Chapter Five: Antecedent Endearment

We both stared at each other in shock, a distressing silence as old as time itself consuming the area. The silence stretched thinner and thinner, like a balloon blown big, until the temptation to rupture was too great to resist.

Blood flowed like a lazy river. It flowed like so much red gravy across the glass covered floor and down into the crevices of the white tiled floor.

As the flesh splits, mild crimson liquid pops from the barrier and seeps away from the wound. Thick beads crawling as brisk as it travels etching crisp red streaks. There was so much blood- A dark crimson, with a discreet, metallic scent. It cascaded across skin, right through the fingertips that gripped the arm wound in an attempt to apply pressure.

The bullet wound looked nothing like Silla had expected from her extensive crime drama viewing. Instead of a neat reddened hole, it was oozing with dark congealing blood and the putrid smell was enough to initiate a gag reflex.

The pain was like fire burning in Declan's arm. He winced. A cold sweat went over his entire body. The fact that he still felt the wound meant that he thankfully hadn't gone into shock.

Though the pain was barely bearable; he didn't know if he could stand on his feet much longer. It was the kind of agony that you could only read about in a novel.

It felt like a hot, sharp knife, covered in salt, slicing through his skin and into his muscles and bones, as though his arms had been frozen and a bolt of lightning had struck his body from head to toe.

The only way to describe it was like someone had bashed his arm in with a baseball bat. Declan's green eyes cringed; he squeezed his eyes shut and toppled over to the floor onto all of the cracked glass. Blood soaked into his hoodies sleeve, radiating outward.

She quickly stripped the fabric away to show the dark hole in his skin and ripped away at her jacket and was able to make a makeshift bandage and bind his wound.

"Silla!" He called out to her in a hoarse and concerned voice.

"V'ere you hit?" He questioned.

"Umm... No." She had noticed that his vision was blurred and he seemed to be a bit stunned; understandably, though. He was the one wounded and yet... He was still more concerned for her wellbeing even as dazed as he was.

Yet another fast paced object flew threw the broken window and nearly hit her again. "Get down!" He yelled, and her body didn't even challenge his order as she threw herself onto the ground. Silla panted heavily and kept her eyes on Declan.

He looked more distressed than she had ever seen him. Most of the time he was quiet, and his face was as calm as a still rock. He was anxious as his brows scrunched together fretfully. The fact that he was this worried meant that they were in deep trouble.

Declan used his uninjured arm to drag himself towards her and wrapped himself around her body, shielding Silla from any awaiting damage.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" He asked, staring into her blue eyes in worry.

"I'm fine. Are you alright, though?" She asked him as bullets seemed to rain into the bar like a hail storm.

"I'll be okay," he told the young girl unconvincingly. Around them people were yelling and firing guns in the streets. It seemed that they were stuck in the middle of a turf war. There was no way they would be able to go home on their usual route without getting shot.

The only other known route was through the underground. A place that was crawling with death and few who made it in made it out. But what other choice did they have? If they stayed, they would be killed. If they went through the underground, they would at least have a chance of survival.

They crawled across the glass covered tile floor occasionally scratching or cutting up their arms and legs until they finally reached the back door leading them to an alleyway out back near two large garbage cans.

Following Declan, Silla made her way to the location of the underground.

Though it turned out that the entrance was a giant tunnel?!

She had never been or anywhere near the underground much less knew what it looked like. She had just assumed like everyone else that it was some secret area not a passageway.

The enormous tunnel was connected to many other subsets and was difficult to navigate if you didn't know it well. It was the former ancient City Of New York's sewer system; that went under the entire city.

A horrible place filled with the mentally disturbed, cold blooded murderers, and everything else that goes bump in the night. It's not a place even the people of the lower ring wish to go.

She hummed softly as she looked around. The ancient sewers smell like putrid rotting bodies. There were many cracks and in some green water flowed from only Gods know where squirted through some of the cracks.

The ceiling could cave in at any moment. Green slime, glowing fungi of all sorts, giant mushrooms, and grime covered the hundred year old cement paths.

Upon entering Silla noticed just how dark it was; only the assumingely radioactive glowing green water and fungi lighting the paths.

Bones littered the grimy cracked cement ground and every now and again she would come across a full on skeleton without any missing bones. Silla would count them as they passed by.

One skeleton, two skeleton, three...

Most normal people from a few centuries ago would be appalled at her nonchalantness but now all the young girl could manage upon seeing another fellow humans remains was one simple thought.

