Hybrids have finally become a reality.
Unfortunately, the public rejected anyone who was a hybrid. The government then demanded a recall of all the hybrids. But there is no way to a hybrid back into a human. Thus started the mass genocide of all the hybrid species.
This is really bad news for Ashton Irwin, who happens to be a cat hybrid on the run. But sh! Don't tell anyone!
Well, you could tell Luke Hemmings. He's a cat hybrid too. They meet up in an alley while hiding from the government agents.
Just a simple love story with a twist.
---------------------------------------------
Calum looked down at the paper and sighed, a tear rolling down his cheek.
His boyfriend, Michael, came up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Why do you do that?" He asked quietly.
"Do what?" Calum wiped his cheek.
"Write. Isn't it better to forget?"
"I could never forget. Someone needs to tell their story." Calum said, picking up the pen.
"On this day, one year ago, two amazing people lost their lives. Their names are Ashton Irwin and Luke Hemmings. This is their story."
-
The moon glittered overhead, reflecting in a small puddle of rainwater.
A leaf broke off its tree and floated down, landing in the middle of the puddle, causing ripples.
Suddenly a foot splashed into the puddle, squishing the leaf and splashing water out of the puddle. The foot belonged to a runaway cat hybrid named Ashton Irwin.
Ashton risked a glance behind him, breathing heavily.
The agents were on his tail, not literally, thank God. But he could hear them shouting and running after him. Who knew what they would do if they caught him?
The thought of it made him let out a small cry of terror and push harder.
He stumbled in the darkness of the night, tree branches seemed to purposely try and get in his way as he ran, arms pumping at his sides to propel him farther.
He was so out of breath, he knew he had to stop soon.
But where?
Trees surrounded him and he had no idea where he was.
Then he realized, duh! Trees! He was part cat after all.
He quickly scanned the area of dense forest around him, looking for a high tree.
"I see him!" Came a shout.
Ashton gasped and looked behind him. He could see figures running, getting closer.
He pushed himself harder and grabbed onto a low branch, pulling himself up.
"There he is!" A hand grabbed his ankle, pulling him down. "Got you!" he shouted in triumph.
"No!" Ashton cried. He kicked out, catching the agent in the face.
He scrambled up the tree to the highest branch while the agents surrounded the tree.
"Come down with your hands up!" One called through a megaphone. "We have you surrounded! Don't try to escape."
Ashton ignored them and climbed as high as he could go.
"Fine then, I won't do anything." He muttered, hugging the tree tightly. His trembling brown tail wrapped around him as his fluffy ears flattened against his curly bronze hair.
He leaned his head against the tree and sighed.
"I said, come down!"
Ashton hid his face in the tree, shaking inside his thin hoodie.
"Alright then, you little piece of shit, we'll do this the hard way."
And so they waited.
-
Ashton risked a glance down.
It had been hours since he had climbed the tree. The sun was just poking over the horizon.
The men were all asleep around the tree, except for one, a guard who was smoking and walking around.
Ashton shakily slid down a few branches. Leaves tumbled down and Ashton held his breath, but luckily the guard didn't notice.
He looked around. He couldn't go all the way down the tree, but there were other trees nearby. If he could get to them, he could he be far away by the time the agents woke up.
He looked around. The closest, sturdiest branch to him was about three feet away, give or take a few inches.
He studied it. He could make it, he had to.
He looked down again. The guard was standing a few feet away, facing the opposite direction. It was now or never.
Ashton took a deep breath, and leaped.
The rough bark of the tree scratched his hands but he managed to grab on. The branch made a crackling sound and Ashton grunted from the impact, alerting the guard.
"Hey! It's the hybrid! Get up!" He shouted, waking the other agents.
"C'mon! He's in that tree, trying to escape! Get him!"
The agents grabbed their guns. "Freeze or we'll shoot!" One shouted.
Ashton quickly pulled himself onto the branch and climbed around to the other side, jumping from tree to tree, but the guards were following.
Suddenly, Ashton saw a clearing up ahead. The forest was giving away to a small town.
An agent aimed his gun and fired.
Ashton gasped as the bullet struck the branch he was leaning on. The branch creaked.
The man fired again, and another joined in.
The branch was slowly coming down, taking Ashton with it.
Ashton cringed and jumped off, landing a few feet away from the tree. He hissed at a cut he got across his hand.
"Hey, stop!" Another gun shot pierced the air.
