❝ I go where Five goes. ❞

―

NOVEMBER 10, 2060-SOMETHING.

Theo was not sure of the exact date anymore. If he was correct and had not calculated incorrectly, then Theo assumed that the year was 2062, give or take a few years. It was quite honestly a miracle that he managed to keep track for as long as he had. His hair was now completely gray, and the beard he had grown out was trimmed as best as he could get it. He found that it was actually quite warm during the colder months. Theo had never really been able to imagine himself as an old man, and he did not recognize himself when he looked in the mirror. Nor did he recognize Five—who sported the same gray hair and beard as Theo did.

Theo and Five were not the only ones to change drastically. The ash had managed to disappear from the sky, and the sun shone down brighter than ever before. Flowers had begun to bloom all around them, and grass covered the majority of the ground. Trees had even sprouted up from the ground, providing much-needed shade when it was too warm. Seeing the world being rebuilt around him was never something that Theo expected to see, but it was quite a beautiful process.

As Five had gone out to venture through the city, Theo stayed back at the library. They had come a long way ever since they decided to claim the ruins of the library as their home. They had divided the library into various sections—each one representing a different room. The walls of the library were now covered with equations as vines have begun to grow, covering them partially.

Theo sat at the desk that they had found all those heads ago, writing in his journal. He had stockpiled many over the years, and he was beginning to reach the last page of the very last journal he had. Soon, he would have to search for more.

As he reached the bottom of the page, Theo closed his notebook and placed it in his backpack along with his very last pen, which had begun to run low on ink. His backpack had seen much better days. It was tattered and torn. The zipper bull had broken off, leaving him with nothing but the slider, which made closing the backpack difficult. Theo refused to find a new backpack when Five had brought the idea up. He insisted on using the same backpack that he had entered the apocalypse with. It had far too much sentimental value. It was one of the very last things that Mama Laura had bought for him.

Theo looked up at the sound of rocks shuffling. Five was riding the bike that they had found, pulling the wheelbarrow behind him. Theo stood up from the chair and walked over to him, kissing him on the cheek to greet him.

"Find anything good?" Theo questioned as he took a seat on one of the wooden dining chairs.

Five rummaged through the wheelbarrow before he turned around, holding with two wine glasses in his hands. Theo watched him closely as he popped open a bottle and then poured it into a glass. He set the glass down on the filing cabinet next to Theo.

Theo watched Five walk away, making his way back to the wheelbarrow to open another bottle of alcohol, which Theo assumed was whiskey. It has become Five's alcoholic beverage of choice. Theo turned his head, looking down at the wine glass on the filing cabinet. He picked it up and stared down at it.

Five started walking towards him, sitting down on the small carpet on the ground. Do you remember that, uh, little mansion just outside the city limits? Where we—"

Theo chuckled, cutting him off before he had the chance to finish. "Yeah. Why?"

"Well, it turns out the wine cellar was untouched," Five replied. "Picked up a few cases of your favorite Bordeaux."

Theo smiled at him and then brought the glass up to his lips, taking a drink. Theo sighed as he watched Five chug his drink quickly and set the cup down next to him.

"You drink way too much," Theo commented. "It's practically every day now."

"Ah, that's an exaggeration. I don't drink too much," Five responded, shaking his head. "You know, I work hard all day."

"Doing what? Drinking three times your weight?" Theo asked, swirling around the liquid in his cup. "Which honestly isn't hard to do..."

Five gave him an offended look. "I—Why would you even say that?"

Theo shrugged his shoulders as he took another sip of his drink and then placed it back on the filing cabinet.

"I was just messing with you," Theo replied, though he was being half serious when he had said it. "Since when do you not know how to take a joke?"

Five rolled his eyes. "I know how to take a joke."

"Really?" Theo asked. "Do you now?"

"Yes, Theo, I—"

Five's remark was cut short by the sound of rubble falling in the distance. It was not unusual for rubble to fall either naturally by itself or because a rat had run across it, knocking some off in the process. But that did not sound like the act of rubble falling on its own, nor did it sound like a rat.

