Blue’s head was pounding.

Mere moments- hours ago he was simply on a walk. His bird was resting, he had just finished cleaning his house and found himself staring up at the ceiling, mind blank with nothing to do. He didn’t have anywhere in mind to go to, nor was there really anyone he found himself tempted to b̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ speak to, the silence was irritating but talking to himself felt stupider than he’d like.

After more contemplation, the man decided going for a breath of fresh air wouldn’t hurt anyone, he’d get to go out and walk around, entertaining himself and getting enough of a distraction to shut his brain up temporarily.

The park was oddly empty, much to his dismay, but it wasn’t something he could fix. The sounds of people talking could always be replaced with music, so that was exactly what he did.

What Blue failed to consider was the significance of that emptiness. He didn’t pay as much attention to the shadows moving around as he should have, the rustling of the bushes brushed off simply as just wind.H̶e̶ k̶n̶e̶w̶ b̶e̶t̶t̶e̶r̶ t̶h̶a̶n̶ t̶h̶i̶s̶, h̶e̶ s̶h̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ h̶a̶v̶e̶ l̶i̶s̶t̶e̶n̶e̶d̶.

Lurking, following him not long behind were some old..familiar faces.

Ones he never planned to cross again for sure, but it seemed like life had different plans.

If it didn’t, he would’ve never found himself in this situation at all. Perhaps it was the music in his ears masking the footsteps, o̶r̶ t̶h̶e̶ d̶i̶s̶a̶s̶s̶o̶c̶i̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ h̶e̶ f̶o̶u̶n̶d̶ h̶i̶m̶s̶e̶l̶f̶ d̶e̶a̶l̶i̶n̶g̶ w̶i̶t̶h̶ r̶e̶c̶e̶n̶t̶l̶y̶, but it was too late to do anything by the time he realized who was on his trail.

The moment they noticed he caught onto their plans, they seemed to stop bothering to hide. Blue did little to stop what he knew was soon to follow.

The men were from a gang he had an..unfortunate encounter with some time ago.

That recklessness was mainly what led him to his current predicament, tied to a chair, watched like a prey waiting to be devoured. To say he didn’t know the reason he was there would be a lie, but his body hurt too much to care. They probably drugged him to loosen his tongue again didn’t they?

The brunette didn’t have too much time to ponder about that, his head was clear enough to process the click of the door. The blond in front of him was exactly who he’d expected, it wasn’t much of a surprise he’d rather make a ‘dramatic entrance’ than simply wait for him to wake up, though.

Despite the pain all over him, he noted that was still relatively unharmed. Probably part of the other one’s orders, their deal never truly ended after all.

Neither of them spoke a word as Colton looked into his eyes, all others previously standing around hung left the moment he stepped into the room. Whether they were dismissed or if it was also another part of his orders, Blue didn’t care enough to think about the answer nor did he listen enough to really tell.

Despite not being the leader of this gang, Colton still held power over everyone. As the son of the boss, his words were not to be refused. The members trusted him, those who didn’t faced consequences. It was simply how things worked. It didn’t matter what they thought or wanted, the final say was his.

Nobody was foolish enough to disobey or look for loopholes, until Blue came along, that was. Up until then, he was in ultimate control. The original reason they crossed paths to begin with was quite clear, but in classic fashion, Blue found himself a multitude of loopholes. Unlike most others, he didn’t hesitate in exploiting them, gaining himself complete freedom and safety in exchange for information.

It was a good deal they had, he wouldn’t need to participate in anything and Colton would ensure his safety as long as the other man got the information he wanted. It may have sounded unfair, seeing Blue got protection and had no real ties to the gang. His hands were left clean, c̶l̶e̶a̶n̶ a̶s̶ t̶h̶e̶y̶ c̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ b̶e̶ f̶o̶r̶ s̶o̶m̶e̶o̶n̶e̶ w̶h̶o̶ p̶u̶s̶h̶e̶d̶ h̶i̶s̶ b̶r̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ t̶o̶ h̶i̶s̶ d̶e̶a̶t̶h̶, and he got complete freedom only in exchange for some intel! Easy for someone like him.

