Chapter 22

Due to Paul's frustration, he would normally work out; however, he told Dawn he wouldn't come by the bathroom unless she asked for help. He should probably check on her though since assassins are stealthy. "Dawn?" he yells loudly into the hall.

"What?" she shouts back, and he lets out a sigh of relief. "What?" She shouts again, which makes him chuckle despite this being a terrible situation.

"Nothing!" He replies. Paul then takes out his phone again as it's vibrating, and he sees Drew is the caller.

"What the fuck, Paul!" shouts the man over the phone. Paul winces while pulling the device away from his ear. "Junior's fucking pissed, man! What happened?"

"I don't know. He tried to hurt her." Paul closes his eyes in frustration but then remembers he needs to be keeping an eye on the hallway in case someone sneaks in.

"Dawn? I thought we told her to lay low? What the heck?"

"I don't know if it's a coincidence or not, but I'm starting to think that it's not." Paul mutters. "They must know she's working with us now."

Drew sighs and tells him, "We have Misty."

"That's good."

"Uh huh. And Ash is in the basement of Hayden Mansion. May is trying to hack into the security feeds at Hayden Mansion to see if we can find him."

"We gotta do this soon, Drew. They suspect us."

"I know." Drew replies. "Just give us a few days to locate Ash, and then we'll call you. I wanna rescue him before we take down the family."

"Why not do both?"

"It's too risky. You know that, Paul." Drew lets out a breath while Paul thinks about his words. Of course Paul should know that everything is risky right now. "Look, Hayden Family is too busy trying to kill Leaf, so I'd say you and Dawn should be okay for a while. Just stay alert and don't go to either of your homes."

"Alright."

"Oh and be sure to use protection wherever you are." Paul ends the call. He's not in the mood for Drew's teasing.

The bluenette walking out in a large black t-shirt and athletic shorts get Paul's attention as a dark blush appears on his face. Her hair is wrapped up in the towel he gave her, and she somehow manages to look very nice in his large clothing. When she looks at him, he quickly gazes on the ground. "You can have this bed." he mutters.

"Where are you gonna sleep?" Dawn doesn't feel safe being separated from Paul, even if they are under the same roof.

"Floor." Fortunately for her, he also doesn't feel comfortable leaving her alone. Besides, it's not like he didn't enjoy sleeping in the same room as her last weekend.

"You had the floor last time. Let me take it this time."

"No." Paul sternly says as he glares into her midnight blue eyes.

Dawn can't help but be entranced by his worried coal grey ones. He really is concerned about her despite not having feelings for her. Dawn's heart beats quicker at his kindness, even if he goes about showing it differently than others. "Fine." She reluctantly gives in. Paul then grabs clothes and a towel, but before he can leave the room, Dawn quickly hangs onto his arm. He gives her an annoyed look.

"What if someone comes?" she asks in a shaky voice.

Dawn's right. No one is ever fully safe with Hayden Family. Groaning, he leads her to the bathroom where he puts the lid on the toilet and has her sit down. "No peeking. And stay off your phone. They can track you." He then gets in the tub fully clothed as he closes the curtain most of the way.

Dawn looks towards the hallway while Paul undresses and throws his clothes on the ground near the tub. When she hears the water running, she turns back to face the wall and lean on the back of the toilet. "Thanks, Paul."

Even through the loud water, Paul can hear her. She's only like a foot away from him anyway. "Hm."

She sighs as the tears start to well up again. What trouble has she gotten herself into? Zoey and everyone were right when they told her not to take the job with Hayden Family, but would this still have happened if she rejected the job anyway? Paul did say that Junior gets pissed off easily. Shaking her head as she keeps her tears at bay, Dawn knows she'd still be in this mess because she wouldn't leave Paul alone. She can't leave this man alone.