Theo shot up from his seat, looking around. His eyes went wide as he noticed a woman standing off in the distance. She was dressed in all black; a fancy-looking (and rather stupid-looking if you asked Theo) sat atop her white hair. Her eyes shaded by sunglasses, and her lips painted red, matching her shoes. She held a black briefcase in her hand.

Theo could not seem to do anything but stare. He had not seen another human being—at least not one alive—since he and Five had gotten stranded. Theo thought that he might have been hallucinating.

"Five..." Theo managed to get out, pointing in the direction of the woman.

Five turned his head, following the direction of Theo's finger. His eyes immediately widened when he saw the woman standing there. He reached for the rifle next to him and swung it up, pointing it directly at the mysterious woman. She waved at the two men. They exchanged a glance with each other, blinking a few times before they turned back to her.

"Who the hell are you?" Five called out.

"I'm here to help," the woman replied back before she started approaching them.

Theo walked closer to Five, standing next to him. He eyed the strange woman, not taking his eyes off her.

Five continued to hold the rifle up, keeping it aimed at the woman. "Tell me why I shouldn't put a bullet through your head right now!"

"Because..." the white-haired woman said as he stopped and placed the briefcase down before removing her sunglasses. "If you did, you wouldn't hear the offer I'm about to make you. Which would be rather tragic given your current circumstances."

Theo watched her closely as she took a seat, crossing one of her legs on the other. Five slowly stepped closer, the rifle still raised and aimed towards her.

"What offer?" Theo questioned.

"I work for an organization called the Commission," the woman explained. "We are tasked with the preservation of the time continuum through manipulation and removals."

Five shook his head. "I don't understand."

"Removals?" Theo asked, raising an eyebrow. "What do you mean removals?"

"Sometimes, people... make choices that alter time," the woman clarified. "Free will, don't get me started. When that happens, we dispatch one of our agents to... eliminate the threat."

Theo's brows furrowed. "You mean kill them?"

She nodded her head. Theo and Five exchanged a look as Five lowered the rifle slightly. They were both thinking the same thing. This woman—whoever she may be—was here to kill them. To remove them.

Five turned his attention back to the woman and raised the rifle once more, aiming it directly at her.

"No, no, no, no." She raised her hand and chuckled. "You misunderstand me. You're not a target. You're a recruit. I've come to offer you a job, Number Five. You too, Theodore."

Five relaxed a bit, changing his stance as he lowered the rifle slightly. But Theo was not going to let his guard down, sending a glare her way. He had a bad feeling about her. There was something not quite right, though he could not place his finger on it.

"How do you know our names?" Theo asked.

"We've had our eye on you for quite some time," the woman told them, glancing between Theo and Five. "Both of you. And we think you have a lot of potential. Your survival skills have made you both quite the celebrities back at headquarters."

Theo crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes even further. He was death-staring her, his mistrust of the woman growing more intense by the second.

The woman turned her attention back to Five. "That and your ability to jump through time."

She moved the pipe in her hands to her mouth, her gaze fixated on Five.

"You saying that I—that we," Five said, pointing between himself and Theo, "could actually leave here? Go...go back?"

"In return for five years of service," the woman replied. "Once your contacts are done, you can retire to the time and place of your choosing with a pension plan to boot."

"If you can alter time, why not just stop all of this from ever happening?" Five asked, gesturing around them.

"Well, that's quite impossible, I'm afraid," the woman said. "You see, all of this, it was supposed to happen."

Theo stared at her, his gaze fierce as he gestured around at the destruction surrounding them. "This was supposed to happen?"

Five nodded his head. "That's insane. The end of everything?"

"Not everything..." the silver-haired woman spoke as she tilted her head to look at Theo. "Just the end of...something."

Theo grew even more confused following her glance toward him. He didn't trust her. Not one bit.

"So..." the woman said, holding her hand out. "Do we have an agreement?"

