An Liyue's mind went stark blank.
She wasn't falling anymore.
And the fact that she was actually... floating!... Didn't scare her as much as she watched herself draw nearer to the figure standing at the edge of the rooftop.
Her heart pounded violently. " No! No please, let me go. " She struggled eagerly to pull herself down but all to no avail.
Tears rolled sideways out of her eyes as she got nearer.
Worst part was that it was actually happening inch by inch.
Therefore, killing her slowly as with each seconds that pass, the figure on the rooftop became more clearer and more menacing, like death itself was drawing near.
And yes, it really was.
From the distance she was, she noticed the rain fell around him, yet not a single drop seemed to touch his body.
Heh!
" This! This is just a nightmare " she comforted herself.
" A–a nightmare right?, Right? " She asked in trepidation to no one in particular.
And then, a force suddenly pushed her directly at his feet.
" Ah! " She gasped. She was faced down, her knees on floor, she didn't want to look up.
she felt she was going to turn into a pillar of salt if she looked up.
It was silent.
No, An liyue didn't like the silence.
She could feel his red eyes gazing into her...soul!
And then, his voice finally cut into the cold air, exactly like the one she heard in the elevator.
" Trying to die? "
It was... calm.
Not that soothing type, rather the type that said, " I've caught you now, and you can't escape...forever "
" Unfortunately for you... " His lips curved slightly.
" I haven't decided whether you should die yet. "
A cold shiver ran down her spine just in line with the wind that accompanied the rain.
Her heart hammered.
All she just wanted to do wasn't scream, wasn't run either.
Just simply, disappear!
Vanish! Into thin air.
But, she knew better than anyone that there was no hope of that happening.
Before she could think of what next, he crouched down to her.
That instant she felt her insides shaking as though she was thrown into the Pacific Ocean.
" Do'ou have an idea what would've happened if you had actually hit the ground? " Came his voice again, deep and icy, rolling through the rain.
" at such heights, every bone in your leg would've snapped first, and then your pelvis would collapse under the impact, ribs fracturing and organs you didn't even deem vulnerable would get punctured. And your head... "
He paused letting her flinch visibly.
He knew the exact effect it was having on her.
A smile hooked at the corners of his lips as he continued, " don't even think about it. And even if, you had—by impossible means, survived?...the internal bleeding... You'd wished you never opened your eyes the next morning. "
An liyue's knees buckled.
Of course she couldn't maintain her balance after hearing what exactly could've been her fate if she had actually fell down.
She could barely feel the rain that soaked her hair, stinging her skin.
" Next time you try to take your own life... without my acknowledgement... It'd be worse than falling off this building... " He leaned close to her and she swore an extraordinary coldness emanating from him engulfed her rendering goosebumps along her arm.
" This is your first warning...there might not be a second "
With that he stood up gracefully and pressed some digits on his phone.
In no time, a helicopter appeared overhead, it's blades spun furiously as the rushing wind from it slapped An Liyue's face adding to the already existing cold from the rain biting her skin.
It landed and then Han Raviel commanded, " get in! "
...
An liyue thought she didn't hear well and so remained fixed on the ground, not expecting Han Raviel's voice to sound directly close to her ears. " Should I repeat myself? "
" Huh?"
An liyue immediately sprang up and ran directly to the helicopter as though some one had just told her an asteroid was about hitting her head.
And then, " get going " Raviel ordered as helicopter began lifting above ground level.
As she sat directly beside him, she found herself wondering if she should breath.
Was it too loud?
What if it disturbed him.
And so, she resulted to a ridiculous method.
Breath in ...
Hold it for a moment,
Then breathe out.
Again and again, she continued the strange routine, not untill Han Raviel's voice interrupted her act.
"If you don't make it before we arrive... "
He didn't need to complete his statement for Liyue to understand.
She panicky swallowed.
Breath!
Breath An liyue!
Breath normal.
At that instant she felt like she had actually forgotten how to breath.
Was it too fast? Too slow?
Damnit!
An liyue had never felt an oppressing force like the one Han Raviel exuded in her entire life.
The more she thought of the fact that she was sitting next to a the Han Raviel that everyone tried their most possible best to avoid, the more she felt like shrinking.
It was just like sitting close to a ticking time bomb...
You can't tell when it'd explode.
The silence in the air hung as liyue constantly blew hot air into her palm.
Her eyes shinning in the dark of the night.
Sleep?
Haha no! It sounded like a taboo in An liyue's head.
The view down was inexplicably beautiful.
And under normal circumstances, An liyue would've maybe forgotten her fear for heights and even taken a few pictures if she was on vacation.
But tonight wasn't one of those moments.
It was more like a journey to her execution.
Sooner than An liyue expected, the helicopter began descending.
And then, it finally reached the ground level, landing on a cliff.
The moment Han Raviel stepped out An liyue didn't hesitate to follow suit.
An liyue stood quietly aside as she watched as Han Raviel walked towards the edge of the cliff.
Below was water flowing peacefully, dark and endless under the night sky.
Han Raviel just simply stood and stared.
And then upon looking closer, An liyue noticed a subtle change in his expression.
Unlike the usual cold expression, this time is felt colder...more distant.
And then, a flicker of red suddenly flared in his eyes...