Top pic credit: unknown (tell me if you know)

___

"What do you see when you look up there, Touya?" I asked the broody boy softly, eyes lost in the night stars above us.

He rustled softly on the ground next to me, sinking back more relaxed into the cool grass as he tilted his head without much thought.

"The sky." He said obviously and smugly, letting his lips curl up into a victorious smirk when I groaned.

"Well, duhhh. But, I mean....besides that. You see more, don't you?" I asked him perceptively, unconsciously hovering closer towards his frame.

He's just very warm...

Touya felt me scoot closer but said nothing, allowing my shoulder to brush against his without complaint.

"It's pointless to see more," he followed up a few moments later, eyes closing dismissively. "It's dark, and even if it wasn't, there's nothing interesting up there, anyways. It's just the sky."

I pursed my lips in thought to his question, keeping my eyes open as I spoke.

"Well, I don't think so. After all, you know what they say-"

"No. I really don't. But, I'm sure you do-" Touya interrupted me with a slight cackle, letting his eyes lazily fall back open to the night.

"Every darkness has its light. In this case, it would be the stars. They look quite pretty tonight, don't you think?" I asked him softly, smiling from ear to ear as I chastely looped my arm through his own.

Touya sighed softly as I did so, seeming to find comfort in the action as he subtly shifted closer to my frame.

"I dunno. They're just stars." He murmured softly, voice going a little bit quieter at our close distance.

He's so cute.

"But, stars are cool-balls of light to be exact. If you look close enough, you'll see those ones over there group together and create a constellation." I said, unintentionally leaning into Touya a little more as I pointed to the corner of the sky.

He snorted slightly at my words, letting his lips curl into a smile of amusement as he looked to the sky with me.

"What are you, a star scientist now?" He asked rhetorically, yet I answered anyways.

"Technically, that's called an astronomer!"

"Technically, you're a doofus."

I pursed my lips in unbothered thought to his words, letting my soft hum fill the night air as the sights above distracted me.

"I guess I am. But, back to what we were saying before, if you look that way, you'll see there are actually still a few clouds in the sky, and those look really cool at night. Right?" I beamed warmly, basking in the cool night breeze that kissed our cheeks.

"....sure." Touya said, sounding a little more convinced.

"Oh! And if you look to the left, you'll see that shooting star over there." I blurted without thinking, letting my mouth fall open in shock, before Touya scoffed.

"That's an airplane, doofus." He explained, shaking his head in begrudging amusement for my cluelessness.

"No, it's-oh. Yeah, you're right," I murmured, puffing out my cheeks before quickly brightening up again. "Well it still looks cool though."

"You would think so." Touya said plainly, causing me to turn my head towards his own in question.

"What do you mean?"

Touya was quiet for a moment, looking up at the sky as he thought about how to phrase his words.

"It's just what you do. Always try to find the good part of everything. It's annoying." He said matter of factly, not seeming annoyed in the slightest as he warmed his frame more comfortably against my own.

"Sorry." I said sheepishly, feeling my cheeks go a bit hot in embarrassment.

Honestly, I'm more embarrassed that he noticed!

Touya slowly turned his head towards mine upon hearing my soft voice, bored eyes subtly melting at my features.

"Don't say stupid things..." he murmured warmly, giving my head a small plop with his hand.

Still feeling embarrassed, I simply chuckled and nodded, pressing my lips together flusteredly.

Apparently still lost in his own thoughts, Touya broke the comfortable silence once more a few moments later, voice soft as he spoke.

"Besides, just cause it's annoying doesn't mean it's bad. You do it with me, too. Make me sound better than I am." He said more genuine than he meant to, too comfortable with me to even notice the vulnerability of such a statement.

My brows furrowed slightly at his words, causing me to find his gaze once more with a smile.

Eyes so blue. That certain shade of blue I know too well.

"Well, I think you're already pretty great. I'm just being honest. I always wanna be honest with you." I said warmly, letting my eyes fall closed as I savored his presence wholesomely.

Feels so good to be home-

"I know." He whispered reassuringly.

Too reassuringly. Eerily reassuring...

Before I could reflect more on my thoughts, a subtle sizzle sound gradually began penetrating my eardrums-a sound that hadn't been there a millisecond ago.

What?

I slowly began opening my eyes in confusion, feeling my stomach attempting to lurch when the smell of charring human flesh burned my nostrils.

Burning flesh....

A gasp of panic escaped my throat now as my eyes flew all the way open, my body quickly sitting up in alarm.

And suddenly, the entire area of Sekoto Hill was covered in thick black smoke, surrounding and suffocating me, with flames of blue consuming the trees and inching closer to my position.

I was suffocating from the smell, attempting to stand up, before something dragged me back down...

....no. Someone dragged me back down.

And, upon looking back towards the ground to get a look, a horrid, ear piercing shriek escaped my throat at the terrible sight.

