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How did it all go so wrong?
Chance lies there, his heart heavy with regret. He thinks about where it all started—how everything had just simply gone wrong. The rain pours down, soaking through his clothes, and sticking the fabric to his skin. But he barely registers that—his mind is racing, and he’s too busy thinking about everything else. It feels so cold, and he wants to close his eyes. He wants to let himself finally rest, and let everything fade away.
But he doesn't allow himself to rest. He can't, not when he still has so many things to settle. Not when the person he’s loved so dearly waits for him, clearly filled with regret.
So with his best effort, he keeps his eyes open, though he struggles to do so. His vision is blurry and unfocused. His hand is pressed firmly against his abdomen, and his fingers tremble as he desperately tries—and miserably fails—to keep more blood from spilling out, to hold together what was already lost. There's a hole in his stomach, one they both know shouldn't be there.
No matter how hard he tries to deny it, he needs to accept the truth—that his dearest friend had betrayed him, and was intending to leave him for dead. But to him, that was an ugly, impossible truth—and it was one that he desperately wants to ignore. More warmth spills between his fingers, seeping through the open wound. His chest aches, and his heart seems to be bleeding out too—from all this heartbreak, and the weight of their cruel betrayal.
Everything hurts… but he can't escape this. This is the end of line for him.
He coughs, but nearly ends up choking in the process.
The sound that comes out seems wrong, with the way it scrapes itself out of his throat. He tips his head forward, struggling for air. Finally, he manages to splutter out something onto his palm—it’s a flower petal, from the blue hydrangea. He tries to wipe it off—the blood, the petals spilling from his lips—but they cling to his skin, cruel and insistent. It's just another reminder of how he had loved them… and how they would never, ever feel the same way. Not now—and not ever.
A weak, broken laugh escapes his lips. It sounds bitter, twisted by the endless pain and regret he’s been holding all this while.
What a fool he was… falling for someone who would never love him the same, no matter how badly he wanted them to. What a complete, utter fool.
And there, right in front of him, stands the man Chance had once loved. He’s still, completely silent, watching them bleed out. They don't move an inch, and simply watch, their expression unreadable. Chance squints, his vision swimming, and tries desperately to see their face. But the shadows and rain seem to hide most of it, and he can't quite tell what they're thinking.
Did they feel guilty for what they had done? Regret, maybe? Or did he simply stay just to make sure the job was done—to ensure Chance was truly dead?
Did they ever… really care about him…? Was that all a lie too…?
Chance doesn't want to know. He isn't sure if he ever did. He doesn't want to question things, all those memories he had so fondly cherished—he doesn't want to learn that it was all somehow a lie, that everything he had loved about them had meant nothing to them. That he… hadn't mattered to them. That they did not love him, the same way he had cared for them.
“Chance.”
iTrapped is calling their name. Chance looks up.
iTrapped is holding something between their fingers—a loose petal, its pale blue against their skin. Their expression twists into something unfamiliar—a look that almost seems… unsettled.
Is he disgusted by them? Or simply confused as to what it truly means?
“What… is this?” iTrapped asks quietly. He almost sounds afraid… like he doesn't really want to know the answer.
That lone petal trembles in his grasp. It's a reminder of Chance’s feelings—those hidden blooms, lodged deep in his chest, clawing its way up his throat. It was a secret that he had kept buried for far too long.
“Sorry," Chance rasps, his voice dry. He swallows hard. “I didn't mean to leave a mess behind."
Chance looks away, staring at the puddle of rain and blood forming around him. “It’s… nothing, ‘Trap. Just an ailment of mine.”
He doesn't dare explain himself, and what those petals truly mean. He can't bring himself to tell them the truth—that he was a fool that had fallen in love with someone who had always intended to betray him. And so, he keeps quiet—he bites back those awful words, the ones he wishes he could say.
I loved you.
iTrapped doesn't respond. Instead, he slowly looks at the petal, then to Chance’s bloodied shirt, and the wound he’s barely holding together. It's… silent, for a while. There's nothing else to be heard, except for the sound of the rain pouring down, and Chance’s short, fading breaths.
I can't tell them the truth. If they were to find out how I really felt about them, how much they meant to me… I don't think I’ll ever be able to forgive myself.
