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𝐀 𝐇𝐚𝐳𝐲 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫

𝖶𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗍𝖾𝗇 𝖡𝗒 𝖠𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗇𝖺𝖯𝖾𝗋𝗌𝖾𝗉𝗁𝗈𝗇𝖾9

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𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐀𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐚 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞

𝖣𝖾𝖼𝖾𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 2024 (𝖶𝗂𝗇𝗍𝖾𝗋)

ᴘʀᴏᴍᴘᴛ #2

Word Count: 3380

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Content Warnings: Blood, Language, Violence, Kidnapping

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"Alright ladies, just ten more," Ashe called out from her spot at the front of the studio.  "I believe in all of you."

She watched with a soft smile as the eight women in her afternoon class began to complete their last few squats.  Some of the less athletic ones could only manage five, but Ashe was especially proud of them, considering they had only managed one each at the beginning of the three month long course.

The caramel-skinned woman was glad that she was able to share the gift of fitness with the world.  She had started her own journey when she was straight out of high school seven years ago.  Once she realized that she should work out because she loved her body, not because she hated it, Ashe's life became so much more complete.  Now, these women were starting to understand the same concept and Ashe couldn't be happier.

Ashe finished off her own squats, her thighs burning as she came up for the last time.  She wiped sweat from her forehead and retrieved her water bottle from the corner of the room.  "Excellent work as always," she said between sips, the cool liquid feeling like heaven against her tongue, which was as dry as sandpaper.  "You're all free to go.  Make sure to go and see the tree lighting tonight!  It's supposed to be the most impressive one yet!"

All eight of the woman filed out of the studio, likely heading to one of the two coffee shops that were also in the building.  Normally Ashe would join them, but she had other matters she needed to attend to that would interfere with the excursion.

She began to mark off different dates on the wall calendar that she needed to work her classes around: Holiday Festival, Christmas, Hanuakka, New Years Eve, and New Years Day.  As she did so, she pulled out the band that was holding her long ebony hair back.

As Ashe looked closer at the dates she'd written down, she couldn't help but question whether she had gotten all of them.  She was always bad at knowing all the holidays and festivals that were celebrated in her small town; it made scheduling a major challenge.  Usually, her best friend, Lana, took care of the scheduling for her, but she was visiting family in Greece until the second week of December.  Ashe was glad that Lana was getting some time with her cousins and her aunt.  However, she couldn't help wishing that the brunette would hop on the first flight back and come help her.

Ashe was staring intently at the calendar, trying to figure out what she had forgotten, when two arms gripped her shoulders, scaring her so bad that she practically jumped out of her skin.

"Morning, sunshine."

Ashe desperately tried to catch her breath as her heart pounded against her ribs.  She turned and smacked her best friend, Mateo, in the arm.  "That wasn't funny," she complained.

"It was hilarious," Mateo countered, a smirk curling the corner of his mouth.  

With his dark curls that were highlighted with gold and shining hazel eyes, Mateo reminded Ashe of an Arabian prince.  Freckles dusted his nose in shades of brown and complimented his bronze skin nicely.  Today, he was wearing dark blue jeans, a white tank top, and a black leather jacket.  As usual, his police department badge was clipped to the side of his belt and a handgun was dangling from his holster.

"What's the matter, officer?" Ashe teased, pulling a gray hoodie over her sports bra.  "Did one of my trainees speed?"

Mateo rolled his eyes at his friend and grabbed her backpack from the plastic chair.  "Ha, ha.  Just saw that your class was done early today and thought that I'd pick you up.  We can stop and get food from that new place down the street before the tree lighting.  You know, the one we've been meaning to try for three months.  How about it?"

Ashe's mood improved instantly, her smile growing wider.  "Can we get empanadas?"

"And flan," Mateo promised.

Mateo didn't need to try any harder to convince her.  Ashe swung her backpack over her shoulder and gestured dramatically towards the door.  "Well, lead the way, my good man."

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"Slow down!" Mateo laughed as Ashe took another big bite of her empanada.  "You're going to give yourself a stomachache."

Ashe brought her hand up to her mouth, attempting to stop the crumbs from spilling out as she addressed her best friend.  "Working out makes me hungry!  You should know this by now."

Mateo playfully swatted Ashe, his warm fingers gently brushing her cheek and causing some of the chill to fade from her bones.  

