We would have to sprint several hundred metres, climb an 8 foot high wall and then sprint for even longer to the forest probably a kilometre away on the other side of the border, our only chance of escape. It was only midday, we had arrived earlier than expected, so Jerome pulled me close.
"Sleep for a little bit Mitch, I'll wake you in a few hours." I nodded and settled down with my head on his back, his arm securely around my waist, ready for when he woke me.
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Time dragged on slowly and Jerome got a quick cat nap in while the sun set. I noticed that the patrols become more sparse as night fell and told Jerome when he woke up, they went from one every 10 minutes to one every half hour and then, as darkness completely took over, they spread out to one every hour.
Around 11, we didn't have an exact time, Jerome tugged on my hand, pulling me out of the undergrowth just as a patrol disappeared from our sight. I reckoned we had about half an hour to be out of sight, but we had to run at least a kilometres and climb the wall, which had barbed wire on top.
"Run Mitch!" He hissed. "Run!"
We scrambled the hundred metres to the wall, my legs weak from the hours I had spent lying on the ground. At the wall I desperately scrabbled for something to grab onto but there was nothing, nothing to pull myself up with.
"Boost me up Mitch, I'll pull you up afterwards." I did as he asked, giving him a leg up until he was standing on the top of the wall, his legs either side of the barbed wire.
He leaned down and took my hands, pulling me up while I tired to help in any way possible. At the top he jumped off the other side, gesturing for me to jump with no words, all the while holding his arms out to tell me that he'd catch me if I fell.
I landed right in his arms and he took my hand again, setting off at a running pace, our goal in the distance. This was the scariest part, where we were most likely to get caught, where we were most exposed.
My heart was pounding in my chest and my breathing was heavy and hard, panicked, as was Jerome's. We were only fifty metres away from the wall when Jerome stopped.
"I can-" He puffed, "I can manipulate the shadows but if we run... if we run I won't be able to hold it for long and it'll be obvious, the air will ripple." I nodded, panting. "If we walk it'll be easier, but if someone looks twice then we're screwed."
"Easier- if we run, get further away faster." I panted, not wanting to stop.
"Go then." He urged me on, the air rippling around us as he struggled to hold it up while we moved so much. Slowly the forest came closer and closer until I could almost touch it and then both of us dived into the cover, scrambling into the undergrowth so we were hidden.
We both lay on our backs, panting and gasping for air, relishing in the fact that we had made it across the border.
"We did it." Jerome gasped. "We really did it. We're safe."
He leaned over and kissed me, his lips chapped and dry but full of relief and love.
"Thank God." I mumbled. "We made it."
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I splashed the cool river water into my face, grinning as Jerome flicked a fist full at me. I was clean and warm for once in my life, living comfortably in a small cottage in the middle of the woods where we could live in peace.
We had set up a small business in a town far away from the border, saying we had come from a border town but had fled because of violence after people began asking about our accents.
Jerome sold firewood and became a carpenter and I found odd jobs from the townspeople, becoming a sort of travelling healer after they found out about my knowledge of herbs and plants. It meant a lot of people were in debt to us because of my knowledge, which would be useful if they ever found out about our powers.
"Jerome!" I shrieked as the cold water went down my neck and he laughed at me. "You asshole!"
He just laughed at me, flicking some more water at me. I grabbed his hand and pulled him away from the water, but this meant I pulled him on top of me and he grinned at me. His hands were rough and callous as he pulled me into a sitting position, practically sitting on my lap to stop me from moving.
"Am I an asshole?" He raised an eyebrow. "Am I really?"
He was teasing me and I knew it, so I shoved his chest.
"Yes! You are an asshole!" All that did was got him to start tickling me, his fingers digging into my ribs and his lips blowing raspberries into my neck. I shrieked and he tackled me back onto the ground, planting kisses on my neck and on my face.
"Am I an asshole now?" He teased, pinning my arms up above my head.
"Yes you are!" I tried to fight my way out but because he was so much stronger and that little bit heavier than me I eventually gave up, pouting at him until he let me go.
He leaned down and kissed me, his elbows either side of my head, capturing my lips in a long and passionate kiss. I kissed back fiercely, my arms reaching up to wrap around the back of his neck and my back arched a little.
When we pulled back both of us were bright red, from my ears all the way to the tip of my nose and Jerome was much the same, but he was still grinning at my embarrassment. He kissed my nose before helping me up into a sitting position.
"You're still an asshole." I muttered, leaning up against him. He squeezed my waist, pressing the light kiss to my cheek.
"I know." He smiled, smirking a little. "But you love me."
"Yeah." I sighed. "I do."
"Good, cause I love you too." I leaned back and listening to the gurgling of the river while I played with some flowers that were growing by the riverbank, making them grow up to tickle Jerome's feet. He grinned, plucking one up, a brilliant blue one, and pushing it behind my ear.
"I hope we won't have to live life in the shadows anymore." I said.
"We won't Mitch, I promised all those years ago that we'd live free and I don't plan on breaking that promise. I'll be with you through everything, no matter what." I smiled.
"And I'll always be here too."
