A surge of emotion wells up inside me — a mix of utter astonishment, annoyance, anger, and most especially relief.

Gray is in his room, laying on the bed with his legs crossed, his left elbow resting on a pillow, and a gamepad in his other hand.

But he wasn't alone. A certain brown-haired guy with pale skin was seated on the floor, pursing his lips and focusing his attention solely on the game he was playing.

My body loses its stiff posture, slumping towards the wall. I put my hand out to rest on the wall for support, letting out a huge breath. The boys were oblivious to my presence, lost in the world of Fifa.

"These little dumbwits, " I frown, biting down on my lower lip.

I grab the first item I could get from the table next to me and launch it at them. I didn't stop there, I keep grabbing whatever I could get my hands on, throwing it at them without so much as a care in the world about their safety.

And to think I was worried. To think I spent more than half of the day in agony, feeling guilty.

Gray is the first to jump, his expression a mixture of fear and shock. "Wait- Kelch- I'm- Fuck!" he does all in his best ability to dodge the flying- book, pen, perfume bottle, whatever it was, I didn't care to look before throwing. But a water bottle hits him in the elbow.

His legs shoot up, almost reaching his face as he jumped around dramatically, flailing his hands. "K-ke- Kelch, " he struggles to say mid-jump, curving his body backward as he escaped the keys thrown at him. Sadly, that was the last thing on the table.

My heart was still beating heavily from the adrenaline rush, but I ignored it as I walked towards the second person I found in the room with him, who was cowardly hiding at the edge of the bed.

"You, " I point a finger at Aaron. "Stand up. Now."

Aaron stands, and I stare at both of them before shaking my head. "C- cra-zy, " I lean on the wall catching my breath. "You're both insane. Do you have any idea how worried we were!"

I turn to Gray, running my eyes over his face- from the gentle crease on his forehead, his deep blue eyes that were glistening with affection, his carved facial structure, to his plump lips which he was biting down on nervously.

Man, was he beautiful, and the thought of losing him only ached a lot more at the sight of him.

I close my eyes, parting my lips slightly to let out a low breath and running my hand through my hair. "Do you have any idea of how worried I was?" my voice cracks at the end of my sentence.

If anything had happened to Gray, I didn't think I could have lived with myself. Two people died because of me during this last month. There's Jay, who sacrificed himself for Gray and me, and Ashley's dad, who died because I was too much of a bitch to help him earlier.

Life was fleeting, and I realized that now. The people you love could be taken away from you in a split second, leaving you with a burden of heartbreak. I didn't want that. I couldn't live with that. I know everyone dies at the end, but I'd rather die first than be left alive alone.

"Where-, " I stop to take a breather, wetting my dry lips with my tongue. "Where have you been all day, huh?" I demand.

"How could you just-, "

Gray stops my words when he pulls me into a hug. His arms wrap around me like a chain, his body firm yet gentle against mine, his scent filling my head with memories.

I clasp him so tightly we were almost one person. If I could enter his skin at this moment, I would.

