48. I Finally Got You Again
Any moment now, (Name) thought to herself, her hands firmly clasped against her mouth to muffle her breathing.
Any moment, Ashiro is coming back to check on her and even get the phone he dropped. She was ready, however. She had cut through her bounds with the piece of glass and after calling Sousuke, had hidden in one of the empty boxes in the room.
As if right on cue, footsteps could be heard coming closer towards her room. She shrunk back even more, shaking slightly. Will he find her there? What will happen if he did? What if he-
Her thoughts were cut off by a long string of cusswords. It was Ashiro. He's in the room and he was livid.
She heard him slam the door close and his footsteps fading away.
"She's gone! She escaped already! This is all your fault!" he yelled at his friend.
Some scuffling ensued, along with verbal argument. The two seemed to be arguing on what to do on this situation.
"I'll kill her!" she heard Ashiro yell out, "I'll kill that bitch! Forget the money, I don't want to go to jail!"
It lasted for a few minutes before with a tone of finality, Ashiro announced, "I'll search the East and North. You better go and search the South and the West. Yell my name when you find her. That bitch needs to be taught a lesson."
(Name), still hidden inside the box, shivered with fear. She certainly did not want to find out what "lesson" Ashiro has in store for her.
It was silent after Ashiro and his friend were gone. But even so, she waited for a few more moments before she came out of the box and quickly made her way outside.
Upon exiting the building, she stopped on her tracks in surprise. Where in the world is she?
All around her were trees and shrubbery. It was like a forest or something, loud with bird cries and cicadas. Iwatobi has its fair share of small forests and trees, as well as wildlife, but it is never like this. It was as if she had been taken away to another place somewhere outside of Iwatobi, hopefully not too far.
She took a step forward and winced when she clearly felt a twig snap under her feet. She realized she was barefoot, and wearing only a simple t-shirt and jeans, the jacket she bought what felt like years ago on that day with Ashiro was gone. How long had she been kept in there?
(Name) shook her head to clear her thoughts and steadied her breathing. She would need to get out of there, fast. But which way should she go? She had no clue on the whereabouts of Ashiro and his friend, as well as herself. In the end, she decided to just stick to the trail through the forest. She snuck on the space beside the trail, so she was at least hidden partially by the foliage, and not completely in the open on the trail itself.
Minutes passed by as she continued walking on, making her way as quietly and as quickly as she could. She stuck faithfully near the trail, not wanting to get lost in the woods alone, or even worse, get found by either Ashiro or his friend. (Name) inhaled sharply through her nose when she heard rustling not too far away from where she was. Like a deer caught in the headlights of a car, she froze immediately.
She had to do something. Running away faster will only give away her position, and not to mention the fact that she could very easily be outrun. The only option she had left is to hide. She crouched down and slowly crept forward on her hands and knees, spotting a hole between tree roots, hidden among bushes, just a few meters ahead.
Feeling the flame of hope reignite in her heart, she crawled forward as quietly and slipped into the hole. She was never a big fan of insects, but if it meant getting away, she would be happy to befriend the creepy crawlies.
The hole was barely enough to fit her, and she had to squeeze in and curl her body very tightly to stay hidden, hopefully not for too long. She tried to breathe as quietly as possible as she listened to the rustling getting closer and closer to where she was. It then suddenly stopped, and everything was silent save for the chirping of the birds and cries of the cicadas. Is he gone?
She was just about to poke her head out when a shadow passed right in front of the hole. She nearly gasped in surprise, but muffled it with her hand. She couldn't see who it was, but the only two human beings looking for her are the ones that now possibly wants her dead, and so she stayed put, preparing for the worst. If he finds her, she will have to spring out and run like mad.
Moments later, she heard the guy called out Ashiro's name. At least now she knew it isn't the psycho ex himself. It was too soon of a relief though, Ashiro soon appeared.
"You found her?" he asked breathlessly, as if he had been running.
"No. But I think I heard rustling," his friend slurred, "somewhere 'ere."
There was silence, then she heard the sound of something being hit, probably Ashiro hitting his friend. "If you're just hallucinating because you're drunk, I swear to god.."
