♠ ʙɪᴛᴛᴇʀꜱᴡᴇᴇᴛ ♠ | ꜰɪᴠᴇ ʜᴀʀɢʀᴇᴇᴠᴇꜱ | ʙᴏᴏᴋ 1

|♠ 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖻𝗅𝗈𝗈𝖽𝗒 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗈𝗇𝗅𝗒 𝗌𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝗅𝗒 𝖽𝖺𝗇𝗀𝖾𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗌 𝖽𝖾𝖺𝗅 ♠|

"Parting is such sweet sorrow." 

William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

"YOU CAN COME OUT NOW."

The sound of heels echoed through the hall as I watched Five squeeze my sister's throat with his shoe, stepping harder and harder each second. I knew he wouldn't kill her, so I stayed hidden, narrowing my eyes as Mom came into view. Oh, so now you come. To discuss details with Five.

"Well done," she said, walking closer, a long cigarette hanging from her mouth and smoke drifting off into the air above. "You figured it out."

"Well, it wasn't very hard," Five muttered, not taking his wary gaze off Lila. "She fights like every one of you Commission drones. Y/N is waiting, you can pick her up now–"

"I'm not here for her," my mother told him impatiently. I winced. Five clenched his jaw. "No matter, here we are. Together again." Five ignored her, still staring down at my sister. "I've gotta ask...did you miss me, you little shit?"

Lila coughed, wheezing but managing to laugh at the same time, her hands pushing up on Five's shoe. Though he then stepped down harder, squeezing her. She grunted, struggling under the pressure.

"You've got a good nose," my mother noted.

"You know, planting her in a psych ward and Y/N as her sister, taking advantage of my simpleton brother, that was smart," Five said in a complimentary tone.

"Well, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

That got Five's attention. "She's your–?"

"Daughter," Mom finished. "Yes. And I only have one other, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't crush her windpipe."

"You mean Y/N?"

"Yes, she's actually my other one."

After a moment, Five sighed, taking his foot off of my sister's neck. She cried out, rolling over and getting to her feet quickly, panting. She turned around, facing him with hate in her gaze. "I am so going to enjoy killing you someday."

"Lila, darling, would you give us a minute, please?"

"Yes, the grown-ups need to talk," Five said. Reluctantly, my sister walked away, heading over to a big box and sitting on it after tossing a metal can aside.

I inched closer, though my thigh was all of a sudden killing me again, annoyingly. I sucked in a breath, trying to be quiet as possible.

"What is it you want?" Five hissed.

"Do you like jazz, Five?"

"I'd rather lick a cheese grater."

My mother smiled. "Aww. Jazz is like a beautiful woman. Take my daughter, for example."

"Y/N, or Lila?"

"Let's say Y/N." A triumphant grin grew on my face as I saw my sister scowl. "Complex, emotional, hard to please."

I scoffed quietly, rolling my eyes. Wow, Mom. Dramatic much.

"She doesn't just give it to you..." my mother said, in a fun, dancing tone, "she makes you work for it."

"I'm really hoping that you're going somewhere with this," Five complained.

"Under my leadership," Mom continued, "the Commission would sound more like...jazz." She waved her hands around, mimicking a soft rhythm.