enjoy c:
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Empty Body Bags
Bile rose up my throat.
The world was spinning.
Noises... faces... people... they were all a blurred up mess.
I couldn't think straight.
Disconnected.
Disjointed.
'Sasuke.'
"Calm down," I heard someone tell me.
"Breathe," someone's hand on my shoulder reassured me.
Breathe? Calm down? They expect me to calm the fuck down and breathe when my boyfriend is in the hands of some psychopath? Do they honestly, fucking believe I'd do something so fucking idiotic!
I'm about to lash out at them when I see it's Hinata who's been trying to calm me down.
Her eyes are dim, her hand is shaking. "Naruto," but her voice... it's so strong; comforting almost. "P-Please... try and calm down. S-Sasuke-kun w-will be alright..."
All my original irritation was beginning to simmer down. How could I get mad at her? She was only trying to reassure me. She doesn't understand that when it comes to Vincent things don't come out "all right". They come out broken, destroyed, empty.
Sasuke could come out broken, destroyed, and empty if I don't find him. I shake my head slowly, placing my hand on top of hers. "Thank you, Hinata. But if I don't get to Sasuke..." I pulled myself away from her grip, ignoring the blazing look she was giving me. With a nod I turned around and dashed off for the entrance. Jiraiya told me he'd have a car set up for me after I showed him the message. True to his word a small, totally ordinary by what I'm used to, car was parked out in the front.
"I haven't called the cops yet," were the first words Jiraiya told me as I got into the car.
"Good," I nodded. "Don't call them until we're halfway there." Vincent wants a performance, he told me. He already knows that the police would be involved and unlike any sane person he wants the attention. He wants them there. The only reason I could come up with for why he doesn't care is because he probably thinks he'll win.
That he'll have me.
That Sasuke will be out of the picture.
That he's won this fight.
I'm chewing my thumb down to the nail. "You won't win." I whisper that over and over again. "You. Won't. Win."
We're about twenty minutes away from our destination now. I dialed the authorities and told them the situation. They said they'd be there in less than ten minutes and that I shouldn't act rashly.
I shouldn't act rashly my ass.
"You're looking rather feisty." So not the time for your jokes, Jiraiya. "Kid, stop glaring at me. Being tensed isn't going to change the situation."
"Oh, you don't say? Then tell me, Jiraiya, what should I freaking do? Huh?"
"Well, for starters drop the attitude." Never! "And, secondly, you can close your eyes... and just breathe."
An intense stare down broke out between Jiraiya and I. It lasted like... ten seconds before I finally conceded. Okay, he was right. I needed to calm down. Breathe. Focus. So I closed my eyes, clasped my hands... and prayed. Just a little bit. Asking for mercy, asking that Sasuke would be okay. Praying and praying until my phone vibrated.
Tick tock, Canary.
I have half a mind to chuck my phone out the window.
+MAXED-OUT+
Building #00345 was huge, abandoned, and stereotypically the place where gangs would hang out to screw around and put things on fire.
This is the perfect place for Vincent to be.
Is it scary that when I pull out my phone, I already have Vincent's cell number memorized? I must have stared at it the entire car ride here hoping that, maybe, if I glared hard enough he'd spontaneously explode or something because of my negative energy...
Yeah... Jiraiya said I was being stupid, too.
"I'm here." Vincent picked up after the first ring, the creepy little bastard.
"Excellent. Enter through the doors and take the elevator on the right up to room 23 located on the fourth floor."
"Tch. I actually wanted to enter through the window. Thanks for reminding me about the door." I hope he caught wind of my sarcasm and that it slapped him the face.
Vincent chuckled. I hated that sound. It felt like someone was stabbing me in the ear with a needle. "Temperamental as always. Cute, Canary."
"Don't call me that." I hung up the phone. I didn't need to prolong the conversation any longer than necessary. That, and it would piss him off greatly.
"Naruto," Jiraiya came up behind me, a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. Worry lines were creeping onto his face. "I'm not letting you go in there alone."
I smiled wryly. "You're going to have to, Gramps. Vincent wants me; alone. And as much of a trap this could turn out to be, I have to play by his rules—for now." I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my skin. "He has Sasuke and he won't hesitate to harm him if I don't at least listen to him." although I really just want to punch him in the face, light him on fire, find Sasuke, and then blow up this building.
But I haven't hit that far of the deep end... yet.
Jiraiya rubbed his temples, taking out his cigarette and stubbing it out against the wall. "Fifteen minutes. That's all you've got." he caught my gaze, "Make them count."