Ashton ran. A city was coming up. Across a highway, he had a chance of losing the agents.
Cars braked suddenly and honked as he ran across the street, not looking anywhere but ahead.
He ended up running into an alley that had a dead end. He could hear the agents behind him; they were catching up. He panicked, there was nowhere to hide in this alley.
Suddenly a hand reached out, grabbed a fistful of his shirt, and yanked him into a small space between a store and the dead end of the alley.
He cried out in surprise, and another hand smothered the sound.
"Shh!" A voice hissed and Ashton stopped struggling, his heart pounding so loud, he was sure it would give him away. His head spun. He hadn't eaten in days and was terribly low on energy.
He could hear the person next to him, also breathing hard.
"He went in here!" Someone shouted, and there was the pounding of footsteps.
"Hey, where'd he go?" Someone called. "I could've sworn he went down this way!"
"Well obviously he climbed the wall. C'mon, get to the cars! We can cut him off before he gets to the next town."
The footsteps retreated and the person beside him let out a sigh of relief and released his grip on Ashton.
Ashton quickly scrambled out of the narrow passageway, desperate to get away from the stranger.
"Hey wait! Where are you going?" The stranger called, coming out of the passageway.
Ashton started running but the stranger grabbed his hood and held him in place. "Don't run, I'm on your side! Please don't leave! Look, I'm a hybrid too!"
Ashton turned slowly and looked up. It was true. He was also a cat hybrid.
He had fluffy blonde ears sticking up from his blonde hair, and a matching tail that was wrapped around his tiny waist. He was starving too. Ashton guessed he was also a run away, longing for some company.
"What's your name?" He asked, letting go of Ashton's sweatshirt.
Ashton decided he could trust him. He had saved him from the agents after all.
"A-Ashton. Ashton Irwin. What's yours?" He asked, getting used to his voice again.
"I'm Luke. Luke Hemmings." He grinned. "Nice to meet you."
Ashton nodded. "You too. Thanks for saving me."
"Anytime." He looked Ashton up and down. "You look horrible, want something to eat?"
Ashton's eyes widened. "You have food?"
"No, but I have money." Luke reached into his pocket and pulled out some change. "I stole it from a lady's purse." He looked sad. "I didn't want to, but I had no other choice but to starve."
Ashton placed his hand on Luke's shoulder. "It's okay. I get it."
Luke smiled. "How about we get something to eat and then you tell me your story?"
Ashton smiled, an honest to God smile.
"That would be great."
-
They hid their tails inside their pants and pulled their hoods over their heads to cover their ears.
Ashton was jumpy and reluctant at going out into the public, but Luke gave him confidence with his happy attitude and charisma.
Luke had been living in the city for two years, ever since he escaped from his horrible ex-owner he was sold to at a black market auction. He was street-smart and knew who to hide from and who to be open too.
Ashton stuck by his side. He kind of thought of Luke as an older brother.
Luke paid for some snacks and drinks at a vending machine. They walked back to the alley, where Luke had been living in the little passage way for the past two years.
"He was nice at first. He gave me treats and treated me as an equal. I lived in his really fancy place for a while. Then he brought this girl home. He said this was his girlfriend, Rebecca. Rebecca absolutely loved me. She came over everyday to play with me. But then, she started coming over less and less, until she stopped coming at all. That made him really mad. He started drinking and staying out late. I found out Rebecca had been cheating on him with another man who had more money. He started abusing me after he found out. One day, he smashed a window and I escaped. I've been on the run from him and the government ever since." Luke said as they sat in the cramped space.
"I'm so sorry." Ashton said, his ears flat in sadness. He nibbled on a pretzel, careful not to eat too much at once.
Luke shrugged. "It's whatever. The past is in the past." He leaned forward. "So, what's your story?"
Ashton got a sick feeling and he put the pretzel down. "Oh. Well, I was kidnapped when I was five. I'm not exactly sure what happened, I was so young. But all I remember is waking up and having cat ears and a tail. The place I was at was horrible. They had very strict rules and not very clean rooms. People and hybrids were dying everyday from the horrible conditions. One day, they took me out of the room I was in and showed me off in front of all these people. They totally freaked out, and in all the panic I managed to escape out a backdoor. This is the first time I've been outside in years." Tears welled up. "I miss my family. I have no idea where I am, and everybody's always chasing me."