Together, the two friends were walking down Main Street, which was decorated for the Christmas season.  Wreathes hung from every tall lamp post and lights in every hue curled across the rooves of nearby stores.  Poinsettias in large clay pots lined the sidewalk, bringing even more color to an already festive street.  Ashe always enjoyed taking this route to her house during the holiday season, even though it was a bit longer.  The gorgeous decorations always put her in a jolly mood.

The only thing missing from the street were the rays of light that usually came from the giant spruce tree in the center of the town park.  But that would soon be changed in the next few minutes, for the tree lighting ceremony was about to commence.

Lighting the tree as a town was a yearly ritual that everyone took part in.  No matter who you were, seeing that tree light up as bright as a thousand stars would bring tears to your eyes.  Ashe could still remember her first time at the ceremony; she was eight years old and had just moved to the small town in Delaware.  Her mother had thought it would be good for the family to get out and about.  Ashe was forever grateful that she had, and that she had continued to bring the family to the tree lighting every year.  She hadn't missed a single one since that day sixteen years ago.

Ashe and Mateo made their way into the park, the latter waving at some of his police friends who were on security that night.  Luckily, Mateo had been able to get out of the duty just this one time in order to spend the night with Ashe.  It was her first holiday season without her family, who were in Florida to visit her grandparents.  Ashe still felt horrible that her schedule wouldn't let her go; she'd have loved to celebrate Christmas with her parents, grandparents, and little brother.  But she was able to be with Mateo, so it wasn't a total loss.

The two had been best friends since the tenth grade, where they had been partnered together for a chemistry project.  Neither of them were very good at chemistry and their experiment ended with an explosion of epic proportions.  Still, they remained in good humor and ended up exchanging numbers after helping their teacher clean up.  Mateo had wanted to go into law enforcement like his dad, who was a warden at the nearby prison.  Ashe was the one who persuaded him to try for an internship at the local department.  The suggestion allowed Mateo to achieve his dreams and it was a gesture he had vowed to never forget.

After saying hello to a few more of their friends, Ashe and Mateo settled themselves against an apartment building made of bricks.  It was very crumbly and filthy, but standing near it provided the duo with a clear view of the Christmas tree, and of the mayor, who was stepping forward to give her speech.

"Good evening everyone!" Mayor Jennifer Sanderson greeted, her voice carrying across the square as the crisp wind whipped through her shoulder-length ginger hair.  "It is my honor to officiate our sixty-first annual tree lighting!"

The entire town, which seemed to be packed in that one park, clapped and cheered, including Ashe and Mateo.  Ashe was glad to see a smile on Mateo's face.  He had been stressed out recently with work and this had to be a nice break for him.

"Now, I'm sure you all want to get right to the event and I'm with you," the mayor continued, positioning herself behind the green button that lit the decorations.  "Without further ado, I am overjoyed to present our beautiful tree!"  Then, she slammed her gloved hand against the button, causing a crashing sound loud enough to wake the dead.

Ashe jumped, her ears ringing from the crash.  "Damn, I don't think the generator's ever been that loud before."

"Shh," Mateo hissed, though he too was grimacing from the sudden noise.  "You're missing it."

Multicolored lights that wrapped around the tree lit up in sequence, traveling from the bottom to the tippy top.  The bulbs illuminated dozens of ornaments that adorned many of the stronger branches and briefly caused gorgeous colored spots to dance across Ashe's body.  Finally, the golden star at the top glowed with heavenly light, bringing a few tears to Ashe's eyes.

But the best part of the tree lighting wasn't the tree at all.  Ashe felt a small object brush her nose before making its way to the ground: a snowflake.

Sure enough, even the sky was getting into the Christmas spirit, blessing them with flurries.  The snow delicately landed on the branches of the spruce tree, completing the ceremony nicely.

Ashe giggled as she turned to look at Mateo, who had his arms out to welcome the snow.  Then, she noticed a hint of red on his chin that she hadn't seen before.  Quickly, she reached up and brushed the smear off.  

Mateo gave her a quizzical look.  "You had food on you," Ashe explained, her cheeks flushing pink.

"You do too," Mateo murmured, wiping his thumb across her face.  "Though how you managed to get it on the top of your cheek beats me."

