UNDERGROUND: Deck of Cards

DOC 05

|DOC 05: CLOVE LASCOVA|

|AQUA LAVERDA|

"Aqua, you need to get out of here!"

"What- why?" I hold both of her hands. It feels cold. I can also hear her rug breathing. 

"Stop asking! Let's go!" 

Before we can even run, the sound of a gunshot ruins the peace of the place. The students started to panic and I can't just leave them be.

"Clo, you need to go first! I'm needed here! Just go!" I'm worried about her, getting hurt in the middle of this chaos. 

"No! Damn it, Aqua. I said let's go!" I didn't listen to her and pulls two students beside me when I see two arrows are about to hit them.

"Ahh!"

"What's happening?!"

"Oh, my God!"

"Naraka, Sorcha! Protect the students!"

"Copy!"

"Aqua Laverda! Listen to me, okay?!"

I face Clove and grip her shoulders gently. I smile at her sweetly and shake my head.

"Clo, you need to go. I still need to protect the students. I don't want you to get hurt, okay?"

"N-No...," she shakes her head while tears are threatening to fall out of her eyes. I feel my eyes getting teary. I know, she's scared. I am too. But she needs to be safe rather than me. If she can afford to get hurt, I can't.

"Please?" I didn't wait for her response when a freshmen girl student is about to get shot with a bullet.

"Careful!" I shout at her as we roll on the ground. Dust is everywhere that causes my eyes to see blurry things. I don't know where Clove is but I wish she's safe.

"T-Thank you, MS. President!" I smile at her gently as I guide her toward a safe place. 

"Stay here, okay?" When she nods herself, I look everywhere to find Clove.

Bullets and arrows are flying in the air. It seems like it's raining but instead of raindrops, it's the latter. I can also see lasers moving as if it's looking for their target. I don't know why I keep on looking at the red lights, I just feel like I need to.

"Aqua!"

"Clove?" I ask and look around me. I'm sure it's clove. 

I feel a presence on my back as the wind tells me so. It seems like slow-motion when I notice that the red laser that I am observing earlier is also pointing behind me.

Clove...

"Aqua!" I feel a pair of arms embrace me as three gunshots fill my ears. I didn't let myself be frozen in my place that's when I move and push Clove to the side with me.

We roll on the ground, not minding if I'm hurt or not. The most important thing right now is Clove. She's damn shot twice! I can feel the gush of blood flowing from my right shoulder but I didn't mind it. I catch the third bullet before it penetrates Clove's body.

"Clove!" I call her name when we stop rolling.

"Aqua...," she calls my name in her weak and soft voice. She smiles at me as if she's not shot, and hurt. My eyes widen when blood flows out from her mouth when she tries to say something.

"Yes? Stop it, don't say anything, hmm?" My voice is trembling as well as my hands. Suddenly, a lump in my throat prevents me to breathe properly or saying something. It feels suffocating. 

"H-Here...," I can feel thin but a bit hard on my hands when she grips my hand to lend me something. 

"What is it?" I ask her, voice nearly breaking because I can feel her heartbeats getting slower than before. 

She continues to spit blood from her mouth too. What is this? Why does she need to suffer? 

"It w-will help you, Aq- Aqua...," I shake my head to stop her from talking because it's just making her situation becomes worst. 

"Stop it, please?" I ask. That's the only thing I can do at that moment because it seems like my brain is malfunctioning already. I'm unable to think clearly. Everything seems to be blurry. 

That's when I feel hot liquids trail down my cheeks from my eyes. 

"Clove... Don't go, hmm?" 

"I- I n-need to, Aqua. I l-love you-,"

"Clove?" I ask. I can't seem to even blink my eyes as I watch her eyes slowly close their lids. 

Why? 

Why did you go when I ask you not to? 

"Let's go!" Someone pulls me out of the scene but my eyes are stuck on Clove's face. It's too peaceful like she didn't go through a hard time before she go. 

"N-No...," my voice finally breaks apart together with my heart. 

"No," I try to get the arms that are wrapping around my body but the person's holding me prevents me from reaching out to Clove. 

I just want to hold her... For the last time? Why can't I even do that? 

Clove... 

The gunshots and the sound of arrows flying in the air continues but my senses are blurry. All I know is that I am looking to Clove while I am being dragged by someone away from the field. 

After everything, she's still not safe out there. She left yet I'm afraid, I can't accept that. 

"Ms. President, get a grip of yourself! Damn it!" A woman's voice pulls me out from drowning in my thoughts. 

I look at her. Naraka. Jack's member. Why am I continuously surrounded by Deck of Cards students? 

"Naraka...," I whisper her name as I look intently at her. 

"Are you okay?" She asks while she's busy exchanging bullets with the attackers. 

She knows how to fire a gun. We all know how to. But now, I seem not to know. It's like my system shuts down and I can just move with my sight. 

