ADRIEN

Sneaking kisses would always be the best part of my day.

Never would I end my day without placing my lips on such luscious lips of hers. And I would always make sure that my kisses would leave her weak on the knees.

Swollen lips, unruly hair, and flushed cheeks are what I get after every time we spend together.

And I am greeted with that ravishing view right now.

"Why do you always ambush me every now and then?" She asks in between our kisses. I capture her lips with mine once again and she doesn't hesitate to kiss me back.

"But the way you kiss me seems that you're not complaining."

"It may be because I want to drown you with my kisses also." She retorts, pulling away from me. "Now I have to get back to work. The others might be looking for me."

"It's not my fault that you got caught up with some errands here. After all, this is not your work station anymore."

And it's true. Why is a private here at the nurse's station? Unless a certain nurse dragged her in to just spend time together (a.k.a make-out), but no one knows that and no one needs to.

"I really have to go now, Adrien. You're drowning me with too many kisses for the day." She walks to unlock the door and I keep ahold of her hand.

"How are you and your comrades?" I ask. "You're working well together right?"

She turns to look back at me and she sighs. "We're doing alright." She starts to play with my fingers. "Aurore has been telling me what I need to know about your plans for the mutiny. Her with Ivan and Mylene are the best team mates."

"That's good to know."

"I heard that there's a rat in the system." She quietly says, afraid that someone might hear her. "The information of the mutiny is being disseminated in the hands of the government."

I look away from her. "You're not supposed to know about that. You're still new. You shouldn't be exposed to serious matters such as this."

"I saw the dead bodies, Adrien. And I have been handling such bodies for years. What's so secretive with what you're going to do with the traitor? Kill him?"

I decide to stay quiet and my silence answers her question.

"When did you find out about the traitor?"

"A week ago." I answer and I hear her sigh.

"Why didn't you tell me, Adrien? The consequences are grave and I know that as my uncle's right hand man, you'll be one of those giving the punishment. How can you heal when you're in-charge of such practices?"

"I'm not here to heal." I state out loud. "Marinette, I know that I can never heal and I will never heal because of the environment around me. I'm a lost cause so I might as well end as one."

"But you have me." She says, cupping both of my cheeks with her hands. I search her eyes to see how sincere she was. And I know that I didn't need to with what she said. I knew that she was already sincere the moment she said that I had her.

"And I cannot thank you enough." I whisper.

She takes a moment to just look at me before leaning down and pressing a kiss on my nose. I close my eyes with the gesture and I can't help myself to break out in a huge smile. "Whatever happens, remember that you now have me with you. I'll see you later."

"Out in the open?" I cheekily ask.

"Secretly, Adrien. Secretly."

"As you wish, my lady." And with that, she takes that as the sign to leave the nurse's station.

"Take care, Adrien." She says and I smile at her in reply.

"Now where was I..." I try to recollect what I was doing before I was distracted. "Ah, I was checking the inventory of sterilized gauze pads and cotton swabs."

I better move fast or else Alya will kill me.

-----------------

"God damn it!" I hear someone swear out loud as Nino and I approach General Hugo's bunker.

"What the hell." Nino exclaims out of shock with the sudden outburst.

"No doubt that came from the General." I utter. "We have to move fast." Nino and I start to run to the bunker and as we open the door, we are greeted with the view of a distressed General Hugo with his head buried in his hands and his whole office a mess.

"General-" Nino starts but the General interrupts him.

"Kill Colonel Herald Glenn for me." He utters menacingly, not looking up at us.

"Is this why you called us to come here?" I question him. "You found out who the rat is and you want us to kill him?"

"Are you playing with me, lieutenant?" He sneers, now glaring at me. "Do I look like I'm stupid?"

"You are not stupid, rather I would like to add to your command. We interrogate him first and as much as possible get all the information we need about the plans of the government." I pitch in. The General softens his glare at me and leans back on his chair, crossing his arms in front of him.

"Go on." He commands, clearly intrigued with my suggestion.

"General, I understand that you want him dead this instant. But that man knows more than what we know about the government. Should we be interrogating him?"

"Are you suggesting interrogation tactics?" Nino asks standing beside me.

"What about waterboarding?" General Hugo says with a smug look and I inhale sharply with his suggestion.

