~Because we all have our coping strategies~
Mostly written the day after the finale, but delayed by an international trip, so apologies for both the wait and any potential similarities with other post-eps (since I haven't yet read any and have no idea whether there might be overlap between this and others.)
In any case, hope you enjoy it.
The world was falling apart.
All around her, the earth shook and groaned, the sound of grinding rock echoing like thunder through the confined space of the tunnel. To her, each contraction seemed to build on the last, the tremors growing stronger and more frequent, each new quake vibrating in her bones.
Staring into the dimness of the tunnel beyond the crevasse, Julia silently prayed for their gamble to work, prayed that the dome could hold together just long enough for Barbie and the other residents of Chester's Mill to find their escape, to reach safety at last. Their survival was all that mattered; if they could make it out, then everything they had been through would be worth it.
If Barbie could make it out, she'd face her fate willingly, let the dome take her if it wanted her; her life was a price she would gladly pay for his freedom, his safety and survival. As long as he got through this, she could accept whatever happened to her.
Still, that couldn't stop the grief that slowly seeped from her veins, the absence of him already like a physical ache in her chest. The more she thought about the ever-widening distance between them— both physical and metaphorical— the harder it was to breathe, her body on the verge of surrender.
A fresh earthquake saved her from herself, jolting her from her thoughts as she fought to stay upright.
Beside her, Junior barely seemed to register the chaos around them, his expression bleak, his eyes fixed unseeingly on the tunnel beyond the crevasse. Watching him, she felt concern and pity join the jumble of emotions already swirling inside her, her own pain shifting aside as she considered his.
What he'd had to do was unthinkable, unbearable, yet he'd done it to protect the rest of them, to protect her and everyone else in the path of Jim's wrath. She would always owe him for that, not only for her own life, but the lives of those she cared about, and the life of the one person she couldn't bear to lose. She wished Junior could be up ahead seeking freedom with them, helping everyone else to safety— but she couldn't deny that she was glad of his company, glad not to be facing this alone.
"Thank you, James," she murmured, her voice barely audible above the sound of crumbling rock.
He glanced across at her then, eyes large and haunted, and for a moment she remembered just how young he was, this college kid whose life had been turned inside out in every possible way. Then he blinked, giving her a small, silent nod, and the boy he had been was gone once more.
Returning their gazes to the dimness beyond the chasm, they lapsed again into silence, grimly awaiting their fate.
She hadn't lied to Barbie. She still believed in the chance that the dome would protect her, would get her through this somehow— but she couldn't pretend that her faith was unshakeable, couldn't hide from the fear that she was never getting over that crevasse, never going to see the man she loved again. But above it all, her greatest fear was for him; losing her would hurt him, would wound him in a way that he might not recover from. It was still something she scarcely dared to believe, but the truth was that he needed her like she needed him— and after everything they'd been through, everything they were to each other, she couldn't leave him now.
Closing her eyes, she braced herself against another rough tremor, her thoughts stark and pleading.
Bring me back to him.
A sudden strange glow against her clenched eyelids had her blinking, a sharp inhale catching somewhere in her throat as she saw the flickering light of flames drawing nearer through the tunnel up ahead. A moment later, the source of the strange light burst around a corner, a wall of fire that rushed toward them like a wave until suddenly it broke apart, exploding into thousands of flame-butterflies and completely filling the tunnel, flooding over the crevasse and swirling around her and Junior like a warm, gentle wind.
The moment the butterflies passed over the crevasse, a new roar echoed from the tunnel's stony walls, violent cracks splitting the ceiling just ahead of where they stood. She and Junior barely had a second to jump backwards— a fresh bolt of pain searing through her injured leg as she landed— before a huge portion of the ceiling simply fell away, an asymmetrical, flat-topped chunk of rock dropping to the floor with a deafening boom, spanning the chasm like a rough bridge.
Breathless with shock and disbelief, she and Junior barely glanced at each other before they were moving in tandem, wary eyes on both the damaged ceiling above and on the questionable bridge below. Moving ahead of her, Junior approached the boulder gingerly, one hand reaching back behind him for her to grip, her strength the only lifeline he would have if the stone gave way.
