Chapter Text
Frank burst through the church door like he was fucking Jesus descending from the heavens, making enough noise to attract an entire hoard of Infected, not that he cared in his pure and utter panic. He was expecting to find Aiden on the floor, bleeding out in critical condition - or, even worse, Lawan lying lifeless in front of him.
Instead, he saw Aiden hugging Hakon close to his chest, both of them covered in blood, while Lawan watched from above them in shock, crossbow in hand. He hadn't not expected to see Hakon there, since the whole reason Aiden went was to confront him, but seeing them so close shocked him. Aiden hadn't told him much but from the way he became distant and almost dreamy whenever the former Nightrunner was brought up, Frank had assumed they'd had a rocky past, especially because ruining relationships seemed to be Hakon's speciality.
He rushed to Aiden's side immediately. The Pilgrim looked up at him slowly, his eyes completely empty, tears streaking down his face.
"Are you okay? Are you injured?" Frank questioned, seeing the spilled blood and knowing Aiden had requested medical help.
"Lawan shot him." Aiden croaked. His voice sounded absolutely ruined.
He shifted the former Nightrunner lying unconscious in his arms, exposing an arrow embedded deep into his back.
"I know you hate him but…." Aiden's voice cracked. "Please. Frank, please."
Frank looked around, almost uncertain of what to do. He made eye contact with Lawan, standing above the three of them like she was watching a TV show.
"Lawan.." Frank requested her to come to him with a single word, and she jumped down from the balcony, crossbow in hand, landing on the ground below with a loud thud. She walked towards them both, starting to say "Aiden, I-" but Aiden turned away from her, gently placing Hakon in Frank's arms and standing up.
"I'm going to take care of those Infected." He announced, motioning towards the Church door, which was currently being assaulted by Infected that none of them had noticed yet due to the tense situation. "Radio me if you need anything." Aiden didn't let either of them answer or protest before slipping outside to escape the fact his worst nightmare was coming true.
Frank looked at Hakon, and then his medkit. He opened it to find bandages and simple medicine. His best bet was to remove the arrow, medicate the wound and then tightly bandage his chest.
Lawan was still looking at them both, an unreadable expression on her face.
"Lawan.. what the hell happened?" Frank questioned sternly.
Her face shifted. "I… fucked up."
"Shit. I never thought I'd hear you say that." This situation seemed so much more complicated than Frank thought, or that he could handle.
He firmly grabbed the arrow in Hakon's back, yanking it out in one thrust.
Hakon groaned, coming to consciousness. " Merde , merde. " He turned slightly, his face twisting into shock when he saw Frank. "What the hell? Frank? What the fuck are you doing here?" He questioned. "I thought you fucking hated me."
Frank grimaced. "I do. But for some fucking reason Aiden wants me to help you. Now hold still so you don't die, you fucking bastard." He slathered medicine on the wound, being harsher than was needed, causing Hakon to groan in pain.
"Aiden…" Hakon's voice was unusually soft and gentle whenever he said the Pilgrim's name. He looked around him. "Fuck, where is he? Is he okay??"
"Stop pretending like you care, Hakon." Frank accused.
Hakon's muscles tensed, his tone turning cold. "I'm not pretending. I care about Aiden in a way you'll never understand." He spat out. Hakon tried to turn, to get up in order to find his Pilgrim. "Where is he??" He spat, his body failing him as he crumbled in pain.
Then Lawan was there, holding him down. "He's outside, you fucking bitch." She hissed in his ear. "Stay still so we can do what he asked and help you."
Hakon stopped moving. "Lawan. So you finally managed to get me, didn't you?" His face formed a teasing smile that Lawan desperately wanted to punch.
"Yup. And you'd be dead right now if Aiden didn't want you alive." Her voice was laced with anger, and Hakon couldn't tell if it was directed at him or Aiden. She grabbed the shoulder she'd shot previously, only doubling the pain spiking through Hakon's body. "Hakon. How could you?" She yelled in his face. "How could you take everything from me?? "
And that's when Hakon understood why she was so much angrier at him than usual. "I guess I wasn't joking when I said everyone in Villedor wants to fuck Aiden." He teased. This time, Lawan punched his stupid fucking face.