Luke sat beside him and held him close. "That's horrible. I'm so sorry." He looked at the ground. "I never met my parents. They told me that when my mom was pregnant with me, she didn't want me because she couldn't support me. So they took me when I was born and turned me into a hybrid. I've been searching for her, but I've had nothing to go on. Then they gave me up to a black auction, where that man bought me."
He looked at Ashton. "You must not know a lot, since you've been inside for so long. But this scientist said he created the first successful hybrid, and showed him off to the media. Everyone freaked out. It was a huge trend at first. Everyone was giving themselves up to become a hybrid. Mothers handed over their babies in a heartbeat. The demand was so high, people were kidnapping people to hand over to facilities to get money. But then, public opinion changed. They suddenly viewed hybrids as dangerous, horrible, even murderous. There was a huge recall. Everyone kicked out any hybrids they had and left them on the streets for the agents to come and collect. I say collect but I mean kill.
No one wanted anything to do with us anymore. There was a mass execution of hybrids. There are some good hearted people who still view us as people, but it's pretty rare. There's huge money rewards for turning in a hybrid, I should know, it happened to me twice." He looked back down.
"There are good people, and bad people in the world. But listen to me when I say that there are more good than bad. It's just a matter of finding them."
Ashton leaned against Luke as rain started falling down. "You're a good person Luke." He murmured, falling asleep.
Luke looked down at him and smiled. "You're a good person too."
Since then, Ashton and Luke were inseparable. They made a routine of sleeping, hiding, and searching for food.
One day, Ashton came back to the passageway but found it empty. He dropped the fruit he had found and gasped. Luke was always here to wait for Ashton in the mornings while he searched for food. Always, since day one. And now he was gone.
Ashton's ears flattened again and he backed up, heart pounding.
Luke had been found, or abandoned him. Both ideas cut his heart in half.
He whirled around, trying to see through the confusion in his head, the pain in his heart and the tears in his eyes.
"Ashton!"
Ashton looked up. "L-Lukey?"
Luke was running towards him. "There you are!" He hugged him tight and Ashton went weak in relief.
"I thought you were gone. You left me." Ashton mumbled against Luke's shoulder.
Luke gasped and pulled back. "Ashy! No, I would never! Not even the gods above could separate the two of us!"
He smiled and wiped Ashton's tears away. "I found someone, well actually, someone found me. But it's okay, they're nice!"
"They? I thought you said just someone." Ashton asked as Luke took his hand and led him into the streets.
"He has a friend. But it's okay, they're good people."
Luke explained how he was waiting for Ashton to return when a football (soccer ball for some) bounced into the passageway and got stuck.
Luke was jolted awake from sleep when a loud smack pierced the air. He opened his eyes and watched as a black and white ball bounced into the passage way and got stuck.
"Way to go Mikey!" A voice yelled. "I lost it!"
Luke's ears disappeared into his hair when he saw a shadow come closer and closer.
Two hands reached in and groped around for the ball.
"Need some help?" A new voice asked.
"Yeah, it's too dark to see, give me some light?" The first voice asked and there were some shuffling sounds.
Suddenly a bright light flooded the passageway and Luke froze.
The first voice gasped. "Holy shit!"
"What? What happened?" The second voice asked.
"Uh hi." The guy said to Luke. "Sorry, didn't know someone was back here." He looked down and spotted the ball. "Oh, there it is." He picked it up.
Luke could see the two people clearly now. One had black hair and an Asian look about him, while the other had blonde colored hair and was peering at him with curious eyes.
"What are you doing back there?" The second one, Mikey, Luke assumed, asked.
The one with the ball gasped and hit his friend. "Dude! Rude!" Then he laughed at his rhyme.
Mikey rolled his eyes. "It wasn't funny Calum."
"It was totally funny." Calum said.
Luke edged as far back as he could. These people didn't know he was a hybrid yet.
He had to act normal.
He smiled up at them. "You guys play?" He pointed to the ball.
Calum nodded, spinning the ball on one finger. "Yeah, but it's pretty boring because all I have is Michael here and he sucks." Michael gasped. "Um, I was winning this game if I remember correctly, 2-6."
Calum rolled his eyes. "Because I was letting you." He looked down at Luke and smiled. "Wanna play with us?"
Luke shook his head. "No thanks, I uh...don't know how."
"And yet you're still better than Calum I bet." Michael smiled. "C'mon, be on my team!"
He grabbed Luke's hand and pulled him up.
