"Thank you, Johnny," Rose said with the most beautiful smile she had ever had on her face. It even looked like tears were whelming in her eyes. She was delighted that John liked her in return. But, unfortunately, this caused John to feel even more disgusted with himself. The painful feeling began to surface, and in the end, he didn't know what to do.
John's hand began to tremble, and his entire body began to shake. He bit the inside of his cheek, and before he knew it, tears started to drip from his eyes and flood his cheeks. Not once had he cried after he found out his mother was really dead. All this time, he had held it in, even when they buried her, he didn't cry, and now all of that build-up frustration and tears were overwhelming him.
Why?
He felt guilty. He dropped the blade and stepped back. "That's... That's..." John muttered. Rose could see something was wrong. When she heard something fall to the ground behind her, she looked only to see the knife on the ground, and then she looked back towards John. John collapsed onto the floor on his knees. His eyes staring at the ground, and his arms kept onto the floor.
"I see..." John heard those words from Rose, and he knew that it was too late to do anything. So he just accepted whatever the outcome would be. He was about to take Rose's life, so if she was going to take his life, then she had the right to, and in the end, he closed his eyes.
Rose picked up the knife and made her way towards him. She stood there in front of him, but he never looked up at her. All of the hate, anger, and negativity were washed away when he saw her smile. Instead, it was replaced with an immense amount of guilt. After he heard what Rose had done for everyone, after seeing her do what she could to help everyone else, and after all she had done thus far for him, he knew that she wasn't to blame.
However, he couldn't stop himself. He wanted to blame her. To hate her. To kill her. The feeling was still strong, but somewhere during the two months they spent together, it had been weakened. He learned so much about her that most of the others never knew. It wasn't anything threatening, but just more so personal. Just hearing about all of it made her seem more like a victim.
Then without realizing it, he had opened up to her. He told himself it was to get close to her, but in the end, it may have been because he wanted someone to confide in. Someone, he could lean on. Sure, he had his cousin Josh, but Josh was also going through the mourning phase just as much as he was. So he didn't want to trouble him any more than he needed to. As for Jake, well, he didn't know if Jake could help him.
He did try talking to him about various things, but Jake just never knew what to say. As for Don and April, they had their own things they were going through, and the others he didn't know all too well. So, all that left was the person he hated the most. Yet, somewhere through that, his hate for her had diminished. He didn't want to admit it; he refused to, but once he saw her smile. Finally, he was forced to admit it.
That Rose had nothing to do with his mother's death, and she was just as much of a victim to all of his as he was.
This was why he stopped himself. This was why he was disgusted with himself. He had let hate and anger overtake every action. He had no excuse for it. He could only accept the outcome of his actions. "Since you are going to kill me, tell everyone I attacked you. No one would believe it if you said that we were attacked." John stated and waited.
He waited, and waited, and waited, yet nothing happened. Rose walked behind him. She draped her arms over him and hugged him tightly from behind. "You were suffering this entire time, and I couldn't even stop it," Rose stated softly. John's eyes opened, yet he didn't lookup. "When you first asked to talk, I could see something was wrong with you. I was never good at comforting others. So I feared that maybe I would do more harm than good, but you kept coming back." Rose began, her voice soft yet audible even over the roaring rain.
"Each time you came, you talked about your mother: What she was like, what she did for you, and all of the things you liked about her. You even talked about her faults but always seemed to show that you cared about her. Each time, I could see just how much you loved your mother. I wondered why you kept coming to me about these things, and eventually, it began to come together." Rose continued.
"You probably resented me. You probably hated me and blamed me for her death. It was probably because I was part of The World Government. When you asked questions about them and me, I was able to piece it together. At first, I didn't know what to think when I found out. I had never been in such a situation before." Rose continued.
"What I can say is that I couldn't fault you. I couldn't blame you for the way you were. You were hurting, yet you never showed it to anyone. Instead, you kept it bottled up, and the only time I could truly see it was during our interactions. For example, I noticed you didn't even cry at your mother's funeral. I found it odd, but I realized that was the final piece of the puzzle. You sought revenge, and until you got it, you wouldn't be able to cry." Rose continued.
