Merry Christmas to you all! Happy Holiday's. I hope you all have had a wonderful day and have been able to spend time with the people you love and care for.

I have a surprise for you all. This will be the last chapter of this story. But no need to worry! The story will continue, only under a new name. Think of this as the first book in a series. Instead of completely dropping the whole project I would like to expand. I need to be refreshed by a new beginning. My writing feels like it's been dragging lately and I've been struggling, so I figured this would be an excellent opportunity to appeal to not only myself but to all of you as well. I hope that everyone understands and is willing to stick with me through this new challenge.

As soon as I've written, edited and updated the first chapter I will attach a link at the end of this chapter so that all of you who would like to continue on with the story, you may. I would even be willing to send you personal messages with copies of the link to whoever asks.

I appreciate all that you have done for me and cannot express how grateful I am for all of your positive feedback and remarks. It's honestly what keeps me motivated to carry on with my writing. I hope you enjoy, and I look forward to hearing from you all in the future.

With Much Love,

~ Nasty

"It's time to say goodbye, but I think goodbyes are sad and I'd much rather say hello. Hello to a new adventure."

- Ernie Harwell

Ciel's head was tilted back, resting against the wall. He had scooted himself back against the chilly barrier, trapping him in the confined space with the viperous woman. His throat was dry and his body was sore all over. He ignored it and showed no signs of weakness in front of the woman, not wanting her to feel as if she had some kind of advantage over him. He wasn't going to act helpless even though, at this point, he was.
"So, are you ready to hear what it is I have to say about your mysterious lover?" The woman spat, a snide look on her face.
Ciel remained silent and kept his eyes glued to the ceiling, ignoring the woman completely. Carmen's patience was wearing thin and she quickly sprung across the room, kneeling down to Ciel's level. Her thin fingers grabbed hold of his delicate face, forcing him to stare directly into her darkened eyes.
"Do I have your attention now?" The woman snapped. Ciel's eyes fluttered shut for a moment and upon opening, his mouth parted.
"Do you think that when we die we're reincarnated as some other living organism? Or do you think there's just some blank void we're doomed to? Or is there really a paradise waiting for us?" Ciel's words were emotionless and cold. He seemed lifeless, nothing but a shell of a human being.
"What does that have to do with anything?" Carmen questioned. The boy shrugged his shoulders.
"Just wanted to talk about something else. You're pretty boring yourself, you know?" The boy muttered. The woman's nails sunk deep into Ciel's cheeks momentarily before she released him, tossing his head back against the wall.
"You're not taking this seriously, you little shit." The woman stood up and flattened her garment, dusting off whatever she might have picked up off of the dirty floor.
"You know what? I really don't care who Sebastian is. I don't care about his past, or what he does. All I care about is who he is when he's with me. I love him and I know he loves me. That's all I need to know." Ciel mumbled in a bored, uninterested tone.
"Oh, honey." The harpy snarled.
"I couldn't give two shits about your love for each other. Not that it'll last much longer after tonight." Carmen's voice was venomous and sickening. Ciel's eyes widened for a moment before his brow furrowed. He gave the woman a curious look and watched as a twisted grin crept onto her flawless face.
"Oh, now you're interested?" The woman mocked Ciel, snickering and as she opened her mouth to spout more confusing nonsense, a faint crashing noise was heard echoing from down the hallway. The woman grinned in what seemed like delight. Her arms crossed over her midsection and she calmly leaned against the side of the wall.
"What was that?" Ciel inquired, a hint of worry and fear straining his words.
"That would be your incredibly pissed off boyfriend, coming to your rescue, just like I said he would." Carmen retorted in a cool tone. Ciel's breath caught in his chest momentarily. Part of him wanted to believe this woman, but at the same time, the other part couldn't believe anything she said. There's no way Sebastian could have found him. How would he even know where to begin looking? As much as Ciel pushed away the thought that Sebastian was at the end of the hallway, coming to rescue him, he couldn't help but hope it was all true.