She saw the deep, slow breath he took as he prepared himself, watched him lift a foot to rest tentatively on the rock before stepping fully onto the bridge— his breath coming out in a rush as the boulder remained in place, holding his weight.
With Junior leading and her following carefully behind, they inched their way together across the stone, moving slow and testing for weak spots— until they reached the halfway mark, the two of them suspended above a seemingly bottomless abyss, about to cross the point of no return. She felt Junior tense, saw the glance he sent back at her, immediately understanding his thoughts. And then— by some unspoken agreement— they simply threw themselves forward, dashing across the last several feet to the other side of the crevasse, racing to the safety of solid ground. Stumbling to a halt a couple of yards from the edge, Julia dropped his hand and spun, eyes locking once more on the sturdy boulder-bridge that had been their salvation, a small, disbelieving laugh escaping her lips.
For whatever reason, something or someone had sent the fire-butterflies her way, had given her the one thing she needed for her escape. The dome had protected them, and now, finally, they could truly be free.
"Let's get out of here," she suggested with a grin, seeing Junior give a relieved smile back before the two of them turned together towards the depths of the tunnel— towards the rest of the town, towards freedom, towards a future.
Towards Barbie.
"Stop right there."
The gruff voice echoed through the tunnel, as sharp as the jagged chunks of rock that still fell from the ceiling, laced with the same manic edge that she'd heard at Andrea's.
She and Junior both froze at Jim's words, more in shock than obedience, the realisation that they were completely exposed— completely defenceless— flooding through their veins like ice water.
"Turn around," Jim ordered, and slowly they obeyed, minds racing.
Across the chasm, Jim stood panting, covered in blood and leaves, a feral snarl on his face and his gun aimed squarely at Julia's chest.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Junior's fingers twitch, his hand hanging bare inches from his own gun. Despite the distance between them making it impossible for him to actually see the tiny movement, Jim seemed to read his son's mind; taking another step, he shook his head, his tone almost friendly.
"Come now, son. I could shoot you both long before you could pull out that thing and take another shot at me," he said conversationally, as if discussing a sporting team's chances rather than cold-blooded murder. "But I don't want to hurt you. Her, yes, but not my own son. Not Pauline's baby boy. So be good now and let your daddy do what he needs to do."
Standing up a little straighter, Junior faced his father grimly, shifting closer to her as he spoke.
"No, Dad," he said firmly, a tremble in his hands but none in his voice. "I won't let you touch her, or anyone else. You're done hurting people."
"I'd like to see you stop me, son, " Jim mocked, moving steadily closer, stepping up onto the edge of the boulder bridge. "I can assure you, Julia is going to die right here and now, and while I'd much rather slit that pretty throat, a bullet to the stomach should be just about slow and painful enough."
Her gut clenched at his clearly genuine threat, her breath catching somewhere in her throat. Beside her, Junior shifted on his feet, as if about to move in front of her, but was instantly halted as Jim's gun swung to aim at his head, his eyes wild.
"Stop right there, Junior, or I'll put a bullet somewhere— " he lowered his gun toward Junior's feet— "Just to teach you a lesson about obeying your elders."
"James," she murmured, fighting to keep her voice even. "It's okay. Stay out of this, and live."
Junior's head snapped to look at her, his eyes frantic, helpless. "Julia—"
"Oh, look at the noble queen, still always putting her subjects first," Jim interrupted with a sneer, his gun now pointed directly at her abdomen, "Well, I think it's time for a new line of succession, don't you?"
Knowing she was looking at her killer, Julia simply closed her eyes, erasing Jim's face from her mind. If she was to die now, she didn't want her last thoughts to be of the man responsible for her death.
Instead, she thought of the man responsible for all of the good in her life, her thoughts focusing until she saw nothing but Barbie, the ache in her chest growing sharp as she said a silent goodbye to the man she loved.
A moment later, a desperate shout cut through the air, Junior's voice echoing through the tunnel even more loudly than the earthquake.
"Dad, don't—"
But it was too late.
In the confined tunnels, the gunshot roared like cannonfire, filling her ears with a split second of deafening noise before suddenly all was quiet, everything around her falling abruptly into silence.