"There had been a time even I sought out revenge. I was not too fond of The World Government for keeping me locked up. So, I can easily understand how you feel. Sure, I could have told someone that you probably had plans to kill me, and sure I could kill you right now, but John... The truth is, I've fallen in love with you." Rose paused for a moment because she could feel John's heartbeat increasing and hear him sobbing softly.
"All the things I told you about myself, everything I have shared with you. I just felt like I could be open with you about all of it, and you never once seemed disgusted with it. Even though I know you hated me, you still seemed to care. Which lead me to believe that maybe, it wasn't me you hated, but The World Government." Rose continued.
"Johnny, do you hate me?" Rose asked after a brief pause.
"I..." John stuttered, "No..." John muttered.
"Do you want to kill me?" Rose asked with a soft smile that John could not see.
"No," John responded with a shake of his head.
"Can I ask you why?" Rose asked.
"It's not... right. I can't kill you... You've done nothing wrong, and...." John spoke through soft sobs, but the feelings he had bottled up for so long were overwhelming, and he couldn't even speak clearly.
"And?" Rose asked softly.
"...I don't want to kill someone I like..." John finally got his words out.
"I am sure you could never forgive me for trying to take your life either," John added. The two of them were silent for a moment. John was starting to finish his sobs and eventually had control over his emotions.
"I don't know about that," Rose spoke softly and embraced him even tighter. She had been silent the entire time, thinking about what to say to him, and that was what she came up with. John didn't know what to do or how to react, but he did ask one question. "Why?"
"Part of me wanted to die. If I could have died helping someone, then that would be fine with me." Rose expressed. John bit his lower lip tightly. Hearing her response stung him. He truly felt disgusted with himself. "Can I ask you to do something?" John finally spoke, blood trickling from his lower lip.
"Maybe," Rose replied.
"Can you live? Live long enough to go home. Live long enough to find someone who will truly love you. No matter what, I want you to live." John asked his question. Rose was taken back by his request. Just moments ago, he was going to kill her, and now he was asking her to live, but only that, but live long enough to return home and find someone who would truly love her.
"Then, can I ask something of you? Let's say this will be the key in me forgiving you." Rose spoke gently. John nodded, prepared for anything now. Even if she asked him to die, he would do it. "Can you live alongside me?" Rose asked. Now John was the one who was taken back by this request.
"What are you saying? You want someone who tried to kill you to live alongside you!?" John didn't understand it. It didn't make sense to him why she would even say such a thing. Rose just smiled lightly at John's rebuttal. He could have said yes and killed her later if he wanted to, or just said yes to gain her forgiveness, yet he was looking out for her own safety.
"John. You were the one who helped me become in tune with my emotions. You were the one who showed me how to be happy. How to read the mood of a room and what to look out for in others. You've done a lot for me, and it seems like you haven't realized it yet. Johnny, I don't want to live with anyone else but you." Rose expressed.
"How?" John would mutter.
"How, what? How can I say these things? Well, why am I still alive? If you truly wanted to kill me, you could have, but you didn't. Even you said it yourself, you didn't want to kill someone you liked. We all make mistakes, Johnny. It's what we do afterward that shows how much we have progressed. Isn't that what you told me?" Rose stated, quoting John on something he said to her.
John had no rebuttal. No words to retort with. She was right. She had even turned his own logic against him, and in the end, he couldn't help but release a soft chuckle. "If you are fine with me, then I will be in your care, Rose," John replied while turning to look at her, a soft smile on his face that matched her gentle smile. The two sat there in silence and kissed one another.
They had their moment, but it was interrupted with a massive shake of the ground. Shortly afterward, they heard the loud bang of a shotgun. Instantly they got off the ground and ran outside, not caring if they got wet from the heavy rain. They were struggling to keep on their feet but managed thanks to John's Seed Power. As they exited the building they saw, an army of oversized bugs coming from one direction.
A few moments before John and Rose had their moment and talk, Rebecca, Jake, Ryan, Sussan, and Tim were still patrolling the area. It seemed like they didn't have to worry about much and were thankful for it. In fact, they were about to go back inside; until one of Jake's undead alerted him of something. It was the weird undead with the long tongue. The Eater Undead.
