My drenched head was finally raised a merciless hand gripping a chunk of my hair in a tight fist, bringing me up from the water as I spit and choked, shaking.

"I don't want to do this. I don't want to trick people. This is wrong, please dad." I helplessly sobbed, feeling so weak, coughing up water as I cried while Gus just watched me, hands clasped in front of him before he nodded his head at the worker who was gripping onto my hair.

"No! No more- I can't! No more!" I screamed out, panicking, trying to flail my restrained arms in protest, my wrists held by a few more men before my head was forcefully ducked back down into the sink filled with water, my mouth open mid-shriek as more air bubbles escaped my lips, my screams muffled from the water and lungs filling with liquid.

Time and time again, failed attempt after failed attempt, the end result was always the same.

"You think you can tell Brandon what's really going on huh? You wanna be a hero so bad don't you." Gus laughed as I shakily clung onto the shark cage I was trapped in hanging right above the water while my father lounged on his boat with a cigar.

"You ever tell anyone, any of your targets who we really are or what's really happening, I'll erase their memory and you'll have to redo everything all over again. Just like I did with Brandon." He sneered when he was close to the cage before it abruptly lowered, slowly dropping me as I screamed, panicking when the cage began to fill with ocean water as I cried, one hand tightly gripping onto the metal bar and the other extending for help that would never come through the gaps of the bars.

I screamed until I was fully submerged, and my dad would only lift the cage up when every last air bubble escaped my lips.

I was drowned, silenced, and emotionally abused until I couldn't feel anything at all, until I was immune to everything.

That's why I got tattoos.

Not because they were accomplishments like I had told my brother and dad they were.

But because the only time I could really feel was when that needle touched my skin, the slight buzzing sensation of pain that set my skin on fire in the shell of the person I was living in, etching my sins on my body for me to wear as a reminder of who I was.

I wore my collection of sins.

The boys collection.

I had this reoccurring nightmare.

It was of my dad, forcing my head down into a sink of water like he always did whenever I deserved a punishment.

Soon the water enveloped my entire body, not just my face, and I was drowning in the deep ocean, no matter how hard I tried to swim up I would be dragged down to a dark abyss by the hands of all the boys I have scammed in my life.

Ever since I was fifteen that's been what I dreamt of every night.

Until him.

I remember the night after Harry had snuck into my room in Polly's beach house, thinking I was Bridget as he spooned me.

And then Alan coming in moments later thinking he was cuddling me when he was cuddling Harry.

It was the day that Harry saved me from drowning, and ever since then, my nightmare had a new addition to it.

I was still being drowned by my father, still being clutched onto and dragged by the others into the darkest pit of the sea, but right as my hand was the only visible thing left from the black, deep sea cavern a hand shot down and firmly grasped my wrist, tightly, never letting me go.

The strong hand lifted me up from the dark, from the hateful men and from my mistakes, bringing me up until it wasn't just a hand anymore, but arms wrapping around me, saving me, until my head lay on a familiar chest and Harry held me tighter above the dark caverns of the ocean.

We were still in the water, but I was no longer drowning and I closed my eyes, feeling air in my lungs even if Harry and I were still submerged as we floated in the water with him holding me.

I woke up the next day hugging toilet paper close to my chest, dreaming about the rich boy with green eyes and a cocky dimpled smirk who was coincidentally spooning me from behind.

It was the best sleep I had in ages.

And now I looked forward to the nightmares that would ease into dreams whenever Harry appeared, because it was the only time I saw him.

In my sleep.

I rested my chin on the steering wheel as I waited patiently for my last target to open his front door.

Carter Zimmers finally opened the front door of his house, wearing his usual skater shorts and lowering his aviators when he noticed he open, silver briefcase of stacks and stacks of hundreds neatly tucked inside, right besides five more briefcases just like that and a limited addition penny board.

