forum •Favorite Liar• [one/one]

Started November 26, 2022 by @Dayzed forum

tune

( :'))

Usually, Tamryn was somewhat of a flirt when it came to others, but with Andy it was different. He was too shy around her, like he was afraid to mess things up. Sure, he was open and they poked fun at each other now and again, but he could never flirt with her and it had only been recently that he learned why. She held a very special place in his heart, she wasn't some cheap fling he had considered possibly dating. Andy was the one. The one he saw a future with, the one who was always there, the one he wanted to wake up to in the morning.
"I wish I would have said my piece sooner," He said softly, feeling her finger brush against his lip as he spoke. The redness was starting to pass- he still felt very hot and bothered, but in a good way. His eyes met Andy's as she ran her hand through his hair.
And it happened again.
Still, he melted again. He could do this forever, live in this moment forever if the universe so permitted it, but like all good things, it came to an end. The thing was, now, he could do this any time with Andy's permission of course, and he'd get that warm feeling that flooded his body, the addicting bliss that made everything seem right.

Tamryn searched Andy's eyes when she spoke about having a relationship with him. Slowly, a huge smile crept onto his face until it completely lit up, and just like that, he looked like a little kid who had tried ice cream for the first time and discovered how flavorful the world could be.
Tamryn didn't miss a beat and jumped to his feet, taking Andy with him, he hugged her and spun her around in a circle. He held her so tight like he wasn't close enough to her already.
"You make me so happy Andy, I don't think anything could make me happier except when you say yes when I marry you," He said, letting out a playful laugh that wasn't filtered or restrained. You could tell that he had never been this happy before in his life by the way he seemed so free at that moment.

He was so genuinely happy, and Andy loved seeing him this way. Sure, he had been happy before when they were together, but never before had he been this elated about anything. She wanted to see him like this more often, with his bright smile and playful laugh, and she wished the moment would last forever.

Andy smiled and clung to Tamryn as he held her. Despite the exhaustion that had been in her eyes just a few moments before, she was still as happy as he was as he spun her around. When he mentioned eventually getting married, she could feel her heartbeat pick up. Normally, if someone mentioned marriage when they first started dating, she would’ve been creeped out. But with Tamryn, it was different. She knew without a doubt that he was the one she eventually wanted to marry.

“I love you, Tam,” she said softly. “I love you so much…”

She began gently kissing his face— from his lips to his cheeks to his forehead, before she eventually rested her head on his shoulder.

Tamryn's laugh eventually died down, but he giggled now and then, being too giddy to stop the excitement that overtook him, especially when Andy peppered him with kisses.
As Andy rested her head on his shoulder he swayed her back and forth gently, at a slow pace as if he were dancing with her, rubbing her back in a soothing manner.
"I love you too, love of my life.." He whispered back to her. Now he could genuinely use that line "the love of my life". He held her for a few more minutes, his eyes growing heavy. He felt tired, yet safe, this was the best moment he had had since they had become friends. If he died right now, he would go happy despite the atrocities he had committed.
"We should go eat now though, I don't want your hard work to grow cold," He said, almost feeling the pang of hunger hit him.

Sitting at the table, as he ate, Tamryn hummed a song softly. He never did that. Unless he was in a really good mood. He kept his eyes focused on his food but they'd glance up at Andy to admire her after he decided his eyes had been off of her for too long. She was a delight to look at and he was proud to be hers now.
As they spoke and reminisced about the years they had met, leading up to this point, Tamryn talked with such enthusiasm, like everything bad had disappeared. He was living in the moment again, something he hadn't done in a long time. It was always "I need to get this done" or "I won't have time to do this" always thinking ahead to the future instead of enjoying the moments right here right now.

(if you don't have anything else to add, we can time skip to when they talk about what happened that day and Andy's kidnapping situation :0)

(( Ooh yes yes sounds good :0 ))

After they’d officially started dating, Andy couldn’t seem to keep herself away from him. She held him tightly as they were in the living room, and when they were at the kitchen table to eat, she’d reached over and gently touch his hand or his face. Even when they went back to the living room to discuss all that had happened, Andy still held his hand, keeping in her lap as they talked.

Their conversation in the living room had started out normal enough. They were reminiscing over the good old days, but Andy knew that they would eventually have to speak about what had happened. It wasn’t something they had to ignore, especially considering that she was supposed to meet up with the kidnappers in an hour or two.

