(F/F) - Favorite Flavor
(C/F) - Cake Flavor
EDIT: Aaah I accidentally put Chapter 10 instead of 11. Sorry if you guys got confused DX
Your P.O.V
The sky was starting to turn a beautiful orange, but it seemed like no one had left. Ah, my favorite time of the day, Twilight. The time of the day where it's most peaceful, the time of the day that makes me feel slightly gregarious. It's good to be around people every once and a while. Even if they're strangers. Many more people started to stroll around the streets. Me and BEN went to the heart of town after that crazy ride and a few rounds of cotton candy. A fountain sat proudly in the center of town square. Speckles of light danced and flew around them as the reflections of the pristine, glistening water in which the light of the sun had shone upon. That made it look even more majestic. I've never seen anything like that before. Slightly, the sight soothed me.
The crowd shared similar awed looks as they stared into the mystical fountain. It looked other worldly. Whoever made this had outdone themselves. It was really pretty.
BEN stood beside me with a little grin, while I was stunned by it's beauty. Staring at it more intently, I saw.. Pixels? They only appeared translucently for a mere second, then they disappeared. No one else seemed to notice them but me.
"Did you see that?" I slowly asked BEN. "See what?" He said, not sparing me a glance. He instead just gazed into the waters of the fountain with the same proud expression.
The scenery just seemed to just grow more prettier and prettier the longer we looked. But the crowds of people slowly diminished and only small groups were left. And still, I noticed occasional flickers of pixel-like things.
"I expected a threat on my life today and a few insulting nicknames, but none came." I said, opening up a conversation. BEN didn't spare me a glance as he continued gazing at the fountain.
"..I just realized that haven't directly asked you this yet, What's your story?" I asked him.
"Why do you ask?"
"We're gonna be stuck in this whole situation for a long while. Might as well talk about something." I shrugged. "I find it weird that I'm actually hanging out with..." I trailed.
"A murderer?" BEN finished for me, he was back to his monotonic self. But he quickly masked that tone with a cocky grin.
"You must've been staring quite intensely then, for you to notice such small signs." He remarked. I scoffed. "Oh, don't flatter yourself, your highness. Not everyone in this world 'll swoon over you." I retorted sarcastically.
After a while of hurling sarcastic remarks to each other, BEN's facial expression slowly grew serious. He opened his mouth so say something but shut it again, hesitating on whether or not to speak. In his eyes, I saw a hurricane of emotions.
"..I had a friend once. But she was taken away by the facility. And it's all my fault." He said, Eyes cast downwards. He looked like he wanted to say much more. His words were slowly picked and hesitantly said.
"I lived only for her and her sake. Nothing else had ever mattered except her, not even my own life. She didn't deserve the fate she received." A bitter-sweet smile appeared on BEN's face. His eyes turned into a tender shade of scarlet."You need to know that I'm hunting down members of the facility not because of selfishness. I'm doing it for her." He said, traces of a smile disappearing from his face.
".. Those fuckers will pay for fucking up everything I had." He said in a dangerously low tone, looking back into the fountain with his eyes turning back into a vicious red. The atmosphere around me turned cold. It made me nervous a little.
"..I've said too much." He added, calming down.
I looked at him with a sorry look. "Hmm. So you aren't all that bad after all." I said with a small grin, to try and lift my spirits up a little.
".. Hey, (Y/N). What would you do, knowing that you'll never see a friend again and that they're were most likely.. Dead?" BEN plainly asked after a long pause.
"Is that a threat?" I decided to go with a sarcastic reply.
The corners of BEN's lips twitched up into a small grin. I felt my heart do a little skip when I saw that expression of his. I don't know why.
"It's just a question."
"Well.. It's obvious isn't it? I'd go search for them. But I guess that seems a little bit too far-fetched an unrealistic. Considering that I won't know where they are." I thoughtfully said. "But still, I won't give up until I know what exactly happened." I added.