O̶r̶, i̶t̶ w̶a̶s̶ g̶o̶o̶d̶ u̶p̶ u̶n̶t̶i̶l̶ t̶h̶e̶ d̶a̶y̶ B̶l̶u̶e̶ s̶t̶o̶p̶p̶e̶d̶ r̶e̶s̶p̶o̶n̶d̶i̶n̶g̶, a̶t̶ l̶e̶a̶s̶t̶. S̶i̶n̶c̶e̶ t̶h̶e̶n̶, t̶h̶e̶y̶'v̶e̶ k̶e̶p̶t̶ t̶a̶b̶s̶ o̶n̶ h̶i̶m̶. H̶e̶ s̶a̶w̶ t̶h̶e̶ w̶a̶y̶ p̶e̶o̶p̶l̶e̶ w̶e̶r̶e̶ s̶e̶n̶t̶ t̶o̶ w̶a̶t̶c̶h̶ h̶i̶m̶, k̶e̶e̶p̶ t̶r̶a̶c̶k̶ o̶f̶ h̶i̶s̶ a̶c̶t̶i̶v̶i̶t̶y̶, r̶e̶a̶d̶y̶ t̶o̶ s̶t̶r̶i̶k̶e̶ i̶f̶ t̶h̶e̶y̶ d̶e̶t̶e̶r̶m̶i̶n̶e̶d̶ h̶e̶ w̶a̶s̶ d̶o̶i̶n̶g̶ a̶n̶y̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶ t̶h̶a̶t̶ c̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ e̶n̶d̶a̶n̶g̶e̶r̶ t̶h̶e̶m̶.

Their breaths being the only sound in the room made his ears ring, though fortunately it seemed like Colton planned to change that soon. Backing away from him, the other straightened his back without cutting off eye contact, it looked like he still wanted to try uncovering all it was that made up Blue. He always found it funny, the way the other would try to intimidate him by trying to make himself look like an equal, like he could read him similar to a book when they both knew that was something that would never work.

“So” he began, “do you know why you’re here, or do you need someone to spell it out for you?” If the man sounded irritated with him before, it paled in comparison to his current attitude.

“I’m afraid you’ll have to elaborate? It’s been a long time since we met you know, I’m in an awful lot of pain and your lakeys weren’t gentle with me either” Blue drew out. They both knew that was a lie, but it was a natural part of the game they’ve long since known to play.

“Recently, one of our most important spies was discovered,” the blond answered. “She was ambushed by a soldier sent by the Justice Reigns minutes after we had her go out”

“And that links with me how? Did you just want to see me agai-”

Teasing the other in hopes of distracting him was a bad choice, Blue was aware of that. The sounds of a gun being loaded graced his ears, though fear remained dormant. This was merely another intimidation tactic, he was too important to simply kill and it would get too much attention if he disappeared at random, especially now of all times.

“Cut the shit. You are the only person who could have known she was there at all, so tell me, what have you been telling that new boyfriend of yours?” he spat.

Blue raised a brow, feigning confusion before it ‘clicked’ in his head. Colton was only getting angrier as time passed.

“Ah, Dream! No no, you misunderstand really. I didn’t know she was there at all, this is all news to me he must have simply sensed her presence and sent someone, Ink is good at following trails after all” he winked.

“I never told you who it was”

“Even a toddler could make a guess and get it right, there are only two people he would trust with something like this and only a spy can take out another without drawing attention don’t you think?”

With that, Colton went silent, seemingly considering something new. Whenever they spoke, he tended to do this if he felt cornered. When Blue disproved everything he suspected in seconds, all of his defenses fell knowing this was someone he couldn’t play to his will.

Not like others, where simple words got to their heads, made them believe he held them truly dear, that he gave a single damn about them in any form. It was entertaining, an addicting play for the man, but despite how beneficial it was for him, how easy it was the first time, he could never replicate it on Blue.

A shame, he’d have been just as, if not more useful if making him stay was just that easy. Colton didn’t doubt that they’d have gotten along if they both agreed to stay, extraordinary talents simply tend to gravitate to each other eventually.

I̶f̶ t̶h̶e̶ o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ o̶n̶e̶ l̶e̶f̶t̶ w̶h̶e̶n̶ h̶e̶ g̶o̶t̶ t̶h̶e̶ c̶h̶a̶n̶c̶e̶, w̶h̶a̶t̶ w̶a̶s̶ B̶l̶u̶e̶ p̶l̶o̶t̶t̶i̶n̶g̶?̶ w̶h̶a̶t̶ w̶a̶s̶ h̶e̶ p̶l̶a̶n̶n̶i̶n̶g̶ t̶h̶a̶t̶ m̶a̶d̶e̶ h̶i̶m̶ s̶t̶a̶y̶?̶ h̶e̶ c̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ h̶a̶v̶e̶ l̶e̶f̶t̶ f̶a̶r̶ s̶o̶o̶n̶e̶r̶, h̶e̶ w̶a̶s̶ m̶o̶r̶e̶ t̶h̶a̶n̶ c̶a̶p̶a̶b̶l̶e̶ o̶f̶ e̶n̶d̶i̶n̶g̶ e̶v̶e̶r̶y̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶ f̶o̶r̶ t̶h̶e̶m̶ i̶n̶ a̶ m̶o̶m̶e̶n̶t̶, b̶u̶t̶ s̶o̶ w̶e̶r̶e̶ t̶h̶e̶y̶ a̶b̶l̶e̶ t̶o̶ t̶a̶k̶e̶ h̶i̶s̶ l̶i̶f̶e̶ a̶n̶d̶ s̶i̶l̶e̶n̶c̶e̶ h̶i̶m̶ f̶o̶r̶e̶v̶e̶r̶. A̶ s̶h̶a̶m̶e̶ h̶e̶ s̶e̶e̶m̶e̶d̶ t̶o̶ a̶l̶r̶e̶a̶d̶y̶ a̶c̶c̶o̶u̶n̶t̶ f̶o̶r̶ t̶h̶a̶t̶, i̶n̶v̶o̶l̶v̶i̶n̶g̶ h̶i̶m̶s̶e̶l̶f̶ w̶i̶t̶h̶ t̶h̶e̶ m̶o̶s̶t̶ i̶m̶p̶o̶r̶t̶a̶n̶t̶ f̶i̶g̶u̶r̶e̶ i̶n̶ t̶h̶e̶ m̶u̶l̶t̶i̶v̶e̶r̶s̶e̶.

