-Post 2019 Apocalypse: Eight Years-
Rachel slowly came out of her slumber from a ticklish sensation. It travelled down from her face to her shoulder before gliding down her arm. She felt a slight draft on her back, but the rest of her was comfortably warm. Blinking, she found the source of the warmth before her. Blue eyes met her green eyes and the ticklish feeling moved down to her stomach before slowly sliding up the middle of her bare chest. She smiled and reached out, running her fingers through the long hair of her bedfellow.
"What are you doing?" Rachel asked, her voice raspy from sleep.
"Studying," was the nonchalant response.
Rachel rubbed her eyes to better look at Five. The left edge of his lips twitched as he attempted not to smirk at her. Feeling more awake, the young woman stretched before cuddling closer to her partner.
"As if there is something you haven't seen at this point. Just admit you were hoping I would wake up. And, as usual, you got what you wanted."
It was one of those rare days where they did not have to jump up with the sun and head out to a new location. They had stumbled upon a house stocked full of food for at least a month between the two of them, which was great since it was Winter. The previous owners clearly believed in a doomsday of some sort, lucky for the two of them. They had taken the day before to dust off, clean, and drag an intact mattress into a relatively untouched room. While they had to use an excessive number of blankets, a fireplace, and each other to keep warm, it was a better situation than they had been in for years. Dolores even got her own nice couch to lie on by the fire.
The idea of lounging for a day was a welcome one, especially since Rachel had something on her mind. She shivered; the fire clearly having gone out during the night. She nuzzled her cheek against Five's shoulder.
"Five," she spoke calmly, sliding down a bit to kiss his chest.
"Hmm?" he hummed at her, placing his warm hands on the cold places of her back.
Rachel took a deep breath, pushing her nerves away. She wanted to say it. Needed, in fact.
"I love you."
Everything around them was quieter than it had ever been. No one else on the planet was alive. Nothing else was alive. The two had practically stopped breathing at her words, one registering them and the other waiting for the result.
After a minute that felt like an eternity, Five pulled away and rolled out of the bed. Rachel let out a sigh. She'd expected this. She probably would have been terrified if he had actually responded in kind. Sitting up, she watched as Five pulled on pants before pacing the room.
"Five, calm down and talk to me," Rachel urged.
He stopped and held a finger out to her.
"You don't love me," he told her firmly, trying to convince himself more than her.
Rachel slid to the other side of the bed, so she was closer to Five.
"I wouldn't have said it if I didn't."
Her voice was calm and measured, which seemed to rattle Five. The male ran a hand through his hair, trying to think. Rachel just waited calmly. She glanced out the window to see snow gently falling. Feeling a chill, she pulled the blankets up around her, wrapping herself up into a mound of blankets.
"Five, its cold. Come back to bed."
He ignored her words and kept pacing.
"You can't be in love with me. It's like Stockholm Syndrome. No, it is Stockholm Syndrome. You are stuck with me with no one else. But if we get back-"
"My feelings aren't going to change if we go back! I'm already in love with you. Come now, this isn't Beauty and the Beast. We're partners. Teammates. Companions. Lovers. I have never felt like you kidnapped me. It was an accident. Five, I love you."
"Stop saying that."
"I'm not going to do that. I'll say it until you get it."
"You can't!"
"And why not?!"
"BECAUSE YOU SHOULDN'T BE HERE!"
Five has stopped his pacing to stare at her with fierce eyes, haunted and guilty. Rachel extracted herself from her mountain of blankets to stand before him. She ignored the chill that ran through her as she opened herself up to the cold air. Her skin erupted in goosebumps, yet she stood proudly before Five, no shame or guilt.
"And yet here I am. Hiding nothing from you. Not who I am. Not my feelings. No part of my being is elsewhere. Right here before you, living and breathing, is all I have to give to anyone. I choose to give myself to you, Five. I chose when I told you I had feelings for you, honestly. For perspective, if I had been trapped in the apocalypse with someone else, it wouldn't be the same."
"With Ben or Diego you-"
"I don't want to hear anything more about me being with Ben or Diego! We've talked about this again and again, and I'm sick of it."
Five was taken by surprise at her shout. She breathed out, cleared her throat, and released the fists she had made from his words. Moving forward, she reached out and placed her hands on his chest, feeling his racing heart. She smiled up at him.
"You have never made it easy for anyone to love you, Five," she told him quietly," And yet, you are loved. Your family loved you. Loves you. Dolores loves you."
Five rolled his eyes away, making her smirk and turn his head back to look at her.
"I love you," she proclaimed again, looking him in the eyes," Faults and all. I love you despite your harsh way of speaking, the worry you constantly try to hide, and this façade you put up when you feel you need to. I love all of that because underneath it is someone who cares more about me than I ever thought someone could. You pretend you care less by poking fun and acting rude, but I'm not bothered by that. As a kid, I didn't get it. But I like to think that…even if we never travelled through time…I'd still see you the way I do now. And no, I can't be sure of that, but I accept that I'll never know. I don't care to know. You don't need to either. You don't have to love me back, Five, but I need you to be okay with me loving you."
