JUNE

1907 HOURS.

RUBY SECTOR, LOS ANGELES.

77° F.

I can feel my pulse quicken when he touches my hands. Like in our handshake, he doesn't let go right away. I examine his face and wonder what he is thinking, what he is remembering. The look of mischief in his eyes sends a pang of grief to my heart.

Why did I do this? Even my wildest fantasies never got this far. I never asked myself the real questions: What will I do once I meet Day once more? What happens next? All I wanted was to meet him again. That was enough; it seemed impossible enough.

Now that he's here I try to follow my instincts. Logic, June, I tell myself. Logic is the way out of this. Why did you bother waiting ten years if you were just going to come back and hurt him again?

But I can't leave now. The scars...the scars I saw in his eyes before. I have to believe that he is ready. Because I am ready. God, I've been ready forever.

His hands are in mine, his mind is beginning to remember, his eyes light up at the sight of me. He is meeting me for the first time. I am meeting him for the second. But no matter what, we're together. We're meeting the way he wanted, just two strangers on the street. I will the moment to last forever.

I ignore the logical part of my brain and speak, once again with a flirtatious tone. It is easier to act this way towards him. It is easier to pretend like he's just some guy who I can flirt with, where there are no long term consequences, it is just us, in the moment. "Very," I agree.

I wish I could convince myself further. But this is Day, this is not a random stranger who I can leave behind and never think of again if I botch this up. If I hurt him again.

He lets go of my hand. I sigh inwardly and look out the window. We're here.

I get up first, the most eager to exit. Suddenly, I remember why we are here. It's my birthday. Normally, birthdays are no big deal, but today feels special. Like anything can happen today. Everything has happened today. Well, not everything. Just Day.

But just for this moment, he seems like everything.

I shake the thought off. You're crazy, June. You're out of your mind, June. Logic. There's so much more than you to this. You're not just some woman defined by...a guy! A guy, who you're head-over-heals in love with, who you've been dreaming about for the past ten years...

In love? Can I even say that at this point?

I compose myself despite my inner turmoil. The walk from the train to Tess's house is brief. Eden talks more about his engineering position. I point out important landmarks in the Ruby sector. Every now and then, I feel Day's eyes on me. When I turn to see, he doesn't look away. He just stares at me some more. Each time, it takes more restraint to keep the smile from creeping onto my face.

When we get there, Tess and Pascao are waiting outside. I beam at Pascao.

"June!" he greets me warmly. "Twenty-seven already?" He throws his arm around my shoulder. Then he sees Day. I don't know much of his role in Day's life after his memory loss, but if Day can barely remember me, then I doubt he can remember Pascao. Sure enough, his face shows no sign of recognition towards the former leader of the Runners. Pascao gestures to Day and Eden with a knowing smirk, "Who are your new friends?"

"This is," I pause, looking at Day. "Daniel. And this," I gesture to his brother, "is Eden."

"I'm Pascao." He extends his arm to Day, then Eden.

"It's so great to see you, June!" Tess says warmly. "And you too, Daniel." She has the slightest hint of mischief in her voice here. She pauses, then remembers her third guest. "Oh, and of course you, Eden."

She hugs each of us in turn. When she gets to me, she whispers in my ear, "Pretty good, birthday present, huh?" When we break away, I look at her incredulously. She continues playfully. "Don't worry, it's not like that's all I got you, if that's what you're worried about."

I lower my voice. "Thank you, Tess." Such simple words convey so much. Then, louder. "Where are we going?"

Tess smiles happily. "We're going to Tanagashi."

"We're getting on another train?"

All four of them laugh at my comment. Tess leads the way back to the train station, all of us walking side by side, like a group of old friends. We are old friends, I guess. It would feel a bit more complete if Day...I can't dwell on that now.

Day's arm brushes against my side. I look up at him. His blue eyes are just as I remembered them, and still with that little–imperfection in the right one.

Day smiles at me and the gesture makes me feel lightheaded. "You didn't tell me it was your birthday," he says, an amused smile plastered on his face.

My breath catches in my throat. "You never asked," I say simply.

"Well, now I feel bad for not bringing a present," he laughs. "Tess said it was just a gathering among friends," he pauses. "I guess...well, it's just that I barely know you." But he does, the Day I know does. I'm selfish, I know it, but I just wish he would remember me. Not just the scattered bits and pieces, but the remembrance of a true friend. Of a true love. Yes, I can say that at this point. Remember me, I plead silently. Please.

He's started to speak again. "I–" he begins, then stops himself abruptly. His eyes move down. I trace them and I find myself staring at the paper clip ring sitting on his finger.

"No, really, it's fine," I say quickly. I look away suddenly, embarrassed.

"Do you still carry knives?" he says, out of the blue.

My hands move instinctively to my waist. I feel the cool metal pressing up against my skin. Day smiles, noticing the gesture. "I'll take that as a yes."

I smile and shove him lightly, "Hey, I'm supposed to be the perceptive one."

I guess my voice is a little louder than I expected, because Pascao hears and smiles at it. "She really is. We have two agents who are identical twins. One time, during training, they decided to switch places. She called it out immediately because of a birthmark that only one of them had." After the war, Pascao decided to use his talents as a former Runner to become a soldier. In his early days, he worked side by side with me. Now, he's a captain in Denver. I don't see much of him anymore.

Day looks at me, smirking slightly. "That's June for you," Tess says, following his gaze. "Observant, calculating, Republican prodigy," I blush a little and look at my shoes. "You know she took on an undercover mission when she was fifteen?"

Immediately I am alert, looking at Tess with a silent What are you doing? She shoots me back a look that says Trust me, I got this. I am doubtful, but I say nothing.

Day seems to be the only one not comprehending the situation. Eden and Pascao know the story. For him, the pieces are coming together slowly. I can see slight realization light his face. "Undercover? What kind of mission?" His words come out with uncertainty, like he is still trying to grasp the fleeting memories. He looks at me and I am caught off guard by the look in his eyes. It is suspicion, he is remembering me not as the girl who he fell in love with, but the girl who killed his mother and his brother in cold blood. Maybe he's not ready, I can't help but thinking.

Tess opens her mouth to say something, but this time I intervene. We can't go that fast. I won't have him remember me like this. If he remembers only the bad, then I may as well depart from his life right now. "It wasn't a big deal. I just went to the poor sectors to monitor some Skiz fights and other illegal stuff the police didn't pick up."

Both Day and Tess look like they want to object, but I don't give either the chance. "Maybe we should walk faster, or we might miss the train."

We're almost there, but still, we all hurry along. Even though I only said it to change the subject, it was true, and we get there just in time for the train. Off we go to the Tanagashi sector without saying another word.

Hope you enjoyed. Sorry if June is a little repetitive at times.