Firey was living out his "final days".
Final days, huh?
It was such a funny thought to him that this was where his life took him and the idea that it would all end in such a short amount of time.
Hell, Four had even started being a lot nicer and wouldn't shut up about all the good work Firey had done.
He wished that he could say he did something meaningful with the time he had left but unfortunately, that would be a lie.
The truth was he spent most of his time finalising the plan or drinking.
He would have smoked but Four had taken away his pack and he hasn't gone anywhere except for the flowerbeds in Four's back garden when he helped Four tend to them.
And so, Firey was sat on a chair in the back-garden with a bottle of a weird beer he had never heard of, letting the warmth of the sunset caress his tanned face.
It was beautiful really, all of those brilliant hues combining to paint the sky like a breath taking acrylic masterpiece that you would just want to burn into your memory.
How many more of these did he have left?
He remembered the first time he and Leafy went on an official date, one where they had actually told people they were together.
It was a warm, summer evening and they had gone to a small convince store and bought the coldest drinks they could find and they headed to the outskirts of the town, where the vast forests and fields were.
They sat near the edge of the forest, the sun making everything around them seem like it was bathed in a golden light and they sat side by side as they watched the gorgeous colours fade away into haunting blues and silvers as the moon took it's place in the sky.
They spoke about anything that came to mind, no matter how silly or strange it was and Firey was enchanted by how pretty Leafy looked.
He had probably looked silly when he smiled at her, when he was with her he felt like he was drunk on his love for her, sometimes he'd just hold her close with that same goofy smile on his face.
Her laugh was contagious and her smile was all he wanted to see, he wanted to make her happy and goddammit he wanted to kiss her.
Fortunately, Leafy stopped talking for a moment, her eyes lingering on him for a moment before she pulled him in, kissing him firmly on the lips.
The fireflies had emerged from their sleep and the sun was almost set but it's remnants mixed with the dark clouds of the night, it felt unreal.
Her lips were soft and her touch was gentle, she had worn a sweet tasting lip-gloss and the feeling of her hand on his cheek tickled.
When Firey thinks back on it, that was probably one his favourite memories aside from the day he married her.
...
Firey closed his eyes, feeling tired as he remembered those dream-like moments and he felt like falling asleep, with a small smile on his face.
But life has decided it hates Firey and that he shouldn't be happy at any moment in time.
He was taken from his thoughts when he heard telling coming from the house, he swore under his breath as he went inside to see what the hell was going on.
The voice that was yelling sounded familiar, he really didn't want to deal with them right now.
Firey stood in the doorway of the kitchen, leaning against the wall as he watched the scene in front of him.
Tree was frantically trying to ask Four where Firey was and to try send a search party out for someone, he was talking so fast no one could understand what he was saying.
Four quickly came into the hall, shaken up and off guard like he was most of the time nowadays and Tree continued to request for a search and rescue team and panic, he was breathing so quickly and was clearly terrified, he seemed very close to passing out.
Although Firey could entirely make out what Tree was saying, one word caught his attention,
Leafy.
Firey caught on quickly after realising what Tree was scared about but he needed to know everything before he jumped to conclusions, in Firey's current state that was dangerous.
Tired and fed up of the panicked babbling that came from the usually calm Tree, Firey strode over, stood in front of him and swiftly smacked him a crossed the face.
A stinging open-palm smack.
Tree stopped talking and stared at Firey in shock, only glaring slightly though.
"I can't understand a word of what you're saying," Firey said simply.
Rubbing his sore face and sighing, Tree calmed himself and began explaining what was going on in a much more coherent manner.
"It's Leafy, she's missing and I'm certain it's Two," he explained.
"Gelatin contacted me saying that he hasn't seen or heard from her in a few days, apparently he saw her talking to some weird looking green haired guy recently, that has to be Two,"
Tree looked Firey dead in the eyes, full of worry and concern, so full of emotion, it was so strange to see the normally empty expression he held to have so much fear.
"Gelatin never contacts me, there is something seriously wrong,"
Firey didn't reply, he felt every part of himself grow tense as he thought of what the hell Two could be planning.
He couldn't stand the idea of those disgusting hands hurting his wife.
He turned away, leaving Tree and Four standing there.
As Firey walked off, Tree called after him, demanding to know where he was going, still Firey gave no reply.
Tree and Four stood in the hallway with worried and confused looks on their faces as they both pondered the idea of following the flame haired man.
