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“Hey babe.”
Markus smiled as he walked up to North in the hallway. She was pulling books from her locker with a little more force than necessary. She was already having a bad day then.
He placed a warm hand on her shoulder and she flinched, whirling around with her teeth bared like a snarling bobcat, “Don’t touch me!”
Markus let go immediately, a small worried frown tugging at his lips. It must be a really bad day then.
“Sorry. I won’t do it again. You gonna be okay?”
She sucked in a long breath before releasing it slowly and closing her eyes with a grimace. “I’m sorry,” she started before opening her eyes filled with unshed tears. “I’m really sorry-I didn’t mean- You’re not-”
“Hey. North. Babe, it’s okay. Really. I don’t mind. You told me not to touch you and I won’t. No big deal, yea?”
North let out a shaky breath and let her head fall forward onto his chest. “I don’t deserve you,” she murmured.
“And I don’t deserve you. I guess we’re a match made in hell, huh?”
She giggled softly before pulling away with her books still clutched in her arms.
God, she was so wonderful. How could she think she wasn’t worth much? The passion she did everything with was amazing and she was much smarter than she liked to let on. The good thing was, he was here to tell her every day how wonderful she was.
The bell rang and Markus tilted his chin in question. North smirked and spun around to slam her locker closed so they could leave.
“Hey man. Can I just murder my math teacher,” Simon muttered while shoving his face into his folded arms. His empty lunch platter sat next to him and Markus had to marvel at the speed and skill it took to shovel food without choking.
“That’s pretty North of you,” Josh snorted while plopping a tater tot in his mouth.
“C’mon guys,” Markus groaned. “Leave her alone.”
“Don’t even pretend like she doesn’t get a kick out of that joke Markus,” Josh returned easily.
“But no, seriously. Can I murder him?”
“Hell yea you can, Simon! I’ll help you hide the body.”
They all looked over, Simon peering out from his arms cautiously, at North as she dragged Connor, her best friend and a bit of a loner no matter how much they tried to include him since they’d met him, over to the group. She had a hand on his wrist while the other held a tray packed with enough food for two.
“North, I really need to finish,” the teen protested as he stumbled after her.
“Nuh uh. You can go back to your crime solving after socializing. It’s a thing, Con. A good thing. Cause you never do it.”
She shoved him down beside Markus and sat on his other side so he couldn’t escape. They all greeted him and received an awkward half smile half grimace in return. Poor kid just had the worst social skills but he could be really fun to be around.
“You should also eat lunch because you never do that either,” she chided, dropping the tray on the table in front of him.
“North, I am sufficiently-”
“Nope. Eat.”
“North.”
“It’s better to give in Connor,” Markus chuckled.
“It’s really not,” he disagreed shaking his head, loosening a tuft of hair that fell onto his forehead. He shoved it back with a huff but it only fell again. “She gets it in her head that she’s allowed to do it again if I just agree. You should know that.”
“Hey!”
“Valid,” Simon and Josh chorused, snickering in the background.
“See if I help you murder your teacher then, Simon,” North pouted, banging her fist on the table. Then she glanced at the tray before picking up a tater tot and shoving it into Connor’s mouth as he opened it again to say something. Connor choked for a second, trying to nip at her fingers as she pulled away.
“Don’t bite the hand that feeds you! That’s not a very good dog.”
Connor narrowed his eyes and Markus bit his lip at their interactions. North had trouble connecting with most people. Her default mode seemed to be angry for everything. Feel fear, feed it into rage. Feel sad, rage meter rising. Feel happy, well rage was still on the table. Not many people could stand it but Markus was patient and pretty empathetic. Even when she herself couldn’t articulate what she felt, Markus could suss it out slowly and patiently.
So, to see her joke and laugh and have fun teasing was always a delight that made his heart flutter and his cheeks warm even after being together for two years.
When he first started dating her he thought she was a complete loner. Then one day she dragged Connor to a study session after Markus had brought Josh and Simon to meet her -that happened to go swell actually- previously. He’d been jealous for, maybe, half a day because Connor was pretty, oh lord, and they acted really close.
When Markus tried to bring him up casually at the end of the day over text she totally called him out.
‘Don’t hinkI didn see that look on ur face. UR Cute. Hes my childhood frend. And hes got no interest in nything cept crime’
Which, well, was true. He couldn’t keep his emotions off his face for the life of him. Luckily, North pointed out that Connor was pretty oblivious to most things emotional and only needed a little reassurance that Markus didn’t hate him.
“I am not a dog,” Connor harrumphed after swallowing.
“I mean, you’ve got those puppy eyes,” Josh chimed in. “Deadly those are.”
“And that head tilt,” Simon muttered lifting his head back up to show the slight smirk on his lips.
Connor tilted his head in reaction, probably not even realizing he was doing it.