“So, Tam, you know how I said we needed to talk when we get home about… well, secrets I’ve been keeping from you?” She sighed softly as she gently stroked the back of his hand with her thumb. “Something happened yesterday. I was kidnapped.”

She wanted to say that in a way that wouldn’t make Tamryn so enraged, but she didn’t know how else to put it. She was kidnapped, and there was no way to put that lightly. She explained the whole situation to him— how the men had followed her, taken her to an empty building, and questioned her for hours— before she told him about what they were making her do. She had to retrieve her uncle’s files from his home and give them to the criminals.

“I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, my love,” she said softly. “I was too scared. I was worried about what would happen if I told anyone, and I thought I could handle it on my own. But… I can’t.”

She leaned over and rested her forehead against his shoulder, clearly exhausted. She was still terrified to tell Tamryn as she had no idea what he would do, but she needed help. She couldn’t do this all on her own anymore.

(small heads up, i completely changed Tamryn's backstory because it didn't make that much sense before, and while what i wrote at the beginning of the rp won't make sense now that it's changed, just pretend it didn't happen lmfao i'm still fleshing out this boi since he's new and i think i'm getting somewhere with him)

Tamryn absolutely loved having Andy this close to him, he welcomed the small touches here and there and while Tamryn wasn't much of a physical contact type of person, he stuck close to Andy, as if saying in his own way I want to be with you for as long as I can.

As the conversation progressed into the evening, Tamryn found himself talking more and being open with Andy, something he hadn't had in a while, not so deeply like this.
It wasn't long before their conversation started heading toward the much darker place he had been dreading. His excitement and the good mood he had been in seemed to fade a little when Andy spoke about secrets she had been keeping from him. He didn't say anything, expecting it to be something along the lines of 'met with the wrong people' or 'was getting stalked', to which it already made him uneasy to think she had been in that type of situation. He looked down at their hands and the way Andy try to keep him calm as she proceeded to continue, knowing that he would flip out.
Tamryn heard nothing else, but the word 'kidnapped'. Kidnapped?!
He tried not to freak out, instead squeezing Andy's hand gently. He wanted to tell her how could she keep something so important from him?? But Tamryn was in no position to say anything.

As Andy explained the situation, Tamryn had a single expression frozen on his face, a slight boiling anger that he was trying to keep under wraps. He didn't want to scare Andy again or have her worry he might do something stupid, which he definitely would.
Even though Andy apologized, Tamryn was still sour about the thought that someone had been so bold to pull something like that on Andy. It wasn't her fault though and his anger wasn't directed at her, though he did feel sad at the thought that Andy felt like she couldn't come to him with this type of information.
"It's okay because now you're not going to do this alone. I'll be there with you. I'm sorry those bastards did that to you." Tamryn's voice sounded threatening at the end, a low growl leaving his throat as he didn't know what else to do but be frustrated.
Still, he squished Andy into a hug, holding her and leaning his head against hers.

( ooh yes I love the changes; it makes sense why Tamryn would get so flustered over Andy taking care of him. TT^TT and yes characters can take so so long to flesh out ))

As soon as Tamryn wrapped his arms around her, she knew everything would be alright. Sure, it didn’t change the situation or anything that had happened that day, but he reminded her that there was still good in her life. That there was still a reason to hope for the future. She just had to keep herself afloat for now and everything would be fine.

She planted a few kisses on his shoulder before she continued. “I have to be there in around an hour,” she said softly, her hands trembling slightly as she clung to him. “I don’t know what to do.”

She had thought long and hard about the situation all day. She didn’t want to simply hand over the files to them, but she felt like she had no other choice. She knew they could track her down again like they did at the restaurant, and she didn’t want to see what they would do if she didn’t follow through with their plan.

“Tamryn, if you go with me, you have to stay in the car,” she whispered. “I know you hate that idea, but I’m supposed to show up alone. What do you think they’ll do if you come with me?”

She let out a shaky breath, sliding her hand into his hair as she pulled him closer. She wished that all of this chaos would simply go away. Yes, it could never be that easy, but all she wanted was to be with Tamryn and live a life in peace.

“One day, I want us to get away from here,” she said. “Once everything is better, I want to leave, go somewhere away from people and all this mess.”

