Snapped
Lee cringed as he sat in his car listening to the news report on the radio. More bodies were being found every day. By now, the town was merely inhabited by people who thought nothing bad could ever happen to them. It had been nearly two months since he had seen one of his closest friends killed by his husband of seven years.
"I," Gaara smiled, twirling the bloody knife in his hand, "am the angel of death."
"Gaara, this cannot be true…" Lee said in disbelief. "You are killing all of these people?"
"Yes… All of these people… All of our 'friends'… I'm the one who's killing them all…"
"Why?" Lee asked in a choked voice.
"Because," he grinned maniacally, "it makes me feel alive!" Lee sat in amazement at the joyous look on Gaara's face at the thought of death. Slowly, he rose to his feet, keeping eye contact with his lover. He held the smaller mans gaze for a moment before he could no longer take it.
"I am sorry." His eyes were downcast for a brief second. Suddenly his eyes locked back on Gaara, one hand sweeping the redheads' arm away a safe distance. Gaara inhaled sharply, shocked at the sudden movement. Lee saw his opening, darting for the door. He knew it was a horrible idea, but he stopped in the doorway, turning to look back.
Lee slammed his fists against the steering wheel and cussed quietly under his breath. Everything could have worked out if he hadn't looked back. He could have moved on, thrown away his wedding ring, moved to a new town, changed his name and his looks, started a new life. All if he hadn't looked back.
He thought over the numbers quickly. There were only about three dozen people left in this town. All of them kept their doors locked and their blinds lowered all hours of the day. Rarely was any person seen wandering town. An occasional car sped down the street, in a hurry to get wherever they were going. In the past two months the town had gone to hell. It looked deserted and everything seemed to vouch for it. The streets and sidewalks were filthy, gathering litter. There were no signs of life left in all of town.
Gaara must have kept everything calm and collected after Lee escaped. There were no leads on who the serial killer could be, no evidence or suspects at all. Lee felt a small smile tug at the corners of his mouth. This was Gaara, after all. He was meticulous and cautious. If he didn't want to be found, he wouldn't be.
Lee dropped his head against the steering wheel with a loud thud. That was the problem. He was still in love. Somehow that hadn't changed when Gaara began killing all of their friends. In fact, it had grown. Lee jumped slightly at the realization. Once the murders began, Gaara had become less silent and static. He talked more with the group occasionally, he didn't mind going out to meet friends, and the way he started to kiss Lee, so gently and pure, it made his head spin.
Gaara was everything to him, his entire world, and still was.
Strangely enough, Lee's desire to see him again grew with every broadcast on the radio. The report of a new death made him quiver, thinking of how happy Gaara would be right then, still coming off the high of his latest murder.
Lee stopped in the doorway, turning to look back. Gaara still looked so happy, a genuine smile stretching across his face. He was overjoyed, Lee realized with a jolt. Gaara had never been this happy. Not when they started dating, not when Lee proposed, not when they got married. Lee had never seen Gaara this happy and excited in his entire life.
He loved it.
It hit him like a brick wall.
Seeing Gaara in such joy made Lee feel just as happy. He wished he could see Gaara like this more often. He wished that he could still hold and kiss him while in this fog of pure delight.
"I can…" Lee thought out loud. "I can still hold him… I still love him… I want him to be happy…" His said, his voice cracking. There was something in his head, something that had never set quite right or been entirely stable.
It finally snapped.
A huge grin swept across his face and he started the car. He quickly drove through the abandoned streets to his old house, murmuring "I love him…" and "I want him to be happy…" the entire way.
Lee paused, standing outside the front door of his house. Taking a deep breath, he knocked loudly with a quiet sigh.
"Come in." Gaara called from inside. "It's open." Lee pushed to door open and peered inside. Slowly he stepped into the house and looked towards the kitchen. Gaara turned to see who had willingly entered the house, a piece of toast held between his teeth, knife under his belt. His head tilted slightly to the left as he watched Lee with slight astonishment.
"Gaara…" Lee whispered, smiling faintly. "Gaara…" He walked forward slowly, unsure of how Gaara would react. Gaara dropped the toast on the table with little thought.
"Lee… You came back?" His voice was laced with disbelief and faint happiness. Lee smiled and walked into the kitchen.
"Yes… I wanted to be with you again… I need to be with you." Lee stated firmly. "You are still killing people?" He asked softly.
"Yes, I am." Gaara growled lowly, suspicion working its way into his words. Suddenly, a grin burst across Lee's face and he stepped closer to the smaller man. Gaara watched him closely, his fingertips brushing the handle of his knife.
"That is wonderful!" Gaara's eyes widened at that statement. Lee's eyes were shining with joy. "Oh this is wonderful!" Gaara's hand fell from his knife as Lee closed the distance between them, pressing their lips together. It was strange. The way Lee kissed him now was so different from how it used to be. Now it was more sensual, more needed, more passionate than it had ever been. He could feel the desire burning in Lee's lips.
