𝐀𝐧𝐲 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬? (𝐁𝐚𝐤𝐮𝐠𝐨𝐮 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫)

63

Hawks' POV:

"Oh, come on. I expected more of a fight from the number two hero."

Hawks attempted to move from where he lied on the ground, but as he tried to push himself to his feet another burst of agony ripped through his body, stemming from the area of his back where his wings had been only moments ago.

Smoke clouded the room, filling his lungs and blurring his vision. The pain only grew with every breath he took, but Hawks needed to get to his phone. He needed to warn you, needed to apologize. He needed to say so many damn things, things that he'd thought he'd have enough time to say.

He could hear the villains laughter as Hawks pulled himself across the floor with the last remaining strength that he had.

It was too late, he'd been far too lax with his security and hadn't been on his guard. He'd known that they would find him eventually but he didn't think it would be so soon, he'd thought that there was still time to prepare.

Hawks reached out his arm, his fingers stretching in an attempt to grab the phone that had skid across the floor.

He shouted as a shoe came down and he felt the bones in his hands break. The phone was kicked even further from his reach and the overwhelming sense of defeat came over his body.

"It's too late to contact anyone now. I'll admit, it's been fun watching you squirm, but we're on a schedule here."

Hawks coughed, blood pouring from his mouth. "You... won't win this."

The villain laughed again. "I told you what would happen if we found out you were betraying us. It's a shame that you won't be alive to watch that girl become what you've so hopelessly tried to protect her from."

Another sensation had begun to rise over the pain, a pressure building in his chest and a wetness on his skin aside from the blood.

Was he crying? After all this time, after everything he'd been through, now was when his emotions chose to spill?

His thoughts drifted, instead of focusing on what was about to happen, Hawks thought of happy memories. The times in his life where he'd been able to be no more than just himself without any titles behind him. He thought of you, how he wished that things could've been normal between you both.

Without All For One, maybe you would have met in a different way. He could have helped you grow into the kind of hero you were meant to be, he could've been a mentor... and a friend without any other intentions behind it. He could have kept his promise.

With the last bit of his strength, he pulled the small photo from the front-pocket of his jacket and clutched it in the hand that hadn't been broken. It granted him a small sense of comfort as he felt the temperature in the room rise once more.

"Goodbye, Hawks."

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Trigger warning!!! The upcoming flashback does include threats and actions that hint toward SA. (Although it doesn't actually happen, the implications within the dialogue could still be triggering to some.) Please skip to the next part if you don't want to read this!

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The air surrounding you was cold, causing goosebumps to ripple across your skin.

How long had it been since you'd felt the outside air? A week? Maybe two? Constantly being thrown in and out of reality had distorted your sense of time. And at times when you would be rendered unconscious you had no way of knowing how long you were out.