(yesss ;-;)

In an hour?! The slight shaking of her hands, made him want to keep her here just so she'd be safe, but these men would surely come after them if Andy didn't show and it could be a lot worse than cooperating. They just wanted the files…right? Giving over the pieces of paper was better than putting their lives at risk. Maybe that's all they wanted, then they would leave them alone, but even Tamryn knew that was being too hopeful. Things like these never ended well.
"You give them the files," Tamryn said finally after thinking about it some. "I'll come with you in case anything happens. If they told you to come alone, I'll hide somewhere just to keep an eye on you-" He began to ramble until Andy told him he couldn't go with her. That he had to stay in the car. He was silent.
He didn't know what to do, he didn't want her going in alone but also, what if they tricked her? What if they said one thing and then changed their minds? You never knew with people like this, they were unpredictable.
A dangerous thought crossed Tamryn's mind right then. What was….one more lie? They had said no more lying, but Andy was putting herself at risk, what if something happened to her? Was he just supposed to trust these men? These men that had kidnapped Andy? Hell no.
But he also couldn't lie, he didn't want to break her trust.
"Andy please don't do this alone, let me come with you. I'll stay hidden, you won't even know I'm there, I promise!" He pleaded with her, wondering if this was the right choice. This could go both ways. South, real quick, or smoothly if they never found out.

Tamryn silently agreed with Andy. He wanted that too.
"Absolutely, we can make that happen" He reassured her. "I'll figure something out- we'll figure something out…but for now, we gotta take this one step at a time." It was nice to think about the future when they didn't have to worry about their current situation, but there was also the big if.
If things went their way, there were too many unknown factors that could ruin this for them.

Andy pulled in a shaky breath as she listened to Tamryn plead with her. She wanted to believe that they could pull this off together, that Tamryn could hide nearby in case anything went wrong, but her mind kept wandering to the worst scenario. What if something did happen? What if they ended shooting and killing her or Tamryn because of their actions?

“I’m sorry, Tam. I know you want to come with me, but.. what if they found you?” She glanced up at him, her grip tightening slightly on his hand. “Remember the man who chased us from the restaurant? That was one of the men who took me. These people aren’t just lowlife criminals who are bad at their jobs. They know what they’re doing, and you know what happens when people get involved with stuff like that. What almost happened to me.”

She rested her head on his shoulder, part of her regretting what she had just said. She didn’t mean to bring up what had happened that morning, but it was true. If Andy hadn’t looked up and spoken to Tamryn, she might’ve been dead, and he would’ve been completely heartbroken. The same thing could happen in this instance. However, she also understood his side of the situation. He wanted to make sure she stayed safe, and she knew that he would put his own life on the life to make that happen.

“But I’ll make a compromise with you,” she said softly. “We’ll turn on our locations on our phones so that you can see where we’re at at all times. And if anything happens, I’ll send you an emergency text.”

There were major flaws to this plan. It would only work if they let her keep her phone. But Tamryn needed some sort of hope to hold onto that everything would be okay and that he could find her if anything went wrong.

Andy smiled at his last comment, gently brushing the hair out of his face. She then cuddled close to him, resting her head against his chest.

“I don’t know if it’s strange to say this so soon,” she whispered, “but whether it’s here or somewhere else, I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

So what if they found me? Tamryn thought to himself as soon as Andy said it. It wasn't that he was being cocky and thought he could take out these people, but he sure as hell would put up a fight if he had to. At Andy's next words, he paused, blushing a little. Okay….so now he was a lowlife that was apparently bad at his job…
He thought about it and yeah, it checked out, but for some reason, he liked to think he could at least manage. Even if these were highly trained experts.
Well, maybe not highly trained experts, he wasn't sure he could take on people of that caliber. Tamryn narrowed his eyes when the compromise was mentioned. He still didn't like it.
But…he supposed it was the only way. If Andy wasn't willing to let him go with her, no matter what, then he'd have to respect it. What if it got her killed? He stayed silent for a second.
"Alright, I'll take that compromise," He said finally. "How long do you think it would take to exchange everything? I don't want to sound like an ass that's being controlling, but it would be helpful to know just in case you can't get to your phone in time." He needed more reassurance, there were too many what ifs and he wasn't fully convinced.

Tamryn wrapped his arms around her as she rested her head on him. He was laid back on the couch at this point and he looked tired with all the talk about meeting these people. They still had to talk about his situation but Tamryn was dragging this out. It wasn't that he was trying to hide things from Andy, but it was really embarrassing- exhausting to talk about his situation. He wished he could take it back, but on the other hand, he probably would have made the same mistake again regardless. It was just in his nature to go for things that sounded too good to be true when he was cornered in a desperate situation.
He smiled at Andy's words.
"Me too, we should start making plans on moving to like Europe or something" He joked, though, it wasn't much of a joke for him. If he was going to break away from the said organization and they would be looking for him, it would be best to just disappear from their radar completely.