Ew...

In this century it would be considered odd not to run into a dead body at some point. This sort of thing was the norm; unless you were a woman lucky enough to find a nice husband from the upper ring and live a plush life.

Most women didn't have a rich husband much less a nice one that loved them. Romance and chivalry was a thing of the past; though that didn't stop the young girl from being a hopeless romantic at times.

Further down the intricate tunnels a man who sat a little farther from the entrance stop walking, turning slowly, and start to follow them, his face hidden by a high collar.

He was the only semi human thing they had seen so far. Though Silla couldn't decided if that was a good thing or not yet. She narrowed her eyes slightly. Thankfully Declan was right beside her, and she pulled onto the back of his shirt to alert him.

It only took him a minute to fully register what she was signaling to. At first he had looked over to her in confusion until he saw the desperate look on her girls face.

Realizing something was off he looked over his shoulder to see the man following them. His eyebrows knitted together in frustration while they rounded a sharp corner.

As time went on the said man only seemed to come closer. Until he was practically only three feet away and finally he spoke.

"Oh yes... My boss could sell you for thousands," he said disgustingly.

A shiver ran through her body, but she hid it the best she could. Declan, however, quickly pushed Silla behind him and turned around to glare darkly at the man.

Turning around on their heels, they ran and started to make their way through the tunnels.

Though they didn't make it far before they heard the distinct sound of a metallic click. Declan and Silla froze on the spot.

He had a gun.

Turning her head slowly, Silla caught a glimpse of something shiny and silver before she heard a loud bang and something hard hitting her body, knocking Silla flat on her stomach. She groaned under the heavy weight laying on her back, trying to move herself she found she was stuck.

"Are you okay?" Declan asked worriedly next to her ear. Eyes wide, she turned my head slightly to see stern, dark green eyes staring back at her expectantly. Declan had blocked her from a bullet yet again luckily not getting hit himself this time.

However due to missing its target the bullet to ricocheted along the tunnel walls and echoed far ahead of them.

Quickly, Declan grabbed her sleeve, pulling Silla from her hands and knees to her feet, dragging the young girl behind him as he ran down the tunnels.

They heard the man behind them cuss and start to chase after the two, shooting every now and again. She nearly screamed as another bullet whizzed past their heads.

Suddenly, Declan made a sharp turn to the right, into a straight dead end alley way. Well, it technically wasn't a dead end, there was just three foot tall crates stacked five high, creating a fifteen foot high wall. The wood looked to be a few hundred years old and was falling apart. It was all rotted out from water dripping from the tunnels cracks.

They stopped just before the crate wall, both of them breathing heavily. They could hear the old man not far off, no doubt he would find them in less then five minutes.

She turned to Declan as if asking what next and he turned to where his back was facing the crates and got down on one knee, cupping his hands together.

"I'm going to lift you up, I v'ant you to crawl to the top and v'ait for me." Was all he said.

Looking at him in disbelief, her eyes widened. He wanted to pick her up and hoist her on top of a fifteen foot tall wall of crates with an injured arm.

Besides the bullet was still in his arm! It wouldn't be possible to put anymore strain on it without grave consequences.

She was about to call him crazy, but the sound of bullets firing sounded closer so she kept her mouth shut.

Hesitantly, she walked over to stand in front of the sandy blonde boy, silently asking permission to start. He only nodded in reply.

Gently, she put her foot in his cupped hands, grabbing onto his shoulder for support. She mentally counted to three before she put all her weight on his hands.

Slowly he stood from his kneeling position, standing to his full height. She reached her hands out as far as she could, but she was still a few feet short of the top. Looking down to Declan, she spoke, "I can't reach the top? What do we do?"

He thought for a moment before, looking into her eyes. "On the count of three, I'm going to throw you in the air, you're going to have to catch the edge and pull yourself up. Okay?" He spoke and she nervously nodded, nonetheless, putting her faith in him.

He started to slowly count under his breath, every number he would slightly push her up farther. Finally, on the third count, before he tossed her up, she yelped.

Suddenly she felt herself being thrown into the air. For a split second of flying upwards, she reveled in the feeling of soaring into the sky, loving the way it felt to be freely surrounded by the air. Though her moment of complete bliss was interrupted when she felt herself start to fall.

Eyes widening and instinct mode activating, she shot her hands out, just barely getting her fingertips over the edge, her boots scraping against the side of the crates trying to gain some kind of traction.

