Chapter Text
Part One
“And the silhouettes that we wore will be tracing a new design. And the characters we played before reappear in a different life. We don’t want to be reborn if it resembles the other side. And we whisper in the dark for the last time.”
“It only takes two lonely people, to fuck love up and make it evil. It only takes a drop of evil, to fuck up two beautiful people.”
‘Babe, what are we watching this crap for?’
Waverly let out a sigh as she glanced over at Champ, who was sprawled out on the chair next to the bed. She gazed back at the television and rolled her eyes. ‘I told you, it’s this documentary on Bonnie and Clyde. I’ve been wanting to watch it for ages, but you kept hogging the TV after my shift.’
Champ scoffed as he played with his switchblade. ‘Babe, it’s lame.’
Waverly rolled over from her stomach and sat up on her bed. ‘If you actually watched it, you might learn something.’
‘Learning is boring,’ Champ whined.
Waverly tucked her knees under her chin as she watched the television. She tried with Champ, she really did. But her patience was beginning to wear thin, alas, small town, limited dating opportunities. Not many people were lining up to date an Earp…where your eldest sister went missing, presumed dead, and your father was slain by the notorious leader from the most feared biker gang in the Ghost River Triangle - Bobo Del Rey - and your middle sister abandoned you to live in Greece. Not that she blamed Wynonna for leaving. The loss of Willa hit Wynonna hard and, in turn, made her teenage years difficult. She just wished she had her sister around for comfort and support.
She picked up a cuddly toy from the bed to hug as she turned up the television to drown out Champ’s sighing. If he didn’t want to watch it, fine, but she’d had an exhausting shift at Shorty’s and just wanted to relax. She found it fascinating how something like Bonnie and Clyde could happen the way it did, the brutality of the pair, the way they went around causing fear and mayhem. Deep in the pit of her stomach, she felt envy towards them a little bit, of the fact that they travelled. Sure, they were killing people and robbing places, but not being tied down to one place…she craved being able to just go to a place. She also felt a pang of jealousy towards Wynonna, too, at the fact that she had just moved to a random country.
She noticed Champ had stopped sighing and glanced over at him. He seemed to be engrossed in the documentary, which was a minor miracle in itself. She smiled a small smile, a tiny victory tonight. She allowed herself to relax properly as they watched the documentary.
After it finished, Champ nodded to himself and reached for Waverly’s hand. ‘We should totally go do that.’
Waverly’s brow furrowed as she looked at him. ‘Do what?’
Champ nodded at the television as he sported a dopey grin. ‘Go off and be Bonnie and Clyde, doing what we want, taking what we want.’
She looked at him, a deadpan expression on her face. ‘You did see the part where they died after being massacred by bullets, right?’
Champ jumped up off the chair and onto the bed, excited. ‘Yeah, but see with your brains and my brawn, we’d be smarter than those two idiots, and more successful, too. We could get enough money to open up a bar in Buenos Aires…I’ve always wanted that for us.’
Waverly cringed as Champ mispronounced Buenos Aires. She let out a sigh. ‘Champ. While I’m glad you clearly enjoyed the documentary, we are not going on a massive crime spree across the Ghost River Triangle. That’s….that’s not what this was about.’ She got up off the bed, away from Champ, and turned off the television.
Champ huffed as he stood up, also. ‘What do you want from me, babe? I show interest in your dumb stuff, and you shoot me down.’
She frowned as she looked at him, noticing how his posture was that of a petulant child. She took a steadying breath. ‘I appreciate the enthusiasm, Champ, I do. But really? You want us to go out and rob a bunch of convenience stores and be on the run from the law?’
He toed at the floor and shrugged. ‘I dunno. I just thought it would be fun…’
She bit her lip, trying to hold back what she really wanted to say to him, which was “ have you lost your fucking mind? ” but instead she settled on ‘Champ. I’m tired. It’s been a long day. I just want to get some sleep. You should go home, get some sleep too, and then maybe you’ll see things with a fresh head.’
‘And now you’re kicking me out?’ he asked, incredulous.
‘Champ,’ she bit out, pointing to her door. ‘Please?’
Champ slammed his fist against the wall, then grabbed his shirt and switchblade. ‘Fine. See you in the morning.’ He then stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him.