Andy paused for a moment before answering him. There was telling how long it would take. A few minutes, maybe even hours. It all depended on what they needed from as she doubted this task simply included dropping the files off.

But she still had so many questions. She never got to look through the files with everything that had happened, but she had managed to make copies of a few of them. She was hoping to go through them later and figure out what they were after. But what did all this have to do with her uncle? He had told her he was going to leave for a few weeks on a business trip, but part of Andy was starting to doubt that.

“Give me… an hour. Maybe two.” She sighed softly. “If I take too long and you come after me, please be careful. They might have guns.”

Andy relaxed and closed her eyes as Tamryn wrapped his arms around her. She knew that he wasn’t much on physical touch, but she loved him being so close to her. All her worries and fears seemed to fade away when she held him. She knew she would try her hardest to get back to Tamryn, but part of her feared that it might be the last time she would see him. There was no guarantee that she would be allowed to leave alive. But, as her and Tamryn spoke about their future, she was reminded that there was still hope. They could still live the rest of their lives together, escape despite their horrible circumstances.

“We could have a little home away from everyone.” She smiled and turned towards him. “Eventually get married and have a baby and a cat. We would live happily together until we’re old.”

She turned towards Tamryn, pressing his forehead against hers. She brushed her nose against his as she struggled to bite back tears. It was depressing how hard life had hit them lately; no couple should ever have to go through the types of struggles they had endured.

He nodded. Okay, an hour it was. Maybe an hour and thirty minutes….but he was not going to push it. He might even go ten minutes under an hour if he felt like something was off.
"I'll be careful," He said, though he didn't mention that the tools he had used for his victims weren't all he had. He had handguns too, but the reason he used the tools was to dismember the bodies. It was more efficient to kill using a gun, and Tamryn didn't know when he had switched to using hatchets and the like to kill more brutally. It gave him a sick feeling that had started to enjoy it. Had he gone on any longer without Andy reeling him in, he probably wouldn't have returned from that mentality.

Tamryn looked down at her and smiled at a home. It sounded nice, though he seemed to malfunction at the thought of having a kid with Andy. A baby?? His face turned red.
"Kids sound nice…" He muttered barely above a whisper. He hadn't gotten that far and only mentioned marriage in case Andy didn't want to have any kids, but her confirming that she did, made him start to think about it- names, clothes, how their house would look like with a kid running around in it. A small smile appeared on his face, trying not to laugh at the thought of either he or Andy running after a toddler.
"So do cats, maybe we can also have a dog," He thought. He always loved dogs, mostly the gentle kind. "We're gonna live to be in our hundreds, I swear it," He said playfully, a small laugh leaving his lips.

Tamryn stared into her eyes as she pressed her forehead against his. His eyes softened at the way Andy looked. So tired, and heartbroken. He knew this wasn't the way she had imagined things go down, and he hated that for her. If only she had found someone who didn't make such risky decisions in the heat of the moment, maybe her life would have gone better. Sure, those guys were still a problem and would have been regardless, but Tamryn's situation was like an added burden. It was too much to take on all at once.

He didn't want to ruin this moment but he had to ask.
"They gave you the location right?" He started. "Maybe we should head there a little earlier just to scout out the area, I don't want to sound paranoid but…" But I am paranoid.

Despite Tamryn telling her that he would be careful, she still felt anxious about giving him permission to check on her. Yes, she knew that he was smart and wouldn’t do anything stupid, but she worried about how he would react if they injured her. She had seen what had happened with Josh, and she didn’t that whole situation to repeat itself.

“Please, my love. Whatever happens, stay hidden.” She took his face in her hands, gently stroking his cheeks. “Just until it’s safe to come out.”

She noticed how red Tamryn’s face got at the thought of having kids. While she still would want to be with Tamryn even if he didn’t want a family, she still had always wanted to have a child of her own. She was glad he felt the same way. It felt weird thinking this far ahead when they had just started their relationship, but she needed some kind of hope. Clinging onto the thought of a future together was what was going to get her through this whole situation.