Two of them searched the area together, and (Name) had never felt so tense before. Her legs were starting to feel all tingly. She had been curled up for too long.
When will they leave? Please don't find me. Please, please don't find me.
The search, for (Name) felt like forever, but it was only a few minutes. Ashiro then called off the search, yelling at his friend that he's 'too drunk to do anything right', before storming off to another part of the forest.
She could hear his friend mumble curses under his breath before his footsteps and rustling faded into the distance.
(Name) waited a while longer, still curled up, having lost almost all feeling in her legs, and listening intently. She only came out of hiding when she was absolutely certain that she was finally alone again.
Getting out was a struggle. Her legs felt dead, tingly, and it had an annoying sensation of ants running all over them. She gritted her teeth and blinked back tears. She would not give up. She will get out of here and back to Sousuke, and the police, to report the kidnapping.
She walked slowly at first, but went faster once the feeling had returned to her legs. So far, she hadn't met anyone, which is a good sign, she just needed to keep going.
As she walked, all alone and cold, she tried to distract herself from the pain she felt at the soles of her feet, which were undoubtedly scratched and filthy. What evidence does she have that can be presented to the police? Her wounds and accounts of disappearance from her friends would work nicely. But she did not have any fingerprints belonging to Ashiro and his friend, so that part might need some work-
Her thoughts were interrupted by something heavy tackling her. She screamed as she fell to the ground, seeing stars momentarily when her head hit the earth.
"There you are you bitch!" Ashiro let out a maniacal laughter as he got up, watching her wince and slowly crouched.
"You think I can't find you? Well here I am. Clever trick you pulled there, I'll admit," Ashiro took a step towards her, and she stumbled back falling to the ground.
Ashiro advanced towards her even more, this time his smile growing wider as he pulled out something shiny from his back pocket. A knife.
"Please," she whimpered, scrambling backwards, "Why are you doing this?"
"I gave you all my love, (Name), and I even gave you a second chance. And yet you still tried to get away from me. I am very disappointed in you."
"You even have theĀ nerveĀ to fall in love with that swimmer boyfriend of yours." Ashiro yelled, smiling after he seemed to think of something. "But you know what? That's alright. I can kill him right after I end you."
With that, he lunged forwards, his knife pointed straight at (Name). She rolled to the side just in time to avoid anything fatal, but the knife had nicked a gash to her side. She ignored the sting and scrambled up, running as fast as she could through the woods, not caring anymore that she had went off track.
"We're here," Keitsu said grimly, turning off his car.
Sousuke wasted no time in getting out. He threw open the door and ran towards the woods.
"Hey- Sousuke! Wait up!" Makoto yelled, reaching out a hand to stop him, but paused when Keitsu placed a hand on his shoulder.
"He won't listen to us now. Just get in there as planned."
Running through the foliage, Sousuke contemplated whether or not he should call out her name. If Ashiro knew he's here, then he would lose the element of surprise, or worse, Ashiro might use (Name) as hostage.
He gritted his teeth, frustrated that he wasn't able to do anything more. Now all he needed to do is find a small abandoned house, just as Keitsu had shown on the map in his computer, a red dot flashing over the spot. But in his desperation, he had went in recklessly, and he was sure that he was absolutely lost right now.
He growled to himself in frustration, stopping momentarily to gather his bearings, looking back and forth at the trees that seemed to be everywhere, taunting him of his incompetence with directions.
Sousuke was so caught up in trying to figure out where to go that he did not notice the rustling, getting closer to him. When he did notice, however, it was too late. A figure darted out of the leafy greens and crashed into him, hard enough to knock him down.
He got over the surprise fairly quickly as he pushed off whoever it was and scrambled to his feet, his fists up and ready for a fight. What he did not expect was the fact that the figure was not Ashiro, or any other friend he has with him. It was (Name), with her clothes dirtied and ripped here and there. What looked most concerning was the red stain on her side.
She haven't noticed that it was him, and she scrambled away, trying to run again. Sousuke rushed forward and caught her arm just as she finally managed to get up again. She screamed and pushed him.
