“I thought I told you.” He said, more of a statement than a question as he pulled the car to the side of the road, turned the engine off and stepped slowly out.
The Cuban heal of his boot stamped on the cigarette end flicked to the floor, the exhaled smoke flowing through the neon-lit air of the city night.
“Scorpion,” she stepped out and turned to him as he lent against the hood of the car and pulled off his sunglasses. “How long have we been doing this now? I’m with you? I’m with you now and I thought you knew that.”
“There’s a path that I walk, Lace, it’s never been with anyone else. You’ve got to — ”
“Got to nothin’!” She shouted. “Listen to me, I don’t care what you’ve done, you’ve got me now, I’m not going anywhere.”
The incandescent sheen of the city’s lights reflected off the car’s hood, lit her face, the bounce of her curled hair, the sparkle of her blue eyes, the glimmer of her lipstick, the shine of her leather. What had it been now, two months? Two years? Who knew, they’d been through a lot, but they were after him, and they wouldn’t stop.
He lit another cigarette and pulled his driving gloves tight around his hands. “Lace, it’s not what we’ve gone through. It’s where I’m going.”
“I don’t care, Scorpion,” She came around the car and took the cigarette, putting it in her mouth, pulling, blowing the smoke over his head, bringing her eyes slowly down to his. “I want to go there with you.”
He stepped away from her and looked into the night. The wind blew, the palm trees rustled, the trash pushed slowly across the street and the city hummed all around him. A town full of scum, all he’d ever tried to do was the right thing, and now his actions were going to follow him. Follow her.
“Lace — ” he turned as the car’s engine thundered into life and she wound down the window.
“You’re not alone anymore,” she whispered through the city’s thick night air, her whisper louder than it all. What choice did he have?
He lit another cigarette and smiled. The night called and they’d meet it together.
About the Creator
Outrun Stories
Short sci-fi stories in 500 words or less deriving from the Outrun, tech-noir and NewWave aesthetic.
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