No. Not waterboarding please.

"G-General," Nino stammers, looking between me and the General, "I don't think that's a wise decisio-"

"And why don't you think so?" The general buts in, looking annoyed. "We have to move fast with the interrogation."

"Waterboarding started in the aftermath of the Second World War. Nowadays, there are only a few organizations who still do it." Nino utters. "But it is just plain torture, sir."

"And what is wrong with that? Through torture, we get the answers we need!"

"What's wrong is that we lose our humanity in the process!" I shout, cutting through their conversation to point out my opinion. Their attention turns to me and they stay quiet, waiting for me to continue. Noticeably, the General starts to scowl.

"This is not what I imagined for the mutiny." I continue.

"Lieutenant." The General growls and I bravely hold a hand up at him.

"Sir, allow me to speak." I utter sternly. "If you want to interrogate a traitor, it's best if you do it in a way that won't let us lose our human rights. If we kill Colonel Glenn, we are held accountable of his death."

"No one will know that he will die in the hands of his fellowmen since we'll create an alibi." The General informs me.

"A-Alibi?" I utter in disbelief. "Sir, you can't be seriou-"

"First Lieutenant." He utters, bringing Nino to his attention.

"Yes, sir?" Nino hesitantly responds.

"Dispatch a few members of our mutiny. Tell them to go to the nearest lake and that they brought Colonel Glenn along with them." He then looks at me as he continues to speak. "And make sure that when Colonel Glenn dies, they will inform the others that he died drowning in the lake, being caught and trapped in the water by underwater debris." he finishes grimly and I look away in disappointment.

"Yes, sir. I understand, sir." Nino says.

"First Lieutenant, you're dismissed." The general commands and Nino immediately leaves the bunker. General Hugo turns away from me and rests his hands on his desk, shaking his head in dismay. "What the hell is going on with you, Adrien?" He asks quietly but I could hear how disappointed he sounded at me.

"Sir," I state, seeking the courage I need to prove my point, "this is not right."

"You can only tell me what is right once you are forgiven by the countless souls of the men and women you killed in order for this mutiny to happen!" He points an accusing finger at me as he displays such strong features at me. I flinch away from the impact his words brought upon me and I close my eyes as I try to erase the voices I hear in my head- their pleas to let them live.

"Don't forget that you have killed as much as I have..." The general finishes, breathing heavily.

"That...that was the man I was before." I whisper, brokenly.

"And who are you right now? Are you still a man I could trust as my right hand? Or are you slowly becoming a part of them?" He sneers.

I know them. He means the government. The cruel people ruling our land and deciding laws without being aware of how those in poverty are affected.

"Adrien, don't forget that the government has killed more of us."

"But that does not give us the permission to also do the same as them." I try to reason out with him.

"When one side plays dirty, the other side also has to in order for it to survive in the fight."

I choose to not respond with what the general just said. He heaves a heavy sigh and shakes his head in dismay.

"I'm assigning you to be in-charge of the interrogation."

I softly gasp in shock, "Sir-"

"Before you say anything that could badly trigger me, I'll clarify that you'll do the talking while the rest will be conducting the procedure.

"Sir, please listen to me-"

"Follow my command and prove to me that you are still in this fight." General Hugo announces and I stay rooted in my place. "Or you can end this contract," he continues, walking to the door of his bunker and opens it, "but I would have to end your life with it." He finishes and closes the door with a loud thud.

I am left alone in his office and I start to feel my chest getting heavy. I fall to the floor and bury my head in my hands. Why did the General remind me of those lives I took away?

"I never meant to do that!"
"I needed the money!"
"Kill me instead! Just leave my family alone!"
"You may take away my life, but what you are about to do will never stop me from believing in a just world..."

All of them dead because of me. I cover my ears in anguish, trying over and over again to stop those voices. I'm desperate for it all to end. But I know that it will never end, especially with what I am about to do.

I will never forgive myself for this.

-----------------

I make my way to one of the farthest bunkers in the garrison. Beside me are two privates who have been part of the mutiny for about a year. One of them is carrying towel just right enough to cover a face. As the three of us near the bunker, I start to feel restless and nervous.

"Do you know if they have hurt him physically?" I ask the privates as we walk.

