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Chapter 5-Falling
The fog inside my head cleared and my heart stopped immediately. I didn't lift my head, too afraid that it was a cruel joke that my mind had decided to play on me. The man who I didn't believe was there bent down on his knees and lifted his empty hands toward my face. With an easy gesture, he elevated my tear-stained face level to his, gently lifting up my chin. I saw him, Vaughn, bruised, bloody, weary, and flawless. My heart let out a huge cry of relief. Every part of my body relaxing, he was in front of me, alive. I couldn't believe it. My mouth just dropped, trying to stammer something out but nothing came. The only thing that came out was tears, not of despair, but of pure joy. He saw the relief in my eyes and caressed my cheeks, bringing me closer into his grip. I fell into him, embracing every fiber of his being. My arms that were full of lead reached out and hugged him. I kept touching him and repositioning my hands to make sure he was real, solid, alive. My head was nestled perfectly under his chin, retaining the hard grip on him, afraid that he might be gone if I loosen my hold on him.
"I love you, Sydney. I love you, I love you," he whispered in my ear sending chills down my spine.
"I love you, too," I managed to say through deep raspy breaths and streams of tears running down my face cooling his neck.
We sat in silence cradling each other and running our feeble fingers through one another's tousled hair. Enjoying the love that we gave each other, embracing it deep down in our souls. For once it was comforting, to just sit in the sound of silence and not be afraid of it. I wanted to stay enclosed in this tiny circle of peace that we had created, disconnected from the world of darkness that lay only 5 feet beyond ourselves. How could this be? How could he be alive? I don't care, to be truthful. All I really care about is that he is here, in my arms, loving me. He brushed his hand under the nape of my neck bringing it around to my cheek, stroking it affectionately. I gazed deeply into his eyes, which were welling up with tears.
"Syd, we have to go. There'll be coming to get us any moment." He was right, but I didn't want to leave this moment. We slowly unraveled, regretting it as we broke apart. He stepped up onto his feet and held out a strong reassuring hand for help. I took it gratefully, for by now I was so weak, I couldn't stand on my own. Regaining my composure, I stood, yet still shaken from the wonderful sight of him reappearing into my life, bringing warmth to a cold night.
Timidly, we walked out of the dark shadowy cell that stole our secrets and lies. He led me past the other rooms that held desolation beyond all belief. Turning his back, mine as well, from the now empty cell, where he had lay crumpled just minutes ago, so that neither of us would see what he had done to free us. When we passed the doorway that held the motionless Sloane, I cringed with relief. Vaughn shrugged off the room, trying to leave its memory behind, I knew that wasn't possible. As we kept walking through the ghostly hallways, our pace began to quicken, knowing that we would soon be followed.
As we turned the corner, so close to leaving the secrets behind us, we heard a faint sound. A terrible sound that dampened our spirits. Footsteps. Running. Following. I didn't know where we were going. Looking at Vaughn for an answer, I knew he didn't either, his worry lines on his forehead were beginning to appear. We followed our instincts, hoping that they would prove themselves to be right. We passed room by room, void after void, destruction to destruction. The further we ran, the lighter each room got. The men chasing us, trying to kill us, began shooting at us. We were merely tiny objects at an arcade game; if you kill both of us, you'll win a promotion within the Alliance. By now, we were at full speed, running as fast as we could. My heart bursting with pain from beating so rapidly, caused my breathing to become uneven and painful. For once I was afraid I wasn't going to be able to make it out alive. Not for my sake, but for his. The enemy kept getting closer and closer, they're aiming began to get more accurate, until it struck one of us. They shot me in the back, piercing my skin, sending a shock of pain throughout my entire body. I fell to the ground, giving up, sobbing, beaten down.
"Sydney! No, come on!! We have to go!! Get up, get up, get up!!!" He screamed at me, pleading for my life.
"I, I can't it..hurts….too ….bad" I couldn't move for it caused my body to go momentarily numb.
Vaughn just stared at me with a look of horror and fear, tears streaming down his face. He glanced down the hall fearfully to where the men with hatred running through their veins continued to move closer. Losing hope, I looked up at him, mouthing the words, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I felt sorry, sorry for holding him back, killing him, stalling his pace to freedom. I'm sorry. Tears flowed out of the deadened holes where my eyes should be, unafraid. How could Sloane do this to us when he was dead. It wasn't fair, the cruelty of the dreadful situation that he had managed to place us in, as if we were Barbie dolls obeying his every command, sunk into me further as I sunk into the ground further.
