N-701124 {b. barnes}

IX

She kept her head down as they walked through the streets back to retrieve their things. Her head spun but she kept pace with her partner.

Were they even partners anymore?

Neither of them spoke until the returned back to grab their things. She sat down at the base of the tree and put her head in her hands.

"Your name is James." She whispered, her voice quivering.

"Yes." He murmured.

"You were my partner. I think."

"Yeah."

"We were supposed to marry."

"Y-yeah."

She clenched her jaw. "What are we now?"

"I don't know."

What could they be? They were together once, twice, but they were different now. They were normal the first time, but then they weren't. They were killers, assassins, whatever else they could be called.

"What do you want us to be?" He murmured.

She shook her head slowly. "I don't know."

There were so many "I don't know"s. There was no telling who they were now or what was going to happen. They weren't safe anywhere. It could be a matter of days, or even hours, before someone found them. Just like that, they could cease to exist.

They'd be better off like that, wouldn't they?

Wouldn't the world be better off without them in it?

"We can't stay here."

She took a bite from her apple and didn't answer right away. The sun was barely starting to peek above the horizon. Despite that, they sat side by side on the grass. 

"What are we supposed to do then? Not like we can just get on a plane and leave. We don't have any sort of identification or money." She took another bite.

"I'm sure people make fakes."

She turned to face him. "Are you serious?"

"We're already criminals. What's the worst that could happen?"

As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. They were already murderers, and if they were caught, they'd get the punishment they deserved. The only fitting punishment would be death. Anyone would agree, wouldn't they?

Or maybe they'd be locked up and their deaths dragged out for days and weeks. Either one seemed fitting, especially after what they'd done to so many people.

"Let's say we had the money and the fakes. Where would we go?"

"Far away from here. And away from....there. We could....start over. Somehow. Maybe we'll learn something."

"Learn what?"

"Each other. Ourselves."

As much as she hated his idea, maybe it could work. They could leave everything here behind. With their leftover money and a little more work, it might be possible to get what they wanted. They could start over, almost. Sure, they had to live with the guilt they held, or the fact they had almost no idea who they were, but it might be possible. 

When she looked up, she found him already looking at her. There was emotion in his eyes. He seemed nervous, yet slightly hopeful, but still nervous.

"I don't know who I am." She shook her head.

"Me either. We'll just...make something up for now. It can't be that hard."

She nodded, biting her tongue. Anything and everything could go wrong, and then they'd be done for. Locked up, killed, both, neither, or something worse.