Walk in the light: Legend novella

Day (17)

Day

A part of me was still numb, I guess I just didn't think that she would actually agree to 'give us another chance' as you could put it, but the description didn't totally compensate for our situation. No, our history is more complicated then most.

But she did. June choose us. A possibility of us.

And that was all I could have ever asked for.

***********

"June," I started and when she turned toward me, my mind suddenly went blank. It had been about two weeks since I gave her the paper clip ring, finally we found a break in both our schedules so that we could spend some time together. We decided to take a stroll through the Lake Sector, I had been here regularly since Eden and I had come back to the Republic. The ever-present breeze made the high temperatures feel perfectly comfortable. The vivid colors on display high above told us that nighttime was approaching. The last rays of golden sunlight hit the ring, turning it into a glimmering reminder of the day she chose us.

The ring on my finger was a reminder of our past.

The one on hers is a reminder of our future.

Her hair was pulled back, as always, but she wore casual, breathable clothes. It was one of the rare days where she could be off the hook from her duty. Her best captains were on guard to compensate for her absence. Nevertheless, she still wore a tracker and had knives hidden in various places that even I don't know (I guess you can never be totally off the job, when you are Commander of one of the biggest states).

Hearing her name escape my lips, she turned toward me, expectant.

Still drawing a blank, I gave her a stalling smile. She smiled back, a glint in her dark and ominous eyes. Why did she have to be so goddy good at reading me? It was kind of unfair, I just got my memories back.

"So," she raised our entwined hands, "I hear that they kept you in shape over in Antarctica." She gave me a innocent look that was ruined by her widening devilish smile.

I raised an eyebrow, not sure what she was smiling about, what could possibly be going through that amazing mind of hers.

"Yes...." I reply carefully. "In fact I'm in better condition than ever before." It was true, all the drills and specially calculated meals in the intelligence agency had put me in top physical condition. Despite the pros of the many drills, I still preferred a good run. June must have been reading my mind.

"So........prove it." I was just about to ask how, when before I could even take a breath she ripped her hand away from mine and took off in a sprint to the left, down an alley. By the time my brain had registered the absence of her body and sent my own heel spinning in order to turn me toward the right direction, her form was already fading into the growing shadows cast by nearby buildings. Despite my fast reflexes, she already had a pretty good head start.

I cursed, half in admiration, as I felt my own legs start in pursuit.

June had gotten considerably better at being a runner than in her teenage years. I guess the Republic's Commanders were required to be in top physical shape too. She turned sharp corners with ease, never making an amateur move such as looking behind her. Instead, I caught her looking at me through various windows that we passed. In the waning light, it was getting harder to spot her shape, she was light and agile. But then again, so was I.

It was probably only about a five minute chase, but as usual my brain interpreted the chase as a lot longer. Time was lost when I did the things I love. I felt my muscles starting to relax and my breathing setting into a pattern. My eyes and brain analyzed the path in front of me in milliseconds. I was falling into the rhythm that my body took on when I was out for a good run. I always was a runner.

I detected that I was at the high in my workout, just when June started to slow down. She wasn't built for running, she was built for fighting. So I speed up, seeing a chance to finally end the chase and have her beside me again.

I saw her form disappear around yet another corner, and followed suit a few seconds later. But I literally skid to a stop, burning the enhanced rubber on the sounds of my specialty made lightweight shoes when I ran right past her, calmly standing with her back to a brick wall.

I walked slowly toward her, I knew she wouldn't try to run again, her heaving chest showed she was officially done with her workout.

Her eyes were set on the ground, until they suddenly locked on mine. And in that split second she pounced, pushing me to the opposite alley wall. The air was knocked out of my lungs, and I stood there, the rough surface of the bricks digging into my shoulder blades. But only for a second. When I regained my senses, I pushed her right shoulder and swung us around, reversing out positing and pinning her against the wall.

Her dark eyes met mine.

A sudden connection passed between us, a wave of emotion crashed over us both, drawing us into the same tide.

Suddenly I found myself gasping for a completely different reason.

Our eyes closed at the same time. And less than a second later, my lips crashed onto hers.

Indescribable. That is exactly how I can describe kissing June for the first time again in a decade. Her incredibly soft lips on mine, our mouths working in perfect unison together. Her lips so delicate yet commanding. She was a beauty to behold.

Through all this, the times of us doing this exact same thing in the past washed up like a wave of pictures in my head.

The last one was a fading image of us in a dark alley. I recognized the wall in the memory, it was the same as the one behind June.

Our first kiss was in this alley.

I guess we came full circle.

*************

As we were regaining our breaths, our foreheads pressed together, I spoke the words.

"June, I love you. I did before, in the past. And then we were separated.

But I want- no, I need you to know that I love you.

That I still do.

That I never stopped."