And so, Chance gathers what little strength he has left. Then, he lifts his head up weakly—it’s just enough for him to offer them a faint, fragile smile. It's almost like a thank you… for everything.
“Don't worry about me… I’ll be fine…”
It's an act iTrapped knows he doesn't deserve. This kindness… he doesn’t deserve any of it, really.
And they look horrified. For the first time, Chance sees their true emotions clearly—they’ve finally realised the truth, the one Chance had hoped to hide.
“You can’t possibly mean…” iTrapped murmurs, before trailing off, leaving his realisation unfinished.
He knows. He knows what this is—he knows what all of it means.
And that revelation shatters him.
Whatever composure he was trying to maintain all this time disappears immediately. They know everything—what these flowers meant, what they had meant to Chance. They know how much he had loved them—and somehow, that made the weight of their betrayal too much to handle.
The blade slips from their hand, and clatters to the ground. iTrapped doesn't even flinch—instead, he’s stunned, completely frozen in place. After a few moments, he forces himself to breathe. He turns his face away, almost as if he can't bear to look at Chance any longer.
They don't say anything. No words of hatred, or pity… or just pure disgust, at the thought that someone like him could ever dream of being loved.
He wants them to say something. Anything, just so he can be rid of this silence. Even if it's words of hatred, and the truth that they never cared for him, not even once. Even if it's a miserable pity, one they must pretend he deserves. Even if it's the awful, heartbreaking truth—he wants to hear their voice for one final time.
“I guess I’m not even worth you wasting your breath…”
His voice wavers, and his words are barely above a whisper. He looks down at his hand, and at the blood slipping through his fingers. No matter how tightly he presses, no matter how desperately he tries to hold on—it’s to no avail. There's no mercy, even for someone like him. Instead, it continues to drip down, mixing with all the rainwater beneath him. iTrapped looks down at him, their gaze now unreadable—their eyes look cold and distant, and almost unfamiliar in Chance’s eyes. They're a shell of the man he once loved. Or maybe, deep down, they feel afraid—at what this all means, and what they’ve done. But Chance can't tell anymore. He knows the end is drawing near, and thus…
He asks those damned words, the ones he had kept tucked away all this time. The ones he must say now, or he will forever hold these final moments with regret for not asking.
"Is this really all I ever meant to you?”
iTrapped looks guilty, like a man realising that he can't undo what he’s already done. They’re a horrible, terrible person—selfish to the very end, refusing to offer anything but silence. They had been using Chance all along… Their friendship never meant anything to them. They only wanted the key to the Banlands—Chance’s family treasure—and never wished for anything else. His love… was never meant to be.
But Chance? He was something far worse—he was the fool who fell in love with them anyway, despite knowing all those risks. He had made a risky bet, and chose to ignore all the signs, until it was too late. He was just paying the price of his actions. He was just… facing the consequences for loving another.
And yet, he can't help but ask himself this—did he really deserve it? He had finally opened his heart up to someone, after spending years of his life convinced he would always be alone—only for them to betray him in the end. He had the right to feel angry, didn't he? He should hate them, for what they had done to him. He shouldn't care about them… not like this.
So why… did he still find himself longing for their affection, as hollow and empty those acts might have been? Why did he find himself caring, hoping they would say something—anything—and give him a reason to forgive them. Despite everything, why did he still… love them…?
“Please, ‘Trap… Say something.”
Only silence answers him again.
Finally, he lets go. He doesn't keep his hand pressed at his wound any longer—he lets the blood spill freely now, soaking the ground beneath him.
“Chance, you—"
But Chance stops them before they can continue. He reaches out for them blindly, his fingers tugging the edge of iTrapped’s blouse. He grips it weakly, his bloodied fingertips staining the white fabric a crimson red.
iTrapped remains silent. And yet, he doesn't stop them at all, nor does he push them away. He simply lets them be—he lets them hold him, like he’s their salvation, and their own hope in this cruel, lonely world.
"Please,” Chance pleads, his voice beginning to crack. "I’m begging you… Even if you hate me, I just—”
Chance coughs again, harder this time. Blue petals slip past his lips, sticking to his chin as he struggles to breathe. And still, he continues to speak.
“Just… say something,” he sobs. "Tell me that you love me, that you feel the same way. Or tell me that you… hate me. I don't care—I just need you to tell me the truth, ‘Trap… Please."
