Chapter Thirty Five

 

Ileana braced herself, apprehension clouding her thoughts. Taking on 11 men was not going to be easy. Was she actually going to make it out of this one?

Looking past them, she realized that there was another elevator on the opposite wall and it had its doors wide open, opposed to the elevator behind her that still had its doors closed. So, she took a step forward, eyes never leaving the row of men.  They didn’t move toward her or try to attack her in anyway; they simply followed her movements with their eyes.

She continued on, slowly walking to them and then finally walking around them. As soon as she passed them, she heard two gasps. Whipping around to find the source of the sounds, she saw that D.O and Suho were gripping their throats and were appearing to have a hard time breathing.

She quickly ran to them and as soon as she reached them, they returned to normal. She blinked between the two of them who were looking down at her expressionless. She backed away again and walked towards the elevator with the doors open. This time, she heard a groan mixing in with two gasps.

She turned around once more and saw that D.O, Suho and Chanyeol were all kneeling on the ground. Suho and D.O were gasping for air while Chanyeol was grasping the front of his shirt where his heart would be. She again ran back to them but this time they didn’t return to normal.

“G-Guys,” She stuttered out as she crouched to the ground next to them. “What’s wrong? What’s happening to you?”

“Ileana…” D.O wheezed out, “You can’t go.”

She blinked at him confused, her hands were ready to help but she had no idea how to do so.

“What? What do you mean?” Her words stumbled out with elevated panic. “How do I stop this?”  

“You… can’t go any further.” Suho managed to say through his continuous coughing, tears starting to build up in his eyes. She directed her attention to Suho and rubbed his back. It didn’t help.

“Ileana!” Chanyeol cried out suddenly, “it hurts!” Ileana moved over quickly and looked over Chanyeol for any injuries.

“What it is? Where does it hurt?” She asked frantically. “How can I help?”

“Here.” Chanyeol groaned, thumping his hand against his heart. “You need to stop. It hurts too much.”

“Stop what, Chanyeol? Tell me!” She nearly begged for an answer. Suddenly, two more agonizing yells filled the air. Luhan and Sehun, who were beside Chanyeol, crouched to the ground while gripping their heads.

“Stop!” Luhan yelled out in the air, “Make it stop!”

“Luhan!” She cried and rushed over. She searched his pained expression for any clue to what was going on. She pressed the back of her hand against his forehead and was nearly scolded by the temperature.

“You’re burning up…” She mumbled, feeling completely at a loss.

“Go back!” Sehun yelled. “Go back now!”

She nearly jumped back at his anguish cry. “Go back where? Stop what? I don’t understand!”

Kai, who was standing next to Sehun suddenly slumped down and met the floor. “It’s too hot.” He mumbled out, “I’m overheating.” 

She looked down the line of people who were very much still in pain and it only seemed to be increasing. “Kai, what’s going on?”

“You need to turn around. Please.” Kai pleaded, “I can’t take this heat. I’ll be die. I don’t want to die, Ileana.”

Ileana frantically shook her head, “No! No, Kai! You’re not going to die.”

She heard chattering of teeth and looked up to see Xiumin violently shivering. He soon went to the ground like the others before him and curled into a ball. “I-it’s s-s-o cold.” He stuttered out.

She quickly crawled over to Xiumin and reached out to him. Before she could even touch him, she could feel the cold air radiating off him, “Why is this happening, Xiumin? How can I stop this?”

“The crystal.” Lay mumbled from beside Xiumin and then he fell to the floor in a large thump and didn’t move from there. 

“Lay!” She moved again toward Lay.

“I…I can’t move.” He said, “I can’t feel anything, I can’t move Ileana.” His eyes turned to meet hers, his head never moving. “My body’s numb.”

“H-How? Is the crystal doing this to you?” She asked.

Then Chen, Baekhyun and Tao all kneeled to the floor, wrapping their arms around their stomachs as they groaned.

“L-lay, please. What’s going on?”

“You need to turn back.” He replied. “You can’t go to the crystal.”

“What…” She whispered, “But, I have to stop-“ She was cut off when Baekhyun cried out in pain. She raced over to him and as he was cradling his head between his legs. He looked up when she sat down next to him with tears streaming down his face.

“Ileana,” He cried, “It burns, inside. It hurts so bad.”

She felt tears of her own build up as she stared at Baekhyun’s pained expression. Out of all the times in her life, she had never felt so helpless and useless. All of them cried out for her help and for her to turn back and leave, to forget the crystal and her mission all together.  And she wanted to. She wanted to stop their pain. This was complete torture for her.