Nodding, I felt a weird wave of nausea wash over me. "I'm going to have to..." straightening out my shoulders, I stared at the impending double doors before me before I stepped inside Building #00345.
+MAXED-OUT+
Building #00345 was a mirror image of what it was like outside, dirty, smelly, and...
"Oh God," was that a blood stain on the wall? "Gotta find Sasuke. Fast." I followed Vincent's directions and took the elevator up to the fourth floor. The elevator smelled like shit too, if you were all wondering. Unclean carpets, a flickering overhead light, button numbers 1, 2, 3, and 5 were missing. Probably Vincent's sick attempt at picking on my stupidity—or lack, there of.
He's underestimating me greatly, right now.
"Focus, breathe." I remind myself over and over again as the elevator ascends to where Sasuke will be, hopefully. "No. He will be there." No second guessing, Uzumaki. Surety, clarity, that will keep you sane. Stay focused on what you're doing. Why you're here. And the happy ending you'll have when this is all over. "I'll probably have to take Sasuke out on so many dinner dates to make up for this mess..." have I ever mentioned that Sasuke has really expensive taste in food?
Stupid rich handsome bastards.
DING... DING... DING... DING...
Destination fourth floor has been reached. The doors slowly slid open, probably from age or—most likely—to add on to the freaking creepy effect this place has. Layout was the same, broken lights, busted up walls, rooms with no doors... Oh God. Wait. That's really freaking horror-movie genre right there. Someone, or something, could jump out and I'd be dead meat!
Well, I'd risk becoming dead meat for Sasuke so...
You're here.
I have half a mind to chuck my phone at the wall.
Scared? Worried? Sick to your stomach? Or, perhaps, you're feeling all of the above?
This could have all been avoided if you stayed an obedient little child.
Just keep walking, Uzumaki. Keep walking. Don't let his texts worm their way into your head. He's playing mind games. He's trying to psyche you out. It won't work. I won't let it work.
You sure are taking your time.
Can you even afford delaying the inevitable?
Tick tock, Canary.
Room 23, the only room in this hallway with a door. Big, wide, and a horrible pukish-green. Definitely Vincent's tastes. My hand feels like it's about to fall off my wrist by the way it's shaking so much and I haven't even went for the doorknob yet.
"Sasuke... please be behind this door..." the seconds drip slowly like water droplets off an icicle. My heart's pounding furiously. My throat's gone dry and my head's throbbing. But Sasuke's behind this door. I know he's behind this door. And I'm going to grab him, save him, and then make sure he never leaves his sight.
I will bring a new term to the word "hovering" after today!
Bit by bit the room is revealed. Peeling pink wallpaper, a bed without a mattress, scattered clothing, and...
No Sasuke.
My heart fell. It splattered on the ground. I felt something rip it in half. No... No he had to be in here! I flung the door wide open, only to have my fears confirmed.
Sasuke's wasn't here at all.
Vincent was, though.
He was sitting with his back turned to me, so I got the perfect view of his hair. It had grown out considerably. His hair still held onto it's curls but it fell to a decent part of his back. Right now nothing seemed real to me. My mind was coming up with the notion that maybe... maybe this was all some terrible, terrible dream. That Sasuke wasn't kidnapped but was rather spooned to my side like he normally was and I'd wake up bawling my eyes out hysterically into his shoulder while I attempt to explain why I was even gross sobbing on his shoulder in the first place.
'God... please...please, I need Sasuke to be okay.' I had to man up now. Not finding Sasuke anywhere around was the big reality bitch slap to the face. Vincent wasn't going to play fair. If anything, I expected him to pull out a gun and shoot me in the leg so I couldn't run away. Seconds passed and neither one of us moved. I opened my mouth multiple times, but my voice refused to work.
Stupid fear.
"No hello, Naruto?" his voice was deeper, much deeper than I remembered. And it was cold, terrifyingly cold.
I took a hesitant step forward. "Where's Sasuke, Vincent? I don't have time to play your games."
Vincent chuckled, the sound was a lot more hoarse than I realized. He still hadn't made an attempt to turn around. "You're going to have to make time, then. As you've already noticed, Sasuke isn't here. But I will be able to tell you where I have put him if you follow along to a few simple rules..."
"No way, Vincent! I won't let you screw with me like that. I came here for Sasuke, that's it. Now hand him over and just leave me alone!"
