Just run.
Hide, Lucy, hide.
My warring thoughts and buzzing mind have me zigzagging through the scrub.
Thorns, sticks and stones bite into my feet and the rain whips at my face, the wind takes hold of my hair, slapping the wet strands into my eyes but I can't stop.
"Where the fuck am I, Rome?" I groan and look for a fallen tree.
It's hard to see the fallen tree for the forest.
The torrential rain has visiblity down to a few yards, there's no moon to guide me, only the frequent flashes of light provided by the thunderstorm overhead. I can't see a road or building anywhere close.
Behind me, a gunshot rings loud in my ears, I scream but I don't have time to check if I'm hit, I keep running so I guess he missed me.
Rome?!
Fuck, I hope he was aiming for me.
As trees whip by I see a pig cross my path, large and pink with a splotch of black across its hairy back, the unexpected sight of it causes me to stumble, a hand reaches out to secure me by the waist, and another covers my mouth and nose, they jerk me hard against something tall and unyielding.
I try to scream but the hand on my face clamps my mouth shut tight.
"Shhh" he whispers straight into my ear and my heart leaps from my chest.
I turn my head to see Rome, bloodied and just as soaked through as me. He has a thick rain jacket on with a hood at least.
A cut over his brow looks like it requires urgent medical attention, the swollen flesh bruised and bleeding and his black suit shirt is now ripped at the buttons.
Slowly, as recognition sinks in he removes his hand from my face, he puts his finger over his lips as we stand pressed against an ancient and rough thick tree stump.
I hold back a sob at the sight of him.
Injured but alive, and most importantly, here.
I hug him hard, and feel myself sway now I'm standing still.
Rome frowns as he looks me over.
I use my hand to gesture a syringe on my arm, I tap over my heart rapidly to tell him I'm not okay, I point to my temple and spin my index finger to tell him I'm dizzy.
His expression hardens and he draws me closer, he dares a peek behind us before looking back at my face. I'm not sure what he's looking for but I find my heart in my throat, my hands under his jacket and my body hard against his.
Close just isn't close enough.
Rome leans forward to put his lips at my ear, he places a kiss on my temple "we have to run, can you do that?" He whispers.
I nod, but I'm not so confident.
Once more, Rome places a single finger over his lips, I get it, we're hiding. But then he takes my hand in a vice grip and drags me behind him as he couches low in the unkempt scrub, it's not really running, and it's harder to keep my drug affected balance, and it's way too fast.
But at least he has a direction, and it's not the way I was going.
We run thicker into the dense forest, we run for close to five minutes before Rome stops and looks around him, we take a few more steps and push through overgrown, wild blueberry bushes bursting with fruit, then like he's been here many times before, Rome reaches up into a low hanging branch of a big old tree.