Tears finally escaped her eyes when she made a decision. She stood up, all eyes on her as she did. She took a step back and then another.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered. “But…I have to continue.”

“No, Ileana!” Sehun cried out, “Don’t! Stop! Please, I beg of you!”

She bit down hard on her bottom lip as she stared through Sehun’s pleading eyes. She closed her eyes and turned away. She couldn’t see them anymore but with every step she took, the louder the cries got. Pleads, groans, whimpers and coughing echoed through her ears and mind as she entered the elevator. She clenched her fists tightly, making sure not to turn back around until she couldn’t hear them anymore. And even though the voices stopped when the elevator doors closed, she could still hear them in her head.  Her sadness then became overcome by rage.

That test went too far. She could deal with getting hurt, but when others got hurt because of her…that was an entirely different issue. She hated this. She wanted this done. She was sick and tired of this.

So when the elevator opened to the 10^th and final floor, she stormed out.  In front of her was a long and wide staircase. She ran up them, determined to see the top. Her breathes were growing shorter and shorter, her heart was pumping and her muscles were sore, but she kept climbing the endless stairs.

Finally, she reached the top. She raced forward and shoved the door open, wind hit her harshly as she exited.  She was on a rooftop of sorts and she wasn’t alone.

Kris only stood a few meters away from her, with a large formation of crystals in his hand. He raised it up in the air and held it there with a concentrated expression. Something in the sky got her attention. It was the moon, it was rising and was getting ready to meet the sun.

“No!” She cried, “Stop!”

Kris’ concentration immediately broke and whipped around to face her. He lowered the crystal and fully turned around, disbelief completely evident on his face.

“I-Ileana…what are you doing here?”

She was panting heavily, trying to still catch her breath from running up the stairs. “I’m here to stop you, Kris.”

Kris took in her appearance and took a step toward her as worry took over his expression, “What…what happened to you?”

“I went through the tests like you and Tao did. I went through all that in order to stop you, so please just…give me the crystal.” She took a step forward and reached out her hand. Kris stared down at her hand, and it almost looked like he would have followed through. But then his cold eyes met hers again.

“Is this another test?” He asked, coolly. She blinked and shook her head violently.

“No. No Kris, I’m here and I’m real. And I’m conscious of everything I’m doing.”

“How can I believe it’s really you?” He asked, his voice shaking a little.

“I don’t know. But either way, you have to understand that what you’re about to do is wrong.”

“What’s wrong with giving the same medicine to Sector K that they’ve given my sector?” Kris was slowly losing his temper. “They deserve worse than what I’m about to give them.” He turned around and she bolted to him. She grabbed his upper arm and made him face her.

“Don’t. Just hear me out, please.” She tightened her grip on his arm, trying to show her desperation. Kris just stared down at her, not offering a reply. So, she quickly filled the silence between them.

“I get you’re angry. I get what happened to you and the others was horrible. And I admire your goal is to make this a better place. But, what you’re about to do isn’t going to solve anything.”

She paused, trying to see if she was making a breakthrough. She wasn’t. “You’re fighting the wrong battle, Kris. You’ve been fighting with the wrong people all along. Doing what you’re doing might take down some evil doers, but it’ll also take out the innocent people who hated the war and want to stop the current corruption just as much as you do.”  She could see now her words were being heard because he wouldn’t look at her. He was very focused on the ground. There was a few still moments between them before he spoke.

“It’s a risk I have to take. Some sacrifices have to be made.” Kris stated grimly. She shook her head again.

“No, Kris. That’s not okay. Sector K could have thought the same when they took out your parents. Sector M could have thought the same when they raided labs and killed scientists. Does that take away the pain of war? Does that justify it? No it doesn’t and you know it.”

“I’ve come this far already. I can’t stop.” Kris muttered.

“Why are you so hell bent on recreating something you hate so much!” She yelled, frustration finally consuming her, “There are other ways!”

“And what are these other ways!” He yelled back, “Do you suppose I walk up to the counselors and politely ask them to step down?”

“I just know there are other ways, I’m not completely sure what they are… but if anyone can do it with minimal damage, I know it would be you. Look how far you’ve come. You’re smart enough, cunning enough and caring enough to take that step forward and take them on when no one else can.”

There was a pause before he replied, “I think you have too much confidence in my abilities.” He sourly looked away.

“Do I? I don’t think so.  You already have your connections and you’ll probably make new ones quickly with a common goal like yours. Just understand that your war is not with Sector K & M’s people but with their leaders. I know you can do it, I know you can go on their playing field and beat them at their own game. And…And I’ll be there. With you. Every step of the way. I’ll be there when you need me, when things get tough and when you want to quit, I’ll push you and then…you’ll finally succeed.”

