Chapter Thirtythree – This One Is Not!

It’s quiet inside the server room. The guard gestures with his arm, what he wants you to do. You both sneak behind a line of servers, slowly making your way to the main server. Your heart is pounding so hard you feel that you can hear it. You’re trying to slow your breathing down. Clenching the gun in your hand. What did Rumlow tell you to do? Aim and shoot, squeeze the trigger, don’t pull. And never hesitate. If you hesitate, you’re dead. OK, fucus, YN! You can do this.

The guard gestures again. He want’s you to split up, and ambush them from both sides. You feel honoured that he has this much faith in you, but at the same time you’re not sure if you can offer him real help. After all, you never fired a gun before. But, you do as he tells you. He told you to do exactly what he said. And he probably knows this stuff better than you do. You look at his back, until he disappeares behind a row of servers. You slowly make your way towards the main server, at the end of the room.

You try to hold your gun like you’ve seen in movies. Try to steady your hands. Try to listen for sounds. Was that voices? Whispering? Yes! Definitely voices. But because of the whispering you can’t figure out who they belong to. All you can hear, is that it’s more than one. And you’re alone. Fuck! You hear some movement, and then the defening sound of a gunshot. The sound is so much higher than you could have ever imagined. You stop in your tracks. Back against the wall. Searching for movement around you.

– Is he dead?

The voices again. Louder this time. But you still can’t figure out who they belong to.

– I think so. This is the guard from downstairs. I dislocated his shoulder. There have to be more of them. He couldn’t have fixed this on his own.

– Stay here, I’ll take a look around!

One of them is Thomas for sure. There is something very familiar with the other voice. Think, YN, think! Someone will come and search for you. It’s too risky to run. Stay here, YN. Shoot first, ask questions later. You hold your gun ready, look up and down the rows of servers.

– Come out, come out, wherever you are!

The voice is getting closer. Should you try to make a run for the door? The fear in you takes over. You turn around to run. But then you hear the voice behind you.

– YN? What are you doing up here? I thought you were in a cell in the basement. I told Thomas I didn’t want to kill you. Guess he didn’t agree.

David? What the hell is David doing here? And how does he know Thomas? You slowly turn around. Hold your gun ready. Aiming at him. Could you really kill him? Can you really pull the trigger, when the gun is pointed at him? You keep the gun aimed at him. He comes over to you. Not taking his eyes away from you. What was it Dixon said? Keep eye contact and keep the conversation going. Look for an opening. Is that what he’s doing?

You feel extremely threatened by him now. You felt threatened by him before of course. Your relationship wasn’t exactly one of the good kind. But this is different. Now he’s actually stealing. And he tried to blame you. Maybe you should keep the conversation going as well?

– How did you know I was in jail?

David looks at you. His eyes, just like you remembered them. Dark, angry, almost black.

– That was my plan, all along. Ever since that night at the bar. When your new boyfriend came to your rescue. Guess my plan backfired on me. Too bad!

You swallow. This calmness he’s showing. It only means one thing. He’s about to explode.

– How did you get my keycard? It wasn’t in the apartment, when you broke into it.

David smiles at you, laughs almost. And not in a good way. You keep the gun aimed at him. And to your surprise your hands are not shaking.

– So you figured that, huh? No, it wasn’t in your apartment. So I had to get to it another way. Care to guess how?

You’re starting to get angry with him now. Angry in a new way. You’ve never dared to be angry with him before. Maybe it’s the gun, or maybe Rumlow changed you in some ways.

– Where did you get it then…. David?

You say his name in a condecending way. Screw him. You’re the one with the gun. And he knows that.

– I stole it from your purse! When you were in the back of the SUV, fucking your way to the top. I always knew you were a whore. But, seriously, YN. Fucking your boss. And like that, looked like you liked it though!

David shakes his head, and looks at you. You hate that look. That «yes I won» look. Your anger gets the best of you, and you squeeze the trigger. But nothing happens. The gun just clicks. You squeeze the trigger again and again, but still. The gun just clicks. Fuck!

David snatches the gun from you, before you even have time to think. Then he points it at you. You swallow. This is really it. Now he’s going to kill you for real. David touches something on the side of the gun, you hear a little click.

– Works better with the safety off, stupid BITCH!

He keeps the gun aimed at you. You want to close your eyes, and just get it over with. But you don’t dare. Please let it be quick.

– Well, YN! Looks like the tables have turned. You know how many times I’ve thought about doing this?

– Fuck you, David!

You have no idea how you dare to say it. But with the adrenaline, and everything. It’s like you’re a different person.

– Fuck ME?

He steps closer to you. You take a step back, but he follows. You swallow again. Why did you forget the safety? Rumlow showed you that. When you think back, you can feel his hands guiding yours over the gun. His breath on your neck. And now, you’ll never see him again.

– Too bad your gun malfunctioned. And to forget the safety, YN… Ah ah.. Rookie mistake. Now, say goodnight!

Then you hear the shot. You jump. But strangely it doesn’t hurt at all. You can’t feel a thing. Just the adrenaline pumping away in your vains. Maybe you’re already dead. But, shouldn’t it at least hurt a little bit, when you get shot? You look down on your blouse. Still all white. Not a single drop of red blood. Did he miss?

– This one’s not!!

You look up. David isn’t there anymore. Where did he go? And who is talking? All the adrenaline in you makes everything blurry, even the sounds. You look down on the floor. David is lying there. A gunshot by his temple. Is he dead? Who fired the gun? Are you dreaming?

You look up again. And a whole bunch of agents shows up. You spot Rollins right away. He stands tall, almost a head above all the others.

– Check him!

Two agents kneel next to David, check his vitals. Looks up at the agent who’s giving the orders. David is without a doubt, dead. You look around at the agents, then you see him. Rumlow! You’ve never been so happy to see anyone your entire life. He comes over to you, takes your face in his hands, and plants a kiss on your lips.

– Are you OK, YN?