Lifetime Suspended in a Moment

9:00 AM Saturday, Heather's Apartment

Everything had passed and it seemed like things were going back to normal for Heather and Clyde. They had gotten through quite the hardship and they were finally back home after all that had happened between them. While new circumstances seemed to be arising, the two of them were finally at what seemed to be some sort of peace. A few days ago both of them were in the hospital. Heather seemed to be doing quite well now after the match, but Clyde seemingly still had some time to rest before he fully recovered.

Now, back at their home at Heather's apartment, Clyde was doing just that in their bedroom while Heather stood in the bathroom, staring at herself in the mirror after waking up an hour before. She had changed and done up her dress, making herself comfortable on the outside, but something was bothering her on the inside. "...Fucking Conway.." Heather would let out, shaking her head as she turned on the faucet, splashing her face with the cold water that was flowing from it.

She clenched her fists afterwards, resting them on the sink as she bit her lip. Inside there was quite the battle going on. The words that Kelly kept hammering into her during their match were running through her head. She honestly felt quite a bit at fault for all that had happened and was wondering what to do. This nearly fatal tragedy had occurred almost immediately after she had been 'granted' the care of Clyde from his sister Bonnie. It just seemed like all too ridiculous timing to be just a coincidence.

Keeping herself from tearing up, she would grab a towel and dry off her face before letting out a long sigh and turning off the faucet. Opening the door, which led from the bathroom to the bedroom, she would lean on the doorframe, hugging her arms under her chest as she looked at Clyde, not checking first if he was awake or not. "Clyde...I uhm...I have something...I need to talk with you about."

For the first time in nearly two months, Clyde was sleeping on his own free will. No longer was he forced to remain locked in a deep slumber after being shot from afar by an unknown assailant. He could finally sleep in his own bed, with the love of his life and let all his worries dissipate. Clyde felt as if he had been given a 2nd chance at life and that everything was going great for him now and surely for Heather was well, who no longer had to worry about his well being.

Although much of his body was still stiff and ached heavily, Clyde was sound asleep without a single care and didn't eve notice Heather waking up and leaving the bed that morning. Instead he wouldn't be awoken until Heather's voice called out to him, Clyde then closed his eyes tighter as he squirmed in the bed for a moment and stretched out. "Hmmm... 5 more minutes babe... Come back to bed..." Clyde would whine with his face buried in the pillow as he began to stir, taking a moment for him to adjust before he finally opened up one of his eyes and looked up at Heather while much of his face was buried in the pillow.

"Wassup...?" He'd ask her with a slight yawn.

Heather would watch as Clyde squirmed around on the bed a moment before he stretched out. The words that he said seemed to strike her hard for some reason and she could feel a heavy pain develop in her chest from what she was about to say. She really didn't want to talk about such a thing with him, but she felt it was only right, she wanted all this to end.

"Well Clyde..I've uhm....I've been thinking about a few things.." Heather would say, averting her eyes from his look as she talked, leaning against the door frame still. She hugged herself close as the words kept repeating in her head over and over. She would keep replaying the events that all lead up to this day and couldn't think of one time where there was nothing troubling happening in which now she thought because of her.

"Well...first..I guess...I just want to ask you a question..I..I know this might sound weird but..be honest with me alright? Just...when was..the last time you were...beat up so badly a-and...shot...trapped in a coma like you were...or..is this the first time?" Heather would say, unsure how to put it and she knew the way that she worded it probably sounded quite odd, but that's the way she let it out.

After stretching himself out along the bed with a long yawn, Clyde would sit up and look at Heather attentively as he waited to hear what she had to say, but noted how troubled she looked. Clyde felt that normally if Heather had something to say she would get his attention and flat out say it and couldn't understand why she was being so hesitant right now. "Yeeaaah...? What kinda things?" Clyde would ask before hearing the rest of Heather's question, which caused him to raise his eyebrow curiously, finding her question quite odd indeed.

"I've taken quite a few bad beat downs ever since I came to Japan and I've only been shot once before back home in Texas, that was almost year ago... But yeah... This is the first time I got beat down, shot and put into a coma, especially the coma part..." Clyde would say in matter of fact tone of voice before he looked to Heather with a curious gaze.

"Why you askin' this all of a sudden, babe? Somethin' up? You look like somethin's botherin' ya..." Clyde would declare with a look of concern on his face, worried about Heather, who looked a bit troubled in his eyes.

"That's...what I thought.." Heather would say, rubbing her arms slightly as she spoke. She thought to herself a little more, resting her head against the doorframe as she let out a long sigh. She'd keep glancing over at Clyde, wanting to let some kind of words out, but she just couldn't think of anything. She remained silent for a good minute before finally speaking up.

"I...promised that I would take care of you...that I would keep you out of trouble...and you saw what happened..well...saw isn't really the right way to put it.." Heather would say, her emotions boiling inside her as her heart was beating so heavily it felt like it was going to burst out of her chest.