“…You really think I could do that?”  Finally she thought. I’ve finally gotten through.

“I know you can.”

“And you’ll be there.”

“Right by your side.”

“No matter what?”

“No matter what, Kris. I’ll be your support system.”

Kris let out a shaky sigh and then finally, he handed her the crystal. She lightly took it from his hands and marveled at the beauty.

“Imagine. Such a beautiful thing could cause so much destruction.” She whispered. She looked up at Kris who was staring down. He did give in to her but she could tell he wasn’t sure if he was making the right decision. She sighed and put the crystal down. She took a few steps forward and wrapped her arms around Kris’ torso. It took a few seconds for him to react but when he did, he pulled her in the warmest embrace. They stood there for a few moments before they loosened they grip on each other. Kris leaned down and bonked their foreheads together, which made her giggle.

“What’s so funny?” Kris whispered through a small smile, his breath lightly caressing her face.

“I’m imagining how much your back must hurt doing this.”

“It’s worth it.” His tone dropped a few notches, which made her shiver.  She sighed and took a step back. She picked up the crystal again and walked toward the edge of the roof.

“Ileana?” Kris called out, slowly following after her, “What are you doing?”

“Something that should have been done a long time ago.” She raised the crystal over her head and aimed to make sure it would hit the corner of the building.

“What? Ileana! NO-“

She pulled her arms down with the strongest force she could muster and made the crystal collide with the cement. After a second the crystal combusted violently and she was flung back into the air.

Darkness greeted her when she hit the ground.

__________________________________________________________________________________

Ileana then woke up in her bed back home, still in her ratty old pajamas. She went to school as she always did, day dreaming about her adventures on EXO. Unfortunately for her, she figured she was doomed to be a widow for her entire life due to the fact that not one man could compare to the men on EXO. Eventually, her parents grew tired of taking care of a mopey Ileana and set her up with a old rich man. She liked him enough and agreed to marry him. And thus, they lived somewhat happily ever after.

THE END

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jokes. That would be a quick way to end the story, wouldn't it? BAHAHA. 


Kay, now that's done. YAYYYYYYY, -y part of the storwee. <3 It's not much I know, but I still have quite a bit of falling action to cover and to tie up some loose ends. We still have a chunk to go guys <3 No worries. 
So, yeah. Teasers involved in this chapter was #23 with...everyone though it's technically a Kai teaser. I edited this one alot cause well, A) Kris was in it, no can do, B)Baekhyun, Chen and Chanyeol weren't in it. Thought I'd edit that and just make all of them in there. Anyways, I wanted the test before Kris' to be like a mental/emotional challenge. The past ones were more on the physical side, but yeah. Hopefully that test wasn't too awkward for you guys. I wanted to make her sweat emotionally.
And teaser #17 with Kris (derrr). Yayyy! She convinced him. Maybe a little more easily then I would have liked but meh. What's done is done. Some of you are probably expecting more Kris/Ileana action but just hold your horses like I said. I still have alot of falling action to cover and stuff <3

Now, fangirling time. 
fudgfuoijfoisdhfiudguijjfkndgbihfjfgiusjkwoieutvunyfdsisajfjgdsuyfdsivjgfdjghisifjjdfdhfdhghjgfhjfghjgfgfhjgfdjfdghgfjdggggdf!!!!!
HAVE YOU GUYS SEEN THE UNSEEN TEASER PHOTO SETS?!?!?!?! I'm dead. Honestly, I'm writing this as a ghost. Seriously my heart stopped working and bursted, along with my ovaries. Some of MY favourites:

I think this suits the Sehun I characterised in the story. Hence, I love it <3

idhfoisdfdhsjf KRISSS~~~<3 I loved his hair when it was styled that way. Now it's kind of bowl-cutish and yellow. I mean, Kris can pull it off ofcourse, but I personally was never a fan of bowl-cutish hair styles. Anyways. BRB DYING

 CHANYEOL djgdoufhdsojbfdisf!!! OH MY GOD BOYYYY LEMME LOVE YOUUU

Finally to conclude,

These guys didn't show up much in this fic, but I LOVE THEM TOO <33333333

Anyways. Fangirling done and outta the way. 

I want to say THANK YOU. These are my honest thank yous to everyone who has been reading, subscribing, commenting, and...whatever else that may relate to this fic. I couldn't ask for better readers! I don't think I would have gotten this far without you. *cries a million tears.*

Giveaway of the day:
*throw vouchers for free tutoring lessons with Kai and Sehun, AKA best tutors ever.... to distract you from actually studying*

Kay, I'm OUT Peacccee~~

ps: Really guys... I love you.