The afternoon had grown colder as the sun began its descent behind a thickening layer of cloud. The usually bustling town had also grown cold; its residents had huddled away in their homes out of fear or concern. Shops had closed, doors had locked, and streets were empty.
One man trudged up a set of iron stairs, a look of confusion on his face. He was expecting to find Ace huddled at the top, as he had locked the door and had taken the keys with him, but the tan-haired man was not there.
“Don’t tell me he’s really run off...”
His words trailed off as he noticed the door was cracked.
He cautiously pushed open the door, accentuating the squealing creaks from the hinges.
Two green eyes peered over the edge of the couch.
“There you are.” He initially sighed with relief, but he soon pointed to the door. “Did you... break into my apartment?”
“I didn’t feel safe outside.” Ace disappeared behind the couch. “I can leave if you want me to...”
The bartender, however, was still eying the door. “But, how?”
“Two were standard bolts and the padlock was already loose.”
Elliot turned to find a slightly bent butter knife on the counter beside him. “Do you have any other skills I should know about?”
Ace groaned.
“All right, bad choice of words,” the man walked over and sat on the other end of the couch. “For coming from a slightly-electric-powered medieval culture, you sure know a lot about mechanics.”
“I was a thief and a gambler in my past life,” Ace admitted. “I needed to know how things worked so I could pick any lock, get in anywhere I needed, and take anything I wanted. Then, I’d gamble it all away and do it all again.” He puffed air through his nose and glanced aside. “I’ve relied on others and my supposed luck to get through life for years... and now that I’m trying to make an honest living by working hard and taking control of my life, this happens.”
“You never know what life’s going to throw at you.” Elliot mused as he looked idly out the window.
Ace hissed a sigh and sunk his head against his knees. “I just want to go home.”
The Barean frowned sadly, unable to respond.
“What if I don’t get back?” Ace muttered into his lap. “What if I never see Athena or Dorian or James ever again? And—and what about them? Are they looking for me? Do they think I’m dead?” His head popped up as his eyes grew distant. “How long will Athena wait for me?”
“Is she your girlfriend?” He tried.
Teary-eyed, the Echo tried to smile. “Wife.”
“Woah, back up—you’re married??”
“They took my ring,” Ace rubbed his empty fingers.
“Yeah, but now I feel like a terrible person for never asking you about your friends and family in the first place,” Elliot smirked sheepishly, “I mean, just because I don’t have any doesn’t mean you don’t.”
“I haven’t exactly asked you about your friends and family either,” Ace shrugged.
“Well, the list is short.”
“Stephan?”
“Good job: you named the whole list.”
Ace leaned against the back of the couch. “With as kind as you are to others?”
“Kind?” Elliot puffed air through his lips. “You call this kind? I’ve taken someone in and I don’t even have a proper bed; all of my spare clothes are stained or have holes in them; and you, sir, have cooked every meal since you showed up.” He ran his fingers across his head and offered a laugh. “If anything, you’re way kinder than I could ever be.”
The smallest of smiles lit Ace’s face. “You still gave me clothes to wear, food to eat, and somewhere safe to stay. My cooking is my feeble attempt at making it back up to you.” He watched Elliot cautiously. “And despite knowing you’re associating with a dangerous outcast... you’re still sitting here talking to me.”
Elliot had also smiled as he looked down at his lap. “That’s because, despite everything I can try to think up to get myself out of this situation, he reminds me that I shouldn’t.”
“He?”
“Gershwin.”
“So the list has two people,” Ace raised an eyebrow.
“It had two people.” Elliot corrected the verb tense. “Gershwin was an older gentleman who lived alone, and when I showed up with nothing at his door, he took me in without a single complaint. Every time I gave him a reason to give up on me, he wouldn’t. He’d urge me on and keep me going.”
Ace watched Elliot crouch over his knees, kneading his hands together.
“Until the day he died, he always swore I came to him when he needed me, but not a day goes by without me remembering how much I needed him.” He glanced up with an embarrassed grin. “I will not be pretentious to think I can come anywhere close to what he’s done, but maybe I’ve been given a chance to try.”
The Echo grinned warmly. “I think Gershwin would be more than proud.”
“So!” The Barean exclaimed loud enough to make Ace jump, “Now that we’ve had this sappy moment, it’s time we made a new plan.” He clapped his hands together and stood up. “We know you can’t go back out there, and we know you came from the research facility, so that’s where we need to go.”
The Echo’s face scrunched. “Are you crazy?”
“You snuck out, didn’t you?” Elliot waved a hand. “We just need to sneak back in. See what we can find.”
“We?” Ace asked skeptically.
“Yes, ‘we’—was I really not being sappy enough?”
“Elliot,” Ace stood hesitantly. “Sappy or not, what I did today—the wave and the water—I barely remember doing. I don’t know how much control I have over this power.” He eyed the Barean carefully. “The last thing I ever want to do is hurt you.”
“Yeah, but you stopped when you saw me. Whatever was going on, you still recognized me.” Elliot adjusted his position to look more directly at Ace. “Despite everything telling me otherwise... I know I can trust you.”
Ace’s expression again lightened. While everything after being tossed into the canal seemed like a dream, Elliot was the first thing he could remember well. “You know,” his lips tugged to a smirk, “you’re starting to sound like you have two people on your list again.”
“You think so?”
“I don’t want to be pretentious,” the smirk continued.
Elliot chuckled under his breath. “Well, I guess we’ll see.”
“All right,” Ace crossed his arms. “So, when do we go?”
Elliot looked out the darkening window. “Tonight.”