Because there was Touya-or what was left of him-with his face burning blue and white hair turning to ash black. His smile was wide and gleeful as could be, becoming drilled in place with stitches and patches of purple skin. Tears of blood flowed down his face as he looked at me through hysterical blue eyes.

"If only I could be honest with you, too!!" He giggled maniacally, breaking out into a blood curdling scream and gripping me tighter when the rest of his flames immediately consumed his body.

Help him. No, you can't. You can't do anything.

My scream matched his own as all I could do was watch him burn, feeling him dragging me down into the fire with him as I tried to speak.

"H-Huh?!?? W-What do you mean?!! Touya??? I'm sorry, Touya!!!!-"

I'm sorry, Dab-

BOOM!

"Oi!! I said get up! If you fucking died, I'm gonna kill you..." I heard that raspy familiar voice say, sharply piercing my ringing eardrums in a way that let me know I was back in reality.

It was just a dream.

I gasped harshly as my eyes flew open, feeling my lungs still burning as if I was choking on the fire I experienced a few moments ago.

But, upon moving too quickly, all I felt was a sharp pain ring throughout my body and a pulsing headache stabbing my head.

Arms quickly wrapped around me from behind to steady me, their voice saying more words in my sensitive ears, but my mind was too groggy to process.

The more my senses returned to me, the more I realized I was sitting on polished floor tiles, vaguely making out the familiar shapes of Midas' mansion through my blurry spinning vision.

What the hell just happened?

I felt myself freaking out a bit as the conscious moments of a few seconds ago were completely lost on my brain, looking around the room with increasing alarm.

It must have been noticeable as those arms around my frame held me tighter, with one stitched hand coming up to grip my jaw lightly and ground my reality.

"Hey..." Dabi said softly, keeping my head in place when my dazed eyes met his blue ones.

And while his look was relatively calm now that I was awake, his cheeks had been completely streaked with blood-starting from his eyes and traveling down his face as if he'd been crying.

His face showed boredom, but it was only now that I noticed his hand resting on my jaw was trembling-like whatever had just taken place was something that completely terrified him.

Both of our breaths were heavy with panic, mixing together without a word as I settled back against his chest tiredly.

He had no smug remark up his sleeve as he welcomed my actions desperately, gently pressing my head into his chest as he held me tighter.

Upon being closer, I felt his heart beat completely pounding out of his chest, showing that even if he looked calm on the outside, he was freaking out on the inside.

And before I could speak, Dabi did...sounding more genuine and emotional than I've ever heard him.

"Don't you fucking dare ever do something like that again? You fucking hear me? Never do that again. Especially not for me. Do you understand? Huh? Do you?" Dabi stated lowly, sounding as if he was trying his absolute best to reprimand me.

Only, his voice betrayed him, coming out uneven and cracked. Raspy and emotional.

Everything 'Dabi' wasn't.

Still gathering my bearings, my muddled brain couldn't even process what he was talking about-not even remembering what I'd just done prior.

Until...

"Master Midas! Sir! Are you okay?!" I heard Tsuyo say from across the room, feeling my vision finally clear as I lethargically turned my eyes towards their position.

I was surprised to see the all powerful Midas sprawled face down on the floor, letting out a few harsh coughs and hacks as Tsuyo knelt over him with concern.

Dabi gripped me tighter as Midas slowly scrambled around on the floor, only able to lift his head a few seconds later.

And, even though his nose and mouth were dripping blood, and his appearance looked as if it had just been through a massive explosion...

....his eyes glimmered bright. Bright with hope. Bright with discovery and the wonder of a child.

That's when the memories of how we got here came back to me, remembering how I'd sacrificed myself to save Dabi from Midas' purple gem.

Dabi's alive. That means it worked, I was able to save him.

However, in doing so, Midas' gem hit me instead.

And I'm still here...

I looked down to my arm in a daze, seeing a layer of crystals coating my forearm. My own crystals, ones I must have instinctively used to protect myself before Midas' gem had hit me.

The crystals had been completely destroyed. Not only that, but they had broken off into sharp shrapnels-with a few pieces having been lodged deep into my forearm with spews of blood.

Uh-oh. That's going to need more than a bandaid.

What happened when my crystals collided with Midas' gems? It almost looks like some sort of explosion took place...

Midas was clearly curious as well when I saw the jewel man looking more unstable and obsessed than I've seen him yet, attempting to scramble up to his feet to check the remnants of the purple jewel that were still smoking down to ash in the middle of the room.

Tsuyo fidgeted uncomfortably as Midas weakly struggled to get up, placing their hand on their beloved boss as they spoke softly.

"Sir. You should stay down. You were completely blasted across the room-" they attempted, before Midas was quick to silence them.

"Shut up. Just shut up." Midas breathed out in a daze, keeping his hazy eyes locked on his dying jewel as he stumbled and crawled towards it.

I felt Dabi's heart rate spike up to panic as Midas came closer, clearly still shaken and amped up on adrenaline from events of the past few minutes.

