Saorsa

Unearthing

I knock on the door again, getting agitated. "I know you're in there Serena! I can hear your music," I call out. 

A series of grunts and curses can be heard from behind the door as it begins to unlock.

"I swear if it's that weird ass girl-" A man grumbles as he pulls it open, stopping mid sentence when he sees me.

"Who are you?" He questions, clearly bored.

"Can I speak to Serena?" I ask, trying to poke my head around him in hopes I can get a glimpse of her.

"Who?" He yawns, almost ready to slam the door in my face. "Serena?" I repeat, slightly confused. "I dropped her off here earlier," I clarify.

His face shifts from one of confusion to realisation. "Curly hair, leggings and big jacket?" He questions, listing off her identifiable features.

"Yes?" I slowly nod my head. 

"Yeah she doesn't live here, she gave me a tenner to keep quiet while she waited for you to leave then she took off down the street," He reveals, still completely unbothered.

"What-" I stutter out, being cut off by the door slamming in my face. I'm left on the silent porch, completely baffled.

Serena Verlice. If there's one thing that girl can do it's leaving me shocked.

I shake my head in disbelief as I descend the old wooden stairs. 

Maybe she regretted the kiss and decided that she never wanted to see me again or she was just pretending to like us the entire time while she was still terrified of us.

I think a simple 'I'm not interested Emilio' would have worked.

I stand on the street in front of my car, completely lost in thought when a hooded man bumps into me. He mumbles a sorry before pushing past me. 

I go to open my car but pause when I realise I locked it, patting my pockets in search for my keys. My eyebrows furrow in confusion when I feel that they're all empty, my keys, wallet and phone now missing.

"Hey!" I shout at the man who's now further down the street. He hears me, immediately breaking into a full sprint.

Could this day literally get any worse.

I run after him, chasing him down the street. "Fucker," I grumble, practically tackling him after finally catching up.

I deliver a single blow to his head before wrestling my stuff off of him, leaving him dazed. He stumbles to his feet and scurries away.

I groan in frustration, realising I can no longer see my car after the chase. I shove my stuff into my pockets and start walking back, needing a fucking blunt after this.

I'm walking down the street when something catches my eye on the floor, the soft glow of the streetlamp above illuminating it.

I instantly recognise the pink phone case, having seen it in my desk draw for the past week. I pick it up, inspecting it.

Intense worry washes over me as I look down at it, sure she could have dropped it but what if something happened to her. What if that guy tried to mug her as well and something went wrong?

I feel a sense of hopeless, completely unsure of what to do as I rack my brain for ideas. Noticing that there's still a building with it's lights on, I decide I'll ask them for their camera footage so I can see what happened out here.

I read the 'Hostel' sign above the double doors as I push through them, entering into a small dingy room with a lady dozing off at the counter.

I approach her as the light above flickers repeatedly and the air conditioner makes an irritating droning noise.

This place smells.. questionable, the carpet a sea of dirt and mysterious stains. 

"Hello?" I announce, the lady still having her eyes closed as she rests against the counter. She jolts awake, looking startled as our eyes meet.

"Hello?" She mimics, rubbing the tiredness out of her eyes. 

"I need your cctv footage," I request bluntly, getting straight to the point. She stays silent for a moment, internalising my words.

"Our cameras don't work," She yawns. "What do you mean?" I question.

"I mean that they don't work," She repeats, her tone bored. "I can give it to you but it'd just be hours of static," She says, resting her head on her propped up hand.

I stand still in thought for a moment, unsure of what to do as my anxiety rises. "Why do you want it anyway?" The lady sighs.

"My friend's phone was outside and I just want to make sure she's okay," I ramble to this stranger, palming Serena's phone.

She nods, still looking disinterested until the phone in my hand draws her attention. She focuses in on it, seemingly thinking deeply for a moment before a look of realisation spreads across her features.

"Serena?" She questions quietly, almost as if she's talking to herself. "Serena? You know her?" I question loudly, feeling a twinge of relief. 

"Yeah she lives here," She confirms. "She must have dropped her phone outside," She theorises, reaching out to grab it from my hand.

I retract my hand, pulling it away from her. "She lives here?" I repeat, utterly confused. The woman purses her lips, probably realising that she shouldn't have told me that information. 

I take a couple steps back, my eyes drifting from her to the large door on the other side of the room.

"You can't go in there," She stutters out. I ignore her, desperate to confirm what she said is true.

My shoes trudge along the carpet as I approach the door, my nervous hand finding it's way to the rusted handle.

I open the door, not being sure of what to expect. 

There's a large room with dozens of bunkbeds, the walls dark with mould and the smell putrid. 

It doesn't take long for me to find her, her face poking out from underneath the beige sheets. I stand over her, looking down at her sleeping face in disbelief.

Why didn't she tell me?

She could see I'm clearly in a position to help her, I would literally buy her a house if it meant she never had to return here.

My mind is battling through feelings of anger and sympathy as I try and decide what to do. I eventually come to the conclusion that there's only one answer, get her out of here.

"Serena," I whisper, my hands on her shoulders as I gently shake her. She doesn't stir so I repeat the process until eventually she starts tossing and turning.

Her eyes squint open, exhaustion evident on her face as she looks up at me in confusion.

"Emilio?"