Thank you jadefervidus for beta-ing. I published this fic a while ago on ao3 and just decided that I should also publish this here.
Allison's head lay on the cool window as she watched the stars. If there was one thing she enjoyed about being on the run, it was being able to see the stars in such clarity. Allison looked over at Lydia while she was intensely staring ahead, the moonlight illuminating the side of her face in a soft light. Suddenly, regret and trepidation grew like lead in her stomach.
Allison straightened and wrapped her arms around herself, a lump lodged in her throat. "Do you really want to get married?"
Lydia's head turned sharply before she gripped the wheel tightly, her voice surprisingly calm as she said, "You've changed your mind?"
Allison suddenly wanted to go back to sleep. "No, I just... I don't want us to get caught or separated." Allison squeezed her sides, images of prison flashing in her mind. "We're practically married, anyway."
"So you want to just give this up? This was your dream, after all."
That was true. Allison had always wanted to get married. She didn't enjoy the killing as much as Lydia did, but she did it because she was Allison's everything. If that's what she wanted them to do, who was Allison to stop her? But dreams weren't as important as freedom. If they got caught, they'd be sent back to California and tried, probably sentenced to life. The story of Bonnie and Clyde didn't have a happy ending. Especially when they were known as the 'Bonnie and Clyde serial killers'.
"Do you really want to risk a life where we could be free and happy?"
"Don't do this, Allison. What chance do we really have of escaping the cops?" Allison opened her mouth to reply but Lydia beat her to it. "None. We have none. Everyone is looking for us and if we don't try doing the one thing that they can't take from us, we'll always regret it."
"But we can just disappear. We could always -"
Lydia cut in sharply, "You know we can't. No one without money and connections can simply disappear."
"I'm sure there's a way. There has to be." This couldn't be the end. It just couldn't be. Allison didn't want to go out this way. Since the first time they met, she was regretting ever giving in to the urge to kill, and even for a second, regretting ever meeting Lydia. Why did they decide to do something so stupid? And they thought they were being so clever.
Lydia laughed, her cool façade cracking as a bitter smile crept on her face. "Yeah, sure."
The car was plunged into a tense silence after that, one that made her stomach feel as if it had been cut out and dropped. The lights from Las Vegas seemed searing when she looked at them coming closer to the city, as if they would burn her if she came too close. She knew they would - playing with fire wasn't something that left a person scar-free. Coming close to a big city was risky, never the less going into one.
When they finally arrived, the sun was just rising and the welcoming sign that she always wanted to see greeted her as something squeezed in her chest. Lydia's words had been circling her mind since they stopped talking and something about them felt truthful. Lydia was probably right - this was the best choice. Maybe their fates were sealed and whether or not they went to Las Vegas, they would still be caught. Enjoying the time they had now - together - was all that mattered.
"I'm sorry," she finally said. "You're right. We should enjoy our time now. Before everything turns to shit."
Lydia's once stoic expression melted and the smile that Allison had fallen in love with curved on her lips. "Of course I'm right. But I'm so glad you think so, too."
Allison laughed and found she couldn't stop. Right now, Lydia? Out of all the times to be a smart ass? Maybe that's why ever following her had been worth it. Where would she have ended up if she had never agreed to take that first stab? Or even if she'd never chosen Lydia over the life to which most women in the '60s were cursed to? Lydia was here with her and no one else could take Allison's place. If nothing else, she would have this moment, even if they were caught.
"Allison. It's not that funny."
Tears ran down her cheeks and her stomach felt as though it would burst. Finally, after Lydia punched her arm, she calmed down and gave Lydia a smile back.
"If we're never going to see each other again after today, let's make the best of it," Allison said.
Lydia rolled her eyes. "And you call me the pessimist."
"What? It's probably true." After a pause, she continued, "Where are we going to get married? Do we have to buy our own rings?"
Lydia glanced at the back seat before saying, "Take the wheel."
Before she could question why, Lydia reached back and Allison grabbed the wheel. When she came back to her seat holding a velvet box, Allison's heart leapt. Was that what she thought it was?
"I didn't think we'd be here so soon and I wanted to surprise you, but now is as good as a time as any." Lydia threw the box to her. Allison merely stared at it as if not believing it was actually in her hands. "Well? Open it, silly."
Allison paused before unwrapping the gift. Two rings lay inside, both the same with the biggest diamonds she had ever seen. And that was saying something, considering they murdered and robbed people for a living. "You got this for me?"
Lydia tilted her head and smiled. "Of course. Only the best for you."