"Lawan, stop it." Frank ordered. "What the hell is going on??" He questioned, partly in anger but mainly in genuine confusion.
Lawan and Hakon looked at each other. This situation was already awkward enough without them having to explain that the reason they were arguing was because they both had massive crushes on Aiden. They made eye contact, establishing a non-verbal agreement before Lawan said "Just.. forget it Frank."
Frank was still deeply confused but was smart enough to tell that he definitely shouldn't ask for more clarification. He wrapped Hakon's lower back tightly with bandages, wincing as the blood immediately seeped through the coverings and painted them deep red.
He scrambled for his radio, dialling Aiden. The instant the radio clicked, Aiden bashed through the door, covered in blood, looking completely insane. "What happened??" He almost yelled, his heart pounding.
"Carry him. We need to bring him back to the Fish Eye. I can help him more there." Frank tried to stay calm. Considering the fact that Hakon was injured and barely conscious, Aiden seemed completely unhinged, and Lawan was busy wallowing in her own self-hatred, it seemed like the responsibility of getting them all back safe and sound had fallen onto his shoulders.
The Fish Eye simultaneously felt like it was miles away from the Church and that it was only a couple metres. Aiden carried Hakon the entire time, while Frank trailed after them, keeping an eye over his shoulder for Lawan.
They were a depressing procession when they entered the Fish Eye, Frank telling Aiden to bring Hakon to one of the upstairs rooms that had a table and chairs.
"Lawan, fuck, radio someone, that witch-doctor, something, I don't know-" Frank stammered, following up the stairs behind Aiden. It was obvious that Lawan didn't want to follow them, and he wasn't going to be the one to force her.
He lumbered up the stairs, pausing at the door he knew Hakon and Aiden were behind. It took a surprising amount of willpower for him to turn the handle and open the door.
Aiden and Hakon sat there in the dark, Hakon sprawled out on the table, his arms wrapped around Aiden leaning over him, and…
Frank was definitely interrupting something. He coughed.
Hakon immediately dropped his arms and Aiden rushed backwards, awkwardly rubbing his face.
"Frank- I-" he stammered, his face burning.
"At least turn on some UV lights, fuck." Frank requested. "I just came to tell you we're getting a doctor. Have… fun?" Frank quickly shut the door behind him, wanting to get out of there as fast as possible. Considering the fact that Lawan was VERY bad at hiding her obvious feelings for Aiden, he now knew the reason for why all of this was happening, and, in his humble opinion, calling this a "burning dumpster fire of a mess" was an understatement.
The instant Frank left, Aiden groaned, screaming into his hands. "FUCK!" he shouted.”FUCK, OH MY GOD, FUCK ME.”
Hakon tried to lift his body up on the table despite how much it was failing him in every way possible, looking at Aiden with a cheeky grin. “Gladly.”
“Shut the fuck up, I swear to god-”
“You were basically begging for it earlier.” Hakon continued to tease.
“Hakon, you are fucking dying, for god’s sake, can you stop being horny for 30 seconds or will you die if you’re not constantly making sex jokes?”
“Probably, I’ve never gone that long without making one.”
Aiden leaned down over Hakon, gently placing his hands on his face. “Hakon…” He said softly, leaning down closer to his face, rubbing his fingers over Hakon’s stubble.
Hakon laid back down on the table, accepting that his body had failed him. “What is it, kiddo?” He grinned. “Do you really want me that badly?”
Aiden scowled, standing up straight again and moving to the generator in the corner of the room.
“Wait.. no.. I’m sorry,” Hakon whined, drawing out the last word. “Aiden, come on.”
Aiden laughed. “I’m just turning on the UV lamps, stupid.” He yanked on the generator chain, manually turning on the electricity and flooding the room with purple light.
Hakon moaned in relief as the lights flickered on, feeling the infection inside his body retreat.
Aiden walked over to him, gently putting a hand on Hakon’s chest. “Do you feel better now?” He asked softly.