"(Na-Name)!" he called out to her, his grip tightening around her arm, causing her to wince. On the good side, his voice seemed to flick the panic switch off in her, making her turn to him and finally, after what felt like forever, her eyes met his teal ones.
"S-S-Sousuke.." She collapsed, and he was quick to capture her in his arms, stroking her hair gently and rocking her back and forth.
He could feel her tears on his shirt, but he couldn't care less. She was here. She's alive. She probably escaped from Ashiro. Wait.. that meant-
The familiar voice made (Name) tense as she slowly looked up at him. Ashiro was standing a few meters away from them, twirling the knife in his hand.
"Sousuke, you're also here!" Ashiro smirked, "All the better. I can kill you both and dispose your bodies in here."
"Its over, Ashiro!" Sousuke got up, turning so that he was standing between the psycho and (Name), who was shaking, clutching at his jacket behind him, "I have back up a police here."
Ashiro merely laughed, "no it's not! They can't find me that easily in here-"
He was cut off when Sousuke got something out of his back pocket, aiming it at the sky. A bright red streak then rockets up and burst in a cloud of red smoke in the sky, up above the trees. Keitsu really had come prepared.
Silence reigned, no one moved. The tension was so thickĀ it would take Ashiro's knife to cut it.
"You...Ā You.." Ashiro was livid. He brought his knife up and popinted it at the two, "If I'm going down, then you two are coming with me."
He then charged at them, a wide smile on his face. Sousuke, despite the dull pain in his shoulder, managed to avoid him just in time, pulling (Name) along with him as he let Ashiro's momentum carry him beyond his initial target. Ashiro recovered quickly though, and again he charged.
This time, the distance was a lot closer to them so Sousuke had only managed to push (Name) away before he was knocked on to his back, Ashiro on top of him.
His hands both latched on to Ashiro's wrist, the one with a knife, and stopped it right when it was above his neck. The two stayed there for a while, at a stalemate. Sousuke was stronger, thanks to years of swimming and working out. He slowly pushed Ashiro farther away from him, and was about to throw him off when Ashiro's free hand landed on his shoulder. HisĀ injuredĀ shoulder.
He grunted in pain, and Ashiro gained ground, pushing the knife closer to him.
A loud whack! then resonated and Ashiro slumped forwards, all limp and with (Name) behind him, holding a large branch.
She was breathing heavily as she dropped the branch, and slowly walked to Sousuke, who struggled to get up, throwing Ashiro to the side like a ragdoll.
Her legs gave out a few steps before she reached him, all the strength leaving her as the adrenaline slowly recedes. Sousuke lurched forwards and caught her, but lost his balance in the process, tumbling down to the ground. He turned at the last moment so that his body cushioned (Name)'s fall.
The two laid there, gasping for breath, and holding each other tightly as if their lives depended on it.
(Name) could feel the waterworks start again, but this time, she let it flow out, knowing she has someone with her that would wipe them away. Its over now.
Sousuke's hand gently caressed the side of her face, running his thumb over the bruise forming on her cheek as he wiped her tears away. She was a mess. An absolute filthy, crying mess. And yet she had never seemed more beautiful to him.
Without thinking, he lifted himself up and locked his lips onto hers.
/(Ā Ā Ć².Ć³)āĀ Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā \(ļ½”Ƭ _ Ćļ½”āĀ )(ļ½”ā¢Ģļøæā¢,Ģļ½”Ā )Ā Ā Ā Masterlist
AAAAHHHHH long chapter finally done uwu. It was really fun writing this, and i definitely surprised myself. I didnt know I can write a fight scene or smth, and this is definitely my first time so i apologize to you readers who are much more experienced in writing this. Some parts might seem flat to you :')
Its two more chapters and this story is overrr! Gawd its been a long journey. I'll miss writing deadlines every week HAHAHAHA
I never thought I'd come this far, honestly, and I am eternally grateful to you all lovely readers! Thank you so much for liking, and maybe even sharing this story! I wish I can give each of you hugsies ksjdhfkljsdhks
