Arrow To The Knee

chapter 15

        Cheyenne and Clint are walking around downtown.  ''Have you figured out any more one who it could have been that planted that bomb, Cheyenne?''
        ''Yes, but no.  I haven't gotten any farther with how to explain it was who I think it was, but I also didn't get set back from it.''
        The two told everyone else that they'd be stopping at Cheyenne's house to pick up a few of her things.  ''Nice house,'' Clint says once they get there..
        They walk in and Cheyenne goes up a flight of steps and into her room.  ''You can looks around, I don't care,'' she says loud enough so that he can hear.  Clint does as well.  She wonders around the first floor of her house, nothing out of the ordinary.  Books are scattered around the rooms, even in the kitchen.  He hears her coming back down the steps and slowly make her way back over to him.  She's holding a duffed back filled with things.  ''Sorry that its a bit of a mess.  I kinda have books everywhere,'' she chuckles and goes over to the door that's in the kitchen.
        ''Oh its fine.  My place was worse,'' He follows her down a flight of steps, it leads down into the basement.
        Cheyenne flips a switch and lights come on.  The lights from from different colored paper lanterns on the ceiling.  One wall down there is a book shelf built into the wall.  There's a couch against the wall beside that which looks like it folds into a bed with a small end table beside it with a few random things on it.  The walls seem to be a dark purple with a few posters here and there.  There is also a fabric ottoman that when you lit up the top half you can storage things inside.  On the table and ottoman there are a few sketchbooks and journals.  On some shelves there are candles as well.
        ''I don't know why you'd go anywhere else in your house.  It just feels peaceful down here,'' he sits down on the couch and watches Cheyenne as she goes though books and a few note books and occasionally tosses one in her bag.  ''Certain books that you're looking for?''
        ''Just ones that could help in a way.''
        Clint pics up one of the sketch books on the ottoman and flips through the pages.  ''You draw?''
        ''Use to.  I gave up on it, I never believed that I was that good.  Occasionally I will sketch something, but nothing like I use to.  Why?  Do you think they're good or something?''
        ''I'm not gonna say its good or bad, but it a hell lot better than what I can do,'' he keeps looking though the book that's in his hands.  ''So any reason that you made your basement like this?''
        ''Mental illness I guess you could say,'' she quickly goes though a book but then puts it back on the shelf.  Clint looks up at her away from the sketchbook.  ''I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety.  I had suicidal thoughts and actions.  After high school me and my brother moved in together, and he didn't realize how  serious it was, so for a while to keep myself busy when I was in a low mood I'd work on this, once it was done, whenever I'd be in a low mood I'd just come down here, well, sometimes I did, other times, I just wanted to end it.''
        Clint can tell that the subject is a bit hard for her to talk about, she paused between a lot of words and it seemed like she had to force somethings out.  He gets up and goes over to her.  He puts his arms around her.  ''You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to,'' he kisses her cheek as she's looking down at a old book.
        ''Oh no, its fine.  I figured that you should know, obvious reasons.  I don't mind talking about it.  I'm not affected by it much anymore, I normally keep myself busy enough.''
        ''Is that one of the reasons why you started to kill those guys in mobs?''
        ''I guess, they killed my brother, I wanted revenge, but then again who wouldn't,'' the books the book in her hand back on the shelf that never seems to end.  ''I kinda isolated myself once he died, I didn't leave the house, but I also didn't hide the pain.''
        ''What do you mean that you didn't hide the pain?''
        She sets her bag down and he removes his arms from around her.  She rolls up her sleeve as far up as she could and shows him the under side of her arm.  Clint can tell that there were once cuts going in every direction at one point on her arm.  Some of the scars still seem fairly new, while others are fading away.  She rolls her sleeve back down once she thinks he's had a good enough look.  She doesn't looks up at him not wanting to know what his face looks like.
        Clint hugs Cheyenne tightly.  ''Oh Cheyenne,'' he chokes up a bit.  ''I wish I knew you when this all happened, I would have tried to help you,'' he kisses her cheek.
        ''You may be the only one that would have.  None of my friends at the time cared about the things I was going though, never called or text me, didn't even come to visit, they just kinda forgot about me.  A few times I came down here, but for the most part I just cut, I have scars on my thighs and stomach too.  I'm not exactly proud but they're part of me, I actually don't want the scars to fade.''
        ''Did you ever try to kill yourself?'' she slightly nods.  Clint puts one arm behind her legs and scoops her up and holds her in his arms.  He half lays half sits on the couch and he lets go of her once she's in a comfortable position on his lap.  He puts his arms around her waist.  ''Since we're down here we may as well relax and forget about all of the pain of the past.  ''Cheyenne?'' she answers with a 'hm' not being sure if she can form words without choking up.  ''Could you promise me that you won't go doing that anytime soon.''
        She pauses to get herself together.  ''Its a hard thing to promise, but I'm sure I can do it for you.''

        Not long later the two feel something shaking and both come back to reality.  The vibrations seem to be coming from above.  They both look up at the ceiling.  Dust and small pieces of debris start to fall from the ceiling.  Then they hear something blowing up and the whole ceiling caves in.  The two get trapped under the ceiling as well as the first and second floor of the house.