Absent Link

Chapter 14: Relapse

'After all I've done.' Dylan thought silently from the back of the bus. 'I sacrifice my sanity, time, life, and community for this monster.' He was alone on the way back from Morris Oil. He'd considered going back into the facility to look for his dad and Keith but a deep anger against the world kept him from doing this. He wanted to shut off; just... disappear from the world. The Mind Realm, that's where he wanted to go. He wanted to see his rage in the clouds and feel the ground shake. He could almost say he missed it, maybe since even the early days of the Mind Realm felt better than... this. 'I swear if Emon is behind all this, I'll kill him. That's the one thing I learned from Amelia.'

"Pard'n me, young man," An elderly lady stood beside his seat, peering down at the seat next to him. "I don't want to bother you, but could I just get past you? Oh, I hope yer not sleepin'—"

Dylan looked up and stared at the woman with dead eyes. She recoiled upon seeing them. They were stained red, not from the moss, but from tears.

The woman's voice quivered with age and gentleness, "I'm sorry, dear. I see yer quite upset. I can move to a chair closer to the front, which I liked more at first since I don't have to walk as much, but it has a big yella' stain on the back of the seat cushion, and ma' skin diseases tent to flare up if I get 'n contact with anythin' too weird!"

"Yeah... can you not risk it?"

The lady's face contorted into shock as she emitted a light scoff. "Now that's not very nice..."

"Do you need to sit over here?"

The woman crossed her eyebrows, "Boy, move aside so a lady can have a seat!" She demanded of him with a shaky thump of her cane on the floor of the bus.

Dylan sighed and dragged himself off the seat, allowing the woman to enter the row with a grunt of disapproval.

"When the boys from ma' day headed off to war, they generals would whip 'em right into shape. They made real gentlemen out of 'em. It's somethin' yer generation seems to lack."

"War?"

"Respect! War brings out that respect!"

'Oh, I can tell you everything you need to know about war and respect old lady.'

The woman sat down and Dylan followed into his seat, resting his head against the back of the seat in front of him.

"Anyway, what's gotten into ya? Maybe I can help?"

"Please— look, I'm just thinking. Let me think."

"If that's what'cha think is goanna help..."

Dylan mumbled something and returned to staring into the abyss. He almost managed to go back into his state of absentmindedness before he felt a tap on his shoulder. He glanced back up at the lady.

"I was really thinkin' you were goanna speak up."

Dylan sighed. "Well... I didn't."

"I can see that."

"So why are you still talking?"

The lady drew back. "I'm tryna help!" She said in a hurt voice. Dylan tried to say something, but he seemed to hesitate. Eventually he gave up and the lady continued. "It's someone, isn't it. Your parents?"

"Yeah. Sure." Dylan didn't look impressed.

"Well," the woman took a deep breath, taking a moment to process her thoughts, "at least you care about 'em."

Dylan slowly sat up straight, looking deeply into this woman's eyes.

"Listen, everybody's got troubles here 'n there. But only the people that feel bad try to make things right."