Andy listened to his suggestion and nodded. She knew that they could easily put her in a car and bring her to a different location, but this was a small college campus. It only had two parking lots. Tamryn would likely see them if they tried to leave with her. Plus, it helped that she knew where she was going to meet them. There was a small building off of campus that had been scheduled to be torn down later that year. It was completely desolate and so far off from the campus that no one would notice if anything went down there.

“That sounds like a good idea.” She smiled faintly. “Great thinking, my love.”

She knew that they should probably get going, but she couldn’t resist doing one last thing before they headed off towards the campus. She spent a few more moments holding him before she pulled him in by his shirt collar and kissed him.

Tamryn puffed his cheeks up when Andy went to touch him, and gave her a wary look as if something suspicious were happening, but he was only messing around.
"Fine, I'll stay hidden" He grumbled but then lit up at the next part. Great. Time to hit the road then.
He waited for Andy to get up before he did and to his surprise, she drew him in and kissed him. Not that it was a shocking revelation that Andy liked him, it was just he still couldn't believe everything that had happened since the morning. Andy was his. He didn't have to glare away any men that approached her anymore- not that he was doing that in the first place. Of course not. He would never…
Tamryn kissed back quickly, knowing that it wouldn't last long, and he tried his hardest to keep her there for just a little longer.

And now they were in the car and Tamryn was feeling sick. The familiar feeling crept into his very bones, but now it was different. It wasn't the usual anxiety he felt after killing someone and then having to pretend everything was okay and he wasn't dying on the inside. It was more of an "I can't lose Andy, and I am terrified of what's coming next" emotion that shook him.
The more time they spent in that car, the more fidgety he got, bouncing his leg, messing with his rings, and tapping on the car to the sound of the music they were playing.
Andy was driving, of course, she had insisted and they had shoved the few files that were in the front seat into the trunk….needless to say, it was awkward still seeing those tools in the back, not properly washed yet.
Tamryn tried to play it off, looking away when Andy gave him looks, almost like he knew he was a kid who broke a lightbulb and was going to get an earful when they got home.

(you can time skip to Andy meeting the guys if you'd like, like a slow transition, or you could have them talk in the car for a little while, though if they keep talking these next answers won't be long coming from me because i'm out of ideas haha)

( I think I might have a bit of an idea before she meets the men :) )

When they arrived at the college, Andy and Tamryn left the car and headed up towards the abandoned building, bring the boxes with them. It was quite a walk, and there wasn’t much to see when they got there. Most of the rooms had been cleaned out of furniture a long time ago, but they did get a glimpse at the layout of the building. Andy even showed Tamryn to the room where they took her last time, and that was where they left the file boxes.

They were headed back down through the hallways when Andy heard footsteps coming from further down one of the halls. Her heart began to pound inside her chest. They were here already? They were supposed to be here for another twenty minutes! Taking Tamryn’s hand, she pulled into one of the empty rooms, placing him behind her just in case the men showed up. There was no furniture to hide behind, and Andy’s worry only grew as the footsteps began to head towards the door. Eventually, he spoke, his voice incredibly familiar.

“Andy, Tamryn. I know you’re in here.”

The man stepped into the room, and she couldn’t help but release a small gasp when she saw who it was. Josh Henderson. The same man who Tamryn had beaten into a pulp days before. He still had plenty of injuries from the days before, but he didn’t seem to be mad at Tamryn.

“You two need to get out of here,” he hissed. “Are you crazy? Following the orders of those criminals? You do realize what they’re gonna do when they finish with you, right?”

Andy felt her chest tighten. Josh seemed to know a lot more about these guys than she did, but she couldn’t trust him. Not after the stunt he pulled in the hallway. Josh seemed to understand from her hollow expression, and he let out a sigh.

“Look, things that night got out of hand. I get it. But I wasn’t trying to…” His voice died off, and he let out an exasperated sigh before getting straight to the point. “I was trying to warn you, Andy. But turns out I was way too late.”

(yeah! i was afraid you were gonna miss it haha, it's always so funny and wacky to see the words switched up)

Tamryn mostly followed Andy to where they were placing the boxes, and when she showed him the place they had taken her, he scowled, murderous thoughts running through his head.
Hearing the footsteps as soon as Andy did, Tamryn wasn't panicking at all, he was actually glad that they were here and once they showed their face through that door, he'd give them a piece of his mind-
That was until Andy pulled him into another room and basically stood guard in front of him. There was no way Andy was the one protecting him, if anything, it should have been the other way around! She was in the most danger here, and right before Tamryn could protest a voice rang through the room.
Hearing his name be called out, Tamryn stopped and frowned. He knew that voice. But from where?