Even before she knew anything about him, Dawn felt drawn to him, like they are meant to be together. It's why she is always relieved to see him despite his scariness. Now, she likes him too much to ever leave him, so yes. This was bound to happen eventually, and Dawn finds herself okay with it. This is nothing like her situations with her exes because Paul isn't manipulative or toxic. He protects her and has never lied to her. "I appreciate you helping me all the time. I don't know what I did to deserve it, but I'm happy I met you."

Sighing, he turns off the water since his quick shower is done. "Turn around." He orders.

"Done."

Paul then grabs the clean clothes on the nearby towel rack. He slips on the boxers and t-shirt after drying his body with the towel. Since he doesn't want his sweatpants getting wet in the tub, he steps out to put them on. "Let's go." gruffs out Paul, and Dawn follows him to the kitchen giggling at his tone.

"Let me cook!" Dawn exclaims. "It's the least I can do for all your help!"

For the first time in a while, Paul finds himself smirking. "Are you sure you can cook?"

She glares at him as she washes her hands. "I can't afford to eat out for every meal, like someone, so I cook all the time. Besides, you like my cooking." She recalls how Paul would eat her food last weekend.

Paul can't help but chuckle as she sticks her tongue out at him. He sits down at the small table and scrolls through his phone. Drew, May, Ash, and Leaf never text him for fear of their messages getting hacked into. They only ever call each other, but Junior and Matthew constantly text Paul details for where they want him and when. Paul frowns at a text from Junior calling him a dirty dog and threatening him and Dawn. While Paul is used to Junior's empty threats and name calling, Paul knows Dawn doesn't deserve it. She's trying to live an honest life as she's never done anything to offend anyone.

"How long do I have to stay here?"

He looks up at the nervous bluenette. "At least the weekend."

"Will I be safe after?" she whispers, and Paul frowns. He honestly doesn't know the answer to that, but he can't watch her all the time since he works for Hayden Family and will be called out here and there. When he doesn't answer, Dawn quietly looks back at the food she's cooking. If Drew doesn't get back to him this week, Paul will have to resume work like normal, leaving this woman all alone.

Later, the two eat in silence. Dawn's cooking is actually really good, like last week, so Paul finishes seconds. Dawn has been eating slowly, which Paul assumes is because she's scared. He notices she picks at her food between bites, but at the restaurants, she was eating just fine. "I won't let anyone hurt you." He doesn't know why he said it. Maybe just to give her some hope? However, it works as she smiles warmly at him, which makes his heart beat faster.

"Thanks, Paul. I know you'll protect me." She shyly giggles, and this makes him blush too. Gosh, he hates when this happens. She's just some troublesome woman who can't seem to take care of herself, but Paul doesn't mind it. He usually hates weak people, especially if he has to take care of them. This bluenette is changing him every day.

Once they finish eating, it is very late now, so they decide to sleep. Paul sets up a blanket and pillow on the floor near the bed while Dawn sleeps on the double bed. She can tell it's a new bed since it still feels firm with no divots. Even the sheets smell new. "Is this your room?"

"Yeah."

Dawn closes her eyes as she tries to picture a young Paul playing in here. She knows this is a three-bedroom house, but she hasn't explored it out of respect for Paul. The other two bedrooms have their doors shut, so Dawn assumes those are his brother's and parents' rooms. With her heart aching, Dawn reaches her hand over the side of the bed to graze his arm.

Paul doesn't move from her touch because he likes it. He only likes it when she touches him. Well, he only likes things when she's doing them. "Today wasn't your fault." Dawn opens her eyes in confusion. "Don't blame yourself for falling into Junior's trap. He's a dirty snake."

She can't help but smile at him trying to make her feel better. Even though he's such a grouch, Paul has a soft heart. "You're not a dog either, Paul. You're a wolf."

"I'm just Paul."

"I like just Paul." She giggles and then blushes as she realizes what she just said. "Uh. As a person! I like you as a person and I like you like you!"

The blushing man chuckles on the ground while she quickly retracts her hand in embarrassment. "Go to sleep, troublesome."

