Chapter Text
5 months have now passed since the night she and I went to the aquarium. Each day of living has gotten progressively easier. I don't feel as if I've lost my identity everytime I wake up, because I remember the promise that I made to myself. I vowed that I would never rest until I saw her smiling face again. Persephone now had a happy, healthy daughter. Cordelia is her name. We moved into an apartment, and the others got apartments next to ours. I lived alone, because I didn't want anyone to have to deal with me or the way I felt. I stared out the window of my new apartment, and looked up at the stars. I had a vivid memory of walking on the beach with Vivienne and Mom once, looking for seashells early in the morning to give to "him" on his birthday. I wished we had known the type of person he really was, but how were we supposed to know?
One had stopped chasing us for a while. My view of him had changed since I learned that he was the reason why Vivienne was the way she was. I loathed him. I needed revenge. I shut the window and looked at my phone. Persephone had texted me. "The government has made an official website that tracks One's kills. I decided it'd be best if you knew about it." The text read. I clicked the notification, and saw the link. My heart clenched. Did I really want to know what One had done? It had been 5 months since he was after us. I sucked in my breath and clicked on the link.
The website had several different portions to it. There was a confirmed attack counter, a death counter, and a survivor counter. I wanted to vomit looking at the confirmed attack counter. Over 2,000 attacks, and less than 50 survivors. I looked at the death counter, and I felt the color drain out of my face. 1,974 deaths. 46 survivors. And I knew that the deaths were only going to increase if we didn't stop him somehow. There was a map that marked where the confirmed attacks had taken place. He mainly stayed in our town, and it wasn't safe to evacuate. There was a Do Not Evacuate order, because they knew that One would go after people in cars. And Persephone had just had a baby, so the dangers of evacuating would increase tenfold, because she wouldn't be able to defend herself.
I put down my phone and flexed my shoulder. I moved my jacket away to reveal the tank top that I was wearing, my scar visible. Rebelling against my old boss left me with that scar. I vividly remember the moment it happened. Everyone thought that I would've died right there and then, but my defects I had at birth saved me. I remembered the note that Persephone had shown me with Guest's words on it. He was sick of everyone and had left. No one knew where he went, and whenever Chance had tried calling him, his phone went directly to voicemail. I figured that Guest had blocked him.
I heard a bunch of thuds against my window, and when I looked through my window, I found out that it was hailing. I closed the window, not being bothered by it. What I was bothered by though, were the stats that One had gathered. I didn't say anything, though. I grabbed my hoodie, gun, and my wallet, shoved it into my pocket, and walked out of my apartment, locking the door behind me. I needed groceries, and I needed to stop procrastinating buying them. I knew no one was working at the grocery stores, though. If they were, the workers were petrified of every customer that walked in.
The town had started becoming a wasteland after One's attacks had increased exponentially. Shoplifting and assault had become a lot more common, mainly because people were so afraid of being killed by One, since he was so silent. I walked down the street, hood up, holding my umbrella. I didn't care if people gave me looks. I doubt there were even any people. I was minding my business, and that was all I needed to do. I made a mental list of what I needed to pick up at the store. It wasn't much, but I needed it. I pulled out my phone and texted Persephone. “Headed to the store, need anything?” I texted her. I sent the message, and threw my phone back in my pocket.
I heard footsteps behind me, and I closed my umbrella. I looked behind me, and this person was also hooded. With no time for them to react, I smacked them with the umbrella. “Stand back!” I exclaimed, holding out my umbrella as if it was a sword. The figure pulled down their hood. I looked at them in confusion. “Who are you, and what is it?” I said sternly, not breaking eye contact with them. They sighed and stuck out their hand. “The name's Two-time. Nice to meet you.” They had a faint smile on their face as they introduced themself. I looked at their hand and pushed it away. “I don't do handshakes. But… hi. I'm Faye.” I said, before finally giving them a small wave. They nodded to my words.
“Headed to the store? It's dangerous out here at night, you know? You could get attacked by One or one of his minions.” Two-time's words echoed in my ears. I stood there for a second, then shook my head. “I've been attacked by one of his minions before. I survived. He himself didn't attack me.” Two-time blinked and patted my shoulder. “Geez, that's rough. I died to him, but I'm on my second life. Last one, though.” I shrugged. I didn't really care about whatever they were rambling about. To hide my disinterest, I looked at my phone and checked my notifications. Nothing stood out until I read a headline about an escaped prisoner, but it didn't say their name. I clicked on it, curious about what happened. I looked at the headline, and wanted to drop to the floor.