Luke's eyes widened and he yanked his hand back. His hood had fallen down, revealing his ears. He hadn't tucked his tail in, so it was still wrapped around him.
Calum and Michael gasped.
"Whoa, you're a hybrid!" Calum said in awe.
"I'm sorry!" Luke cried, putting his hands over his ears.
"Hey, it's fine! Don't cry!" Michael said, carefully putting his hand on Luke's shoulder. "Don't apologize."
"Don't turn me in, please." Luke begged. "I'll go away, you won't have to see me ever again!"
"Hey." Calum frowned. "Why would we turn you in? We're not mean like those other people. We're good." He smiled and Luke looked at him.
"You're good?"
Michael held his hand out and Luke took it slowly. He smiled up at the two friends. "Okay."
They started leading him to their place.
"Yeah, you look awfully thin." Calum said, frowning. "When's the last time you had something to eat?"
"Uh, last night. I had some water. Ashton was going out today to-" He gasped and stopped in his tracks.
"What?" Michael asked.
"Ashton! I forgot about him! He's going to be so worried, oh my God."
He turned around and started running back to the alley.
Luke smiled down at Ashton. "They're very nice. We can trust them."
"Okay." Ashton said, holding onto Luke's hand tightly.
Luke led him around the corner where Calum and Michael were waiting.
"This is Ashton, my friend." Luke introduced.
"Hi." Michael said, and Calum waved. Ashton smiled back shyly. They seemed nice.
"Our place isn't far away. We have a guest room you two can share." Calum explained as they walked.
"How long do you want us to stay?" Luke asked nervously.
"Forever!" Michael said happily, making them all laugh.
-
Calum unlocked the door and led them all in.
"Here's the foyer, to the left is the kitchen, and the bedrooms are to the right. Over here is the living room, backyard is out that door and here's the bathroom." He said as he led them on a tour through the house.
"This is the guest room." Michael said, opening the door and showing them in.
It was of average size, with blue walls and a brown and blue bed. White table stands were on either side of the bed. A door led to the bathroom on the far side of the room.
"Sorry there's only one bed." He said sheepishly.
"It's fine, thank you." Luke smiled while Ashton wandered around the room.
"I'll get Calum to start making lunch, then we can talk and stuff." Michael said before leaving.
"I haven't seen a bed in years." Ashton said, trailing his fingers along the silky comforter of the bed. "My old bed was blue too."
Luke walked up to him and hugged him from behind. "We can put that all behind us now. Calum and Michael are good people, they'll take care of us."
Ashton smiled and blinked back tears, falling back onto Luke.
-
They sat down at the table while Calum set a plate of sandwiches and drinks down.
"So, what's your guys's stories?" Michael asked, taking a bite of his sandwich.
Luke and Ashton took turns telling their pasts.
Calum and Michael looked horrified and sad when they were done. "That's so horrible! I'm so sorry!" Calum said, looking at them sadly. Michael nodded. "I'd rather die then hand you guys over to those terrible people!"
Luke smiled at them. "That means a lot, thank you guys so much."
"Don't even mention it." Calum said, waving a hand.
After lunch, the humans taught the hybrids how to play Fifa. They went shopping and bought clothes, especially beanies, for them too. As a joke, Michael got a bunch of cat toys.
It was late at night when they returned.
"We should get to bed." Michael said, yawning. Ashton watched him and yawned too.
Suddenly there was a large crashing sound from outside.
"Wh-what was that?" Ashton asked, hiding behind Luke, who hugged him protectively.
Calum glared out the window. "Our neighbor, Sid. He's messed up."
"How?" Luke asked while Michael closed the window and locked it. "He's an extreme hybrid-hater. He likes to set things on fire and spends most of his days in jail for cruelty to animals." Michael said. "You definitely do not want to meet him."
"He sounds horrible." Ashton shuddered.
"He is. Just, don't go outside with out either me or Mikey okay?" Calum said. The hybrids nodded.
"Good. Well, we better get to bed." Calum said.
"Yeah, goodnight guys." Michael waved and went to his room. The hybrids said their goodnight and went to the guest room.
In their room, Ashton opened the door that led to the bathroom and gasped. "A shower!" He ran over to it. "I love these things!"
Luke followed him. "What kind of cat likes water?" He teased.
"A cat that hasn't had a proper shower in years." Ashton replied, turning it on and standing under the spray, still fully clothed. He beamed and turned his face into the water, getting soaked.
Luke laughed. "I'll take one when you're done."