"You still haven't grasped it yet, have you Naruto?" it was the first time Vincent had called me by my real name in years. This—and I do not mean it jokingly this time—means that shit has gotten real. Vincent finally got up from his chair, his arms wobbling a bit. That struck me as strange seeing that when I met Vincent he had to be in his late twenty's at least. When he actually faced me it felt like he had reached out and slapped me across the face.
"Oh... God..."
Vincent titled his head, one half of his face perfectly unblemished and the other half of his face... "Oh, this little thing?" he pointed casually to his charred face, "You could call it a battle wound, if you will. Got it during a fire fight... I'm sure you remember that night, clearly."
"Vividly," I hiss. "Glad to know all my plans hadn't gone up in smoke then."
"Fire puns, Canary? And I thought your parting gift was bad enough..." he shook his head, tapping his foot against the floor. "I'm a patient man, a kind man; I've even been called charitable."
"People you pay off don't count, Vincent."
He ignored my skillfully placed wit and started to pace. "Years I've lived with this scar. In the fire, I thought if I would die here I would at least bring you with me. But you escaped, and I got this little gift as a price. Thanks to a lovely little piece of burning debris. Ah, don't look so frightened. I haven't come here for revenge. Really, I would just like you to apologize and come back to me." he held out his hand, a ring was on every one of his fingers. "Please stop playing this game of freedom and adulthood and come back to me."
Something snapped in me then. Maybe it was the reoccurring pampering acts Vincent tried to play on me. Like I was some child who was only being disobedient for attention. As if my actions back there were merely those someone throwing a temper would do. A fire lit up in me. I had enough of this. I've had enough of Vincent coming into my life and fucking things up. I've had enough of this degrading bullshit he thinks he can place on me because of his damn superiority complex! I cross the distance between us and grab him by the collar.
"Your bullshit is getting really fucking old." I snarled. "Either that fucking burn messed with your hearing or you're just stupid, so I'll say this one more time: I. Am Not. Yours. I'm my own person! I'm free! You, you were the bane of my existence! You willingly corrupted me despite my age and let me live such a disgusting lifestyle!" I pulled him down to my face, glaring death rays of ultimate hatred into his skull. "I hate you the most. And I hope you have a horrible, painful death." and then I punched him in the face. Hard.
Damn that felt satisfying.
Vincent flew back a decent amount, his body clashing with the floor harshly. A twisted smirk crawled on my face. I really hope he got a concussion from that impact. He sure was twitching enough. Sadly it looked like he was still conscious seeing that he got up, shook his head, spit out some blood to the side, and shot me a glare.
I flipped him off.
"Wily," Vincent smirked, showing off his blood stained teeth. "But stupid." he pulled out his phone and pressed a button. I should have made a move, or a grab for it, or something. But I just stood there and listened to his next two words: "Dump him."
My heart dropped.
"What?" I exploded, fists curling up ready to connect to his face again and again and again. "You bastard!" I lunged at him, pining him to the ground and once again becoming familiar with the color of his shirt. "You dumped Sasuke! No! No he was supposed to be okay! You can't just do that!" I shook him violently, "Bring him back! Bring. Him. Back!"
"Tch," Vincent grabbed onto my hands with a fearsome grip. "Children shouldn't react so violently. I was doing what was best for you. I've been lenient with you long enough." he jerked his head a little and before I knew what happened I was hoisted up in the air by a guy three times my size.
"Let me go!" now I was really panicking. Sasuke could be dead. Or he is dead, my mind tried to taunt. Shut up, mind! You can burn in hell, mind! I struggled and struggled but dammit, this guy had an ungodly grip!
Vincent chuckled that annoying chuckle I hate so much, his stupid leather shoes shuffling against the carpet as he came to cup my cheek. He didn't cup it very nicely. "You've ran out of chances, Canary. I've tried to be nice to you. I've deposed of that hindrance for you! I even plan to forgive you for this!" he pointed to his grotesque burn. "Yet you still act this way...?" he clucked his tongue as if ashamed of me.
I growled and wrenched my face out of his claws. "Get any closer and I'm kicking you in the balls!"
"You're in no position to bargain with me, Canary." he gave another jerk of the head to his freaking inhumane lackey. "Knock him out."
"Wha—?"
All I saw was black after that. Black, and a stinging sensation that went from my neck all the way up to my head. I don't know what happened after that. All I could see was the same image over and over again in my head: Sasuke's body being dumped and nothing left but an empty body bag for sadistic remembrance.
Welp. Guys. In all honesty I was gonna let this chapter end happily. And then I was like "HA! NO! I SHALL BE MAKING THIS DRAMATIC! WOOOP!"
Don't kill me D;