He then covers his ears as she exclaims, "My name is Dawn!"

Outskirts of Veilstone City

"You sure walk fast for someone wanting to die the other day." Gary mutters from behind the brunette.

"Maybe I just want you to see what you can't get." she winks playfully when she turns her head to him before looking back at the road ahead of her.

"I can get whatever woman I want."

"You can't get me."

"I don't want you."

"Everyone wants me, Oak." Leaf teases, even though she's right, just not in the way she's talking about. Many people want her for her assassination skills while Hayden Family wants her for her death.

Gary chuckles at the playful assassin because he never suspected someone like this can be so skillful at killing. After waking up yesterday, Leaf found some energy for them to leave the abandoned building. She later stole a dark green shirt from someone's clothesline and a black hoodie since her jacket and tank top were destroyed.

Although the two are more comfortable around each other, especially since they've seen how much the other is willing to save them, they have been able to work together better. Gary is still wary of Leaf's injuries because he thinks she's just acting tough right now. The way she was behaving the other night really worries him, so the fact that she's walking around normally now concerns him some more. Leaf, though, is fighting through her injuries. At least until they reach a safe enough place for her to relax because, as much as she trusts Gary to protect her, she knows he's no match for the top guns of the Hayden Family.

When Leaf stops walking, Gary curiously looks at her back. She then motions for him to crouch down, which he follows. Peeking over her shoulder, Gary spots a lone house further down the street in the dimly lit night. However, he now sees why Leaf abruptly stopped walking as there are many large black cars outside with even more people in black. "Is that the Hayden Family?" he whispers to the assassin who nods.

Being very close to Leaf, Gary finds his face heating up, and he hopes it's due to the body heat. Leaf also feels a blush on her face after Gary's warm breath hit her ears when he whispered. Why is her heart beating this rapidly? It's not for him, right? It's because there's a bunch of Hayden Family goons down the street. That must be it.

With a smirk on her lips, Leaf whispers, "Paulie's in trouble." Grabbing Gary's wrist, she crouches away from the scene. She doesn't know what Paul did to piss off the family, but she isn't sticking around to find out. A healthy Leaf could take on all of those thugs. Not this battered and weak Leaf though, especially with Gary Oak as a liability. Sighing pains her wound again; however, Leaf has fought through the aches.

If Paul hasn't been captured by the Hayden Family yet, she knows where he is. And if he did get captured, then that second house of his is a great place to lay low for some time. Maybe Drew or May will stop by it too? May must know about its existence, right? Of course, Leaf only knows because she stalks everyone who's a threat to her, but she never tells Matthew their secrets. It's how she's able to have some leverage in case she needs it.

"Where are we going now?" Gary asks once they're further away.

"Back into Veilstone." Leaf grins at the man beside her.

Smirking, Gary replies, "If you just wanna walk around town with me, you don't have to lie about Paul's location."

The assassin rolls her eyes before sliding her hand from his wrist to intertwine their fingers. Now it's her turn to smirk as she sees the bright red flush on his face under the moonlight. "If you just wanna walk around town with me, you don't need to be shy." She mocks the man who has now gone quiet while averting his gaze.

Knowing she's won the battle, Leaf continues walking hand in hand with Gary. She likes the way their hands fit together, and it's a lot warmer than keeping hers in her pocket. Besides, a blushing Gary Oak is very cute, which makes the assassin's face flush thinking about it.

Gosh, she hates how she had to kill his sister. It's only complicating things for her now because Leaf's feelings are involved. This is why she's supposed to be a stone-cold assassin who doesn't mingle with anyone. Clutching Gary's hand tighter, Leaf decides to focus on the task of finding Paul's second house. Her feelings can wait until everything is over.

Drew's Apartment

"What did Paul say?" May asks her friend as he walks back in from the hall.

"He says Junior made a move on Dawn."

May raises an eyebrow at him while Misty resumes looking through the bloody papers. "You mean like sex or killing?"

