SULIT ( adjective. )
something that is worth it.
MAX WAS sick and tired of this place.
Everything she had ever known had been stripped from her. It seemed as if every single light in her entire body had been vanquished by these people- by these horrid Fallen Angels who wanted nothing more than to conquer and kill. She should have seen it coming when Mike warned her about Ace. When her brother had been acting so strange.
She choked back a cry. Sam. She had never even gotten to say goodbye to him. Yes, he might have been annoying at times, but he was her brother. Her protector, her go-to always when times were hard.
She remembered him holding her as she sobbed, looking at their house going up in flames. The Fallen Angels had done that to her. Destroyed her entire family.
She put her head in her hands. And Mike had been one of them the entire fucking time.
Max looked up as the door to her cell opened, her cheeks stained with tears and her eyes bloodshot and dark red.
"You," She hissed under her breath. "Get out."
Jack flinched, his bangs covering his eyes. He gave a long shuddery exhale of breath, and then said faintly, "You were screaming."
One corner of Max's mouth curved into a weak smile. "You can thank Ace for that."
Jack fell back against the wall, closing his eyes. His voice was thick when he said, "Fuck. Did he-"
"Do you know what's funny?" Max cut across him. "I didn't even feel it. Not any of it."
There was a second where she thought he was going to collapse; but then he opened his mouth to speak and Max went on, her voice scratchy. "How could you do this? How could you let them do this?"
Jack's hands went over his eyes, sucking in a long breath. "I'm sorry, Max, I- Ethan's dangerous, he would kill me. I'm in love with you, I didn't know what else to do-"
Max barely heard his proclamation. "Bullshit."
Reaching behind her, she opened up Mike's letter to her, skidding it across the floor. Her tone was razor sharp. "Here. See what he wrote. You'll get a good laugh at my expense."
Jack bit his lip, swallowing as he opened his eyes, and reached down for it. His hands were trembling as he began the letter.
Max-
I found a way out of this place, and I took it. I know you probably don't understand why I did this, and I don't expect you too. All my life living as a Fallen Angel I've learned one thing- live for yourself. I can't keep coming inches from death for you. You're not worth it. Thank you for trying to fix me, but it's too late. No one can.
-Michael Wheeler
As he finished, he felt the blow to his ribcage as he finished the words. He had no idea how she felt right now, thinking that Mike had written those words.
Except he hadn't. Jane had. He knew because they had planned this- she leaving a note written by "Mike" for Max, and he telling her what to tell Mike when she reached him in the dungeon, pretending she had heard it from Max herself.
He looked up, and saw Max's shoulders shaking. "How could I have been so stupid, thinking he actually cared about me?"
She put her head between her knees and began to sob.
He could do it. He could tell her the truth.
But Jack looked back at the open cell door to where the rest of them were waiting for him, crumpled the letter in his palm, and said nothing.
~
Mike sat on the edge of Jane's bed, staring emotionless at the wall. He could faintly hear Jane bustling around in the kitchen, trying her best to make coffee and chattering away. He was letting her words go in one ear and out the other because he could care less.
Everything in him was slowly breaking, including his wings. There was an ache in his chest, left torn apart by Max, who Mike couldn't even bear to think of. She had called him a disgrace, and went off with Jack. He should have seen it coming.
Trying to take his mind off his endless ramble of thoughts, he got up off the bed and began looking around Jane's room. Books lining the bookshelves, her desk neatly arranged except for. . .
His brow drew together, and he neared the desk. He recognized his old notes he used to write her when they were going steady, his handwriting scrawled on maybe about fifteen of them, littering her desk.
"Jane?" He called. "Were you looking at my old notes to you?"
There was a slight pause, before Jane answered back, her voice slightly high-pitched, "Yes. I was just so upset. I missed you, baby."
Mike didn't answer her, continuing looking at the notes before his eyes fell to her trashcan right beside her desk. Discarded crumpled papers were lying inside and around the trashcan, littering the floor beside it.
Slowly, he reached towards one of them and opened it. A few lines were written on the top, written in what looked like his exact handwriting: Max- I found a way out of-
And that was it.
. . .But he hadn't written this letter.
He looked from the letter to the desk, trying to string the pieces of whatever puzzle this was together, when all of a sudden something clicked.
Hope rose slightly inside his chest when he thought of Max, with it quickly to be replaced again with a boiling anger. This entire "rescue" had been orchestrated. He had been tricked.
He heard Jane enter the room, but didn't turn around as he heard her set down the tray she was carrying drinks on. She stopped mid-sentence as she saw him with his back to her.
"Baby?" She said, setting down the tray on top of her dresser with a clatter.
Mike slowly turned around, holding the crumpled paper with the tips of his fingers, saying calmly, "What's this?"
All at once, the color drained from Jane's face. She laughed nervously. "Mike, baby, what are you doing digging around in my trashcan for?"
"No," Mike laughed out loud, his voice shaking. "No, I'm not falling for your "poor pitiful me" act, Jane Hopper. You manipulated us, didn't you? You and Foster. You made us think that the other hated us."
He threw the letter back onto the ground and kicked her trashcan over with a bang, his voice rising steadily."You made me think she hated me just so I could get back with you?"
Jane's voice was trembling. "Baby, please-"
Mike advanced towards her, shaking a finger in her face, his voice deadly low. "Do you have any idea what Ethan Charlton is capable of? Do you know what the fuck he could be doing to her right now? Do you?"
Jane was silent, staring at him wordlessly. She reached for his hand, which Mike jerked away.
She swallowed, and then said quietly, "You aren't anything without me."
Mike gave a short bark of laughter. "Excuse me?"
Jane flipped her long brown hair over her shoulder, staring at him. "I made you something. She's a whore, Mike, and we both know it. I turned you into something great. I made you from a nobody into a somebody. What can she do for you that I can't?"
Mike's entire face was twisted into disgust, and he leaned towards her, his upper lip curling into a sneer. "She makes me twice the person you ever made me."
Jane's mouth fell open, her eyes burning, but for the first time she was at loss for words.
Mike continued, snarling, "You made my angel hate me and you made me leave her there and I will never forgive you as long as I live."
On the last word, he turned and whirled away from her, wincing as feathers fell from his back. Feeling this much hate and anger towards one person was not doing great things for his wings.
He didn't have much time. Which meant he had to save his girl with what little of it he had left.
wow, i'm so happy that i updated this. pls vote and comment, ily! also we been knew jane was no good (: