haha...and the battle begins!

Chapter 7

"Martin?"

The wind must have closed the door, she thought, hugging her chest. Any minute now, he'd open it to confirm that the harsh wind did, indeed, cause the door to slam without any warning. She looked around the empty area, wondering what exactly his idea was on how to rid her of the tormenting entity. She'd do whatever it took even if she had to stand out here in the middle of the night in a storm that came from nowhere looking for something that usually found her. She was soaked from head to toe, freezing from that and the chilly wind that made her teeth chatter. In this weather, she'd be lucky to get just a cold and not pneumonia.

"Come on, Martin," she said impatiently to herself, shifting her weight between her toes and the heels of her feet. Yep, any minute now he was gonna swing that door open and greet her with one of those charming smiles of his that she secretly adored.

She turned to survey her surroundings. There was nothing but three small concrete guardrails. Her mind involuntarily pondered which one Natalie jumped off of. She shuddered at the thought, trying to think of something else, like why Martin was taking so long.

A sound behind her interrupted her thoughts and a slight smile slowly spreading on her face.

"It's about time," she said, trying her best to sound mad at him by not turning to face him. "I could have been struck by lightning up here, you know." She was so relieved that he was here, but he didn't need to know that. "Typical of you to take your time and diddle around."

"He won't be joining us at the moment. He's a little...stuck right now."

She swirled around in a blink of an eye, facing the figure which the voice came from. A young woman, about her age, blonde hair, dressed in a long black dress stood a couple of feet in front of her. Was this Natalie? But this girl was alive. She looked like a healthy, normal, yet a little creepy, young woman. Her resemblance to the ghost was uncanny though.

It's been seven days, Diana," Natalie smiled, taking a step towards her. "It's time."

"Natalie." Diana lowered her arms to her side, swallowing hard at not knowing what was about to come She could guess though.

"In the flesh," she smiled, tilting her head to the side. "Well, almost."

Diana did not like how that sounded and she knew well what it meant. Every part of her body begged for her to do something besides just stand there and gawk at the sight, but she couldn't. It was as if her feet had forged with the cemented ground and held her there. There was nowhere to run anymore. She at last had to face her nightmare face to face.

No more running...

Martin slid his back against the wall onto the floor, gasping for air. That damn door was not budging no matter how much he tried to force it to. He cast a hateful glance at his U-watch, cursing it silently for failing him when he needed it.

"Malfunction," he scoffed at it, removing it from his wrist and tossing it aside, hearing a faint clink as it hit the floor. He never thought he'd ever take his beloved baby off, but it was useless as of now and he was too frustrated to care.

His thoughts centered around Diana, wondering if she was okay. Either way, he was on a time limit and the clock was ticking. Any second now, Natalie would show her ugly face and Di would have to deal with it on her own. Not that she couldn't handle it, but he wanted to be there. He wanted to protect her, not because she needed it, but because he just... wanted to.

"So, why am I sitting here?" he asked himself. He jumped to his feet, heading down the stairs. He stopped, returning back to where he had sat and retrieved his U-watch. "Broken or not, I can't live without you." He grinned at it, lovingly replacing it back on his wrist.

He hurried down the stairs, skipping every other step as he did, looking down as not to trip over his own feet. He slammed into the door, knocking him back onto the bottom stairs. He grimaced as he laid there for a moment, waiting for the stars spinning mockingly around his head. For once, they weren't there because of Diana. Slowly, he moved to sit up, his palms flat on the floor to support him.

"Java?"

He jumped up, immediately grabbing the doorknob with both hands. He knew the door wouldn't open, but he had to be sure. He pushed against it, getting nowhere.

"Damnit!" He pounded a fist into the door, instantly regretting it. Smart move.

No way Java would close the door intentionally, which meant something else was up. He looked up at the stairs leading to the door Diana was behind. Natalie. This was her, he was sure of it. But my, hadn't she got smart. Successively, she had succeeded in separating them. She had trapped him in the stairway and Java who knows where and Diana on the roof. He was also willing to bet she was the cause of his U-watch malfunction.

Diana. Natalie had her right where she wanted her and he was the one that put her there. This wasn't part of his plan though. He hadn't intended on being trapped with no way to help her.

There's always a way, you just have to find it, he assured himself. But if anything happened to Diana, he would be the one responsible for it. It was his idea.

No, she's fine, he thought, trying to give himself at least a little hope. He refused to let himself think the terrible thoughts that formed in his head. He sighed heavily. He wouldn't give up...

On the roof, Diana was desperately trying to buy more time.

"Seriously, why would you want my life?" she chuckled nervously as she backed away. "My life is way too hectic. I mean, there's all my extracurricular activities, working at the Center, which by the way, is a huge responsibility. Would you really enjoy seeing slime everyday? Or-or-or being second guessed 24/7 by a guy who's IQ resembles that of a hyena?"

An unseasonably cold wind blew, sending the rain drops against her, feeling like a thousand needles puncturing her skin at the same time, over and over. A piercing laughter echoed around her, threatening to shatter her eardrums.

"I don't want your life, Diana," Natalie said sweetly, advancing on her with a crooked smile. "You're going to trade places with me."

"Okay..." she said slowly. This was bad.

"I'll get everything I wanted," she continued, extending her hand towards Diana. "You'll be dead, I'll be alive again and Jack and I will finally be together...forever."

Thunder roared across the sky. Diana jumped, a sick feeling overwhelming her. She was at the edge of the roof, nowhere to go but down. There were no more options left for her. This can't be the end. This is not the way she imagined she would go. Where the hell was Martin!

"You have no idea what it was like to see the man who you swore to love for all eternity in bed with your best friend!" She screamed the last two words, her voice rising above the already deafening thunder. "He promised me. He said we'd be together forever." Pausing, lowering her hand in sadness. "It's all your fault, Diana." Her solid form became transparent, a ghost as she took the last steps that lead her to Diana. "Now, feel the pain that I endured!"

Diana gasped, grabbing her throat, as Natalie joined her body. She couldn't breathe. Martin. Where was Martin? She collapsed forward onto roof floor, her vision blurry as the rain poured down on her from the threatening sky. She reached her hand out weakly for anyone, desperate for help.

"Martin...you promised..."

With those last words, her arm went limp and then, her eyes slowly closed.

Short chapter, I know. Don't worry though. I'm making up for it in the next chapter (which I'm having loads of fun writing btw!) Anyways, I'm lovin' the reviews from everyone and I thank you so much for them. I really don't wanna stop writing this story since you guys have been so awesome! I hope you enjoy the last couple of chapters!