The ripping taring sting of the bullet pierced her stomach. Her hands fist tighter in the already bawled up sheets as her eyes squeeze closed even tighter trying to find something more solid to hold onto in the spiral of pain tormenting her dreams once more.
"Trinity."
A hand clasped tightly around her own as her life and her blood seeped out of her. "…I had to." She whispers aloud eyes still closed as she talks to the shadowed figure leaning over her holding her hand like the lifeline she needs against the pain.
"I know." He soothes his grip tightening around her own. "but the bullet is still inside." As if she needed the reminder seeing as the small little thing continued to rip her stomach apart with each breath she takes as she looks up at her shadowed rescuer.
Everything was getting harder yet clearer to hear as she both died and woke up a little more at the same time.
"Trinity….I'm not letting go…..I love you too damned much…"
The shrill ring of her alarm finally breaks her from the grip of her nightmare but also pulls her from that grounding grip on her hand at that lovingly soft voice in her head.
"I'm not letting go." He whispers one last time before she finally opens her eyes. Her hand reaching out to smack hard quieting her alarm with a much strength as if she were slamming the end of her gun into an agent's head before putting a bullet between his sunglass shielded eyes.
"I'm not letting go Trinity."
She kicks the covers off her fingers reaching under her sleep shirt to brush against the scared line from the very bullet wound she'd been dreaming about before she'd been pulled back to reality.
"I love you too damned much."
She smiles shyly as her fingers trace the faint line marring her skin. "I love you too Neo." She whispers into the lazy quiet of her apartment only to pause with a self-questioning "Who the heck is Neo?"
With a yawn, she finally gets up a little unsteady at first considering she wasn't used to sleeping without either the buzzing hum of the Neb or Zion reminding her of what she and her One were fighting for.
"Get a grip, girly." She grumbled to herself splashing her tired face with water before tugging the pill bottle from her medicine cabinet and unscrewing the cap.
One neat blue pill falls into her palm making some part of her start in surprise.
No. No. No.
Not the blue one.
Red.
She needs the Red one.
The pill slips from her shaking hands as instead her fingers curl hard around the edges of the still running sink.
A younger version of her own face looks back at her from the mirror when she finds the strength to lift her head.
Hair pulled back. Dark black sunglasses hiding her hardened eyes.
"Neo needs us."
Her hands fumbled for the pill bottle once more as the pulsing ache in her head grows harder to ignore.
"Follow the White Rabbit, Trinity."
That voice again. His voice.
She gulps down the blue pill without water this time just needing to quiet the voices and the throbbing pain in her head.
The White Rabbit Cafe
She laughs to herself as she slows her motorcycle beside the curb just watching the neon of the animal flash like it's the same animal jumping down the edge of the sign as if jumping down an actual rabbit hole.
"I hear this place has really good noodles." A familiar yet not so familiar voice says noticing her curious look towards the sign. Like a voice, she'd heard in her dreams made real.
"I've heard." She agrees letting the bike idle just a little longer beside the curb. She has to bite her lip to keep from laughing considering the man she was talking with was already carrying a take-out bag in one hand and holding the door open with the other.
She'd noticed him before. Seen him around at a few of their shared hangouts but she'd never found the time or more to the point the courage to talk with the interesting man she always seems to notice just out of the corner of her eye.
Her very own handsome deja vu as she liked to think of him.
"Might want to try for yourself," he reasons still holding the door open with a shy smile as her eyes hold his. "Don't just take my word on it."
She shrugs one shoulder swinging her leg over the motorcycle with practiced ease. Something about him was drawing her in. A pull on her heart only he could ever create. God, what was wrong with her? "Don't worry, I plan to." she promises "but thanks for the tip anyway Mr. Anderson." she says as she slips past him into the cozy café.
He'd been wearing one of those cheesy 'Hello my name is…' stickers.
Another meeting she muses. One with new members apparently considering this was the first time she'd noticed any of the others wearing similar naming stickers milling around the filling cafe. A small therapy group often met at some of their shared cafe's but she'd never been one for eavesdropping as she'd pick up whatever order had drawn her to one place or another on her way to a showing of her welding work or a stop off for coffee or more 'supplies' for new projects.
A sticker she just so happens to steal from him as she passes, and he doesn't seem to notice until she'd also swapped a pen from the counter to change the Mr. to a much more fitting Mrs. before putting the stollen sticker onto the front of her own leather jacket with a proud smile.
"I'll see you around then, Mrs. Anderson." The man with the noodles jokes
"I look forward to it, Mr. Anderson." She smiles back stepping up into the line whilst her 'sparing partner' as she playfully called him now stepped out into the start of a drizzle still holding his own container of warmed noodles.
She'd find him again she already knew that as she watches him walk away.
She'd always find him again. And if she couldn't then maybe she'd simply follow the noodles.