The man, having made himself known, Tamryn just gave him a death glare.
Fucking Josh.
He seemed to be talking mostly to Andy, but some of it was redirected at him too.
"What are you talking about?" Tamryn spoke up. "And how did you know we were going to be here? Are you with them?" He hissed, already jumping to conclusions once again. Real bad habit of his. It was especially easy when he didn't like the guy and was searching for excuses to fault him.
Tamryn squinted at him slightly, suspicious, but for some reason, Tamryn could feel the urgency of whatever Josh was trying to get out. Maybe he was trying to warn them, how else would he have known about this place and the men? Unless he was with them.
"Yeah? Why? Why go through the trouble of warning two idiots? Last time I checked, we weren't exactly on friendly terms. Not to mention you're looking awfully guilty right now of being associated with these guys."

(( It’s so cool T^T I love it ))

Andy glanced at Tamryn and gave him a look before turning back to Josh. She understood why he hated Josh so much, but no wasn’t the time for getting aggressive. She wanted to hear Josh out first before accusing him of anything. Besides, the men could arrive early, and she didn’t want them to catch Josh and Tamryn in yet another fight. Especially after what had happened last time.

“Tam, please. Calm down,” she said softly. “Let’s hear him out first, okay?”

Josh looked like he was about to make some sort of snarky remark, but decided against it as he continued. “I’m not associated with them. Well… not really. Let’s just say I’m related to one of them.” He released a sigh. “I worked with them for a while. Robbing stores, mugging people… that kind of crap. Can’t say I’ve mended my ways, but murder? Nah. That’s too much.”

“Murder?” Andy froze. “You mean they were going to—“

“I don’t know for sure. It’s likely,” Josh replied. “I overheard them talking one night when they thought I was asleep. I still live with them in their little apartment. They have a special interest in your uncle and his work for some reason, and they were gonna kidnap you. Hold you for ransom after the files were delivered. Not sure why. Guess they think your uncle has a lotta money. They never outright stated that they were going to get rid of you, but…”

Andy reached back, grabbing Tamryn’s hand for comfort. She knew the men weren’t to be trusted, but this? And sure, her uncle was a detective, but he didn’t have that much money. Why would they target him?

(me too :'))

In the middle of talking, when Andy looked at him, he sort of paused, but finished his sentence lowly. I mean, he was all for hearing what the bastard had to say for himself, so he shut up after Andy told him to calm down, and kept a slight glare at him.
"But murder? That's too much." The words rang in his head as he turned them over, trying to make sense of them. Was it too much? He never thought about it being "too much" if it meant keeping others out of danger, even if that meant he was the one who had caused it in the first place. If you messed up, you had to clean your own messes up, or at least, that was the rule he held for himself.
Tamryn crossed his arms as Josh spoke, then looked over to Andy. Yeah. No. Not on his watch they weren't. This was even more reason for him to stick with her through all of this. Tamryn's eyes kept switching from Andy to Josh and back again as they spoke. Her uncle? What did he have? Maybe something valuable?

He looked down to see Andy's hand reaching for his and he took hers and linked their fingers together. For some reason Tamryn was quite relaxed about this whole situation, but little did anyone know the absolute bloodlust that was going on inside of him right now. He might not have been born to be a killer, but that was someone who he had turned into and he couldn't find the off switch to it.
"You know what? Even if you're lying, we're leaving" Tamryn said suddenly. He did not want to find out about what was about to come next and his ability to keep Andy safe against two was not exactly high. He was not risking it.
"Right, Andy?" He said, moving to walk in front of her and pulling on her hand slightly to follow him. Surely after hearing that Andy would not think twice about his decision.

Andy stood there in silence for a few moments, deep in thought. She knew Tamryn was eager to get out of here and leave all of this behind, but she had too many questions. There was too much to risk if she walked out now. What did they know about her uncle? Would they go after him next? Why were they targeting him in the first place? Did they know where Andy lived?

“But if they were after money, why ask me to get the files? Why not take me hostage during our last meeting?” Andy paused for a moment. Nothing seemed to be adding up. “Josh, what do you know about these files?”