Allison slipped on the ring and admired it on her hand. It fit perfectly. She had always wanted the perfect wedding when she was younger, with perfect rings and a perfect dress and the person she loved so much she'd spend the rest of her life with them. Maybe her dream was this moment, or maybe as close to it as she'd ever come. "Let's get married right away."
Lydia motioned to the street ahead of them. "You do see this traffic, right?"
"Let's run, then."
"Weren't you just saying that you -?"
Before Lydia could reply, Allison cut her off. "Let's go now."
"Alrighty then," Lydia said before pulling over to the side and parking the car at a random restaurant's parking lot.
Before long, Allison took Lydia's hand and they ran. After all, Las Vegas performed marriages all the time. They were bound to find some place close by.
Vegas was beautiful, especially in the orange and pinkish tint the sunrise created. The sleek buildings were drenched in the color, and coupled with the florescent lights, made the city seem brighter, like a dream. If anything, Allison was just glad that they could experience this together. They ran for several blocks, occasionally giving each other grins while scanning the area for any gaudy chapel. After all, it wouldn't be a Vegas wedding without an experience wrapped in cliché.
They finally stopped at a place that looked similar to the white chapel back in Beacon Hills, but with a big sign in the front with the words 'Marriages Here' across it. "This looks good," Lydia said before pulling Allison towards the door.
They were going to do it. Finally. The lobby walls were an awful pastel pink, but the design turned to something more Roman themed with white walls as they entered further. The lady at the front desk was a young brunette with pale skin and a fake smile Allison could spot a mile away. "You two getting married?" She raised her brow. "It's illegal for your kind to get married."
They both jerked. "Our kind?" Lydia asked, voice raising an octave.
"You both know darn well what your kind is. Get out of here before I call the cops and have them remove you."
Lydia removed her gun from where it was hidden between her breasts. The woman's brow rose before her body twitched and she dived for the phone. Allison grabbed her hand before she touched it.
"So," Lydia began, "where is the preacher?"
The woman trembled, her gaze not meeting their eyes. "I-In the back."
"Oh? So he's all ready to marry us?" Lydia turned towards Allison with a big smile. "Go get the preacher all set up and I'll handle her."
Allison gave her a look. "Don't shoot that thing off. People will hear."
Lydia waved her off and motioned towards the double doors that led further into the building. "I know what I'm doing. Besides, we're not staying long."
Allison nodded before opening the door to reveal a man in traditional preacher wear sleeping on a desk. She took out a gun of her own before resting it against his black-haired head. "Wake up."
The man surged awake, head bumping into the gun before his back straightened and his eyes looked ready to pop out of his head. His mouth opened as if to say something but quickly closed. They stayed like that for a few moments until Lydia came through the doors alone. Allison wondered if she disposed of the other woman properly. They couldn't afford another loose end but she opted not say anything about it.
"Get up," Allison said. "We want you to marry us."
His eyes widened. "But you're two girls."
She pressed the gun harder to his head. "Did we tell you to ask questions? Get moving."
He stumbled up and hurried towards the arch that stood in the middle of the room. It was white with pretty little pink flowers. Behind it, the walls had returned to the pastel pink of the lobby.
His voice somehow remained steady despite his obvious terror. "Do you have your own vows, or do -"
"We have our own."
Allison turned towards Lydia confused, and slightly in awe. She wrote vows for them? When did that happen? Such a sweet gesture made her cheeks heat up. God, she was so glad that they were getting married. Lydia was the one.
Lydia took out a piece of paper from her cardigan and unfolded it. Clearing her throat, she began, "Allison, when I first met you, I saw something special. You didn't talk or warm up to me for a long time though because the best things are worth waiting for. I'm so happy that I stayed and no matter what happens, we'll always have this; have us. This is not technically a marriage and it probably isn't what you imagined, but it's important and I'm glad that we're here and I'm able to show you how much I love and care about you. These words are so much less than what you deserve but they're best I can do right now. If we're allowed, I'll spend the rest of my life showing you." Lydia laughed and looked up from the paper, "Sorry this is so cheesy, but I guess what I'm trying to say is that no matter what, this - what we have - means everything to me and I love you."
"Babe. That was…"
"Good, I hope."
Allison paused, watching Lydia intently as a smile curved on her lips; Allison wanted to kiss them but she knew she should return the favor.
She returned the smile and nodded. "I loved them so much. Don't know how I'll top yours, though."
"You know I don't care. Anything from you is perfect."
"Okay, so the big thing is that I love you, but you probably know that already. I want to promise that if we make it out, I will cherish you forever." She paused. What else did she have to say? Words eluded her.
The priest cleared his throat and cut off any response she could have said with, "You may kiss the bride."
