Falling

January 6, 2020.

The marks found on my parent's bodies represent the marks his father placed on his victims.

Wei, apparently, marked them with it rather than his signature move of disfiguring their faces like an art piece gone wrong.

Both son and father are the same.

As they say: Blood is thicker than water.

I will kill him.

Both of them.

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

Haven breathed out, trying her best to remain calm in the situation she landed herself in just because she was too distracted by the look in his eyes. If possible, the darkness in his eyes had only increased, and she couldn't give a possible explanation as to why this could be happening.

Her mind worked to attain a solution to this problem in which she was currently stuck.

The gun dug into the back of her head, and she swallowed unwillingly, trying her best to appear as harmless and scared as she possibly could.

"Drop the gun or she gets a bullet stuck in her pretty head," he ordered and she watched as Zei slowly placed the revolver on the ground, taking a step back with a murderous gleam flashing in his eyes.

'Why's he trying to save me!?'

"This is between you and me, okay?" said Zei. "So let's keep it between us—"

"You think I'm gonna listen to you after I just saw my brother's body being fished out from a sewer?" his grip on the gun visibly tightened and Haven slightly shook her head at him, trying her best to indicate that she was okay.

"I'm the one who killed your brother, it has nothing to do with her."

"By the way Joker, I've never seen you with a woman before." yanking her back from her hair, he scanned her face up and down before glancing at Zei once again. "You got good taste."

Zei clenched his fists, the tendons straining against his skin, as he grappled with the overwhelming whirlwind of emotions that threatened to consume him. Unused to such a potent surge of feelings swirling inside his chest, he struggled to maintain his composure in the face of the harrowing sight before him—her delicate form, trapped in the clutches of that merciless monster.

The grip of helplessness tightened around his heart, suffocating his thoughts and clouding his senses, rendering him momentarily paralyzed by a sense of powerlessness that was as unfamiliar as it was tormenting. It was a sensation he hadn't tasted in what felt like an eternity, the acrid flavor of fear, coating his tongue and sending shivers down his spine.

Haven bit her lip, a weird mix of anger and sadness reaching out for her at seeing the despair in his eyes. This wasn't the Ezekiel Wei she hated. He was supposed to be cocky, frustrating as hell, and a cruel murderer so why, in the name of her sanity, did he look so helpless!?

The idea that reached her mind was sudden, catching her off guard, and causing her eyes to widen in astonishment at its unexpectedness. It was a remarkably clever plan, brimming with potential, yet undeniably perilous and fraught with danger.

However, in that decisive moment, she steeled her resolve, realizing that she was willing to risk everything for the chance to alleviate the desperation etched in his eyes, knowing that the stakes were high but determined to pursue this foolish, yet smart course of action.

Her body instantly fell limp, the control on her limbs loosening up just as her eyes fell shut the very next moment. The gun at the back of her head vanished and she parted her lids a tiny inch the second she felt the man's hands on her body holding her up from falling.

"Aven!"

"Stay where you are, Joker!"

The gun was pointed directly at Zei, and in that intense moment, her focus became fixated on the weapon. Without hesitating for even a second, she seized the opportunity presented before her, her instincts kicking into overdrive. Swiftly and decisively, she lunged forward, her hand latching onto the gun with a firm grip, forcefully redirecting its aim towards the ground.

Simultaneously, she skillfully maneuvered her body, slipping out of his desperate grasp with a fluid motion. As the realization dawned on him, a brief instant of shock froze him in place. Sensing her chance to turn the tables, she acted swiftly, snatching the revolver from his now lax fingers, her movements fueled by a mix of determination and adrenaline. With a steady hand, she leveled the firearm directly at him, her gaze unwavering and her resolve unyielding.

Haven would've laughed if she wasn't still shaking with the adrenaline that roared through her veins at the act she just pulled. The man was utterly shell-shocked at the sudden change of events, not suspecting her for a second to do something so risky in the hands of an enemy.

A last gunshot echoed in the air and Haven finally dropped her shoulders, turning around to look at him. She breathed out, bracing herself for the forthcoming scolding that was about to be unleashed upon her, anticipating a barrage of criticism and self-deprecating remarks about her perceived ridiculousness and incompetence.

However, what took her completely by surprise was the sudden sensation of being pulled forward, the strength of two powerful arms enveloping her within the embrace of a firm chest.

She fell.

Fell so hard that she couldn't help but hold her breath the whole time she could feel his touch. Her body felt like it wasn't hers anymore. And she hated that more than anything. But for the first time in her life, she wanted to let go. Get rid of everything but him. Run away as far as possible from her life which was the very definition of a chaotic mess.

He made her want to be weak.

And god, it made her despise him for it.

What he spoke next, was nothing out of the normal, perfectly appropriate for the situation she was previously in. But the fact that it was Zei who said it, was probably what made her eyes shine in the dark, her throat abruptly going dry at his words.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes."

No.