"Funny how life works," Haruna chuckled, watching blood drip from his split lip onto the stage where he once commanded standing ovations. "One minute you're on top of the world, the next you're just another idiot who fell for a pretty face."
The chains rattled as he shifted on his knees, each link a reminder of how stupid he'd been. His once-pristine Armani suit – the one she'd picked out for him – now hung in sweaty shreds, reeking of fear and regret.
Victoria stood there, close enough that he could smell her perfume – the same scent that used to drive him wild in bed. Now it just made his stomach turn. Her bodyguards loomed behind her like particularly well-dressed shadows, their guns pointed at what remained of his dignity.
"You know what the saddest part is, Haruna?" She bent down, those doe eyes he'd written sonnets about now cold as a winter midnight.
"You actually thought someone like me could love someone like you. What was it your friend said? 'She's too beautiful to be alone with'?" A laugh bubbled from her throat. "Should've listened to him."
'God, I want to hate you. But even now, even here, my treacherous heart skips when you say my name.'
The heavy theater door creaked – dramatic timing as always – and in walked Marcus. His best friend. His brother in all but blood. Now his executioner in designer shoes.
"Now this," Marcus gestured at the empty seats, his voice bouncing off walls that had once carried Haruna's soliloquies, "this is what I call perfect staging. Where better to end the great Haruna Beifong's story than where it began?"
Marcus sauntered over, each step echoing like a countdown. "You know what your problem is, old friend? You think the world runs on merit. On talent." He grabbed Victoria's waist, pulling her close. "But it doesn't. It runs on guys like me. Guys who see something shiny" – he kissed Victoria's neck – "and just reach out and take it."
'Remember this feeling, universe. Remember how it feels to have your heart carved out with a butter knife.'
"Last chance for a goodbye speech, Shakespeare." Marcus reached for a guard's gun, but Victoria was faster.
"No." She pulled the weapon away. "He was my mark. My job to finish."
Haruna barely felt the cold metal against his temple. He was too busy staring at her empty ring finger, remembering how she'd cried when he'd slipped his grandmother's diamond on it. Real tears, he'd thought then. What a joke.
"You want to know something hilarious?" His voice came out steadier than he'd expected. "I had this whole dramatic monologue planned. About betrayal. About love. About how you two deserve each other." He laughed, and it sounded like breaking glass. "But now? Now I just feel sorry for you both."
'When I come back, I'm going to make you remember this moment. Every single day. Until your souls rot.'
Victoria's perfect eyebrows furrowed. "Sorry for us?"
"Yeah." Haruna grinned, tasting blood. "Because you'll never know what real love feels like. And that's a worse hell than anything you're sending me to."
The gun trembled slightly against his skin. "Always the poet, weren't you?"
"Always the liar, weren't you?"
'See you soon, my loves. Very, very soon.'
*BANG!*
The shot rang out, and somewhere in the darkness, a spotlight clicked off. Exit stage left, pursued by karma.