I felt my fingers skim my thigh where the penny board tattoo was as I watched him gaze down at the open briefcase with a dropped jaw, kneeling down to hold the bands of hundreds in his hands in disbelief before he laughed in celebration, rubbing his face with the money.

I watched him in my car where I was parked a block away, now leaning my elbow against the window as I saw Carter throw a few bills in the air in celebration, whipping back and sticking his head in the door of his house, calling someone out until a confused girl joined him on their front porch.

He explained his findings to her as she stood there, gawking at the cases of money in front of them just like he did moments ago, his hands in the air wildly, waving a wad of cash in her face before she snapped out of her daze and broke into a smile, the two kissing and embracing one another as he lifted her apart, spinning her around in his arms while they laughed with joy.

It was a good thing I knew every nook and cranny my dad would keep all the money we stole in across the U.S since he never trusted banks.

I tore my gaze away from the happy couple to grab the notepad and pencil on the passenger seat, running a line straight across Carter Zimmer's name all the way at the bottom of the list.

I frowned when I saw the last name on the paper below Carter's.

My job was almost done, there was just one more person I needed to see.

I pulled my shades over my eyes and shifted my gear shift to drive, rolling out of my parking spot, driving away and passing the happy couple with the cases of money.

The flight from Florida back to California seemed like nothing compared to the century it seemed I was stuck in sitting and waiting outside Harry's mansion in another rental car.

It's been a year since I've been here.

Since I've seen him.

"You must eat Mr. Styles." I heard Bennet's voice first, hearing a loud, chaotic commotion coming from inside as I stared blankly at my steering wheel in front of me, listening from outside.

"I can't eat- I can't. I told her I'd find her, I promised and I have to find her- fuck I didn't think it would be this hard!" The sound of Harry's voice affected me still to this day, my heart picking up speed and my palms sweating even with his high pitched panicky tone.

"Why does she have to always make things so difficult- she even changed her number! It's so hard finding her now!" I heard him complain, a small smile tugging at the corner of my lips.

"Well, that is the point sir."

"You just don't understand how much I miss her." The softer, more heartbroken tilt to Harry's voice seemed louder to my ears than the raised complaints that left his mouth seconds before.

My eyes were lowered and blank as I sunk back into my seat, staring up at the roof the car.

"I miss you too." I whispered to the empty space around me.

When the house finally quieted and I stayed seated low in my car outside with a cap and glasses, I watched Harry's tall frame pace back and forth through the small window at the side of his mansion, tugging at the roots of his hair, rubbing his face in frustration, and then eventually, falling asleep on the couch littered with papers.

That was my cue to come in.

Each step to Harry's mansion had my stomach twisting itself into knots, my throat dry as the nostalgia seemed to pull me closer and closer to the front door until my fist was knocking gently against the wood- careful not to wake Harry up.

"Miss Veronica." Bennet was the one to answer the door, tall and straight faced as he peered down at me with a raised chin.

He wasn't surprised to see me.

"I had a feeling you would come back to him." He curtly said after I had mumbled a small, ashamed "hey," stuffing my hands in my pockets as I stood there.

"Not permanently unfortunately." I said as Harry's butler observed me with an unreadable look, still holding the door.

"Unfortunately." He echoed our, giving me a once over.

"How much do you love Master Styles Veronica." Bennet questioned, meeting my gaze as I answered almost immediately.

"So much." I found myself saying, voice small -feeling like I didn't have the right to love him anymore as Bennet kept silent for a moment.

I held my breath, not knowing what he'd say next as he slowly turned, eyes still on me.

"Come in." He told me, leading me inside and holding the door for me as I nodded, thanking him under my breath, nervously stepping inside, gazing around the familiar place, every area making me relive every memory.

The wall to the side where Harry jokingly -or seriously, I don't really know- made me place my hands on the wall to search me when I first came to his house.

My head turned to the large, marble staircase as Bennet lead me deeper into the mansion, my movements seeming to be in slow motion as I remembered the Halloween party where Harry had bid a million dollars for one date with me.