Five scoffed and turned his head to look at Theo as if he were asking what he thought. Theo grabbed Five by the hand and pulled him to the side, far away enough so that the woman would not be able to eavesdrop. Theo let go of Five's hand.

"I don't trust her," Theo told Five, glancing over at the woman for a split second before turning back to his husband. "There's something off about her; about this entire thing."

"But this could be it, Theo," Five responded. "This could be our way out of here."

Theo sighed. "I know, but do you trust her? I mean, isn't it strange that she just showed up? And after all this time? If she's been—if this so-called Commission has been keeping tabs on us for so long—then why now?"

"It's very strange," Five agreed as he reached for Theo's hand. "But it's something that we can look into later. We can get out of here. We can shower. We...we can get married for real, like we want to, and maybe you can even make me listen to Crocodile Rock. We can have a life outside of this wasteland."

Theo inhaled a breath and exhaled as he turned his head to look at the mysterious woman. Five had a point. This was their chance to get out of the apocalypse. They had a way out. Maybe this would even be Theo's chance to see Malina again. He could return to her and Laura just like he dreamed of. After the five years of service were over, he could return to any year he wanted. He could start life over.

He and Five could make an actual life for themselves and create an actual future together, one that wasn't surrounded by ash and dust—one where he didn't have to eat bugs for dinner or sleep on the hard ground or on an old and slightly burned couch. They wouldn't have to scour for food or rummage through the debris and ruins of the city. They could get married and have their family be there to witness it. Theo could become a bestselling author just like he hoped.

Theo nodded his head. "Okay. Okay. But this doesn't mean I trust her."

Five chuckled, shaking his head at him as he gave his hand a light squeeze. "This is our chance, my love. It's our chance to save the world."

"But she said that this was supposed to happen," Theo replied. "You really think we could stop the apocalypse from happening?"

"We can certainly try," Five responded. "Now, come on, Theodorito. Let's get out of here."

Hand in hand, they approached the white-haired woman. Five stood up as straight as he could, his attention focused on the woman in front of them.

"You have a deal."

Theo had a bad feeling that he couldn't shake.

...

The white-haired woman introduced herself as The Handler as she led them into a building—which Theo thought almost looked similar to that of a hotel or a fancy mansion. Theo had scoffed when he heard her name, thinking that it was rather—for lack of better word—dumb.

They followed The Handler up the winding staircase. The building was bustling with people. Theo reached for Five's hand and laced their fingers together.

"So," Five began, catching The Handler's attention. "Is there somewhere we can get cleaned up? Maybe get a change of clothes."

The Handler stared at him for a brief moment before nodding. "Certainly. I'll show you the way and arrange for a fresh pair of clothes for you both."

They followed her through the Commission, stopping in front of an open doorway.

"There you are." The Handler gestured toward the doorway. "Go on in."

Five and Theo exchanged a look with each other before they stepped through the doorway, expecting to enter a bathroom. However, upon entry, it looked more like a locker room than anything else. Theo thought it made sense considering the amount of employees he had seen meandering around the building. The entire place, Theo thought, appeared to be more of a fanciful and glorified dorm room than anything else. The Handler had even mentioned that she would be showing them to the living quarters. If that by itself did not scream dorm room, then the communal showers and locker room appearance of the bathroom certainly did.

Theo removed his backpack from his shoulders and set it down on a bench. He glanced around, his eyes settling on the showers. He could not help but smile at the thought of finally being able to take a nice, warm shower. It seemed like such a luxury, and he had almost forgotten what it was like.

As he showered, the feeling of the warm water against Theo's skin might have been the greatest thing in the world, at least in the current moment. He placed his face under the water, letting it run down his face.

When he was finished, he was surprised to see fresh clothes waiting for him. Theo got dressed as Five stepped out of the shower next to the one Theo had occupied. Theo dried his hair and ran his fingers through it as he looked in the mirror. The beard needed to go.

With shaved beards and no longer smelling like they had not showered in almost forty-ish years, Theo grabbed his backpack and stepped out of the bathroom with Five by his side. The Handler was waiting for them. Theo thought that it was rather odd and quite literally creepy. He did not trust her at all, and it furthered even more as she gave them a tour of the Commission.