"Come on, Syd. You have to. Just try, get up," he pleaded grabbing onto my arm, tugging at me with all his might, while I shook my head ever so slowly, tears flying through the hollowed space. "You have to. I love you. Take my hand." His eyes held such sorrow and anguish. Panicked and grief-stricken, he took one last look at the men and bent over top of me. He looked longingly at my tortured face, capturing every detail that embodied my features. He turned his head slightly to the side, closing his eyes, releasing tears, hoping I didn't see them. I immediately thought that he would just leave me there alone, without help, abandoning me without ever looking back like I did to him at the museum.
I was surprised when he reached under my body and lifted me up, effortlessly. Tears loomed out above both of our distressed eyes, I held on to him with all my might. Breathing in his scent, grasping onto his feelings, taking in his pain, loving him. Once he had my weak, down-trodden body, which I'm ashamed of, in his arms safe, he ran. I buried my tearstained face in his strong chest, ruining his shirt with remnants of my grief. Feeling the stale air brush past my stunned being, stinging my wound that was gushing blood, leaving a trail. He noticed this and placed one solitary hand over it, concealing it and the pain. He ran for so long, so fast that I didn't know what was going on. He finally reached a door after minutes of dodging bullets and smart guesses. We emerged from the building of misfortune and ran out of the doors into the cool crisp darkness of night. The smell of the fresh sea over our shoulders, reassured us slightly. The blood discharging from my back stained his hands, hopefully he didn't mind. They were still chasing us, unforgiving, steady. Bullets still firing away at us, inexhaustible.
Yet, he still ran with me shaking in his arms through the streets of a distant land that neither of us knew very well. I heard his every gasp for air, every pump of his heart, and every question in his head while he held me tight in his arms, forcing me against him. He took me down many streets that I didn't bother to notice, until he had run for at least forty minutes, losing the men that hunted us like deer. Finally, he stopped in the middle of a crowded street and stared at a very chic apartment in the middle of town. When he stopped, I lifted my head only three inches up, I couldn't move it any farther, wondering why he stopped. Was he giving up? Did he lose hope? Was he at a dead end, cornered in? Did he not care anymore, like me, minutes ago?
As soon as I peeked out above his shoulder, I saw it. I could only see a portion of the safehouse, but sighed a huge relief when I saw the fraction of what I did see. On the door, a wreath welcomed us with pale pink roses and bows entwining the leaves. I sank back into his consoling clasp, my vision weakening. He walked quietly up the steps to the door. Silently, he looked at me caring, then puzzled, then afraid. I saw every emotion that flashed through his heart and mind. I sighed heavily, trying hard to get enough air.
"Sydney, do you have the strength to stand for a second, if I lean you against the door? I need to search for the key. Sydney?" He looked at me nervous and frightened with tears lining his bright green eyes that shone through the dark, even when drenched in the murky texture of tears. He was trying to be brave at a time where I knew he felt like sinking down to the ground crying. I loved him more than I ever did. This forced a quaint smile out of my emotionless face. I nodded with a small, slow movement of my head. He carefully set me up against the door, placing my hands at the posts on the side for me to grab onto. Before searching for the key to enable us to rest, he kissed my head softly, calming me down, making sure I was able to stand. I latched onto the post, using all my energy I had left. I had to be strong, had to remain standing, for him. My head began to feel heavy and dizzy, fogging up. Just in time, after seconds of searching, he found the key and whisked me back up into his arms before I fell defenseless to the cement steps. Unlocking the door, he walked into the dark, empty apartment. Closing the door behind us, I saw him lock all the locks that were on the door, eight or four, I don't know, my mind still fuzzy, becoming less clear by the moment.
"It's going to be alright. Just don't worry, Syd. Okay. We'll be fine, I'll call Devlin. I'll get you help, you'll be fine. Just don't worry." He whispered into the shadows comforting me, stroking my hair, leading me to the back room.
My mind kept getting more clouded and confused with each step he took, I heard his gentle voice in the background trailing. I tightened my grip, even though I couldn't, it just kept getting weaker and weaker. My fingers flailing, reaching, slipping. I tried so hard to tighten my grip, afraid I was going to fall, tears began to cascade down my fragile face again. I concentrated so hard, but couldn't force myself to tighten my grip. He tightened his grip seeing my frustration, he read every thought in my mind. My head finally nestled into his chest, too heavy to hold up. He began to shake me, to stop me from falling, but he couldn't help it. I could distinguish only a faint cry, a plea for my safety, in the far-off world of love. I felt a tear, not of my own, splash coolness onto my cheek. With that, my vision went black, just like the world around me. More tears splashed down on my face, that I couldn't feel and never knew existed. I fell too far to fast to soon.