"Ryan, can you go get the others!?" Jake exclaimed impatiently. Everyone stopped moving and looked at Jake. They saw he had a serious expression on his face. "I can, but you would all get wet. Is something going on?" Ryan asked. "Yeah, something is coming. I don't know what, but it is closing in fast. It's coming from out north near the entry of the prison." Jake stated.
Ryan would nod to them and runoff; meanwhile, the rest made their way to the entry point of the prison. "Okay, what's coming?" Rebecca asked since nothing had happened, but that was when she felt the ground shake. She did her best to keep her balance. "Ants..." Jake replied, which caused Rebecca's brow to raise. When a strike of lighting had taken to the skylines and lit up the surrounding area, it displayed an army of them heading their way. A few of them were closer than the rest, probably scouts. They jumped at Rebecca, and she brought her shotgun around to shoot at it.
Holes filled the bug, and it hit the ground dead, but there were two more. Finally, Tim decided it was his turn to do some work. He quickly stepped forward and swung his greatsword mightily, taking out both bugs since they also jumped into the air, thinking they had a better chance of attacking that way. Still, they were cut down in the end.
Shortly after, undead with gray radiation was sent out to attack the ants. They turned back to see Jake had returned with Jessica and Ion. Both of them had been making out in their cell, and when Jake had run past, he saw them. He stopped, turned around, and asked for their help. Unfortunately, Jake didn't know if everyone else was busy, and he didn't have time to just run around the entire prison and gather everyone.
"Ants?" Ion asked with an annoyed expression. He had lipstick all over his mouth and cheeks, even his neck and chin. Jessica looked just as annoyed. Her hair looked a little messy, and aside from that, her clothes were also disproportioned. It clearly looked like something was going on between the two, but the most notable thing was how pissed Jessica looked.
Balls of fire were starting form around her and not just in her hands. The balls of fire compressed into themselves and created lances of flames which were tossed towards the ants. Instead of intense explosions, the lances would expunge flares of flames that scorched anything in its path. Ion was making her way towards the army of ants without care of the flames. When one was before him, he took hold of its mouth, not caring if the Ant tried to bite him, and then smashed his fist into the head with a right hook, killing it there. After that, he easily broke through the tough exoskeleton with only his bare fist. The best part? He didn't even use his Seed Power. He then tossed the corpse away and went on to the next. Sussan decided to stay in the back. Her flames were not really meant for something like this; however, she did walk up to Tim, who was about charge into the army of ants. She stopped him and placed her hand on his blade. Soon the blade would be engulfed in fire. It looked like a Magic Greatsword rather than a simple one, and Tim smirked, "Right on!" He exclaimed before charging into the fray.
Rebecca, Jake, and Sussan provided support; meanwhile, Jessica, Ion, and Tim were on the frontlines. Rose and John arrived, soaked into the bone thanks to the rain, and saw what was going on. John decided to stabilize the gravity around them to keep them from falling. In contrast, Rose decided to join the frontlines. She used her Seed Powers to aid the others.
While this was going on, Don was standing in one of the watchtowers. April was beside him, clinging onto him while looking out at the field of ants and the others. "Aren't we going to help them?" April asked while watching them fight on. Don shook his head. "They need to overcome something like this," Don replied. Both of them were dry, but that was thanks to Don and his Spatial Distortion.
April looked towards Don, and there wasn't even a look of worry there. "You knew something like this would happen, didn't you?" April inquired, and Don nodded with a smile. "Of course. However, at their present strength, it isn't enough to be a threat. They need to learn just how strong they really are. They need confidence. I won't always be here to protect them." Don answered.
"Well... that's true. When we go off to the fortress, we'll be gone for a while, huh?" April asked, and Don nodded. "We will. I want to make sure they will have everything set for when we leave." Don replied. "Speaking of, when is that?" April asked. "Soon," Don replied. He didn't give her an exact day because he didn't have one in mind. He just knew it needed to be soon. The longer they waited, the worse off they would be. They need the NS armor, without it none of this would matter.