Up above the hole in the ground, Ira is speaking to her watch:
"Are you certain?"
"It's not that I don't trust you. It's just that you said we didn't do this until after..."
"But this reduces our advantage-"
Jenn shifts her grip easily to Bina's shoulder, but looks and-
And the Corpse is too near, and they need a moment more, so she shifts, blocking Elizabeth and Bina-
The Corpse tries to bat her out of the way, while swerving around her, clawing deep into Jenn's shoulder-
And Elizabeth yanks her out of the way - the only way out's just past the corpse, where it broke through the wall, or the window which's too slow -
"Moment," Jenn manages, and it sounds, rather, like she's about to lose consciousness again as she collapses towards Bina, reaching out to get back in contact with the pair.
Elizabeth picks her up and hauls her out of the office - they can't go towards the courtyard -
Back into the mud.
"We'll circle back!" she says, as Bina struggles.
They didn't hear a gunshot, the first time.
So she drops Bina, says, "Run that way," and throws a brick at the Corpse.
And runs the other way from Bina.
She's stood, outside the cafe where Bina works (...except that isn't right? She doesn't know which cafe Bina works at, this isn't where she was before.)
Bina gets off work soon, and they'd agreed to meet.
Bina waves goodbye to her coworkers, and runs out to see Jenn, smiling and clearly only a little tired.
"Jenn!" she calls. "Uh - hey - " she blushes a bit, then, "How've you been?"
Jenn smiles and gives a small wave. (Bina's blushing is, as ever, adorable.)
"Hey you," she greets, holding out her arms for a hug. "Good, good. Mama's been keeping me busy, but that's the way of things. You?"
"Glad summer classes are just about over. I'll have more time... For a few weeks, at least."
"Hopefully!" She brushes up against Jenn. "So, want to go anywhere in particular? You look like you could use something to eat, but I'd rather not have my coworkers hovering over me, you know."
Jenn drapes a companionable arm around Bina's shoulder. "You know where's good to eat, and you're not wrong. I'm starving. My treat, so price isn't an object."
She smiles, her skin radiant in the city's green glow, and leads the way. "I know just the place. This new soup shop."
She shyly takes Jenn's hand, then leads the way.
The soup shop has a tasteful sign with green lettering - none of the neon most other shops favor - named "All Night Soup" (they're opened twenty-four-seven, Bina explains - she likes them after work). The prices are reasonable for a college town, and the soup is a goupy static.
The sense of wrongness intensifies.
(Wasn't she just in the office? With Bina and Elizabeth, and not-Ant and-)
"You're not Bina," she says, staring at the soup.
"What do you mean? Are you feeling okay, Jenn - you really should eat - "
"No. I don't think I am okay. I don't think any of this is okay. I met Bina when we were chained together under a laundromat by a psycho. Not-"
Not how? How had Jenn met Bina.