Hakon nodded, closing his eyes. “I do.” He placed his hand over Aiden’s, squeezing it gently. He felt Aiden climbing onto the table next to him, placing his head on Hakon’s chest. “Careful, kid. Don’t squeeze too hard.” He ran his hands through Aiden’s hair, tugging on it gently. Aiden moaned into his chest, moving his body up so that his face was nestled in between Hakon’s shoulder and neck.
“Don’t fucking die, asshole.” Aiden whispered into his ear.
Hakon laughed. “No promises, Pilgrim.”
Doctors were rare in a zombie apocalypse, especially on a short notice.No one that Lawan radioed picked up, only the blind herbalist, Margaret. It wasn’t ideal, but it was the only thing they had to work with.
The instant the herbalist responded, Lawan was basically yelling into the radio. “Listen, I have someone who is in urgent need of medical help. It’s really important.”
The other line was silent, and Lawan shook the radio. “Hello?? You there?” She yelled.
The voice that replied was annoyingly calm, considering the situation Hakon was in. “Keep calm. I’m going to help you. What happened to the patient?”
Lawan took a deep breath before she lost her composure and scared away the doctor. “He was…” Her voice flattered. “Shot.” She finally admitted after a moment of silence.
Margaret paused. “Bring him here. I’m afraid I can only treat the wound in person.” She instructed.
“Are you sure? There’s nothing else we could do? Give him some herbs, maybe?” Lawan was desperate for anything to save Hakon.It was strange, for so long she had wanted him dead, and now here she was, begging to keep him alive, and for someone else’s sake. Her heart dropped. And the person she was doing it all for – Aiden – didn’t even like her back. Lawan’s mouth went dry. She hadn’t let herself confront her feelings about the whole situation yet and this definitely wasn’t the time.
“No. I need to be able to observe the wound in order to prescribe treatment. Otherwise, it’s too dangerous.” The herbalist said.
“I don’t care if it’s dangerous, I need anything, please-” Lawan continued, but the witch doctor cut her off.
“Bring him here.” She said before the radio clicked, indicating their conversation was over.
Lawan screamed, throwing the radio aside in anger. She grabbed a beer from behind the counter and downed it in one gulp in order to somewhat calm her emotions. She turned around, heading upstairs to let Frank and Aiden know of the bad news.
Instead, she bumped into Frank, already on his way down. He looked incredibly shocked.
“Frank? What’s wrong?” Lawan questioned. Only when she spoke did Frank seem to notice her.
“Oh, Lawan. Hi. Did you find a doctor?” Frank asked, completely ignoring her.
Lawan scowled. “I did, but only one. She says we need to bring Hakon to her.”
Frank frowned. “Are you sure? There’s no other options?”
“Of course I’m sure.” Lawan spat. “Just because I fucking hate him doesn’t mean I’m not trying.” She took another deep breath. “It’s Margaret, the herbalist. She and Aiden helped save Aitor’s life. She could help him.”
“If we can get him there. Getting him back here was already a struggle..” Frank trailed off. Despite what Hakon had done, it was obvious that Frank didn’t want one of his oldest friends to die, especially when Aiden wanted him alive so badly.
Part of Lawan wanted to just suggest that they let Hakon die like he deserved, but she knew Frank wouldn’t agree with that sentiment.
At that moment, Aiden emerged from the room at the top of the stairs. He was smiling, which was a rare sight. His cheeks were pink and there were obviously fresh marks on his neck. Looking at him, Lawan’s stomach lurched with rage and jealousy. She felt sick knowing Hakon was touching, kissing and even leaving marks on Aiden. It took all of her willpower to not march up into the room he was in right there and then and finally finish him off.
“Aiden, how is he?” Frank’s eyes also darted to Aiden’s neck, but both he and Lawan silently agreed to not mention it.
Aiden’s smile dropped as quickly as it had appeared. He was silent for a moment, balling his fist. “He’s… fine. He fell asleep.” He finally said. His voice was quiet, timid and small. In this moment, he reminded Lawan of a scared dog, or a tiny rabbit.
