Chase the Stars

“Can I do something?”

“No.”

“I can help.”

“There’s no need.”

“Can I at least take my hands out of my pockets?”

“No. If you touch anything, I cut your hands off.”

Charlie sighed, remaining seated in his designated corner of the airship with his hands stuffed into his pockets. Mila seemed to be managing just fine without him, but he was bummed and bored, which were two things he didn’t like feeling together. It gave you time to think about things, and that was something Charlie decided to stop doing long ago. He watched to make sure she was looking away from him before he slowly took one hand out of his pocket to unbutton the front of his vest and loosen his tie.

“What did I tell you?!” she snapped, whipping around to glare at him.

“Do you have eyes in the back of your head, underneath all that hair?” Charlie asked in exasperation. “All I did was loosen my tie! This thing has never felt more like a noose!”

“You’re lucky it’s not a noose,” she told him. “And if you’re lucky, I won’t turn it into one. You’re really getting on my nerves.”

Charlie rolled his eyes, refusing to put his hands back in his pockets and checking his pocket watch. Mila didn’t say anything, but was eyeing him suspiciously, as if the watch would explode. Charlie sighed, turning it around so she could see it.

“It’s just a watch,” he said. “You need to relax. I’m not going to try and hurt you. I’m just checking the time. And the time says that I haven’t eaten anything since yesterday’s lunch.”

“Well, you probably should have planned better,” she said nonchalantly.

“I didn’t expect for this to happen,” Charlie said. “I’m still bitter about those 500,000 crescents. I could have really used that money.”

“Mhm.”

“We really should stop and eat, though,” he suggested. “I imagine that you must be pretty hungry, too.”

She didn’t answer, but about a minute later, her stomach growled and betrayed her.

“See? Told you,” Charlie grinned.

“We’ll stop at that port town,” she said reluctantly. “Fast. You stuff something in your mouth and we leave.”

She docked the ship by the small port village she’d found, not bothering to wait for Charlie to fix his clothes before marching off. He jogged to catch up with her, moving by her side. She still wouldn’t look at him.

“You know, wearing an expression that suggests you’re about to strangle the people who wronged you isn’t a very good way of staying hidden from the authorities,” Charlie told her.

“Charles.”

“It’s Charlie.”

“I need you to shut up.”

Charlie smirked, but he didn’t say anything more. They found themselves a small pub near the docks, populated by a bunch of burly sailors. They didn’t fit in much with the crowd, but no one seemed to pay them much attention. Mila sat down at a small table, but glared at Charlie when he was about to sit down.

“What, I’m not even allowed to sit with you?” he asked.

“I don’t trust you,” she said.

“Neither do I, but I let you sleep in my chair,” he noted, sitting down anyways.

A barmaid came by a few moments later, with a fake smile and a judgemental look in her eyes before asking what they would like.

“We’d like the best meal you have to offer,” Charlie told her with a bright smile. “My dear friend here just got paid, and it’s her treat!”

The barmaid nodded and went off, and Charlie winced when he felt a kick to his shin under the table. Mila was glaring at him, looking like she was ready to pounce and claw at his face.

“Excuse me?!” she snapped.

“You think I have any money?” Charlie said, rubbing his leg where he got kicked. “You’re the one who said you’re a professional after all. Who am I? I didn’t even get a down payment.”

“I can’t believe that after everything that happened, the down payment is the part you’re bitter about,” she said, shaking her head. “You are, by far, the strangest person I’ve ever met. Like the town fool out of a story bool.”

“I haven’t heard that one before,” Charlie chuckled.

“You live in a clock tower and everything,” she said. “You have to be crazy. Why on Earth would you want to live in a clock tower?”

Charlie’s smile dropped off his face, and he looked away, down at the table. Mila seemed to notice that she had struck some sort of nerve, and though she didn’t back down, there may have been the slightest bit of genuine curiosity flash briefly in her eyes. Charlie quickly plastered his usual carefree face on, shrugging with a slight smile.

“It has a nice view,” he said. “You can see the entire city from up there.”

She didn’t push the subject any more, and Charlie was glad that the food came to change the subject. They quickly ate, mostly because of how eager Mila was to leave. He wasn’t sure where she intended to go so quickly. Personally, he still hadn’t finished processing how badly he’d been cheated.

“Do you need any supplies or anything?” he asked her as they walked back to the docks. “We left sort of suddenly. It didn’t look like you checked anything or-”

“Silence, Charles.”

He shrugged and followed her back to the ship, though he noticed something as they grew nearer to the docks. Two Regulators, turning the corner and about to head in their direction. Charlie grabbed Mila by the elbow and pulled her into an alley. She noticed the Regulators and pressed up against the wall next to Charlie, and they both held their breaths and listened in silence. They waited until the footsteps passed before hesitantly coming back out.

“I didn’t think they’d send word out this far so soon,” Mila said. “We really need to get out of here.”

Charlie gestured for her to lead the way as they hurried back to the ship, this time without running into any more unwanted officers. She quickly got the airship sailing, once again banishing Charlie into his corner and threatening him if he touched anything. He sighed and did as told, looking around at his surroundings as he twiddled his thumbs. Not too long later, he heard some disturbing clicking sounds coming from within the ship.

“Hey, Mila?” he said with a frown. “I think you need to check on something down there. I’m hearing clicking sounds.”

“It’s probably all in your head,” she said dismissively.”

“I don’t think so,” he said. “Not this time. There’s a sound coming from-”

He didn’t have to finish his sentence. A sudden lurch coming from the propellers was enough to prove his point.