"Come any closer and I'll blast you from the inside out." Dabi seethed lowly, yet Midas didn't pay a single speck of attention to me or Dabi.

He practically collapsed to his knees when he found his destroyed purple jewel, grabbing the dying item in his hands with silent curiosity as he watched it disintegrating into nothing.

"Amazing..." he uttered softly, seeming as if he couldn't believe the sight in front of him.

But, at the same time....he didn't seem surprised. How can two contradicting emotions collide so intensely?

Even Tsuyo was silent as they watched Midas inspect his jewel, shuffling nervously on their feet as they waited for their boss' next orders.

They came a few uncomfortable moments of silence later. Only after Midas had turned his back to Dabi and I so we'd be unable to read the emotions on his face.

The jewel man sighed contently once his jewel had completely faded away into nothing, turning to Dabi and I with forced composure he was clearly faking this time.

"Well. This has been an interesting day..." he smiled forcedly, having a million thoughts hiding behind his dark eyes.

Dabi and I said nothing as we looked at Midas, not knowing what to do before he continued.

"I can see that tensions between us are starting to run high today. Probably because we have been spending quite a bit of time together..." he alluded, before his lost eyes trailed to Dabi.

"Because Dobby's antics ended up helping me more than they hurt me....I'd say it's fair to spare him a little more time with the living." Midas muttered, looking down in his hand for a jewel that was no longer there.

His words perplexed me, because how has Dabi destroying Midas' mansion helped Midas in any way?

He didn't change his position until whatever just happened with the jewel...

Why is it so important to him...

Once again, Dabi and I said nothing as Midas calmed himself down a little more, making his smile more genuine as he felt Dabi and I watching.

"Why don't you two take some time off? You've worked hard these past few weeks, I'd say you've earned it." He suggested, sloppily wiping the blood that continued to drip from his mouth and nose.

Well, that was abrupt.

He seems too consumed with his own thoughts. As if he's not really present in this moment anymore. Uncharacteristic for what he's shown of his personality so far...

"Tsuyo, show them out," Midas said curtly as he turned on his heel to leave the lobby-barely stopping his walk as he spoke his next words a little more lowly.

"And report to my office once you're finished to discuss your horrible performance of today."

That's right. Tsuyo failed to capture Dabi's accomplice, who set Endeavor free-aka me. Sounds like they're in trouble for that...

They must have known it, too, judging from the way they balled their fists nervously-bowing in silent respect when Midas brushed past them out of the room.

The tension in the air barely cleared away once Midas had left quickly, leaving me and Dabi, and Kaito and Tsuyo alone in the burning lobby to reflect.

What a weird day...

Tsuyo's tired sigh broke the tension a few moments later, with their hand rubbing their masked face as they spoke plainly.

"You have five minutes to get your things from your room," they muttered a little less professionally, seeming more concerned with what Midas had in store for them once we'd leave.

Kaito chuckled smugly-making his presence known for the first time in awhile as he was probably too afraid of Midas to say much more.

"Someone's in trouble. Whoops, didn't mean to say anything." Kaito said maliciously, clearly enjoying the fact that Tsuyo would be taking some heat.

Not even showing Kaito attention, Tsuyo kept one hand on their tired face, snapping their fingers at Kaito with the other.

"The kitchen is understaffed. Head there immediately and help out." They said dryly, causing the smug look to wipe off Kaito's face.

"Huh?! You can't do that!!-" he nagged, before Tsuyo cut him off.

"I can't? Let's bring Midas back in and see what he thinks then." Tsuyo said with losing patience, causing Kaito to grind his teeth in defeat as he forced himself to scramble to his feet.

"Alright! Alright! I'm going..." he growled out, getting to his feet a little quicker now.

He barely turned to Dabi and I as he slowly began walking out, smile turning up wickedly with some last parting words.

"Enjoy your break, lovebirds. Look forward to seeing you come back....for some unfinished business." He chuckled lowly, intentionally knocking Tsuyo in the shoulder on his way out.

I was surprised when Dabi didn't immediately respond with a threat to Kaito, more focused on my well being as he spoke quietly.

"Can you stand on your own?" He asked, maneuvering my frame in his arms carefully.

I gave my legs a test flex to ensure they were stable, lethargically forcing myself to sit up on my own.

"Yeah. A little tired. But nothing major. I can get up." I explained weakly, about to attempt to stand up for the first time before Dabi took matters into his own hands.

Ignoring my previous words completely, Dabi placed his arms underneath my armpits, hoisting me to my shaky feet in a matter of seconds.

He didn't release his hold on me until he was sure I could stand. And even then, his arms slid off me reluctantly when he knew Tsuyo was watching.

Him and his stubborn reputation.

Whatever. Midas gave us the opportunity to leave for a few days. Definitely don't want to spend anymore time here than we have to...

