TW: LONG CHAPTER!
A World Without You
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♡︎☯︎☘︎☯︎♡︎
Author POV:
Iris watched the broad figure infront of her, turning to face her. His eyes shimmered and a smile formed on his lips as he stared down at her small figure.
But she couldn't look at him. She was traumatized. Her eyes traveled everywhere as the blood dripped onto the floor and the knife created a deadly state for the figure.
"N-Nolan?" She stuttered.
Everyone in the restuarant instantly grabbed their children and ran out, some panicked and others called the police and ambulance.
She reached her hands out to him but pulled them back again before she could touch him. She didn't know what to do.
"I don't know what to do..." She whimpered as she looked into his soft gaze, searching for anything that could assure her it would all be okay.
He kept smiling, trying to assure Iris that everything would be alright, until he let out a grunt when he tried to lift his arm and he collapsed to the floor with a loud thud.
Caden tried to run but a built man grabbed him and made sure he was to not escape. Adeline had her hand over her mouth as tears flowed like rivers down her cheeks.
Iris bent down and placed his head on her lap, staring at his weak figure.
"You're okay. You're okay... Right?" She whimpered even more, her voice finally cracking as a few tears effortlessly rolled down her chubby cheek.
"I'm okay." He whispered for only her to hear. He reached out his hand, cupping her face and wiping away the escaping tears with his thumb.
The knife was directly in the area of the heart and blood was staining everything it possibly could, it had put him in a state of jeopardy. He pulled out the knife, not being able to handle the pain. Iris couldn't bare it and whimpered softly. The floor was a mess, her dress was painted a dark red and Nolan's shirt looked like a murder scene. (It is)
"I don't know what to do... please tell me what to do..." She cried out, begging him for something. Anything.
She couldn't touch him. She was scared that if she did, that he might die then and there. He seemed too fragile to her right now. But she wanted to hold him. She didn't know if it might be her last moment with him...
"Hey. It's okay." He whispered again, this time sounding more assuring and desperate to see her smile. That's all he wanted. If it was to be his last moment with her, he would be more than thankful to see her smile instead of being broken in his embrace.
"No. No, it's not." She shook her head repeatedly. Amber walked back in after hearing the commotion and she let out a yelp in shock as she stared at the two figures in the middle of the building.
"Please, no..." Iris kept shaking her head, finally letting her hand rest on his face as she scanned the wound and pressed it closed with the other hand, her sences slowly taking control.
"Hey... Look at me. Look at me, Iris. You asked what to do, right?" Nolan questioned and so Iris nodded after looking into his gaze as a reply to his question.
"Smile." He begged desperately. She shook her head and allowed the soft whimpering sounds to escape her lips.
"Please. For me." He asked again as a lonely tear escaped his eye.
He took her hand, that closed his wound, into his, making sure to remember how small her hands were compared to his and how it felt to touch her soft and tender skin. He made sure she could feel his beating heart beat, hoping it would assure her that he was okay, as long as he had her.
She smiled weakly, causing him to smile back. But her smile faded as soon as it came when she felt the blood drench her hand and his heart slow as his skin became a faint pale.
He gulped and she could see he was now struggling to breathe or even stay awake as his eyelids grew heavy.
"I love you." He whispered with a weak smile.
The scene was too emotional for alot of people. They thought things like this only took place in the movies, but there it was. Right infront of their own eyes. Two lovers drowning in each other's embrace. Two lovers dead, emotionally and physically.
Flashes of memories came to Nolan. Like the day they met...
Nolan walked into the bathroom, ready to do his business. He unzips his pants and allows him to get rid of the toxins. A high pitch screesh echoed his ears and he quickly zipped up his pants, turning to face the person who now had their eyes closed.
There was a girl. In the men's bathroom.
The bathroom door suddenly opened and he quickly dragged her into a stall out of instinct.
He closed the stall's door and just when she opened her eyes and got ready to yell again, he pressed his hand over her mouth and signaled her to keep quiet. He stared into her doe brown eyes. It was like the whole constellation lived in her eyes.
Her rose red lips seemed so kissable, he was confused as to why he was feeling this way toward someone he had just barely met. He felt her warm breath against his hand and he could have sworn she could feel his heart beat too.
His eyelids grew heavier, he was fighting to keep them open. Iris begged him to do so. To stay with her. He then thought back to when he knew he loved her.
