Sour, bitter.
Annie, who initially believed that her friends had drifted away, got her thoughts confirmed in the most abrupt of ways.
'Are they hanging out together and leaving me out?' Thoughts like that had clouded her mind ever since Ray's birthday. From that moment, he felt as if he was on another level. She couldn't quite meet Emma Frost in the eye. From a humble background, with a goody-two-shoes background... she found the blonde to be something akin to a thieving cat.
Things had been wonderful when it was just the three of them until she came into the picture.
Annie believes Jean has the same train of thought as a fellow mutant with Emma; she can only expect Jean to stop Emma's conquest. But today, she saw that it was more than stopping her—it was as if Jean had switched sides.
It felt like a betrayal in its purest state.
"I didn't know you guys were in such a relationship, sorry... I must be in the way now" Annie said with a sour tone, her countenance down and low, making herself small... perhaps going through brief episodes of depression, wondering what would be of her life the moment she left that car.
Ray drove and watched her, almost as if he could know what she was thinking just with a simple glance.
"It is complicated, Annie. Not because of them but because of me. It is me who is making it all complicated. But I want you to show that my relationship with them is sane. I don't want to conceal them forever. I'm sorry if it hurt you somehow, but I also didn't want to lie to you or hide things; that's not how I am, and you know that".
"No, it is just… does that mean I should give up?" She laughed inwardly in self-mock; not too long ago, he had said he'd support her in her dreams, and yet here he was, farther than ever.
"Only if you want to…" He said.
"E-Eh?"
Annie was confused; how could this arrangement even work?
Ray put his palm on her lap, and she yelped. Still, that hand was more to the side of her knee than her tight. A bit of distance made a whole lot of difference.
"I have decided that I want to keep watch of the people that's informant to me. I don't want to lose anything, even if I lose everything..."
"I-I don't understand".
"You don't have to... just know that you're important to me too, Annie. That's why I decided to go to the lab at that time. I wanted to spend some time with you, too. You must have thought we are distancing ourselves, I don't want you to feel like that, it's sad".
He knew how it felt to be isolated, and although it didn't hurt him, he knew a young girl like Annie would likely be affected.
"Ray…" Tears did threaten to come out; it felt lonely and desolate to be brushed aside. Annie didn't want to lose them.
'I feel like as long as I'm not a mutant... I won't be able to reach them,' She thought.
"To be honest, I haven't spent that much time with Emma and Jean lately, it is my fault. But I have some things to do" He explained.
"Really?" It was her belief that the three of them had been hanging out together all this time.
"Yes, does that make you feel better?~"
It did, but still didn't sort out the main problem; it wasn't only him... Jean, too, was casting her aside and being evasive. Every single day, she'd hang out with Emma instead. Little did she know, fun was not on their agenda.
"Then why Jean..." She wanted to know why Jean wouldn't pull her into that life; they had always been quite close, but Jean had started making barriers she didn't know how to surmount.
Ray sighed; he wasn't completely sure what Jean and Emma were doing. They were as secretive about their lives as he was about his. There was a certain amount of trust, the one in which he'd see them every day and spend time with them, but at the same time, they had their own lives and objectives.
"As you may have guessed, it's because we're mutants... doing mutants things… she doesn't want you to be in danger, Annie"
"I'd love to be a mutant then" she grimaced.
"Don't say that… it is not always nice. Isn't it better to have mutant friends? You get to enjoy the benefits without the hard work" He joked, a joke she didn't appreciate.
"But it feels like you and Jean are in danger all the time, and I can't protect you".
"Let us protect you instead. I'm sorry if you felt left out. Just know you can always talk to us. I'll always be there for you, even when I'm not".
...
Ray parked in front of her house, and they had a deep conversation that made her feel reassured; perhaps the conversation was more enjoyable than the ride itself.
"You have been talking very cryptically~" She giggled and Ray only laughed a bit, deep in his own thoughts.
"Then if I asked you for a kiss... would you kiss me?" She leaned down on his side, close enough to claim that kiss.