"Why don't you go pack up our room so we can get going..." I said to Dabi, feeling a little wave of wooziness wash over me as I continued. "I'm gonna head to the bathroom down the hall and just run some water on my face. I'll be up in a moment."

Dabi seemed a bit hesitant of my words, but agreed reluctantly, stepping back a few feet and running a hand through his hair.

"Fine. Hurry up though..." he muttered dryly, not seeming too keen on the idea of separating.

But, I need a few minutes. The last thing I'd wanna do is take all those stairs back up to our room without feeling a little better first.

I nodded tiredly, slowly making my way towards the exit with Dabi matching my pace.

We both passed by Tsuyo on the way out, with them not speaking a word or moving a muscle as we left the lobby.

Weird.

Dabi and I parted separate ways once we exited the lobby, with him turning the corner to head towards the stairs, and me going towards the bathroom.

Even though the sun had now come up and the day was fresh, the hallway was completely empty and dead of any presence.

Maybe people can sense that Midas is not in the best mood.

And once I turned the next corner and barely reached out for the bathroom door, my adrenaline immediately spiked for the countless time today as I felt someone harshly grip my uninjured wrist from behind.

I didn't even get the chance to scream or call Dabi back as I was dragged into the dark crevice of the hallway, feeling a hand come over my mouth to keep me quiet as I was slammed up against the wall.

My heart pounded out of my chest as I looked to the figure restraining me with wide eyes...able to make out their identity in the shadows.

It's Tsuyo.

Their mask was still on their face, their grip on me tight as they held their gloved finger to their lip for me to be quiet.

Uh-oh!

I nodded silently in agreement to their suggestion, causing them to slowly remove their hand from my mouth when they knew I wouldn't scream.

Without even saying a word, Tsuyo looked down to their suit, shuffling around in their pocket in silence that made me uncomfortable.

"What are you...." I tried with unease, immediately trailing off my words in dread when they pulled an item out of their pocket.

It was a knife. A bloodied crystal knife that I used during my fight with Endeavor's escape.

Oh. Shit.

How??? I thought I got rid of all the evidence!!

I must have forgotten one. Crap...

What's gonna happen to me now? I'm gonna die, arent I? Midas is gonna do something to me. Or maybe Tsuyo's gonna kill me right here. Hell, maybe he'll even call Kaito back so I can have the most painful death imaginable-

My thoughts were cut off as Tsuyo's arm moved towards me abruptly, causing me to flinch and squeeze my eyes shut as I prepared for the worst.

However, the worst didn't happen, as I simply felt something being pushed into my chest a few moments later, barely opening one eye to see...

...to see that Tsuyo was trying to hand me the dirtied knife by its hilt.

My brows raised in shock as I simply looked at the knife, then back to Tsuyo with uncertainty.

After all, maybe this is some sort of test-

"Take it in the next five seconds, or I'll use it to slit your throat instead." Tsuyo spat impatiently, waving the knife around for me to take.

I took it quickly now, looking up at Tsuyo in hesitant question as I did so.

"B..But-" I uttered weakly, quickly shutting up when they spoke first.

"I don't need you disrupting any peace with Midas. That's why I didn't say anything. Just take it, get rid of it, and never speak of this again-or I'll kill you myself. Got it?" They said dryly, looking around the hallway with unease that they'd get caught.

I nodded frantically in agreement, unable to stop my thoughts from coming out verbally.

"Wait-you...you knew I was Dabi's accomplice and didn't say anything? But, aren't you in trouble for that now?-" I tried to pry, unable to finish my words when Tsuyo backed away from me with finality.

They never want to get too close.

"That will be the last time I cover for you. Now pack up and leave." They said curtly, not even sparing me another glance as they quickly continued walking down the hallway.

I watched them go in confusion, letting the weird conversation sink in once they'd turned the corner and left.

Tsuyo knew I was Dabi's accomplice and didn't say anything. They told Midas they scoured the hallways for evidence, and found my crystals, but still lied and said they didn't?

And then they claimed it's all to keep the peace with Midas.

Wouldn't a loyal follower like Tsuyo want to inform Midas of what I did for the jewel man's safety?

Not only that, but now Tsuyo is apparently going to be punished by Midas for failing to catch me. That doesn't sound like "keeping the peace" as they claimed.

My gut instinct is telling me that there's more to that story than what appears on the surface.

Not only that, but...

My instincts are also telling me that there's more to Tsuyo than what they show on the surface as well.

******

The smell of the hotel hallway brought me more comfort than it should have.

It's not something I thought I'd miss in a million years, getting to go back to this little room I've been sharing with Dabi for the past eight months.

But, I missed it more than anything. Back when times were simple. When we didn't even know Midas' identity. When we didn't even really know each other.

At the time, it all seemed so complicated. I never knew how easy it really was...

Not until now, as I limped down the hallway with my arm around Dabi's neck, feeling him keep a tight grip on my waist to ensure I wouldn't fall.