Waverly ran her hand through her hair as she groaned inwardly. She moved over and locked the door behind him before turning towards her kitchenette and filling up the kettle with water. She couldn’t help the gnawing feeling in her stomach that this wasn’t over, that Champ would ruminate on this idea. No…she had to give Champ some credit, right? He’d come to his senses and realise that “becoming” Bonnie and Clyde would be a really dumb idea…right?
The tinny ringing from her cell phone interrupted her thoughts. She moved to the bed to pick it up and smiled when she saw it was a video chat from Wynonna. She accepted. ‘Wynonna? Isn’t it like 5am in Athens right now?’
Wynonna showed up on screen, sunglasses askew on her head, her hair a mess. She groaned loudly. ‘What?’
Waverly smiled as she noticed her sister was clearly drunk. ‘Fun night?’
The camera angle changed to Wynonna’s background, which Waverly could see was in the DJ booth of an emptying nightclub. Clearly, Wynonna had just finished her set. Wynonna’s head came back into view as she lifted the sunglasses and gave a dopey grin. ‘How you doing, babygirl?’
Waverly chuckled, placed the phone down on the counter, and propped it up so she was in the shot. She took a mug from the cupboard and picked up a tea bag from her chamomile teabox. ‘I’m fine. Work was busy, Shorty’s having me do double shifts while Ellie is off.’
Wynonna’s face became super close, so all Waverly could see was Wynonna’s piercing blue eyes, her eyebrows, and a lot of forehead. ‘DO I NEED TO SPEAK TO SHORTY ABOUT OVERWORKING YOU?’
Waverly grinned as she poured water from the kettle into the mug. Drunk Wynonna on video chat was one of her favourite moments in life at the moment. She just wished she could be getting drunk with Wynonna in person. ‘No, Nonna, it’s fine. It’s only for a couple of days, then Shorty’s giving me some time off.’
Wynonna’s face came back into view as she pulled the phone back and nodded. ‘Good. But if you need me to yell at him, you know what to do.’
Waverly placed the kettle back down, picked up the mug and her phone, and wandered over to her bed and sat down. ‘No problem, I will do that if I need to.’ She propped her phone against a pillow and held the mug in her hands, relishing the warmth coming through. ‘How’s your night been?’
‘Oh, you know, the usual,’ Wynonna said, running a hand through her hair. ‘Wild, loud, too much body glitter for my liking.’
Waverly smirked. ‘Too much body glitter in a strip club, who would have thought?’
Wynonna pointed a finger at the camera. ‘Hey, less sass you…you…sassy mouth.’
Waverly rolled her eyes playfully. ‘Wow, great comeback from the sasspot herself.’
‘More like ASSpot,’ Wynonna giggled, then hiccupped. ‘Get it? ASSpot…’
‘Did you call me to make hiney jokes all night or was there a purpose?’ Waverly asked, curious. Usually, they called around 11 am, Waverly’s time, before either of them started work.
The camera angle dropped as it appeared Wynonna dropped the phone and Waverly heard ‘Ah fuck, not again,’ and the camera angle came back up to Wynonna’s face. ‘I can’t believe it’s cracked again…Oh, yes! You’ve got days off coming up, yes? I wanted to say that I’m planning on coming back for a few weeks.’
Waverly’s heart leapt as she heard Wynonna, and she grinned. ‘Wait, are you serious? Are you actually coming back to Purgatory?’
‘I mean, yeah, my flight’s not for a couple of weeks, but I wanted to see my baby sister, have some sister bonding time…if you’ll have me?’
Waverly squealed. Her heart clamored with all the possibilities of what they could do together. ‘That’s the best news, Wynonna, I’m so excited! Wait…where are you going to stay?’
Wynonna hesitated for a moment. ‘Well…er…about that. I’ve been speaking with Aunt Gus. We’re thinking of doing up the Homestead, make it a home again…and you and I live there.’
Waverly put her mug down beside her and picked up the phone. ‘Wait…wait, wait , are you saying that you’re moving back to Purgatory?’
‘Surprise?’ Wynonna said, coyly.
Waverly punched the air, grinning. Her heart felt so giddy. ‘Best. News. Ever.’
Wynonna smirked. ‘I think it’ll do us both some good to actually spend some time together. Especially now you’re old enough AND legal to get drunk with me.’
Waverly laughed. ‘I’m looking forward to it, Nonna. Honestly, I am. It gives me something good to think about rather than Champ.’