"I promised..you...and Bonnie..and myself...and it's because of me..that the exact opposite happened." Heather would hang her head, completely averting her eyes from Clyde as she spoke to him. "I...think...I'm hurting you...ruining you...more than anything else.."

"Yeaaahh... But what about it?" Clyde would ask curiously as he continued to wonder what Heather was trying to get at by bringing up such a subject. Upon responding, Clyde would sit up on the bed and look at Heather, noting how troubled she appeared to be and would wait in silence for a moment until she decided to speak up. Clyde would in turn listen to what Heather had to say intently, even though he was rather confused at the moment by what she was trying to talk about. Heather was referring to how she made a promise to Clyde, Bonnie and even herself that he would be kept out of trouble, but of course, trouble found him instead.

Upon hearing this Clyde would chuckle a little, but just slightly, briefly smiling at Heather for a moment as he tried to console her. "Heh... What are you upset 'cause Nha and Sha got me while you were busy dealing with Conway? Lia Cross told me Conway was behind everything. You need to relax babe, none of us knew what Conway was planning. Take it easy... What's done is done... Don't stress yourself out." Clyde would comment casually and carelessly as if it was no big deal before he heard Heather's next batch of words that caused him to instantly frown.

"Hey now that ain't true." Clyde would say as Heather declared that she was doing that opposite of what she intended. Clyde then narrowed his eyes bitterly a bit once he heard Heather mention how she was hurting him and ruining him more than anything. Clyde couldn't believe what he was hearing from Heather, this sounded nothing like her, it caused Clyde to be concerned, so much that he slid himself to the edge of the bed and placed his feet on the floor, struggling a bit to stand for a moment as he forced himself up, nearly falling over before adjusted himself and began to slowly make his way towards Heather with a heavy limp, trying to place his hands on her shoulders to calm her.

"Heather... You gotta relax babe... Im alive... Nobody died. And you could of promised Bonnie all you wanted but not even she kept me out of trouble as much as you did. Why are you thinking like this? You ain't hurtin or runin' me... That's for damn sure. But Im not a child Heather, you can't control everything that happens to me..." Clyde would comment as he tried to cup Heather's chin and try to make her face him, where he would look her in the eyes while attempting to comfort her worries and fears, until he realized something.

"A-Are you... Blamin' yourself for me getting beat up and shot? Why would you think that? You didn't pay them whores and fire that gun off..."

"Well..yes that's part of it..don't know why that's so hard to believe." Heather would say in response to Clyde's first 'guess' about what she was worried about. The more she thought about it as she stood there, the more she felt that her mind was made up. As the man that she loved more than anything sat before her, she wanted what was best for him and nothing else. It seemed her mind was telling her that this was the best action.

As Clyde got himself up, Heather would continue staring at the ground, not paying attention and not noticing his advancing towards her until she would feel his hands on her shoulders. She would go to turn away more, but would be stopped as he cupped her chin, bringing her face up to look at him. As always when she was talking with him, each and every single one of his words would hit her heart, making her think about it in detail. His comforting words was making her slightly reconsider, but still, she held onto the thought that she was causing him pain.

"Clyde I...You have to understand I...really ....Ive BEEN thinking about this quite a bit it's..I..." Heather would let out, trying to fish for the words that she wanted to bring out but for some reason they weren't there. Her reasoning was clear to her in her head, but she couldn't let it out verbally it seemed. That was until she heard the next words from Clyde.

"Well no! But...You said you know who did! What you don't know is that she wouldn't have even had a reason to do it if it wasn't for me! If it wasn't for that time that I punched her she would have no reason to come after you like that!" Heather would say, yelling now as tears were flowing from her eyes. "Clyde she said it herself! The only reason she did that to you was to get to me! You didn't deserve that, I did! It's not fair that you have to suffer for my temper. So I can't do it anymore Clyde, I just can't. I can't put you in danger like that I...I don't think we should stay together..I don't want this to keep happening..Don't trt to confinve me otherwise Clyde my mind has been made up...I'll leave so you just lie back down and rest." Heather would say, swatting Clyde's arm away as he turned and walked out of the bedroom right away without stopping to hear Clyde's response.

She would make quick work to the apartment door, her tears flowing from her face as she left, quickly running to the stairs and out of the apartment where the rain seemed to be pouring heavily. There, she would keep going, walking fast but not running. She didn't have a clear destination, but she kept going.

As Clyde took in Heather's words, he instantly understood where she was coming from with her feelings of guilt but was ultimately shocked and surprised to hear that it was in fact Heather herself who triggered Kelly's wrath and the attack on him. It left him silent for a moment as he stared into Heather's tearing eyes, wanting to say something to counter her words and comfort her further, but Heather went on and expressed her pains and guilt regarding everything that had happened to Clyde.