Ray didn't back off but instead added a piece: "Would that make you feel better? Are you sure that's what you want, Annie?".
"I don't want to be left out".
"If that's your reason, then I can't kiss you".
"Aahhh..." She grimaced again, hoping to have answered better, 'H-He must think I'm desperate'.
Some of her felt embarrassed, but it was washed out the next second when he pulled her and kissed her forehead instead.
At that moment, all her worries washed away like pure rain pouring down in torrents.
"That day, when we go to that tour in the lab... give me a better reason, Annie... I'll be looking forward to it, I like you quite a bit" He laughed and let her go, but by then... the girl was more than captivated.
A heart completely taken by the youthful feeling of the first love one never forgets.
"You're really handsome, you know that?" She couldn't help but say, returning the favour with a kiss on the forehead. A small gesture that, in a way, conveyed myriad feelings and allowed Ray to feel warmth that he didn't expect.
At first, he looked troubled, even uncomfortable, perhaps feeling undeserving, but eventually settled for enjoying the feeling. It was the outcome of his decision.
'To be loved... that's right. I don't want to be always empty, hollow... that's not what she wanted for me'.
"Thanks, Annie. Do you think so? Lately, people have told me I'm scary," he laughed cryptically.
Annie giggled and waved her hand goodbye. "They're mad. What part of you can be scary? You're the most lovable boy alive."
As a response, Ray merely nodded and drove off, basking in the warmth of the encounter for as long as it lasted. Sadly, it didn't last long.
With each second that his smile receded, the sky darkened up. He drove two hours to the top of Manhattan, East Harlem, and parked outside of a building complex, following the instructions he had saved in his phone.
The sky was cloudy yet bright after noon, so he rested against the seat of his car until the world blackened even further. As night fell in Manhattan, people did their business, and the black background concealed the denizen's sins.
His pitch-black eyes then opened, and the light post shining above his car flickered.
"It is time... they should all be there"
Ray departed his car, locked it, and walked up into an alleyway. At the entrance, three men were smoking a spliff. They stared at him for a few seconds and didn't recognise him.
"What ya want, dawh? this ain't your alley".
"..."
Ray stared at them for a mere second before walking forward. No sound was emitted... no brash movements, no hurry or bravado. Only three bodies and three small craters on the slate floor. Like a chunk of it had just disappeared.
No one would ever find their bodies... they ceased to exist.
He walked deeper into the alley; there seemed to be the noise of music rumbling inside that building. The metal door was locked with only a small visor from which the people inside could see across the street.
*KNOCK!*
*KNOCK!*
*KNOCK!*
The door was hard as steel, so Ray had to knock with a bit more strength in order to produce a recognisable song that wouldn't be overshadowed by the music inside. Someone hurriedly opened the visor, ignoring the obvious dent made to the steel door.
"Motherf*cker, who is you?!" The man screamed, annoyed at the insistence, thinking it was just another crackhead looking for coke.
"I don't need to knock on the door, but it would be too boring if I were to come in unannounced. Let me ask you something: Your boss works under Sebastian Shaw. If I remember correctly, his name is Dwayne Park. Am I correct? I'm looking for him."
"What the fuc– Dwayne?".
The crook ignored the former part of the sentence when the name Sebastian Shaw was mentioned; not many people knew that name, and those who did rarely knew the implications.
"Is he there or not?" Ray insisted with a neutral tone.
"You comin' for business or wha?".
"Is he there... or not?".
"Bro am asking you–"
*BAANGG!*
A hand phased through the steel door grasped his neck, and pulled him hard against the door. Tyrone gasped and felt his face plaster against the wall like it was about to get crushed.
"I'm the one asking you a question... is Dwayne there or not?".
"He is! He is!"
"Cool".
Ray grasped the back of the head and pulled.
*PLAT!*
Blood splattered everywhere, and the closest goons pulled out their guns... only then did they see how the walls, ceiling, everything... began to be consumed ever so little, including their bodies.
"I won't lose those important to me a second time, Lana. I'll turn everything into nothing before that happens, promise".