Sebastian strode down numerous halls, weaving in and out of the confusing maze of a building he had tracked his targets to. His emotions were skyrocketing and his blood was boiling. His flesh felt as if it were on fire and his heart was filled with rage and anger.
He had sleek hand gun gripped tightly in his left hand and a small but deadly looking knife in the other. As he turned a corner into a darkened room, he heard the shuffling of footsteps and quickly aimed his weapon. Before pulling the trigger, his body felt a collision from the side. A figure rammed into his ribcage in an attempt to tackle him. Sebastian braced himself and quickly rammed the knife into the figures abdomen, twisting it sharply to the right. The figure made a sickening, gurgling sound and fell limp against Sebastian.
Annoyed and impatient, Sebastian tossed the body to the side. It slammed against an old metal table and knocked the entire object over, making a loud sound that echoed throughout the halls of the building. The man took off running, using the ongoing echo to his advantage. His steps were unheard and he maneuvered throughout the maze much quicker.
It didn't take long for Sebastian to reach a door that appeared to be locked. It was the only visible door in the entire hallway and the first actual closed door he had come across his entire time venturing throughout the building. He stretched his hand outward and left it hovering over the handle. He was preparing himself for the worst possible case scenario. After taking a quick, deep breath, the man pushed the handle down and kicked the door open with so much force it nearly flew off its hinges.
It was unbelievably silent and the room was pitch black. Sebastian stood still in the doorway and reached a hand out to the side, sliding it against the wall until he felt a light switch. The lights flickered on and Sebastian was greeted by multiple pairs of gleaming eyes. There were five men dressed in black situated around an older man sitting in a comfortable looking chair in the middle of the emptied out room. The man had a cocky grin stapled to his face and he began to clap his hands quietly. Sebastian observed the man and narrowed his eyes in annoyance to the mocking gesture.
"Mr. Michaelis. In the flesh. It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person." The older gentleman extended a hand out for Sebastian to accept, which Sebastian simply glared at in disgust. The gloved hand returned to its owner's lap and rested easily.
"My name is-"
"I know who you are." Sebastian interrupted. The man's aging eyebrows arched for a moment and the owner stood up in a steady, swift motion.
"Alright. Then, do you know what it is I want?" The man inquired.
"My guess is to have a gun shoved up your ass." Sebastian spat.
"Now now, there's no need to be rude. What I want from you, is simply your complete devotion." The mans words were so calm and blunt, Sebastian couldn't help but chuckle at the statement.
"Wait, you did all of this so I would come and work for you?" Sebastian began to laugh harder as the rest of the men in the room stood completely still, taking in the cackling man's actions.
"Okay, okay." Sebastian mumbled between short, dying laughs.
"Now, I suggest you give up. You really don't want to play this game with me. You will lose." Sebastian's tone changed dramatically. His eyes were fiery and his face stern and emotionless. His gun was pointed directly at the older man's forehead, right between his aged eyes. The five surrounding men shifted quickly and all began to reach for their guns but were called off by the wave of the older man's hand.
"Now, you're going to tell me where Ciel is. Before I blow a hole through your head bigger than the outrageous size of your ego." Sebastian threatened.
"President Powell, sir?" One of the men murmured.
"May I show you something?" The older man asked calmly, gesturing to one of the corners of the room. Sebastian glanced sideways for a moment and noticed a small television sitting on a three legged bar stool. On the screen was black and white footage of Ciel. His hands bound from behind, propped up lazily against the wall. Sebastian's heart ached for a moment before becoming infuriated.
"Let him go." Sebastian snarled in a demanding tone.
"Gladly. Under one condition of course." President Powell retorted. Sebastian's eyes never left the screen. He watched as his lover sat there, alone and bound in a room with the devil's offspring.
"You work for me. Only for me." The man stated, in a firmer tone this time. Sebastian shook his head slowly from side to side.
"I'm nobody's bitch."
The man grinned and chuckled quietly and shook his head.
"Well, now you are. If you refuse me, you're definitely going to regret it. You see, if anything happens to me, or if I give the word, Carmen is going to splatter that pretty young boy's brains all over that white wall."
Sebastian's heart was throbbing, as if deep, prolonging painful blows were being delivered to it. His head began to spin and his muscles began to weaken. All he could think of was Ciel's precious life. All of the time they had spent together, the amount of love he had for the boy. It went beyond his own selfish morals and values. Here it dawned on Sebastian. He was willing to give up his own freedom and his own life for his lover's. He had never felt so deeply for anyone before in his entire life. His whole existence had been dedicated entirely to his own survival. But now it didn't matter. He couldn't condemn this boy to an excruciating death to save himself in the name of his own selfish pride.
The man stood there patiently, awaiting Sebastian's response. He tapped his foot against the smooth, concrete floor. Sebastian glanced up at the old man's unfazed face and almost reluctantly lowered his gun. His arm swung heavily down to his side and the weapon fell from his hand and hit the ground. He felt a sudden rush of defeat overwhelm him. He could sense the immaculate grin being directed towards him from his blackmailer.
"Excellent. I'm so glad you've made the right decision, I'm sure Ciel will deeply appreciate it." Nodding at his own words, the man motioned for his men to move and restrain Sebastian. They quickly snatched up his weapon and restrained him from behind with a zip-tie as well as a pair of handcuffs. Sebastian hadn't the energy to even remotely put up a fight. One man shoved his lean body forward and out into the hall. As they were lead down the now lit up building by President Powell, Sebastian looked up, a defeated look adorning his face.
"You said you would let him go." His voice was barely audible but the men heard him just fine.
"Oh, right." The man chimed, pulling out his phone and quickly dialing a number.
"He's with us. Go ahead and release the boy." With that, the phone was shoved back into the man's suit pocket and for some reason, Sebastian didn't feel any better, not knowing that Ciel would truly be released from this prison and knowing he wouldn't get the chance to see him make it out alive.

