Lifeline (Bodyguard!Tom Holland)

Lifeline (8)

Tom's breath was heavy as he crouched behind the large blue dumpster behind the hotel. He'd spent a while searching around the building and hiding in bushes. He kept seeing dark clothed men staking out the surrounding businesses and the hotel parking lot, where his car was still smoldering in the corner and attracting the attention of the small townsfolk. When he was confident he knew where the men were posted outside, he went back to the back of the hotel.

There was a 8-foot fence blocking him in the alley way and he knew the only way to get out of the area without being seen was to climb it and sprint into the forest that was miles thick behind them in the Virginia country-side.

His gaze shifted back to the exit door, where Y/N was waiting for him to come back to get her. He was only seconds from stepping out from behind his metal barricade, but then two men came barreling out of it and onto the pavement. Tom's heart stopped, but he knew that if they had found her, her lifeless body would be in their arms and their faces would look much happier than their current furrowed brows and disgusted expressions. He retreated back, watching them as they looked left and right for any sign of life, apart from the small hustle and bustle of the town around them.

"C'mon, leave." Tom whispered to himself, getting more and more anxious as the two men stayed between him and Y/N. His hands raked through his hair so many times that he lost count, and his palms were sweating as he prayed for them not to head back into the hotel.

One of the men had a shotgun strapped to his back and his long blond hair pulled back into a make-shift bun. The other was the shorter, but bulkier of the two and Tom could just barely see his dark eyes as he scanned the fence, looking beyond it.

"There's no one out here. They must have gotten out." The shorter of the men said hesitantly. His hand drifted back to the handle of the exit door, and Tom's entire body froze. He decided then and there that if he pulled that door open, he was getting a bullet to the skull. Tom's gun was gripped in his hands in an instant, ready to do whatever he had to do to keep them away from Y/N, and that included exposing himself.

"You gonna call him and tell him that? 'Cause I sure as hell ain't." The other one spat, turning himself towards the front parking lot, making the shorter one recoil his limb and scurry along with him, like a duckling with its mother.

Tom let out a sigh when he was finally alone again and made a break for the exit door that led to the stairwell. There was only about fifty feet between the building and the fence, but it might as well been a mile since they had to make it back out without being sighted. His hand hit the hot metal handle and he gripped it tight, pulling it open. The cool air from the air conditioning hit his face as he stepped into the darker room and let the door close softly behind him. His eyes took a moment to adjust in the lack of autumn sunlight.

Tom looked to his right and there were bloody shoe prints on the concrete stairs and he was almost sure it was Belle's blood. The men weren't professionals or they would have gotten rid of the prints. In a way, someone who wasn't a professional was more dangerous, seeing as they didn't seem to have a fear of being caught. He pushed the thoughts out of his mind as he stepped forward and whispered out her name.

"Y/N?"

He watched her Y/H/C hair appear first and then her tear stained eyes and it nearly broke his heart. He reached out his hand for her, pulling her body further into the dim light and before he could register it, he had pulled her into his chest. That sweet scent of coconut filled his senses and it felt so natural to hold her like this, like he had done it a thousand times before rather than just once that morning.

"'M sorry I left you. You're okay," he shushed her as her face nuzzled into him and his body physically relaxed when her arms gripped his shirt around his back. He held her there for a second, softly apologizing for taking so long and when he decided to let her go, he almost immediately regretted it, but they had to move.

"Okay so, I'm going to go first and I'll help you over the fence and then we just sprint as fast as we can into the trees, okay?" He said, standing at the door with his gun in his hand. She had heard the plan and at this point, she couldn't even argue that it was stupid or that they were going to die, because honestly, they could die so what other choice did she have?

Tom opened the door slowly, peaking around the frame to see if anyone was out there. The sound of birds chirping filled her ears as her eyes squinted in the new light. He motioned for her to go first, pushing her past him and fully into the sunlight. The semi-warm fall air hit her skin, but she didn't register it. Her feet were moving as fast as they could go and Tom was hot on her heels with his gun still cocked and ready. She hit the fence first, and Tom immediately grabbed her hips to push her up as she started to climb. The soft rattle of the fence was enough to make Tom worry that they would be heard, so he did his best to push her to the top.

"Go, go," he whispered as one of her legs swung over to the other side, but she froze when the time came for her to jump down. "Y/N! Go!" Tom encouraged, starting to climb up as well. Y/N looked down at the ground, the tall grass not making it seem any less soft as she stared at the 8-foot drop.

"I can't," she breathed, gripping the bar so hard that her knuckles turned pale. She had always had a fear of heights and it was something she neglected to tell Tom or anyone for that matter.

"Dante! Taylor! I found them!"

A loud, curdling voice made Tom glance back, his worst fear coming to the surface as the short, stocky man from earlier rounded the building's corner with his dark eyes set straight onto them. The man had already pulled his gun from his own hip, and Tom had no choice but to do what he did next, which was push her off the fence. She squealed as she fell to the ground, hitting the dirt with a soft thud and Tom followed, landing on his feet and immediately going to pull her up.

Y/N had no time to get mad or to even assess if she was okay as they started running and the sound of bullets being fired took over the calm sunny day.

Her legs had never moved so fast and the wall of thick trees that were lined up in front of her didn't seem like they were getting any closer. She hadn't looked back to see if Tom was following her, she didn't even know if the men were still chasing after them. All she knew was that she had to run as fast and as far from there as she could.

Bullets whizzed past her as her feet did their best to navigate her through the tall, thick grass and when she finally reached the trees, she kept going. Pine needles and branches crackled under her feet and she couldn't even tell how long she'd been running. Trees blurred in her line of vision until she came to an opening. A river.

She skidded to a stop, almost plummeting down into the frigid water below her, but her converse stopped her in time.

Tom wasn't far behind and the voices of the men weren't far behind him.

"Jump. We have to jump." Tom said, out of breath. They both stared at the cliff and footsteps were drawing closer to them.

This drop made the fence look like a step stool. Easily 25 feet to the water and Y/N froze.

"Tom, I can't," she mumbled, barely even audible over the running water below them. It looked deep enough for them to land safely, but she knew better than anyone that looks could be deceiving.

Tom glanced in her direction and there was nothing he could say to take away her fear, but if they stayed, they'd be dead anyway.

Tom reached over for her hand, slipping his fingers in between hers and she looked back at him. Together, they took the leap and just before her feet left the ground, a single shot rang out from behind them.

The fall was almost like slow motion. The voices behind them faded as they fell. She watched the water approach her and braced herself for the slap of cold on her bare legs. Her whole body submerged in the ever-flowing rapids and Tom landed milliseconds after her.