In Search Of The Neon City

18 - Lo

My eyes felt unusually alert when the sun's rays penetrated our temporary home and shone straight into my face.

"Are you wake?"

I nodded a few times and sat up gently to test my sore muscles. They protested against my first movements, but after stretching they had softened up a bit and I moved around as usual.

"So what's the plan?" I saked him.

Twelve met my gaze and shrugged "this is part of your plan, isn't it?"

"I guess so" I replied, scratching my neck and straightening my beanie "but you were sort of thrown in the middle of everything, you might have something else to do" I replied a little hesitantly.

He raised an eyebrow and I felt my heart rate increase a little when the answer did not come as fast as I had wanted. "I chose to help you," he said, turning away, "no one forced me."

I put my head on the snow and could not help but wonder why he'd gone all this way to find me, and before the brain had time to register what I was doing, my mouth had opened and asked the question straight out. "Why did you even help me?"

He was just about to put the last things in his backpack but stopped in the middle of his movement and turned his face towards me. His voice was not harsh, perhaps somewhat emotionless, the same as with his facial expression. He was not stiff or cold, the word to describe him was probably neutral.

"Why not." He replied with a shrug.

I waited a while to see if he would develop his answer, but soon realized that was all I got. So I fished up a piece of provisions out of my pocket and decided that the answer would suffice, for the time being. However, there was something else I needed to know, the guy in front of me was a real mystery.

I studied him as he fastened his backpack on his back and began to move planks and pieces of sheet metal to reveal an exit for us. How could he be so strong, so fearless and so calm? And how the hell could his hair be so white and clean in this fucking desert, I thought with a bubbling laugh that involuntarily left my lips.

He turned and gave me a questioning look. "I'm free" I replied with a wide smile and felt how all the tension released inside my scrawny body.

He returned my smile and nodded "are you coming?"

His short answer made my head fill with more questions and I could not help but ask them, a huge craving for human contact had begun to grow in me. A longing to talk to someone and just be me, be something other than a prisoner, a hacker or someone's little brother.

"Do you live far from here?"

"No" was all he answered before we left he bus and I followed him out into the murderous sunlight.

"Do you live alone?" I asked curiously but also with a hint of fear.

"You know I do."

"But things may have changed since we last spoke."

"They haven't." Twelve pulled up his dark gray sleeve on one of his arms and began to fiddle with his I-link that shone up on his forearm, he must have checked the map or a compass because soon he began to walk purposefully in one direction.

He walked so fast I almost had to run after him.

"Ehm so, is it okay if I come with you?"

He shrugged "your choice."

"My options aren't that good," I muttered, "I don't  even know where I am."

He stopped and turned to look at me "If you want you can come home with me and I will fix a new I-link for you. After that it's up to you what you do next."