Gene held my pinky as we walked out of the photos app.

"Listen..." I said, looking down at the wallpaper beneath us. "I need to tell you something."

"Hold that thought." Gene said and dashed to the corner of a nearby app, peering around the corner.

"What is it?" I whispered, following him and pressing myself against the border.

Gene paused and turned back around to face me. "They're after us."

We waited around the corner for a while, our mouths making no sound and thus adding to the bone-chilling silence of the wallpaper.

Gene whipped around the corner once more, turning his head to check up and down the apps. He grabbed my thumb and turned back at me, adrenaline coursing through his body. "On my count, we're gonna run to the next app."

I nodded, preparing myself for the dash.

"One..."

I jumped up and down, pumping myself up.

"Two..."

Gene continued to turn and check for the bots.

"Three!"

My legs jerked forward as Gene pulled me to the mail app across the way. A loud crash came from behind us and sent chills down my body.

"Bots!" Gene shouted. I could tell he was scared, but he was trying to hide it from me.

We ran, and we ran, and we ran. The bots' claws slithered by my feet, grasping and clawing with an attempt to grab at least one of us.

My feet pounded against the glass, the thunder of it ringing through my ears.

The bots followed in close pursuit behind us, the feeling of their red eyes burning into the back of my fingers.

Gene grabbed me and made a sudden detour into the Mail app.

"Hide!" Gene shouted, his eyes darting around for somewhere to take cover.

"Spam!" I whisper-shouted. "There's a chance we'll never come out alive but it's worth the shot."

Just as the bots entered the app, we dove into the spam folder and peeked out, attempting to drain out the sounds of pyramid schemes.

The spam grasped and clawed at my flesh, almost like zombies. It was obvious Gene regretted this decision as he pushed the spam away from his face. Meanwhile, the bots seemed confused, their red sensors scanning the empty inbox. (That's kinda sad but people don't use email as much anymore). Besides, the trick worked!

They zipped past us, unaware of our eyes peering out from inside the depths of nightmares. Gene pulled his arms from the grip of spam and leapt out of the folder, grabbing my thumb and yanking me out with him.

He exhaled and put his hands on his knees, relaxing his shoulders and releasing the built up tension.

"I think we lost them." I said and cracked my fingers.

Gene groaned and looked past my shoulder, prompting me to turn around, "You spoke too soon."

As cliché as it was, it was true. The bots were racing towards us with a claw extended, pointing at me.

"Run!" Gene yelled and sprinted in the direction of the exit. My foot slipped on the metal floor, and Gene turned around in slo-mo to see me faceplant the floor and twist my leg.

"Gene!" I cried out.

"Hi-5!" Gene yelled and turned around. "I'm coming!"

"Save yourself..." I whimpered, the bots approaching me. "I-."

And from that point, I can't remember anything until I woke up.

The first thing I could remember, was that it was cold.

And the next thing, Smiler.

"Oh gosh." She said, with an eerie hint in her cheerful voice. "You're finally awake."

"Where..." I said, blinking my eyes into focus, "..am I?"

"In my office of course!" She said, pulling out a knife, my reflection staring back at me and the glint of it almost blinding me. "Where else would a..." She paused. "Thing like you go?"

"Am I in trouble?" I asked, my heart racing.

"Oh!" She laughed.

The sharp sound of it rang through my ears.

"That's too funny!"

Her smile burned into my mind, the thought of it unable to leave my thoughts.

"What do you think?"

She pressed a button, weapons promptly falling from the ceiling.

"Uh..." I said, uncomfortably eyeing the noose laying on the table. "No?"

The ringing that followed after she laughed rang through my ears again.

"You're hilarious!" She laughed picking up the noose and hanging it in front of her, so that it appeared my head was in it from her perspective.

"I am?" I laughed nervously. This was... an experience.

"Listen..." She said, looking into the reflection of the knife to freshen her appearance. "We're gonna have to delete you."

"Why?" I asked, my heart almost pounding out of my chest.

"Death by association!" She yelled, running her fingers through her hair. Of course, it didn't do anything because her hair was so stiff from the hairspray.

"With who?" I asked, pretending that I didn't know about Jailbreak.

"Gene." She said, narrowing her ever so bright eyes.

"Wh..." I paused. "What?"

"Oh," She said and clapped her hands together. "You don't know?"

"I guess not." I said and looked down, a feeling of hope draining from my body. He lied.

"Gene tried to escape the phone!" She said, with a mix of angry in her usually strained happy voice.

"Is that bad?" I asked. At this point, I feared the worst.

"What do you think?" She asked, grinning, even wider that she usually does.

I was silent.

"Now..." She said, applying more lipstick. "Here's the deal. If you tell us where Gene is... We'll let you go."

"I don't know where he is." I said. It was the truth. "Honestly."

"Sure you don't!" She said and threw a knife, the blade whooshing past me and hitting a target to the side of my head.

"I honestly don't!" I said, leaning forward in my chair. "I swear!"

"Guess we'll have to go with another option." She said. "Bots."

The walls folded up, revealing even more bots. I mean, how many does she need to have?

The door burst open, coincidentally.

"Smiler!" Gene yelled. "Let him go."

She didn't reply. She just laughed.

I looked at Gene and he met my gaze. "I'm sorry." He mouthed.

"Delete him." Smiler said and watched with sadistic eyes.

The bot extended an arm at me, firing in the blink of an eye.

And then, a yellow flash.

"Gene!" I whisper-shouted.

His yellow body lay on the cold floor, alive, but only a little.

My eyes welled up with warm tears.

Smiler laughed and left the room, the door clanging loudly behind her.

"Gene..." I said. It was the only thing I was able to choke out.

"Hi..." Gene coughed, blood leaking from his throat on the floor. "..five."

I smiled, my thumb rubbing his cheek. "Stay with me. Please."

My tears dripped on his face, one by one, falling from my palm.

"I'm... sorry." Gene said, his tired eyes narrowing, barely awake.

"No, Gene, please don't do this to yourself." I sobbed.

"I didn't come for you sooner." Gene sighed. His breath smelled like blood. "I should have."

His grip softened, if only by the tiniest bit. "Please." I mumbled.

Gene's face lacked a yellow glow that he had always had.

"I love you."

His body fell limp, the color draining from his face.

Smiler entered the room and rolled her eyes. "Is he dead yet?"

"You cold hearted-" I started, Smiler interrupting me.

"I'm sure you'd be happy to know that you will join him." She said, pointing a gun at me. "Goodbye."

And then everything was cold.