Everything except the frenzied pounding of her heart in her ears, loud and strong and still present.
Instantly, her eyes snapped open, her breath escaping in a rush as she watched Jim's gun clatter off the bridge and disappear into the abyss, an enraged roar escaping his throat as he clutched at his hand, blood pouring from the torn and mangled flesh.
Tearing her eyes from Jim, she whipped her head to the right, her wide-eyed gaze fixing on Junior— only to find him staring blindly at Jim with the same kind of stunned shock she felt, his hands empty, his gun still untouched at his waist.
Awash with confusion, she spun to look behind them— and stopped breathing.
Emerging from the dimness of the tunnel beyond like a wraith, Barbie strode toward them, his gun still up and ready, his face like thunder. Breathlessly watching him approach, she found it easy to understand how people could fear him— but where they saw the trained killing machine, the ultimate soldier, she saw instead the man who hated violence, the man who fought only to protect himself and those he loved, the man who was right now prepared to destroy any and every threat to her safety. Even when he reached her, his focus never wavered, his eyes never leaving Jim as he gently but firmly moved her behind him, fury in every line of his body.
"You piece of—" Jim gasped, a string of profanities hissing from between his clenched teeth, his eyes aflame with hatred and pain as he stared across the chasm at Barbie.
"It's over, Jim," Barbie interrupted, his voice like a steel blade, strong and sharp and deadly.
"Turn back," he commanded, and instantly she saw him on a battlefield, a power in his words that would make allies follow and enemies flee. "Go back now, and you might even survive under this thing. But take one goddamn step onto this side of the abyss and I will put you down without a second thought."
Ignoring the blood that dripped freely onto the boulder beneath his feet, Jim bared his teeth, deliberately taking another step towards the center of the bridge, an insane challenge from an unstable man.
Lifting his aim to Jim's head, Barbie gave another warning, his iron control the only thing preventing him from acting on the instinct to execute Jim where he stood. Grinning broadly now, Jim stepped into the very center of the boulder, clearly believing he was calling Barbie's bluff.
"I won't miss, Jim," Barbie growled, a final warning, giving the other man one last chance to retreat. In her mind, it was more chances than he deserved, a feeling that was only strengthened as Jim began to laugh.
"Oh, Barbie, Barbie, Barbie, always the hero," he crooned, shaking his head dramatically from side to side— only to suddenly pause, his expression abruptly brightening as he stared across at them once more. "Or not always— did you give Peter Shumway a chance to walk away before you murdered him? Not that your whore girlfriend seems to care, you probably did her a favour—"
Digging her nails into her palms, Julia fought the urge to cross the bridge and kill Jim herself with her bare hands, instead fixing her eyes on Barbie's back, seeing the taut lines of his shoulders, his body as still as if he was carved from stone. Jim's words had gotten to him, she knew, but he would never give him the satisfaction of an outward reaction, never let him feel that he'd won. She certainly didn't have his discipline nor his restraint; had the gun been in her hands, Jim would be dead by now, bleeding from a dozen different bullet holes, and she wouldn't regret a single one.
Still taunting, Jim took another step, bringing him just that little bit closer to their edge— only for a deafening roar to suddenly tear through the tunnels, a violent quake nearly throwing them all off balance. They steadied themselves almost instantly, swiftly regaining solid footing— all except Jim, who had flung his hands out wide, his eyes fixed on his feet— where a huge crack had formed in the center of the previously solid boulder, the two halves shuddering dangerously. A second later, an ominous grinding noise emanated from the stone, and Jim's eyes snapped to theirs, pierced by panic, and immediately Barbie started forward, his gun swiftly lowering as he threw out his other hand— but too late, the cleaved stone simply giving way, dropping into the darkness and taking Jim with it, his scream echoing around them as he fell, the haunting sound cutting off abruptly with the dull boom of rock on rock.
And then, there was silence.
Barbie was the first to recover from their shocked reverie, shoving his gun into his waistband with one hand while reaching for her with the other.
Cupping her face, he looked down at her, his previous fury replaced with gentleness and concern, his eyes worried. "Are you alright?"