Everything seemed the same, yet so different at the same time.

The living room however, was something else altogether.

Bennet stepped to the side, letting me through as I took in the mess the place was in, with forgotten cups of old coffee on every flat surface, papers and clippings of any news reports revolving around scams close by to the fact that every inch of the walls being covered with crinkled, marked maps, red and black pins littered across it along with some strings of yarn, Ike a detective's work.

My picture was in the middle of the map, my face circled with a red marker.

Then there was Harry himself.

Looking exhausted, pale, and even a bit thinner than what seemed healthy, he lay there, passed out on the couch, frowning even in his sleep as he snored.

His brown hair was left in disarray just like his room due to the constant touch of his hands tugging at his locks in frustration.

"He hasn't stopped ever since you left." Bennet spoke from the entrance behind me as I slowly neared Harry's sleeping figure in disbelief, experiencing some certain kind of melancholy feeling at the sight of his face, of him being so close right in front of me after a whole year of just seeing him in my dreams.

"You can touch him if you'd like." The butler added when noticing my apprehension as I looked back at him with uncertainty.

"Nowadays he rarely ever sleeps, but when he does it takes at least two earthquakes to wake him up. He rarely eats and rests." Bennet informed, making me frown and look back at my beautiful, sad little rich boy, sitting on the arm of the couch, only a few inches away from him before I hesitantly reached out, brushing a hank of brown hair out of his face, feeling his skin warm mine.

I just stared at him, with the saddest, emptiest look in my eyes, knowing I did this to him.

"He was supposed to be mad." I whispered, not knowing if I was talking to Bennet or myself as I gazed at Harry who continued to sleep.

"I planned to trick my father only after he revealed who we were to Harry so he could see the person I really was. I expected him to be mad, for him to never want to see me again..." I trailed off, stroking his soft hair as I watched Harry's eyelashes flutter slightly, breathing still slow as he leaned into my touch, even in his slumber.

I didn't expect this.

"Some days he's mad. Some days he's sad." Bennet responded as my fingertips trailed down Harry's pale cheek, noticing the eyebags under his sunken eyes.

"But everyday he looks for you."

I grit my teeth to keep from crying as I nodded my head solemnly, continuing to gently caress Harry's face with a featherlight touch, wanting nothing more than to hug him, tell him I was here now and that I was here to stay.

But I promised myself to never lie anymore.

"He doesn't take care of himself." I breathed out, teary eyed as I let the back of my hand graze the stubble forming over his sharp jawline.

"No, no he doesn't. He is never going to give up on you, you know that." Bennet said as I forced myself to retract my hand back from Harry, slowly rising from the couch and backing away like I had physically hurt him.

My eyes then went around the room to the maps laid out across the wall, the circled cities and states Harry marked where he believed I might have been.

He was so far from the truth, every city he pin pointed was a place I had never even entered and he missed all the areas I had stayed in this whole year.

A small laugh of endearment left my lips when I saw the Philippines circled multiple times, emphasizing Mount Pinatubo, my hand going to my face to wipe at a few escaped tears before I turned back to Bennet who watched me at the doorway.

"Help me take these down, please." I requested, sending him a pleading look.

He nodded in understanding.

Silently, one by one we took down all the work Harry had done, careful to not make too much noise as Bennet recruited a few more fellow maids and butlers to help, clearing the tables, gathering the papers and quietly stuffing them into trash bags.

I had found Harry's phone, relieved he had the same passcode before I made sure to delete every picture of me or of me and him together, every press of the button a stab in my chest as my lips pulled into a sad smile at all of the photos we had taken together.

Pictures of us laughing were deleted.

Pictures of us kissing were deleted.

Pictures of him just gazing at me as I was laughing were deleted.

I got rid of my older number as well, deleted my contact on his phone and anything else involving me.

I didn't have to worry about anyone else, everyone had already moved on from me.

I had heard my brother Ethan had runaway with Polly and I assumed they were still happily together.

