"When Ryan reached the spot, the whole place was a bloody mess with guys passed out everywhere. It was pure chaos. Ryan freaked out for a second, then rushed over to me like, 'Dude, are u okay??' I just looked at him and laughed, 'U should be asking them, not me.' Then Ryan noticed one of the guys' hands still gripping a baton, just waiting for the right moment to strike. Ryan kicked him as hard as he could, then grabbed my arm, threw it over his neck, and dragged me toward my house.
I passed out and didn't wake up until I felt a soft hand touching my face and putting a warm cloth on my forehead. I caught a glimpse of a woman... a voice I knew. Then I slipped back into that dream again. She was whispering, 'I'm waiting for u.' Finally, I woke up to Ellie's worried face. She told me, 'Just go back to sleep and rest,' so I closed my eyes again."
$$$$$ woke up at some point, he didn't even know what time it was. There was this breeze—maybe dawn, maybe sunset—with the sunlight hitting Ellie's hair while she was passed out on his lap.
$$$$$ started crying cuz it killed him to see her this exhausted because of him; she was basically his only family, and he hated putting her through all this. He wiped his face real quick and tried to carry her to his bed. 'For someone who eats so much, she's surprisingly light,' he whispered with a small smile as he tucked her in, even though his back was hurting like hell.
He went to the kitchen and opened the fridge, finding a bowl of cut-up fruit and some leftovers. He saw a pizza and knew immediately that Ryan brought it—cuz only an idiot like Ryan would buy pizza for someone who's injured. But at least Ryan knew that going to a hospital was a death sentence; the cops would be all over him with 'where, when, and why' questions. $$$$$ took out the fruit, popped the pizza in the microwave to heat it up, and started making two cups of coffee. Then, he heard footsteps coming toward the kitchen... his heart started racing like crazy."
"Ellie showed up, and $$$$$was like, **'Oh, so the princess is finally awake?'** He said it with a soft tone, way different from how he usually talks. She shot back, **'Don't even start, u slept through the whole night until sunrise!$$$$$ gave her a small smile and said, 'Thanks, Ellie. And I'm really sorry for putting u through all this trouble.'
She just looked at him and was like, 'Since when did u get so formal, $$$$$?' and then she playfully elbowed him in the stomach. It hurt like hell, but he just gritted his teeth and smiled at her, **'Remember... I'm still a wounded man here.'** Ellie went quiet for a sec and asked, **'Shouldn't u be resting some more?'$$$$$ immediately changed the subject, 'So, did u get the fruit?'"
"She didn't even answer, she just sighed and said, 'Just remember... u won't find a princess like me taking care of u every day,' sounding all high and mighty. $$$$$ looked her straight in the eyes and was like, 'And what exactly does the "princess" want, huh?' She stared back and said, 'U know what I want more than anyone, u idiot.'
$$$$$ was debating whether to just tell her everything or keep his mouth shut. Then she was like, 'Okay, let's play Rock-Paper-Scissors. Whoever wins gets to make the loser say whatever they want.' We played, but I wasn't really focused—the injury was still messing with my head—and that brat actually won. Just as she was about to brag, the microwave beeped."
"I just smiled and was like, 'Come on, let's head to the living room.' She walked ahead of me, sighing the whole way. I set the pizza down and went back to the kitchen to grab the fruit bowl. Then I sat right next to her and started eating. I looked at her and said, 'Wait, are u actually being shy right now? Why aren't u eating?'
Her face turned red out of nowhere, and I had no clue why. So, I just picked up a slice of pizza and put it in her mouth. She got all tense for a sec, but eventually, she ate it. She was like, 'I'm the one who's supposed to be doing that, not u.' I just shrugged and said, 'Whatever, same thing.'
Then she picked up a piece of fruit and put it in my mouth—I ate it so fast I almost bit her finger too! Her face turned red like a tomato, she smacked me on the back, and then she just looked the other way while finishing the pizza slice in her mouth."
"I was like, 'Yo, what's wrong with u? U're literally turning into a human tomato!' She snapped back, 'And who's the idiot who's been doing embarrassing stuff since he woke up??' I just told her, 'I can't help it, okay?'
She looked at me and said, 'Remember I won that game earlier?' I was like, 'Yeah, I remember.' Then she said, 'So, tell me... what's really going on behind all of this?'
I let out a huge sigh. I knew I couldn't hide it from her anymore. She needed to know exactly what kind of mess she was in."
"I asked her if she remembered that gang that used to bully her back in middle and high school—cuz I saw them at the uni today. She was like, 'This is really shit... here we go again.' I laughed and kept going: 'I saw them staring at us, so I followed them and heard them talking crap about u. I basically just ordered them to follow me into a back alley and—BOOM!—wiped them out, solo squad style. Then Ryan showed up as backup and saved me. And after that, I woke up to Ellie's angel face.'"
"Ellie started yelling at me, 'Don't u dare get into any more fights! Didn't u promise me back then—no more fighting, ever??' I just looked at her and said, 'But u're way more important than some promise. If it wasn't for u, I wouldn't even be in this world right now.' She looked so sad, then suddenly she hugged me tight and said, 'Please... just don't get into another crazy fight like that again.' I whispered back, 'I promise, but only on one condition: as long as u aren't the reason, I won't get involved.' She gave me a little punch while she was still hugging me, and I heard her let out a tiny whimper. I couldn't help but smile. Then she pushed me away and was like, 'This is so embarrassing! Just go do something else away from me now... u already finished all the food anyway!'"
"After I finished cleaning the table and taking out the trash, I saw Ellie's face was still bright red, so I decided to stop teasing her for now. I went into my room and turned on my PC. I noticed right away that my monitor, mouse, and keyboard were moved—not exactly how I usually leave them. I shouted, 'Yo, Ellie! Did u use my computer??' She yelled back from the living room, 'No! But Ryan told me he left some kind of "gift" on there for u.'"
"I turned on my PC and found a Souls game installed. Ryan was always nagging me to play it, but I kept saying no—I'm more of a Shooter and Visual Novel kind of guy. I decided to give it at least one shot, but the second I started the first stage, the tutorial boss was right there in my face. After getting wrecked in the most humiliating way possible over and over, I just had enough. I went to clear some space on my drive and hit delete, but the game had other plans... suddenly, a bright light started glowing from the screen. I whispered to myself, 'Is this the kind of "gift" u left me, Ryan??'"