Frank walked up to Aiden, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “It’s gonna be okay. We found a doctor. We just need to bring Hakon to her.”
Instead of looking excited or hopeful, Aiden only seemed more disappointed. “Bring him there? How far away is it?”
“It’s Margaret’s place. The herbalist, the one that helped you save Aitor.” Lawan butted in.
Aiden’s expression was unreadable. “No.” He said, his tone flat, devoid of any feeling. “Hakon.. He can’t. We can’t bring him that far. Not right now. We need to find someone else.”
“There is no one else, Aiden. There’s no other options.” Lawan crossed her arms, in an effort to stop herself from losing control and hitting him.
“Listen. We’ll wait until morning and then we’ll bring him to Margaret’s. Aiden, you’re strong and capable, you can bring him there safely. For now, why don’t you rest. You’re gonna need it.” Frank tried to split up the argument that was obviously about to ensue between the two of them.
Aiden nodded, spinning around to go back to the room Hakon was in.
“Aiden- Wait.” Lawan sputtered, not wanting him to leave just yet. Frank glared daggers at her, silently saying don’t you dare start an argument, Lawan.
Aiden turned around, looking at her, a confused expression on his face and his normally light blue eyes hiding something dark behind them. Lawan’s words caught in her throat. She loved him, she absolutely loved him, and he loved someone else, and now he hated her. The world around her seemed to be spinning. “I-” She spit out, stupidly almost confessing her feelings right there and then. Breaking her own rules. Rules she’d set into place after having her heart broken, in order to protect herself. Hakon. That fuck . Not only did he take happiness from her, but he took Aiden too. Her hands clenched into fists. She knew how much Aiden wanted him alive, but it took everything she had to not burst upstairs and slit his throat. “I’m sorry.” Lawan lived by a set of rules, and she needed them now more than ever. Don’t show any emotion. Don’t let anyone know what you’re thinking. Don’t catch feelings, and most importantly, don’t confess them.
Aiden’s brows furrowed, something close to a frown appearing on his face. Thousands of potential replies flooded his brain. He didn’t know what to do. Part of him hated Lawan. She’d taken everything, hurt the one person that mattered to him most. But he couldn’t blame her entirely. He still cared about her, despite what she’d done. He sucked in through his teeth. “It’s….” He paused, like he was trying to convince himself, too. “It’s gonna be okay.”
Lawan’s heart leapt into her throat and soared through the skies the instant Aiden didn’t reply. Knowing he didn’t absolutely despise her filled her entire being with joy. Aiden watched her intently, reading her expression the way only he knew how, watching her cheer up while he felt his heart shatter into a million little pieces. Whenever he said it would be okay, to himself, to her, to Hakon, to anyone, it felt like it was a lie. And he fucking hated lying.
Living through a literal zombie apocalypse, you experienced death dozens, if not hundreds of times. Yet every time, it was like another stab through the heart, another inflicted wound. It stung deeper than being bitten by a Biter or being thrown off a roof by a stealthy infected.
The only wound that wouldn’t heal was loss, and Frank had been reminded of this again, and again, and again, waking up in the middle of the night, hearing the screams of the Nightrunners around him, watching the VNC tower incident repeat hundreds of thousands of times, watching his teammates, his friends, his family be brutally murdered before him. Radio New Hope becoming a massacre. Even with drinking, tainting his mind until he could barely walk straight, the events of that day still haunted his every waking moment. For so many years, he’d placed the blame on the man lying in front of him now, the scarred, battleworn, former Nightrunner who always had a spark in his eyes and a quip on the edge of his tongue, now uncomfortably still with eyes unusually dull.
Hakon was, and always will be, a Nightrunner. No matter what he did. No matter how many times he betrayed them. He always would be a Nightrunner, a portion of him would always stay the same, the same young, bright, eager young man with nothing but love in his heart, one desperate to save the world, someone who would bend over backwards to save even a single fly. Someone who helped others. Frank could see why he’d fallen so hard for Aiden – Aiden was everything Hakon wanted to be, fuck, everything Frank wanted to be. He was an example of what the Nightrunners could’ve been. He was a shining beacon of light for the entire city of Villedor.
