Keep On Walking (A Hunter Hayes Fanfiction, Book 3 of the Hardships Saga)

Chapter Thirty-Nine

❝fading (pronounced feɪdɪŋ or feyd-ing), verb
to  disappear or die gradually.
e.g. the life was fading from her eyes.❞

They weren't speaking to each other. One would think that that would be the first course of action, to speak to each other. At least they wouldn't be wasting their final few moments together. But Ryan just cried, as quietly as she could. This was her fault. Hunter was going to die because of her own stupidity. This was all her own damn fault. She was hurting from the scars Dahlia had given her, and being stuck in the same position for such a long time was giving her cramps. She hadn't eaten anything since the sandwich she had eaten during lunch at school. Surely Lucky was looking after the kids. Oh, if she could see them again...

"My dove, please," said Hunter tiredly after a few hours. "Please stop crying. What's the use?"

She sniffled. "This is all my fault, Hunt. I did this. I... I failed you as a wife. I failed our kids as a mother."

"We can't very well sit here and cry about it, can we?" he said, more gently this time. "Do you think you can shuffle your chair back a couple of feet?"

"M-Maybe."

"C'mere, then."

She managed to scoot her chair back, little by little. Judging by the shuffling from behind her, he was doing the same. Soon, their chairs were side by side, and they could see each other's faces. "I'm so sorry," he whispered. "It's because I fought with you that any of this started. I can't believe... Ry, I'm so sorry I didn't trust you."

"I didn't trust you," she said softly. "How could I ever have thought that you'd cheat on me?"

"I thought the same, didn't I?"

"No," she said quietly. "It's because I went to that freaking party. Because I didn't trust you enough to just tell you that I thought I might have been drugged."

He looked into her eyes. "I love you, my dove. More than anything. I'm so, so, unbelievably sorry."

"I'm sorry. This is my fault. And now you're... you're..." She began to cry again, and Hunter looked pained. He leaned towards her, kissing her cheek.

"I'm not going to die," he said softly. "I promise."

"How can you promise something like that?" she whispered.

He didn't answer her, and sighed. "My dove... I... I want you to know just how much I love you. In case something like this ever happens again."

"How will I do this alone?" she whispered. "I can't look after three kids. I can't lose you. You're everything to me."

"You won't lose me. We're gonna get out of here." He looked at the wounds on her neck and eyebrow. "How do your wrists feel?"

"They hurt. Why?"

"Your eyebrow and your neck are still bleeding."

"Oh."

"Ry, you're so pale," he murmured. "You've lost a lot of blood."

"I feel a little dizzy."

He pursed his lips. "Alright, we've got to get out of here. You've lost too much blood, I don't want you getting hurt by them." He leaned forward slightly, managing to nuzzle his nose against her cheek. "We've got to get out of here."

She took a deep breath. "Okay," she said. "What can we do?"

Hunter peered into the shadows. "Can you see anything sharp, maybe? We could try and cut the tape off our wrists."