The headline read “It's been 5 months since Oliver Wilson's escape. Where is he now?” I closed out of the news app and said nothing. What was his plan now? Did I even want to know? And where was he? I sighed and closed out of the news app. “Sorry. I just… lost my cool for a second. Nothing much. That's usual for me. But yeah, I'm headed to the store.” I saw them nod after I spoke, and I put back up my umbrella. “Mind if I accompany you so that someone can protect you? It's dangerous to be out here alone, especially if you're a girl.” I heard them say to me. Clearly, they don't know what I've been through. And I wasn't going to tell them what happened. I stood there for a moment, thinking about what to say to them, and then I nodded. Nothing left to lose, anyways.
“Sure. I'm not sure how I'd go about in the silence anyways.” Within the blink of an eye, Two-time grabbed the umbrella from my hand and held it over me. “I'll lead the way.” They said, and I skeptically nodded as we started walking. I checked my pockets to make sure everything was still there, and to make sure that Two-time hadn't stolen anything. I felt my wallet and my phone in one pocket, and my gun in my other pocket. Good. Everything I had earlier was still there. Two-time hadn't stolen anything. We started walking, and they tried to start some small talk. “So, who exactly are you? What's a fine lady like you doing out all alone at night?” I blinked, saying nothing to their comments at first. Had they forgotten that I needed groceries? And I had told them my name as well.
“I said this earlier, but I need groceries.” I grumbled, reaching for my phone to see if Persephone had responded. She had, in fact. I opened up the message, and she didn't need much. “Just need a few things, promise I'll pay you back! We need baby formula, diapers (we ran out), and instant ramen.” Seems awfully specific, but I didn't question it. “Kay.” I texted her, then shut off my phone. It started raining heavier than before, and I saw some lightning from the corner of my eye. I flinch whenever I see it, knowing that there's thunder coming shortly after. I covered my ears as I readied myself for the boom. Nothing. I covered my ears for a few more seconds until I thought it was safe, and then I uncovered them.
And then the boom sounded. I squealed, covering my ears yet again so I didn't get overwhelmed. I don't have a sensory disorder, but I get easily triggered by sounds. Certain sounds brought back traumatic memories, and thunder was one of those sounds. “...Faye! What's wrong?!” I felt someone's hands pull at my wrists, pulling my hands away from my ears. I didn't know who it was until I finally looked up and saw the concern on Two-time's face. “Faye, it's okay, it's just thunder. Thunder can't hurt you.” When I looked up again, I saw their face. It took me a moment to realize that I was safe, considering that I never felt safe anymore. I didn't know who to trust, or if I was even able to have that ability anymore. When I finally got back to my senses, I looked at Two-time and pulled my arms away from their hands.
“If you really want to accompany me, let's just go ahead and get this over with.” I said, slightly irked by them. I am an easily irritable person, but I can mind my own business when needed. I knew they had good intentions, but I wasn't in the mood for hospitality. In a quick motion, they took my umbrella and held it over my head. “After you, m'lady.” They said with a flirtatious smirk on their face. I rolled my eyes, took my umbrella back, and we started walking. I took a look at my surroundings. Everything was ruined. There was debris from houses that had broken into, and there was blood on the street from people that One had gotten to. I shuddered at the sight, but tried to take my mind off of it and continue walking. Ever since I learned the truth, I was never the same.
“I think I've heard about you before.” Two-time said to me. I looked away from them. They likely saw the video that was uploaded when I yelled in the courtroom. I remembered that day vividly. As we approached the store, I closed my umbrella and grabbed at my gun. I trusted no one, and I wanted to keep it in my hand for security purposes. I opened the door and let it slam onto Two-time's face. “Mind holding the door next time?” I shrugged as I looked back at my phone. I grabbed a basket and tried remembering what Persephone needed. I sighed as I realized I had already forgotten what she wanted me to get her. Pulling up my messages, I realized she had sent me another message.
“Hey, Faye. You likely saw the article. I'm sorry for not telling you when it happened. I didn't want you to know. You were going through so much when he first escaped, and I wanted you to have a clearer headspace before I said anything. It was for your sake. I hope you're not mad at me.” I absorbed the information, and left her message on read. I wanted to talk to her personally. I wasn't mad, rather, I was just shocked. I understood why she wanted to keep this information from me: She knew I wouldn't have been able to handle it when it first happened. And I wouldn't have been able to. 5 months ago, I could barely function. My world had shut down on me even more than before. The store was mostly abandoned, with goods all over the floor, and the power was barely functioning.
