CROFF

Ever since the estate lit up that evening, Croff hasn't been able to rest. He lost Idris in the midst of all the chaos. He should have been by his side, but he lost him. He knows Josi has him. He knows as clear as day the attack on the estate was all her doing. But he was powerless, and now all he's been doing is searching for Idris, hoping that he somehow stumbles upon him before it's too late.

Instead of Idris, however, Croff finds Josi. It's past midday now, and the roadside has been caked with snow. The sun pokes through the clouds, but only because there isn't much today. Croff has made his rounds through much of the city. At this point, he's not even sure if Idris is still there. Josi could already have led him to his death. Knowing her, she could have dumped his body by a lake.

Then Croff sees her. In an alleyway in some random part of the city, he sees her. All at once, the emotions hit him. The ache in his chest amplifies, to a point where all he can hear is his heart pounding in his ears. Before he even realizes, he pulls out his gun and points it at her.

Now Josi sees him, but she doesn't seem surprised. Doesn't even grow alarmed. Because Croff won't hurt her.

"Where is he?"

Josi looks him straight in the eye. "He's gone. They took him."

Croff drops his weapon. What has he done? He knew. He knew Josi was behind the gradual fall of the Verdonni family. Yet he did nothing. He sat quiet. He couldn't even bring himself to warn Idris. He let Idris continue on as a target, all while he kept Josi's secret to himself. Now Idris is gone. He failed to protect him, the same thing he swore to do that first day they met.

The guilt has risen past his shoulders and engulfed his body in its entirety, and now Croff can barely breathe. It's all his fault. What kind of friend does he claim to be? He betrayed those years of friendship. He spat in Idris's face and flushed his trust down the drain. All because of Josita Cade.

Croff balls his fist and-though it pains him to do so-brings his eyes up to Josi. "Why did you make me fall for you . . . if you never cared for me?"

Josi doesn't answer just yet. She hesitates, as though she were actually worried about how Croff might handle the answer. But Croff finds it useless. He's already been screwed over.

Finally Josi sighs, then proceeds to rip Croff's heart to shreds. "You were just another part of the plan, Croff. Either you fell for me or I got rid of you."

At first, the words don't register. Then they slowly sink in, dissolving their way through Croff's ears, forcing him to come to terms with them. He's not even sure what he expected. Was he expecting her to tell him she didn't actually want to? That all the distress she brought upon him wasn't on purpose?

Croff almost laughs. That was Josi's plan from the beginning. To keep him immobilized and under her thumb. To keep him from interfering with her true plan. And she succeeded. Way too easily. She got her way.

Croff wasn't expecting Josi to return his feelings. He knew she had someone else special. Someone she held dear before her first day at the estate. And even while she led him around in circles, he knew as clear as day that there was no space for him in her heart. Still, to think she would be this blatant. That she thought of him as just another chess piece. Croff hangs his head low. He meant nothing. Completely nothing.

Maybe this is what he gets for betraying Idris. This is what he gets for not keeping his hands to himself. But why should the repercussions feel miles worse than the crime itself? Why couldn't karma have been kinder?

While in the midst of his thoughts, Josi reaches for Croff. But he steps back, as though her touch alone were poisonous. Because it is.

Josi looks at him and sighs, and for a second Croff can swear he saw a hint of remorse in her eyes. "I do hope you find someone who loves you the same way you love them."

This stabs Croff right in his chest. She's showing remorse. After all the misery she's caused him. She's bidding him well-wishes.

Josi stares at him, perhaps expecting him to say something. Anything. But Croff has nothing to say. What can he say, when the only woman he's ever loved never thought anything of him? Never viewed him as anything but a pawn.

Now she's leaving. Josi gives him one last look, lingers for a second-like she's contemplating saying something more — then heads down the alleyway towards the rest of civilization. Croff just stands there and watches. She's leaving. After ripping his heart out and stapling it to his chest.

But he has no one else to blame but himself. He allowed her get into his head. He allowed her lead him astray, even while he knew their relationship would never amount to anything.

And still, he clung to the attention she gave him. That first kiss. Their first time together in the shooting range. Each time she looked at him. He fell in deeper until he could no longer pull himself out. He was a fool-not only to himself but to Josi. So in love that even his senses became dull. Well, Croff has learned his lesson. A bit too late, but he has.