He shut the door and changed into the pajamas Calum and Michael had bought for him.
After a while Ashton came out, dripping wet in his clothes. "Lukey, do you know where the towels are?"
"Ashton, did you shower in your clothes?" Luke asked, laughing. Ashton frowned and cocked his head. "Yeah, why?"
"You're not supposed too!" Luke giggled, getting off the bed.
He pulled a towel out from under the sink. "Here silly."
Ashton was blushing and hid his face with the towel. "I forgot."
Luke smiled. "It's fine. I'll get your pajamas and then get in the shower."
Ashton nodded and followed Luke into the bedroom, where Luke handed Ashton his new pajamas.
"I'll be out in a sec." He promised, as he entered the bathroom.
Ashton change out of his wet clothes and into the pj's. He dried his hair with the towel before climbing into the bed.
He waited for Luke to finish and get into bed with him.
"Good night Lukey." He mumbled as he snuggled into Luke.
"Night Ashy." Luke said, pressing a kiss to Ashton's hair.
-
"They left a note."
Luke picked up the paper from the table and read it out loud.
"Luke and Ashton, sorry we didn't wake you before we left, we were running late (and you guys were so cute, all snuggled up :3 -M). Michael and I will be back at five. We work at the clothing store a few blocks down. If you want to come visit, make sure you hide your ears and tails. Theres food in the fridge, help yourselves. Seriously. You guys need it. And remember, DONT GO OUTSIDE. -C & M."
Luke looked up. "Oh, they left for work."
Ashton relaxed. "Oh. I was scared they left us."
"They wouldn't, they're good remember?" Luke said, hugging the older but shorter hybrid. "Yeah." Ashton replied. "I'm hungry."
"Me too. Let's make breakfast."
The went to the kitchen and Luke opened the fridge. "How about milk and pancakes?"
"Yummy!" Ashton said happily.
They were in the middle of cooking when the doorbell rang.
Ashton's eyes widened and his ears went flat. "L-Lukey!"
"It's okay." Luke soothed. "I'll get it, you stay out of sight."
Ashton nodded, trembling slightly as he hid under the table.
Luke made sure his ears and tail were hidden under his beanie and pants before opening the door.
A man stood there. He looked young, in his twenties Luke would guess. He had short, cropped hair and was wearing a black tee and ripped jeans. He was scowling, as if annoyed.
"Who are you?" He asked, when Luke opened the door.
"Um, I'm Luke...Michael and Calum's cousin." He lied.
The man squinted. "Those two aren't related."
"Right, I meant I was Michaels cousin." Luke said. "Who are you?"
"Sid. I live next door."
Luke's eyes widened and he closed the door a little. "W-what do you want?"
The man looked him up and down. "Are you okay? You look sick."
"Uh, I'm fine." Luke said. He was starting to sweat under Sid's harsh look.
"I need to borrow some sugar." Sid said. "Got any?"
"Uh, yeah, I'll get some for you." Luke said, retreating into the house, but Sid followed. "I'll wait here."
Ashton peered out from under the table. "Who was it Luke?"
Luke gasped. Ashton wasn't wearing a beanie and all Sid had to do was turn around and he would spot him.
"Who said that?" Sid asked, turning.
Ashton gasped and ducked back under, crawling over to hide behind the cabinets.
"Uh, um..." Luke fiddled with his lip ring. "That was...Calum's cousin."
Sid crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "You're both cousins of them?"
"Uh, yeah. We're just staying over for a few weeks." Luke said. "I'll get your sugar now."
He ran to the kitchen and grabbed the whole bag.
"Here." He shoved the bag into Sid's arms.
"Thanks." Sid said coolly, looking around the room. "Hey, I didn't know those two had a cat." He was looking at the cat toys Michael had bought.
"Uh, that's our cat, Molly. She's staying with us while we're here." Luke said, nearing his breaking point.
Sid nodded. "Make sure she doesn't come into my yard." He narrowed his eyes. "Things that go in there tend to not come back." He took the sugar and left.
Luke sighed and shut and locked the door.
"He's gone Ash." Luke called, walking into the kitchen.
The cabinet door opened and Ashton peeked out.
"Oh Luke, I was so scared! He was this close to seeing me!" Ashton sobbed, running over to Luke.
"Sh, I know baby. It's okay, he's gone now." Luke soothed. "Wanna play Fifa?"
Ashton sniffed. "I'll watch you play."