"Sex and now he wants to kill her." Drew mutters while sitting down next to her, and May quickly types away on her laptop. "Have you been able to hack all the cameras yet?"

While May has access to most cameras in Hayden Mansion, she never knew there were some she didn't have access to. However, the woman has been working to try and figure out where these cameras are as well as how to hack into them. "If I can find the cameras, I'm pretty sure Matthew has some other skilled technician keeping me out of them."

Chuckling, Drew ruffles her hair. "But you're the best, May." She blushes at his contact and compliment because Drew rarely says anything nice to her.

"While May looks for Ash, we need to make a plan to rescue him." Misty tells the blushing adults who quickly remember she's in the room.

Sheepishly rubbing the back of his head, Drew nods. "Yeah. I can't go in without drawing suspicion since I never go there."

"It's fine. If you can sneak me in, I'll get Ash."

"You're not strong enough to make it to him." Drew tells the determined woman. He hasn't figured out what her and Ash's relationship is because it seems like Misty sees Ash as more than a friend. What kind of friend, best friend or not, will risk their life to this extent? There has to be something more, right?

Glaring at Drew, Misty replies, "I don't need to be strong. Just smart."

"Yeah, Drew." May chimes from behind the laptop, causing him to roll his eyes.

"Look, Misty, you're not going in alone. We have a team-"

"So I'm going in with you and May?" What team is Drew talking about? All she's seen are him and May. The other people May had mentioned seem to be in their own mess.

Annoyed with her snappy tone, Drew responds, "The way you're going about it, you're gonna get Ash killed!"

"He wouldn't be in this situation if your family never threatened him!"

"Stop!" May shouts before Drew can say anything. How dare this woman come into Drew's place and say these mean things without even knowing him? Everyone here is trying to help her friend, but she's being so ungrateful! It's infuriating! "You know nothing about Drew, so don't assume he's like his family!"

"I can take care of myself, May." Drew narrows his eyes at Misty.

"No! She needs to know that she can't just say untrue things to you! We're all trying to save Ash, and if she wants no part in it, she can leave!"

Misty glares back at the two before huffing out, "Fine. I knew this was a mistake."

Shaking his head, Drew storms off. He returns when Misty has finished packing up the papers, much to May's annoyance. Drew tosses something at Misty who easily catches it, and when he sees her angry gaze soften, he knows he can trust her. Before May can say anything, Drew approaches the brunette to place a hand on her shoulder while they both watch Misty stare at the bloody cap.

After a few more silent minutes, Misty chokes out, "Where?"

"With the papers." Drew responds nonchalantly. "I'm nothing like my family. I want them gone probably more than both of you combined, but we need to trust each other if we're gonna take them down and save Ash."

Misty traces the brim of the hat with her fingers and brings it closer to her chest as she hugs it. Besides that one picture of Ash, she has nothing to remind her of him. This bloody cap means everything because it's the one he wore growing up. The one he promised to give her but never did. Burying her face in the bundled up hat in her chest, Misty mutters, "Okay."

May sighs before returning to her laptop. As much as Misty's attitude has been annoying her, May does know the woman is going through a lot. May doesn't understand how much Ash means to Misty, but May can see now that Misty must be very worried. No wonder why the black haired woman is frantic, even if her worries for Ash doesn't justify the rudeness.

When May sees Drew walk back down the hall, she places her laptop down to follow. Misty is still having a moment with Ash's hat, so May doesn't feel comfortable being alone with her. Once the brunette is in Drew's room, she spots him angrily kicking his chair, which makes her rush to him. "What are you doing, Drew!" She exclaims.

After seeing how much Ash means to Misty, Drew couldn't handle his emotions anymore. How can his family do this to these innocent people? Dawn was just unlucky to have found the papers, and now she's stuck in this mess endangering her life! Ash, one of the kindest souls Drew knows, doesn't deserve to be tortured right now. Heck, even Misty doesn't deserve to be living in torment while she doesn't know the well-being of her best friend. Everything just sucks, and it's all his family's fault!