Markus had to throw his bit in, “You love praise too.”
“That does not make me a dog.”
“C’mon, Con. We’re teasing,” North laughed, slapping his back. The boy grunted and turned a gimlet eye onto his friend.
“I do not understand why you are so mean to me.”
But there was a glimmer in his eye and everyone laughed along with North, Connor joining with small awkward chuckles only moments later.
Markus was so glad her day was going better.
Until she showed up on his porch, shivering, half dressed, and sobbing.
“North!?”
To say he was surprised was an understatement. He could hardly make out her form in the darkness but what he could see was not very promising. Her pants were ripped at the zipper, and she had no shirt besides the jacket only half zipped, almost exposing her chest fully.
“Markus. Markus! I’m so sorry. I didn’t know- I couldn’t- Connor might tell and I just-! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have come!”
Besides his brain barely processing what was happening, Markus was also starting to notice darkening bruises around her neck and an ugly picture started to form. Because of his distraction, he barely missed grabbing her arm and had to sprint after her seconds later. They ran down the street full throttle, feet pounding on the pavement painfully as he hadn't had shoes on. Neither did she, though.
And holy hell was North fast. He was gaining little by little but Markus was also the best runner on the track team so this was ridiculous. But… fear made people do things they couldn’t before and his girlfriend seemed to be running on pure adrenaline.
“North, dammit. Wait!”
She had run all the way to his house, almost a full twenty minutes driving, half clothed and terrified out of her mind. Something was very very wrong and he needed to find out. With panting breath, he steeled his determination and forced his legs to go faster.
An entire block later he was able to get his hand on her arm and they both tumbled forward as he pulled out and swung them into a spin. In a maneuver he had no idea he could do, Markus twisted them until he was facing the pavement, landing with a harsh thud. North landed on top of him but had more momentum and kept rolling until she landed in the street with a groan.
“Ah… ouch. N-North are you okay?”
He only heard stifled sobbing but her body wasn’t moving.
With a muttered curse and some hissing over his scraped back, he dragged himself up enough to crawl over to where she was laying. She was face down on the asphalt, head buried in her arms and trying to hide her sobbing. Hesitantly, he settled one hand on her mid back and pursed his lips at the full body flinch.
“Hey, babe. It’s okay. It’s me. It’s only me. I’m right here, okay? I’m right here. Can I hug you. Please? I’m worried about you,” he muttered soothingly, leaving his hand where it was since she had yet to pull away.
North was quiet for a few more moments before her head gave a small bob.
Markus immediately gathered her up in his arms, situating them on the curb. She turned and clutched his nightshirt desperately, her sobs louder, swallowed in the silence of the night. It was a little hard to asses her injuries while she was seated on his lap but sitting under a streetlight gave him a better view than he’d thought. There was blood matted in her hairline, a dark purple bruise forming atop a lump. And underneath her hair he could see the bruises ringing her neck.
“North, babe. Can you tell- w-what happened?”
She took great heaving breaths to try and control her sobs but it did little except make her shake more against him.
“I-I’m so weak! So fucking pathetic,” she half-screamed, fists clenching tighter and pulling the material uncomfortably against his skin.”I-I never should have- So stupid! And weak! I-I don’t,” she hiccuped and growled. “D-don’t deserve you. I don’t. I d-don’t…”
The end of her mini rant trailed off into more sobs but by then Markus was clutching her close, injuries be damned. Whoever had done this to her was going to pay. All joking aside, Markus could actually murder scum if he had to. Leo had taught him that much in self-defence because of his dubious night time activities. He didn’t want anyone trying to go after his unprotected little brother that he had custody over. So he’d taught him how to kill someone discreetly. The only thing he might need help with was scene cleanup because a sloppy kill would land him in jail and leave North without him.
“Tell me who hurt you,” he whispered, his hands rubbing her shoulders. “Tell me and you won’t have to worry about them.”
His girlfriend gave a self deprecating laugh, “Too late. It’s too late for that. Too late. Too late. Far too late.”
“Babe please. What happened?”
“I fucking killed him, alright!” Her eyes glared up at him, a furious burning amber, with her teeth bared in a mighty snarl. “I killed him for raping me again and again and again! He never stopped! And my parents don’t listen! Their precious brother would never ever do something so heinous! Go to your room, North,” she mocked, her pitch rising with stress, “Think on your terrible lies, girl! May God FUCKING CLEANSE YOU!”
“Hey! Hey! I got you! I got you. It’s gonna okay. It’s gonna okay. Everything will be alright.”
“I can’t Markus. I couldn’t go back there. I got tired, so sick and tired! So I killed him. I wrapped my hands around his neck and squeezed and squeezed. He-he hit me with the lamp but I didn’t let go. I couldn’t! And he’s dead and I’m going to fucking jail if I can’t get rid of the body. My parents are back in the morning… and no. Nonono. I won't stay with them again. I won’t. I can’t. I fucking can’t.”