They were still playing it when Michael and Calum came home.
"There you guys are!" Ashton gasped, scrambling up to meet them. "We ran into Sid!"
"What?!" Calum asked, alarmed.
Luke told them the story.
"Okay, so we gotta remember that you guys are our cousins and we have a cat named Molly." Michael said when Luke finished.
"Maybe we should take some time off work?" Calum asked worriedly.
Luke shook his head. "No! You don't have to do that for us. We'll be more careful now."
It took some more pleading but eventually the hybrids convinced the humans to keep working.
Michael looked sad. "We're never getting that sugar back."
-
The next day, Luke and Ashton made sure their features were hidden, in case Sid made another surprise visit.
Luckily he didn't, and he stayed at his house for the next couple weeks.
The four new friends grew closer. The humans took them on a camping trip on their vacation from work, and took them to the beach over the weekends.
Calum collapsed on the couch. "Ugh, someone get me a pop please."
Ashton grabbed one from the fridge and tossed it to him. "Thanks. Today sucked." Calum said as he took a sip.
"What happened?" Luke asked, coming down the stairs.
"I had to take Mikey's shift too since he had to go visit his grandma in the hospital." He said as Michael walked though the door.
"Hey, she's ninety four!" He grabbed a pop too. "Plus she gives me candy every time I visit." He pulled some candy out of his pocket and they all took some.
"Ugh, I love your grandma." Luke said as he chewed on a chocolate bar.
"Same." Ashton said, licking a sucker.
Calum turned on the TV. The news was on, but no one paid attention to it since it was basically someone saying "Good evening", and then giving you a list of reasons why it's not.
"You guys just wanna make a pizza for dinner?" Michael asked, looking through the freezer.
"Sure." They chorused, still looking through the candy Michael brought home.
Ashton took off his beanie. "Man I hate wearing those, they hurt my ears after a while."
"I know right." Luke said, taking his off too. Calum laughed. "Hybrid problems."
A sudden movement caught Ashton's eye. He glanced up and saw a figure duck from the window.
He gasped and covered his ears.
"What?" Michael asked, coming back into the living room.
"I-I saw someone out the window." Ashton said and Calum and Luke gasped. Luke pulled the beanie back over his head while Calum ran to the window.
He was just in time to see Sid's door open and close.
He came back, swearing.
"What was it?" Michael asked fearfully.
"Sid. He knows."
-
Sid Thompson ran into his kitchen and grabbed the phone. He dialed the familiar number quickly.
"C'mon, hurry and pick up." Je muttered, tapping his fingers against the wall impatiently.
"Hello, Hybrid Headquarters, how can I help you?" A lady asked.
"Yeah hi. Listen, I got two hybrids in the white house next to mine. I just found out my neighbors were harboring them illegally." He said.
"What's your address sir?"
He told her and she said agents would be over in a few minutes.
He hung up and watched the house next to him, his eyes bright with excitement.
"Let it begin."
-
"Shit! Are you sure? What do we do?" Michael asked, pacing in the living room.
"Yes I'm sure! Who knows what he'll do now?" Calum cried.
"He'll call the authorities, that's what!" Michael shouted. "I hate him! How could he be so mean to innocent people?"
"We got to get you two out of here." Calum said, looking at Ashton and Luke, who were sitting in the corner, watching the two humans freak out in fear.
"You're kicking them out?" Michael asked in disbelief.
"Not kicking out, hiding. The cops will be here any minute. They need to hide and we need to get rid of any evidence." Calum said.
Ashton scrambled up. "We're so sorry!" He cried. "This is all our faults you guys are going to be killed."
"We won't be, none of us will be." Michael said firmly. "They won't catch you guys. Now, go out the back door and run. Just keep running and hide. Take Calum's phone and we'll call you when it's safe to come back."
He handed the device over to Luke, who was shaking so bad he could hardly grip it.
"I...we-" He started but Calum shushed him. "Just go." He gave him and Ashton a tight hug; as did Michael, before shooing them out the backdoor.
Sirens wailed in the distance.
"Go! Get as far away from here ad you can!" Michael shouted. "Run!"
The hybrids took one last look at their friends before taking off, climbing over the white wooden fence and running as fast as they could.
Inside, Calum and Michael were busy getting rid of the cat toys and cleaning up the guest room.
The sirens got louder.
"Mikey..." Calum stopped and put a hand on his friends arm. "We both know how this is going to end."