“Nothing, really. They don’t keep me on the inside about anything. I’m too young, I guess. Too irresponsible.” Josh let out an exasperated sigh. “Your uncle might know too much. Maybe he’s their next target.”

Andy tensed, and by the look on Josh’s face, you could tell when he realized that he had said too much. They were after him? He had been on this trip for over a week. What if they’d already gotten to him?

Andy’s chest tightened as she took a step back towards the wall. She mind seemed to fog up, and she would’ve had a full blown panic attack right then and there if Josh and Tamryn weren’t around.

“We can’t let that happen.” Andy folded her arms around herself, her eyes glued on the floor. “We have to stop them. Take care of them before they hurt my uncle.”

“Take care of them?” His eyes widened when he saw the look on Andy’s face. “We can’t hurt them. One of them is my relative, Andy. I can’t—“

“And my uncle is the only relative I have left. Those men have probably hurt countless people. Who knows who they’ll go after next.”

“No,” Josh protested. “Look, Andy, just trust me on this. I’ll meet them at the spot while you and Tamryn get away. I don’t think they know where you live yet, but just in case, go to a hotel and stay there for tonight. Got it?”

When Andy didn't budge, Tamryn looked at her and sort of frowned a little. What exactly was going through her head right now?
At the mention of Andy's uncle "knowing too much" Tamryn also seemed to freeze at that. He felt Andy's hand slip away from his as she backed up against the wall. Time was running out while they were here standing around talking about getting murdered, but the look on Andy's face made him worry for her well-being. He knew she loved her uncle that much, it was the only family she had left, but right now was not the time to curl into a ball and wish everything away. Tamryn wished he could shelter her from this, but he was powerless here. That was until Andy spoke again. The first thing that popped into Tamryn's mind was slicing a head clean off the body, or putting a bullet through their heart. Though he guessed the police should come first, it was more of an afterthought for him at this point.
Tamryn cracked a smile at Josh's request, something along the lines of not gonna happen written on his face now. While he had been against it before, after hearing that Andy's uncle was going to be targeted, he knew that would destroy Andy and he was not going to let that happen.
"So how exactly would we take care of them?" Tamryn threw the idea out there, not mentioning the fact that he had a weapon on him at this very moment.
"Set a trap? Go in? Guns blazing?" He thought out loud as he looked around the building, trying to figure something out. He looked at Josh at his last protest, then at Andy. This wasn't up to him, this was up to Andy and Tamryn was just there ready to support her on anything, even if it meant killing again. Just…as long as he didn't get caught, it was enough for him. He had gotten away with a lot at this point, but now, he wasn't doing a killing as a job or order, he was willingly throwing himself back into the ring. It was enough reason for the cause of concern.

Andy leaned her back against the wall, feeling like she was about to throw up. Tamryn’s remark didn’t make her queasiness much better, but she knew that she had a choice to make. They could either stop the men here or try to rescue her uncle. But if they reached her uncle, what would they do then? He was part of the police department, so he would likely get them involved. They would probably want to interrogate her and Tamryn. What if they found out about the murders Tamryn had committed?

But at the same time, taking out the men just felt… wrong. She wasn’t too concerned about Josh hating her for it; she already despised him enough. But she had been taught not to kill, to do everything to calm a situation. Killing wasn’t in her nature, and the men had homes. Families. Even children. Sure, they had done some messed up stuff, but so had Tamryn.

Andy’s eyes were focused on the ground, torn. She knew very well what the two of fhe, wanted; Tamryn wanted to end this while Josh wanted to save the two men. The only question was, what would she choose?

“Andy, I know you’re concerned about you uncle, but this isn’t a hard choice,” Josh pressed. “We can try to find your uncle and warn him about the men, but you can’t just kill them. Two wrongs don’t make a right.”

“You’re only saying that because it’s your brother,” she protested. “Besides, Tamryn—“

“It doesn’t matter what Tamryn, and this isn’t just about my brother. If you kill those men, you will go to jail. The police are going to find you.” He glanced at Tamryn, aiming the last part more at him than Andy. “That would ruin your whole life. Especially if you ended up on death row.”

