Ira gasped, feeling those icy fingers against her cheek. Her eyes shifted from the limp body in under her to the palm that pressed against her face.
Her lips, previously split side in a snarl, slowly closed, her eyes closing. The drums, the smell of ash eased, little by little, by that soft touch.
She sighed softly, her right human arm lifting from his neck to press against the back of his hand, her cheek sinking into the caress.
The raging fire flickered, the inferno receding from her mind and replaced with calm.
Followed by horror.
“… what am I doing?!”
His hand felt so cold! She looked down at the water, at his slack body. She pulled back, her heart pounding, pummeling against her ribs as she lifted him from the bath.
He was feeble in arm arms, worn out like a rag doll.
“What… what the fuck did I do?!”
Her chest heaved, her breaths coming out hard, hurried. In a panicked flurry, she pushed him up, out of the bath and onto the marble tiled floor. She followed suit, hyperventilating as her eyes darted up and down over his face.
His lips were blue.
She plastered his neck with new roses from her grip.
He was still…
… He wasn’t breathing!
“No..no no no NO! I won’t let you, I won’t let you go, I promised, I promised!” She looked over his body, a thousand painful thoughts stabbing her like shards of glass. She slammed her fist down next to him, the impact making him arch from the ground, vibrating through his still body.
Her head jerked up hearing a cough, her fingers gripping the rubble under her palm.
Another cough erupted from him and Tristan turned his head, coughing up lavender and citrus tasting water. He hacked the floor as air filled his lungs, his eyes closed tightly as he gasped.
He was alive.
He was still alive!
“Tristan!” She lunged over to him, her arms opened wide, aching to pull him close.
“GET-GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME!”
She froze, seeing his hands held up, palms shielding him from her. Her jaw trembled as he dragged himself away from her with his feet. They slid against the slick floor, preventing him from moving as far as he wished.
Yet those few inches became miles in her eyes, “Tristan… co-come to me…”
He coughed, more water, mixed with blood and mucus spewing onto his chest. He shook his head, his hands still outstretched.
His scarred hands were a shivering shield, protecting him from her, “Get-get away from me… I… I can’t trust you…” His shuddered, his eyes wide in disbelief, misting with betrayal. “You… you tried to kill me.”
Her nostrils flared, and she prowled closer, “Tristan, don’t back away from me.” She took a slow breath, trying to fight against the returning embers, “I just… you made me so angry…”
“… Angry enough… that you… would kill me?”
His voice was a rasping whisper, but she could hear him as clear as day.
“No-no… no I… I could never…” Her teeth ground together and she swayed, side to side, her eyes darting side to side, “I… I keep… I keep my promises… I wouldn’t kill you… I can’t kill you.”
“Ira…” His face turned towards hers, his hands falling limp to his sides, “You tried...”
“I PROMISED!” She roared, the thundering shout cracking through him. Her primal cry shoved him onto his side, the searing pressure knocking the wind out of him. His knees tried to dig themselves into his chest as he curled up; a futile attempt to protect himself from the oncoming onslaught.
After all she had put him through, he should have expected this. Yet, something in him was breaking.
This was not forgivable.
Ira could not forgive that from anyone.
Not even herself.
She slammed her fists onto the ground once more, all the pressure releasing on impact.
Newly formed fissures along the solid marble sucked in the crushing weight from his shoulders. The room was quiet…
Except for soft, tiny rasps.
“I-Ira…?” He didn’t dare look; he kept his head huddled against his knees, as if chains of fear refused to release him.
Never had she made a sound so…
Small.
“I… I wo-won’t let you go. I can’t let you go…” Ira’s fingers slipped against the cracks, trying to grab hold of whatever was available to give her strength, “I keep-keep my promises… I won’t… I won’t let anyone hurt you, Sweetie…”
Tristan’s eyes felt so heavy. His body stopped trembling and his knees and arms loosened. He didn’t have any strength to lift his head.
He had no choice but to hear her trembling words.
The words of a terrifying woman.
The words of a scared little girl.
“I love you… You know that? No, you don’t believe me…” Ira gulped heavily, struggling not to sob, “But I do. I’ll prove it to you.”
She slowly crawled forward.
He could hear her dragging her body against the ruined floor, steel scraping along torn rubble.
He could not move away from her anymore, so he closed his swollen, heavy eyes and released a sharp breath as she gingerly brushed wet locks of hair from his cheek.
“I’ll prove to you I love you. We… we won’t fight anymore. I’ll prove to you that anything you want… I’ll give you.”
Anything…?
He wanted to laugh, and cry, and break.
He just stayed still, listening and holding on to her voice.
“There is no one… nothing… more precious to me than you, Tristan.”
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