Allison hugged her around the neck before kissing her on the lips chastely. Lydia's lips were soft, despite how dry driving through the desert probably made them at some point. Allison was tempted to deepen the kiss but she knew once they got started, they wouldn't stop, and she had no desire to take things further with the priest watching them.
They pulled apart quicker than she would have liked and exchanged rings before Lydia raised her hand to stroke her cheek. "We've stayed here long enough. Let's -"
Before they could say any more, the priest surged backwards. They jumped into action and followed him, but he was faster and sprinted into a room further into the back and locked the door. Allison charged at the door, putting all of her body weight into it in the hopes that it was flimsy or that he hadn't locked the door fast enough. No such luck.
Allison turned around to face Lydia. "We either shoot this door open, or we leave because he is probably calling the cops as we speak."
"You think he has a phone in there?"
"We don't want to wait here to find out."
Lydia grabbed Allison's hand and they sprinted out of the chapel. Allison didn't know where Lydia was taking her, or if she even knew herself, but they ran like they had been doing so for the past two months. Everything blurred together until Lydia stopped and Allison noticed that they were in an alleyway, the sound of sirens getting louder.
"Do you remember the lesson on hot-wiring cars?" Lydia asked before continuing forward, still holding her hand. It had only been a week ago, but Allison's memory was a little fuzzy.
"A little bit, but what about our car? And why don't you do it? You'll get it done faster."
"I'm sure the feds that were on our tail will know we're here soon. And I did promise you practice."
Allison couldn't help but shake her head because Lydia's priorities really needed to be checked. The feds were always one step behind them and if they made even the slightest mistake, they could be caught.
They began to run again not long after, looking for cars to choose from. It took a while to find a place where cops weren't in the area and somewhere that was simultaneously easy picking. They finally settled on a fairly new looking Camaro with no roof in a hotel parking lot. Probably a '68, if she was guessing correctly.
"You drive," Lydia said before they both hopped in the car and Allison got to work attempting to hotwire. After a moment of fiddling with the wires and trying to remember how, Lydia grabbed her shoulder, "I'm guessing that's the owner." Allison looked up from the wires to see a man staring wide-eyed at the car before he ran the opposite direction back into the hotel.
"Fuck," Allison said and then turned her attention back to hotwiring. So she was supposed to put the wire where?
"Hurry up, Allison."
"Well, I'm trying. Why don't you do it?"
Lydia tsked before she shooed Allison away and got out of the car. "I guess you'll practice next time." They switched spots before she took the wires and started the car. They took off, hair whipping in the wind.
Turning right, Lydia began weaving in and out of traffic. All of a sudden, sirens blared, and Allison looked around to find cops enclosing them from all angles. Lydia laughed and turned to Allison with a grin that froze her blood. That was Lydia's I'm-about-to-almost-kill-us look. "Hold on."
She backed up in the middle of traffic, almost hitting three other cars before speeding towards a cop car, a hair away from hitting it.
"Lydia!" Allison yelled and Lydia did nothing but laugh as she turned last minute and drove past them. She looked into the rear view mirror as more sirens joined the others.
"How long do you think they can last?" Lydia said.
Allison didn't say anything, just shrugged her shoulders. Then Lydia's head snapped to the right, her maniacal grin growing wider.
"Allison, when I say go, I want you to flash them your tits."
Huh? "Why?"
"No time to ask questions." They were close to a flea market now and the two buildings that it was between. "Go!"
Allison shot up from her seat and lifted up her dress while Lydia drove close in front of the wall and before they hit it, jerked the car to the side. The cop cars crashed into wall and each other. Only one car missed it and followed them into the narrow path across the flea market. Getting rid of this one would be easy for Lydia. Well, she hoped so, anyway.
Lydia drove high-speed down the road until they passed the city limits into the desert. She then started driving off the main road and into the sand. The remaining cop car followed.
She curved to the side before stopping and forcing the cop to come next to her before jerking the wheel to the side and knocking the Camaro into the cop car. The cop inside tried falling back but she did it again. Allison's heart leapt as the cop's car caught in a hole before tipping over and rolling down into the hole below.
They both laughed breathlessly. "We did it. We actually got out of there," Allison said.
"Of course we did. Didn't I tell you?"
She did, and Allison had doubted her. Instead of replying, Allison took one of Lydia's hands off the steering wheel and squeezed it. She had thought that this was going to be the end hours ago and now, she felt as if it was anything but.
Beats of silence passed as Lydia got them back on the road and drove a good distance. Allison eventually spoke, "Lydia?"
"Yeah?" Lydia turned and looked over at her before looking back at the road.
"Let's go to Brazil."
Reviews are greatly appreciated. :)