BEN seemed to ponder. "I'm surprised you answered so earnestly." He said.
"W-Well what was my answer supposed to be like then?" I huffed.
"You're a girl, girls know many things about this right?" He shrugged. "That's sexist. Besides, I'm not too fond of other girls in my school. And well, it's a mutual feeling for them too." I said.
"You said she was kidnapped or something, why'd they take her?" I asked.
"That's what I'm trying to figure out, why she of all people had to be sucked up in this whole mess." BEN said. "But at least I know that she's safe right now.. I found her. Or rather, she found me." He added.
"Then why did you come back here? You said you already found her." I asked. "Are you really that eager to get rid of me?" He retorted with a chuckle.
"..She forgot about me." He simply said, remnants of previous smile still plastered to his face. "And right now, it doesn't seem like she's gonna remember any time soon either.." He wearily said.
I paused for a while. Stricken with sadness. The silence was calm between us. But it didn't stop me from reaching out to BEN, to comfort him in my way and language.
"Well then, Benjamin, since you're asking for advice from a girl who's hung out with a guy most of her life, here's what I think,"
I pinched his arm and tugged painfully.
"Ow! How dare y-?!" He snapped, rubbing his arm with a scowl.
"You're too self-punishing." I said, giving him a stern stare. I'm a blunt person, but I mean well.
"Nothing will happen if you just continue to mope. Don't give up just yet." I said what I wanted to say. "If she's as kind as you say she is, even if she forgot you, I'm sure she forgives you. That's what's friends are for, right?" I added nonchalantly. But to be honest, I felt kind of..
I learned that the hard way. The time when my dad left mom, it was the same as this. My dad was like a best friend to me as well. Self-blame did nothing for me at the time. I technically knew where he was coming from. And I didn't want anyone else to end up in that same after-math where someone important just left.. Maybe this is why I feel sympathetic.
BEN seemed slightly chafed. But after a while, the corners of his lips twitched up into a grin. It seemed that he gained a some sort of slight respect for me. "Is that so?" He seemed to be a little bit better.
Before I could probe him about the matter and ask him to stop giving me cryptic words, I noticed the fountain. It began to.. Fade. It was switching transparency. But that only happened in a flash. It went back to normal.
"I'm no oracle, can you be more specific?" I asked, BEN only chuckled.
He rested his hand atop my head and began to slightly ruffle my hair, making me flinch. "..You're such a blithering idiot." He said with a subtle, amused smile which eventually faded into a small one. I don't know if that was an insult but he said that in a mellowy tone. I was about to make a comment about that, but I paused upon seeing that look in his eyes. A look of sentimentality.
"Let's keep you that way.. For now.." BEN said, withdrawing his hand. I silently bore holes into his head with my stare with a slightly flushed face.
BEN exhaled tiredly. I shot him a curious look. He grinned at this.
"Well look who seems awfully concerned about my well-being all of the sudden." He cheekily said. "Refer to rule 1 and 3." I retorted sarcastically, using his own words against him.
"Touchy." He said, looking at me. He just stared and I began to feel a bit self conscious. Then, he flicked my forehead with his fingers. I felt a mild, electric pain. I yelped.
"That's for the pinch." He simply said.
A cool breeze past by us, it made me shiver a little. I look up the already dark-blue sky to see clouds passing by. A droplet of water landed by my cheek, then it was followed by a few more. It was going to rain and we didn't have an umbrella.
"It's going to rain," I told BEN. Suddenly, I heard a low growl which surprised me. Then I realized that, embarrassingly, it was my own stomach. I saw BEN grin. I averted my eyes, ashamed. "L-Let's go eat something- it's been a few hours now." I hastily suggested. BEN looked around, then pointed to a nearby cafe. "Let's eat there." He said. I agreed. I just wanted to eat.