Guess Midas' blast hit me harder than I was expecting. But, still...

"I already told you I could walk on my own." I uttered lightly, looking at Dabi in tired amusement as he practically carried me down the hallway with such a tight grip on my frame.

He remained looking forward even though he felt my eyes on him, shrugging off my words as we continued walking slowly.

"Don't care. Didn't ask." He muttered dryly, doing his best to come off harsh and uncaring.

But, after every action I've witnessed from him today, the last thing I could ever expect him to be is harsh and uncaring.

If this situation with Midas showed me anything, it showed me a different side of Dabi. A deeper side to him. A more emotional side.

A human side.

While I always had a hunch that there was more to the man underneath 'Dabi,' it was still always just that-a hunch.

Those first few months I met him, he was stubborn. God, he was damn stubborn, refusing to let me in, even the smallest bit. Hell, he threatened to kill me in our first week together when I asked him what he wanted for dinner, claiming the question was just a way for me to 'get some dirt' on him somehow.

But, slowly....very slowly and with a lot of patience....he began to let small pieces of himself slip. He started smiling without realizing it. Started asking questions that pertained to me and began paying attention to the little things.

The last few weeks at Midas' mansion were some big turning points in getting to know Dabi. I realize he's actually more emotional than he lets on. I realize he's got triggers that he's purposely hiding from me-and I realize that I want to know what these triggers are.

I want to know him. I want to know everything there is to know about him.

I want to know if he's okay after these past few weeks. I want to know if he's uneasy of the future.

I want to know why, when I looked into his eyes as Midas was about to kill him, there wasn't a trace of fear.

And I also want to know why, when he claims doesn't care about me, he never looked more terrified in his life when he thought I had been the one to die.

I want to figure out the identity of the man underneath 'Dabi.' And I won't stop until I do so.

...you know, after I rest and maybe take a nap...

Because, quite honestly, after the constant events of the past few weeks, I am physically and mentally exhausted. And while I don't know Dabi's thoughts on what he thinks of the past few weeks, I know my own.

I feel battered and beaten. Inside and out.

I feel shaken up when I think how Dabi could have died. How I could have been coming back to this hotel room alone and never gotten to see him again.

Also, I feel shaken up about how much Dabi's possible death truly affected me, not realizing how deep I'd fallen for him until that very moment.

I can't lose another person.

You promised you wouldn't leave me. Why were you so okay with dying today, Dabi?

Against my will, my lip began to quiver softly at the thoughts as Dabi stopped our path in front of the door to our room, not even releasing his hold on me for a second as he fished the keys out of his pocket with his other hand.

"Ugh. I'm beat as fuck." Dabi sighed softly as he unlocked the door to our room, not having looked at me enough in the past few minutes to notice my growing emotions.

I said nothing to his casual comment, too afraid to speak for fear my voice would crack and give myself away.

Assuming I was probably just tired, Dabi lazily kicked the door open with his foot...tightening his grip on me once more as we crossed the threshold of the door.

Everything looked the same as how we left it. Dabi's side of the room was a little cleaner-probably because the maid had tidied things up. The window curtains were cracked open to let the setting sun illuminate the area peacefully-immediately making me want to hole up in here with Dabi and never leave again-

He could have died. So easily, he could have died today.

I bit my lip to suppress the emotions that wanted to come out, hearing Dabi kick off his shoes and come up behind me as he closed the door and dropped our bags.

You almost didn't save him.

I kept my back to Dabi as he brushed past me towards the kitchen, watching the way he ran a hand through his hair as he assessed the area.

Tears began to well up in my eyes at the mere sight of his frame lightly padding across the room, feeling my emotions build before I couldn't take anymore.

I'm too tired to try and hold everything together right now. I don't have the energy to be the positive one.

"Huh. You want something to eat, or whatever? I dunno, I can't cook shit-actually, yeah, I'm not cooking shit. Fuck that. So you either get ramen, or-" Dabi rambled nonchalant, unable to finish when I quickly walked to his spot and wrapped my arms around his waist from behind.

He went silent as I squeezed him tightly, not moving a muscle as I buried my head between his shoulder blades and scrunched up my face to hold in tears.

I didn't expect him to hug me back. Dabi isn't much of a hugger. He's not much of an affectionate person on the outside. It embarrasses him. If anything, he probably finds this awkward and uncomfortable. He'll shrug me off soon, I know.

But...right now, I just really need a hug. Even if he doesn't reciprocate it, I just need a hug. I need to hug him.

And, like I expected, Dabi unwrapped my arms from his waist a few moments later, causing me to sniffle in understanding and try to back away from him as he turned around to face me.

However, what I didn't expect were his next actions of pulling me forward by my wrist....feeling both of his arms wrap around me tightly a second later, hugging me more desperately than I'd been hugging him.

He said nothing and neither did I, both of us simply melting into eachother's embraces as we remained standing in the middle of the kitchen.