"This fucking sucks!" Drew shouts in frustration, but before he can destroy something else, May hugs him.

Looking up at those furious green eyes of his, she softly says, "Drew."

Her voice calms him. It always does. That's why he asks her to come over all the time because he has constant nightmares of his parents' murders. Drew's also convinced that Matthew has something to do with his parents' deaths, but he'll fight that battle later. Wrapping his arms around her, Drew sobs into her shoulder. Misty is right. Everything is his family's fault. Why was he born into this damn family?

Paul's Second House

Paul hadn't slept much last night since he was scared an assassin would sneak in. Dawn was the same way as she felt herself constantly waking up. Thus, both adults decide to just get up early rather than risk sleeping. Of course, they go everywhere together. When Paul's in the bathroom, Dawn stands in the doorway with her back to him. When Dawn uses the bathroom, Paul does the same.

Dawn cooks breakfast while Paul works out. He wants to be ready for whoever may try to show up. What is he going to do once Monday hits and Dawn needs to go to worK? He doesn't know because he'll also have to be at work. Gosh, this stresses him out so much! Why are things so complicated now? Should they even go to work? That'll definitely draw suspicions if they don't have any on them already, but that would also put Dawn at risk. As good of a fighter Paul is, he knows he can't fight everyone Hayden Family sends after him, especially if they hire new assassins.

The day consists of the two just sticking near each other. Since Paul doesn't have a TV and Dawn can't use her phone, she is pretty bored. All Paul does is train or nap. How can someone live a life like this? He does work for the man trying to kill her, so maybe this is just his life? Dawn has somewhat gotten to learn about Paul these past two months, but with the currently tense situation, they're not talking as much. It's like they're avoiding the obvious question: are they safe?

Dawn blushes as she watches sweaty Paul doing push ups in a black tank top and sweatpants. No wonder why he's so attractive. Unfortunately for her, Paul seems to notice the eyes watching him, so he smirks. "You're drooling."

She quickly wipes at her face to realize he was lying. Glaring at the snickering man, Dawn exclaims, "You're annoying!"

Paul stands up to walk over to the blushing bluenette sitting at the table, he gets really close to her. Close enough that she smells his sweat and can feel his warm breath on her face. "And you're troublesome."

She pushes his sweaty chest away from her as she yells, "My name is Dawn!"

Before Paul can say something snarky, his phone rings. Seeing that it is Drew calling, he picks it up and walks away from Dawn. "What?"

"I heard Matthew gave the order to leave Dawn unharmed."

"Yeah." Paul feels relieved that Matthew kept his word, even if the Hayden head suspects Paul's loyalties right now.

Drew then sighs worriedly. "What was the price, Paul?"

"Don't worry about it."

"We both know Matthew doesn't do things for others without favors."

"I can handle myself. You worry about finding Ash." Paul then ends the call and resumes working out. This is very stressful indeed.

Seeing Paul's scowl after they were just teasing each other concerns Dawn, so she grabs his large arm to prevent him from walking off. When his annoyed coal eyes meet her worried blue ones, his gaze softens. How can this woman always calm him down? How can she make him feel like nothing else matters but her? "Are you okay, Paul?"

Giving her a soft smile, which shocks her, he nods and resumes his workout. Matthew can give him any orders. Matthew can do anything to him. As long as Dawn is safe, Paul doesn't care. It's why he's trying too hard to protect her anyway because he likes her too. Paul mentally laughs at himself while doing more pushups. He's not sure if his heart is beating fast from the workout or because he's finally accepted his feelings for this troublesome woman.

After Paul and Dawn finish showering, they're in his room getting ready for bed. Of course, the two argued a lot throughout the day with Paul calling Dawn "troublesome," and Dawn calling him an "ass." This woman amuses him, and he finds himself looking forward to the time they have together.

"Hey, Paul?" comes the soft voice from the bed.