There was a groan from Five as placed his head against hers and closed his eyes.
"How am I supposed to make fun of such earnestness, damn it?"
Rachel smiled and closed her eyes, too.
"A speechless, Five? Miracles do happen!"
Five let out a quick laugh and pulled back.
"Clearly they do, or you wouldn't be in love with me."
The woman was suddenly swept up by Five, causing her to shriek in surprise. She laughed as she was tossed onto the bed. She grabbed the blankets and spread them out as Five undressed again. As he joined her under the covers, he leaned on his side to look at her.
"If you're willing to give me everything without question, then I can't let you show me up. Don't tell Dolores…but I love you, too. I feel guilty about it because you deserve better, but if I'm what you want, I'm yours."
Five leaned over and kissed Rachel, pulling her up against him. After some time, the two parted and Rachel looked up at him with a teasing glint in her eye.
"You're mine aside from Dolores, you mean, right?" Rachel pointed out, which caused Five to pinch her cheek, but gently.
"That goes without saying."
Rachel sighed dramatically before pushing Five onto his back and straddling his waist.
"Well, then I guess I'll have to make up for where Dolores lacks."
Five grinned, his hands sliding up her thighs.
"By all means..."
-Dallas, 1963-
Rachel stared at the sign on the door.
"Five, it says no minors."
The boy turned and raised his eyebrows at her.
"We're not minors."
His partner made a face at him that made him snort in amusement. Rachel sat down on a bench outside the establishment.
"I have no interest in seeing a burlesque show after all. You go get Luther and I'll wait here."
Five hovered by the door before stomping over, grabbing her arm, and tugging her to stand. He leaned his face close.
"What are they going to do? Arrest us? It will be fine, and I would rather not have you leave my sight. There are a lot of drunkards stumbling out of this place."
Five's tone had reached the point of almost begging.
"Since when have you gotten so sincere?" Rachel teased, giving his shoulder a gentle push.
He gave her a half-hearted smile.
"Yeah, well...I guess you rubbed off on me as much as I rubbed off on you all these years. Now come on."
He led the way into the bar. It was what one would expect of a burlesque bar in the sixties. The building had two floors worth of seating. In back by the doors was an ornate bar. A few patrons sat watching the grand stage at the front of the hall from tables and the bar. Currently, a woman in an orange costume was displaying herself for the cheering men. Beautifully dressed, she carried a giant orange feathered fan. Serving women in sparkling outfits scurried around to tables dropping off drinks. Thanks to the low lighting, the place looked decent. Yet, with a keen eye, the place was clearly a bit of a dump. Rachel immediately felt uncomfortable.
As soon as the two of them stepped inside, a kind looking serving girl stopped by them.
"Sweethearts, are you two lost? This is an adult bar. We don't allow minors here."
Five threw on his charming smile as he continued walking. Rachel followed as he turned back to the server.
"And what time do you get off work?"
He jumped as Rachel slapped him on his arm, not expecting her response to be so negative or physical. Five's goal was achieved, though. The serving girl laughed and put a finger to her mouth, clearly telling them not to let anyone know she had let them come in. As they found a seat at a table right by the stage, Five snaked an arm around Rachel's waist.
"Your jealousy has gotten worse in your old age, you know," he told her," You're still far prettier than her, whether you look thirteen or fifty-eight."
He leaned over and kissed Rachel's temple. She hated that she forgave him almost immediately. They watched the dancing girl for a few minutes before a deep voice sounded between them.
"She's too young for you. And picking someone up in front of your girlfriend is just inappropriate."
Five smirked.
"Nice to see you too, Luther."
Rachel looked up to see the tallest Hargreeves sibling. He looked good; all things considered. He wore a dark colored jacket and a blue button-down shirt. The jacket actually helped slim him down a bit, keeping the ape torso from being prominently displayed. His hair had grown out a bit and was styled back over his head. There was no smile to be found on his face. He was not overly excited to be reconnected with his brother and Rachel.
"What do you want?" Luther asked them, clearly irritated.
"For you to stop hovering like an ambitious stripper and sit down with me," Five quipped.
Luther pulled an empty chair over from another table and sat down beside Five. Jokes aside, Five looked up at his brother.
"How long have you been here?"
"A year, thanks to you."
Five nodded at his brother, ignoring the hostility.
"I'm sorry, Luther. I know that couldn't have been easy."
"I thought everybody was dead," Luther interrupted angrily.
His eyes wandered to a point behind Rachel and Five. Rachel turned and noted the commotion that was ramping up off at a table across the room. Irritation, anger, and the hazy, shifty feelings of a drunk person reached her.
"I gotta go," he told them, but Five reached out and grabbed him as he got up.
"Luther, wait."
Luther turned and looked back at the boy.