We went to sit by the table near the window that over viewed the fountain. A waitress came by our table. BEN and I ended up ordering cakes. Hot chocolate for me, but a cold shake for BEN. The waitress told us to wait a few moments and brought us our food.
"..I thought you liked (F/F)." He said after a while. He took a sip of his drink. I raised a brow. Indeed, I love (F/F). But instead, I ordered another flavor of cake. Well, I just felt like have (C/F) today.
I just shrugged, scooping a spoonful of my cake. Ignoring the fact that he seems to know that I like (F/F).
"Do you have your phone with you?" He asked as he gleefully ate his cake. Well, I figured since that the facility he was kept in most likely didn't give him even the tiniest comfort of eating something sweet as cake. Seeing that the blank room he was kept in didn't look very welcoming.
You know what? I might be saying this because of the cake, but I'm actually glad that he escaped that place.. Well, I still am not happy about helping him, a criminal, escape a prison. But I'd go twice as crazy if I was in that type of situation, I could only imagine what it'd be like to do nothing for days- years. Yikes. No one really deserves that type of torture. Well, in my opinion anyways.
Anyways, I opened my bag and dug around until I felt the smooth surface of my phone. I fished it out and swallowed down my cake before asking why.
I gave it to BEN who sat across me. He opened it. He began to tap the screen. "There's a passcode." I said. "There was a passcode." He replied, turning the screen to me after several more taps. I saw names listed and icons with photos of people I don't know.
"I can hack into anything I want." He said with a grin. I'm still wondering why I'm not even trying to run away, call the cops, or freak out. Don't get me wrong, I still am scared.
And I can't help but wonder about those looks on his face. I would call myself crazy for calling him a murderer. Despite those scary black and red eyes, he seems a down-to-earth type of guy. Today, he just seemed like a normal, overactive guy who expresses emotion a lot. But then again, the next second he's all serious.
To analyze it more, he just seems to be.. Broken, actually. He lost a friend somehow and his life (And after life) was hell.
I'm curious about this girl he mentions. Where is she exactly? Now that I've thought of it, I hadn't really asked BEN what her name is or what she looks like. But for now, I think I'll stick to mending what broke in my life.
James. James is probably scared of me- or BEN now. He probably won't talk to me again. But.. He's my friend right? I'm sure he'll listen to my explanation.. If I could come up with a good one..
"Run while he's least expecting it!" A voice in my head eagerly said. "No, don't. He might kill you." Another calmly said.
"Maybe if we find the girl, we can know more about him." A third one said. I sighed, sagging my shoulders a little. And without knowing it, I and BEN had already finished our food. So we ordered some crepes. The coolness of night seemed perfect for sweets right now. And BEN went back to being.. Well, BEN.
Normal P.O.V
"Spotted them." A girl with strawberry blonde hair beamed as she spied two people sitting by the window with her binoculars from afar. She hid in the shadows of the alley, away from plain sight.
She saw a boy and a girl, her targets. The girl was absentmindedly staring off the distance, the boy took a huge bite off her food. Alerted, she fumed at the boy who only laughed. She threw a plush toy sitting at the end of their table at him, then a waitress came to calm them down. In plain sight, they seemed to just be normal friends- a couple even- that's having an argument.
"Bridgette, focus. We're on a mission." A boy with brown hair reminded her from behind. He too hid in the shadows.
"Don't spoil the fun. We'll get rid of them by midnight, I promise." The girl, Bridgette, grinned. "Oh, and Jamesy-poo? Can you stop hiding that silly vial-thing in your pocket? You're being way too obvious." She added.
James wasn't surprised, he just cringed upon hearing that nickname. Instead, he did as he was told and emptied his pocket which contained indeed a vial. But he didn't take out the piece of paper that came with it.
"What's that for?" Bridgette asked, eyeing the item.
"To help me save (Y/N)." James bluntly said. Bridgette didn't answer, she continued spying through her binoculars.