Letting out a shaky breath, she gave him a tiny nod— and he finally seemed to settle, his forehead lowering to touch against hers for a brief moment before he reluctantly pulled back, his hands dropping to close around hers.
"Come on," he said, taking charge once more. "We gotta go. Junior, c'mon."
Standing motionless just a few feet away, Junior didn't respond, didn't even seem to register the continuing tremors that shook the tunnel, his eyes staring unseeingly at the abyss that had swallowed his father.
Glancing back, Barbie met her gaze briefly, then tightened his fingers around hers before stepping closer to the younger man, drawing her with him.
Putting a careful hand on Junior's shoulder, he spoke softly, his words gentle.
"There's nothing we can do now, Junior. And if we don't get out of here now, we'll end up the same way. So we gotta go."
Slowly, Junior lifted his head, his eyes still not quite meeting Barbie's as he gave a small, robotic nod. She saw Barbie's hand tighten on his shoulder for a moment before he let go, turning away from the abyss, his fingers squeezing hers slightly as he met her eyes once more, as if looking for guidance.
Nodding slightly in encouragement, she nudged him forward, letting him pull her through the tunnels towards freedom and safety, both of them glancing back repeatedly to ensure Junior was still following, the teen seeming dazed as he stumbled along behind them. After a minute or two of stumbling along the dim, rocky path, they rounded the final corner to find Hunter waiting before a glowing wall of light, the young man slumping in relief as he saw them.
"Oh thank god," he babbled, "We heard the gunshot, we didn't know-"
She'd felt Barbie tense the moment Hunter had come into view, the frown on his face halfway between disapproval and concern, the same sentiment mirrored in his voice. "Hunter, what the hell are you still doing here?"
Hurriedly holding up his hands in surrender, Hunter rushed to explain, his words tumbling out. "Well I was helping everyone get through, and the last people just went like a second ago, and everything went fine, but you weren't back and I just wanted to stay to make sure—"
Lifting a hand, Barbie cut him off. "Time for you to go. Junior, go with him, and whatever's waiting on that other side, both of you just look out for each other, okay? We'll be right behind you."
Hunter glanced at Junior, who was staring blankly at the glowing wall, seemingly lost in his thoughts. "But—"
"Go," Barbie growled, and Hunter immediately backed down, shaking his head with a sigh as he crossed to stand beside Junior.
"See you there," he said dryly, tossing them a small salute before lifting a hand to grip Junior's shoulder and guiding him into the white light, both of them slowly swallowed by the glow until they had completely disappeared, she and Barbie now standing alone in the quaking tunnel.
"Barbie, whatever happens—" she began, then paused, drawing a steadying breath as he turned to face her, his gaze showing everything he felt as he looked down at her. Lifting a gentle hand to his cheek, she locked her eyes with his, letting him see just how much she meant what she was about to say.
Then, tightening her fingers around his, she spoke again. "Whatever happens, this was worth it, okay? All of this was worth it just to find you."
For a few unsteady beats of her heart he simply held her gaze, and then his hand was cupping her neck and his lips were on hers and she was melting into him, the dangers both behind and before them fading away as she pressed close, letting go of everything but him.
He was meant for her, just as she was meant for him, and as long as they were together, she knew they were going to make it— no matter where they ended up, or who or what they faced there. With Barbie by her side, she could survive anything.
His thoughts seemed to mirror hers; reluctantly ending their kiss, he drew back just far enough to rest his forehead against hers, his hand gripping hers tightly as he spoke, his voice low, roughened with emotion.
"I'm not letting go, okay? No matter what, I'm always gonna be right here with you."
Tilting her head, she pressed another brief kiss to his lips, then pulled back slightly, her eyes glancing at the wall of light before locking once more with his, seeing everything she felt reflected in his gaze.
"Together?" she murmured softly, a single word carrying more meaning than a thousand conversations.
Giving her a tiny nod, he drew her forward until they stood just before the white glow, his eyes on her as he lifted their joined hands to his lips, the word spoken like a vow, a promise against her skin.
"Together."
Thanks for reading, and trust me, any kind of review/comment is absolutely welcome.
-Laura