He hid his face in the crook of my neck, and I couldn't help but believe that was intentional so I wouldn't see his facial expressions.

Regardless, a simple hug shouldn't feel this good. This passionate. It shouldn't make me want to, simultaneously, cry and smile. It shouldn't make me pull Dabi even closer to get rid of the distance that didn't exist.

And it shouldn't be this comforting. It shouldn't allow me to absorb every bit of emotion he was feeling and give him my own in return. It shouldn't make me feel as if I could finally breathe again for the first time in weeks, and have this cruel illusion that everything's going to be okay.

But it did. It did all of that, and more.

And my starved soul ate up every bit of it, allowing my heart to fall deeper and harder into a spiral I couldn't stop.

Dabi POV:

And mine did the same, sunshine.

How could it not when I almost lost you for good?

God, it's damn pathetic when you pick my brain and realize all the ridiculous things I've been thinking about within the past few hours.

It feels like a bad dream. All of it-the worst bad dream I've ever had. And I've had a lot of those.

The whole situation makes me angry. It makes me angry when I remember how it all played out.

Don't I always say she should just let me go? Don't I always say she shouldn't keep trying to save me, because there's nothing left worth saving?

Yeah, it makes me angry that Violet didn't let me die today.

But...

More than that...

It makes me angry that she tried to die for me.

I mean, what the fuck is wrong with her? Does she really think that bad of herself, to where my shitty life is supposed to be more important than hers? God, it gets my blood boiling just thinking about it.

It pisses me off when I remember how she dove in front of me, playing the little martyr she is, as she grit her teeth and just....accepted it. Accepted that was it for her.

No one's ever done that for me before.

God, it makes me so damn mad when I remember the scream of pure fear that came from my throat as I watched the jewel hit her. It was a scream I couldn't have stopped even if I wanted to. A scream that was so damn Touya. Disgusting.

It makes my heart race in fury as I remember the explosion that sounded after that, with the image of her body going flying across the room still burned into my charred eyes.

It makes a livid cold sweat form on the back of my neck when my feet moved on their own and ran to her.

And my throat chokes up in frustration as I screamed her name, over and over-seeing nothing but blood on her face and lifelessness behind her eyes as she didn't respond to me.

Yeah. It makes me angry. It all makes me so angry that this happened...

But, deep down, I know that none of this is actually 'anger' at all.

No. The only thing I'm really angry about, is how much I've come to care about this girl. But, fuck, that's nothing new to any of us at this point-and if it is new to you? Then re-read the fucking book, cause that's embarrassing.

Nah. The sharp, annoying pain settled deep in my chest overshadows all the anger. It's coming from the center of that ugly thing called a 'heart.' The pain that feels as if I've been hit by a fucking truck and sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

It's pain that comes back stronger when I remember collapsing to my knees once I'd approached Violet's unconscious body. It squeezes my numb, nasty heart harder-begrudgingly reminding me it's still there, when I remember pulling her frame from the ground and taking her in my arms.

It hurt more than burning alive as I looked at her for any signs of life, not even caring about the searing sting of my tear ducts as bloody tears flowed from them like pathetic waterfalls.

And while I refuse to acknowledge that I said it out loud-and while you'll never hear me say it out loud...it made my entire existence ache when I told her I loved her in that moment-too fucked up at the time to even care about how loud or pathetic I sounded-I was both, in case you're wondering. When I told her she needed to come back to me.

Because she did. She needed to come back to me. I had nothing left keeping me here if she didn't. I meant every damn word.

So, how about that, huh? Throwing away everything I've worked for so far, if Violet never made it? Saying 'fuck it' to my grand revenge plans for dear old dad over one girl?

Awww. That's cute, Touya!!! You always were so sensitive, weren't you...

Then again, I've already fucked up quite a few opportunities to dance my way to hell with dad, thanks to her. It's not like the taste of failure is anything new!

I couldn't even reveal my true identity right in front of his nasty fucking face, because Violet was there...and I was too hung up over how she would react. Then, I went and set the bastard free, because she asked me to.

Am I really that much of a whipped bitch? I fucking guess...

Nevermind the fact that it's not about her, you moron-hell, it's not supposed to be about her anyways.

It is though. She wormed her way into my ugly heart too easily and now I'm a pathetic mess over it.

When did I become so dependent on her, anyways? Sure, I knew I always had a thing for this girl. Hell, I even knew I loved her.

But, I've never been like this. Unable to stay away from her. Noticing every moment she's not here with me, and wondering what she's doing. Thinking about the stupid, little things she's told me. Catching myself in an ugly smile when I remember the grape things she does.

God it's so annoying. I spent the first years of knowing her trying to get away from her, and now I don't want to? It's bullshit.

It's crazy how much has changed in a few months. No, not months. Years.

Because even after I died and left, Violet would cross my mind. But, it was so easy to suppress it and try to forget her.