"Pick it up to your knees." He ordered and Iris did as told, standing straight as her legs wobble.
He touches her back gently, feeling nervous as he did so but stayed composed. He never felt this nervous around a girl before. He gently pushes her back a little forward, watching how she just awkwardly looks around the room as he positions her.
"To your chest." He ordered, but his voice was soft as he stared at her with soft eyes, not even looking at what she was doing. There was almost no distance between them and it made his heart beat faster for some reason. He didn't even do anything right now. He finally snapped out of it and payed attention to her actions.
He touched her arms and moved them around slightly, her skin was soft and he wished to feel her warmth everyday. He ordered her to lift them now and she did so. He watched her like a lovesick puppy, finding himself being lost once again.
She was able to hold it a little longer now and when she placed it down, she didn't fall over. She had a proud look. He felt happy that he was the reason behind it. He wanted to be the reason behind all her smiles and proud times.
"Okay. Try again but on your own this time." He ordered like a personal coach and she did as told. He now knew the feeling that churned in his stomach and made his heart flustered. He liked her. No. He loved her.
He watched her with love, the smile didn't leave his face. It never did. Sirens were heard from a distance. Caden was yelling, trying to escape but all the sounds were blocked out. It was just Nolan and Iris against the world. No one else.
He remembered when Iris was extremely sick, but sticked to his side and comforted him. He remembered how he teased her about certain things and how her cheeks would flush a red tint in embarrassment.
He thought back to when they had their first kiss together and when he confessed his love for her. How he felt happy when he heard as much as her voice and how he held her close in his embrace, feeling her heart beat against his chest.
He remembered every smile that made his heart flutter, every touch that made him shiver, every word that made him blush. He remembered it all. And he was not ready to let go. He wanted to experience more.
He wanted to show everyone they were together and protect her from the world. He wanted to graduate with her and move into their own house. He wanted to put a ring on her finger and have a family with her. Maybe traveling could also be on the bucket list.
He wanted her.
No.
He needed her.
She needed him just as much as they needed each other dearly.
They couldn't imagine a world without each other.
And right now, in this dreadful and heartbreaking moment, she could abselutely not imagine a world without him in it.
No matter how hard he fought, his eyes threatened to close. He knew his time was near. But he didn't want to go. Not yet. She senced it too as she held his limp body that fought long and hard for life.
"Stay please..." She whimpered.
Her face was stained with both his blood and her tears. He could no longer gently wipe the heartbreak away for her. He was too weak to even breathe.
"Please..." She begged as his eyes fluttered closed before shooting open again.
He stared at her like a lovesick puppy for one last time and sent her a playful smirk as she begged for him. She wanted to hit him for being reckless during this specific timing but she held it aside, focusing on her one and only love.
The sirens were now outside the restaurant.
"I love you." He whispered with one last breath. His eyes finally shut. He could no longer fight the battle between life and death. It seemed as though death has won for him.
"No. Nolan? Babe? Wake up. Their here. You're going to be okay now. Nolan? Nolan!? No! Wake up! Wake up, please! Wake up!" She shook his limp and pale body. His lips were a faint purple-blueish colour.
"Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" She repeatedly shouted. Alot of people fled the scene, no longer being able to take the heartbreak that was taking place.
The paramedics quickly made their way inside, rushing to the body that was embraced by a smaller figure that was also pale, but not because she was drained of blood, instead, it was because of the trauma she now had experienced.
"No, please... You can't leave me..." She whimpered softly, resting her forehead on his.
"I need you..."
And everything went black as her body fell limp next to his.
She passed out.
Even in their dead and unconscious state, they held hands, not letting go.
The buildings around the area was flashing a red and blue on the walls. Sirens echoed the peaceful streets. A crowd of people, chattering and gasping outside the little restaurant, was forming. It was an event to never forget.
Many people clung to their loved ones, scared to think that it might have been them in that situation. It opened the eyes of many couples and families.
The stars shimmered in the night sky, staring down at the people of this world. The few clouds that have formed, cried with the people that watched in tears, blocking the only source in the sky that made it clear to see in the dark.
That was it.
The end of a story between to lovers in secret.
But their story was a lesson to humankind.
Hold the ones you love close to your embrace,
you never know when it might be their last breath.
Their last heartbeat.
The last thing they hear.
Their last laugh.
Their last meal.
Their last hug.
Their last kiss.
Their last memory.