Ash watched your hooded self disappear along the shadows. Without any warnings, he stood up, confusing both Eiji and Shorter. "Ash? Where are you going?" The petite boy called on, his question passing through Ash's one ear to the other as he continued his way down the room, following on your tracks in discrete. "This girl...," He gritted his teeth, unable to mask the worries he harbored as soon as you left in his line of sight.
Although Ash is adamant in not agreeing on your terms on joining the dispute against Golzine, he still didn't want anything to happen to you. He settled on escorting you home from a decent distance; Ash doesn't know what had happened while he was in prison, he assumed the worst of course knowing Arthur and his men, but the word disappointment can't even rival to what state his emotions is when he came to a realization that you were caught up in the tangles, he dearly wished for you to stay away and forget about him.
He saw a ray of hope by the way you treated him like he was just a normal citizen, that alone is heart warming enough and he will forever treasure your pure intention, it would be too ambitious of him to not cut ties with you. Who knows? Maybe next time you might be gone in a blink of the eye, especially once Golzine or one of his men catch your tail.
When he saw you on the ground, rocking yourself in a rhythmic pattern, his heart ached in guilt—your tear stained face triggered something inside him, the lynx melted under your gaze, doing the unexpected next. You were like a kitten under his palms, stroking your already trimmed hair in an up and down motion. No matter how fixed his viewpoint about you, he still can't reject your plead, not when you sounded like your whole life depended on it.
"I want to feel alive. Make me feel alive, Ash."
Ash knew about it, he completely understand what you meant. The reason why he felt so attached to you at one meeting is he can see himself reflect on you (e/c) colored eyes.
You smiled but your eyes sparked with nothing, dull and lifeless.
Ash took a look at you through the corner of his eye, you kept a neutral expression but the bounce on your steps gave away your true emotions, he can definitely tell that you are pleased with how the situation came to be. At that moment, all that bothered the lynx didn't matter, that small tint of excitement your orbs showed was enough for him, he really did make the right call this time.
Ash silently prayed to whoever is there to grant his wish to not let this decision ends up with regrets.
—--—
"Why can't I room with Eiji?" You grumbled, Eiji scratched the side of his face, it has been an hour since you got here, after what the two who was left in the hideout assumed that you were able to work on the indifferences between one another, and yet, the two of your are arguing already. Eiji can't help but find such similarities with the two, "So why can't they just get a long?" He wondered to himself.
"Are you deaf? I just told you, we can't trust you with this old man here. He can barely kill an ant." Ash got a pinch on his shoulder, "Who are you calling an old man?" Shorter, not wanting the fight to become a threesome, stepped in, fingers on his temples, massaging it as a way to somehow release a few tension forming on his head. "Look at the bright side, you'll get to room with me baby doll!"
The two glared at him, he won't lie, it scared him a whole lot with yours and his friend's combined. "What? Why are you looking at me like that too man?" Ash rolled his eyes, he exclaimed, "I'm surrounded by idiots."
He turned to you who is threatening Shorter abour him and his perverted ways in which the man found amusing by how he grinned like a fool. Ash grabbed the end of your hoodie, pulling you away, "Fine, you're rooming with me, tough it up dog."
You struggled against him, you're not surprised that it was useless, he is broader than you. Puffing out your cheeks, signifying your defeat, you let him move you. "Well, you're a lot better than your horny friend." Ash figured why you preferred to sleep with Eiji, he has his own way of making people be more comfortable around him. Ash doesn't like to take any chances, there's still a lot to know about you. Ash can take you down anytime, if given the chance, but he just can't risk the life of someone who is not to be affiliated with him in the first place.
Using his feet, he lightly kicked the door open, releasing his hold of you. "Take the bed, I'll sleep on the floor." He placed his hand at the back of his neck, a little flustered to be talking to you in private. You on the other remained oblivious to his bashful self, you scanned the room, there was not any difference with the previous one, she took a step inside, stopping in your tracks, a thought popped on your mind, you faced the lynx, standing on your toes to appear taller and intimidating.