I turned on my phone's flashlight and went through each aisle, looking for the things that I needed. With any luck, I could get what I needed to buy. I looked around, Two-time following close behind. “Diapers.” I muttered to myself as I grabbed them from the shelf. Two-time looked at me with a strange look on their face, glancing at the diapers. I realized why they were looking at me like that, and I quickly explained to them that these were for Persephone. They nodded, and I continued walking. I looked and found some baby formula on the next shelf, and then went to look for some instant ramen.
I looked back to where the freezers were, and they were surprisingly still operating. I walked over to them and took a look at the food that was still in there. There was lasagna, pasta, and a bunch of other stuff. I opened the freezer to determine if it was safe to take these products, and as soon as I opened it, a burst of cold air hit me, causing a shiver to run down my spine. I grabbed a box of lasagna and held onto it, judging how cold it was and if it was safe to take home. After a few seconds, I nodded to myself and grabbed a few boxes. I also grabbed some other premade meals and threw them in my basket. I shut the freezer and started walking towards the exit, looking for some way to pay. I didn't feel right just taking these without paying. Sure enough, there was a singular self checkout machine operating. I scanned the goods and grabbed my wallet. As I paid, Two-time put the goods into plastic bags. I looked over at them.
“Wait. Grab the reusable bags. I added that onto the bill for myself.” They shrugged and grabbed the bags, and I put the goods into the reusable bags. “Faye, you could've just stolen-” I immediately cut them off, knowing what they were going to say. “No. It's not right. I've done things that I regret, but I thought I needed to do them out of desperation. I look back at those times and wonder why I was such a fool. Because in the end… I never got what I wanted. I was only deceived.” I thought back to the man who I thought was going to save me. His left hand girl. The hatred he had for one of my friends. I remembered the long, black hair he had, shamelessly letting it flow the day that Persephone and I had met.
I remembered when he admitted that he was lying to me, but he felt he needed to do it. I remembered the moment my life flashed before everyone else's eyes. And I remembered when Chance's life flashed before mine. I barely managed to save him. I didn't deserve praise, but yet I received it. I grabbed the bags and walked out of the store, this time holding the door for Two-time. We didn't say much as we walked back to my apartment, only exchanging glances. When we finally reached my apartment, I smiled at them. “Thanks for walking with me.” I said, grateful that someone actually wanted me to be in their presence. Before I turned around to enter my apartment, they suddenly hugged me. I tried backing out of the hug, but to no avail.
“You're a good person, Faye. Don't forget that.” I stood there, thinking about their words. They broke away from the hug and left, and I went into my apartment to put stuff away before I did anything else. I put the premade meals in the freezer, and then I put my gun in my room as I grabbed the things that I needed to deliver to Persephone. Two-time's words echoed in my mind. “You're a good person, Faye. Don't forget that.” I didn't feel like a good person. I had killed countless people, all because I wanted to see my sister again. But I never got any information. I grabbed everything, and I went over to Persephone's apartment. I quietly knocked on the door, and she answered almost immediately.
“Hey, Faye!” She said as she opened the door. I handed her the items, and she grinned in delight. “Chance! Can you try to help me out here?” She said, her voice hushed slightly. I saw Chance appear, and he waved. I waved back, not wanting to talk much. He grabbed the items out of Persephone's hands, and she held out her hand towards me. “Come in! Cordelia's asleep, but we can have tea!” I looked at her and thought for a second. I had desperately wanted to talk to her about my father, but I didn't know what to say, fearing I'd end up sounding like I was mad at her for hiding it and her feelings getting hurt.
“Persephone… Can we talk?” I asked quietly, already feeling my eyes start to well up. She nodded, and took my hand as she led me in. We walked over to a couch, and she sat me down. Before she sat down, she grabbed a blanket and threw it on top of me. “Cozy, Faye?” She asked me. I nodded. She grabbed a box of tissues and a blanket for herself, and then she sat down next to me. “What's wrong, Faye? Don't forget that you can tell me anything.” I felt my throat close up. I was so afraid to talk, but she said I could tell her anything. “Why do you care for me if all that I do is bring you misery?”
WORD COUNT: 3,000 (according to google docs)