‹ Prequel: Burn
Status: Hiatus

Whispers

In the city that we love

Everything was dark. It was night, and the air was freezing with winters bite as Rae ran through the trees. The tall trees surrounded her and pressed in on her, making her feel like she was trapped, like she would never get out. The cold stung her lips and burned her throat, panting hard as she ran.

Turning, a branch caught her cheek, stinging her cheek with a scratch, her eyes smarting at the sudden cold pain. But she kept running, hearing someone following her. Manic laughter was echoing behind her, getting closer and closer and she knew that she was not going to our run the laughter.

When her legs were heavy like lead, and when she felt she could not go further, she turned, pressing her back against a tree and searching in the darkness. There was no moon to help her see through the trees, no light to guide her eyes.

Suddenly hands her on her arms, pulling her from behind. A scream ripped through her throat, the cold slicing through her and ripping the lining of her throat. She tasted the metallic blood instantly as she jerked away from the iron grip, twisting and tripping backwards over a tree root.

Leon came crashing down on top of her, cussing and pinning her down as she leaned her head back, blood curdling screams terrifying enough to raise the hair on her own arms. Her legs kicked and she threw her weight every which way, trying to get away from him, his weight too much.

“Shh,” he laughed, leering down at her. She could do nothing but scream. She was so terrified that she could not even cry, but rather let her terror crash into her the way a wave crashes against the cliff side in a storm. “There is no need to scream like that, my little song bird. You can sing later.”

But she didn’t know what to do. So she screamed. And screamed. And screamed.


“Rae!” The shout of her name made her bolt upwards, her eyes rolling wildly in her head as she clutched the blankets, panting and looking around wildly, unaware of where she was for a moment before the light turned on, making her flinch and knock her head into the headboard. “What the hell?”

Getting her bearings, she realized she was laying in Harry’s bed. A sheen of sweat covered her entire body and she was still panting hard, her heart hammering in her chest, working off the excess adrenaline from the night terror.

Slowly, Harry crawled towards her on the bed, his advance tentative as she sat in the corner, fear written all over her face. Harry’s eyes were earnest and she let him pull himself next to her, taking her face and cupping it with his large hands.

“Baby,” he murmured slowly, his glittering eyes examining her face. “Are you okay?”

Silence, for a few moments. She wasn’t sure if she was okay. The terror was still fresh on her tongue and the adrenaline was still fresh in her system. And she was absolutely freezing, still. “I-I don’t know.”

Concern flooded her boyfriends face. Without any more words, he pulled her into his chest, holding her. Warmth began to flood through her, but she began shivering, her teeth chattering as he encompassed her entire frame in his arms, folding her into him.

“Shh,” he murmured, making her realize she had started sobbing. The dream had been so real, and left her trembling all over, her bones unable to stay steady on their hinges, rattling like an old window frame in the howling wind. “I’m here, Rae. No one else is here, it’s just me. I’ve got you, baby.”

She held tight to his shoulders, nearly digging her nails into his skin. She was sick with fear, and she was still freezing. “I’m cold.”

After a moment of pause, Harry scooped Rae into his arms, sweeping her from the bed and walking to the bathroom. He sat her on the marble sink top and leaned to the large tub, turning on the water and stopping the bottom. He kissed her forehead and disappeared down the hall. She could hear the sound of the air shut off.

Harry was back in moments, as if he were too scared to leave her alone for a long period of time. She was thankful for that, watching him as he shut the door, coming to her and holding him close to his chest, pressing his lips to her forehead and leaving them there for a few minutes.

Then, Harry slowly pulled her off of the counter, tugging her shirt off. She stayed his hands and nodded, understanding. Both of them disrobed, Harry getting into the large tub filled to the brim with steaming water. Rae followed suit, flinching at how hot the water is before sinking herself.

Turning the faucet off, Harry leaned against one side, twisting Rae so that her back was facing him and pulled her into his chest, wrapping his arms around her, both of them submerged neck deep. Rae finally relaxed then, leaning back into him and laying her head to the side of his, Harry kissing her temple.

They lay in the water in a steady quiet for a while. The cold slowly left Rae and she stopped shivering, letting the water warm her blood and letting her eyes shut as Harry remained holding her, never letting her go. She never wanted him to let her go. She never wanted to be alone ever again.

After a while, Harry started humming lightly and quiet. She could hear it next to her ear, as she closed her eyes and listened to him, his steady humming. His voice was warm and rich, filling her senses and easing her mind.

It had been but a dream. And she could not let a dream mess with her head to much. Dreams often got in the way of things, if you became to obsessed with them. Sometimes they did not hold meaning and they were just as they were: dreams. But this one was hard to shake for her.

Such imagery, such vividness scared her. In those moments he had her pinned in the dream, she swore that her mind was hanging by rusty hinges, terror making it so wild that she was on the verge of losing ever logical thought, everything that could make her sane.

Opening her eyes, Harry was still humming. A single tear fell down her cheek but Harry couldn’t see it. She was mad. So angry that she was so scared, so terrified that it was bothering her sleep. She could be stronger, and she would fight this. She could not let Leon make her that insane, or his brother for that matter.

“He scares me,” Rae whispered finally, her voice very quiet. Harry’s humming stopped, but he didn’t move, listening. She bit her lip before continuing. “He scares me a lot. To irrational points. But I want to be brave. I don’t want to be scared, and I want to fight back.”

“You’re supposed to be scared.” Harry’s voice was very soft and understanding, like velvet. It was one of those voices that you could fall asleep to, because you knew that you would be safe. “Being scared makes you logical, Rae. But I don’t want you to think that you’re not allowed to be scared, or that you have to be brave.”

“I want to be, though.” Silence filled the bathroom, two lovers embraced in the water. Rae rolled her head to the side and tilted it so that she could catch Harry’s eyes with her own. “I’m tired of being afraid. I wasn’t afraid before.”

“So why do you think you are now?”

It was a good question. In the time period that Leon had been locked up and Sean had fallen off the radar, is when she had developed this horrid fear of those brothers. All other times, she hadn’t thought twice to challenge them, to spite them. It had been easy.

And then… she started becoming afraid. Blinking, she knew what it was. “Because I don’t want to lose you,” she whispered. “I don’t… I don’t want something to come between us, or to ruin what we have. Because I have you now, and I don’t ever want to let you go. Ever.”

Leaning down, Harry caught her lips with his, soft and warm, kissing her words away. “You won’t ever lose me, Rae. I’ve got you, and I will always have you. You are mine, and you’re not for giving away or letting go, okay?” She nodded, tucking her head into the crook of his neck. “You’re nothing I could ever turn away from, Rae Bastian.”
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I really did not want to add anything more to this, though I know that it's short. I feel like adding another scene would have taken away from this one, because I just wanted this one to have that quiet, deep sort of relationship. Because we all know how Harry is. One moment he's perfect, and the next... he's terrifying.