Chapter Text
You desperately tried to recollect your thoughts, phone trembling in your grasp as you waited for your call to be returned. The 911 responder’s voice rang through your ears, yet their voice couldn’t calm the rush of blood in your ears. What had happened? You tried to gather your thoughts with a shaky breath, retracing the steps you’d taken that day.
—
You’d just recently moved to the city. At the address given to you, a room similar to that of a hotel waited for your arrival. The walls were cracked, the ceilings were leaky, and in its current state, the place looked dingy. As much as you hated how it looked now–empty, desolate, almost unlivable–at least you were far away from your parents! You could finally have your own things, and that outweighed the cons of your new home. Besides, you were sure you’d be able to spruce it up in no time! A little decorating of your own would be nice.
You drove through the narrow streets of the city, observing the buildings around you. It was nicer than living in the middle of the country, that’s for sure. Maybe you’d be able to save money on gas here! Everything was within walking distance of your new apartment. You took a look at the rearview mirror, making sure your personal belongings were still in order. Boxes upon boxes obscured your vision of the roads behind you. Was it dangerous? Yes. Did you really care? No. You just wanted to get all of your things away from your parents, who were threatening to destroy everything you didn’t take with you. Atop of your car laid your thick mattress, and although you internally cringed at the idea of strapping it to the roof of your car, you couldn’t really stuff it in the backseat like the rest of your belongings. Plus, buying a new mattress wasn’t in your budget.
It was risky moving out here to begin with–especially since you had quit your old job and you were living off of the money you had saved up. Sure, it was enough to keep you afloat for a month or so, but a month wouldn’t be the rest of your life. Copies of your resume sat in the glove box, readily available for you to pass them to whatever shoddy place would be willing to hire you. It didn’t matter who took you in anymore, all that mattered was getting enough money to sustain yourself to prove your parents wrong.
You were independent, and they’d tried to take that away from you.
Being consumed by your thoughts had caused your grasp to tighten on the steering wheel, your knuckles turning lighter with your force. As you finally returned to the present, you made yourself loosen your grip. It wasn’t worth getting worked up over. Not anymore, and hopefully, never again. Instead, you began thinking of what you could finally do now that you’re living on your own.
With your newfound freedom, you could do plenty of things! Maybe try out something new–you haven’t been able to do that since you were playing with toys. Ooh, ooh, maybe you’d even be able to buy yourself a pride flag! That was always something you wanted to do. It was small, sure, but the idea meant a lot to you. Especially considering you’ve been closeted due to your parents’ disapproval for as long as you can remember.
There you went again, thinking about your parents. As much as you wanted to leave them in your past, they’d been with you for your entire life. As much as you hated them, it was kind of hard to imagine being without them. You were finally free, so why were you still thinking about them?
All you needed was a break.
Just as you thought that, a small coffee shop came into your view. The building seemed cozy and inviting–just what you needed. Despite the parking lot being full, there was always parallel parking. As much as you despised the mere idea, you needed a break. After a surprisingly successful job at sandwiching your vehicle between two others, you sat in the driver’s seat, trying to calm yourself down further before walking in. People would get the wrong idea if you just stormed in there, and that was the last thing you wanted. A bunch of strangers thinking there was something wrong with you.
One last shaky breath left your mouth as you finally reached for the door handle, pushed it open, and stood up. Your body felt sore after hours of driving, forcing you to take a breath before you got too lightheaded and collapsed entirely. The air around you felt suffocating–not malodorous, but overpopulated. The sounds of people going about their everyday lives invaded your sense of hearing as you clambered onto the sidewalk and towards the coffee shop. Car horns beeping, chatter that seemed too close but too far away to make out any words, the sound of tires against asphalt, the works. You knew you needed to get used to the general commotion–after all, this was your new place of residence–, but at that moment, everything felt stifling. You just had to give yourself time to adjust, that’s all!
Your head felt heavy with the overstimulating sounds of everyday life until you finally opened the door to the cafe. Immediately, your nose was assaulted with the ambrosial scent of coffee. The sounds of people’s conversations no longer smothered you, instead being replaced by a pleasantly quiet chitter. A barista looked at you with a welcoming smile, patiently standing behind the counter as you approached and placed an order.
Thankfully, you didn’t even have to speak to her. You just placed your order on a tablet she handed to you, paid for your drink, and then you were told to sit down. In the meantime, you gazed out the window beside you, spaced out as you observed people going about their everyday lives. Unrecognizable faces passed through your field of sight, some walking with friends, some alone. Some held bags for an expensive brand you didn’t recognize. Some held phones to their ears, enveloped in the conversations they held with whoever was on the other line.
Your eyes drifted from the people to the scenery. The skies outside were dark and cloudy, yet the overcast didn’t seem to faze anyone. Not even as rain began landing on the sidewalks–not enough to be considered a full drop, but enough to make an audible noise when it hit the windows. Enough to ruin someone’s day, surely. Despite how gloomy the outside appeared; you found solace in it. The rain thumping against the windows was a calming sound, easing the anxieties you didn’t know you had.
The coffee, which you hadn’t noticed was placed before you on the table, quickly turned cold. You forced yourself to chug the cooled beverage. It was time for you to continue your trek to the apartment.
You mentally prepared yourself to go back into the world as you stood up from your seat and tossed your cup in the trash. The barista waved goodbye to you as you walked out, and you returned the kind gesture as you stepped out of the door. All you had to do was make it back to your car, away from the noise. Your apartment wasn’t far from your current location, it’d just take a few minutes to drive there and you’d be there. You could take your phone out to check the estimated arrival time, but you didn’t want the screen to get wet. You could wait until you got in the car.
You stared at the ground as you ambled to your vehicle, but a loud thump caught your attention. Something that, most definitely, wasn’t the sound of rain hitting the sidewalk. One of the civilians around you screamed, piercing your ears. Then, you looked up, scanning your surroundings for the source of fear. Did you need to protect yourself?
Your eyes landed on the mattress strapped to the top of your car, and your eyes widened.
Holy shit.
Was that a corpse?
You fumbled for your phone, still in a state of shock as you fished it from out of your pocket. Your hands quivered as you dialed 911, still staring at the body which now lay atop of your mattress. Your palms felt clammy, device nearly slipping from your hold as a million questions swam in your head.
Were they alive?
What happened?
And most importantly:
Who were they?