"First Lieutenant Lahiffe instructed all of us to not leave any visible bruises or marks on him." The private on my left answers my question and I just nod in reply.

"Good." I utter, with a smug look. "Because if we ever claim a person's death by drowning, then we have to make sure that he really looks like he was drowned. It's safe that way."

"Sir, yes sir." They both say at once before entering the bunker.

I take a deep breath and walk in the room to see a man strapped tightly on one of the old and damaged operating beds the infirmary used to have. Two straps on both the arms and legs, even his fingers and toes could not move around.

Colonel Glenn lays unconscious on the stiff bed and to his left is Ivan, carrying a taser.

"Private Bruel?" I ask, "Are you going to wake him up with a taser?"

"I-If you'll allow me to, sir."

"No need. Put that taser down." I instruct him and immediately he does what I told him to do. "Such a mere sight of that thing disgusts me."

"Sir, yes sir."

Nino approaches me, carrying a bucket of water. "We might as well wake him up by splashing water on his face." He suggests.

"I was thinking the same too." I utter, then I lower my voice to continue. "It is good that there are no women here right now."

"I assigned Aurore and Chloé to take care of them and keep them away from this bunker. Some of the women are also in-charge of keeping the non-mutiny soldiers and nurses busy. No one will suspect a thing."

"Good." I utter. "And what about Marinette?" I whisper, hoping that no one was listening to our conversation.

Nino clears his throat before he answers, "She was insisting that she had to be here, saying that you needed her here." He informs me and I had to look away or else he would see my reddened cheeks.

"I-I don't need her here." I bluntly say and I hear Nino scoff.

"I'll take note of that." He sarcastically mutters.

"Wake him up." I command Nino to do so, and to also change the topic.

"With pleasure, sir." He replies before dumping the bucket full of water on Colonel Glenn.

The Colonel wakes up with a start and starts a coughing fit as he tries to spit out all the water he inhaled. He tries to move his hands and feet but instead struggles with such actions as they are strapped tightly around the bed.

"Ah good, he's awake." I declare, smugly.

He looks around his surroundings, adjusting to the sudden brightness of the room. Then he lands his eyes on me. His lips curve up into a sinister smirk.

"And I awaken to the sight of douchebags." He utters groggily, earning a punch to his face from Private Ivan.

I hold up a hand to Ivan to make him stop what he was doing. The Colonel slowly moves his head back to fully lying it down. "You won't continue, eh?" He taunts. "Is it because you'll kill me by other means? With what means then?"

"Herald, we're just going to use a face towel and a whole lot of water." I answer and I could see the fear in his eyes.

"Waterboarding." He utters, then suddenly changing his demeanor, he start to maniacally laugh. "You really are murderers!"

"Shut him up." I command and one of the privates suddenly gags him. Now even his shouts are muffled.

I take a moment to look away. I could not behold the sight in front of me. This man is still a human being just like the rest of us here. I can't find the strength to take away another life.

"Lieutenant Agreste." Nino quietly addresses me. "We have to continue."

I give him a solid nod and look back at Colonel Glenn who is struggling with moving.

"Herald, I will be asking questions and you better answer them fast and properly. Or else, you will be tortured more than you could ever imagine. Understand?"

He starts to speak but the sound came out as muffled so I take away the cloth around his mouth.

"What was that?" I ask. He looks at me, dead in the eye.

"I fight for justice, not equality." He says with such conviction. Nino then covers his face with a towel, leaving his mouth the only part uncovered. Ivan then dumps a bucket of water on the colonel, and Herald coughs out water and gasps for air.

"Answer me properly and you wouldn't have to go through that again." I sneer at his ear.

"I fight for justice, not equality." He exclaims, inviting another bucket full of water to be downed on his face.

"You became part of this movement last year and a half. Who has been commanding you to acquire the information you have stolen from us?" I start with the interrogation with a clear and stern voice.

"I fight for justice, not equality." He answers and starts to gasp more for air as more water is dumped on his face.

"If you just answer me with the answers we want, we could stop this. We could end your pain. Now tell me, what have you stolen from us?"

"I fight for justice, not equality!" He struggles to shout it out loud as he is downed with water once again. The towel on his face is soaked with water, there would be no chance for him to inhale through his nose. The only way he could breathe is only through his mouth.

