soft | murdock

24

I instinctively fell to the ground as more shots rang out, but I was unable to locate where the sounds were coming from. 

"Skye! Where are you?!" I heard from across the room, presumably from Matt. I crawled across the room, my hands pressing against the dust and concrete of the gym floor as I made my way over to where Matt was. 

He was also hunched down in a defensive position, and he waved his hand for me to come over. I moved in his direction, and he put his arms around me as I pressed the side of my face against his now sweaty chest. His heart was beating extremely hard, something that surprised me since he was so calm all the time.

"Stay hidden, okay?" he said, his grip around me loosening as he moves over to grab something from his duffel bag. 

"Where are you going?" I ask him in a hushed tone. He pulls a piece of fabric over his face, so that his nose and mouth are exposed. He also puts on a tight black sweater over his tank top. 

"Someone has to stop that guy," he says, shrugging. 

"You're seriously going out there?!" I say in disbelief, before flinching as I hear more shots.

"Yes. Don't worry about me, you stay safe," he replied, pressing a gentle kiss on the top of my head. I shivered slightly. 

"Wait here until I come back, okay?" he finishes, smiling at me and poking me in the cheek before throwing the door open and running off into the night. 

I certainly wasn't going to stop him, since I was physically and mentally unable to do so. Besides, there was something about him that was so passionate and driven to fight crime, and although I wanted to know why that was, I intended to wait until he told me himself. 

Now I was just stuck here by myself, which wasn't great, but at least Matt was dealing with the perpetrator. There weren't many more shots after he left, but I heard the blaring of sirens after about ten minutes. 

By that time, I was already dozing off. The week's events had exhausted me, even though I was supposed to be awake in case someone broke into the building or something. I was certain that Matt was going to be back safely, so I let myself fall asleep against a bookshelf.

-

When I woke up, the sun was shining through the front door that read "Fogwell's Gym" on its front. I yawned and stretched my arms, finding that there were a pair of buff arms around my waist and that I was situated on a sturdy surface. Matt was there, his mouth parted slightly and his hair ruffled from last night. I was glad to see him safe, he didn't seem to have any injuries, except for a couple scratches and light bruises.

His tank top was on and his mask and sweater were thrown in the same vicinity as his duffel bag. He must've crashed the second he came back into the building. 

I yawned and walked around the building looking for a bathroom. Surprisingly, there was still running water, so I washed my face and hands. I was a little hungry and I had finished my pizza a long time ago, so I figured I'd get some breakfast. 

I walked back into the main room and found that Matt was still sleeping, I put on his dark blue hoodie, which was way too big on me, and left the gym. There was a good breakfast place nearby, and I walked towards it as the morning breeze nipped at my face.

I didn't know what Matt wanted, so I just got him a plate that had pretty much everything, and I got myself eggs, hash browns, and some sausage. The waiter was nice and I left the restaurant in less than fifteen minutes. 

When I got back to the gym, the lights were on and Matt was inside, panicking. He had woken up, and was rushing around, presumably looking for me. I walked in and his face softened. 

"You went to go get breakfast?" he asks, sniffing slightly.

"Yeah," I said, matter-of-factly. Matt found a fold-out table and I put the food on it.

"I didn't know where you were. You scared me," he said calmly, pulling up two chairs to the table.

"I know. I'm sorry. I figured you were out cold and I'd come back with some food and wake you up," I replied, sitting down on one of the chairs and taking the utensils out of the bag.

He nodded, giving me his best sad smile. We dug into the food wordlessly, Matt seemingly happy about the food I got for him. After getting food, he seemed to forget about my leaving in the blink of an eye. 

"So what happened yesterday?" I ask, poking my food with a plastic fork.

"Well, I've already dealt with the Japanese and the Russians, so it was the Chinese stirring up trouble yesterday," he said, taking a bite. 

I just looked at him as he continued, "I was able to destroy one of their drug processing plants."

"Destroy?" I ask, cocking an eyebrow. 

"It blew up. Not my fault," he replied, scrunching up his nose. I chuckled. Oh, Matt. 

"I'm getting closer. Fisk will pay for everything he's done very soon," Matt said sternly. "Sooner than he likes to think."