Lucy stayed motionless. When she saw Nicholas, she broke into heavier tears.
— "What happened, Lucy? Are you hurt?" Nicholas asked in confusion, stepping toward her to make sure she was safe.
He reached out to hug her, but Lucy suddenly screamed and jumped back from his touch: "No!!!"
Nicholas, frightened, hadn't expected such a reaction. But he tried to stay calm and respect her impulsive refusal.
— "What's wrong with you? For God's sake, tell me!" he finally burst out, demanding an answer.
— "No…" after a pause, a desperate sob broke through. "I'm sorry…" she lifted her head and looked at him with tear-filled eyes. "I…" her words broke into sobs and sniffling.
— "Sorry for what, Lucy?" he looked at her with grief in his eyes. "Why are you apologizing?"
— "I… really… want to be yours," her words, interrupted by tears, surprised him. "But…" after a long pause she went on, "I can't…," her voice trembled, "I can't… love you…" and with those words her legs grew weak beneath her.
Nicholas stayed silent for a long time, feeling the heavy weight of her honesty pressing on his heart. His mind ran with thoughts of all kinds. He wanted to justify himself, to prove himself, he longed for her kind words, he wanted to hold her.
— "I…" he finally managed in a hoarse voice, "I can…" his fear shook in the words.
In Lucy's wet, round eyes flashed a trace of disappointment and unrest.
— "I can… love," he said, certain, the very words she longed to hear.
Lucy froze at those words. The last drops of tears slid down her cold cheeks as she looked into his eyes.
While Nicholas could not stand the long waiting and the heavy breath that hung between them, he stepped closer to Lucy without hesitation. She felt, at once, the weight of his gaze, burning through her wet hair.
She pressed herself against him and hugged him as tightly as she could with both arms. He felt the warmth around his chest and stomach, and though he was soaked, his hands loosened on her shoulders.
In his embrace, Lucy slowly began to cry. She kept sobbing, clutching a piece of his shirt between her fingers and holding on as if she feared letting go. For her, this moment stretched into eternity, a place where she was forever trapped with him.
Soon, within that embrace, Nicholas gave a helpless sigh touching the knife buried in his stomach, lodged deep in his flesh.
His cold hands stained themselves with blood as he felt the wound. Terrified, Lucy covered her mouth with trembling hands, stepping back from Nicholas while staring at the knife. She couldn't move, couldn't even sob. She tried to scream, but no voice came—fear stole it from her. Silent tears streamed down her face, blinding her eyes.
Nicholas stood stiff, afraid to move. His final glance turned toward Lucy, and then his lifeless body collapsed onto the blood-soaked floor. Holding his mortal wound, he tried to speak, but his strength was gone. Only his eyes managed one last look at Lucy.
— "NICHOLAS!" Lucy's tortured scream, broken with sobs, echoed as she fell onto his still-warm body. She collapsed to the floor beside Nicholas, looking into his eyes with a fragment of hope. In them, she still saw unbroken faith and tenderness, the love he carried away with him. With trust, he let his weary eyes close.
Choking on her tears, Lucy wrapped her arms around Nicholas's chest and laid her head on his still-fighting heart, which slowly, in small beats, began to fade away.