"You traitor!" I shout, turning all aggressive on him. "Tell me what you have stolen from us!"

"I FIGHT FOR JUSTICE, NOT EQUA-"

"DROWN HIM!" I command out of anger and frustration to everyone in the room and Nino unfolds the towel to also cover his mouth. Then they started dumping water on his face non-stop. I could hear the sounds emitting from his mouth- sounds of being drowned with water.

As I witness the horrible sight of a person being slowly tortured to death in front of me, I could not stop myself from moving away from the scene and take my leave.

I go out of the bunker and run to a secluded place to vomit everything from my system. I cough it all up and wish that I could vomit myself to death.

What did I just do?

What did you just do, Adrien? I couldn't help to ask myself.

I start to dry heave as I feel the tears coming to swallow me up. I bring my hands to my ears and once again try to erase all those voices that have come back to haunt me. I cry out loud as I feel my chest getting heavier like as if I'm drowning myself to the point wherein I can't breathe also.

This is not what I wanted. This was never what I wanted.

-----------------

The General conducted a funeral service for the man who lost his life drowning in a lake.

I did not attend it at all. I could not look at the body that have lost its life due to my command that night.

His family was informed and of course, they were devastated with the news. I overheard one of the soldiers say that when they brought the coffin to the family's house, the wife of deceased broke down right then and there.

I would shun away from my fellow mutiny members as they would congratulate me. What are they congratulating me for? I was the one who commanded that man to be killed!

They were proud of me, saying that the body really looked like it was drowned to death. And such an image like that will never be erased from my mind.

Being too ashamed with what I have done, I did not find the heart to talk or to even look at Marinette.

It has been more than a week since the service and we haven't been talking with one another...and that was okay for me.

But sleeping was the hardest for me.

And I could not continue my routine like this. As much as possible, I have to get as much sleep as I can.

And the only person who could give me such rest would be no one none other than Marinette.

So here I am, standing outside her shared bunker in the middle of the night, hoping that she would at least come out. But the chances are unlikely from what I have observed for the past nights.

Except for this night.

The door of the bunker suddenly opens and someone steps out to go outside. The same person stops moving upon the sight of me in front of her.

"Hi." I softly greet the person.

"What are you doing here, Adrien?" Marinette quietly asks, staying rooted in her place.

"I...I was waiting for you." I answer bashfully.

"Waiting for me? For how long?"

"Not too long..." Actually for like three hours now, but you don't need to know that.

"And why were you waiting for me? You should feel lucky that I had to exit in order to go to the bathroom."

"I...I miss you." I answer simply. "You know what I've done. And I was too ashamed of myself to even go near you. But you're someone so important to me now...I never realized that I needed you so much."

Marinette wraps her arms around me in a swift motion and I do the same. I lean my head on her shoulder and that is when I let out all the tears I've been holding for the past days.

"Adrien..."

"Let me sleep with you please." I plead amidst the tears. "I need sleep and you're the only person who could give me such a luxury."

She faces me and wipes away my tears before leaning in and capturing my lips with hers. "Then let's go to the infirmary."

She takes me by the hand and we walk to the infirmary.

When we reach the area, she leads me to one of the secluded parts and we both lie down on one bed. For just a moment, we keep our gazes on each other, not uttering a single word to break the entrancement we both are in. It was like what we were doing was something solemn and sacred.

"I think I'm falling hard for you." I quietly confess to her. She kisses my cheek in reply and I don't mind that she didn't say anything in return. Everything's going too fast, but I'm sure with myself that I want her to be the only person constant for me. "And I'm sorry." I continue, "I'm not helping myself at all."

"Don't think about that right no-"

"How can I not think about it, Marinette?" I cut her off. She stays quiet, peering at my face. "What's the difference if I stop thinking about it? That will never erase the image from my mind."

She then wraps her arms around me, burying my head on my neck. "What's different is that you have me with you." She utters. "And with all my will, I'm not planning on leaving you, ever."

"Then help heal me...please."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hey!
Perfect song for their moment, "Mine" by Bazzi (honestly I am so in love with this song despite the foul words oops)

Sooooo how are you with the chapter? Did you find it intense?

Honestly, it was hard writing the chapter since I was technically killing a character...and that was really tough.

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Thank you! ❤️