That plea is what pushes iTrapped over the edge.
“I could never bring myself to hate you,” he admits softly, his words heavy with regret. With that, his gaze drops to the blade on the ground. Slowly, he bends down, and picks it up. Then, he slips his other hand into his pocket, and pulls out the key to the Banlands—the one he had taken from Chance, the one he had fought so hard to retrieve—and studies it quietly.
That key… It was his family treasure. He was the very thing he had sworn to protect for the rest of his life, no matter the cost. But he had failed.
iTrapped glances back at him, his expression uncertain. “I’m sorry," they mumble, but it doesn't mean much.
"…I really am.”
And at that moment, Chance’s heart shatters. He should have figured it out, even from the start—in the end, he was never meant to win.
Now, iTrapped doesn’t look at him. Maybe this was what they had wanted all along. They had never really cared all along, and those words were simply out of pity. Perhaps they had never truly loved him, not even once.
And the thought of that hurts more than anything ever could.
They… hurt him. Betrayed him, stabbed him, and broke his heart… and still, he yearns for them. Even now, he still cares about them—even when he’s nearing the end. And that is what hurts most… loving someone who would never feel the same about you. Caring for someone who never even gave a damn.
But despite everything you’ve done to me… I will still love you, iTrapped. This is the purest form of devotion I can give you.
“I know.”
This time, he chokes—and a single blue petal slips free. It drifts slowly, lifted gently by the wind, until it lands in the puddle of his own blood. The world around him starts to blur. He can't quite tell whether it's from the tears threatening to spill, or the darkness beginning to swallow him whole—but it bleeds together, until he can't tell them apart.
And even when you’ve hurt me over and over again, even when you’ve left me to die…
A tear finally breaks free. It slips down his cheek.
“And I… I still love you, iTrapped.”
But they can't take it. That truth, the knowledge that they had ruined his life—and he still cared about them.
“Shit, I… I can’t do this—”
iTrapped turns abruptly to leave, running and disappearing into the shadows. The sword slips from their grasp, and ends up being left behind, abandoned on the ground. A tool they had once used, now discarded without a second thought… just like Chance. The only thing that remained was that key, the one clenched tightly in their hand. But it's gone now… just like iTrapped.
Now, Chance is alone.
He’s bleeding out, with no one left to save him. He doesn't even have anyone to comfort him—all he has are his thoughts, racing in his mind. His heart is broken, and those cracks are beyond any repair. And this wound he has… there’s no way he’ll make it out of here alive.
And even in his last moments, he thinks about iTrapped.
This will be his last memory of them. Them fleeing, running away from the consequences of their own actions, and leaving Chance to die a lonely painful death. And this will be their last memory of him… it will be of Chance bleeding out in the alleyway, and that cruel betrayal.
Maybe they will think of him, and remember the fond memories he used to cherish… or maybe they will continue living with regret, upon realizing he had loved them so dearly, while they never felt the same. Or maybe they simply won't care—with time, they will move on, to bigger and brighter things. To better, richer people—to dreams and hopes Chance can never dare to compare himself with.
And yet… What hurts most is the fact he will never see iTrapped again. He will never get to see the light of day again. He can't say goodbye to anyone, he can't tell them how much he loves them, how much he hates them… there is no more time left for him. Everything was gone, fading away, piece by piece…
Blue hydrangeas. They feel… fitting, for this end he’ll eventually meet. It's an apology, of sorts—perhaps he always knew things would end this way, even if he never wanted to admit that fact to himself.
As for how things turned out… I’m sorry too. For letting it happen, for allowing things to spiral out of control. I should have known better, than to have loved you—to have ever dreamed that someone like me could ever be worthy of your love.
Chance’s eyes begin to flutter close, and he struggles to keep them open. His body feels numb, and the life within him begins to slip away.
I regret meeting you, iTrapped—we should have never crossed paths. That way, things would have ended better for the both of us. And yet… even after everything you’ve done to hurt me, my heart still aches, and I continue to yearn for your affection. Up until my final breath, until my last moments on this earth—I will continue to think about you, until the end of time. Despite everything… I still love you, iTrapped. And I always will—no matter what.
“Farewell, iTrapped..."
My one and only love.