Reunion

One

A light breeze blew through the gap once the window had been opened, and swept a couple dry leaves across the concrete floor. Dust flew up from the dirty ground, and from the torn pages of old books which were carefully aligned on top of a shelf. The room gave the impression of complete abandonment, with a strong musty smell leaking from the walls, and at least one cobweb in each corner. At first glace it was just a long-forgotten attic, but those who observed may have noticed the dusty mattress pushed into a corner, surrounded by empty cans of food and water bottles. The more one looked the clearer it became, it was indeed someone's place to stay. But was it just an ordinary homeless person's hideaway? Next to the wall, a dingy wardrobe lying on its back answered that question. It functioned like a chest, and was filled to the brim with guns and blades.

As Liu was leaning against the windowsill, his gaze shifted from one building to another, scanning the gray rooftops that emerged from the fog, until they were too far away and blended with the mist. He rested his head on his forearms, and slowly allowed his eyelids to close while letting the cool breeze blow into his face. The air was humid and the sky overcast. Although there was no rain yet, its distinctive smell and the pressure change in the atmosphere could've still been perceived. The birds felt it too, but they escaped it with ease.

The moment he opened his eyes, the emerald turned to graphite; the sky, the buildings, the streets, everything in his sight became colorless. Was it just him or was it real? Vast rain clouds gathered above in the ashen sky, casting a dark shadow over the city. There was a strange feeling inside of him, a feeling of being trapped. He wanted to run, just to get away, but his legs tangled in ropes and weighs forbid him to.

Those ominous clouds began crashing and thundering as they kept growing bigger and more violent. Then there was another loud bang, but it was not coming from the storm. It was gunfire.

***

He ran as fast as he could, but with a bleeding gunshot wound on his shoulder it was not that easy. As the downfall came, heavy gasps and splashing footsteps echoed on the walls of a narrow alleyway as he sprinted across the puddles between crooked cobbles.

"Stop right there!" Shouted a police officer from not so far behind him, to which he did the exact opposite, and even fastened his pace.

"I'm not a cop killer, but he is! So if I were you I wouldn't risk it!" he shouted back, a wide grin stretching his features. Blood was still dripping down his arm, yet his mind disregarded the pain, while the rain carried it away.

Simply for the thrill of being a criminal, for the adrenaline of being hunted, he loved the feeling of that excitement rushing through him, and he could not deny it. Despite all the hardship it had caused him, it was the only thing that kept his mind distracted from his past life. It was something he had been running from for a long time, but the reminders were always there to greet him in the mirror, etched into his skin. Playing cat and mouse with the law was his escape, ironically.

Soon the screeching noise of distant sirens broke the melodic pattering of the raindrops. However, it seemed like luck favored the criminal on that day, as a building with a fire escape came into view after his next turn. Without thinking twice, Liu got a hold of the railing, and hopped up onto the metal stairs that ran alongside the wall. He might have been an easy prey on the ground, but he knew the city's rooftops like the back of his hand. He won.

***

Snapping out of the moment, he took another deep breath of the humid air, before he closed the roof window to keep the rain outside. He then ran his gaze across the shadowy attic, when his eyes got stuck on the wardrobe of weapons.

"I know what you are thinking."

"It's none of your business" responded the male to the old-familiar voice, making it clear he was not happy about its return. He then glanced at the broken mirror piece hanging from the wall, and spotted himself standing behind him.

"Without me you'd be making many, many stupid mistakes. Seriously, you could use your brain sometimes."

"Use my brain? You are the one who's being irrational. We need money, we need to keep moving" Liu objected.

"Oh yeah? And does that mean we have to rob a fucking bank to you? I thought we already had enough on our plate. After all, you're not only running from the police, are you?" The reflection grinned, distorting the stitched smile. "We both know what you are afraid of."

"Don't you dare!" He shouted and raised a fist to strike the mirror, but was interrupted.

A sudden thump came from the window, instantly ceasing their argument. The male swiftly stepped over to the wardrobe to grab one of his handguns, before going back to the window. The handle turned slowly, making a high-pitched squeal.

"What the hell are you doing? The cops could still be searching the rooftops" the voice objected, but its attempt to put their safety first did not seem to work this time.

"Nobody would come up here when it's raining this heavily. It must've been a bird that couldn't make it out of the storm. And if not, I have this." Liu gestured with the gun, then opened the window just as much so he could take a peek outside. On a lower part of the roof lied a tiny bird, unmoving. "What did I tell you?"

He pulled himself up onto the edge, and began making his way over to the unlucky creature. When he kneeled down beside it, he could see the bird's chest rising and falling, which brought a relieved smile onto his face. He picked it up and took a closer look, but his smile quickly vanished as he heard someone stepping over to him behind his back.

"I did not expect that to work" said the voice of a stranger, before Liu was hit in the head, and his world faded to black.