It took everything Frank had to not start sobbing on the spot. He reached out a shaking hand to the Frenchman in front of him, delicately closing his eyes for the final time. “Tell the other Nightrunners hi for me, Hakon.” He whispered. There was no following quip. No French accent cracking jokes. Not even a small laugh in reply. Just the unsettling silence and Hakon’s painfully cold body.
Frank’s mind flashed in his unfounded grief, travelling simply to a few minutes prior, when he was walking in to give Hakon food and water. Days had passed, and although they’d promised Margaret to bring him right away, they needed to wait for Hakon to recover more before bringing him anywhere, especially somewhere so far. But Hakon was losing the futile fight to live, each moment a struggle, each breath a challenge, a testament to his power to stay alive. And the truth was, he was losing his motivation to live. Frank walked into the room to find him there, his body convulsing, his soul fading away as Hakon was too lazy, too tired to reach out and grab it and live a day more.
He dropped the food and water, the plates shattering instantly, as precious resources were ruined against the tavern floor. “Hakon!” He shouted, running over to the injured man. “Hakon, for fuck’s sake, are you okay?” He shook him, desperately. “Hakon, c’mon. You survived this long, you can’t die now. Please…” His voice going uncharacteristically soft, every word laced with guilt and pain. “You can’t just leave me alone with Cillian.” He murmured.
Hakon coughed, his body suddenly going still after fighting so hard to survive. He opened his eyes, using every last bit of power he had left to speak. “Frank…” His voice was hoarse, barely there, barely noticeable.
“Hakon, for fuck’s sake, don’t die now-” Frank grabbed his shoulders.
Hakon just shook his head, and smiled sadly. “I’m sorry, Frank. About the VNC tower. About Lawan. About everything.”
Frank desperately grabbed Hakon. “Hakon, why are you telling me this now, huh? Why are you apologising? This isn’t like you. Please don’t leave….” He trailed off, feeling painfully weak and powerless. Remembering every vivid detail of the VNC tower mission, reliving it as he watched the weak man in front of him.
Hakon coughed again. “I’ll always be a Nightrunner at heart, Chief…” Every word was a struggle. “Please… as a man’s dying wish… tell Aiden I love him. And that I’m sorry… sorry that I couldn’t hang on for him…” Hakon waited, desperately holding on to hear Frank’s reply.
Frank wiped tears from his eyes. “Whatever you say, Nightrunner.” He said softly.
And then Hakon nodded, his face becoming completely calm, the feeling of peace washing over him. I hope we can be together in another life, Aiden. He thought. And then he let himself die.
Aiden knew the instant Hakon died. He could’ve been a thousand miles away, in another country, across the planet, and he still would’ve known, because the instant Hakon died, the part of him keeping him alive died too.
He was sitting anxiously in the Fish Eye, trying to drink away his troubles with Cillian and Lawan when he felt it. His heart shattering. His love, his motivation, his saviour, knight in shining armour, his only companion leaving him alone in the cruel, cruel world, a world that was now so much darker without Hakon to light it up.
His body felt cold. A part of him was already dead. He only needed the other parts to follow.
“Aiden? Are you okay? What’s wrong?” Lawan questioned, noticing his sudden change in demeanour.
Aiden said nothing. He was nothing. He felt nothing except for indescribable pain and soul crushing sadness.
At that moment Frank descended from the stairs, a grieving messenger of death, but when he opened his mouth, spoke “Hakon’s dead.” into the world for the first time, Aiden didn’t need to know. All he knew was that he was watching his world crumble down around him.
He stood up, walking towards the stairs. Frank came towards him, putting his hand on Aiden’s shoulder, saying something to him, but Aiden heard nothing. He just continued up the stairs, heading towards the roof of the Fish Eye, chasing after a chance to see his lover again.
