A/N: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'M SORRY! Unfortunately real life has been getting in the way guys. Big exams this week, but that's them finished and now I can carry on with the story. Thank you all for the SHAMAZNIG reviews! You're all fantastical! :)
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Chapter Eight

With trembling knees, Flynn quickly pulled Rapunzel to her feet, the sound of car doors being slammed shut making his heart threaten to burst out his chest. They were home early, the look of fear dancing in Rapunzel's eyes reminding him just what his friends were turning into. He didn't even want to think what their reaction to the two of them embracing would be if they caught them. Never letting go of her hand, Flynn began to drag her up the stairs, Rapunzel frantically looking behind her to make sure that they hadn't walked in and seen them. She could only imagine the punishment that the two goons would take upon themselves to inflict. Not just to her, but to Flynn as well.

Running across the upstairs landing, Flynn continued to pull her up towards the small flight of stairs that led to the attic door, the sound of the front door slamming shut causing his thundering heart to stop. C'mon...Hurry, Rider. Hurry!

They finally came to a halt at the battered door, Flynn pulling the ring of keys from his back pocket as Rapunzel stood clutching her chest tightly, straining to hear the sound of the two monsters downstairs over her gasping breath.

"Fuck!" Flynn whispered, absently flicking through the many keys on the chain, dropping them to the floor before quickly picking them back up.

"Flynn!" Rapunzel gasped quietly, tugging at his hoody as the sound of heavy footsteps began to crash from down stairs "Flynn, hurry! They're coming!"

"I'm trying!" He replied before finally finding the key, quickly opening it only to have Rapunzel fly past into the dim room "I'll be back up later." He whispered, gasping for breath himself "OK? I promise."

And with a small nod, and one last longing glance he shut the door, locking it behind him before he silently began to make his way back down stairs. The thought of leaving her in there once again caused his heart to drop. Not only due to the fact that she was now locked away again, but also because she was no longer in his arms, her delicate fingers dancing across his jaw. Five seconds away from her and he was already craving her company.

Peering round the door, Flynn made sure that the upstairs landing was clear before heading down towards the clattering in the living room. He could feel the anger begin to boil the minute he saw Scott and Michael lazing on the couch, the TV blaring as they sat their feet on the table. They knew he was there, but all they did was stare at the TV, Mike taking a draw from his cigarette every so often.

"Have a productive evening?" Scott asked calmly, never taking his eyes off the TV as Flynn stepped further into the room.

Choosing to ignore him, Flynn walked over to the window. It was another beautiful day. The sun splitting the trees without a cloud in sight. He couldn't help but think about his brother lying in that hospital bed hooked up to goodness only knows what when a day like this was just waiting to be enjoyed. And then there was Rapunzel...the girl who was taking a piece of his heart one beautiful smile at a time. She of all people deserved to be out on a day like this. Basking in the sunlight. How could someone as unselfish as her want to help a lowly waste of space like him? And to make it worse, she would be gone soon. Then he'd never get to spend a day like this with her.

Sighing, Flynn turned round to see the two brother's staring at him. Anger and hate were dancing in their eyes, but he didn't care. The way he was feeling they could fire two bullets into him right now and he would probably thank them. Put an end to it for him there and then. But they were so close. He couldn't give up now.

"We'll make the call today" He mumbled, clearing his throat a little "Arrange a drop off for the ransom."

"Wow..." Scott scoffed with a slight smirk "And here was me thinking that you were forgetting why we were all here."

It took everything in Flynn not to punch him. Rapunzel had done enough damage to his face for the both of them though. The purple circles round Scott's beady eyes proving that.

"Just because I'm capable of compassion, Scott, does not mean I've forgotten why we're here." Flynn spat through gritted teeth, his fist tightening.

"Then you deserve a damn Oscar..." He mumbled, reaching into a plastic bag and tossing a disposable cell phone in Flynn's direction "Here...Thought you might be needing this."

