Insider

Twenty

"Do you know where a restaurant is?  Like a diner?  A place to get burgers and fries?"

I was at a drugstore, purchasing alcohol and bandages.  The girl behind the counter was about my age, had a nose-piercing, and a look that made me know that she wouldn't ask questions.  Maybe somewhere with a payphone, I thought.  The girl pointed a black acrylic nail and drawled, "Down the street there's a good place.  I dunno."

"Thank you," I replied.  "May I use your restroom?"  She pointed towards the back.  With my bundle of stuff, I headed into the bathroom and locked the door.  I thought I saw a red jacket enter the store, but I wasn't sure.  Gently, I pulled down my scarf and removed my hat, and I grimaced at what I saw.

I could deal with my right eye being black and swelled shut, I could also deal with my lips puffy and cut.  My disgust came from watching blood trickle down the new cut on my left cheek, tearing over broken tissue and forming a fragmented 'X.'  "Eew." I whispered and doused a bit of rubbing alcohol onto the wound.  "Fuck..." I hissed, wincing at the sting.  I guess it's not that bad, I thought.  I could've been killed- which is worse?

My stomach had been gnawing at me for hours now.  It was mid-afternoon, a day and a half had passed without me eating, drinking, or sleeping.  I had spent the better part of my time after having escaped Crimson Night trying to make it into main town, Alexandria.  It is hard when you constantly have to duck to avoid suspicious men and women in red jackets, though.  Each streak of crimson made my heart flutter- not in a good way.  I didn't know where I was, or who to trust.  All the information I got was from looking at a sign at a bus stop, saying 'Alexandria.'  Left with nothing but my wits, I just kept trudging forward.  Hunger makes you want to stop, though.  And I was craving a burger.

However, my luck was running short today.  The door was busted open, and Crimson Night members crowded the back of the store.  Two men barely older than me grabbed my wrists.  A gun was aimed at my forehead.  I was severely outnumbered, and my stomach was in knots.  "Jesus guys, what are you doing here?" I huffed, hoping that they didn't know of my untimely betrayal.  Maybe they'd still think I was second-in-command.

I hoped wrong.  The girl with the gun clicked off the safety and said, "Cooperate, before this whole situation gets any bloodier."  I shrugged and lowered my eyes.  As I was marched out of the room, I saw the girl at the counter.  She was perplexed, and mouthed, "Do you need help?"

I had a feeling she wasn't going to like what I wanted to do next.

I let my legs give out and used my entire body weight to launch my captors towards the ground.  Wrangling from their grasps, I snatched my knife and slit both their thighs.  The cuts missed major ateries, but it startled the hell out of them.  Like clockwork, a punch was swung at me, and I punched back.  A burly man tried to tackle me to the ground, but I thrust my knife at his stomach.  I grabbed the girl by the hair and slammed her to the ground.  Leaping on top of her, I grabbed the gun and knocked her over the head with it.  She was unconscious seconds later.  It was a fair fight, I had my share of blows as well.  I made a beeline for the door, and shouted to the poor worker cowering behind the counter, "Sorry 'bout the mess!" 

Bam, I was running again.  This time I had a gun, and I waved it threateningly at the gang members who had gathered outside the drugstore.  "Don't come anywhere near me!" I barked.  People were screaming, some calling 9-1-1.  Fuck, fuck, fuck I thought.  Crimson Night thought that too.  We scattered like flies.

I kept running until it felt like my legs wouldn't work anymore.  Still stuck in Alexandria, it seemed.  But, at least I was by a burger joint.  Panting, I sunk to my knees in exhaustion.  The sun had set in an eery crimson glow, a bitter reminder of what I was running from.  I wasn't in the best part of town, and was incredibly vunerable in my physical state.  Legs quivering, I gathered my belongings, pulled out some cash, and walked into the burger joint.

Food had never tasted so good.  I took a fire exit to the rooftops, and ate beneath the stars.  My boots dangled over the edge of the roof, and I kicked my heels together repeatedly, trying to fight sleep.  I was losing the battle, though.  Full on a delicious burger and fries, I just watched the world move on below.  

Scuffling footsteps lulled me from my trance.  My heart skipped.  Whoever had found me was probably here to kill me, and I grabbed the gun that had been resting at my side.  

Safety off.

In my other hand, I held my knife jutting out slightly behind my back.  Standing up, I glared at the figure sihlouetted by the night sky.  The last thought that raced through my mind was if I died, who would take care of Rose and Jasmine?  Who would tell Rose her brother had died?  Who would protect Jasmine from her mother?  

Somehow I'd find a way to survive- I always did. 

But, just as I aimed the gun at the person's head, he spoke.

"Elissa?"