Storm

Chapter Fifty-Five

It took a week for my leg to be sufferable.

A week spent on the couch, using crutches and Emma to simply get to the bathroom. Popping pills and watching crappy dramas on Noah's small television. Getting greasy fingers on the couch from the oily pizza Noah tended to by.

Unable to cope with my discomfort and guilt at spending each night there.

As much as I wanted to get up and run out the door, I knew I'd only succeed in getting myself killed. I couldn't walk without crutches. I could barely walk with crutches. The first couple times I'd attempted to get up just to use the bathroom were annoyingly difficult.

So, I was instead glued to this couch, forced to accept all of Noah and Emma's help without either really knowing who I was or what sort of risk they were in.

I still hadn't been able to tell Noah the truth after he'd shut me down. I guess he'd technically given me a response, but I didn't think he'd actually understood.

After a week indoors, my leg was finally semi-okay. Or, at least, it was okay enough that I could move around.

And Noah wanted to take me out to the city.

It was crazy. I knew that. But it was obvious that I wasn't some huge fugitive that anyone would recognize. Some of the guards or officers might, but other than them, we would be fine.

Still, to avoid that risk, Emma had painted my eyes in heavy makeup and gave me a head covering that covered both my hair and all of my face but my eyes.

When I asked whether that would just make me look even more suspicious, she simply told me that it'd recently been trendy and I shouldn't get any weird looks.

Now, walking down the Equator's city streets, I understood why.

Everyone looked...different.

If I'd gone back in time to a pre-apocalypse city, these people would have definitely been gawked at. It wasn't that they looked bad or anything. There were just plenty of very bold fashion and cosmetic choices that I would never try. Colorful mohawks, bikinis in the middle of a city street, and for a few people, completely different face shapes that human beings didn't normally have. Overly sharpened jawlines, eyes a few sizes too big...

I'd asked Emma about them the second we'd reached the inner city. She'd explained that nothing was really permanent so it didn't matter.

After all, if they got tired of a look, they could just switch out for a new body. It wouldn't be that difficult.

As we walked, we past by street vendors advertising sparkling necklaces and steaming hot buns. The smells of exhaust and factory smoke mingled in with the delicious bakery scents. The sun heated the pavement, granting relative warmth, in spite of the cold breeze.

And above it all, I could see birds.

Little red ones with feathered heads. Miniature gray ones that chirped back and forth. Long-nosed ones hiding in the trees that were scattered among the city's tall buildings. While normal city's often lacked wildlife, it seemed like much of it had been forced here.

The city itself was surprisingly nice. The buildings were very different from the cold metal of New York City, and even the desert city we'd picked up Elijah in. Many were made of white brick and tan-painted metal. There were still some tall intimidating skyscrapers that hovered over us all, but they were stationed closer to the center of the city, where I would not return to in a million years.

The sidewalks were cobble-stoned gray and reminiscent of European roadways. Although beautiful, it was much more difficult to use crutches on, so I was forced to stick to the side of the road and pray a car or bike wouldn't run me down.

"Vivienne should never have touched a hair on Harry's head. I swear, if I were her actress, I would have literally given up my job at that point. It's ridiculous," Emma was arguing. They were discussing the drama show that I'd been forced to watch throughout the past week. I didn't disagree.

"I mean...Harry isn't perfect either," Noah commented. "He was kind of asking for it."

Emma just let out  a loud humph and was about to respond when a dinging noise erupted from the nearest loudspeaker.

Oh, right. The other thing that made the Equator different: the loudspeakers and large screens hung throughout the city all for the purpose of relaying information to the public immediately. Just seconds before, they'd been playing  a toothpaste ad that would, apparently, whiten your teeth beyond belief. 

The screens were black, now, and that dinging noise continued. I looked over at Noah in confusion. What was going on?

"This happens. It's just a news announcement. They do them all the time to make sure we're informed or whatever," Noah replied. I nodded. We kept walking. Even though the announcement was seemingly meant for everyone, not many people seemed to actually care or pay attention to it.

"Anywaayy," Emma continued, jumping back into conversation. "Harry may be a jerk, but Vivienne took things way too far."

"About a week ago, there was an attack on our borders..."

My heart started pounding as my gaze snapped to the large screen.

"And the fact that Vivienne is ugly as hell doesn't help either. She does not deserve Jonathon at all."

Noah scoffed. "Vivienne isn't ugly."

"Says you."

"We just apprehended two of the suspects involved in the attack and they will be on trial later today." The newscaster was deadpan as she stared into the screen. I stared back at her, now oblivious to Noah and Emma's conversation.

What.

They could not.

They could not mean Asten...

Although I had a feeling it had to be him. I saw him get captured. It had to...it had to...

But I'd...I'd thought he was already dead.

I hadn't really believed he was dead but...

I'd seen him fall. I'd watched him go down.

"Tune in at 5 PM today. More on crime, just yesterday, it was announced that the drug..." the newscaster went on, but my mind was reeling.

"Calestia. Hello? Are you okay?" Noah asked, and I realized I'd been staring blankly up at the screen for far too long.

I looked at him. Swallowed. Nodded.

I knew what I was doing later today.