‘UGH, not that skidmark,’ Wynonna winced. ‘As soon as I’m back, you are kicking him to the curb, babygirl, you deserve better.’
‘He’s actually doing better,’ Waverly retorted. ‘He actually showed interest in a Bonnie and Clyde documentary this evening….even if he did suggest he and I should go off and “become” Bonnie and Clyde.’ She airquoted the become part with her fingers.
Wynonna straightened, and Waverly was convinced that was the most sober Wynonna looked throughout the call. ‘Babygirl, that’s not showing interest. That’s fucking ridiculous, you cannot do that.’
Waverly rolled her eyes. ‘Of course I know that, and I told him so.’
‘And?’
Waverly bit her lip in hesitation. ‘And…he stormed off in a huff.’
‘Waverly,’ Wynonna said, her voice deadpan. It made Waverly shudder a little. ‘Get rid of him. Get rid of him now. He is going to get you into trouble.’
Waverly swallowed before shaking her head. ‘It’s Champ, Nonna, how much trouble can he get me in?’
‘I’m fucking serious, Waverly,’ Wynonna said, making sure she had eye contact with Waverly over the phone. ‘That phoney ass jackass is going to do something stupid and you’ll be caught in the crosshairs and I’m not losing another sister. End it.’
‘Okay,’ Waverly snapped back, getting frustrated. ‘I’ll do it.’
‘Good,’ Wynonna said. ‘Text me when you do. Listen, I gotta go, bossman wants me to clear out my shit, so I’ll catch up with you later, okay, babygirl?’
‘Yeah, fine, I need to get some sleep anyway,’ Waverly replied, sipping some of her tea.
‘Be careful, babygirl,’ Wynonna said, air kissing the phone. ‘And dump Hardy’s ass!’
Waverly waved and air kissed back. ‘Goodnight, Nonna,’
‘Night Waves,’ Wynonna ended the call.
Waverly tapped her phone against the bed as she sipped some more tea. Wynonna coming back filled her heart, but she couldn’t help but have Wynonna’s words niggling on her mind.
“That phoney ass jackass is going to do something stupid and you’ll be caught in the crosshairs and I’m not losing another sister. End it.”
Waverly stared at her wall as she drank her tea. She knew Champ wasn’t the brightest or the most considerate, but he wasn’t a complete idiot, right? He even had some sweet moments…sometimes…
Her phone beeped and brought her out of her reverie. It was a text from Wynonna.
END IT.
Waverly sighed. Maybe…Maybe Wynonna was right.
It had been a couple of days since Waverly’s chat with Wynonna, and she still hadn’t ended things with Champ. In all honesty, she’d been so busy at Shorty’s that she’d been going straight to bed after her shifts, completely dead on her feet. Today was the first day she had off, all to herself…and Champ insisted she spend it with him. No, insisted was the wrong word. Forced would be more accurate.
She spent the entire time in the diner over breakfast thinking on how best to break up with Champ. He didn’t give many opportunities, either. Champ Hardy, always talking about himself. She was also wary of how he would react, too. His reaction on being told to leave her apartment a few nights beforehand troubled her somewhat.
“END IT”
There was a lull in the conversation. This was her chance.
‘Champ,’ Waverly began, resting her hands on the table.
‘Yo, Champ!’ Pete York walked over to their booth at the diner and clapped fists with Champ. ‘How you doing, man?’
‘Pete!’ Champ exclaimed back with a mouthful of food. ‘Where’d you go the other night, man? We were looking all over for you.’
Waverly sighed as she watched Champ and Pete exchange pleasantries. She wasn’t interested in their conversation. She wanted to slap her fists on the table and scream “Champ, we’re over!”, but she was always a people pleaser, and couldn’t bring herself to do it. She wished she had Wynonna’s confidence, where she just didn’t give a fuck what people thought.
‘C’mon, babe, we’re going,’ Champ said, snapping his fingers in front of Waverly’s face.
Waverly shook her head and glanced up. Pete had walked away, and Champ was now standing outside the booth.
‘Have you even paid?’ Waverly asked as she put on her coat and grabbed her purse, not recalling if that had happened or not.
Champ shook his head and put a finger to his lips. ‘C’mon, let’s go.’ He pulled on Waverly’s hand.
