Kelly’s POV
I sucked my breath as I started panting. I sniffed and swallowed hard, realizing nothing pierce through my skin. I wasn’t shot. Who was shot?
Tears rolled down my cheeks as I thought of one possible reason why there was no bullet that pierce through my skin. Slowly, with racing and aching heart, I turned around, praying that Pierce was safe. Hoping that he’s still unconscious.
My lips parted as I cupped my mouth when I saw what happened behind me. Connor is lifeless while lying on the ground. He has a gunshot wound in between his eyes and...Klay was standing in front of me. I was facing his back and he’s slowly falling to his knees.
“Klay!” I exclaimed and gasped as I caught him. He was heavy so we fell on the ground together.
My lips parted again and trembled when he looked at me and coughed blood. The rain kept on pouring heavily as if comforting me. My eyes watered again as I stared at his face.
“K-Klay...” My heart felt like it was being suffocated while looking at him.
He managed to kill Connor Foster, but he got shot too. On his lower left chest.
I shook my head when his forehead rested on my shoulder and he forced his arm to lift and touch my waist.
“I-I came on time,” he whispered.
“Klay, hold on. We’ll ask for help—”
“Shh!” He whispered. He’s too weak to carry his own weight. He was already leaning on my body.
“Emily...is in the hospital.”
I lifted my trembling hand and gently touched the back of his head. “I’ll bring you to the hospital.”
“It’s t-time...” he groaned in pain and coughed blood again. “...for me to...g-go.”
I shook my head angrily. “No! No, Klay! You can’t die like this! You’re still going to pay for your sins. In prison! In prison, Klay!”
“I-I’m sorry...” he whispered. “I d-don’t wanna be in p-prison.”
“Klay...”
“This is what I b-bargained for, K-Kelly. My life for y-yours...” he coughed again. He’s having a hard time and it’s suffocating me even more.
“Don’t say that...” I sobbed.
“I love you...from then...until now,” he sobbed. “I love only you...and I-I didn’t regret anything other than hurting you...”
I swallowed hard. “H-How can you make up for your sins if you’ll leave?”
He lifted his face and looked at me. I felt my heart breaking more when he smiled at me. The smile he showed me when he saved me before. The smile that assured me that I’m safe and he’s here to protect me no matter what.
I bit my bottom lip when he forced his arm to lift again and his bloody fingers gently touched my cheek. I gasped and cried completely when he closed his eyes and his hand fell on my lap.
“Klay! Klay! Wake up, Klay!” I called desperately as I gently tapped his cheeks.
He didn’t move nor open his eyes again. His full weight was on me and I know that he’s gone. He’s gone. I don’t know what to do. I couldn’t calm down. I don’t wanna see dead bodies. I feel like I’m dying whenever I see the dead bodies of the people I once treasured.
“K-Kelly...”
I lifted my face and looked at Pierce when he sat beside me. He looked at Klay in my arms before he squeezed his eyes closed and pulled me closer to him. He buried my head on his chest and hugged me, comforting me. I found myself crying so hard in his arms while I’m hugging Klay’s lifeless and bloody body.
“H-He sacrificed his life for me, Pierce...” I cried. “He should be p-paying for his sins. Not like this! He can’t die like this!”
Pierce didn’t say anything. He was just hugging me so tight and I could only cry my heart out in so much pain, anger, and disappointment.
I don’t know what happened after that. I just know that I’m starting to tremble in the cold before I lose consciousness because of exhaustion. My body felt so tired and I only wanted to close my eyes and rest.
The ray of sunshine and the smell of medicine was the thing that woke me up the next day. I slowly opened my eyes as memories of what happened last night flooded my mind. Losing Klay in that way is painful and disappointing. I want him to pay. I want him to rot in jail but I also couldn’t deny the fact that even if I hate him for all the things he did to me, I couldn’t help but feel pain because of his death.
“Kelly...”
I looked at the person who entered the room. Pierce entered. He has bandages around his head and I panicked.
“What happened to you?” I asked but I paused after I remembered what happened to him.
He sat on the bed beside me and pressed the button beside my hospital bed. He held my hand and kissed the back of it.
“How are you feeling? Are you okay? How’s your head? You were hit by Diane Foster.”
I caressed my forehead and realized that just like him, I have a bandage around my head.
“I’m fine,” I said and looked at him. “How about our baby?”
He smiled. “The baby’s strong. You protected our baby.”
I smiled. “And you protected me.”
He pulled me closer to him and hugged me. The door swung open while we’re hugging each other. The nurse entered and checked on me. I was just sitting on the bed while holding Pierce’s hand until the nurse finished checking my vitals.
“Where’s Matt and Mason?” I asked after the nurse left. “And Emily? How is she?”
“Matt’s wound got complications. He needed to stay in the ICU for a few days. Mason is in the next room and Emily too. The doctor told me that there will be a possibility that her memories won’t come back.”
I sucked my breath and nodded. “A-And...Klay?”
Pierce clenched his jaws. “I had him cremated. I laid his ashes next to his mom’s. You can...visit him after you recover.”
I bit my bottom lip and nodded. “I will visit him once I get discharged.”
He nodded. “I’ll go with you.”
A deafening silence filled us. I stared at Pierce worriedly. I couldn’t help but think about how this mess started and ended. I want to make sure that the mess has ended. I want to give my heart peace and reassure myself that we can now finally get the happy ending we’ve been seeking.
“It’s over, right?” I asked Pierce after a series of silence.
I swallowed hard when he intertwined our fingers and nodded at me. He smiled. “Yes. Finally!”
I smiled and took a deep breath. “Finally...”
I looked at Pierce and smiled even wider. He leaned closer to me and rested our foreheads against each other. With his free hand, he caressed my cheek before he angled his head and his lips reached mine for a soft and short kiss.
“This is the start of our peaceful forever,” he whispered before he kissed me on the lips again which I answered with the same intensity of affection. Indeed, i believe that this is the start of our peaceful forever. With him. With our family and friends.
I know that there’s no way we can remove the pain we inflicted to each other. I know that it’s hard to forget about the sufferings we’ve gone through but with those painful memories, I know we can cross the bridge towards the happiness. That even with the baggage of the painful past, we can get through and we’ll get the peace we’ve been longing to achieve. This is the start of our peaceful forever and I hope that even in our next life, we’ll find each other because for me, he’s the only one who can give me the happiness I wanted.