"Or two.. you rot in here forever."

Both options weren't ideal. You didn't want to be with him; an imposter, or a cold room stained with the stench of sweat and blood. "..Neither. I want neither." It was your honest response, and honestly, Shiro expected this.

"Ah... I see.." He glanced over from you, and onto Seiichiro, immediately dimming the atmosphere. Noticing his shifted gaze, you quickly brought your body in front of Seiichiro's protectively, making him flinch in the process.

"Don't touch him, he did nothing wrong!" You shouted, "Why would you hurt your own brother, and take his identity?!" There might've been a reason for it, but if there was one, this was still far too reprehensible to let slide. "We can talk about this! First we need to get your brother to a hospital!"

This wasn't the reaction he wanted. He thought you'd understand, but no. You thought he was crazy.
The male gazed down at Seiichiro, eyes filled with ruthless intent, until he started to chuckle loosely as if that would put him at ease, and crouched down to directly stare at your figure at eye-level. "You're so silly. Don't you realize I did this because.. I like you..?" He then took his eyes off of you momentarily. "..A lot, actually..."

That was apparent.

It became clear that there was something wrong with him, and you didn't think twice in believing that he was delusional. "This... this isn't right..." You'd reply, tilting your head downwards. Your despair earned the attention of Seiichiro, making him try to comfort you to the best of his ability. Feeling his cold foot tap lightly against your thigh, his voice is what followed after. "Ch..." He'd utter, "Chin... u.. up.." And after his words, the male dragged his eyes up toward his brother, glaring in persistence.

"I.. won't.. let him.. k.. kill me..."

Your eyes widened. Despite seeming devoid of any more hope of surviving, he still persevered, as his will was the last thing he could resort to. "R.. Right!" You replied, moving to bring your body up to his wrists above his head. From there, you pulled on the cuffs restraining him with all your might, but doing this unfortunately blocked Seiichiro's view. "I'll get you out of here, Seiichiro! We'll find Iisei too! Things can't end here!!"

But little did you know... Being optimistic was the reason for your downfall.

Suddenly feeling a firm grab at your locks of hair from behind, you were yanked backwards, and ended up collapsing harshly against the ground. Who ended up looming above you was none other that Shiro, wasting no effort into climbing onto you in order to pin you down.

Your head ached badly, but you still struggled while you tried to free yourself from his grip. "..You wouldn't have a choice in the matter either way, [Y/N]. You will stay with me. It wasn't easy getting this far..."

"Stop! Please!! Let me go!" You cried and kicked, feeling as Shiro continued to press you down persistently. The look he sent you was fixated, as well as demented. So demented that you could feel his intent from a mile away.

Suddenly, you'd stop moving, panting heavily. The male with red eyes sighed in relief, believing you finally gave in. With his guard lowered, a smile came across his lips, and he loosened his grip around your wrists. "It's alright [Y/N]... stay calm.." He gently whispered, watching your eyes meet with his own.

Biting against your lower lip, you now had the energy to retaliate. In a second you forced your arm away, taking him off his guard, then shoved him away from you. Shiro widened his eyes, falling back harshly. By the time he could realize what unfolded, you had already trampled to your feet, not hesitating in twisting to stagger towards the open door.

Gritting his teeth angrily, he was provoked instantly. The thought of your escape was just more than he can handle. He finally told you how he felt, now he couldn't let anything stand in his way. Not even your consciousness that was the drive of your fear.

Pushing himself forward, one arm extended to latch onto your ankle, leading you to yelp and trip onto the floor. "Don't... go.. [Y/N]! You.. You need me!" Shiro yelled, hoping with desperacy that you would come to your senses.

Groaning loudly, you raised your head and opened your eyes, waiting for your [E/C] orbs to regain it's focus. Looking to the left, you discreetly searched for anything that could've helped you with your current situation. "Nng..."

Hand feeling around anxiously, you still felt woozy, however there was no stopping you right now. Suddenly flinching your hand back, a cold sting was the cause, conforting your thoughts. Squinting a little to hopefully get a better grasp of what it was, there was something that sat there in the dark, back against the wall... it made goosebumps climb down your skin.