"What?"  Ashe leaned forward to take a closer look at the tip of Mateo's finger.  The substance didn't look like anything they had gotten in their takeout.  It was melting in Mateo's palm like snow, but it wasn't leaving just water behind; there was a red liquid there too.

Mateo bit his lip sharply, bringing his finger up further so he could see better.  "It's snow but...red snow?"

"Maybe someone dropped food coloring off the roof," Ashe suggested nervously, her breathing becoming harsh as the snow flurries began to get heavier.  "A kid who's really getting into the holiday spirit or something."

Mateo sniffed the red snow on his finger, his face twisting into a mix of fear and fury.  "That's not food coloring.  It's blood."

Ashe's heart practically stopped.  Blood?  What did that mean?  Was someone dead?  Suffering?  Was something going on?  She had so many questions and each new addition was making her more scared.

Clutching the handgun at his side, Mateo moved backwards to peer at the apartment building above them.  Due to the snow, Mateo had to squint a bit, but he thankfully still saw what he needed to.  "Shit."

"What?"

"That crash we heard earlier, it wasn't the generator for the tree.  It was glass."

Ashe ducked out from her spot against the building so she could stand next to Mateo.  One of the windows on the third story was smashed to bits, rouge liquid coating the jagged edges.  Drops were falling down and mixing with the snow, which had caused the phenomenon that Ashe and Mateo had witnessed.

Mateo drew his firearm and cocked it.  He shook snow out of his hair before advancing on the building.  "Stay here, I'm going in."

A wave of fear crashed against Ashe's body.  "Wait," Ashe said, starting to follow her best friend.  "Something dangerous could be happening.  You might need help."

"I have a walkie," Mateo argued, his tone becoming harsher than Ashe was used to.  "If I need to, I'll call for backup."

"But I can-"

"You are not going anywhere!" Mateo snapped, startling Ashe back a step.  "This is my job and I can handle it.  What I can't handle is you getting hurt.  So, you're going to stay outside where it's safe and let me stop whatever is going on up there.  That's an order."

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As he climbed the rickety stairs that led to the third floor of the apartment building, Mateo attempted to convince himself that he'd been through worse.  He'd broken up gun fights, tackled drunk drivers, and confiscated hundreds of drugs from uncooperative criminals.  However, despite all of his experience, Mateo found himself terrified of what lurked at the top of the stairs.

He clutched his handgun tightly in his left hand as he cautiously crept up the last few stairs.  His eyes rested on a green door that laid at the end of the hallway in front of him.  Blood coated the hinges and handle, causing a lump to form in Mateo's throat.

Taking a deep breath, Mateo walked closer and closer to the door, his heart beating loud enough that he was sure it was some kind of omen.  Every part of Mateo's brain was begging him to turn around, to escape while he could.  But Mateo's job was to deliver justice and to help the public.  He needed to know what was happening, whether it got him killed or not.

Mateo swallowed his fear and kicked the green door open.

What he saw was horrifying.

The green door led to a large closet meant for holding many of the building's cleaning supplies.  Mateo knew he was in the right place because the only window in the closet had been smashed.  A woman was lying on the ground beside the shattered window, blood covering the right side of her body, including her face and limbs.  Her left elbow was twisted at an odd angle, likely meaning a break.  Bruises covered her neck and there were harsh red marks on her wrists.  

Mateo dashed to the woman's side, fingers scrambling for her pulse point.  He breathed a sigh of relief when he felt the soft thumps of a heartbeat, though a slow one.  The woman wasn't dead yet, but if he didn't get her out of the building soon, she was in grave danger.

"Hey," Mateo hissed, gently nudging the woman's shoulder.  "Can you hear me?"

Unfortunately, the woman did not stir.  Mateo would have to carry her dead weight out of the apartment building.

He reached into his jacket and retrieved his radio, which he always brought with him for situations like this.  His finger was inches away from the button when there was the sound of a loud crack-a sound Mateo knew very well.  Before he could do anything, it was too late.

The searing pain came immediately, causing Mateo to drop the radio.  His eyes watered as he brought his hand close to his chest, blood spilling from it onto the floor.  Mateo scrambled for his gun, searching for the trigger, but the pain was too much for him and the firearm tumbled into the puddle of Mateo's blood.