"You're not planning to kill me are you?"
Ash chuckled, he didn't expect that kind of a reaction but at the same time he kind of expected it from you as well. He doesn't know if it's due to his impulsiveness but his hands just keeps on latching on to the bed of your hair, scratching it in the most gentle way possible. "What do I do with you brat?"
Seeing the delightful expression on his face, you replied with a tease. "Maybe you should get a dog? I'm scared you might make me woof sooner or later." He rolled his eyes at your retort, walking pass you to grab the sheet of the bed, raising it up high in the air and laying it down on the floor neatly. He took one pillow off the bed and proceeded to lie down, exhaustion taking over his body. You on the other hand stared at the bed, not really wanting to sleep yet despite the ungodly hour. You thought of showering to a calm soothing music until you feel drowsy enough.
You emptied your pockets, frantic at not feeling your phone anywhere. "Fuck." Ash opened one eye to see what you were fussing about, "What's wrong with you now?" You simply explained you lost your phone, Ash is beginning to doubt if he should let you participate on the plan the next day if you're this careless. He dug out his pocket, "Catch," he warned before throwing his phone at you, thankfully, you have a fast reflex and was able to catch at ease.
"Thanks. I won't lose it this time." You went out of the room, heading straight to the nearest bathroom. Ash was glad that he can finally sleep now that the hindrance is out busy doing whatever she planned on. His phone doesn't have any valuable information in it anyways, heck, it doesn't really have much other than a bunch of numbers with no contact name except for Golzine's number, so if your planning to snoop up against him, feel free to do so since you won't find anything there.
It has been his practice to always make sure none of his belongings lead back to him or leave any of his traces. He thought about this a lot, he even joked about how no one would probably remember him if he died.
Ash did and will never fear death, that's for sure.
What he did fear was not leaving a mark on this world, he was afraid to be forgotten by those he cared about that's why there will always be a wall in between him and other people.
It was better for him that way.
You scrolled through his phone, jokingly, you mocked the contents of it, "What no secret stash? How boring." You opened the door that leads to the bathroom. You made sure it was same first, it's what you do to foreign secluded places, checking for any signs of recording device through the crooks of the room or maybe the mirror is a two-way mirror. You can never be too safe.
You stripped off of your clothes, hanging them to avoid dirtying them as you don't have any spare clothes. "I should pack my stuff early." You turned the shower on, smiling upon the cooling sensation of the water.
You listened to a documentary about serial killers, it was more of a background noise, you're not too fond of silence, to you, silence is noisier than any busy street.
Silence gave more opportunity to hear her voice in your head.
"You're a failure!" She slapped your face, sending you down on the floor. You could feel the burn of her hand linger on your bruises cheek, tasting something metallic in your mouth and you remained there, waiting on the older woman's next move. "I don't know why you're still here, you're a useless piece of shit." She yanked on your head, pulling it so roughly until the ends broke. You couldn't even whimper nor cry, afraid it would upset her more, you chose to block out everything, counting up to 10 ever so often to distract yourself.
"Now, what can you say for yourself?" Cupping your face, she forced you to look straight up at her, your wavering eyes met hers, you said what she wanted to hear from you.
"I-I'll do better...I'm sorry..."
She smiled at your reply, satisfied at your willful submission. "That's right, you'll be better. Better than her right? You'll replace her? But to do that you have to follow everything I say, okay?" You merely nodded, she dropped her hand, checking if your restraints were tight.
She then traced the collar on your neck,
"You're my good girl, my very good girl." Your eyes wandered towards what was inside her hands, you felt your lips tremble, eyes watering in fear.
"Please..."
—--—
You opened your eyes, immediately shutting them back, the bright rays of the sun blinded you, you shielded yourself using the back of your hand, slowly sitting up in the process. It took you a while to get accustomed to the settings of the room, you rubbed off any traces of slumber on your face.
