Choo choo! Feels Train, comin' through!

...

     "Don't move, or I shoot."

Those five words brought Jesse a chill in the spine. Her wrists were bond tightly with nylon ropes, her legs forced into a kneeling position on the floor.

For so long that her knees were numb.

Axel, Olivia, Petra.

All in the same position.

Well, all except... Lukas.

Jesse carefully eyed the blonde who silently hid behind a work table. Pistol gripped in his hand, he cocked his head, as if to make a move, but Jesse shook hers.

     "If the cops don't arrive here with the money in five minutes, I'll shoot the Order down one by one." Their captor growled into the phone he held in his left hand, the other one with his little gun, the hole aimed directly at Jesse.

Lukas nodded, Jesse squeezed her eyes shut for a second.

This was risky, a really risky thing to do. However, they had no choice. Lukas had to shoot the captor. Or they'd all die.

Silent as a dead mouse, Lukas crept towards the man, who stood there hollering 'pleasant words' into the phone. Olivia, Petra and Axel pretended there defenitely wasn't a person creeping upon their captor with a gun ready to shoot him.

...

They all thought they'd have a chance.

...

It all happened so quickly.

Jesse gasped as the man abruptly spun around, punched Lukas in the stomach, and fired. Lukas pressed down on the trigger of his pistol as soon as the man had turned, but the bullet had bounced off the wall, leaving a dent on the now burned, dirty wallpaper.

Unfortunately, the man had gotten lucky.

This moment, for Jesse, it all seemed like slow-motion. The bullet shot out of the gun, and it spun through the air like a rocket itself, landing on its target.

Lukas.

As soon as the bullet connected with Lukas's chest, his face confronted with pain and shock as he doubled over, falling to his knees. Jesse gasped, her eyes wide with shock and fear.

     "Lukas." Jesse rasped as Lukas's body hit the floor with a thud, his hand clutching his wound, the other keeping a tight grip on the gun, unwavering.

     "I've shot a member of the Order. Give me the stuff I demanded now," The man hollered into the phone. "Or these other fellows won't get to see tomorrow."

Jesse's heart quickened when she finally saw the blood staining the floor under Lukas. She turned her head away in fright and spotted Petra, who was on the verge of crying. Olivia and Axel had their mouths hung open, too scared and shocked to say anything.

Lukas exhaled with ragged breaths and slowly raised his head, already pale. Then he fell back down with a thud and a groan. Jesse's mental wall gave another crack.

     "I'm done with these dumb Beacontowners. Goodbye, Order of the Stone." Their captor grumbled and stepped over the frail Lukas whom Jesse was so worried for. Then he pointed the pistol straight as Jesse's forehead. Her whole life flashed in front of her. Her mental wall gave another big crack.

This was it.

This was finally it.

Jesse closed her eyes, shut them tight, waited for the pain to connect. Instead, she felt nothing. But she did hear something.

A gunshot, a large bang that shook her eardrums.

Another sound, the sound of a body dropping.

Jesse reopened her eyes to see she wasn't dead. She stared at Petra, then Axel, then Olivia. Finally, she turned her gaze to the scene in front of her.

The man was dead.

A pint-sized hole in the man's stomach, blood already spilling through and into his clothes, like a blossoming crimson flower itself. The body sprawled on the white floor under them.

Lukas, in a half-standing position, more much of a kneeling one, his gun in hand, arm raised, blood still pooling from his lips and chest onto the floor tiles.

Then he collapsed into a heap.

Jesse understood what had happened.

...

She wished she would never have known.

...

     Jesse yanked her wrists, twisted, fought. She had to escape those bonds. Her friends, who had recieved her message, started to struggle against their restraints as well, shaking and pulling. With a final throw, Jesse cut the ropes off her swollen, aching wrists. Without hesitation, she ran to Lukas.

Was he dead?

     "Lukas, listen. Lukas, are you there? This isn't funny. Wake up now, Lukas. Wake up wake up wake up! This isn't the time, Lukas!" Jesse cried out in anguish and panic. However, the blonde did not respond.

Jesse shut her eyes, and cried. She cried silently, so not even a mouse could hear her cries. She didn't even notice her friends shuffle near her. She didn't even notice somebody wrapping their arms around her shoulder and kissing her.

She did soon.

Jesse snapped her eyes open as she felt lips on hers. There they were. Lukas was alive and well, kissing her.

Kissing her deeply.

They were kissing.

Jesse held onto Lukas with joy, sadness, relief, all at the same time.

They finally pulled away, Lukas's head again to rest on the floor.

     "Lukas, you're going to be okay. You'll live. The cops and medics will be here soon. Just hang on, you'll make it. We'll all make it. We -" Lukas grabbed Jesse's wrist, making her to stop talking and look at the boy.

He had a weak smile on his face, his hair was drenched with blood, a thin trail of red started from the corner of his mouth down his chin.

     "I'm not gonna make it." He rasped. Tears threatened to tear her apart, to shred her. Jesse shook her head.

     "No, we'll help you. It's okay, we can fix you." Lukas laughed feebly, then coughed. He groaned as he painfully put his palm onto his injury, where the bullet had entered straight through.

Jesse fell into a fit of sobs and trembles onto Lukas, ignoring the blood that was slowly sucking away the architect's life. Lukas placed a bloody hand on Jesse's cheek, and Jesse held it tightly. She decided to never let go.

     "Hey, Jesse. Jess. Listen." Lukas uttered, and Jesse stopped sobbing for a moment to gaze into his federal blue orbs - she was completely hypnotized in them. Lukas carefully wiped a tear off her face.

     "When I leave... Take a good care of the others and Beacontown for me, will you?" He asked before he let go, the life consisting inside of his eyes already getting sucked out.

     "Remember that I loved you." He whispered before his hand finally slipped, and his body fell limp.

...

He'd never move again.