Now, I can't get her out of my head. I'm too deep in this. The first mistake was agreeing to this mission and becoming her shitty partner. The second mistake was talking to her.

The third mistake was imagining her body under mine. The fourth mistake was actually getting her body under mine and going all in.

Fuck. That's when things changed, huh? When we slept together. Before that, it was always just some annoying fantasy in my head. Boning my first crush. Nothing a little Jolly Molly Strip Club can't fix...

But actually doing it, and realize how good it was....realizing it wasn't just physical shit....letting her kiss me...

These were my biggest mistakes of all.

Cause now she's all I think about. And I only crave more of her with each passing day.

Now I'm holding her in my arms and I feel my body trembling like a little bitch, pulling her closer to me when I remember all the shit we've been through in the past few weeks.

I wanna kick myself when I can hear the little voice in my head betraying me, feeling so much fucking relief that she was still here. Feeling grateful for something, for the first time in fucking years that she somehow managed to survive. Ugh, gross.

She keeps forcing new emotions out of me everyday. Emotions I don't want. Emotions I don't know how to deal with.

If I keep going down this route, I'll lose sight of the person I wanna be. I'll lose sight of 'Dabi.'

Why did you have to go and fuck everything up for me, Violet? Why couldn't you just let me go? Why can't you just let me rot? That's how I want it.

Yeah. That's how I want it. But, I can't think about that right now. Not when I can feel her frame wrapped up in mine.

My ears were too willing to listen when she spoke weakly, voice coming out muffled as her face remained buried in my shirt.

"Sorry. I know you're not a hugger." She uttered softly, only squeezing me tighter in hopes I wouldn't ruin the moment.

Yeah. She's right. I'm not a hugger....

Or, I didn't used to be...

"Whatever. I'll make an exception today since you almost got put six feet under." I uttered-probably insensitively, yet seeming to have made the right move as I felt Violet's warm breathy laugh soak into my ugly heart.

She only gripped me tighter, not lifting her face from my shirt as she continued.

"I guess I could say the same about you." She murmured quieter than before, clearly trying to hide the crack in her voice and failing.

I shrugged softly as I stroked my fingers up and down her back like some love struck loser, not even thinking about my next words as they fell from my mouth.

"So what? Who cares about that." I said, feeling her body tense in my hold.

"I do." She responded immediately, only making me scoff with guilt and self hatred.

"And look what that did to you. Almost got you killed." I reminded her dryly, not wanting to see the unconscious look of hers again in my mind.

"I don't regret it." Violet countered a little more defiant, making my teeth grind down at how much she didn't care about herself.

I'm fucking ruining her, aren't I?

"Well you should regret it. You should regret all of it." I murmured, speaking about more than just the events of today.

She should regret everything. She should regret ever meeting me in the fucking first place.

That seemed to be the thing to make her stop and think as she went silent for a minute-causing my blood to run cold in involuntary panic as I thought maybe she was actually agreeing with me.

I try so hard to push her away, but panic at the idea of her leaving me.

But, before my fucked up head could go off on another tangent about that, Violet spoke first-surprising me with her question.

"D..Do you?" She asked weakly, sounding as if she didn't want to know the answer but needed to.

It was a question that caught me off guard. One I didn't have an answer to as vulnerability is my insecurity.

Say yes. Say it. Say it and sabotage yourself. Make her hate you and squash this before it goes even further. You love to self-sabotage, after all.

My mouth opened to speak the heartless answer, my brain cursing itself when my throat came out dry.

And while I didn't have the balls to tell Violet that, yes, I fucking regret ever meeting you....guess the silence was also an answer in itself.

Slowly she peeled her face away from my shirt, looking up at me with those shimmering golden eyes that could have me on my fucking knees in half a second.

Those eyes.....they own me. They own every damn part of me.

"Do you?" She asked again, voice filling the room as sickeningly sweet as honey. "Do you....regret....this?"

She said nothing more and I matched her silence, feeling my soul splitting itself in two different directions as my conflict grew.

That was the first time I've seen her face in a few minutes, and already I was a fucking goner the moment she paid attention to me.

I wanna hurt her-ah, scratch that. No, I don't want to hurt her, but I should hurt her so she'll leave me alone. So I won't drag her down into my shit.

I almost got her killed today. She's already going down the wrong path by being with me.

I'm bad for her.

However, I felt my thoughts breaking as Violet's face slowly began to fall as my silence grew, looking at me with more care than anyone ever has as she spoke again.

"Dabi..." she said a little unevenly now, instinctively reaching her hand up to caress my jaw.

Hearing her say my name, combined with the moment her fingers stroked my face, the tiniest little resolve I'd been trying to build was quick to snap.

Before I could even process what I was doing, I tightened my grip on her frame and leaned down quickly, smashing my lips against hers with an embarrassing amount of desperation.

Yeah, it wasn't a verbal answer. I'm being a fucking pussy right now and can't give her one. I'm not good at this stuff.