Adjusting to the dark a little bit more, the partial light proved to have helped a little, as you traveled your gaze up the dark silhouette before you. Unknowingly, your heart rate increased while things were beginning to add up.

You reached to hold onto the cold object from earlier, and in doing so, you discovered that what it was wasn't a thing; but a hand. The skin was as cold as ice, you nearly mistook it for the floor.

"Who.. is this?..." You'd mutter, earning Shiro's jolt. He became oddly silent, releasing your leg since your mind was currently fixated elsewhere rather than your quick resolve to leave him.

Tugging once against the hand for a reaction out of this individual, there was nothing in response. It worried you. Bringing your arm away slowly, your lips would purse. There was only one thing that you could assume, however your stubborn consciousness did not want to believe it.

Finally, the body moved, but rather involuntarily. It slid down from it's position with it's back against the wall, landing beside you to reveal it's identity.

At first, your mind took it's time to proccess, but in moments you started to gradually widen your eyes, shivering in disbelief. A massive surge of tears already begun to slip down your eyes, frozen in complete and utter horror.

Your jaw remained dropped, words trying to escape your throat but to no avail. Vision now getting fuzzy like static from a TV, you held your hand to pull onto the hem of the figure's jacket, still trying to speak in the process.

The figure's dark brown hair was more messier than it had been previously, and you also took note that he wore the same attire as the other day. You couldn't view those golden eyes you fell in love with, as his eyelids kept them hidden away. This one sight marked your mind forever. 

Neiji Iisei.

Beside him ought to be the umbrella he bought you. The day his fate was sealed. And after quickly reaching to grab it, you kept it close to your chest while turning around, angry but yet sad. "You... murdered someone! Don't you realize what you're doing?!"

Your frustrated tone suddenly altered into weak sobs. You slouched, lowering your head at ease. "He.. was someone special to me... I thought we all could have been good friends.."

Shiro seemed displeased. He was about to act impulsively was due to your tears. But as soon as he lifted his body to crawl toward you, you pointed the wrapped object into his direction, suppressing his thought to console you. "Stay away from me, or else!"

The male with red eyes paused, that piercing gaze of yours was enough to drive him into servitude. A long silence was acknowledged, until he made the decision to speak. "...I know you've heard the quote 'I'll do anything for you'. People say it all the time, especially when they love someone.."

While he spoke, he proceeded to crawl towards you, unintentionally building up your tension even more. "I took that saying to heart. And once you look at it in that perspective, taking someone's life doesn't even sound bad! It honestly... brings out the devotion in you. It makes your lover acknowledge all that you've done, for better or for worse."

His murderous intent was hidden beneath his genial grin, which made it even harder to tell what he was going to do next. He drew closer and closer, pushing you further to the edge. "I.. I'm warning you! Take another step and I'll make you regret it!" You shouted, swinging the item with wild abandon. 

He was now close enough to feel the umbrella collide against his chest. It was as if he knew you weren't going to hurt him, causing him to grab onto the staff to halt your movements. Afterwards, he delicately brought it away from his body. "Silly [Y/N]. What are you going to do with that?"

Laying his palm against the top of your head, he slowly slid it down until it met with your cheek. From there, he wiped your tears away using his thumb, granting you a bit of nostalgia.  "Everyone has to show the bad side of them in a relationship. It'll help us overcome it and get to each other  better, don't you agree?"

You brought your eyes away, glancing toward Neiji's corpse. Looking at him made you suffer great pain, and to distress yourself you returned your stare towards the imposter at hand.

A lecture from a psychopath was the last thing on your mind right now. You were more focused on the exit behind you. It was then did a revelation had come into mind.

If you wanted to escape, you had to learn how to play the right cards.

You pursed your lips in mental turmoil. What you were going to say was predisposed to have a severe consequence, one that you weren't prepared for. "I..."

"..I agree completely."
[Chapter END]