Michael looked at his best friend with watery eyes. "Not for sure."
Calum sighed and tears sprung to his eyes. "I'm so scared."
Michael gripped him in a tight hug. "Don't be. It's okay. Everything's going to be alright. We'll move away and call Luke and Ashton when it's safe. Everything's going to be okay." He whispered fiercely while Calum cried against him.
There was a loud banging at the door.
"This is the police! Open up!" A man called.
Michael went to the door and opened it.
Officers swarmed in, guns at the ready.
"Can we help you?" Michael asked, putting as much innocence into his act as possible.
"Mikey!" Calum gasped from the top of the stairs. "Did you rob a bank?!"
"No! I don't know why these officers are here." Michael said, following the act.
The leader of the cops walked forward, showing his badge. "We got a call saying you two were harboring some illegal hybrids." He said, glaring down at them. "Is this true?"
Michael laughed. "Hybrids? Absolutely not! For one I'm allergic to fur, and harboring hybrids is illegal."
Calum stood next to him. "Yeah, isn't there a huge fine for that?"
"Actually, the punishment for harboring hybrids is death." The man glared. "We're gunna have to search your house."
Calum was about to ask of they had a warrant but thought that would seem suspicious.
"Go ahead." He said.
-
"L-Luke, stop. Please." Ashton gasped.
Luke stopped. "Ashton we can't, we have to keep going." He ran back down the hill. "Please Ash, don't give up now."
Ashton cried. "We can't just leave them! We both know those officers are going to find something. Calum and Michael are going to DIE. Because of us!"
Luke gripped Ashton's shoulders tightly. "No!" He sobbed, tears running down his face. "No, they're not! They...they won't!"
"How do you know?" Ashton whispered. "Lukey...we both know I'm right."
He reached up and cupped Luke's face, wiping away the tears. "We have to go back."
"But they'll catch us, and kill them for hiding us." Luke sniffed. "I can't loss you Ashton. You're my whole life. I love you."
Ashton smiled at him. "I love you too." He went onto his tip toes and kissed him. Luke held him tight and kissed him back.
When they broke apart, they were both crying.
Suddenly Luke's pocket lit up and vibrated. The phone was ringing.
-
"No sign of any hybrids living here." An officer reported to the leader.
Calum and Michael exchanged small looks of relief.
The leader nodded. "Alright. We'll have a talk with the man who called."
"No need; I'm the man who called." Sid said, walking through the door. "These two have been hiding two hybrids here: I can prove it!" He said, glaring.
"How?" The leader asked. "We didn't find any evidence."
Sid smiled. "Luckily, I have evidence." He reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope.
Inside, were numerous pictures of Ashton and Luke, with beanies off and their tails out.
Michael bit his lip and Calum gasped.
"You've been spying on us?" He glared.
"I had to confirm my suspicions." Sid said, smirking.
"This is enough evidence for me." The leader said. "Tell us where the monsters are and we might let you live."
"They ran away." Sid said. "I saw them run out the back door."
The leader cursed and glared at Calum and Michael. "I outta just shoot you myself right now."
"Wait sir," Sid said, all too calmly. "I heard them say that they would call the hybrids back when it was safe. We can trick the hybrids into coming back."
The leader rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Hey Ted, come over here. You're services are needed."
"W-what does he do?" Calum asked nervously as the agents circled him and Michael.
"I'm a voice impressionist." Ted grinned in Calum's voice. "Hand me the phone!"
-
"Hello?" Luke asked. "Calum? Is that you?"
"Yes, it's me. You guys can come back now, the officers didn't find anything and left."
Ashton sighed in relief beside him. "Oh thank God, I was so worried they would kill you guys."
"Yeah, we're coming back now." Luke said and hung up. He grabbed Ashton's hand and they began running back home.
-
Ted hung up the phone. "They're on their way back."
"You monsters! Those are innocent people!" Michael shouted angrily, struggling against the man that held him. "How can you murder innocent people?"
The leader glared down at him. "What you call murder, I call justice. Those hybrids are a menace to mankind."
"Besides," Sid said from the kitchen, "They're not even people, just freaks. Nothing wrong with killing freaks."
"They're not freaks!" Calum shouted. "The are regular people that happen to have some cat qualities! You're killing innocent people and justifying it with lies!" He kicked against the cop holding him but the cop was much more muscular and tightened his grip.
"We need to get them out of here." Ted said. "They'll interfere with the plan."