"Hm?"

"Can you sleep up here?"

He instantly opens his eyes as blush tints his cheeks. "No."

"But we both couldn't sleep last night because we were worried. If we're next to each other, we'll be able to feel if someone tries to harm one of us." Dawn is so glad that the lights are off because she is blushing profusely. She also won't admit that she feels safer with Paul closer to her.

"No." Her logic makes sense, but he won't listen to it. Whenever he sees her in his clothes, it makes his heart beat too fast. Sleeping next to her in his clothes is going to be impossible to sleep. At least with him being nervous about an assassin, he's able to get some shuteye.

"Fine." Dawn grabs her pillow and lays down next to him on the ground, which makes him blush more.

"What are you doing?"

"Since you won't sleep on the bed, I'll just sleep on the floor." She curls up a few inches away from his chest, and Paul really hopes she doesn't hear his heart pounding.

"Go back to the bed."

"No! I'm scared, Paul!"

"I already said nothing will happen to you!" Gosh, she's so troublesome! When she turns to face him, he sees her pleading midnight blue eyes in the moonlight, which makes him quickly sit up. "Okay. Stop being troublesome already!" He yells in frustration. Paul Shinji normally doesn't lose his cool, but he's realized that he doesn't act like himself around Dawn anyway.

"Well, if I die, just let me sleep next to you one time!"

"That's so stupid!" groans Paul.

"You're stupid!"

Her outburst shocks him, so he glares at her. "If anyone here is stupid, it's you!"

"How am I stupid?"

"You're the one running around Hayden Mansion knowing you could die! Butting your head into places it shouldn't be and bringing yourself into this situation!"

"Maybe you should've just left me alone in the beginning then!"

"Maybe you should've never taken Junior's job!"

"Rejecting him probably would've landed me in this situation anyway!"

Massaging his temples from all her obnoxious yelling, Paul's scowl deepens. Why is he even arguing with her? Paul Shinji doesn't argue with anyone or raise his voice ever. This is all too troublesome, and it's because of her. "Whatever." He mutters before getting up and tossing his pillow on the bed. The hardwood floor has been hurting his joints, and if she's not gonna use the bed, he will. Paul is tired of being kind, and he's just tired.

However, he feels a weight on the bed and opens his eyes to see her laying next to him. She reaches out to his arm and clutches it, which makes him blush again. Even though Dawn had slept holding his arm before, Paul blushes more now because they're on the same bed. Gosh, this woman. Does she really have no fear? Does she not see him as a man? "Aren't you scared of me?"

When she shakes her head, he feels like he wants to hug her. Everyone is scared of him, and it sucks at times. However, Dawn hasn't shown any fear of him after the day he kidnapped her. "Why?"

She shrugs while still clutching his arm. "Because if you wanted to do something to me, you would've done it already." The bluenette recalls how her and Paul slept in the same room last weekend, and nothing happened. Paul isn't like Junior, rather, Paul has morals and is righteous. It's another reason why she likes Paul. Plus, she wouldn't mind if anything happened with him. Dawn feels her face heat up from the impure thought, and she really hopes Paul can't see it in the dark room. "Besides, I see how stressed you are trying to protect me. How can someone like you possibly scare me?"

Much to Dawn's dismay, Paul pulls his arm away from her. Why is she saying these things? Yes, she likes him, but that wouldn't be the only reason she's being nice to him right? There have been women who are infatuated with the sexy gangster, though that's just because of his looks. Dawn sees him as more than a hunk of meat, or a dog like the Hayden Family perceives him; she views him as a person.

She can see his intentions, despite him not blatantly showing them. Paul finds himself cupping her cheek with his hand as he stares into those adoring blue eyes. Maybe this is why he's going to such great lengths for her? She not only makes him happy, but she treats him like himself, and he finds himself showing his true personality to her. The two are entranced in each other's eyes causing them to slowly start inching towards each other until Paul feels a cold hard barrel pressed against the back of his head.