Find someone who loves you, Josi told him. But Croff knows, just by watching her leave, that he'll never again open his heart.

~《¤》~

JOSI

First day of complete freedom. Josi has no clue what to do. Usually, she operated on Idris's schedule. He gave her leeway, but that freedom always came with a time limit. Now that there's no time limit, it seems a bit strange. No more restrictions. No more lock downs. Josi is free to do as she pleases.

So she chooses to celebrate. She tries finding some place suitable enough. A restaurant. Or perhaps a bar. But a café seems to be the answer. There's a TV inside showcasing the news channel, and on it is Idris's face. There on the side of the screen, while footage of his arrest swivel in and out in the background.

Josi stands outside and watches. What a beguiling sight. Idris in handcuffs. It should be painted, perhaps even sculpted. But the most beautiful part about it all is the fact that the sight will live on in her memories for years to come.

Those footages have truly solidified Josi's victory. It has severed the last string connecting her to Idris. So she basks in the news. Soaks it all in. Because this is the last time she will ever have to see him.

Before she enters the café, Josi receives a phone call. It's Rosari.

Rosari is a bit quiet when the conversation begins. It's unlike herself. Now Josi figures out the reason behind the call.

"I just saw the news. How are you feeling?"

A good question. Josi hasn't even stopped to give it thought. Yes, she's beyond content. Idris is gone. He's far away now, some place where he will never again find her. She succeeded in exacting revenge. She stripped every inch of his power, one by one, gradually and painfully, until he had nothing left. Until he was the last man standing. This is everything she hoped for. It was as she imagined it would be.

But there were bumps that Josi wasn't quite prepared for. While she had a clear outline from the start of the revenge plot, she had failed to forsee the challenges. The lengths she would have to take. Why hadn't she realized this plan would take more than just manipulating her way across the road? That it would take getting her hands filthy? Back then, it didn't seem plausible. How naive she was.

"Josita?" Rosari calls. "Are you there?"

Josi gets herself accustomed to reality. Then she smiles. A smile so warm. "Rosari, I can't feel a thing."

All devoid. All hollow. But it matters little. Because Idris Night Verdonni is gone.

The café is warm. It shields Josi from the frosty weather outside. Even more so comforting is the coffee, which scent seems to drown the café in its entirety.

Josi joins the line and waits her turn to order. In front of her is a family of two; a woman and her daughter. The girl is little, perhaps around Aspen's age. No, a tad bit younger upon closer inspection. She bugs her mother over some issue with the menu. It seems she wants her own cup of caffeine, but with her so young, her mother advises otherwise.

"But why can't I have coffee?"

"Because you're not big enough." The woman tells her, and Josi can just tell the exhaustion from her tone alone.

This is nothing new to Josi. She had once been in those same shoes with Aspen. One can never dismiss a child's curiosity. So in exchange for what Aspen thought was coffee, Josi had ordered for her a cup of hot chocolate instead. It got the job done.

"You know, there's coffee made just for kids." Josi says to the family.

The girl lights up at the news. "Really?"

Josi nods her head yes. She points at the menu, at a photo of a cup of hot chocolate. Immediately, the woman gets the gist of things. The girl doesn't, but it would defeat the purpose if she did.

She turns to her mother, eyes now set on the new drink. "Mommy, I want that one!"

"Of course. We'll get you two cups." The woman gives Josi a thankful smile, which she returns.

But it seems the woman isn't the only one grateful, because the child turns to Josi with her own smile. "Thank you, miss."

"You're welcome." Josi even tries giving her a pat on the head, but then an image floats into her head, and immediately her hand freezes. The child before her seems to have swapped places with Alice. Alice, the little girl who died by Idris's hands. The little girl who met her end because of Josi's own selfishness.

Josi grows queasy. Her stomach begins lurching all around, as if looking for some way out. She retracts her hand and keeps it away from the little girl, because that hand has dipped itself in countless rivers of blood. And though the child can't see it, Josi can. So bright red. So thick.

The family continues on towards the cashier, but Josi doesn't move—not until the woman places her order and gets out of line.

Once her order has been completed, Josi finds a spot in the back, where no one else resides, and takes a seat. Now it seems as though a line has been drawn, creating a bubble that keeps her concealed in that corner.

And maybe it's just fine, this invisible line. A life of solitude is nothing new to Josi. This is just fine.

______________________________________