The Life of Alex Cane: Dark Times

Ch. 19

Why did I come here of all places to escape to?

A question I've been repeatedly asking myself ever since I stepped foot on this side.

You know the place.

The part of the city where the outskirts here is the home of all that live here.

The kingdom to all that thrive in this place.

The slums is where I'm located.

It's evident by now because all that I can see are the usual abandoned buildings and houses -that lie on the crumbling streets- filled by homeless squatters making shelter from the cold or even keeping a room to sit down, shoot up or blow smoke. I can see the black scum scattered all around the pavement beneath my feet, seeing all of the trash that flitters around as soon as the wind makes it's presence known, hearing all of the arguments and the bustling noise of poor people living their common and usual life.

This place, the place where I told myself I'd never come back to after my last experience here.

But in this kind of environment, doing these kinds of jobs is like second nature to me. Ryan told me no more, he told me he'd never give me another job again but to me that doesn't mean I can't do a job for another just like him.

"Aye! What you doin' back here lil girl?!" My head turns around to see the one man that I know whose voice that belongs to.

"What's up J?" I show him a toothy grin which to my satisfaction causes him to scowl at me.

"Watch who you talking' to! Now answer me, fuck is you doin' here?!" I can see the spit fly a bit from his mouth as he reaches a hand for the back of his saggy jeans.

Not this again.

I sigh "Hey man chill" Deja vu saying these lines again "I'm only here to see P.J. do you know where I can find him?" My question visibly causes him to ease up and his hands slides back into his hoodie pockets where they were before.

He nods "Yea. Follow me." He looks me up and down before turning on his feet to walk towards the same building that we walked into my first time here.

Upon entering the rundown building, I wasn't greeted by the same mean looking mugs they called their faces. In actuality it was very empty. Maybe a little TOO empty.

"Where is everyone from last time?" I wonder out loud to him as we step across the dirty tiled floor beneath us.

"Prolly out doin' whatever they do to get by." He shrugs and I nod to myself at his response.

Silence makes it's presence around us as neither of us talk again to the other. Instead, he leads us both to a beat up and littered stairwell.

I take it upon myself to break through the silence like shattering a glass window "What floor?" His head slightly turns around to look at me "Fifth."

A soft sounding sigh falls past my lips and I carry on the walk up to the man I'm here for in the first place.

The walk up the incline of steps is a walk of full on akwardness.

Damn the least this guy could do is hold a conversation with me, but I guess he doesn't quite like Alex Cane.

Yes, me using third person is STILL a thing.

"Right here." The sound of Js' voice signaling me to our stop brings me out of my thoughts as I focus on his hooded back.

He opens the gray metal door to exit the stairwell, stepping onto an even more dirtier tiled floor. The hall, a dimly lit area filled with littered paper and furniture.