The worst thing for Clyde to hear came when Heather said "I don't think we should stay together". Hearing that caused Clyde's eyes to widen as the world around suddenly stopped and froze in place, never in a million years after everything Heather had told him and promised him would he ever think that Heather wanted to leave him, even if it was to protect him. It was such a hard thing for him to hear and it made it only loathe himself in that one moment, realizing that the one that was making her leave was because of his own weakness, that he wasn't strong enough to hold back Nha and Sha, or not fall comatose after being shot. Had he been strong enough, he felt she'd never be saying these things and she wouldn't be blaming herself.

"No...No! Wait! I can't! I ain't gonna! Heather don't go!!" Clyde would let out after Heather swatted his arms away and began walking away before she began to run off, prompting Clyde to walk on his bad legs as fast as he could, limping past the door way after Heather, fighting through the pain in his legs, struggling to keep himself standing up as best he could.

"Heather! Dammit girl, wait up! Please!" Clyde would yell down the hallway as she staggered after Heather, nearly falling over for a moment before adjusting himself and continuing his chase after her.

Heather would hear Clyde's yells as she hurried away, a deep pain kept assaulting her in her chest, but she told herself what she was doing was for the best, that both she and he would be thankful for it down the road. However, each time she heard his voice echo through the halls as she left, making her way down the stairs and out, it killed her inside. Her mind was asking herself how she could do this, how she could end it, but the other half of her was telling her that it was for the best, that it was going to stop all the problems.

Heather would make it out into the pouring rain, stopping outside the entrance to the apartment for a second, staring up at the sky before looking back at the door for a second. She would bite her lip, remaining there for a few seconds before finally taking off down the sidewalk. Each step seemed to send a jolt of pain to her heart as she thought about what she'd done. "Fuck...damnit...This is supposed to be a good thing.." She would say to herself as she continued to walk.

What was supposed to be a long trek, getting away from that apartment that they lived in, only ended up lasting just down the street as she would stop, not being able to hold anything in anymore. She would lean up against a pole at the end of the sidewalk, letting the tears fall at first before she would break out into a full cry, letting it all out. Her legs would shake a bit before her body would slowly slide down the poll until she was in a sitting position, her knees up as she curled herself up against the poll. She would bury her face in her hands, crying her eyes out as the whole thing kept running through her head.

In her mind, this was the best way, but she felt as if she should just let out all her feelings now, get it over with. As she sat there, soaked from the rain and her tears, she would attempt to let out every last inch of her inner feelings, trying to get rid of them completely for the better for Clyde and her.

Just less than 24 hours ago, Clyde had reawakened from the edge of death to see his beloved and be with Heather once more. The fact that she was ending it all so soon was almost a nightmare for Clyde know the one person who became his will to live was now leaving him. It was unbearable for Clyde, he felt his heart racing at this point, not wanting her to leave him and say goodbye. He loved her so much, he didn't know how to live life without her anymore. Knowing that one person he loved most was going to leave him because he was weak was bringing tears to Clyde's eyes, making him hate himself even more. He was supposed to be tough and never cry, but he couldn't help it now.

Seeing Heather take the stairs, Clyde knew he wouldn't last in his current state and was forced to take the elevator, limping towards it and hitting the button, he anxiously waited for the doors to open, feeling like it was an eternity just between waiting for the doors to open until finally, they did and Clyde staggered inside, hitting the "1" button and hoping he could catch Heather in time before she ran off.

He fought to hold himself up using the railing in the elevator until it opened. His legs felt heavy and almost lifeless, but he could still make himself stand. He fought hard to do just that and keep himself up until the doors finally opened and Clyde spilled out into the main lobby, looking around frantically until he limped his way towards the front doors, pushing several people out of his way as he rushed towards those doors, determined to make it outside in the pouring rain and stop her. Which he eventually did, bursting through the doors hastily and seeing her curled up against a pole, just down the street.

"H-Heather!" Clyde would choke out as loud as he could as he began to slowly stagger forth in the pouring rain, trying to pick up speed and reach her quickly. But as he did this, his legs would give out, causing the Texan to immediately fall forward as his legs gave out, hitting the concrete with a heavy thud just in front of the apartment doors.

"Nooo..." He muttered to himself as he looked up to Heather, he couldn't walk, his legs were heavy and weak, but he saw that his love was right there in front of him. He couldn't give up, he couldn't say goodbye, he couldn't let go of the woman who made him happy, the woman whom Clyde wanted to spend the rest of his life with and with all his might, Clyde would force himself back onto his feet slowly, gritting his teeth as tears flowed from his eyes to fight through the pain before slowly marching forward, limping up to Heather before finally collapsing to his knees in front of her in the pouring rain just a few steps away, looking at her with a teary eyed gaze full of so many emotions such as pain, fear and ultimately love.

"Heather... P-Please... I Love You..." Muttered Clyde as he stood on his knees in the pouring rain that mixed with the tears on his face, staring at his lover with a gaze that begged for her not to leave, a gaze that wanted to promise her that everything was going to be alright.