"Look, I get it, okay?" Five told him in a pleading tone," I know what it's like to be stuck in time…thinking this is how you're gonna live out the rest of your life. On the run, and not knowing if you're ever gonna see the people you love again, and to be in an unfamiliar world. But Luther, you're not alone. We have to find the others because the world ends again in ten days. I have no idea how to stop it."
Five waited for his brother's response. It came after a very short moment of silence.
"I don't give a shit."
Luther turned and walked away, leaving Five somewhat shell-shocked. Rachel had felt the wave of apathy coming, so the blow had been lessened, but she was still surprised by Luther's blasé response.
"Luther, hold on a moment," she called out, getting up.
Seeing that he hadn't moved, Rachel pushed Five's shoulder.
"Go after him," she hissed.
Five stumbled up out of his chair, recovering himself, and the two of them followed Luther as he stomped to the back of the room. The smaller sibling grabbed the big one by the arm and swung around in front of him. He pulled him to stop at the bar. Rachel stood beside her partner.
"What is wrong with you? I just told you the world's gonna end in ten days."
"Yeah, well, you're always saying that."
Luther attempted to leave but Five put a heavy hand to the man's chest keeping him there.
"And so far, I've been right."
"Look, you two want to go save the world? Knock yourselves out. All right? I already got a job."
Five's expression shifted to one of both disgust and concern.
"Wait, you work in this shithole?"
"Yeah. Well, my boss owns the place. I'm his body man."
"What's that? Like a masseuse or something?" Five questioned Luther's turn of phrase.
Rachel glanced back at the guy who looked like he was a mob boss. She cringed. He did not seem like the sort of person Luther would typically work for…or should.
"Okay, you can make fun all you want, but I take good care of Mr. Ruby."
Five and Rachel froze.
"Wait, Ruby," Five noted," The Jack Ruby, the gangster who shot Oswald?"
Rachel gave herself a mental pat on the back for her initial impression of the man's look. Aside from that, she could not figure out how Luther's brain had connected the dots to point him in the direction of being a gangster's "body man." Much less one with such an important part to play in history.
"Yeah, the one and only."
"Well, it finally happened. That gorilla DNA has taken over your mind."
Luther stepped toward Five.
"Hey, watch it, all right? Jack's a good friend."
"And you're Number One. Número Uno. Remember?"
"There is no Number One. Not anymore. Not in 1963. Look, I've been stranded here alone for a year. What did you expect?"
Five tried to appease his brother a bit.
"I get it, all right? You watched Pogo die, the world exploded, and I marooned your big dumb ass in time. I'm sorry, okay?"
Five sighed as Rachel rubbed her hands nervously. This discussion wasn't going as well as they had hoped, not by a long shot. Anger was spiking in front of her as well as at the table with Luther's boss.
"But I'm asking for your help, Luther. The Umbrella Academy needs you."
Luther shook his head.
"It doesn't need me. It never did."
Before Five could response, the serving girl came over from behind the two who looked like teenagers.
"Luther, honey, Jack's about to lose it on some half-wit. A little help?"
Five turned toward the bar, a bit defeated. Rachel could tell the girl was not wrong about Ruby. He was ramping up quickly to a rage.
"Ah, shit," Luther cursed, moving to aid his boss.
Five pushed himself away from the bar.
"Luther, wait."
Luther turned to him, his anger flaring.
"Listen. You're the genius who said we should jump. Right? You're the one who got us stuck here. And you're the one who brought Vanya. So, if there is a doomsday coming, she's probably the cause. And if I was gonna do something about it, it sure as hell is not gonna be with you."
The big man moved off to kick out the drunkard ticking off his boss, leaving Five standing there feeling smaller than the child body he was stuck in. Rachel carefully grabbed his shoulders and steered him to the bar. He grabbed the nearest unsupervised glass and took a drink while watching his brother at work. With a couple of sips in, Five shook his head as they watched Luther pick the man up and drag him to the entrance.
"Dad should've left him on the moon."
Rachel rolled her eyes with a sigh.
"Come on. Maybe he'll change his mind in time. He's just angry right now."
"Yeah, well, you could have calmed him down."
The girl was surprised by the idea. Technically speaking she could have. She had never tried in a casual setting to get what she wanted from someone. She wondered if she could put enough emotion in a person to get them to do what she wanted instead of just feel how she wanted.
"Eh, Luther's probably not the best to start testing my powers on."
Five conceded her point with a shrug.
"True. He'd probably not even understand what he was feeling. Emotionally infantile and all… Fine. Let's go."
As Five got up, the sound of tearing rent the air between them. The two of them looked at the new rip in his blazer. His pocket had torn open slightly. Five reached into his pocket, finding something there.
"What's that?" Rachel asked.
The item as a square package in a yellow box. Turning it over, the back read "Frankel Footage" dated from November 22, 1963. Rachel looked up at Five.
"That's ten days from now."
"I think Hazel put this in my pocket just before he died. Come on, we need to see this."
Five grabbed Rachel's hand. The two raced out of the bar, heading back to Elliot's apartment.