Alan and Arlo were traveling the nation in a bus, crossing through all the states.

Harry was the only one left here, forever stuck and still not giving up his search for me.

I don't know why it took me so long to notice but it was only when I was finished clearing Harry's phone and folding the last of the maps that I spotted it, floating idly in the corner of the room, the red of it making it pop out in the large space as I neared it with parted lips.

My hand gently grabbed the string of the red balloon, still as round and inflated as the day I gave it to Harry at the airport with the words 'I love you' and 'I love you too' still etched on it.

He had kept my balloon.

He had kept my love.

"He inflates that every week." Bennet informed when he saw me holding it as I looked at him, completely speechless.

I opened my mouth to say something but at that moment I couldn't find my words as I gazed at the balloon, seeing my own lost reflection across the red surface.

"I'll let you do what you need to do, you can find yourself out when you're done." Bennet simply said, hands held behind his back, giving me one last lingering stare before he turned and left the room.

Harry was still asleep, unknowing that the girl he had been searching for this whole time was in the same room, standing in the corner, holding the love she gave him to keep.

I crouched in front of the couch where Harry lay so we were eye level, even if he was asleep, watching him one last time.

My hand retrieved the memory eraser, with the date of the day we first met already locked in on the panel.

April 7th, 2014.

Closing my eyes I leaned forward and placed a kiss on his forehead, the same spot where I placed the panel on right after, feeling the button at the side of it that would erase all memories of me with one click.

"You deserve to move on. I still have to go to jail, you can't wait for me forever." I told him, not caring that tears were now falling down my cheeks and dropping from my chin.

This time, Harry's eyelashes fluttered more, until I inhaled sharply in shock when he opened his piercing green eyes and his own intake of breath left his lips at the sight of me in front of him.

He had woken up just as I had pressed the button.

"Vee," Harry breathed, a pattern of emotions flickering over his face until his features were etched with joy, only to slowly die and fade off as the numbers on the panel on his forehead blinked and his eyelids drooped before he closed his eyes and sunk back against the couch, unconscious.

My jaw locked to keep my cries silent even if they were uncontrollable as I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around his limp body, hugging him and burying my face into the crook of his neck, repeating to him how sorry I was as I stroked his brown head of hair.

I knew the next time Harry would open his eyes, he would no longer remember me.

But I also knew he would finally be free of me.

I don't know how long I stayed there, hugging him close, sobbing and saying my last goodbye.

Eventually I finally composed myself, taking the memory eraser from his forehead and holding it tightly in my hand.

I walked out of that room leaving only one thing behind for Harry to keep even if he wouldn't understand it when he awoke.

My love.

"I'll have Harry's lawyers help you." Was the last thing Bennet told me when I was headed for the exit as I sent him a grateful smile.

After I stepped out of Harry's mansion for good with Bennet and the rest of the workers there watching me leave in silence, I visited each and everyone of Harry's friends.

Maybe socking them unconscious to erase their memories wasn't the best tactical approach, but at this point there was only one place I was going.

Finally finding a police car parked on one of the nearby streets, I put in a certain date across the memory eraser panel, keeping it hidden tightly in my hand before I walked over and opened the door to the back of police car.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing-" The cop at the front almost spilled his coffee as he and the other officer turned back to look at me in surprise before I raised my wrists to them.

"My name is Veronica Slater, I am the daughter and accomplice of con-artist Gus Slater." I stated, staying there in the back of the police car keeping my wrists out for them to cuff as I turned myself in.

The two men exchanged confused looks.

They spoke with one another outside but handcuffed me and left me in the back of the car as they conversed, not knowing whether I was lying or not as I blankly stared at the seat in front of me.

With my fingers skimming across the panel, playing with the small device in my hand I glanced at the officers through the window, making sure they weren't looking before I lowered my head and brought my restrained hands up, putting the panel on my forehead.

