Chapter Text
He stood at the edge of oblivion, letting the rain mix with his tears and wash away his fears. The pain, once so sharp in his chest, now dulled to a throbbing ache- a blessing from the drugs and alcohol flooding his bloodstream. Nothing could hurt him now.
Anders Johnson smiled as he looked down. It was no wonder his brother had chosen this place. From here, he could see the beauty of the city. The rain blurred the lights and made them into stars as if in apology for hiding the real ones.
He smiled at the sight and took out his phone, his foggy mind thinking he should take a picture so he would remember it. He snapped the photo and stared at it. His first thought was to send it to his brothers so they could share in the beauty with him.
‘You have no brothers.’
The thought tore through him, sobering him slightly. That was why he was here, in the place where his baby brother had announced to the world that he no longer had the love of his life. That same brother, whom he helped talk down, hated him with a passion to rival the brotherly love he had felt at one time. Anders knew, to the very core of his being, that Axl still wished him dead.
Maybe now, he could give his brothers the one thing they all wanted- a world without Bragi. Having it be a world without Anders would just be the icing on the cake, wouldn’t it?
He moved closer to the edge and looked down. It was not fear that stilled his heart in that moment. Rather it was sorrow that filled him. He wondered if this was what Axl felt when he stood here. He shook his head. No, Axl had felt the pain of loss from only one person and the anger of betrayal from another.
All Anders felt was the hurt. He bled from the wounds his family had inflicted on him with their outright hatred of what he had done. No one had blamed Gaia- that had been reserved for him alone.
Anders closed his eyes, remembering. They had sounded so worried for him when the blood flowed from his neck. The fear in their voices sounded so real. The way Ty pleaded with him to keep his eyes open. For the first time in a very long time, he felt …loved. He wished it had been the last thing he heard.
But then Michel healed him and he had become nothing more than the butt of a joke, something to be laughed at. No mercy would be given to him for what he had done. Forgiveness would never be granted to him. Both his human heart and godly soul knew this.
Opening his eyes to look out at the cityscape one last time, he opened his arms and embraced his chosen fate.