A man with bleached blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, and a jagged scar across his right cheek spun a rifle between his hands, a smirk curling his lips.  "Oh, dear.  Looks like you're in a bit of a pickle there, officer."

The criminal walked towards Mateo, causing the latter to scramble back until he accidentally fell onto the poor woman behind him.  His captor merely chuckled at the action and reached forward to grab Mateo's throat.

"And here I thought officers were tough," the criminal taunted.  "If I'd known that taking one out would be that easy, I would have done it ages ago."  Then he jabbed Mateo in the stomach with his foot.

Bile curled up Mateo's throat and he fell to his hands and knees, howling in pain as his bleeding hand slammed onto the wooden floor.  Unsatisfied with Mateo's pain, the criminal shoved Mateo's head backwards and it slammed against the windowsill.

Mateo began to see stars as the criminal hefted his gun a final time.  He should have called for backup before coming up and facing this man.  Now, he was going to die for his mistake.  It was a foolish way to go out.  All Mateo could do was brace himself as the criminal cocked the gun and prepared to fire.

But the shot never came.

Mateo managed to focus his gaze as the criminal's froze.  His eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed, landing on his rifle.  Blood dripped down from his head and began to join Mateo's on the floor.  Behind the criminal stood Ashe, a ten-pound weight from work in her hand.

Ashe ran to Mateo's side, touching his face gently as she assessed the damage.  "Oh my God, oh my God."

"That bad, huh?" Mateo managed, though the comment caused another migraine.

At first Ashe didn't respond.  Instead, she searched for Mateo's radio, which had luckily only landed a few feet away.  She only spoke to her friend once she ensured that the radio worked.

"You're going to be okay," Ashe promised, her voice shaking.  "It's all going to be okay."

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The first person that Mateo saw when he finally woke up in the hospital was Ashe.

His best friend was sitting in a blue plastic chair only a few feet away from his bed, her dark hair tucked behind her ears.  She had a book in her lap that Mateo had given her for her birthday a few weeks ago.  She'd likely brought it to pass the time, though, he noted, she wasn't much farther along than she had been the morning of the tree lighting.

Mateo attempted to sit up, but it was much harder than he had originally thought.  His head felt like it had been run over by a semi-truck and he couldn't clench his left hand, as it was covered with gauze and bandages.  He let out a frustrated grunt, which caused Ashe's attention to switch from her hands to him.

Immediately, she darted forward and gently propped up a pillow behind Mateo, making it much easier for him to be a bit more upright.  Once she was done, Ashe crouched beside him and gripped his good hand.  "How are you feeling?"

"Like hell," Mateo muttered, squeezing Ashe's hand gently.  Then, his eyebrows creased and he gave Ashe a stern look.  "I told you to stay outside.  You disobeyed a direct order from an officer...you could get fined for that."

"I could," Ashe agreed.  "But I'll pay any price the department wants me to if it means you're alive.  If I hadn't gotten there when I did..."  Ashe trailed off, her eyes lowering to Mateo's hand in hers.  She didn't want to admit the truth that they both knew and Mateo was thankful for that.

"I'm so sorry, Ashe," Mateo said softly.

"What are you sorry for?"

Mateo sighed angrily, closing his eyes.  "We had plans for the next few days, for Christmas and...I was going to take you somewhere special on the day itself.  But I'm going to be on bed rest now and I've ruined everything."

Ashe gripped Mateo's hand even tighter, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.  "Mateo, you didn't ruin anything.  The holiday season isn't about all of that stuff...it's about being with the people you love.  It doesn't matter where you are, just that you're together.  I'm here with you and we're both okay.  That's the best present I could ever ask for."

Mateo couldn't help but smile at Ashe, her words setting in.  He had to admit, she had a point.  Some of his happiest moments with Ashe were when they were just sitting at home and talking, simply enjoying each other's company.  They didn't need anything special...they just needed each other.

He pulled Ashe's arm and moved a little to the left so she could slide onto the bed.  Mateo wrapped his arm tightly around his best friend, with no intention of ever letting go again.

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𝖠𝗎𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗋'𝗌 𝖭𝗈𝗍𝖾

This story is named after the song by Simon and Garfunkel.  If you'd like to listen to it, check out the external link :)

Thank you all for reading!  I'm very happy with this story, much more than my previous Project Athena story for August.  I hope you all enjoyed and I'll see you in a few months for the next one!

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