Grabbing the phone mid air, Flynn stared the brother's down, their looks of hatred burning deep into him. The minute this was all over he was finished with them. Done. The thought of telling them that Rapunzel had offered her help in getting the money together was not going to be shared with them any time soon. Not until he was sure they had calmed down a little. The last thing he needed was being accused of fooling around with her.

"Just remember, Rider..." Scott snarled "She's the treasure...You're just the crap stuck to the bottom of her shoe."

And with that, they about turned and walked out the room leaving Flynn clutching the phone, his heart sinking deep into his chest.

"...Don't you think I already know that?" He whispered.

…

It was the sun that had awoken him from his slumber. The golden rays forcing their way in through the cracks between the blinds, and for a brief moment, he thought he was home. That everything was normal...Then he remembered.

Pressing the small button on the remote that sat at his side, Eugene's bed slowly began to move into a sitting position. Another day that would be spent staring at sterile walls and sleeping. He was doing a lot of that recently. Sleeping and staring. How he wished it would just end. That his misery would be over and he could be at peace. The guilt of Flynn putting his whole life on hold for him was something that gnawed away at him.

He had watched his brother fight for his life. Scramble and claw back everything that the drugs had ripped away from him. He had watched him rebuild life itself. He had lost everything, and through hard work and determination came out stronger. A conqueror...But now...now he was going to lose again.

Closing his eyes, Eugene could feel the tears burn the back of them.

"God..." He whispered horsely "I know it's been a while since I spoke to you, and I'm sorry..." the sound of machines beeping filled the silence as he fought for words ."..I just...I'm just asking...please make me better God...Please make me better."

...

It felt like hours had passed since the two brutes had arrived back to the hell hole, and much to Rapunzel's surprise there had been no signs of shouting, screaming or things getting thrown around. They were safe from the wrath of the other two...for now anyway. She had spent at least 20 minutes with her ear pressed up against the door, holding her breath as she prepared for a stampede into her room. But thankfully that never came.

Sighing Rapunzel fell back onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling. How could she not have recognized him? How could she not remember where she had seen those wonderful hazel eyes? They were the first thing that had caught her attention that night at the bar. The night where he had taken her. He had looked so lost. Defeated...and now she knew why. He had stuck out like a sore thumb compared to the rest of the crowed. Waiting. Waiting for her.

Sitting up, Rapunzel ran a hand through her long hair. Flynn had said that today would be the day that they would phone about the ransom. Come tomorrow night she would probably be home...But the thought of leaving and never seeing Flynn again was something that she didn't want to think about. She had promised him that she would help get the money. How, she didn't know yet.

It was the sound of a door slamming shut that snapped Rapunzel out of her day dreams. The whole house shook at the impact, and she knew with such force that it was the other two that were behind it. Getting up from the bed she made her way over to the dirty window, rubbing one of the pane's with the sleeve of her oversized sweater before peering out. She couldn't see much, the dirt clouding most of her vision. All she could make out was the two men walking away from the house. At least they didn't stay long. It was only a matter of minutes before Flynn walked in through the door, a small smile spreading across her face.

"You're ok..." She sighed, flinging her arms around him and pulling him in for a hug.

"Yeah, I'm ok." He said through a smirk, his grip on her tightening "They're still pissed though."

"Where are they going?" Rapunzel asked, looking over her shoulder and out the window once again, the two only tiny specks in the distance now.

"Don't know..." Flynn sighed "They wanted to go for a walk...I don't have a good feeling about this."

"Do you think they're planning something?" She asked, her eyes wide as she absently ran her hands up his chest.

"I don't know..." He sighed again, glancing out the window before looking down at her "But I promise you. You'll be safe."

"I know..." She replied with a small smile, her hand coming to rest against his cheek "Just promise me you will be too, Flynn...Don't do anything stupid that will put you in danger."

"...I promise." He said with a forced smile "I promise..."

"Good..."