I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath, thinking of Harry, knowing that the date on the device was the first day my father ever mentioned his name as a target.

And with Harry as my last thought, I erased one last person's memory that day.

My own.

HARRY

I threw my head back with a slight laugh, spraying a bunch of bikini clad girls with champagne as they tried to run away from me, squealing while I chased them around my house as they retreated back to my outdoor pool for some type of sanctuary.

My laughter slowly died as the grin on my face remained on my lips, a small, content sigh escaping me as I stopped at the door to my backyard pool, leaning against the doorframe watching the girls beckon me over as they dived and jumped into the pool with a splash.

Charles and Kreg came out from my kitchen with two new bottles of champagne for themselves.

"How is it that Polly just moves out of nowhere and doesn't even tell us, especially you." Charles playfully chuckled, nudging me as I gave him an amused look, spraying a bit of champagne that was still left in my bottle on his designer shorts as he cursed at me, stepping back a bit making me smirk.

"She still sends me letters letting me know she's okay. Yeah she's been vague but she tells me she's never been more happy." I admitted with a slight shrug, scratching the side of the bridge of my nose in thought.

"Still," Kreg started, about to continue with whatever he was saying before he blinked and spotted something at the corner of my living room.

"Hey, why do you always keep that around?" He wondered, turning his attention to something as I kept my distracted gaze on the blonde in the blue bikini in my pool who was giving me "the look."

I waved at her with a flirtatious smirk, watching her twiddle her fingers at me in response, giggling as I nodded in approval when I got a better view of her cleavage.

"Harry, Kreg's asking you something." Charles snapped me out of it as I looked at my two friends.

"What, what is it." I impatiently said before Kreg pointed at the random red balloon at the corner of the room.

"Not tryna be weird but I think your balloon loves me." He snorted as I rolled my eyes at his joke.

"Yeah, why do you have that?" Charles raised his brow as they both looked at me while I scratched the back of my head, not really knowing how to answer.

To be honest, I had no idea where that balloon even came from, or why it had the words 'I love you' and 'I love you too' on it.

All I knew was that I wanted to keep it, for now I guess.

"I don't know, one day it was just there in my house. I asked Bennet or any of my other help if it was theirs but no one's said anything." I admitted with a casual shrug.

"That's weird." Kreg made a face as Charles agreed, the two of them exchanging looks before the sounds of girls squeaking and giggling caught all of our attentions.

"Well, have fun with your balloon, we're gonna go play with our own different kinds of balloons out there." Charles laughed, roughly patting my shoulder as I chuckled, watching him and Kreg walk outside to my pool with me almost following them before my feet suddenly stopped right at the door in hesitation.

I blinked, brows knit together as I looked back at the random red balloon floating in the corner of the room.

It would be deflated by now but Bennet always inflates it every week, it's so strange.

Glancing briefly at the fun going on outside for a moment, I placed the empty champagne bottle I was holding on the ground, wiping my hands over my hundred dollar shirt since it wasn't that expensive as I grabbed the string of the balloon, carrying it to my front door.

I walked out of my mansion, stopping in the middle of the cobble stone pathway to my luxurious house as I studied the red balloon, wondering why I felt such an odd, attachment to it.

I felt more and more confused as I read the phrases over and over again.

I love you.

I love you too.

Never have I told anyone I loved them and actually meant it -I hate the phrase itself even.

Yet some reason, my hand was still gripping tightly onto the string like an emotional child, careful not to let the balloon go.

Slowly my grip loosened, right until I could feel the string slip right through my fingers.

I let go of the ballon.

My head tilted up to the sky, my hand hovering over my squinted eyes to shield them from the sun as I watched it float up into the air, getting smaller and smaller.

And so I just stood there, watching it float higher and higher until the red balloon disappeared into the clouds and the words 'I love you' were no longer visible, making it look just like a regular, plain balloon.

A regular, plain balloon that wasn't mine anymore.

AN: I heard there's gonna an epilogue.