Waverly pulled her hand away and stood there, incredulous. She then began rummaging in her purse for her wallet to pay, when Champ grabbed her hand again and tried ushering her towards the door. She pushed him away and glared at him. ‘Stop being ridiculous, Champ. We talked about this. We’re not doing it. Now move aside so I can pay. Again.’ She muttered the “again” part under her breath. She was always paying for things, as Champ never seemed to have money.
She heard Champ huff as he moved aside and out towards the door. She rolled her eyes as she moved to the counter and smiled at the lady, and asked to pay for their food. Her stomach began to churn, and not because of what she just ate, but because it seemed Champ was serious about this whole “Bonnie and Clyde” thing. He’d sent her several texts about it over the last couple of days, and she honestly just ignored him, too tired to even entertain it. But now…wanting to dine and dash…she dreaded to think what would come next.
She met him outside the diner after squaring up the bill and let out a sigh, her warm breath coiling around her as steam.
‘You’re such a buzzkill,’ Champ murmured to her, kicking at a weed on the curb.
‘It’s called being an adult, Champ,’ Waverly replied, then under her breath… ‘Which you’d know if you were one…’ She pulled a face as Champ tried to hold her hand. ‘Where to now?’
Champ pointed across the road to where Purgatory General Stores was. Waverly noticed Champ’s truck was parked outside it. ‘I need to grab a couple of bits.’
Waverly nodded and they began to walk across the road. She noticed Chrissy was working there today, and she smiled. She hadn’t hung out with her in a while due to their busy working schedules, so it would be nice to see her.
‘Hey Chrissy!’ Waverly said as she entered the store and waved.
Chrissy smiled and waved back after finishing serving a customer, whom Waverly noticed was Bunny Loblaw. ‘Waves! Girl, it’s been too long. How’ve you been?’
Waverly wandered over to the counter and let Champ get what he needed. ‘I’ve been good. Just so busy.’
‘Yeah, I heard Shorty’s got you doing double shifts at the moment, that’s gotta be exhausting.’
‘It is, it’s my first day off in like a week,’ Waverly replied, biting her lip about how she was spending it with Champ, and not at home reading like she had planned. ‘How about you?’
‘Oh, it’s not too bad,’ Chrissy said as another customer approached her. ‘One sec, Waves…’
Waverly nodded and raised her hand as she let Chrissy work, her eyes scanning all of the gum and sweets that were available. She sighed as she knew none of them were vegan.
‘Have a nice day!’ Chrissy said as the customer left, and she turned her attention back to Waverly. ‘Yeah, dad’s been home in the evenings now that he’s got a new officer settling in, it’s been nice to be able to hang out with him.’
‘Oh yeah, I remember you saying a few weeks ago a new officer started, just graduated from the Big City, hasn’t she? Officer…Hugh is it?’
‘I wanna say Haught?’ Chrissy replied, leaning against the counter. ‘I can’t remember, but dad seems impressed with her, said that after a bit of training and subtle coaching, she’ll probably be deputy or something.’
Waverly raised her eyebrows. ‘Wow, that’s actually some impressive stuff.’
Chrissy nodded. ‘Dad’s not been impressed in a long time, so she must be something. She seems really nice, I saw her the other night when I was dropping in to see Dad. Gorgeous long red hair, I wish I could pull off red.’
Waverly licked her lips at the description. ‘I think I may have actually seen her about, I think she may have popped into Shorty’s yesterday while I was on a break. Shorty said she was looking for someone, but wouldn’t say who.’ She glanced around, wondering where Champ had gotten to, then quickly lost interest as her mind tried to piece together what Officer Haught looked like.
Chrissy caught on to the action. ‘Things not going well with Champ?’
Waverly rolled her eyes as she picked up a gum before putting it back. ‘It’s Champ.’
Chrissy nodded apologetically. ‘Fair enough.’
‘Hey babe,’ Champ said, putting his arm around Waverly’s waist and plonking down a basket full of items.
Waverly recoiled and pulled away from him as she made eye contact with Chrissy. She looked at the basket, then Champ. ‘I thought you only wanted a few things?’
Champ just shrugged.
Chrissy smiled thinly back at Waverly before beginning to scan the items.
Champ took out his wallet and grimaced at the lack of cash, then pulled out his card and waited.
Waverly just rolled her eyes as she waited. She looked up at Chrissy. ‘Well, make sure to tell your dad I said hey, all right?’
Chrissy smiled and nodded. ‘Sure, Waves, will do.’ She totalled up the amount and looked at Champ. ‘That will be $37.83, please.’