"What is the plan again?" Sid asked eagerly.
"We shoot the hybrids the second they walk through that door." Another cop said, clicking his gun.
"No!" Michael cried. "Please, you can't do this!"
"Shut him up." The leader muttered.
"Wait." Sid said, walking over. "I have a better idea."
-
The hybrids were out of breath by the time they reached the door.
"I'm so glad they're safe." Ashton murmured, holding onto Luke.
"Me too." Luke said as he opened the door.
They gasped suddenly at the scene before them.
Calum and Michael were on the ground in front of them, guns held to their heads by the officers holding them. Tears ran down their faces. Cops were surrounding them, all their weapons pointed at Luke and Ashton. Sid stood in the corner, sneering at them.
"Well well, looks like we got a couple runaway hybrids here." The leader said, walking up to them. "Close the door. The public doesn't need to see this."
Luke shakily reached behind him and closed the door.
Immediately the agents swarmed them, locking the door and shoving them to the floor.
"Put your hands on your head." One ordered and the hybrids obeyed.
"Now," the leader said, lighting a cigarette, "This can end two ways. Either you freaks come with us willingly and we kill you and your friends quickly, or you fight us and we kill you all in the most horrific way possible. Which is it?"
Nobody answered.
The leader walked up behind Ashton. "Answer me." He stuck the burning end of the cigarette into the back of Ashton's neck.
Ashton cried out, dropping to the ground and holding his neck in pain.
"No!" Luke cried. "Stop, please! We'll go with you! Promise!"
"No Luke!" Calum cried. The cop behind him hit him with the gun. "Shut up or I shoot." He growled.
Two cops came over and grabbed Ashton roughly, holding him tight. "Come outside with us, quickly and quietly." One said to Luke. "Or we'll kill your friend."
Luke shakily stood up. "Okay, I'm coming, don't hurt him."
"Stop!" Michael cried. "Please don't! They haven't done anything wrong!"
"Their very existence is a crime." The leader growled.
"P-please sir," Luke said, trembling. "Let our friends go and we'll come with you willingly. We won't cause any problems. No tricks, I swear. They haven't done anything but be good people to us, they don't deserve this. Please!"
"Kill us, not them!" Ashton shouted.
"No!" Calum cried and the cop hit him again.
The leader looked thoughtful. "Well, it would be an easier and quicker night if we only killed two instead of four."
"Yes, please! Don't kill them!" Luke begged.
"Now hold up." Sid said, glaring. "These two have been harboring hybrids! I demand justice!"
The leader rolled his eyes and pulled out his gun. "And I demand some quiet." He fired. They cringed at the loud bang. Sid gasped as blood poured out a hole in his chest. His eyes rolled back and he slumped to the ground.
"Now, I'm tired. We'll just kill the freaks and be done." He said. "Where are my firing squad agents? Meet me in the backyard now."
He went out the backdoor and the cops holding Ashton and Luke followed, dragging the hybrids with.
Two firing squad cops left with them.
"No!" Calum cried, struggling against the agent. "Don't kill them, please!"
"They haven't done anything!" Michael sobbed.
The agent rolled his eyes. "You know what, you guys are going to watch." They dragged them over to the window where they saw Ashton and Luke standing against their fence, hands still on their hands while the firing squad aimed their guns.
"No..." Michael breathed. "God, please, no!"
Calum squeezed his eyes shut and cried.
-
Ashton shivered in the cold of the night. His heart was hammering in his chest.
An agent pushed him against the white wooden fence. "Stay." He growled.
Luke was crying silently beside him.
"L-Lukey." Ashton whispered, tears rolling down his cheeks. "I'm so sorry. I love you."
Luke looked over at him. "I love you too. So much."
"Ready!" The leader shouted.
The agents clicked their weapons.
"Aim!"
They aimed the guns.
"Fire!"
Inside the house, Calum and Michael flinched at the sound of two guns firing in unison.
-
One year later, two boys walked to their backyard, where two small rosebushes were planted. There was a faint pink stain on the normally white fence behind the plants.
One placed a single red rose on each of the bouquets. Tied to each rose was a letter. Only the first few words could be seen from the top.
On this day, one year ago, two amazing people lost their lives. Their names are Ashton Irwin and Luke Hemmings. This is their story.
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IM CRYING OMFG Y DID I WRITE THIS ASDFGHKL IM SO SORRY I NEED TO BE ALONE FOR A WHILE