From down the hall, they heard a loud thud that sounded a lot like someone punching a wall and Four winced as they prayed it wasn't what they thought was.
A few minutes later, Firey walked back, papers and files clutched in a hand with fresh bruised knuckles and a terrible look in his eyes.
Firey shoved the items into Trees hands and once again he stormed away, this time towards Four's garage.
"Four, where are your keys?" he shouted.
"Firey, what the hell are you doing, talk to us for God's sake," Tree yelled after him.
Firey stood in the doorway to the garage, leaning against the frame as Tree and Four stood at the other end of the hall.
"If this is Two we're talking about and they have my wife, they're doing it to screw with me,"
"And if they're trying to screw with me, there's only one place they'd go,"
Firey strode over to Four with nothing but rage and hatred in his eyes as he stood right in front of them.
"Four, where are your keys?" Firey demanded.
"On the hook, on the left side of the garage door," they replied.
Firey turned on his heel and walked into the garage, Four followed him as he grabbed the keys from the wall, clutching them tightly.
A thought crossed Firey's mind just as he was about to open the car door, he called to Four, getting their attention.
"We're bringing guns," Firey said in a tone that was more demanding then suggesting.
"They're in my study," Four sighed tiredly. "Get me one,"
As Firey walked to Four's study, he stopped in front of Tree who hadn't said a word for the past few minutes, he appeared to be thinking.
"You coming with us?" Firey asked.
"No, someone needs to inform the agency so there's back up... and a medical team," Tree said, clearly thinking the whole situation through.
"Why do we need a med team?" Firey questioned.
"This is Two, you know what kind of sick, sadist they are and it isn't just for you and Four... ," Tree trailed off.
"We have no idea what they'll do to Leafy, you know better than anyone that Two will hurt anyone just for the fun of it," Tree muttered, suddenly feeling sick to his stomach.
Reality hit Firey like a ton of bricks, the realisation that Leafy's life could be in danger felt like a stab to the gut.
Firey felt weak in his legs, shaking violently as he tried to stop himself from doubling over.
Tree stepped toward him, placing a hand in his shoulder to steady the unstable man.
Firey looked up at Tree's face, one that was full of fear, saddness and resentment, such a strange thing to Firey.
"Firey listen to me, you cannot waste any time whatsoever, do whatever you need to do, just get Leafy back safely," Tree said, his voice breaking slightly.
"You can't afford to stay here much longer, you need to go,"
...
And so, Firey and Four were in the car, Firey driving at ungodly speeds, his knuckles tense and strained as he clutched the steering wheel tightly, the adrenaline rush had come back to him and he had an murderous look in his eyes.
Four clutched the door of the car, not much caring for the idiotic speeds Firey was going at, they knew why Firey was doing it but Four just wanted to slow down so they didn't die.
But Firey couldn't slow down, the location they were headed to was far, the drive would take eight to ten hours but with the right speed they'd get there much sooner.
Tree's words replayed in Firey's mind, he was right they couldn't mess around with Two, they needed to play this seriously.
As he sped down the freeway, Firey begged whatever God was up there to keep Leafy safe.
Firey's breathing had become heavy in an effort to keep himself calm but it wasn't really working, he knew more than anyone that Leafy isn't the type to back down and give up, it didn't matter who it was, she wouldn't just lay down and let them win.
Two hated people like that.
If Two got fed up with her...
Firey's intake of breaths suddenly became sharp, his eyes were dangerous and dark as tears glistened in them, his whole body was tense and he was visibly shaking.
What would he do if he got there too late?
What would he do if her blood was on his hands?
A sad, chocked sob escaped from his mouth, he kept his eyes fixed on the road.
He can't, he can't lose her, if he lost her he'd have no one.
As his thoughts swirled, he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Firey, it's going to be okay, we'll get her, don't worry," Four said in a calm tone.
"I know you're scared but you can't get in your own head, it's dangerous, we can't do anything if you crash this car,"
"You're right, I'm sorry," Firey said as he loosened his grip on the wheel slightly and lowered the speed.
As they continued through the darkness, the rest of the journey was silent.
All Firey could hear was the sound of his heart beating in his chest.
"I'll get you Leafy, just don't do anything stupid," he thought to himself.
===============================
And if somebody hurts you, I wanna fight but my hands been broken too many times.
Hope you enjoyed that chapter!
XOXO
LeafCake