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A frightened scream escaped the girl as she just noticed a young man right in front of her. His almost ash black hair flew in the wind, sometimes catching his face just at his eyes; maybe fate was on her side today. Would be too good to be true, she thought, while trying to find a fast way to escape him. Too often already had he caught her - but not today. Today was her day. Was it?
The boy's brown eyes glanced down on her, his face showing a superior grin. She couldn't say that she didn't like that expression - it was more like a motivation to beat him one day. Maybe that day had come? Or she was just a naive fool as always, and that was a lot more likely. Whatever, don't think about it, she said to herself while taking a foolhardy curve to the left within the last second that separated her from her chaser.
She was fortunate to have one huge advantage: She was so short that she could quickly disappear in the high grass - unlike her chaser. It was however not exactly luck, rather was it her age that was beneficial. At this moment, she loved to be eleven. While half sneaking, half running through the grass, the girl suddenly found herself bumping into a molehill. Of course, she wanted to continue running, but that made it even worse. Instead of just running the molehill over, her foot got stuck in it and when her body finally made its way towards the ground, all the dirt of the molehill got hurled onto her back. And her legs. And her head. " Jeez!", she shouted involuntarily, already holding her mouth at the same moment. She didn't even need to listen carefully to hear the steps of her chaser coming closer and closer. Her heart seemed to beat in the same rhythm as his steps, just probably around three times faster. She didn't even have time to knock off the dirt from her clothes when she got on her feet to start running again. She knew that he wouldn't have any mercy, and she wouldn't want him to have; just because she was younger than him didn't mean that she couldn't beat him.
Abruptly, her chaser went silent. She decided to stand still for a brief moment to localize him, but she couldn't see him anywhere. He couldn't have just disappeared, could he? Of course, the girl was young and naive, but not that naive. Lost, she turned around herself multiple times until she got dizzy. There were only two options: He fell himself, or-
Suddenly, something, or someone, grabbed her from behind. Two strong arms wrapped around the girl before she felt the sixteen-year-old right at her back, triumphantly raising her over the grass. "Got you!", he shouted. With all means, she tried to free herself, but every resistance was hopeless; he was too strong for her. "Come on, you won't escape me that easily, Eliza", he shouted sarcastically and laughed. Eliza laughed, too.
The warm evening sun shined down on the two of them and cast light on the fields they were playing in, right behind their home. Eliza loved to be here with Atlas, especially at this time of day. It was better than at home. It was probably better than anywhere.
Eliza had always had everything a person could dream of: A big house looking like Sherlock Holmes would live in, warm clothes, always enough to eat and drink, and a good education. But she could forgo all that because the only thing she always wanted was to be here with Atlas - forever. In sleepless nights, she always imagined lying on the fields and watching the evening sun, her head on Atlas' stomach, while he would calmly stroke through her hair. Sometimes it felt like he was with her even though he wasn't at the moment - not that they wouldn't already spend almost all of their free time together. Sometimes, they even just sat together in the library while studying, not saying a word, just sensing their presence. He was, indeed, her best friend, and she sincerely hoped that nothing would ever change that.
Never in her lifetime, Eliza had ever heard such a warm and honest laugh like Atlas'. It was so different from the fake smiles their parents were putting on, their strange laughter, the dishonesty of their faces. What friendship that ever was, Eliza didn't want it. She would rather die than see her friendship with Atlas end like this.
Atlas lay down on the ground, pulling Eliza with him. "Look at the sky", he whispered. When she turned her eyes to whatever would wait for her there, she smiled involuntarily. The sky was shining in the most beautiful, bright colors she had ever seen in her life. Far down on the horizon, the setting sun gave it a warm red color that grew lighter the further she looked. "It is wonderful", Eliza mumbled and let the cool air run through her lungs as she slowly closed her eyes, enjoying this magical moment as long as she could.
For a moment, it was just her, Atlas, and the warmth of nature around them when suddenly a terrible scream broke the silence. Even before she had time to open her eyes, Atlas already grabbed her arm and pulled her up. "What's happening?", she asked her cousin with a trembling voice. "I don't know", he mumbled without even looking at her. His eyes stood wide open to their house, although it was too far away to see if anything was happening right there.
At this moment, they heard fast steps coming right up to them. Eliza squeezed her arms around Atlas, searching for at least a tiny bit of safety. The closer the person came, the clearer she could identify her. "Mom?", Eliza shouted, still trembling. Eliza could see her eyes standing wide open, her pupils so small she couldn't even see them properly. "Mom, what-" Her mother cut her short. "We have to go." Eliza turned her head to Atlas. He was still looking at their house as if he didn't even notice her mother standing right in front of them. "Atlas", her mother said with a tone in her voice Eliza had heard just once before in her life. Atlas didn't move. "Atlas, please, you have to come with us.", her mother said a second time, tears running down her cheeks. Eliza shook her head. She didn't want to go without him. There would not be an 'us' if Atlas stayed here.
But in the end, she was still too weak. Too weak to stop Atlas running to their house. Too weak to escape from her mother's arms. Too weak to stop running.
Too weak to stop their destiny.
There was blood. There was so much blood. Blood on the ground, the walls, the people, lying in their own gore. It was everywhere, dripping from the furniture, leaving the whole room as a red bath. The last man standing appeared to be no more than a faceless shadow poured in blood from head to toe. "What have you done!", Atlas screamed, grabbing a nearby bottle of wine. The shadow didn't answer, and Atlas stopped caring. Each of his steps left a bloody footstep at the spots where the floor wasn't already red.
That was the moment Atlas stopped thinking. Stopped feeling. His eyes closing shut.
He just hit his head. Over, and over, and over again, tears running down his cheeks, mingling themselves with the blood on his face and body, until the man's skull was completely shattered. Blood was splashing onto him, his tongue, tasting blood and wine.
It was the moment he learned what the kiss of evil tasted like.