Dean

It seems like we've been walking for twenty minutes. Of course, walking next to Ella makes it seem longer, especially since I can feel something between us, something that's not very good. I don't regret kissing her, I just regret the timing I did it. The first time I seen her in the hall, I should have just been a man, walked over to her, held her against me, and kissed the life out of her. That would have saved all of these problems I'm having to face now, all of this pain that is slowly seeping into my soul. Is this the pain Ella felt all of those years? I know she felt a different pain from me, but pain is pain, and it all hurts the same.

Eventually we come to the room that Hunter has told us about so many times. He searches in his pocket for the key, and I find myself growing nervous. Hunter assured us that no Guards would be out right now, that they were all assigned to bed after making sure the survivors were in bed. He told us they'd all be in the seven barracks, except for the men working on the experiment. This still doesn't make me feel any easier as he fumbles with the keys, them clanging against one another in the silent hall. "Got it," he confirms, before walking in and switching on a light.

We follow him inside, me being the last to enter, and I'm glad for the mask on the helmet that's covering my eyes from the bright lights that are lighting up the room. It's white everywhere except for the weapons lining the walls, and I find myself squinting, trying to adjust to its brightness without making myself sick.

"Alright, I'm going to assign each one of you guns, since you guys aren't experienced with this sort of area, okay?" Hunter tells us, and I wonder if okay is his favorite word.

He begins to hand out the guns, and the first one goes to Ella. It's a large gun that she slings across her torso, almost as if she's comfortable holding an instrument that could end lives in a second.

I don't pay attention to Mark and Carol's gun, for someone is handing me one that looks just like Ella's. It's lighter then it looks, and it's not actually as uncomfortable as I thought it would be. Maybe that's why Ella's body looks so calm while holding it. "You guys are now all armed, so Edmund will show you how to use the guns," Hunter announces, before a shorter Guard walks around, showing us how to reload and where's the safety, and everything else to know. We're then given another round of shots, and we stash them in our pockets, before Hunter tells us the plan.

"Now here's what we're going to do. We're going to raid a barrack, and all of you are going to come with us. We're going to take those Guards and lead them to the cafeteria, where it won't be so crowded. My men and I are going to raid the other six barracks, while you four guard the men in the cafeteria, and we'll bring one barrack full of Guards at a time. After all the barracks are raided, a few of my men will stay with you to watch them and make sure they don't go anywhere, while I raid the experiment room with a Edmund, Severus, and Elijah. We'll bring those Guards back, and try to shut this experiment down in a civil way, go it?" I don't know if I'm the only one here that thinks Guarding about fifty men with just four of us, isn't a good idea. I've heard that there are at least fifty people in one barrack, and four of us aren't going to be able to keep them from coming at us. Not even with the guns, for we aren't experienced in fighting, while I'm sure a lot of them are used to hostage hold ups, and how to react during one.

"Got it," Mark, Ella, and Carol reply, but I'm silent, until I can't take it anymore.

"Do you seriously think that the four of us can keep fifty men at bay while you go and get the rest of them? Just because we have a few killing toys in our hands?" I ask, trying to make everyone see how dangerous this is from my eyes. "We are literally only a handful of people, compared to the--I don't know--approximately 350 Guards that we're going to try and keep in a cafeteria. Does that sound like a death trap to anyone else besides me?" I don't care if they think I'm only speaking up because I'm against this project, but I am against it. I have no faith this is going to end well, but if it does, it's going to be one miracle.

"You have no faith, do you? You tell me you can't believe I'm supporting Ella, but I can't believe you don't have any faith in us," Hunter half laughs, as if I'm making a joke of this.

"These are lives!" I shout. "Including the Guard's lives. They're people that you're willing to murder if you have to." I know what they're doing is wrong, but murder is not the answer, these guns aren't the answer.

"You kill a few to save a thousand," Hunter mutters, and it takes all of my will power not to walk across the room and knock his teeth out. "We can't sit around all day, we need to get this over with," Hunter sighs, and everyone walks towards the door, but I stop Ella once again.

"Get off of me, Dean," she begs, and everyone stops, before turning to watch what's going to happen, but I don't even care.

"I can't do that, Ella, and you need to shut up so I can tell you something, okay?" I ask, hoping she agrees. Her silence tells me she's listening, so I go on. "I was a jerk all those years, and I swear I'm not making excuses, but I wanted to get you out of my head. You were on my mind more then you should have been, and I thought being ignorant to you would stop whatever feeling was growing inside of me. You were a human, part of the same race that took my people and cut open their brains, trying to find out what we were. We were experiments to you, just like we are now. I hated that, and I hated I had this massive crush on you," I stop, letting out a small laugh at how pathetic I probably sound to her.

"I thought being cruel to you, would stop these feelings and get you out of my head. It never worked, though, it only made me want to hear you say my name even more. I would look forward to teasing you, just so you would say my name. Teasing you wasn't my entertainment, Ella, talking to you, making you notice me was. I don't know if you can forgive me," I mutter, only hoping that she can. "I know we're friends, and that you've given me kindness I don't deserve, but I want to tell you something. I never want to lose you, Ella, I never want to live on this Earth without you. I can't live on this Earth without you, and if we don't make it out alive after this crazy insane plan is put into play, I want you to know something." I wish I could see her eyes, I wish I could tell her this while watching her face soften and eyes get wild, but instead I'm staring at a helmet mask, showing a reflection of my own helmet.

"I love you, Ella," I tell her, wanting her to know this in case something goes bad. Wanting her to know I never hated her, wanted her to know that she's the most important thing in my life now, and I don't want to lose her.