My Muse || READER X RAY || The Promised Neverland

⭐ My Muse || Chapter 114

"A solution. An end to this Neverland, where children can never grow up, where humans are only cattle. My proposition? It's to kill those who've killed us. The end of demonkind." I weakly cheered, jabbing my fist into the air. "How are you going to do that, Norman?" They all asked, crowding around him. I stumbled backwards, leaning against the wall. My head started to ache, someone's hand resting on my shoulder. "Are you okay?" Ray asked, poking my cheek. I nodded, redirecting my attention to the boy in front of us. I was still too embarrassed to talk to him. 

"You guys know how I've been leaving a lot more often, right? Expeditions, scouting, blah, blah, blah, well, on those trips, we've been testing a certain type of gas Vincent helped me create. A gas that could turn those monsters into stupid jello, how they were meant to be." What..? What was he talking about..? "Degeneration..." Ray whispered, stepping towards the white haired boy. Norman nodded, grinning. "That's right. We've developed a way to make the demons degenerate just with a whiff of it." They all chatted happily, praising their savior, giving Norman hugs. "I- I..." Gilda started to sob, burying her face into her hands. Don and Emma squeezed her tightly. "I'm so glad... y- y/n doesn't need to fight anymore, Em- Emma, Ray, you guys... we- we're going to be o-okay!" I heard my heart break. They weren't happy the demons were going to die. They were happy because we didn't have to put our lives on the line. Everyone was worried for us. I smiled weakly, joining the hug pile on Gilda. I wished I could console her, but I found myself at a loss for words. This was all my fault. 

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I grunted, throwing hard jabs at the punching bag. This was my therapy now. Throwing all of my feelings into these little acts of violence. "God damn it!" I hissed, collapsing onto the floor. My body was heavy, chest heaving from the workout. My knuckles were calloused and sore. This is all I'd been doing ever since that day. Norman left after making the announcement, the total time I'd spent at the gym being seven days. I was still looking for a way to cope with it. The extinction of demons. I touched the pendant hanging from my neck. I brought the gemstone to my lips, kissing it softly. It was cold against my mouth. "Sorry, mom, dad, Mujika, and Sonju. It looks like I'm powerless after all." 

"I knew it." I whipped around, shocked at who had walked into my rant. Ray was standing at the entrance of the gym, his shirt swung over his shoulder and a water bottle in his right hand. A plain expression was plastered across his face. "I knew that you were bothered by Norman's solution." Ugh. Really, he's doing this now? I rolled my eyes, giving him the same cold treatment he did that day. "What the hell do you want?" I hissed, jabbing the punching bag. I heard the flop of slippers stop behind me. "To talk to you." "Well you did that, so leave." Hmph, how do you like that taste of your own medicine, stupid? And just like how I brushed my hands against his shoulders, he did the same to me, his fingertips falling to my waist. God damn it, I faltered. He pulled me into his chest, hugging me from behind. "If you bottle it all up, you'll explode later and it won't be good." I clenched my jaw, elbowing his gut. His grip on me loosened, allowing me to wiggle free, jumping into the ring. I stared at him agitatedly from afar. "Why do you care, loser?" Why was my heart beating so fast? Ugh, I can't stand this guy! He stepped onto the white floor, giving me the look. "Because I love you." 

Absolutely not. Abso-fucking-lutely not. I was so... so angry, my head was burning with emotions. I took a big step, lunging straight towards him. My arms ached as I cranked them backwards, sending the hardest punch I've ever created straight towards him. The pattering of the canvas floor underneath my feet stopped abruptly. Ray easily dodged the emotion driven attack, my fist flying past his waist. The rest of me was enveloped warmly in his arms. "You can talk. I won't say anything. I'll just listen." I didn't realize that tears were running down my face until Ray wiped them away. "Tell me what hurts, y/n." I sniffled as quietly as I could into his chest, telling him my story. At the end of it all, he just patted my head. "You're not the type of girl to just sit down and take it. I would know. Norman should too. Are you going to tell him? About how you feel?" I shook my head no, swinging my legs over the elevated platform. "I don't want to ruin everyone's good mood, or invalidate the suffering in their lives that the demons caused. I'm just being selfish." He plopped down next to me. "So you're okay if Mujika and Sonju die?" "N- No!" I shouted, turning towards him. "Those two... They're part of this family!" His smile was warm, my heart melting underneath his gentle gaze. "So do something about it, stupid." He swung his arm over my shoulders, pulling me into his chest. "My favorite part about you is how human you are. You understand everyone. You can feel anyone's pain, even a demon's. I would be okay with the extermination, because I wanted you to be safe. If you choose another path, I'd follow you to the end of it, y/n." 

I didn't know words could hit so hard. 

Ray's mouth was always the one saying the things I needed to hear. 

He let me go, jumping off the side of the ring. I instinctively grabbed his arm, his shocked expression turning back to me. I didn't want to be alone right now. "Can you stay with me? Please?" His silver eyes suddenly seemed a lot brighter, like I had said the words he needed to hear too. "Okay." He hopped back up, grinning. And then we talked, about everything and anything. And I felt like I could stay there forever, talking, with Ray.