Tamryn could see the conflict happening inside Andy with the way she paused and looked around. It took her a while to speak again and in that time Tamryn was eyeing Josh, wondering if this was just another part of their plan.
At his name being said, he turned back to Andy, until Josh rudely interrupted.
"How are you so sure we'll go to jail? This is basically a hostage situation and I'm just trying to protect Andy and myself." Tamryn said cooly, but part of him wasn't fully convinced that they wouldn't find a way to throw him in jail. Not to mention the other things he had done. If they got their hands on any of that, it was the end for him.
Tamryn let out a frustrated sigh and made his way to Andy.
"You don't look so well, I really think we should get going unless you want to do something about all this" Tamryn said, wanting to get an answer from her.
"There's always the police," Tamryn said at last, not really liking the idea, but if it meant keeping Andy safe, then that's the way they would go.
"Besides, when were you so concerned about my life?" He turned back around to Josh. "You could have literally told us any other time, you had plenty of time to warn us. What if we hadn't shown up at the party? What would you have done then? Would you have kept quiet? You know, show up at the last minute when everything's too late, I don't know about you but this all seems a little too convenient" Tamryn crossed his arms. He wasn't picking a fight this time, just trying to make sense of everything. Also, why not call the police beforehand and warn them about what was happening? What? Because they were family members? You don't cover for family members who are doing the wrong thing. That makes you an accomplice. Tamryn scoffed and rolled his eyes. So much for "murder being too much".

Josh gritted his teeth at Tamryn’s comment about going to jail. He seemed genuine at first, but after his bickering with the two of them, he looked like he might’ve been regretting his decision. “You think you won’t go to jail for killing two men? Andy hasn’t even been kidnapped yet, and there is no way we could claim self defense. Besides, these men… they have ties with the law. They could get away with it. It’s happened before.”

Ties with the law? Andy always knew there was corruption in the justice system, but this was at a whole new level. But, if they really did have ties with the justice system, why were they after her uncle, a top detective in the city? None of this made any sense, and Andy’s head was starting to hurt just trying to piece it all together.

Andy watched as Tamryn made his way over to her, and she picked up his hand, placing it on her cheek. They should be somewhere else, going on a nice first date, instead of in an abandoned building about to get involved in a hostage situation. Andy paused, thinking up an answer to Tamryn’s question, when he spoke up once again.

Josh listened to Tamryn’s questions, his arms crossed over his chest. “Look, I might be a horrid person, but I do have a conscience. I don’t give a crap about either of you, but I couldn’t just sit by and watch it all go down. And I haven’t known about this plot for long. I found out probably a day before the party. I didn’t have any other time to tell you.” Josh let out an exasperated sigh. “I’ve been… busy.”

Andy didn’t know if she fully believed or trusted Josh. There were too many unanswered questions. But she did know that things were going to go south either way and that she needed to leave as soon as possible. Part of her wanted to get guns like she’d mentioned earlier, to end this before it ended in tragedy, but killing these two men wouldn’t fix all her problems. It would just create more of them.

“Tamryn, let’s go. Josh will stay and talk to the men, and we’ll leave without the files. Maybe we can make it to a hotel.” She slipped her hand into his. “We can try to find my uncle in the morning and warn him about what’s happening, alright?”

Tamryn arched an eyebrow at Josh. The law? What?
"Exactly how much do you know?" Tamryn said taking a step toward Josh so as to confront him but was stopped by Andy taking his hand. He turned to her, his expression softening. Should he really be picking a fight when Andy was in danger? The priority right now should be getting the hell out before anything happened. But something about all of this rubbed him the wrong way, he felt like he was walking into a trap.
Fine.
If he was walking into a trap, he would be prepared, he'd bare his teeth and let them come.
"Oh, there's no "might" in there, you are." Tamryn snapped back after hearing the rest of that sentence. There was no reason for Josh to put himself through this much trouble for them, even if he had a "conscience" as he had put it. Tamryn kept his eyes trained on Josh. Been busy my ass. He thought.

At Andy tugging at him by taking his hand Tamryn went silent once again. Tamryn blinked at her, a little baffled about all of this, they should stay and fight. No. He should stay and fight while Andy got somewhere safe, but where was safe when these criminals had connections with the law?!
"If…that's what you want," He said lowly, agreeing, only because they were backed into a corner now. There didn't seem a way of this except through, and it wasn't going to be pretty when things were over.
As Tamryn passed Josh, he eyed him as he went through the door, holding Andy's hand still and guiding her through and out of the building.
"You really want to go to a hotel?" He asked her, not exactly looking at her, but more focused on getting away from the place. "It doesn't seem like there's any safe option here. Except maybe the police? But I'm not sure how well that would go" He talked out loud, more talking to himself and trying to straighten things out in his mind.