"Got it." Carmen replied before hanging up her phone and sliding it into the front of her dress, in-between her breast and her bra.
"Alright kiddo, it's been fun." She chirped, pulling a small gun strapped to her upper thigh out from under her outfit. She pointed it directly at Ciel and flashed him a rather hideous smile.
"Gotta go." Ciel kicked his feet, attempting to scramble away from the woman and her weapon. His heart was racing and his felt his blood pounding in his ears. His body was panicking and as he opened up his mouth to scream, a barely audible whisper zipped through the air. A dart pierced the boy's neck directly and attached itself to his pale, smooth flesh with ease. Ciel's voice was muted instantly and his body began to lose all sense of control as he fell limply to the side. As his head hit he cold floor, he watched through blurry eyes as Carmen exited the room leaving the door open and eventually, her tall figure vanished. Ciel felt as if he were being induced by some kind of anesthesia and drifted off to sleep in a peaceful manner.

About a week went by and Ciel had finally woken up from his drug induced slumber. He sat propped up in a hospital bed, an IV in one arm and a hand gently caressing the other. Alois was sitting next to his bedside, holding his friend's hand and gently massaging his paled, fragile skin. Ciel had been fully informed on how he had been discovered by the police, as an anonymous phone call had been made informing them that he was trapped in the basement of an abandoned office building. Ciel remember most of what went on that night, but the one thing he couldn't wrap his head around was Sebastian and his suddenly disappearance. Alois informed him that all of his things were gone from their apartment and he had completely vanished without a word from their lives. It pained Ciel beyond belief that Sebastian had just up and left, without even so much as a goodbye. He couldn't understand how things had turned out this way. Feeling overwhelmed with a sense of depression and anger, Ciel calmly asked Alois if he could be alone for a while. His friend obliged and kissed Ciel's smooth forehead before exiting the hospital room.
Ciel closed his eyes and tilted his head back, attempting to keep in any tears making a bold attempt to escape. He felt his heart tearing itself apart, causing his chest to throb and his mind to spiral out of control. He covered his face with his hands and sobbed into them quietly as a nurse made her way into his room. She stopped next to his bedside and he wiped the salty liquid away from his eyes and glanced up at the woman.
"Honey, these came for you today." She gave him a tender, sympathetic smile and placed a decorative vase of elegant flowers on his bedside table for him. Ciel flashed her a quick, fake smile and nodded.
"Thank you ma'am, I really do appreciate it." He retorted politely. The woman nodded and patted his hand gently before turned around and exiting the room. Ciel waited a moment before glancing over at the arrangement of flowers. They were so beautiful and their fragrances mixed well. Ciel couldn't help but smile a little bit and reach out for the white card attached to a stem by a white rubber band. His smile faded instantly as he recognized the hand writing and his eyes began to well up once more. He forcefully pushed the vace over to the side and off of the table, sending it crashing onto the floor. The vase shattered into thousands of pieces and the water quickly took over the surrounding area. The extravagant blossoms now littered the hospital floor, less appealing than they had been before. The small white card's delicate black ink was now smudged and blurry but still legible. It was short and simple, written in eloquent calligraphy.

"Please, forgive me."