(GQ #13) Adventures in Spacepunk

15. Behind Bars Blues

Bright colors and pristine floors covered every inch of Lunaria... except for the cell Leon stood in. Rusty bars gave it a little color. So did the weird stains everywhere. Combined with all the white and grey, the place looked somehow sterile and grungy at the same time. Being here for what had to have been an hour forced Leon to find it interesting in its own way.

One guy slept on the floor. Another huddled on the bench, scratching himself. In an effort to be a good cellmate, Leon gave him a smile and a wave, which ended up going completely unnoticed since he was too busy looking at someone else.

The cops took Emil's sunglasses, his shoulder pads, and even his spring toy, but they could never take his ability to stand out. In his sleek jumpsuit, red as a sore thumb, he gripped the bars, leg bouncing. His eyes were locked on the desks down the hall.

Leon saw goosebumps dotting his arms. "Are you cold? You can have my jacket."

"Wh-Huh? No. I'm good. I could use the cold air." Emil wiped his forehead with a chuckle. "The heat bill in here's gotta be somethin' else'."

"It feels fine to me. Normally, I'm the one who gets hot, but I haven't even had to take this off yet." Leon tugged at his jacket as Emil began to pace, holding his arms in a way that reminded him of when Angelo got upset. "Are you worried about the captain?"

Emil went from pacing back and forth to going in circles, popping and locking idly along the way. "Worried? Ha! I'll be happy to see him." He took another look at the desks. "Any minute now."

"Yeah, he shouldn't be too mad. We were just doing our jobs." Thinking about the worry on Hook's face made Leon's smile turn upside down. "About the mission, do you think looking for Hook was a good idea?"

Emil huffed, leaning against the bars. "I don't know. I don't care. If she wanted to chill in the city, then more power to her; no need for us to be in her business."

"Is she still being paid by the IF?"

"Not a chance." His leg bounced. "You don't show up, you don't get paid."

"Hm. So basically it's like she quit." Leon wracked his brain. "I don't know what else they'd want with her."

"At this point?" Emil's leg stopped bouncing, and his eyes wandered around the cell. "She'd probably end up somewhere like this, just to set an example."

"In jail??" Grunts from the man on the floor made Leon cover his mouth. He lowered his voice after the guy laid back down. "For how long?"

Emil paced in slow circles. "I don't think I've heard of sentences shorter than a month."

"A month?" Leon's heart sank. "That feels kind of extreme, even for quitting on short notice. I know I said I'd feel bad lying about looking for her, but I'd feel awful if we ruined her month like that." The realization made him feel like the stain by his foot. "I should've listened to you..."

"Aw, don't sweat it. I didn't think about the jail thing until just now. Besides, being here is bad enough." Emil must've had something in his eye, because it twitched a little when he winked. "There's no use in feeling worse."

"It's better us than her. At least we'll get out soon."

"Soon." Emil's circles tightened until he was basically spinning. "You know, for someone who talks so much about punctuality, Lorie sure is takin' his time." He heaved a sigh. "There's so many places we could've gone. You're not too upset, are you?"

Sure, they weren't allowed to leave, and the cell reeked of stale bodily fluids, but waiting for the captain wasn't the worst thing Leon could think of. "I'm okay, really. Not many people get to see this place when they're touring Lunaria, so at least it's unique."