You comb through the locks of your short hair, your nightmares really enjoy haunting you whenever you fall asleep anxiously and without your medication. You turned to the clock, it was 7:00 AM and the lynx is no where to be found.
You grabbed your sock that was neatly placed on the bedside table, putting then on along with your shoes. You need to go back to your apartment and grab a few things plus you need to find your phone. A knock on the door grabbed your attention, you turned to tbe source, Ash was leaning on the doorframe, both hands on the either side pockets of his jacket.
"Going somewhere?" He raised a brow at you, you nodded in response. Standing up to approach him while dusting yourself off. "Yeah, figured we need some medical supplies if ever the mission turns bloodier than expected." You put on your cap, also hiding your facial features with your hoodie, you walked pass the blond boy but he reeled you in the room, you groaned at his annoying strength that's forcing you to listen to whatever he has to say when you're clearly in a rush. He motioned you to stretched out your arm and to open you hand, you begrudgingly copied him.
"Here, I got this for you." He handed you an earpiece along with its charger. "I won't always be there to help you and Eiji out, but atleast this will make communication faster. It also has a tracker just in case you get caught and need someone to save your ass." You placed the earpiece on, Ash helped you on the basic mechanics like how to turn it on and what to press if you need to talk since it would mostly be a receiver if you don't press the talk button.
"And this is for safety. Sorry I can't get you a gun like Eiji, all my extra weapons are back in my base and I have no access to it right now." You weighed the small dagger on your hand, surprised that it was actually heavier than most of the tools you handled. You thanked Ash, "It's fine. A better upgrade from my scalpel, thanks. I'll be back soon, I promise." Ash simply bobbed his head in acknowledgment, he whispered, "Take care, don't get killed." You barely could hear it, but you're glad you didn't missed it.
You bumped with Shorter on the way out, "Good morning princess. Need a ride?" You sighed, you really need to get used to his flirty language fast. "I hate you but yup, I need one." He tosses you the keys to his motorcycle, pouting when you didn't bother to reach for it. "You're a bitch."
You grabbed the fallen keys, shaking it infront of his face. "That's not what you're supposed to say to someone who is about to drive your precious vehicle." His face immediately turned dark, you saw his eyebrows twitch, "I take that back please don't scratch my baby."
You put your hand under your chin, pretending to think. "Hmmm, let's see if I'll be kind enough to spare your baby." You pushed back his glasses that was slowly slipping off his nose. "You evil woman. I'll bring an offering to you, is that enough for you to leave my baby scratch-less?"
It was your turn to act smug, "Depends on how big you're offering."
Shorter bent down, his face close to yours not wanting to back down when it's pride against pride.
"Oh, I assure you, it's big."
"Okay what the fuck?" Ash was disgusted at Shorter's suggestive statement. Seeing the both of your position, an uncomfortable feeling grew in his stomach, his gaze on both of them were fierce. Shorter gulped at how furious the lynx looked, he stood straight up, shaking his arms panicky.
"Oh, I have to go. I'll see you two in a bit, and hopefully, your big offering Shorter." You waved at the blonde who simply smiled at you. Once the door was closed, however, the lynx unleashed some of his wrath towards the mohawked man with piercings.
"So, what were you assuring to her about that is big again?"
—--—
Yay an update!! UGH I THINK THIS WAS A LITTLE POORLY WRITTEN *sobs* I'll edit it if I find the will too but here you go~ I honestly like writing moments with you and Shorter because I highly view your relationship with him as something platonic. I would actually love to have a bestfriend like Shorter. Shorter is my fave character next to Ash and Eiji, I'm SOOOOOOO SAD AT WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM. HE DESERVES MORE. That's why this fanfiction was born actually. What more do you guys want to see? Oh yeah, I added a glimpse of the reader's past, this will slowly be reaveled in the next updates. Please continue to support my writings, I'm happy that we got 800+ reads now! I'm not really confident with my writing and tend to delete them constantly but I'm sticking to this one until the end.