Square One

3

The rest of the bus ride was full of mindless chit chat, mostly about tv shows, or movies. Melissa tried bringing up sports once, but once she realized that Carmen didn't know any more about them than she did, they quickly changed the subject back to Harry Potter.

When the bus stopped in Jersey City, the two of them didn't know how to react. The both just sort of stared at each other for a second, each clutching their suitcase tightly in their hands.

Then Carmen jumped up and started running for the doors before they closed, Melissa just behind him.

They jumped off the bus, landing in the snow that coated the sidewalks. People in big coats and boots walked past them, careful not to slip of the ice. The sound of the doors closing, and the bus driving away made Melissa's stomach clench up.

"So," Carmen said, turning towards Melissa. "We're here."

"We are."

They were quiet.

"We should figure out a plan," Melissa said, and though her voice was determined, it shook slightly.

"We should get inside first," Carmen said, rubbing his hands together.

"Oh. Good idea." Melissa looked around, but the street was nothing but office buildings. "Let's go look for some place to sit down."

The two started walking, Carmen walking more casually, with one of his hands shoved into his pocket, and Melissa standing tall, having to walk faster to keep up with Carmen's long strides. After about ten minutes of walking around, Melissa spotted a small cafe called The Bird's Nest.

"Let's go there," Melissa said, grabbing Carmen's sleeve.

Carmen wrinkled his nose. "That's such a hipster place."

"You don't know that!"

"I can tell."

"We can't just wander around out here forever, Carmen," Melissa said, and started pulling him to the coffee shop.

Carmen had been right about it being a hipster place- Everything, from the floor to the ceiling was dark wood, with matching tables strewn around. The walls were plastered with Polaroid photos, the old camera that must had taken them sitting on it's own little stool in the corner. The menu, written on a chalk board over the cash register boasted "100% Vegan!"

Melissa ordered a hot chocolate, Carmen a cup of black tea. They took a seat at one of the round tables in the corner, and Melissa put her suitcase on the table, snapping it open.

"What are you do-" Carmen started to ask.

"I swear, I have a notepad in here somewhere!" Melissa started pulling out books, stacking them on the table. Carmen sat and patiently waited for her to finish.

After pulling out about every book she had in her suitcase, along with a pair of pants, she held up a yellow legal pad triumphantly. She then started the process of packing all of her books away again.

"Are you done?" Carmen asked as she placed the final book in it's place.

"Yes." Melissa put her suitcase on the ground.

"Great. What's the notepad for?"

Melissa pulled a pencil out of her pocket. "We need to make a list of everything we need to do."

Carmen's eyebrows pressed together, but he didn't protest.

"I think the most obvious of which is we need a place to stay for the night," Melissa said, jotting it down. "Then we should start looking for a real apartment."

"Do you think we'll be able to afford that?"

"We'll have to right? I'll withdraw my money from my bank account tomorrow... hopefully no one will track it."

Carmen knew better than ask who she was worrying about.

"We should look into jobs after that," He said.

"Of course." Melissa paused her writing and looked up at him. "What job are considering?"

"Continues to be no idea."

Melissa pursed her lips. "We'll work on that."

She looked back down at her list. "We need to figure out some system for bills, and stuff like groceries. We'll have to eat pretty cheap for the first month at least."

Carmen sighed.

"Here you go," A waitress said, putting their drinks down next to them.

"Thank you," They said together as she left.

Melissa took a sip of her hot chocolate. Carmen just stared down at his tea.

"Are you scared?" He asked.

"Of what? Living with a stranger?"

"No, of starting over."

"Oh, I'm horrified." She slurped at her drink. "But planning makes me feel better." She paused. "Are you scared?"

Carmen nodded.

"Well, we're gonna be ok, right? I mean, at least we've got each other."

Carmen looked up. Melissa's eyes were pleading, begging him to be there for her.

"At least we've got each other," He repeated.

---

Oh my god I'm so tired.

Hi! Thanks so much for reading! If yo liked it, please vote, comment, you know the deal. 

Sorry for any grammar/spelling mistakes.

XOX