She smiled once again before closing her eyes and resting her cheek against his chest, the beating of his heart soothing her. She couldn't imagine wanting to be anywhere else at that moment. Just safe in his arms. She could no longer deny the connection that the two shared, and she knew that saying that she wasn't even remotely interested in him would be a lie.

"I wish..." She began hesitantly "I wish I had met you differently, Flynn. Out with all of this..."

"...Why?" He asked, almost frightened to hear the answer.

Pulling back, Rapunzel stared up at him with glassy eyes, her lip quivering slightly.

"Because then I wouldn't have to say 'Goodbye'..." She replied "...'Goodbye' means 'forever'..."

Swallowing back his own tears, Flynn tightened his grip on her once again before running a thumb down her cheek, his fingers stopping at the corner of her mouth.

"Then lets not say 'Goodbye'. Lets say 'Goodnight'..." He whispered "...'Goodnight' means 'I'll see you soon'..."

"Yeah..." She smiled, knowing that they were just postponing the inevitable "...Let's say 'Goodnight'."

Pulling her against his chest once again, Flynn closed his eyes before finding the nerve to place a soft kiss against her head, the smell of her hair making him dizzy.

"I'm going to go make the call to the cops." He mumbled into her hair as he firmly took hold of her small hand "Get this over with before those two get back. Ok?"

"Ok..." She answered, looking up at him as he reluctantly began to move away, his fingers interlocked with hers.

"Goodnight." He whispered, gently letting go of her hand.

"...Goodnight."
...

The hours seemed to drag in for Detective Max Guard, sleep never fully overtaking him. He knew that sitting round the house all day would do nothing but drive him insane. He pretty soon found himself sitting back at his desk looking over the case study once again, his glasses perched on the end of his long nose. He couldn't help but pray and hope that he would finally get a lead. That it would spark something off in his mind.

"Boss..." Conrad spoke, breaking Max off from his thoughts "Are you sure it's wise that you be here? Don't you think you need a rest?"

"I've had one." Max replied, never looking up from the file in front of him "Resting isn't going to find this girl."

"Neither is you being too damn tired to focus properly." The rookie argued "I think you need to go home and stay there for more than 4 hours."

Looking up at the young man, Max took off his glasses and rose to his feet. He wasn't in any mood to argue, nor was he in any mood to take orders from a rookie. Crossing his arms over his chest, Max walked round from his desk until he was facing the younger detective, Conrad visibly nervous.

"How long you been here, Boy?" He asked calmly.

"6 months, Sir." He stuttered.

"6 months..." Max mimicked "I've been here 22 years...So do you really think that it's appropriate for you to be telling me what to do, Boy?"

Conrad was silent. He knew that his Boss was getting too attached to the case. Hell, most of the team could see it. But he didn't want to get on the wrong side of him. He knew from past experience that pissing off the wrong person at work could cause you a world of hell.

"I'm just concerned about you, Boss". He finally replied "A couple of us are."

"I'm fine!" Max snapped, putting his glasses back on.

Turning back towards his desk, Max went for his seat, but was stopped short when a frantic cry from one of the women on his team rang through the room.

"Max!" Elsa panted as she ran up to his desk "Phone call...Line 1..."

"Well, who is it?" Max asked, removing his glasses once again.

"The guy who's got the Princess."

Jackpot...
...

A/N: Ugh...that was horrible, wasn't it. Sorry if you guys didn't enjoy that to much. I knew what I wanted to write, but didn't quite know how to write it down lol. Couple of things though:

The whole 'Goodnight' thing does not belong to me. I saw it on a reality Tv show and thought that it was so sad and emotional and would fit in perfectly to the story. Hope you agree.

Also, I received a message from a kind reviewer who requested that there not be as much swearing, and what I was wondering from you guys is if you think I should raise the rating on this story to M. Is it a little bit too mature for a T rating? Please let me know guys. All reviews are welcome :)

Thanks for reading. Please Review :)