I've never cared about anyone so much. And I've never had someone care about me so much. I don't know how to act or what to do...

But, I guess she got the hint that I wasn't going anywhere, as I felt her lips immediately melt against mine a few seconds later.

God, it was instantaneous. The moment I felt her kissing me back-matching my desperation with her own.....any shit I'd been thinking prior didn't matter anymore. It had gone out the window.

Cause the truth...

As Touya...

The truth is that it feels so damn good to be wanted.

And it feels even better to be wanted by Violet.

The first moan came from me at my own thoughts. Fucking kill me for being so pathetic. I dunno, I guess I didn't realize how much I missed this. It's been a few days since we kissed or did any of the fun stuff.

Yeah. I'm downplaying it. No, I'm not doing a good job.

Because the truth is that this kiss is one that brought me pleasure from the top of my head to the tips of my toes.

My eyes fell closed immediately as my fingers dug into Violet's sides, feeling her hot breath warming up my mouth as our tongues were quick to mingle.

Fuck. Everything about her is so damn addicting. To the way she kisses, to the taste of her mouth-her waist between my hands, and the little sounds she's making as I graze my teeth on her bottom lip.

I don't want anything else. I don't want anyone else. Ever.

I felt her cute, little fingers snake to the back of my neck, pushing me closer to let me know she wanted more.

Oh. I'll give her more.

Having no willpower to even break away from her lips for a fucking second, I slowly walked our intertwined bodies forward until her back hit the wall, ensuring to close the distance that might have gotten between us.

Violet's breath began to deepen as my hands began to roam now, throwing her head back when I squeezed both her tits tightly.

I hummed in want to her reaction, not even realizing how much my own breathing had picked up until I pulled away from her lips.

My mouth moved before I could stop it, accidentally spilling the truth I didn't want to admit to either of us.

"As if I could ever fucking get sick of you. Does this feel like I regret it?" I panted out in a lust filled haze, pressing my boner against her as I buried my face in her neck.

Yeah, I'm thinking with my dick right now. What else is new?

Violet moaned softly, snaking her fingers into my hair as my lips closed around a sweet spot on her skin.

"It literally drives me crazy how much I can't stay away from you. Got it? So don't ask that shit again." I murmured against her neck, darting the tip of my tongue out before gliding it up her skin and towards her ear.

I felt her shiver against my body at the actions, pulling my hair harder as I grazed my teeth underneath her earlobe.

"G-Got it. I..I missed you, Dabi. I missed being with you like this." She uttered softly, already lifting her arms up when my hands snaked under her shirt.

I missed you, too.

"Yeah? Then let me show you what you've been missing." I smirked against her skin, pulling my face out of her neck to kiss her once more.

Only I was forced to stop as I noticed the gash on her forehead had reopened, already having dripped blood halfway down her face.

Fuck. That's right. She's hurt.

I groaned slightly in sexual frustration as I barely pulled away, causing Violet's eyes to slowly open and look at me in horny question.

Heh. She's still ready to go, I guess. Definitely my girl.

But, I'm not taking any more chances. As much as I hate to say it, what happened today fucked me up.

"You're bleeding, dummy." I murmured softly, trailing my eyes up to her forehead for emphasis.

Violet didn't even seem to be fazed by my words as she tried to pull me closer, shaking her head and unintentionally causing the blood to drip faster.

"It's fine. I feel great! More than great!-" she tried with pep, before my small chuckle cut her off.

"Sit down so I can fix your face. It's already ugly enough as it is." I said smugly, purposely trying to cool down her horny mood now.

And it seemed to work as the dork was already distracted by my comment, with that dirty look in her eyes being replaced by one of fake offense.

Too cute for her own good.

"What?! Ugly?! Ummm, excuse me. You were ready to....tooooo.....uhhh...do the..dance with no pants with this 'ugly' face thirty seconds ago." She explained, causing a genuine laugh to escape my mouth at her stupid words.

Heh. Thank you for the boner killer, grape. I needed it.

"Anyone who says 'dance with no pants' isn't going anywhere near my dick. Now sit." I snickered lightly, giving her ass a cheeky smack before backing away so she could move.

Violet pursed her lips begrudgingly and trudged towards the bed so I could fix her, speaking over her shoulder as she did so.

"Fine then. How about 'The Horizontal Tango?'" She tried once more as she sat on the bed, causing me to laugh again and rub my face tiredly.

This woman.

"Say that again and I'll take back everything I said about not regretting this." I murmured jokingly, hearing her chuckle lightly as I went to get the first aid kit.

"Pleaseeee. You couldn't stay away from me even if you tried." She teased, leaning back on her hands with a playful smile.

And yeah. She's just fucking around.

Imagine if she knew how true that statement was.

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Thank you guys for reading. I cherish every comment. Please don't forget to vote if you want this story to continue <3

Next Chapter Title: Lunchbox.