His heart clenched and he grit his teeth trying to think of all the possibilities. Asking Leo for a cover up would be bad news cause it could get his ‘friends’ involved, but asking for housing? There were runaways all the time that he dealt with. North was going to be eighteen in a month anyway.
But there was still the issue of the crime scene. There was only one person he could think of that could help with that but it was pretty risky.
“North why didn’t you go to Connor? He lives right across the street.”
“Are you fucking crazy!? His dad’s a cop! And he solves murder crimes for fun! He’d turn me in!”
She wasn’t wrong in a way.. But Connor’s only friend was North -even though Markus and the others tried- and he had a gut feeling that asking might actually be worth it.
“You killed in self defence, North. There’s nothing wrong with that. That man deserved what he got.”
“That doesn’t mean that Connor would agree to help! He’d probably want to turn it over to the authorities and have a trial… and Markus I can’t do that. I can’t fucking do that. I can’t have my name spread across the news and earn those stupid fucking pitying looks from everyone and their families when I pass them on the street. I just want him gone. I want him gone and out of my fucking life.”
She curled further into him, legs now on either side of his waist, clutching him as if letting him go would mean the end of the world.
“Babe. He’s your best friend. I.. might know some people but their cost is pretty heavy. If Connor can help…”
North snorted. “You know… I didn’t think I would be discussing murder cleanup with you. I never thought. How can you still like me? I’m used and disgusting. Defiled. Pathet-”
“I’m going to stop you right there,” he snapped, bringing a hand around to cover her mouth. “You are beautiful and amazing for surviving that. You think I care about you just for your body? I don’t. We could be together for eighty years and I still wouldn’t care about that. Yes, you’re pretty but that’s not all there is to you. Do you even know how you make me feel? How when you smile my heart melts a little more? How when you sing I feel like I’m flying. And when you get into heated debates, all I can stare at is the passion and strength in your eyes. So you’re a little bit damaged? So what? Ever heard of Kintsugi? It’s a japanese process of fixing pottery with gold. Your cracks only make you more beautiful and I am the luckiest guy in the world because for some strange reason you like me. Do you understand?”
Through the entire speech -god it was so cheesy but so true- her body had started to relax on top of him, her face falling still until only her eyes, teary and glistening, stared at him in shock. It was like she couldn’t believe a word he just said. He would say it again and again. He’d show it it to her by whatever means necessary. If that meat hiding a body and helping her runaway, so be it.
“I’m going to call Connor, okay? I’ll be discreet but please stay quiet.”
She nodded, eyes still wide, and dropped her forehead onto his collarbone. They were so lucky it was a warmer night in May, otherwise they'd be freezing their asses off.
He dug around in his pocket, thanking the high heavens that he carried his phone with him everywhere like the tech reliant teenager he was. It only took a little fumbling, using one hand to work it, before he had the number up and ringing on his phone.
The phone picked up on the third ring, just like always. The teen was nothing if not meticulous.
“Connor speaking. How can I assist you, Markus? It’s rather late.”
He shifted, his legs starting to go numb, but he refused to move North off of him.
“Hey, Connor. Sorry bout the late call. Remember that one time we were discussing the moralities of murder in self defence?”
“Yes.”
“That’s good. Um. So I wanna know, if your friend, saaaay North murdered someone. What would you do?”
Her head shot up, strawberry hair tickling his nose on the way, so she could give the most incredulous stare she could manage.
There was silence on the other end for a while before Connor spoke again, “I suppose that depends-”
A borf interrupted him.
“Sumo, no. Stop that. Hey! I’m not sad-stop- Ack!”
They both snickered and waited a few more moments for him to come back. It was preceded by the sound of a door clicking shut.
“Sorry, Markus.”
“It’s fine.”
“To answer your question. It depends on the reason for the murder. If she was acting in self-defence I would do everything to get her a fair trial and find all conclusive evidence to support that in court.”
‘See,” she mouthed at him. He put a finger to his lips.
“And if court was not an option?”
“Why wouldn’t she want to go to trial? It would be the best way to clear her name.”
“Let’s say… she was…” He paused, wincing at how straightforward this would be. “Raped. She was raped and doesn’t want to go to trial. Would you still help?”
“I-I… Markus. Where is North?”
He paused, not exactly expecting the question. Connor couldn’t have jumped to the correct conclusion already, could he have? He was pretty genius but…
Well, oops?
“Is she okay,” he demanded, voice getting lower and almost scary over the phone.
“She’s fine,” he squeaked before clearing his throat. “She’s… actually she’s not fine and she really needs hel-OW!”
Said teen had just punched him hard in the bicep with a glare. She held out her hand and he gently placed the phone in it while rubbing his arm. Damn his girl could hit.
