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I landed myself somewhere in New Jersey, after changing over buses a couple of times to maybe throw anyone off who may have been watching me. Paranoia, an acquired skill.
It was all well justified, but I hated it. That's not the way I wanted this to be for me. I planned something different and better for myself. I always thought I had grown up too quickly, with the things I've gone through and done. I never considered myself to be a kid anymore, but when I am forced to think of what could've been, I feel myself filling with the rage of my 15 year old self. It's for the best if I'm in some way occupied from past memories.
Granted New Jersey wasn't exactly the farthest from it all. I don't think I'd be able to handle the distance, the foreign feeling of a new land. Jersey was in some ways familiar to me, despite being new.
I had stepped off after a couple of hours of travel. A few hours gone and I couldn't stop the thought of Logan. I carried a heavy weight after our departure, I wondered where he was now or where he'd be. I wondered if I'd ever see him again. I kept thinking of why I helped him escape and why we stuck together for that short time. I thought back to the familiarity of his presence. I couldn't understand it, and I was almost afraid it would drive me crazy before I found the conclusion. But, I couldn't dwell too much on what was, because I have myself to take care of.
I walk through a small enough town to lay low. If I don't cause trouble and keep to myself I could camp out a couple years before I felt too afraid to be seen outside. I could get some mileage out of this place. It was quaint, bedding of flowers trailed along the outer edge of the sidewalk, evenly distributed between lamps and street signs. The buildings held an old fashioned appearance to them and I could tell they were straight out of the 60s.
I walk through the people on the sidewalk, avoiding their interaction. I sought after a humble shop, or a café to start the bidding of my life. I approached the door of a retro looking diner, decorated with checkered floors and bright red booths. I waddle my way to the counter where an older fellow stayed wiping down the area.
"E-excuse me." I cleared my throat, trying to gain his attention by leaning in a bit under his gaze so he could see me.
"Yes, miss?" His blue, wrinkled eyes make contact with my own, startling me a bit with the intensity he brought.
"I was wondering if you're hiring?"
He looks me up and down, skepticism leaking from his facial expression.
"You have any experience in hospitality?"
"No-" I stop to think of a quick defense. "I can learn, how hard can it be."
The man scoffs loudly. "Honey, I don't have the time to train a newbie. No one here does. Afraid it's not your day."
I could've just thanked him for his time and walked away. There were plenty of stores and restaurants that I could circle around until one would hire me. That's what someone normal would do. Maybe it was pride, maybe my ego got too inflated from my powers.
Before I could set my mind into his, I felt a gently hand wrap around my bicep.
My head whips around to be face to face with the stranger, who's life story spins through my head within a second. I hate how that happens. My heart setting in normalized panic mode before I realized it was just an old lady. I let out a big sigh of relief.
"Oh please, you'd be lucky to have the youth be interested in your business." She scoffs back at him in the same taunting manner, before she looks up at me with a faint smile, her eyes squinting in unison.
Her hair was of a darker grey, with a few white streaks going through, a sign she hasn't reached such old age yet. She had wrinkles carved into her skin but she held herself with tall posture. I guessed around maybe 55.
"Come on, dear. I know a café down the road who are hiring." Her hand stays still on my arm.
"Where they sell cheaper coffee." She bitterly hisses at the owner, who just shrugs her off like they were old friends.
She leads me out of the diner, her grasp still wrapped around my arm. While we walked, I notice her small limp. I let go of any sort of uncomfortableness or feelings of overstepped boundaries as I realize she needed me for balance.
"It's a lovely coffee shop, I used to work there when I was your age." She smiles up at me, sharing that one part of her life with me. Well.. not like she needed to.
"What happened to your ankle?" I point out to her as we walk.
"Oh.. nothing serious. I'm not what I used to be. Should've stopped wearing heels when I turned 30." She joked with me.
I observed for a quick second how determined she is, to not let that get in the way. Despite her having a hold on my arm, she walked at a quicker pace than I probably would've.
We made it to the cafe. Humble it definitely was. I could tell it wouldn't have bee the hottest place in town. More for the older generations, never letting their habits die out from when this placed was actually buzzing. It was perfect.
She showed me to the place I'd start to work in soon. A place she'd come visit me every morning for a cup of coffee and a slice of cherry pie. Where I'd get to know her, and she'd eventually become the realest thing in my life. But, you gotta take the good with the bad.
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Misery || Wolverine
Fanfiction"We weren't supposed to meet yet.." He blinks up at me with longing in his saddened eyes. A reassuring smile spreads across my face. My own head still dizzy from the spin of memories he had shown me when he turned up to my door with two other men lo...