Those binoculars were no ordinary item. If she used it the right way, she could see from miles off, pick up heat signatures in the dark, and even hear things. Coming with those binoculars were wireless earphones.
Bridgette cringed when she realized that her binoculars weren't focused properly. She overheard the uninteresting conversations and babbles of people around the street. The sound of dogs barking, birds chirping, babies crying, and women and men gossiping had echoed and resonated in her ears. She couldn't even hear what James was saying anymore. She was irritated.
"It's amazing how not one civilian has ever found out about the facility." Bridgette said as she adjusted the knobs at the side of the gadget. "Well, maybe not amazing. They're too absorbed in their own, little society. But there is some sort of beauty in having not know anything, don't you think? Having to be kept in the dark for years and years." Bridgette smirked.
That had struck a nerve in James. It had upset him, but he remained silent while Bridgette continued push him.
"Who knows? Maybe they'll find several dead bodies on their front yards tomorrow and find that a bank or two had been intruded and robbed. Or maybe half of the people here will disappear mysteriously." She paused. "Then comes weeping families, the widowed lovers, broken relationships- it's too bad. To have the horrid truth and reality slap them when they least expect it. They'll feel guilt, confusion, and sadness. Overcome by the ridiculous weight death and knowledge." She darkly said. "And... Dead children."
"Sometimes, I even feel bad for them... What about you? Doesn't it just crush you to see that their lives were ruined because of death?" She gave James a subtle glance. She saw a look of constricted guilt. He masks it pretty well, but she of all people should know that sort of glint in his eyes.
"What happens after we do the job doesn't concern us. We'll find and kill the targets. No civilians will die, easy as that." James said.
"..Let's play cops and robbers." Bridgette heard the staticy voice of a boy through her earphones. She had finally focused on the cafe window properly.
"What? No, let's play the 'walk normally and not grab attention like the rest of the people here' game." said the girl. "I'll be the robber. And to be sure you won't ditch me," the boy held up a wallet, disregarding what the girl had said. "I'll keep this til' you catch me." He grinned. The girl gave him a look. "How did you get that?!" she asked, searching the contents of her bag.
Bridgette switched to thermal vision. Every person there but the boy had a heat signal. So it doesn't work on the boy. That's a disadvantage.
While she was busy with the bag, she had her eyes off the boy who had already ran away. "What the-? Hey!" The girl saw him give her a sarcastic salute and a smirk by the cafe entrance. Then ran after him.
"He ran off. The girl's all alone now. So James, what are we gonna do?" Bridgette tucked the binoculars into her satchel. "Should we stroll around? Catch the dazzling shows being put up? Have a little chat with her? You know, before we-"
Bridgette was cut off by James who slammed his hand into the wall beside him. He had an furious look on his face.
"What? Don't tell me you're mad at me for doing my job. Or.. Are you possibly be mad at me for something else?" Bridgette said, not intimidated by James' display of rage. "We've been doing this for years, buddy. And now.. You act like you've finally realized that you're doing something bad." She began to pace around James.
"We don't know fear or guilt. And we're pretty much equal to all those criminals we've put down so far. The only difference is that.. We do it for greater good. But here you are now, furious about something. It makes me curious." Bridgette gave James a hard look.
"Nothing is 'good' about taking away the life (Y/N) has. She doesn't deserve to die." James said. "So it is about her." Bridgette mused to herself, confirming her suspicions about the boy and his motives.
"Even if you say she doesn't deserve it, we don't have a choice in this. She'll either be hunted down again or die off on her own." She cruelly said.
"But I am really curious.. Why are you so obsessed with this girl? You know, it begs the question. Where your loyalty lies in all of this, James." Bridgette pulled out a gun from her dark coat and pointed it at James.
"What are you implying." James seethed. Slowly losing his patience for the girl and her words. She was clearly trying to get something out of him. And he had a nagging feeling that this wasn't gonna bode well with him and the facility.
"It isn't your place to worry. And yet, you've grown so attached to her like a petty fridge magnet." Bridgette said.