Champ hesitated, then handed Chrissy the card. He wiped his hands against the back of his jeans.
Chrissy tried the card, and her eyes flashed with pity as she handed it back to Champ. ‘Sorry, Champ, but it’s been declined.’
‘Fuck,’ Champ muttered as he took back the card.
Waverly let out another sigh as she began rummaging in her purse for her wallet. The hairs on the back of her neck pricked when she heard a clicking sound instead. She looked up and gasped, her hands going to her mouth.
‘Decline this,’ Champ said, as he held up a gun and shot out the security camera above Chrissy, then pointed it at her head.
‘Champ!’ Waverly squeaked out. Her heart was in her throat. Where the fuck did he get a gun from?
Chrissy held her hands up, her eyes darting between Waverly and Champ.
Champ smirked, which turned into somewhat of a snarl. ‘Now listen, here’s what’s gunna happen. You’re gunna get a bag, and empty the contents of the register into it, along with these goods. Understand?’
‘Champ! No, stop!’ Waverly gasped, pulling on Champ’s shoulder.
Champ growled and pointed the gun at Waverly.
Waverly swallowed and backed off, holding her hands in the air.
Champ’s eyes turned dark as he gestured to Chrissy with the gun. ‘Now, Chrissy.’
Chrissy nodded and did what Champ asked, her hands shaking as she grabbed a bag and opened up the cash register, the noise making her jump.
Waverly watched the scene unfold, and she could feel her legs turn numb, from her toes all the way up to her hips. Champ was grinning? Was he actually enjoying this? She just wanted to throw up the granola she had at the diner. Her breath was short, and she was sure tears were streaming down her cheeks, just like how poor Chrissy was at this moment.
This couldn’t be happening. How did Champ even get a gun?
This shouldn’t be happening.
This was happening.
‘Quicker!’ Champ yelled, glancing around, checking no one else was in the store.
Chrissy let out a whimper as she finished emptying the register and handed the bag to Champ with shaky hands.
Champ grabbed it, then gestured to the goods. ‘Now bag those.’
Chrissy nodded as she grabbed another bag for the goods.
‘Champ, please,’ Waverly croaked out, her voice hoarse. ‘Please stop this madness!’
‘Shut up, Waverly,’ Champ snapped, pointing the gun at her before pointing it back at Chrissy. ‘Jesus, Chrissy, can’t you do this any faster?’
Chrissy was trembling so much that her hands were struggling to grab anything. Waverly moved forward to help her, her heart breaking at seeing her best friend struggling. Mascara was running down her face.
‘Oh, forget it, Waves let’s go,’ Champ said, moving towards the door.
Chrissy handed Waverly the bag of goods, her eyes wide with fear.
Waverly took the bag and lowered her voice. ‘I don’t know what’s happening, but I will fix this…’
‘Waverly!’ Champ roared as he was at the doorway, keeping a lookout.
Waverly groaned as she quickly reached for her wallet, grabbed a handful of cash, and gave it to Chrissy. ‘Call Gus, call Wynonna. Do something, please.’
Chrissy grabbed Waverly’s hand like an anchor and nodded. ‘I will. I promise, Waves, I will.’
‘For fuck sake, Waverly,’ Champ doubled back and grabbed Waverly by the hair and jerked her forwards towards the door, then jabbed the gun in her back. ‘Fucking move!’
Waverly screamed out, pain exploding from her head as he dragged her. The force of Champ pushing her through the door, the sharpness from the gun barrel in her back. It was all too much. It was happening too quickly, yet it felt like it was slow motion in her head. She squinted as the harsh sunlight hit her, as Champ forced her outside and slammed her into the side of his truck.
Champ jabbed the gun at her hip, his eyes wild and dark with malice. ‘Get in the fucking truck.’
Waverly swallowed; her legs weren't complying with what she wanted, which was to run. ‘Champ,’ she whimpered. ‘Please don’t do this.’
Champ opened the passenger side door of his truck then came back and grabbed Waverly at the waist and carried her around.
Waverly screamed out, hoping to grab the attention of someone, anyone. She kicked out and tried to squirm out of Champ’s arms, but he just held her tighter.
‘You stupid bitch!’ she heard Champ snarl. She hit her head as Champ threw her into the truck. Pain exploded like fireworks. Everything went black.