C o l e

"Are you not coming to bed...?"

"Not until you're better"

His words were accompanied with an apologetic smile but I knew what that really meant.

'I don't want to hurt you'

"...okay"

I watched as Eros gave a smile that felt scarily unreal before leaving our room and as the door shut, a sense of emptiness filled me.

That was 3 weeks ago and Eros has been like that ever since the incident.

Distant, cautious, unwilling to get too close or do anything that can cause me any unintentional harm. It scared me honestly, I've never seen Eros this way before and it made me wonder how long he'd be like this before he'd return to his normal self.

Everything had happened so quickly that I could barely even make sense of it. There was nothing I could do about it either since Eros refused to key me in about anything he's been doing after the entire incident.

He barely even says goodbye anymore.

While my head didn't hurt too much, my shoulder was still a bit sore from where I was stabbed. Payback from that man as I had done the same to him during our fight.

I was a bit frustrated because I was missing school due to these injuries but Cinder and Jean had been texting me notes from the classes we shared so I was thankful for that. Harvey had apparently told them that I got really sick out of nowhere after the performance, he had said;

"Yeah, he was so nervous and practiced so hard that after everything was done he just 'plop!' and collapsed"

Leave it to Harvey to dramatize everything.

The only thing that sort of surprised me was the silence from Myles, not a text or call from him the entire time. It didn't bother me really but I did flag it as strange, maybe he was just busy or something, I don't really know.

Anyways, back to the subject on hand.

How to get Eros to understand that he is not the one to blame for all of this. It was going to be tough but eventually, we'll have to have this talk.

He avoids it every single time and I'm just about ready to tie him to the door so that he can't run away. For someone so open about everything, he's trying his damn hardest to keep this one inside.

So I decided to ask for help from a...friend?

With Johnny as my right hand man, the two of us set out on a small drive. I know he wanted to ask questions but I just didn't want to answer them. It's best for him not to know the reason either lest Eros interrogate him.

When we finally arrived, I stepped up to the door and pressed the door bell.

"Huh? Cole?! Oh my god!" The first thing I was greeted with as soon as the door opened was a shocked Carter.

On instinct, he had went head first into my chest in a greeting hug and I couldn't help but wince a bit as my shoulder ached from the pressure.

"Easy there..." I muttered as I steadied the young man. His hug had some impact to it since he picked up some muscle over time.

Carter honestly shot up over these past years. He was only sixteen and yet we were basically almost the same height now, his head coming up just above my chest. His short brown hair was frazzled, the unruly strands just as wild as he was but he didn't seem to care as he let it run free.

"Sorry. It's been a while, the hag complains all the time asking about why you haven't called. It's annoying really. Eros stops by from time to time but it's literally been years since you've last been here" Carter was straight to the point as usual.

It's not as if it's been that long since we've seen each other, now that he's got a driver's license, he always finds some reason to visit. But I guess for his other siblings and his mother, yeah, the first time meeting them was the last time I saw them.

"Ah...I don't really use my phone that much. And I don't have a number to call anyways" I said but I also left out the fact that I don't really think there'd be much talking on my part during a conversation with Leila.

"Well, geez. You have my number you can at least talk to me" he said with a cross of his arms.

I'm not even too sure when Carter's unprovoked disapproval of me began to turn into fondness, but I definitely wasn't complaining. It was better than the insults that he could fire at any given minute on a poor innocent soul.

I guess I'd say it was a bit after the time I saved him, he stopped being harsh and actually became polite around me. Since then, I'm pretty sure Eros has also scolded him a few times but now we can have conversations just fine without his sharp tongue being bared.

"I'm actually here to speak to your mom" I said and Carter's expression dropped a bit.

"Uh...okay. I'll ask Luci where she is. Come inside" he motioned for me to come in as he stepped aside.

Once inside, Carter lead me to the kitchen where Luci was, seeming to be preparing a meal.

"Luci, look who's here" Carter called to get his attention the man turned, eyes reflecting surprise but he was quick to react with a smile after seeing me.

"Cole? This is certainly an unexpected surprise" he said and Carter waved his hand in the air.

"He's here to see the hag" he said.

Luci's expression was unchanging as he wiped his hands with his napkin, giving an understanding nod.

"Ah, I see. I'll take you to her. Thank you, Carter" Luci said before gesturing for me to follow him.

Waving goodbye to Carter, I followed after Luci. We walked for a bit around the house before we finally came out to a small garden that sort of resembled the one back at the old manor before it had to be evacuated.

I guess I now know who helped choosing it.

As we walked further out, I saw Leila sitting at a small table, the table bear of anything but in her hands was a book.

"Ma'am, you have a visitor" Luci said once we were finally close enough and Leila's head turned up at the sound of his voice.

"Huh? I don't recall inviting anyone..." she said but then her eyes landed on me and she promptly shut her book.

"Oh! Cole, how lovely to see you again. It's been a very long time, I've been wondering how you've been faring. Eros keeps his visits very short so we don't usually get to the topic of you" she rambled off and I gave a weary smile.

Leaving the two of us with a nod, I took a seat across from Leila who also turned to face me.

"I'm actually here to speak about him" I said.

"Oh, dear. Well, it must be important if you came all this way. Would you like anything to drink? Any snacks? Luci makes the best earl grey" she said and I just shook my head.

