Rescue me

Chapter 15 - Reckoning

"H- How are you here? How are you alive?" was all Hope was able to ask when they were left alone, seeing her boyfriend again in the flesh.

"Wow, I was hoping for a warmer welcome before we get into this but okay!" Landon said between funny and serious, trying to calm down the tribrid, who looked moments away from a heart attack.

"Uh.. sorry, I just- I can't believe you're really here." she returned apologetically because she truly was thankful to see him again, even though her reaction was telling a different story.

"Well, I am! And I won't leave your side ever again." the boy reassured her, pulling her into a kiss she couldn't bring herself to stop.

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Lizzie was moping around her room, trying to collect her thoughts and understand what had just happened. Landon had showed up, alive and well, waking her up from the dream she had been living for the last few days. Of course, it was too good to be true. Everything Hope had said and done that night was nice but that was before..

The now was another story. And that now was killing Lizzie. She knew his return would change everything. It already had. She could tell Hope couldn't wait to be alone with him. Lizzie had left the room almost ashamed, without saying a word, seeing the woman that was about to be hers not five minutes ago, getting suffocated in another pair of arms.

"Whatever. I knew this would happen eventually. We were on borrowed time from the start." she kept telling herself but the truth was, she had stopped expecting him to come back and started believing that Hope would finally be able to move on with her. For a split second, she had believed it could actually work. Them together.

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"When I was in malivore, he talked to me. My father." Landon spat out calm.

"What? What did he say?"

"He knew he couldn't take over me because of your blood, thanks fot that, by the way. He offered to bring me back and stop sending monsters."

"Why would he do this? That doesn't make any sense." Hope said confused.

"He asked for your dead body in return." he added serious.

"Oh. And what did you say?"

"What do you mean, of course I said no!" Landon couldn't believe that the girl even thought he would ever accept such deal. "I offered my body instead."

"What?" the tribrid screamed.

"One day, eventually, when you die, I will give up my body willingly to him." he continued. 

"Landon, you shouldn't.." Hope's guilt and fear rose up once again.

"Don't worry, it's not going to be for a long time." he remarked, himself surprised that Malivore accepted this offer.

"Maybe not as long as you think. Lizzie was right. The monsters are back and they are after me." she explained worried for the both of them.

"What? No, that wasn't part of the-"

"Did you really think we were going to get off that easily?" she remarked calm. "It's alright, I can take care of myself. It's you I'm worried about. You shouldn't have given yourself up for me."

 "I love you, Hope." Landon stated taking her hand. "Even if it's tomorrow, without you what kind of life would it be?"

The tribrid gave him an uneasy smile and looked down. "What about the Necromancer? He knew you were alive and was coming for you."