Crimes of Passion (#Wattys2017)

Chapter 22

*Added a song. If you read this already pre-song read it with it now.*

Raymond's POV: Liz insisted on rushing Ariana to a real hospital. I hesitantly agreed. I just wanted to make sure she was ok. She hasn't woken up yet. Looking at her like this kills me. I held her hand and stroked her hair. All I want is for her to be ok. The door opened and Liz walked in. "How you doing?" She softly asked. "I would say I'm ok, but if I'm being honest, I'm worried. Who knows how much damage that serum did to her." I said. Liz rubbed my back. "She'll be fine. She's your wife, this is probably nothing to her." She said. I chuckled. "Yeah. I remember one time when she was shot and didn't realize it for about 10 minutes." I said, smiling. "Ok you have to tell me about this one." She said.

•
Ariana and I hid behind our car and bullets flew at us. "Got a plan genius?" She said. "Keep reloading and hope for the best." I replied. We both reloaded our weapons, quickly hopped up, and started shooting. One by one we picked the men off. When the last one fell, we both caught our breath. Ariana put her jacket back on. "I'm starving." She said. "You're always hungry." I said. She chuckled.

I gave in and took her out to eat. After the day we've had, I can't blame her for wanting to eat. It was about a 10-minute drive to the diner. We sat down at a table and Ariana removed her jacket. That's when I noticed blood running down her arm. "Ariana. You got hit." I said, trying not to panic. She looked at her arm. "Oh, would you look at that." She said, as nonchalant as possible. I was both scared and internally laughing at the same time.
•
Liz chuckled. "Sounds like Ariana." She said. I was chuckling too. "Yep. She gets shot and her main priority is food." I said. The door opened and Dr. Beliz peeked in. Thank goodness he works here. "Can I see you two in the hall please?" He asked. We both followed him out. "Um. Mr. Reddington, I don't know if Ariana told you, but I figured I would update you on the situation." He said. "Ariana was diagnosed with heart cancer. And, somehow, the serum managed to speed it up. Ray, it's stage four. This is it for her." He said. My heart stopped. My legs were shaking. I couldn't have heard that right. Liz was holding back tears, but I couldn't. My knees buckled and I dropped, crying. I finally get her back, and she's dying.
•
Ariana's POV: I woke up in a hospital. Ray was next to me, his face tear stained. "Ray. You ok?" I asked, my voice hoarse. "Why didn't you tell me?" He asked. "Tell you what?" I asked. "Cancer, Ariana?" He choked out, another tear streaming down his face. I sighed. "Ray, I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to worry." I said. "He said its stage for now Ari. The serum fucking sped it up." He said. Stage four? Already? Dear god.

"This is it." I said, repositioning my head against the pillow. "No Ari. Please don't say that. Don't think that." Ray said. "This isn't how I pictured going out. I pictured a shootout. I get shot in the stomach or chest and die in your arms. That's so much more epic than fucking cancer." I said. "Ari, please don't." He said, stroking my hair. "Ray. Do one thing for me." I said. "What?" He asked.

"Take care of the twins. Be the best father you can ever be. Don't lie to them about what happened. Don't tell them mommy went away and won't be coming back for a while. Tell them I'm gone so they know what happened to me and don't go their whole lives wondering." I said. Tears were still streaming down Ray's face and were now streaming down mine. "You're gonna be ok Ari." He said. "I wish that was true." I replied.

Some time passed and Ray stayed close to me, still holding my hand. "Ray. I love you so much, and I always will. Don't forget that. And don't forget me." I said, weakly. "Ari. Don't leave. Please stay." He said. My breath slowed and I closed my eyes.
•
Raymond's POV: The monitor flatlined. She's gone. My entire body was shaking. Not her. This is the last thing I wanted to happen. My entire world came crashing down. Time seemed to have frozen. "Ari. Please. Come back." I choked. I was sobbing. I laid my head on her shoulder, still holding her hand.

I eventually had to leave. Liz was crying, but didn't hesitate to hug me. "I'm sorry." She choked out. I couldn't talk at all. Dembe helped me out to the car. I felt like I couldn't walk either.

A couple days later I went back to the task force. I needed time away, although I'm not sure if it helped. When I walked in, the room was so silent that you could hear a pin drop. "Reddington," Cooper broke the silence, "I'm sorry about Ariana. She really was an incredible woman." I just nodded, not speaking. I couldn't bear to.

I had to bring the twins with since I couldn't find their babysitter's number. They seemed to have fun. They'll probably grow up to be just like mommy and daddy. At least I get to watch them grow up. I miss Ariana to death, but she gave me the most beautiful children. And that's all I ever wanted from her.

I miss you, Ariana.

THE END

*Thanks for reading! Sorry for the cliché ending, I came up with it last minute! And also, sorry to those who liked Ariana! I may try to make more Blacklist fanfics, but we'll have to wait and see ;)
Vote, comment, blah blah blah, and I'll see you in the next story! Bye bye! ~Jess*