The Black Envelope

Chapter 18: Evasion

Chapter 18: Evasion

Not many people occupied the small Laundromat. Half a dozen mothers stood at washing machines, folding their clothes or placing their things in the machine itself. Another couple sat around, leaning against walls with magazines in hand, or claiming a spot on one of the numerous benches around the room, reading books or playing around on their phones. The only other male Gage spotted inside the room besides himself was a boy, about thirteen years old, sitting in a chair next to his mother.

Fay sighed and leaned against a wall, closing her eyes. In the past couple days they had been out by themselves they had gotten plenty of sleep, but their excursions still exhausted them. Gage watched her. The pale lavender of her eyelids fluttered slightly as she breathed in the smell of bleach and laundry detergent.

“I miss doing my own laundry.” She said dreamily, opening her eyes.

Gage blinked and looked at her, “Really?”

“No, not really,” She grinned as Gage laughed quietly. “I miss watching my mom do it actually. Sometimes I’d help her though.”

Gage pulled her into his arms. “I bet you were very helpful.” He set his face in her hair, pressing his lips on her scalp.

“I was.” Fay said stubbornly, but she leaned into his embrace anyway.

Gage looked up and saw about half the people in the Laundromat staring at them. He swallowed as their eyes flickered to a poster taped next to the door.

“Oh, brilliant.” He pulled away from Fay and took a step towards the door, trying to be casual.

Fay looked a little hurt at his departure, “What?”

“That.” He said, nodding his head towards the poster, attempting to make himself look busy.

Gage’s smiling face stared out at them from the black and white depths of the paper. Underneath his portrait were the bolded letters of his name and description. Wanted, it read. In all his life, Gage had never imagined he would see his face on a wanted poster. Those were for old western movies. Not an average city boy. Discreetly, Gage grabbed a newspaper and paid for it, all the while play-messing around with Fay. Then walked out of the Laundromat with Fay in tow.

“What do we need a paper for?” She asked.

“So it looked like we actually went in there for something. The people were starting to stare. Plus I wanted to look for something.” His eyes scanned through the newspaper. “Great, just as I thought.”

He threw the paper into a nearby trashcan. As they passed, Fay read one of the smaller headlines.

“Oh…” She muttered.

“Yeah. We’re getting noticed too much. Jumping off of a train probably wasn’t the best way to stay hidden. We need to keep moving, get around and get somewhere safe. Getting to Mera’s uncles is the best thing to do right now, so that’s going to be our main goal.” He looked around and then crossed the street. “But right now, we need to get food and supplies.”

The streets were slick with the still drizzling rain. Streetlights flickered through the almost foggy haze, blinking red, yellow and green. Cars flew by, kicking up water and spraying the sidewalks with the now dirty liquid. The buildings were all the same color grey, with the occasional shop in a bright white or brown. People bustled by, brushing past Gage and Fay, arms bundled with bags and packages.

Gage looked at their reflections in the glass next to them. How could they have gone from average teenagers to refugees in three days? It seemed almost funny when he thought about it.