"Lee…" He said, pulling away for air.
"Let me help you, Gaara…" He said softly against Gaara's cheek. "Let me help you feel the joy I saw in your eyes… The night you killed Neji-kun…" Gaara's heart skipped a beat.
"You… want to help me kill?" He asked in awe.
"Of course… The happiness I saw that night… I want to keep seeing it… I can help you…" Lee smiled broadly, kissing Gaara with more passion than ever. Gaara let his eyelids flutter shut, sensations of need and lust coursing through his system.
"Tonight…" Gaara hissed quietly. "We go out to find someone tonight."
Lee nodded happily, kissing Gaara's neck and jawbone. "Of course…"
Naruto sighed as the doorbell rang. "Hey, Sasuke, someone's here!"
"Then answer the door, dobe!"
"Fine!" Naruto shouted back as he walked towards the door. "Hello?" He asked lazily and shoved the door open.
"Hello, Naruto-kun!" Lee said happily.
"Hey, Bushy Brow." Naruto smiled. "What's up?"
"I just wanted to make sure that you and Sasuke-kun were alright." Lee responded. "With all of these murders, I wanted to make sure that you two were faring well."
Naruto nodded. "Yeah, we're doing fine." He paused and looked down the hall before inviting Lee to sit on the couch. "Hey, Sasuke! Get you emo ass out here! We've got company!"
"Hold on, dobe!" Sasuke yelled back.
Lee smiled briefly before burying his head in the crook of his elbow as a heavy coughing fit came over him.
"Dude, you ok? Need some water?" Naruto asked.
Lee nodded. "That would be wonderful, thank you." Naruto nodded back and left for the kitchen.
The front door slid open silently and shut just as quickly as Gaara slipped into the house. Lee smiled lovingly at him. Gaara held a finger to his own lips, drawing his knife with his other hand while a faint grin pulled at the corners of his mouth. Lee looked back towards the kitchen when Gaara had disappeared down the other hall. Soon Naruto came back, handing Lee a glass of water.
"Thank you."
"Don't mention it." Naruto grinned. Silence engulfed the house for a few moments before Naruto shouted again. "Sasuke!" He waited. "Sasuke, what the hell? Get out here!"
His words echoed faintly with no response.
"Damn it…" Naruto growled, walking down the hall. Lee waited a while, looking around aimlessly. He sighed gently, letting the minutes tick by. He knew it would take Gaara a while to carve his signature on both bodies, so he sat patiently.
"There you are." Lee smiled, watching Gaara walk back out of the hall. His shirt had a crimson handprint sliding down the front and his hands were soaked in blood. "Are you ready to go home?"
Gaara thought for a moment. "Not quite." He left for the bathroom, washing the blood off his hands and only touching things with a towel. He rummaged through Sasuke and Naruto's clothes before taking one of their shirts and changing. Lee stood smiling, stuffing everything they had touched into a plastic bag he had kept in his pocket. "There's one more house I want to go to."
"Where is it?" Lee asked as they walked out to the car. Gaara recited the address. "That is…" Lee paused. "That is my fathers' house…" He said quietly. Soon his expression reverted to its full grin. "Alright, we are going to Guy's house." Gaara smiled at his words and got into the car with him.
"Just a moment!" Guy shouted as he walked towards the door.
"Hello, Guy!" Lee said happily.
"Hello, Lee!" Guy hugged him tightly. "Oh, hello there, Gaara!"
Gaara smiled faintly, standing quietly next to Lee.
"Oh, how rude of me. Come in, come in!" Guy stepped aside and ushered them into the house. "Have a seat! I'll go get drinks!"
Lee grinned at how quickly it was progressing. Guy was already leaving this room. His back was turned. Gaara stood silently, his knife sliding from beneath his belt and shirt flawlessly.
Guy glanced at the clock, noticing a swift movement in the reflection on its face.
Bang!
Lee had one hand over his mouth, tears beginning to well up in his eyes. Guy was standing stock still, gun in hand, holster showing beneath the raised hem of his shirt. Gaara had crumpled to the floor, bullet wound in his chest near his heart.
"Gaara!" Lee screamed. He ran to his husbands' side, crouching down and cradling Gaara's head in his lap. "Gaara!" His screams turned to sobs, tears falling onto Gaara's face as the blood pooled around them. "No, I will not stay here without you!" Guy's eyes went wide when he saw Lee grab the knife from Gaara's limp hand.
"Lee, no!"
It was too late.
Lee gripped the knife tightly and slit his own throat, trying to imitate Gaara as much as he could. He fell to the ground, lying at Gaara's side as the circle of blood crept farther across the room. Guy stared in horror and disbelief at his dead son and son-in-law. But Lee had a smile on his face.
He had died following his fallen angel.