ODE TO THE MURDERED, bonten

34

for a split moment you just want to forget the world wholly.

    and Hanma was the only one by your side.

that's how you got your back pressed against your mattress, Hanma's lips travel from your forehead to your cheeks, kissing the remainder of your tears before he gripped your bloody hands, kissing your knuckles to lessen the pain that burned through your whole body.

his lips found yours a second later. it felt soft and grounding, and your panic, your pain—is finally at the back of your head. a noise slips between your lips when Hanma pulls away to trail his down your neck, kissing your tattoo once, twice, then intertwines his hands with yours as he kisses you harder.

    thunder billows outside your window, and that allows you to pull away from him, pushing his shoulders until the silence swallows every corner of your room.

    you see Hanma lift his head, his golden eyes on the window as the first few tears of rain stain the glass. after that his eyes lands on you, it softens, then he rubs his thumb across your cheek.

    "you good now?"

    you cannot find your own voice, so you merely nod your head. Hanma lets out a sigh, moves away from you and straights himself.

    he reaches out a hand towards you. "now that your uncle is out of the picture, it won't be long before Quoia catches a whiff of what happened here. it's best if we start rummaging around for information, i'll keep a lookout."

    you gather yourself for a long moment and once you finally found your balance, you cleared your throat. "i'll go to his office then."

    Hanma hums, assisting you as you both exited your room. you faltered the moment your feet steps outside, the rotting smell of blood screams in your senses.

    "y/n?"

    "i'm fine." you got out. you push yourself further until you've reached the door to your uncle's office. you were never allowed to enter it before, and as an obedient niece you never question his intentions. you didn't waste anymore time and unlocked the door, the room didn't have lights but the thunder outside provided a faint glow.

    when you reached the desk you noticed the familiar silhouette of a lamp, you flicked it open.

    Hanma remained at the doorstep. "what are you planning to do after this?" he questions you. "there's no doubt Quoia will chase you for awhile, you won't be safe in Tokyo."

    "i know." you start opening the drawers. "i already prepared everything before this. i got myself a train ticket heading to Kawaguchi tonight, they'll never chase me that far off into the borders."

    you hear his deep, rich chuckle. "so does that mean i won't see you anymore?"

    "it's only temporary. they don't know you're with me, we'll meet up once in awhile but keep the contact as few and discreet as possible. we cannot have someone know that we two are acquaintances." you stop to briefly glance at him. "did you prepare an alibi like i told you too?"

    Hanma looks at the clock idly. "9:37pm, around this time i'm smoking in the cemetery, visiting my old friend as per usual."