After situating her feet and hands on the wooden boxes, she easily hauled herself over the edge, standing on her knees at the top.

Silla quickly turned to look over at him having heard the old, man fire another bullet, that hit the entrance of the alley way. He was just around the corner...

Getting down on her belly, She reached her arm as far as it could go over the edge, waiting for him to grab it so she could pull him up. Taking a few running steps back, he leaned down slightly.

She looked at the entrance of the alley way when she spotted a shadow nearing it, their arms waving frantically. Silla looked down just in time to see Declan push off into a run.

She watched with worried eyes as he ran full speed towards the crate wall and at the last second, jumping high, landing a foot on the alley way and proceeding to push off from there. Adding a few more feet to his already impressive jump, he slammed into the crates with his feet, roughly grabbing Silla's hand. She felt her shoulder pop at the sudden weight from his body but refused to let go.

Glancing quickly at the entrance, freaking when she saw a boot, Silla grunted quietly, pulling him up and over onto the top.

And conveniently on top of herself. Though neither of them could do anything about it as the old man walked into the alley, shooting a random bullet into the bottom of the crates.

"I know you went down here... come out you little runts," he evilly laughed.

"People would pay good money for you two... Especially you, little girly..."

She flinched lightly, a shiver running through her body. How nasty could this man get?

Declan however just laid still over her, both his legs on either side of her left one, hands pressed flat against the crates on both sides of her waist and his head laying in the space between Silla's neck and her right shoulder. She couldn't see his face, so she couldn't really see what he was thinking. Was he as uncomfortable as she was?

Another bullet sounded, and it ripped past them, narrowly missing the Declan's back. He didn't even flinch. Suddenly, the old man started banging on the crates, making her sink farther away from the side, a quiet gasp escaping her throat, but luckily he couldn't hear over the banging. A hand came to cover my mouth, and she looked over.

Declan put a finger over his lips, nodding to the other side of the crates, the side that didn't have a crazy old man on it. Understanding what he wanted, she nodded.

Pressing his lips against her ear, Silla fought hard to hold back another shiver. Did he not know anything about personal space?

"You go over first. I'll help you down, and v'hen your feet touch the ground... Run," he whispered quietly.

He slightly lifted himself from her, giving enough room to wiggle sideways towards the other side without being seen. Seeing as the old man kept banging on the crates, she was able to swing her legs over the side unnoticed.

From there, Declan grabbed her hand in a tight grasp and lowered her down as far as he could, leaving her with only a five foot drop to deal with.

Silla counted to three in her head before letting go of his hands, sliding from his grip. Landing on her small feet looking back at him expectantly.

When he saw her looking, he made a 'run away' motion with his hands; Silla shook her head.

He glared at the young girl before shaking his head. Taking one glance back at the old man, he swung his legs over the side, judged the distance, and then jumped, landing perfectly in a crouched position.

Silla cursed under her breath at his gracefulness, but went over to him anyway, putting a hand against his back, leaning close to his ear, but not as close as he did.

"Are you okay?" She mumbled. Silla asked especially since he had been shot in the arm earlier.

Out of nowhere, he roughly grabbed her wrist, yanking her closer to him, making them face to face. She looked at him surprised.

"I told you to run. V'hy didn't you?" He said slowly, dragging her out of the alley way and into the streets.

"I didn't want to leave you alone... Not after you saved me... More than once," She whispered lowly, still trying to back away. He slowed his pace slightly to a walk but didn't let go of her.

They were far enough from that crazy man by now. Though she still got the feeling that someone was watching them. But she supposed everyone felt that way when they're roaming the streets at night.

"Just don't ever endangered yourself again," he said his voice sharp like a knife. She couldn't help but squeak out at his tone; she was so used to his soft tone. He had never spoken to her harshly in anyway. Though he didn't like it when she didn't listen.

But she wasn't his slave, she still had free will. Behind his back she stuck her tongue out at him causing him to turn around and narrow his eyes at her in suspicion as she looked in a random direction like nothing had happened.

Though by some mysterious force or just bad luck just as they were making their way to shelter it started to drizzle. Soon evolving into a full blown storm; it rained so hard it sounded like the blades on a helicopter making a loud whirring sound.

It was critical that they didn't get wet. If they did they would freeze tonight seeing as it would hit record cold temperatures soon.

Panicking, they ran knowing they had to find an alternative shelter that would shield them from the cold acidic rain.