"Save her...," I mindlessly utter as I blink. 

"Save her, please?" I ask. Begging her, per se. 

I know. She can't be saved but at least save her body to further wounds. I don't think I can see her full of gunshots all over her body. Twice is enough. I can't afford it. 

"I'll save her, okay? You need to go to a safer place, please? Ms. President, we'll be doomed if you get shot. Remember that, okay? Now, go!" 

Maria Laverda. My mother. She'll surely freak out once she'll see me full of blood. 

Thinking about it, I gulp. 

Unconsciously, I move my feet backward until I find myself running for my life. Where will I go? Is there even a safe place for me? Where am I supposed to go?

"Careful, woman...," a deep voice resonates with my hearing senses as he pulls my right arm until I am pressed against his chest. 

Heartbeats. 

That's what I can hear. Despite the gunshots around, I can hear his loud heartbeats. 

I close my eyes as his scent fills my nostrils. For some reason, it makes me calm. My eyes feel heavy. I feel sleepy all of a sudden. 

Maybe if I'll sleep, I can't think of what happened just a while ago. Maybe, if I'll wake up, Clove is still here with me. That it's just all a dream. 

Clove, I hope you're in a good place. 

My lids feel heavy and I can't stop myself from closing them as take a deep breath. Finally found the right place. Inside his arms. It feels warm. It's calming me to the point that I don't want to move away from it. But I can feel my consciousness slowly leaving my body. 

"Thank you...," are the last words that come out of my mouth before I let darkness succumb to my consciousness. 

____

"Where's my daughter?!" 

I flinch when I hear a loud noise coming from my left. Who is it? Is that a woman's voice? 

"She's resting, Mrs. Laverda," a voice of another woman enters my ears. 

"Can I see my daughter? Please, I'm worried,"

"Yes, you can," after a moment of silence, I hear the door open and close. 

After that, I can't hear anything. It's just pure silence. 

"Cenna?" A soft voice woke me up from my deep sleep. 

Opening my eyes, my forehead creases. It's blurry. I wait for my sight to be clear until I see my mother beside my bed, softly combing my hair. 

"Mom?" 

"How are you, my dear?" I try to smile at her and move only to wince in pain when my shoulder moves. 

"Oh, careful Cenna. Your wound might open," her sweet voice makes me feel emotional but I try not to cry in front of her. 

"How long have I been sleeping, Mom?" I ask her while she helps me lean my back on the pillow for me to take a comfortable seat on my bed. 

I look around and realize I am at the hospital of the school. There's a clinic and a hospital inside the school. That's how wealthy the owner is. 

The La Carde's. 

"Five hours, my dear. Are you hungry? Water?" I look at my Mom and curtly nod my head. 

"Water," 

"Here," I gulp down the whole glass of water because I can feel how dry my throat is already. 

"What happened?"

"I don't know," I say that to her, almost in a whisper. 

I play with my fingers while silence rules between us. 

"Don't you want to go home in the meantime? I heard the HeadMistress extended your three-day break from school. What's your decision, Cenna?" 

I am just looking at my fingers while I think about her words. HeadMistress extended our break. For how long? 

"For how many days, Mom?" I ask her, still looking at my fingers playing to one another. 

"Two weeks, Cenna...,"

I slowly nod my head and lift it to see my mother who's smiling softly at me as she continues to comb my hair. 

"You'll be okay, right?" I ask. 

"We'll be okay. How about you?" She asks as if she already knows my decision. 

I smile at her and gestured for her to come near me. Just by looking at me, she knows what to do. She hugs me which is what I wanted the most after waking up. The comfort of a mother. A hug. Without anything, just their presence.

"I'll be okay. Don't worry, hmm?" 

"I trust you," 

I slowly walk my way towards the terrace of the hospital on the floor of my room. My mom needs to go somewhere. I've heard, one of our businesses in Greece went on fire. She needed to fly from here. So I told her, I'll be okay. 

As I reach the railings of the terrace, I look up to the moon. 

I always get fascinated with how the moonlight shines despite how dark the world is. I try to reach the moon using my left hand because my right hand is currently injured. 

"How beautiful," I mutter to myself. I satisfied myself just by watching it glow through the dark. 

Illuminating the whole place. 

"Ms. President Aqua?" I freeze when his voice registers in my system. 

Why is he here? 

"Mr. Morozov," my tongue feels new when it utters his last name. I slowly look around and face him. 

His blue-green eyes intensify as the moonlight strikes it. With the way his gaze makes me calm, I don't know what to say. He's just that. Just his mere presence, I find myself drowning in his deep-set of eyes . 

"She's already in a good place,"

Six syllables. I didn't know, I just needed six syllables to be okay. You're just giving me reasons to keep myself be into you, Von Alastair freaking Morozov. 

"I hope so,"