Incognito

A/N: It has been brought to my attention that this plot is similar to that of Catch Me If You Can, and so I'd like to give the movie a little shout-out. I have yet to actually SEE it, and I think I'm going to wait until I'm finished with the story to actually watch it, so that I don't get any ideas/change them because they are too similar, etc. If you see any major similarities, it isn't intentional. Deathrace tells me that the movie is awesome, so I guess you should check it out. ;)

Baltimore, Maryland: 1975

Penny reached up and pulled the hairbands from her pigtails, letting her hair flow freely. A gust of wind rushed past and her and she took a deep breath, sighing at the feeling of cool air against her hot skin. Baltimore in the summertime was always brutally, blisteringly searing. She fought the urge to go inside and get a glass of lemonade, planting her feet in the soil of the garden. Penny had always loved flowers, ever since she was a little girl. She'd pluck daisies and tulips and marigolds from her mother's garden, raising them to her button nose and taking in their calming fragrance. She loved the colors; pinks and reds and yellows and blues and greens. They took her mind off the world around her; the corruption, the crime, her mother, her father. Especially her father.

"Penny," Tracy called from the porch, knitting her brows. She watched her best friend standing in her garden, feet buried in the dirt. "You wanna come in for dinner? Link's making spaghetti. I can't guarantee it's good, though. He's really awful..."

"Hey!" a loud cry emerged from the kitchen window. "I happen to be an amazing cook, Mrs. Larkin!"

Tracy rolled her eyes. "So, are you coming in?"

Penny shook her head. She didn't say anything. She didn't have to. Tracy shrugged her shoulders and sighed, walking back into the house. Penny could hear Tracy and Link's daughter yelling about how Link had promised to play Monopoly with her but didn't, and she smiled to herself.

She trailed her hand along the grass, the blades tickling her skin. Seaweed told her he'd meet her here, but she was used to him breaking his promises.

Baltimore, Maryland: 1965

She was sitting on the edge of the bed when it happened. First, she heard them; the gaudy tone of police sirens. Penny had just figured that it was nothing; she and Seaweed did live in a bad part of town. But someday, after they were married and Seaweed got a job, they'd move out West. Someplace nice. Maybe California, even. She'd seen a picture of the Golden Gate Bridge in a magazine and was entranced by it ever since. The picture was pinned to the wall right above their bed, and sometimes she'd fall asleep staring at it. Seaweed would always promise her that someday they'd live right across it, so she could fall asleep looking at the real thing. She had no idea how they'd do it; they were dirt poor, barely making enough money to pay the rent as it was.

"Penny," Seaweed's voice was shaky as he entered the room, and Penny was immediately alarmed. Her boyfriend was usually calm, cool, collected. Tonight, however, he had been uneasy. While they were eating dinner, he'd barely touched his food. He kept glancing at their television, which had been playing the local news all day. He'd been acting suspicious all day, and Penny was worried. "I have to go somewhere."

"What?" she asked, furrowing her eyebrows. She stood up, the mattress squeaking beneath her. "Where?"

"I don't know yet." He grabbed a grocery bag from the floor, and walked over to his dresser. Seaweed started throwing random belongings inside, and Penny was growing more and more anxious with every passing second. He looked like he was racing against time.

"Seaweed," she demanded, grasping his hand. "What are you...what are you doing? Why are you acting like this?"

"You love me, right?" Seaweed looked frantic, his chocolate eyes filled with desperation. He gripped her hands, looking into her eyes. He furrowed his eyes, pressing his lips together. "No matter what?"

"Of course I do," Penny's voice cracked, and tears started forming in her eyes. She was scared now, and the sirens grew louder. "Why are you asking me that?"

He shook his head, putting the bag on top of the dresser. He started to say something, but decided against it. Fumbling with the lock on the window, he finally got it open, making a move to jump out. Penny raced over to stand behind him, and she grabbed onto his shoulder. One of his legs was already dangling outside before turned back again to look at her.

"Listen, I love you," he told her, fear playing across his face. A bead of sweat dripped down the back of his neck and down his shirt. "And I've done a lot of things in the past that I ain't proud of."

"What are you...?"

"I'll tell you," Seaweed assured her, giving her a quick kiss on the forehead. "Just not now. There's not enough time."

"You're not making any sense!" Penny cried out. "I don't understand why you're..."

"I have to leave," he said quietly, swinging his other leg out the window and grabbing his bag. When he hit the ground, he looked back up at her. "Some people are looking for me, but you don't tell them anything, you understand?!"

"Seaweed, I..."

"You don't tell them nothing!" Seaweed repeated. "You don't tell them I was here!"

"I won't!" Penny yelled back to him. She was crying now, so confused. She didn't even know who they were, though she had an idea. Those sirens were for him. What he had done, she had no idea. But what she did know was that she absolutely terrified. She'd never seen Seaweed look so afraid in his life. Everything was moving so fast, and she barely had time to breathe.

"Listen to me, Penny," he said, shaking his head. His whole body was tense. "I'll tell you everything, okay? Meet me at the Inner Harbor at five o'clock in the morning tomorrow, you understand?"

Penny nodded her head. She'd never been there before, but she'd find out where it was. "I...I will."

"Say it to me!" Seaweed glanced over his shoulder. They only had seconds before the cops got there. "Inner Harbor, five in the morning!"

"Inner Harbor, five in the morning, tomorrow!" she repeated, slipping over the words.

"Don't tell nobody!" Seaweed slipped out of the alleyway just as the red and blue lights splashed across the building. Penny collapsed back onto the bed, hugging her knees to her chest.

She'd never felt so alone in her entire life.