"No thank you" I said and Leila gave a surrendering smile.

"Ah, alright. Now, what is it that you wish to speak about?" She asked and I paused for a bit, wondering what I should be asking first.

"Has Eros ever...shut himself off from you?" I asked.

"Are you guys fighting? It certainly feels preposterous to say since the two of you seemed to be joined at the hip" Leila said I shook my head.

"No, we're not fighting but..." I trailed off, taking a moment before beginning to explain everything that happened which lead up to this very moment.

Maybe not everything, but just the key factors and after I was finished, Leila shook her head.

"Ah...I see. He's feeling guilty" she said and I nodded.

"I know it's that but...I don't know how to get him to believe that it's not his fault. He won't listen to me so I'm at a loss..." I said with a sigh.

"Well, it surely won't happen over night. When his sister passed, Eros blamed himself for months. It didn't take a genius to see the guilt that riddled his entire being" Leila said as a faraway expression took over her features.

"I think the real problem is he's blaming himself because he felt that he had the power to do something but ended up being able to do nothing" Leila said but paused to make a thinking face.

"Hm, I wonder if that makes sense" she said and I chuckled a bit.

"It does" I said and she smiled back at me.

"Situations that are out of our control are frustrating because we begin to think of the 'what if's' even if that 'what if' is impossible. There was no way for him to know that would happen to you" Leila said with a shake of her head.

Yeah, I've told him that many times. He'll listen but I know he isn't taking what I'm saying seriously. Perhaps he feels like I'm just saying that to make him feel better but whatever the case is, at the end of the day, his mind was already made up.

"Eros' one wish in this world is to protect the ones he loves so when he can't even do that, I'm sure it takes a toll on him" Leila said and she placed her hands in her lap as she looked me in the eye.

"Now, my answer to your question is; be patient" Leila said and while I wasn't surprised, I wasn't exactly satisfied either.

"Eros is very good at self reflection, he's better off keeping to himself for a while. The burden of knowing how you must feel will get to him eventually" she explained and I just nodded.

So there really is nothing I can do...

"Thank you for your time" I said as I stood up and Leila made no move to follow, just giving a smile and nod.

"Of course. Just act as you usually would, I believe Eros will appreciate that very much while he's trying to figure things out" she said.

I guess it was worth a shot.

After leaving Leila in the garden, I bid farewell to Carter and Luci before heading back to the car. Once finally seated, I just let out a sigh.

"How did it go?" Johnny asked as he started the car.

"It went...alright? I didn't really get the answer I wanted but I guess what I got was helpful enough" I said before looking to him,

"Remember, not a word about this to Eros" I reminded and Johnny nodded, making a motion to zip his lips.

"Of course, we're just...getting ice cream" he said and I nodded.

"Exactly"

~*~

"Myra and Travis are...dead?" Sid's voice trailed off as he learned of the news from his assistant.

"Yes, their bodies were found in their car, both having one bullet to the head" Ezra, said assistant, repeated as he looked at Sid.

"I told them not to hurt him so how can they be dead?" Sid asked and Ezra cleared his throat a bit before answering.

"It seems someone else got involved, sir" he said as he pushed the iPad with the feed from cameras around the area.

Sid watched with confusion as each event played out, and he frowned when he saw the car ram into the car that Eros and Cole were in.

"This looks like a fucking shit show" he muttered.

"I believe there was another party present at the time. When looking at the footage, that car just rams into ours out of nowhere, we don't even know who they are but they surely did a number on the Limosa kid" Ezra said as he zoomed in on the picture.

It was blurry but they could see Cole with his eyes closed, the window against his head shattered behind him.

"Well that's fucking great. I tell these idiots to do a simple task and they end up dead. And now, we have interference from another group" Sid rambled and Ezra just watched disinterested.

He really wish led he wasn't here right now.

"What do you want to do sir?" Ezra asked monotonously.

"Since sending people to retrieve him isn't working, I guess we'll just have to make him come to us" Sid said and Ezra narrowed his eyes, praying that he wasn't about to pitch something that could get them all killed.

"And you're suggesting...?" Ezra trailed off as he waited for an answer.

"Noel's an idiot, he won't suspect a thing if I invite him over for a chat. Good ol' catching up between cousins, am I right?" Sid said and Ezra was immediately shaking his head.

"I highly advise against that sir" he said and Sid gave him an annoyed look.

"And why the fuck is that?"

"This entire thing is a bad idea. I fear that if we were to harm either of them, our group wouldn't last more than a week" Ezra said and Sid narrowed his eyes.

"You just want me to stop" he said and Ezra nodded.

"Yes" he said.

"I don't think you understand. Uncle Gabriel did everything for me and my family. He supported us, helped us get back on our two feet. How could I just let his death go unavenged? If I have to die just so I can make sure Uncle rests in peace, then so be it" Sid stubbornly protested and Ezra made no moves to argue.

'This guy's stupid. Hope I live long enough to find a new job' He thought to himself as he stared at Sid who paced back and forth.

"And what of the third party?" Ezra asked.

"Screw them, Cole Limosa's blood is ours. Kill them if they try to engage" Sid ordered and Ezra just nodded before leaving the room, making his way to deliver it to the others.

'I wish I could be the other guys, at least they don't try to get killed by everybody every damn day'