"I'm sorry, Kelch."

~~~~~~~~~~

A little while after, I'm sitting on the edge of the bed while Aaron and Gray stand before me, trying to explain what had happened.

"Do I speak first, or would you like your boyfriend to go first?" Aaron moves his index finger between Gray and me.

I reply with a blank stare, not in the mood for his shenanigans. He shoots me a sheepish smile. The smile he uses to get girls falling for him all the time, but not me.

I wasn't in the mood, so I raise my legs to nudge his shin as hard as I can. A groan escapes his lips as he bends over and cradles his legs.

Then it dawns on me.

My eyes widen as the crazy idea fills my head. "D- did- you?" I gasp and cover my mouth. "Did you go to London to get him?" I turn to Gray.

Gray studies me with narrow eyes, contemplating his response. "No-o. Yes-s. No?" he says different things to get a reaction from me.

"The truth, " I demand.

"Yes, he did," Aaron replies almost immediately, prompting Gray to jab him in the ribs.

A deeper groan emerges from Aaron's throat as he sits on the bed next to me, clenching his belly. "I signed up for refuge, not domestic violence," he says through gritted teeth.

I turn my attention to Gray. He takes a few steps back in response to my demeanor, holding his hands up. "Wait, before you-, "

"Just a yes or no, Gray."

He rubs the nape of his neck. "There was no other way."

A sigh escapes my lips, and my head falls back with a sigh. Gray takes a seat on the floor, crossing his legs over the other. He reaches over to me, running his hands over my bare leg.

"We needed to keep it a secret. That was the only way to protect Aaron from his dad and the Cagers, " Gray says, staring up at me through his lashes.

"But you had me worried. We didn't hear from both of you all day. With everything going on, the least you could do was tell someone, " I point out.

Aaron and Gray exchange confused glances before returning their gazes to me. "We told Zyair, " they blurt at the same time.

My jaw drops, and my mouth hangs in shock. "What?"

Zyair was the most concerned one out of all of us, running helter-skelter, giving the most ideas on how to find Gray. I refused to believe he knew all along.

"But we told him not to tell anyone. We needed everyone to believe Aaron was missing. I was going to let you know tonight, but you returned later than expected."

That made a lot more sense now. The guys never did anything without each other. But Zyair. Zyair could give Lee Min Ho a run for his money. He completely fooled us all.

"Well, can I tell Ashley, Fawn, and Elliot? They've been worried sick all day."

Gray gives me a sympathetic look and shakes his head. "You can tell them about me, but nothing on Aaron. Please, Kelch. Until I figure out how to deal with the Cagers, no one can know that Aaron is here. One less person in danger is a step forward."

Massaging my forehead with a sigh, I nod my head in agreement. He was right.

One less person in danger is a step forward.

~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, the incessant ring tone coming from my phone wakes me up. With a groan, I search for my phone with closed eyes, trying to find the sound with my hands. I swipe right on the caller ID, my eyes half open as I placed the phone to my ear. "Hello."

"Dove, hello? Are you still asleep?" Ashley's loud voice burst through the phone. "By this time?"

What time was it? I sit up straighter, remembering the fact that she doesn't know I've found Gray.

"Hey, I'm sorry-" I begin, but she cuts me off.

"You should be. Have you looked outside this morning?"

Gray lets out a low groan from beside me, and my eyes shift towards him. He was still sleeping peacefully. The look of a baby angel plastered on his face.

I smile when I remember how I fell asleep in his arms last night, talking about the most basic things. I realized I didn't know some things about him, so we took time asking each other questions till we fell asleep. It wasn't much but it felt like enough.

"Hello! Am I talking to a ghost? Are you spacing out again?" Ashley flares. Her car horn goes off, and I hear her curse out loud at whoever else was making her annoyed.

"Where are you?" I ask.

"Bitch, it's the first snow of the year! And I'm scaling my way through traffic to get to your house, so we can find your boyfriend or report him missing. But you don't seem much concerned anymore!"

My brows curve upwards, and I run towards my blinds, pulling the curtains down as quick as I could.

And there it was, the glistening white and gray snow that covered the ground like a soft blanket. I had experienced snowfall all seventeen years of my life, yet I still get amazed by the beauty every time. That is the beauty of the first snow. After a few days, the snow gets mixed up with dirt particles and changes color, making it more disgusting than beautiful.

"Gray! Gray! " I call out, motioning towards him with my flailing arms, beaming with joy. "Gray, get up. It's snowing!"

Ashley gasps from the other end, and I could tell she stopped her car suddenly because a bunch of car horns goes off shortly after.

"Gray?"

"Hmm. Yeah, he was home the entire time," I reply, staring at Gray- who was still laying on the bed. This time, he was awake.

"W-o-w, " She scoffs, dragging her words. "I'll be there soon."

Ashley arrives thirty minutes later. She bursts into the house, heading directly towards Gray, marching as she walked. When I see her reach for her bag, I intercept her, standing between her and Gray with outstretched arms.

"Don't hit him, " I cautioned, eyeing her bag.

"It's just a little smack," She sighs with annoyance, gesturing for me to move out of the way.

"What gives you the right to hit him? Drop your bag."

"Let me release my anger a bit."

"Throw your phone on the ground then or break the tv! Don't touch my man," I shake my head.

The words my man came out before I could stop it. Ashley freezes in shock, blinking multiple times. I slowly walk away and sit at the other end of the sofa, dying with embarrassment inside.

"Why are women so dramatic all the time?" Aaron yawns, stretching his arms. He leans at the edge of the room door.

"You can hit that one though," I point at Aaron. Ashley's mouth almost drops to the floor, and I couldn't blame her. Wait till she hears Zyair knew all along.

Gray's phone rings, breaking the silence in the room, since Ashley was still too stunned to speak. "It's Zyair, " he announces, putting on the phone's speaker.

"Zyair knows too?" she snaps her head in Gray's direction.

"Dude, what's up?"

"You won't believe what I just found, " Zyair beams. "You know how we-, " he stops to think.

"You know what? It would be better if I just showed it to you. How fast can you get to Langley's yogurt shop?"

Langley's yogurt shop was just a few streets from our house.

"How fast do you need me to get there?" Gray asks, getting up and heading for the door.

"Asap."

"Okay. I'll be there in ten, " Gray ends the call.

I get up and try to follow Gray out the door. He puts his hand out to stop me. "Excuse me?"

"I'm not letting you out of my sight."

He sighs and tucks a piece of my hair behind my ear. "C'mon, Kelch. It's dangerous for you to get involved."

"It's dangerous for you too."

"I can handle it."

"So can I!"

"Kelch, please don't -"

"I'm not taking no for an answer," I reply, walking past him with the keys in my hand.

I hear him groan as he followed me towards the car, grateful he ended the argument there.

Due to the traffic, it takes us twenty minutes to get to Langley's yogurt. I bring out my phone and dial Zyair's number as soon as we get there.

"Hello," He responds with a chirpy voice. I could tell he was really excited with his latest information.

"Hey, where are you? We can't make a U-turn because of the roadblock, could you cross over to meet us? We are directly opposite Langley's."

"I can't see Gray's car, " he says, and I see him walking out of the store. I put my head out the window to wave at him.

"Okay, I see you now," he laughs, returning my wave.

I chuckle and cut the call, placing the phone on the cupholder. Returning my gaze to Zyair as he's about to cross the road, a car packed a few meters from him leaves the side of the road and starts driving with full-fledged force. "Zyair!" my eyes shift back to Zyair, who had his eyes on me.

As I push the car door open, it makes a squeaking noise, similar to the squeaking sound of a grazing tire. Only when I raise my head did I realize that the door didn't make that sound, but actual car tires did.

A figure is knocked to the ground at the same moment Zyair disappears from my sight.

Not less than a moment later, his head makes contact with the cement ground as he comes crashing back into the snow. It all happened faster than I could blink. His crimson blood slowly begins to spill, staining the white snow quicker than poison. The sound of the crash is followed by the shattering of glass, wretched screams coming from different directions, and car horns going off as drivers bump into each other; trying to avoid the crash scene.

Soon, there's a moment of silence, extreme silence that pierces into my ear, rendering me emotionally numb. Zyair's body remains limp on the ground, and slowly he closes his eyes, allowing a blood-stained tear spill down to his ear.

I stare, numb with shock. I could feel my mouth moving, yet I couldn't hear a single word. It felt like everything and everyone around me became still and silent.

My world stopped.

••••••••••••••••••

A/n: *hides under a blanket*

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