“If not you, then who? what are you planning”

Simple, straight forward, plain.

Everything Blue expected from him.

“I’m not planning on anything? Why would I do that?” He shrugged. Well, as much as one could when bound down by ropes.

“The only reason I have kept you alive is because you’re useful, it’s just as easy to find someone else who could do the exact same things you do even better so lying and playing this stupid game of yours is a bad idea. I’ve warned you before and this is the last ti-”

“Except you won’t.”

At being cut off, Colton only paused and glared daggers into the other, seemingly daring him to continue.

“You won’t kill me because you know that it’s not that simple, you know that my death is too inconvenient for you now, too hard to fake”

Silence.

Saying that Blue didn’t enjoy the way the other looked when out of options would be a lie, when control was stripped from him and manipulation failed. Without his two most important defenses, his shield fell apart like a house of cards.

For someone meant to be scary, Blue had grown to find him closer to funny.

He was smart, he’d give him that much, but people weren’t his strong suit. W̶h̶a̶t̶ h̶y̶p̶o̶c̶r̶i̶s̶y̶, i̶t̶ t̶a̶k̶e̶s̶ o̶n̶e̶ t̶o̶ k̶n̶o̶w̶ o̶n̶e̶. Growing up in a gang, pressure to be like this from your only parent to prove yourself worthy enough to take his place does that to a man. Not much to dwell on, though, it was his own fault he succumbed to this. If not, then his sister must have been a saint to not fall to the same fate.

That sweet child- Blue had only crossed Camille twice, but it was enough for him to know this was not the place for her. Well, not like it was fit for any kid her age- but that wasn’t something in his control. She’ll get herself out with some assistance, but he wasn’t needed there.

He wasn't really surprised by the way this encounter transpired, seeing the real head of the group wasn't present made things a lot easier for him. For all he puts up, the one in front of him was quite easy to get to. Although that may just be because of how simple it was to get past his walls, a jaded man but not like those types ever posed any issues.

Blue may have been the first person that came to his mind when trying to discern what gave them away, but it was just as likely he wouldn’t be the last.

They had many enemies who wanted to run them into the ground no matter the cost, anyway.

“If the point of this entire show you’ve put up was to blame me for ratting you out, I’m afraid you worked this hard for nothing. I’m sure you’ve figured I want nothing to do with you anymore?”

The blond’s gaze burned holes into his head once again, but Blue ignored him as he had every other time before.

“If you suspect someone to have done so, you and I both know where you should be looking instead” he carried on, “or maybe, it wasn’t an outer source at all”

“Continue.”

Colton’s voice was demanding, threatening, impatient. If it were anyone else, this conversation would have been long over, but unfortunately it still was not.

“You know, I’ve been hearing things”

The other tapped his foot.

“She could have done that herself. At least, that's what a fool may think. The ones you send to watch me are not as discreet as you want them to be, they are not as dedicated as they want you to believe”

“What are you insinuating”

Another way to say ‘choose your next words carefully before I run your head into the ground’, lovely.

“I simply mean that the one who caused this may be closer to you than you think.”

“Something- someone, has infiltrated us?”

Ah, he didn’t consider that, did he? Blue could laugh if not for the increasing tension.

“All I have to add is instead of accusing me of getting her killed, you should be worrying about whether or not I am next”

Bringing attention to his previous involvement with them was unwise, it put both their lives on the line. The brunette relished watching how the other’s expression fell as he desperately tried to piece together a plan, thinking of every possible suspect. That kind of thing was always left to him, the shorter unable to do that kind of thing very well, hard to blame him when all he knew was to dispose of people on the spot and then think, but oh well.

The distraction finally allowed him to untie the knot positioned right above his hands. Terrible craftsmanship, he must say.

His wrists burned by this point, adding to just how uncomfortable he felt in his body at that moment though for a different reason than usual, for once.

He dug his own grave getting involved with this group of individuals, but he will not let them take him to it.

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