Chapter 16

Fear reflected clearly in Tot's eyes as she backed away from Nagi when she realized the door was now locked, her back colliding with the door in the haste. He hadn't meant to frighten her, yet if she knew his name, then that must mean she knew of Schwarz. Equalling in her being the enemy. The Schwarz had no allies, only those that are in their way. No matter how harmless she may seem, his sense of duty and what he had been taught overruled his emotions. If she was indeed part of an enemy force, she would have to be promptly gotten rid of.

She wasn't speaking, her face revealing nothing of what was going through her mind. He had none of Schuldich's telepathic abilities, the only option in retrieving any information from her would have to be taking extreme measures. Retrieving a gun that was held against an inner -vest with Velcro, he loaded a single bullet into the empty space, unlatching the safety lock in the process. Aiming the gun in her direction, he repeated his question.

"How do you know my name."

A lone tear made its slow route down her face; the mask of indifference shattering as a glass did being hit by a hammer. Replacing the mask: hope, fear, and anguish. "I was so happy. So happy. I never thought it would end up like this."

His hold on the handgun wavered. What was she referring to? Why was she crying instead of fighting back? She's acting as if this means something, as if him pointing the gun at her was any surprise. If she had tried to maneuver the gun away from him, she would have probably been succeeded. With the same expression on her face as the one in his dreams, he couldn't have pulled the trigger.

// Where the fuck are you, security's starting to swarm around the building, if you don't get out now, they'll find you. //

The voice surprised him, cutting in through his thoughts as clear as a bell. There wasn't an exit through the small room, except for the window and the door. Leaving through the window would have been only a fool's choice; he would have been easily spotted and easily killed. The door would be the only option. Clearing his thoughts of any diversions that may hold him back from using his telekinesis to full effect, he raised the gun once again at Tot.

"We're going to leave this room, try to escape, and it'll be your death wish."

Tot nodded, picking up the pink umbrella that she had dropped when she had saved Nagi from the security guards, hugging the object to her chest as if it would provide her warmth. Turning the light off from the room, he opened the door slightly, letting the light from the main lights of the hall to filter in. From his position, he could see two figures a few feet away from the door. Catching them off-guard would be the best option, any other way, and they would have enough time to draw their weapons.

He shut the door back quietly. Why was he doing this, why didn't he just leave her in this room and leave her to fend for herself? Crawford had taught him that as long as you yourself would be in no danger, then no one else mattered. Just one disappointment after another. A rustling of paper made him pause, until he realized it was the photograph that he had taken from that room that was in his chest pocket. Now he realized why he had taken the picture.

Tot was the girl in the picture.

The bodies of the security guards hit the sidewalls, making the ground shake and the lights flicker on impact. Guns that they had held clattered to the floor, and he was quick to take advantage of that fact, grabbing a hold of the semi-automatic gun. Footsteps of other security guards could be heard quickly heading their way, the first guard received a gunshot wound to the heart, dead before he even got a chance to hit the ground.

// Hurry the fuck up, Crawford's set up the exit. //

A clear, photo-like image of the top of the building filtered into his mind, disappearing as quickly as it had come after a few seconds. He heard the sudden contact of an object meeting with flesh behind him. Tot stood before a fallen man, her umbrella end revealing a sharp tip that was held up to the man's face. When she noticed him looking at her, she smiled.

"He was trying to sneak up on you."

The commotion would be known throughout the building, there would be many more security guards, more than they could handle, heading towards their floor. He instinctively grabbed her hand that wasn't holding the umbrella, running towards the direction Schuldich had shown him in his mind. There were no conversation between them, only the sound of their breathing. Left turn. Right turn. Straight ahead, he could catch the sight of the ladder that would lead them to the highest point of the building.

She must have felt his sudden change in tone, from cold indifference to grudge acceptance because she no longer looked as if she would escape. He let her climb up the ladder first, glancing back at the hallway every now and then. As he began to make his way up the ladder, he felt a pain his lower leg, as if someone had hit his calf with every strength possible. It was a gunshot wound. Envisioning the gunman being thrown against the opposite end wall, he heard the thud of the man's back hitting the wall from a distance. Tot lent a hand for the last couple of poles, closing the opening after he had made his way safely.

The unmistakable sound of the helicopter was only a faint tapping sound within the building, but was multiplied by many times now that they were out. He saw Schuldich beckoning him, a flicker of surprise in his eyes when he saw who was behind him. He was still holding onto Tot's hand, although he did not know why. There was just something familiar about her hand being in his, as if they had done something like this many times in the past.

Stepping onto the ledge of the helicopter, he gave an outreached hand for Tot to take. She hesitantly placed her hand lightly back into his.

It's because he saved me the most when no one else would.

Their hands separated, Tot backing away from the helicopter as it lifted into the air. She was already too far from his reach, the only thing he could do was watch her, her blue hair synchronizing with the wind and her eyes void of any emotion. It was as if their souls had been switched, her eyes matched the same detached gaze he had carried for as far as his memories went.

Why was she looking at him as if she was looking through him.

TBC…

Note: Very sorry about the short chapters, lack of time (between reading manga and working heh) and being tired for the rest of the time that I don't have time, this chapter took a lot longer to finish than I thought. Next update will be twice as long as compensation :)