Eventually, they stumped upon an old abandoned store with graffiti covering it. Opening the door Declan and Silla quickly rushed inside. It was surprising still in good condition. It even had old supplies from when it was previously open.

The store seemed like the perfect place to hunker down for the night. Though Declan locked the door and barricaded the windows as an extra precaution. They were still too close to the entrance of the underground, so they couldn't take any unnecessary risks.

After all that exhausting mess they finally settled down and let their nerves cool down. As Silla laid down on her homemade palate, she patted the place next to her wanting Declan to sit next to her.

Today had been a long day and reflexively she had tightly gripped the jade snake pendant in her hand that doubled as a music box key. Almost as if it could protect her.

Meanwhile Declan dutifully sat next to Silla watching her with interest. He seemed to just keep staring at her blankly, observing her every movement.

He had gently slipped the pendent out of her hand and put it in the lock on the music box gently turning it and waiting for it to play it's gentle toon.

The soft lullaby had started as it slowly opened the beautiful glass figurines inside turning in repetitious pattern. The glass they were made of reflecting the glow dim of the room. It's sounds seemed to be in sync with the patterning rain as an eerie, soft tune started to play.

He had numerous heart attacks and panicked more than he had in his entire life today. Declan has come so close to losing her so many times. If something had happened to her, he just wouldn't have known what to do with himself. He couldn't even bring up the thought as it made his heart beat erratically with pure terror.

It made him feel like pulling out his hair. The mere thought of losing her in anyway made him go...

Absolutely mad.

Unconsciously he had moved on his own. Without her notice Declan had inched closer and closer towards her and before she could catch on to what he was doing she felt an odd warmth caress her ear.

Surprised she turned her head to the left and stared at Declan's half lidded green eyes that were so unexpectedly close to her.

She was so beautiful to him. From the love she gives to her ideas and the creative ways she expresses her personality.

She was the most astonishing person he had ever met... Easy to talk to and fun to be around. Even in the silence when nether one of them spoke her understanding presence was calming.

There's beauty in being a good listener, someone who seeks to make connections and joy and see things from new perspectives. She had safe eyes, perhaps that's the best way to say it. She had a beauty that made those billboard-princesses look as paper thin as they are, she was something robust and real. That was his girl; it was her before she was his and it was her all of her days. Age can't touch that kind of beauty, it's just there.

"Krasivaya," He murmured in Russian. Though perhaps what he truly loves most about her were her vivacious eyes.

At first glance they seemed like simple elegant blue eyes. But her eyes, her eyes showed her soul. They were a deep pool of restless water, an ocean of hopeless grief. The first moment he looked into her eyes he knew, all the beauty of the universe could not even hope to compete with this simple thing: passion. Passion turned her eyes into orbs of the brightest raging storm, and in them he read clearly that she would fight to the very last tear for her life. She would not let the world break her. Sure she could cry, but she would never let them take her true self from her. She clung to it with passion. Passion that made her even more lovely.

She tried to yank herself back away from him, but something ran along her back preventing Silla from doing so. Looking down she automatically saw that he had anticipated her movement and had wrapped his arm around her back without Silla noticing

He seemed to be in a daze; his pupils dilated. In shock she only watch as his lips inched closer to hers. He laid his forehead on hers as he stared deeply into Silla's deep blue eyes. Causing an embarrassed blush to form on her cheeks.

It was sudden when she felt his lips on hers. They were soft and gentle. Though it was full of need and adoration. Like he was desperate for water in the desert. The rain pattering on the rooftop made it all seem like she was in some sort of lucid dream.

Her first kiss.

He pulled back, brought a finger to his lips and gently rubbed it across the soft pink skin. "Tak myagko..." He muttered to himself. Looking over he saw her Silla as a blushing quivering mess.

She didn't know what to think. She wasn't even aware that he felt that strongly. But what perturbed her the most was that she let it happen.

Did She truly like him as more than a friend?

For a while they stared at each other unsure of what to say. Until Silla broke the silence and grabbed his hands in hers. She felt no matter what happened or how she felt he would always be her friend and he needed to know that. Silla knew he deserved at least this solace.

"I'll always stay by your side," She told him in a confident and serious voice. Unaware of the possible misunderstandings and consequences of this simple action.

"It's a promise," he said smiling sincerely his green eyes shining darker.

"Ty dolzhen vsegda ostavat'sya na moyey storone..." He whispered before the sun fully set.

To Be Continued...