"Let's be honest here James. You're planning on rebellion for a single girl. You're trying to go against orders. We, the facility, we balance everything. We kill who we kill to save lives. I can see it in your eyes right now." Bridgette gave him a softer look of compassion. "You know what they do to traitors, James." She said.
"Alright." James said, trying to calm himself. "Tell me how we 'balance' everything by killing a girl who just got sucked up into this mess? A girl whose life was-"
"-Was to originally surcease. Face it James, she only got lucky. She was supposed to die years ago. I don't get why you're attempting this, risking your neck." Bridgette interrupted.
"What do you want me to do then? Sit and watch as a girl dies not knowing who or what she really is? What her life was supposed to be like if it weren't for us? I'm only trying to do what's right." James said.
"Then why are you shaking? Why are you so unsure about the outcome if you're sure that you're doing what's right?" Bridgette said. James looked at his balled fists. And sure enough, he was shaking. And just as Bridgette said, he was anxious.
"You're not going to succeed. That's why. It'll be a waste of time." Bridgette said. Half of James knew that was true. And yet, he was still pressuring himself. He was wondering why she was pushing him. To what extent?
"I don't need a reminder about how things would go horribly wrong, Bridgette. Either way, (Y/N) will die. But I'm willing to at least try." James said, holding up the vial. The light of the moon had illuminated it.
"If you're that desperate and determined to stop me, then shoot this." He gestured to the vial. Then he hovered it just before his chest. His heart.
"And shoot me as well."
Bridgette had a thoughtful look on her face. She seemed satisfied in his stern and brave reply. She smiled a little. "Good. Let's hope you don't screw this up then." She said, putting back the gun in her coat pocket.
"I'll pretend that we didn't meet here tonight. But I'm warning you." She said in a dangerously low voice. "Play your cards precisely correct. If the facility hears one word of this, you and the girl are done for. Good luck, James" and with that, Bridgette walked away into the darker part of the Alley. Her outlines fading away into the darkness.
BEN's P.O.V
As he disappeared into the large crowd, away from (Y/N)'s eyes, BEN slowed down into a walking pace. It was so nice to have spent a day with her, he thought.
BEN found himself never wanting this day to end. Wanting for everything to stay like this forever. But he knew that can never happen.
It was safe to say that he may have been a bit.. Delusional to make himself think that things were currently doing fine and everything up to that point was all just bad nightmares from a lengthy sleep. But, no. Well he was already mad and past the level beneath sane, so what's the difference for him?
He spent the day goofing around. Out of character, yes, but he just wanted to borrow a few hours from his seemingly eternal existence to spent time with her. To be less vigilant and focus on trying to rekindle the emotions he once felt. Even if it was only one-sided. Sadly, silently pretending that she knew who he really was is just about all that he can do about it for now.
Hell, he even got to hold her hand and engage in normal conversations with her. Throw cheeky and sarcastic remarks here and there. He enjoyed that, more than he could ever possibly admit.
BEN remembered teasing her back then for being a tomboyish little girl for always playing more often with toy cars or guns rather than dolls and make-up kits. Hell, at one point she even played with insects like dragonflies and beetles with him. But of course, it was always BEN who she was with most of the time back then. And now, seeing a grown up version of her was strange.
That day when he learned of an outsider that entered the facility he was kept in, he really didn't expect for (Y/N) to be that stranger. All he saw was a person, a girl with ragged hair and torn, bloody clothing entering the building. She looked like she'd been in some sort of fight.
For her to appear just like that was astronomical. He didn't even recognize her voice, she had slightly matured. But he thought it was just a sick joke. He thought that the facility or his shambled mind was just playing tricks at him.. It was maddening at first. But he took the chance and escaped anyways. And later on, he learned that it was really (Y/N) and he quickly caught up on how things currently were.
