The Devilish Assassin Meets The Angelic Detective

*** { Two Hours Ago Before Elle Snuck Into Erick's House… } ***

After Bryan left, Erick headed straight to his bedroom. He stumbled to the corner of his room beside his bed. He slumped his body to the cold floor, sitting while leaning his back on the side of his bed.

His head was throbbing in pain. A wave of heat coursed through his body. The fever came fast, robbing Erick of his strength. But that's not the only thing he was experiencing right now.

His eyes sunken, having a wan and sullen expression. Everything ached- his body, his mind, and his heart. Tonight was one of his darkest nights.

He sniffled quietly, then a single drop of grief welled up from the corner of his eye. He was alone, no one could see his vulnerable side right now so he let it all loose.

The tears of pain started running down his cheeks. His heart was bleeding. He fished out the ring from his pocket and gazed at it intently. All his hopes just crumbled today, he felt very miserable.

In his mind, he knew he couldn't bring back the past. Because if he could then he wanted to change it. He won't allow Elle to do that rescue mission with him or he would stop everything from happening that led to M.V Athena's tragedy. 

He would protect his parents against the Azumi Twins and he would catch the Twin Assassin. But all of these were now just his wishful thinking.

There was a voice at the back of his mind saying that all he could do now was to carry forward until a time would come when this searing pain was distant enough to forget everything. And maybe one day, it could erase those memories from his brain.

But his heart was against that idea. He couldn't do it. For him, it was better to live in this pain and suffering than to forget about Elle.

Ashen faced, he clung into his chest, continuously weeping with his silent cries.

"Elle… what should I do now? How can I live happily without you by my side? Wifey… can't I just follow you and be with you?" He mumbled in between his sobs.

"I-I am tired now… I am missing you more each day…" Erick gritted his teeth as he slammed his eyes shut.

"Can I just… go with you now… wifey?" 

With his current state, Erick had lost his will to live. After a while, with his remaining strength, he stood up, switching the lights off from the living room. 

When he came back to his room, he just lay down on his bed without taking any medicine. He closed his eyes, enduring all the pains both physical and emotional pains.

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*** { Present Time } ***

Elle stayed with Erick all night. She lay down beside him, still hugging his body. Erick began to feel comfortable with her embrace. The crease in his forehead disappeared and now he looked peaceful while he was asleep.

Elle's eyes were fixed on his sleeping face. Her gaze lingered there for a very long time. After she got tired, Elle nuzzled her face in the crook of Erick's neck, smelling his sweet intoxicating manly fragrance. Her arm was across his strong chest.

"Oh, I miss you so much, hubby." Elle murmured, planting a gentle kiss on his jawline.

"If I don't have remaining self-control then I should have ravished you and take advantage of you by now. Too bad, my sanity is still intact." Elle took a deep sigh after saying that.

"Why are you still so handsome and charming even if you are sick?" Elle said helplessly while caressing Erick's face.

Elle could feel that his fever finally went down. A wave of relief flooded her.

After a while, a mixture of happiness and sadness flared in her eyes. She was smiling a little, the kind of a person's smile who was determined not to weep.

She was happy because she got to stay with him and she was able to take care of him. She was sad because she knew she still had to leave since Erick must not see her once he woke up.

"I am sorry, Erick… for causing and giving you too much pain. I hope someday you can still forgive me for doing this. I know it's hard to love someone like me, a very complicated person with a dark past. If I could just bury the past and forget about this revenge thing then I could be with you. But… still, I couldn't do that. I know that this is so unfair to you. I should have let you go but I couldn't. I am being so selfish."

"Now, I can feel where this is going to be. Just thinking about it, my heart is slowly breaking into pieces. I am afraid I can't already escape this. I am afraid I might do more things that will hurt you more. I'm not sure of how you will be able to handle it. If that happens… will you hate me? Will you get tired of me? Will you stop loving me? Will I be able to handle it, if, at the end of this journey, I will end up losing you?"

Elle's hug tightened after thinking about those possibilities. She was uncertain of what the future might bring. She just hoped Erick would still be there for her after everything.

Elle brought her face closer to his ear before whispering something to him.

"I love you, Erick. I'd love you in the past, I still love you now and I will keep loving you in the future."

She had sworn those words and sealed them with a gentle kiss on his lips.

After that, Elle got off the bed. Bringing everything to their usual place- the medicine kit, the glass of water, and the towels- erasing the trace of her presence as if she had not come there.

Elle fixed the blanket which was covering Erick's body. She glanced at him for one last time before leaving his room silently. Elle didn't see that a single teardrop escaped from the corner of Erick's eyes the moment she left him.