Bandit Bride

Felix was sure he must have been quite the sight to see when Elisa kissed him. When she pulled back to look at him his eyes would be wide and his entire face red, frozen where he sat. She stared at him for a few moments with a concerned expression.

“Felix?” she said softly. “Are you still breathing?”

He snapped out of his daze, nodding slowly. She gave him a relieved smile, then leaned in to kiss him again. This time, Felix was a little bit more prepared. It almost felt like it had been a long time coming. He wasn’t sure how long they were together like that, but it was late when he finally bothered to look out the window.

“We never let everyone know we were back,” he sighed.

“They’ll figure it out,” she said. “Just stay a little longer.”

He looked over at her and she gave him back big puppy eyes and a pout. He just chuckled, sitting up and rubbing at his eyes.

“Ellie please, you’re going to kill me.”

“Did you call me Ellie?”

Felix hasn’t even realized it, and he turned red again.

“No,” she said with a smile. “I liked it.”

They were quiet for a moment, and then she cuddled up to him, laying on his chest and hugging him tightly.

“If you go, you have to take me with you,” she argued.

He didn’t say anything at first, running his fingers through her hair. He supposed that Elisa was here to stay, but he couldn’t help but think of where she came from.

“Is this really something you want to do?” he finally asked. “Us, I mean. Because if you wanted to leave it as something wild induced by adrenaline, I won’t be offended.”

“What do you mean?” She frowned. “Of course it’s something I want.”

“I don’t know,” he sighed. “I can offer you everything you see, and nothing more than that.”

“And what’s wrong with that?” She asked, sitting up. “I see you. Am I supposed to see anything else?”

“I guess not,” he said. “But you might think differently when it’s cold, rainy, and we don’t have anything to eat.”

“Try me,” She challenged.

They stared each other down for a few moments, until he tickled her side and broke the moment. She squirmed and giggled uncontrollably, wrestling to pin his hands down and away from her.

“Stay here tonight,” she repeated, this time a little more assertively. “You sleep better, anyways.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said.

She grinned, standing and flopping onto the bed, patting the spot next to her. Felix shook his head and flopped right next to her, and she was quick to cuddle up to him again.

“Goodnight, Elisa.”

“Ellie.”

“Goodnight, Ellie.”



When Felix woke up, Elisa wasn’t next to him anymore. He lifted his head and saw her sitting by the window, playing with the diamond ring anxiously.

“You’re up early,” Felix mumbled, stretching out his back.

“We should leave soon,” she said. “Before we get caught again.”

“Jack and Burns can go pawn the ring,” Felix said, sitting up with a yawn. “They’re the least likely to be noticed.”

They went down together to pass the job on to them, but it seemed like everyone was already waiting for them. Lyle, Burns, and Allen all had sly smirks on their faces, but Jack looked annoyed.

“Got a good nights sleep, you two?” Allen asked.

Felix ignored him, handing the ring to Burns.

“Take Jack with you,” Felix said. “You know the rest. We should get out of here as fast as we can.”

Jack narrowed his eyes at Felix, but followed Burns on their way to sell the ring.

“He’s asking a lot of questions, you know,” Lyle said. “Allen answers them like it is.”

“The kid has to learn,” Allen said simply. “He doesn’t need sugar and sparkles, he needs the truth.”

“And what do you know about the truth, Allen?” Felix sighed.

“I know you two birds have been making eyes at each other since we got here,” Allen said. “I’m an adult, I know the rest.”

“The rest is between Elisa and me,” Felix said, Elisa nodding beside him.

“And the bedsheets...”

That earned Allen a smack on the back of the head from Lyle, which shut him up right away.

Burns and Jack returned with time to spare, and they were able to get back on the road quickly. The mass amount of money they had gotten from Elisa’s wedding things had put everyone in good spirits. They may have been able to get themselves some treats.

“I’m thinking I want a war hammer,” Allen mused. “Embellished with gold. Or a two-handed battle axe.”

“Those are huge,” Lyle said. “And heavy. You’ll have to carry that around all over the place.”

“Maybe it’ll be too heavy for you, but if you haven’t noticed, I’m built like a god,” Allen boasted.

“What are you compensating for?” Lyle said, rolling his eyes.

“Alright, smartass,” Allen snapped. “What do you plan to spend your share on?”

“For your information, I plan to save it,” Lyle said. “I’ll send a share home to my mother. Maybe buy a lady a drink. But nothing extravagant. Burns is the one who liked the shiny things.”

Burns just grinned and winked. Felix knew that whatever his share went to would be a mystery, like everything else in his life.

“What about you, kid?” Lyle asked Jack.

“Uh, I dunno,” Jack said. “I never really got to use money by myself before. Anthony always held on to it for me.”

“Well, here’s your chance to take it for yourself,” Felix said.

“Maybe I’ll get a weapon too,” Jack said, getting excited. “A battle axe!”

“How about a dagger?” Felix suggested.

“Okay.”

As everyone else walked ahead and chatted about what they wanted, Felix turned his attention to Elisa, who had been silently walking next to him.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. “You’ve been quiet.”

“Nothing,” she said quickly. “It’s just interesting to me.”

“What is?”

“Something that made me so miserable,” she said. “Now it’s being used to make everyone so happy.”

“Allen isn’t getting a gold embellished battle axe,” Felix said. “No one is carrying that for him.”

“I’m being serious,” she said, laughing softly. “I just never really thought about it.”

“Well there’s plenty to think about now that it’s all gone.”

“Like battle axes.”

“I’m not letting you get a battle axe, either.”

“Damn.”