zarathrustra_ink | Epilogue: Agents Of Farewell...

"I figured I had to be dead cuz-" He made a motion at Toilyn. "This one hugged me when I sat up. What sucks is now I'm sure of it 'cause you're here." He nodded at Juniper. "I never imagined you to be a part of my Hell loop and yet, here you are."

I wanted… No, NEED… I needed to be the one to tell him. "You're not dead, Jan." His gaze swung from Juniper to me. Our eyes locked and in that moment, none of it mattered. He was here, alive. The entire room melted away as I rushed to his side. He gathered me in his arms as if we'd always been this way.

I clung to the fabric of his shirt, willing my cheeks to remain dry. There was no time for tears. I would not cry.

"Get a room." The dry humor of Toilyn's voice tickled my ears, reminding me of where we were… Of who I was.

I released Jan immediately.

"So where are we?"

I stood, grateful for the subject change. "This used to be Dr. Patil's home." Juniper explained before Toilyn or I could respond. "Who's apparently dead now, according to your story."

"I told you guys everything I could remember." Jan said quickly.

Juniper nudged my shoulder. Just a little longer. My heart pleaded. Can't we just be in this moment for a little while longer…

I moved so that she could get closer to Jan. "You're going to save the timeline, Jan."

"There's no way!" He burst out laughing. His laughter sobered as he realized none of us had cracked so much as a smile. "Wait, you're serious?"

"I am." She replied, nodding. "The technology that you created will save the lives of the doctors at Altura who are working on Covid-99 so that Luminous can remove them from this timeline."

"Doesn't that mean it'll still happen in 2019?"

She nodded somberly. "It has to. It's a historic event. We cannot alter historic events in any way, that's the rules."

"But the people…" I said. "Millions…"

Again, Juniper nodded. "Removing the virus from this era will mean the doctors, nurses and scientists who are tasked to be on the front lines will go on to do those things. Without this reset, the team who goes on to figure it out will parish."

"All of them?" Toilyn asked, her voice cracked with disbelief.

She didn't even hesitate. "Yes."

"If Jan is the cure, why not place him in 2019 before any of this happens?"

"You already know that answer, Toilyn." Juniper said. She turned her attention, first to Jan, then to me. "I will give you two a little time then we have to go."

She gestured at Toilyn, whose neck was still locked on Jan. For a few seconds, I could see the turmoil in her expression. Juniper reached to grab her elbow, but Toilyn snatched out of reach. She was out the door, stomping down the stairs before Juniper could react. She chanced one last look at me, then Jan: "Five minutes."

"You saved my life." Jan said as soon as the door closed behind her.

"You saved me first." All of a sudden, my throat felt extremely dry. "When I found you… I thought…"

"I thought the same." He began to fiddle with the blanket covering his legs. "Ya know, when you're a kid, screaming with laughter is something you become accustomed to. It's just a sound and you would think all your screams would sound similar no matter how you age, but that's not true. I don't think I'll ever be able to shake the sounds of my screams in that lab."

"Jan…" Look at me! My thoughts screamed. He wouldn't. His gaze stayed on his fingers tracing lines on the blanket. "I've got something for you."

When he still didn't look up, I fished through my pockets to find the picture of him. I slid it in front of him. He picked it up. Once, twice, he turned it over; almost as if he didn't recognize the people. "It's Mavis." He murmured finally. "Where did you get this?"

I explained as much as I could, without getting into my suspicions. The tips of his fingers were trembling on the edges. I wished that he would look at me, but no. His eyes remained on the picture. "She didn't die because of me." The words were weaved with an undertone of relief. "It wasn't my fault."

"No." I replied.

"You went through a lot to find me."

"I did."

"Z…" Blue eyes fell on me finally. It was mere seconds but it might as well have been hours. I would have given anything to be a mind reader in that moment. "And now I'm supposed to save the timeline." His words were quiet, as if he'd meant to say something else, but changed his mind. He flipped his hand over. A tiny ball of blue and gold fluttered from his fingers. It did tiny pirouettes down the bed before disappearing through the wall. "I need to know…" He punched the bed angrily. "This wasn't supposed to happen to me! I could have taken that dude and I know it! They caught me with my guard down and I have to live with that!" He punched the blanket again. "I'm going to kill that guy one day."

"Get in line."

"There's a line?" A tiny smile swept his lips. "Will I ever see you again?"

"Of course." I answered at the same time as Juniper's tiny knocks signaled the end of our time.

I turned on my boot. Jan's hand shot out to grab my wrist. I looked down at his fingers wrapped around my naked skin. I'd never noticed how lithe and artistic they were. My eyes studied the tips of his fingernails, which still had a bit of dirt beneath them. Unlike me, he had not bitten his nails down to nubs.

"Jan…"

Our eyes met.

He smiled.

I smiled.

For a few fleeting moments, that's all that mattered.