AN: Subject matter little on the nasty side. Some violence.


Mike and El were walking hand in hand. Loaded down with the essentials they needed for travel.

"Mike, the backpack is rubbing on my shoulder." They were standing in the middle of the road. She turned to Mike, looked up at him.

He made some adjustments to her straps, "The belt strap came loose, it let things move around too much." He cinched it up tighter. Her eyes smiled at him.

Mike smiled back, "You know when you smile at me like that I just have to kiss you." He leaned forward, and gave her a soft kiss. It lasted longer than he intended but, it was worth it.

XXXXX

"Mike? Where are they?" El was close to tears when they couldn't find them at the mall.

"All of their stuff is there… like they just went to check out some other part of the mall. We left notes of our plans everywhere we used to hang out in the mall. We couldn't wait any longer. I hate that we had to leave, but my first priority is you. I'll miss Max but she has Lucas now, and Max is a survivor. I taught both of you everything I know, and you both know how to find information if you need it in a library."

"Do you think we'll ever see them again?"

Mike slowly shook his head. "No. It's ok though, we were both alone for a long time before we found each other. I love you more than I ever thought possible. If it's just us two. I'm good." He kissed her again.

Their fingers interlaced and they continued walking down the road.

XXXXX

"Pretty."

El was looking at all the lights down the road, it wasn't quite dark yet, but the sun had dropped below the horizon

Mike started to hear the rumble. "Shit. Quick El, get into the tree line for cover. Shit. I hope they didn't see us."

"What's wrong?"

"Bikers. Had to be at least a hundred lights. Shit. This is going to be bad."

"Bad men on bicycles?"

"Motorcycles, and the worst form of human that can be created. I watched a documentary on them once, it was late at night and I was bored. Bikers will go on about freedom of the road, personal lifestyle, whatever bullshit they can say to make it seem like they just want to live free. Living free means no job. So what do they do for money? Prostituion, drugs, kill other bikers for their money and drugs. They are the more disgusting thing mankind had to offer. They will do depraved things for fun."

"Will they hurt us?"

"Worse El."

"Kill us?"

"That's the best we can hope for. Shit. I don't know what to do."

The rumble got louder and El put her handover her ears. "Maybe they didn't see us?"

She saw a tear running down Mike's face. He shook his head sadly.

The rumbling got to its peak, and then quickly trailed off. They had turned off their engines.

"I know you're in there bitch. If I have to go in and get you it won't go well for you."

El saw the saddest thing she was ever going to see. The look of sick desperation in Mike's eyes. At first she thought she would cry.

But then she got mad.

"Do you trust me Mike?"

He nodded slowly. He was shutting down and he knew it.

She grabbed his hand, "Let's go meet them and give them a choice."

XXXXX

"Lookee here boys! Fresh meat, and two of them. Gonna be a party tonight." He called over his shoulder, "Hey Ped, I think they're at the age you like'em."

Mike saw El's fierce brown eyes. He got his knives ready. He could easily take two or three of them out. Or El. He could do that… if he had to.

"Leave or die." El said simply.

"Whoa boys, didja hear that? We got ourselves a choice. You know what sweet thing? I think I can speak for all my compadres here. We'll die, cause we ain't leavin'."

"I was hoping you'd said that." She tilted her head forward.

Mike watched every single biker and their rides as they shot up into the air. Fast. So high that the light glinting off the silver frames of the motorcycles winked out one by one as he lost sight of them.

"Get back." El said. They both retreated to the tree line.

Mike saw silver sparkles again as the bikes and the little black dots that had been riding them came down, getting bigger. Fast again.

They all hit the ground within a second of each other. The gas tanks ruptured, the sparks ignited the fuel. None of the explosions killed the bikers though. It was the sudden stop of a hundred and twenty mile an hour journey straight down towards the asphalt highway that had done that.

XXXXX

"Do you still love me?" El said, unable to meet Mike's eyes.

"Of course El. You saved my life. You know you forgot to put on your superhero costume before you did that."

"It doesn't bother you that I just killed a hundred people?"

"They weren't people El. They were scum, and you just scraped them off the bottom of our shoes. Look at me El."

El looked at him as they sat cross legged from each other in the tent. "You don't need to explain. It was the lab. That's ok. I would have killed for you El. No questions asked. I love you."

"Thank you, Mike. I would do anything for you."

"Then you'll accept this gift." Mike unzipped a compartment in his backpack. He handed her a brush.

El frowned, "I was being serious Mike, that's not really funny. That brush is useless to me, and took up valuable space in your backpack."

"Hmm, "Mike said, "It looks like I might have wasted more space by adding this."

He handed her a hand mirror. "It goes with the brush."

El looked at her face in the mirror, her eyes turned to saucers as she saw her hair. "I have pixie hair! It's growing!"

She put down the brush and mirror, and threw her arms around Mike. She kissed his entire face over and over.

"I didn't make your hair grow El, but I've been watching it."

"I'm going to grow it to my feet…" She looked down, "If I can."

"Even if you can't. I will still kiss you every morning and every night. Um… El?"

"Yes Mike?"

"Thanks for saving my life. I've never been so scared in my life. Not even when I thought I'd be alone for all of it."

Mike was done. His tears started, and then El's did.

They both cried themselves to sleep in each other's arms.