"Now, Theodore," the Handler spoke, glancing over her shoulder to look at him. "We have a very special place for you. Your exceptional understanding of quantum physics and mathematical reasoning makes you an excellent candidate within our accounting department, or perhaps you would be well suited for management."

Theo shook his head. "No."

The Handler spun around; the sound of her heels could be heard sliding on the floor. "Pardon me?"

Theo stood his ground. "I go wherever Five goes."

"I'm afraid that cannot happen," The Handled told him as she shook her head. "Like I said, we have an opening for you in our other departments that I will be glad to—"

Theo let go of Five's hand and lunged at The Handler; he pinned her against the wall by the throat with his arm. A few people around them gasped. The Handler stared at Theo blankly, her face void of any emotion.

"I go wherever Five goes," Theo repeated, narrowing his eyes at her. "Do I make myself clear?"

The Handler nodded. "Very well, Theo. I'm sure you'll do a fine job as one of our agents. Although getting assigned the same cases will be rather...challenging."

Theo pressed harder against her throat. "That's Theodore to you, and I don't care what you have to do; just make it happen."

The corner of The Handler's mouth curled up into a small smile. "Well, aren't you a feisty one?"

Her voice was harsh as she spoke, crackly from Theo's arm that was still pressed up against her throat.

Theo started at her. "You haven't seen feisty."

Theo lowered his arm and stepped back, standing next to Five. The Handler straightened her dress and then turned on her heels, continuing with the tour as if nothing happened. Theo glanced at Five. He was smirking at him, a look of pure admiration in his eyes.

"What?" Theo whispered as they followed The Handler.

"Did you just threaten The Handler?" Five asked.

Theo nodded. "I'm not leaving your side. I don't trust her or this place. I go wherever you do."

Five grinned from ear to ear. "I have never been more in love with you."

They followed The Handler through the Commission. Theo was listening closely to everything she was saying, taking mental notes of the things that struck him as a red flag. This place had many. Too many of you wanted Theo's personal opinion.

And the biggest red flag of all was none other than The Handler herself. There were many things that Theo did not like about her. For one, she was extremely touchy-feely. Especially when it came to Five. Every time she placed her hand on Five's shoulder or on his back, Theo glared at her. He even went as far as to grab her hand and remove it.

Secondly, she seemed to speak in riddles, which Theo would normally have no problem with. The issue was with how she said them and how she explained things. The tone of her voice was too sweet-sounding for Theo's personal liking. But that was not all. The sweet tone sounded insincere. It was as if she were trying to make herself sound kinder than she was, but Theo saw right through it.

And third, she did not seem to like Theo. It was very clear that the feeling of hatred was very much mutual. But Theo did not care. The Handler not liking him was the very least of his worries.

"And here's the living quarters where all of our employees stay," the Handler explained as they walked down a long hallway. "We've already made arrangements for the two of you. Theodore, you will be happy to know that you and Number Five will be sharing a room."

Theo hated the way his name sounded coming out of her mouth. He couldn't help but cringe.

Theo gave her a fake smile. "How wonderful. Is this the end of the tour, or do you still have more to show us? I would love to hear you yap some more."

"Theo..." Five whispered to him.

The Handler just smiled, impressed by Theo's boldness. "We have one last stop. Follow me."

Theo continued to smile at her as she turned around and began walking down the hallway where they had just come from. Theo's smile fell, and he started to follow her. Five trailed along, grabbing ahold of Theo's hand.

— EMILIA'S NOTES

theo is the handler's BIGGEST hater.

also i have no idea when the handler arrived in the apocalypse. i tried googling it but i was getting so many different answers and so i just made it "2060-something"

the wizard of oz allusions have manifested even deeper. so we have theo as dorothy, five as the wizard, the handler as the wicked witch... 

i'm so excited for theo & malina's reunion but first there will be a chapter going into more detail about theo's life at the commission