“Connor.”
“North! Are you okay? What happened? Did you actually murder someone? What’s going on?” His voice was loud and worried enough for him to hear it without having to lean in.
Her face softened slightly and she took a breath, one hand still clenched in his shirt, before replying. “Connor. Plausible deniability.”
“North. You’re my best friend. If… If you need help…” The rest of his words weren’t audible but there were tears rolling down her cheeks again and a bright smile forming on her lips. Markus took that to be a good thing when she handed him the phone again.
“Hello?”
“Thank you, Markus. I wish… she could have trusted me enough to come to me but I… I understand. I want to help. I’ll meet you in front of North’s house.”
Markus swallowed and looked at the phone in his hand. Connor had hung up already but he had sounded almost heartbroken. It made sense. They’d known each other for years but North had gone to him because she was frightened Connor wouldn’t help. That had to hurt.
“Alright. Time to attend to a crime scene.” He glanced down at himself and then at her. “In our nightclothes. That’s fine.”
It was not fine according to Connor because Markus was actually bleeding and hadn’t noticed and North was still half dressed. The normally polite and withdrawn teenager railed at them before turning it into a lecture while he ushered them over to his own house to clean up. Despite the adrenaline rush because a police Lieutenant was snoring in the next room, everything else went smoothly.
Because Connor studied how criminals were normally found, he knew exactly what to clean and what not to do (like leaving blood on the scene like a dingus). They had the scene, North’s room and oh god did that make his stomach churn, cleaned and set like she never came home from school. The body was dragged out and left to dissolve in a plastic tub while they worked -holy shit where did Connor get all this stuff!?- and the rest of the house was given a once over to erase all traces that the uncle was ever there. They were hoping the parents might think he never actually came to babysit their daughter or something like that.
“I really don’t like your parents, North,” Connor muttered on their way out.
She snorted, “Neither do I buddy. But they really liked you. DId you know they wanted to set us up?”
Markus and Connor blanched.
“I love you… but not like that. You’re my sister.”
North paused, pulling off a cloth glove with no fiber traces, and turned to him with a parted mouth, surprise clear in her eyes. Then they softened again and a smirk pulled at her lips.
“Yea, yea. Love you too nerd.”
The one thing Markus could have done without was seeing the partially dissolved body…
1 Month Later
Markus glanced around warily. It was daylight so he highly doubted he’d be mugged in the street but it was better to just be sure. This area wasn’t exactly the safest.
He opened the rusty door, wincing at the creak, and closed it firmly behind him. The room was empty, bare concrete walls making it look foreboding. He headed to the right corner, brushing his fingers along the crack. They caught on a well disguised hole and he stuck his hand in to yank on the metal bar. A loud crack rang out and the entire back wall shifted back a few feet. A door came into view and Markus pushed his way through it, making sure to push down the lever on the other side that would set the wall right again.
A hallway with door lining each side greeted him with a few heads poking out to watch him warily. Honestly, this place seemed straight out of an action movie. It was slightly scary to think they actually existed.
Leo had said she was the fifth one on the right…
He knocked shortly, impatiently shifting from foot to foot. The door opened and a kid about 8 or 9 stared at him.
“You seen North?”
He stared at him with wide eyes, almost terrified, before he went to slam the door shut.
“Cole let him in, stupid.”
The sound of her breath took his breath away. He hadn’t seen her in almost a month and a half and he physically ached to see her, to make sure she was alright.
The kid’s face dropped and he dragged the door back open to let him in before fleeing as he passed.
Markus stepped in, his entire body vibrating with anticipation. He took in the bare mattresses on the floor with ragged colorful blankets. There’s was a teddy bear sitting on the first mattress and North sat on the other one, a wide grin on her face.
Seeing her knocked the very breath from his lungs. Her face was open and joyful. A little dirty from lack of showers but the most beautiful he had ever seen her. Her hair was shorn close to her head, maybe an inch long on all sides, and her clothes were well worn, a sweater shirt that fell off her shoulder exposing the sports bra strap underneath and some training sweat pants.
Everything about her seemed lighter, the weight gone from her shoulders. Living free the past weeks was obviously good for her.
“Markus,” she breathed in glee. God, even her voice was cheerful and enthusiastic. It was like meeting her for the first time.
“You cut your hair?”
“Yea. Mom didn’t like it short and it’s hard to take care of long hair out here, so…”
“Looks good,” he laughed.
“Why thank you,” she pretend flipped her nonexistent hair over her shoulder.
“Happy belated birthday,” he chuckled, throwing himself down on the mattress. “You uncle was declared missing with no foul play involved and they dropped your case yesterday on your birthday.”
She squealed and tossed herself over him.
“I’m free, baby. I’m fucking free. Now let’s go get ice cream!”