He painfully remembered how, barely so long ago, he’d been up there, watching the night sky light up with Lawan, and how he’d wished that Hakon had been there to witness that sight with them. But now there was nothing. There was no Hakon to witness anything with. The entire lifetime of happiness they’d had in front of them… stripped away by a single arrow.
This entire time, in Villedor, he’d been hailed as a saviour, but the entire time, the only person who truly had his back, who truly cared for him, who truly loved him, was Hakon. When he first stumbled into the Bazaar, dying and infected, the Bazaar folk had mercilessly hung him and left him for dead, while Hakon was the one to cut him down, the one to save him. But as soon as they realised he could help them, they were at his feet, begging, forcing him to help them with all of their tiny little issues, only caring about him once they realised he was useful. The PK had restrained him, questioned him, threatened to harm him, only letting him go once he promised to help them find Lucas’s killer. Sophie made him prove himself, and Barney used a fucking dying child to evade Aiden’s good will, yelling at him and calling him a criminal while Aiden tried his best to help. Even Frank yelled at him, disregarded him, pushed him away and had the audacity to call his sister a fucking whore before Aiden had given him what he’d wanted and Frank had finally become a semblance of a friend. To Villedor, Aiden was just a tool. Just a means to an end. Just something for the people to take advantage of in order for them to shape their future while they could sit idly by and kick up their feet. In the entirety of his existence, only one person had really cared. Only one person loved him, saw him as human, cared about him with unrestrained passion, even when Aiden was only a stranger, an infected, a useless injured weirdo with no skills or anything to offer.
And he’d had the audacity to tell Hakon he hated him, back when Lawan shot him and he found out who truly killed Lucas.
How desperately he wished he could go back in time, change everything, tell Hakon he loved him then instead of waiting until now, only getting to truly kiss him for a few moments before his true love escaped his grasp forever.
Villedor sprawled out, seemingly endlessly before him, as he stood at the edge of the rooftop, mere centimetres away from falling to his death, and needing it, craving it, wanting nothing more than to join Hakon in the afterlife.
There was no point anymore. There was no point in saving people who wouldn’t save him, in caring about people who didn’t care, in trying to help people who were too fucking lazy to help themselves. The only person who mattered in his life, who would ever matter in his life, was dead, and now, Aiden was about to be too.
Lawan burst from her chair, despite Frank’s protests, Cillian holding her back. Every ounce of her body and mind was screaming at her to chase after Aiden, who’d escaped to the roof.
“Lawan, leave him alone. He needs time to grieve.” Cillian advised her, but adrenaline rushed through her, allowing her to break free from his grip and hurtle up the stairs as protests were screamed behind her.
She burst through the door onto the rooftop, revealing Aiden, dangerously close to the edge, about to plummet to his death.
“ AIDEN! ” She screamed, running towards him faster than she thought possible. “AIDEN? What the fuck??”
Aiden didn’t react, he didn’t even turn around. He just stood there, staring at the city laid out before him.
“Aiden, what is wrong with you?” She grabbed his shirt, trying to pull him away from the edge.
Aiden spun around, grabbing her hand with a bruising grip. His eyes were empty, soulless, devoid of any and all feeling.
“Aiden? What the hell?” She screamed in his face, only getting louder when he seemed to not relax.
He pushed her away, silent.
“Aiden. Aiden! AIDEN!” She continued screaming, desperate for a response, any response. “AIDEN, I’m sorry, I love you, I’m sorry, I love you so so much-” She sputtered, finally confessing her feelings at the worst possible time, desperate to do anything, breaking every single one of her rules in a futile effort to keep him alive.
Aiden turned around again. “Then I guess you’ll understand how I feel, then.” He said quietly. “The feeling of having someone you love die.”
And she screamed, louder than she ever thought possible, her pain echoing across Villedor, waking up countless infected, startling dozens of citizens, tears streaming down her face for the first time since Hakon left as she reached out a shaking hand, trying to stop the man in front of her.
“ I can’t wait to see you again, Hakon.” Aiden whispered into the cruel wind slapping at his face, his words drowned out by Lawan’s cries behind him. Then he jumped.