Sadly, all he can do now is indirectly hint his feelings. Even though she deserved to know, he didn't tell her the exact truth. He answered all her questions, but didn't lie. He tried to keep his answers vague, but that failed. She seemed to develop more and more questions.
Heh. Just like when she was little. Curious little (Y/N).
What matters most was her safety. He wouldn't actually harm her in any way. He doesn't want to. But it seemed that he ended up doing so anyways.. He wanted to keep his promises to himself and her. He wanted to keep her as she is right now, safe. Even if it meant sacrificing his existence- if possible.
It was too late for him to just leave her to her everyday life now, since the facility knows that she's associated with him. He regrets how rash his actions were. But at least now, he has another reason as to why he would stay with her. Even for a while. He didn't want to admit it mainly because of pride, but he still was that little boy who clung to that bright girl he called best friend.
BEN might have took it too far, however. Recklessly, he used his abilities for his own personal fun. He still wasn't in a position to flaunt his abilities out just like that. And yet he did things like fix a carnival ride and cheat at that one plush booth. But what took a toll on him was that little fountain act he pulled.
'For (Y/N)', he kept telling himself.
BEN knew (Y/N) was closely lagging behind so he turned to a shady alley. He kept his eyes trained on her as she cluelessly wandered around. He chuckled to himself and leaned against the wall.
"How long has it been? Since I've had this much fun?" He asked himself.
He looked up to the dark sky and saw crows fly by in fear. One flapped it's wings furiously. It was trying to keep up with the others, but it fell. BEN gazed at the bird now lying on the ground near him. He bent down and gently scooped it up in his palms. It was injured and bleeding.
It's wings was bent, a bone stuck out from it, and there was a bruise near it's neck. Even though he knew what this creature felt, but he felt hollowness. He sees it struggle to fly and keep living. He felt that he needed to do or say something.
".. I'm not sure what will be of you in the after life, but I can guarantee that you'll be more free. Free from harm." BEN watched as the bird's eyes slowly twitched and closed. It stopped moving.
BEN's lips were set to a thin line as he saw three children approaching him from the alley. One had a slingshot in hand. They were bickering and blaming each other for injuring the poor bird.
The eyes of one of them widened upon seeing BEN. He elbowed his friends who seemed to be equally as nervous. They all put their hands behind their backs and averted their eyes, passing BEN by.
".. Injuring creatures is bad." BEN said in a smooth voice, not wanting to startle the children.
"W-We're sorry, mister! W-We didn't mean to, We just wanted to have some fun.." One of the children apologized. As soon as BEN turned around, the boys' faces had paled upon seeing his eyes.
"..." BEN stared at the children, reading their facial expressions. The children looked at the poor bird that lied on the ground. Two had sincerely sorry looks on their faces. But the one with the slingshot wasn't as sorry.
"Just don't do it again." BEN said as he turned to leave.
"W-Wait! Um.." One of the boys called out. "Why are you so.. Pale? Are you sick, mister?" He asked. "Are you a ghost?!" Another asked.
BEN slowly turned around. He contemplated on whether or not to give them a good scare, but these were children.
".. Yes, I'm very sick." He said.
"What type of sickness do you have, mister?" The third one asked.
".. One that doesn't heal." BEN plainly said.
"O-Oh.. Erm.. I-I hope you get better soon, mister. Even just a little bit." The boy said. The others agreed then left with a goodbye.
BEN grinned a little. "I hope so too." He said, eyes trained on the three boys as they raced each other to the fountain that sat on town square. He threw (Y/N)'s wallet up and catching it with his hand, turning around to gaze at the dark alley. For whatever reason, he was expecting something to move under the shadows of the buildings.
He threw the wallet in the air again, but this time, it didn't land on his palms."Gotcha!" Someone from behind had snatched it away. He turned around to see (Y/N) holding a look of triumph and relief on her face.
"You sneaky, elven thief!" She fumed. She looked like she was gonna punch him at any moment now.