Page 12 — The Confession
The motel room was silent except for the low hum of the rain outside. It beat against the windows in slow, deliberate rhythms — a sound that felt too calm for the storm Eli carried inside him.
Adrian sat on the edge of the bed, his shirt half unbuttoned, the fabric clinging to his damp skin. A shallow cut ran along his temple from the night before, thin but angry, proof that whatever they were running from wasn't just shadows in the dark.
Eli watched him quietly from the corner of the room. The single lamp between them painted Adrian in soft gold, his face half in light, half in shadow — like he was still caught between two worlds.
"How long are we going to keep running?" Eli asked finally, his voice small in the quiet.
Adrian didn't answer right away. He reached for the tumbler on the table, took a slow sip of whiskey, then set it down with a muted clink. "As long as we need to."
"That's not an answer."
Adrian's gaze lifted to him — steady, unreadable. "It's the only one I have right now."
Eli crossed his arms, the hurt in his chest tightening. "You dragged me into this, Adrian. You told me to trust you, to stay. But you won't tell me why we're running, or who's after us. You won't tell me anything!"
Adrian's jaw flexed. "Because the truth doesn't keep people safe, Eli. It destroys them."
Eli took a step forward, anger breaking through his fear. "Then let it destroy me!"
The words hit the air like glass shattering. Adrian froze — his composure slipping for just a heartbeat. His fingers curled into fists, the mask cracking, and for the first time, Eli saw it — the exhaustion, the weight, the guilt carved deep behind his calm.
"You think I don't want to tell you?" Adrian's voice was low, raw. "You think it's easy, keeping you in the dark? Every night I wonder when this will end, and if you'll still be here when it does."
Eli blinked, the anger faltering. "Then tell me. Please."
Adrian stood, slow and deliberate. The air between them felt heavy — electric. He walked closer, stopping just inches away. "You really want to know who I am?"
Eli nodded, even though his pulse screamed otherwise.
Adrian's breath was warm when he spoke again. "Before I met you, I worked for a private network — the kind that cleans up after people who have too much to lose. We called it 'The Division.' They called us ghosts. We erased problems. People, evidence, names."
Eli's breath caught. "You… killed for them?"
Adrian's eyes dropped to the floor. "Sometimes. Not because I wanted to — because I didn't know how to stop. You don't just walk away from The Division. They own you until you're dead."
He looked up again, eyes burning. "But then I found something — someone — I wasn't supposed to. You."
Eli's throat went dry. "Me?"
"You were on a list," Adrian said quietly. "Your name came across my desk three weeks before we met. I was sent to find you."
The world tilted. "You—what?"
Adrian took a slow breath. "The file said you were a witness. Something you saw, something you weren't supposed to. They wanted you gone."
Eli staggered back, his voice trembling. "So you were supposed to kill me."
Adrian didn't deny it. His silence said enough.
Eli shook his head, trying to breathe, trying to understand. "Then why didn't you?"
Adrian stepped closer, his expression breaking. "Because when I found you, I couldn't. You were standing in the rain, waiting for a bus that wasn't coming. You looked at me like I wasn't a monster. And I—"
He stopped, his voice faltering. "I saw a chance to be human again."
The room fell silent.
Eli's chest rose and fell with shallow breaths. He wanted to scream, to run, to hate him. But all he could see was the pain in Adrian's eyes — the man who had carried this secret, not out of malice, but out of fear that truth would ruin the fragile thing between them.
"You should hate me," Adrian said finally, his voice breaking. "I deserve it."
Eli shook his head slowly. "I don't."
"Why not?"
"Because you didn't pull the trigger." Eli's voice trembled. "You could have, but you didn't."
Adrian's eyes searched his, confusion and emotion tangled in equal measure. "You're not supposed to forgive me, Eli."
"I'm not forgiving you," Eli whispered. "I'm choosing to believe there's more to you than the monster you think you are."
For a long moment, neither of them moved. Then Adrian reached up, hesitating before brushing a strand of hair from Eli's face. The touch was tender, fragile — like he was afraid he might break him.
"You shouldn't look at me like that," Adrian murmured.
"Like what?"
"Like I'm worth saving."
Eli's breath hitched. "Maybe you are."
Something in Adrian cracked then — something he'd held shut for far too long. His hands cupped Eli's face, his thumb tracing the corner of his lips. "You don't know what you're saying."
"I do."
And before either of them could stop it, their lips met.
The kiss was slow, desperate, full of everything words couldn't hold — guilt, longing, need. Adrian's hands trembled against Eli's skin, while Eli melted into him, tasting both whiskey and regret.
For a few seconds, the world disappeared. There was no Division, no danger — just two broken people clinging to something real in a world built on lies.
When they pulled apart, Adrian rested his forehead against Eli's. "You shouldn't trust me."
"Too late," Eli whispered.
Adrian let out a shaky breath, half laugh, half sigh. "You have no idea what you've just done to me."
But before he could say more, the lamp flickered. Once. Twice.
Then the lights went out.
Eli stiffened. "Adrian?"
Adrian's body went tense. He reached for the drawer beside the bed, pulling out a small gun. "Get behind me."
"What's happening—"
"Shh." Adrian's tone shifted — no longer soft, no longer broken. The soldier in him returned, cold and precise.
Outside, tires crunched on gravel. A low hum — a car engine. Then footsteps.
Eli's heart raced. "They found us?"
Adrian didn't answer, but the look in his eyes said everything.
A shadow passed by the window. The doorknob rattled once.
Adrian moved quickly, pulling Eli toward the bathroom. "Stay here. Don't come out unless I tell you."
"Adrian—"
"I mean it, Eli!" His voice was harsh, but his hand lingered on Eli's cheek for just a heartbeat before he turned and shut the door.
Eli pressed against the cold tile, every sound magnified — the click of the safety, the creak of floorboards, the faint echo of voices outside.
Then — a gunshot.
Eli flinched, a cry catching in his throat. He pressed a hand to his mouth, trembling, heart slamming against his ribs.
Silence. Then another shot. And another.
He couldn't stay still. He couldn't. He opened the door just enough to peek — smoke, shadows, and Adrian standing in the middle of it all, his gun steady, his face unreadable.
Two men lay motionless on the floor.
Adrian's eyes met Eli's from across the room. The sight was devastating — blood on his hands, but relief in his eyes.
"It's over," he said, voice low, trembling.
Eli stepped out slowly, his gaze never leaving Adrian. "You said you didn't want to hurt anyone again."
"I didn't." Adrian lowered the gun. "But they would've taken you."
The words sank deep. Eli moved closer, his voice breaking. "Then what happens now?"
Adrian looked at the bodies, then at Eli. "Now… we stop running."
"Together?"
Adrian hesitated — then nodded. "If you still want that."
Eli stepped closer, his hand finding Adrian's. "I told you. I'm not going anywhere."
The rain outside grew louder, washing the blood from the cracked window frame, like the world itself was trying to cleanse what had just happened.
Adrian leaned in, his voice a whisper. "You shouldn't have chosen me, Eli."
Eli smiled faintly through tears. "Maybe you should start believing I did."
And for the first time, Adrian didn't fight it. He let himself believe.
As dawn crept through the clouds, they sat toge
ther in silence, the weight of the night still heavy but no longer unbearable.
Whatever came next — danger, redemption, or death — they would face it side by side.