Don't Pledge Allegiance

Where's the Stoner?

Layla's POV ~

"Mommy, she has her arms painted just like Chris." The young child told his mother, tugging on her jacket as I finished up my bouquet for them.

"Honey, hush. That's rude." She quickly shushed him, clearly embarrassed that he was asking making note of my tattooed skin.

"Oh, it's alright. I really don't mind." I said, smiling at her.

I was actually encouraged by his curiosity and his desire to learn and ask about things he didn't know about. Nowadays, people didn't ask many questions anymore, they just wanted to stick with what they knew and what those in charge told us we could know. Sure, he wasn't exactly asking for the meaning of life by wondering about my tattoos, but it was a start. I truly hoped his mother would allow that curiosity in this young one to grow and bloom as it should be allowed to.

"Can I see them?" He asked, his eyes lighting up at me.

"Of course!" I told him.

Putting their vase of flowers down, I walked around the counter and kneeled down in front of the beyond adorable little boy. I stretched out my arms, allowing the art on my skin to be fully displayed for his excited eyes. He grinned at all of the colors on my pale skin, and ran his little finger over the lines, tracing the words and images that I had forever ingrained in my skin.

"May I ask where Zak is? He's normally here in the morning, well at least this time in the morning. Is he alright?" The mother wondered.

"I wish I could tell you. He hasn't shown up, and I've gotten no calls, no letters, no nothing. I'm hoping he ended up just sleeping in and forgetting to turn his phone on." I told her, shrugging my shoulders.

"Well, if it means anything to you, I much appreciate your assistance more than his. I can always put in a good word with Chris, or possibly even Ricky for you to see if I can't get you switched to the earlier shift. I have a good friend whose daughter works as one of their receptionists." The woman said.

"Oh no! Please don't! I appreciate that, but I don't want them to have to worry about little old me. It's really not that big of an idea." I told her, not wanting my name to be brought up to any of them in any fucking capacity.

"Are you and Chris friends?" The young boy asked me.

"What makes you ask that?" I wondered.

"He has a lot of spooky Halloween tattoos, too. Also, at school, we once got a bouquet of flowers for him since he was stopping into class, and he told us he thought the flower girl was cute." He told me with an innocent smile.

He was absolutely adorable, but what he was telling me quite honestly was making me sick. Yes, I lived in Scranton which was ruled by MIW, but I still tried to live my life without ever crossing paths with them. My running into Josh just the other week was the first encounter, and I really hadn't been hoping for anymore. This mainly came from the fact that I hated them and everything they had done to our country after it was already ruined, but...I may have been living a lie here in Scranton. In Maine, I was born and raised Layla Burns who was going to school to be an occupational therapy assistant, but I changed that once I got stuck in ye old Electric City. I had become Bea Hutchins who previously worked as a barista.

I wasn't sure if that was something that they'd be rather angry about, but based on what I have and continue to hear about those mean, their fuses are rather short. I didn't want to know what the punishment was for completely lying to everyone in this city about my true identity.