Storm

Chapter Sixty-Two

Noah had been thrown to the ground.

I stood there, mouth agape. Before I could throw a punch, the man had ripped Noah's jacket off his back.

I didn't know what to do, so I did something mildly stupid.

I took one of my crutches and whacked the man in the face.

It barely threw him off.

Instead, he grabbed the crutch, yanked it towards him, forcing my forward. I fell to my knees with a shout right beside Noah, my other crutch digging into my arm.

The men didn't bother to wait around. They ran, Noah's coat clutched in their hands.

I tried to push myself to my feet, but realized that one of the men had actually taken my crutch as well. Noah was still on the ground, a hand covering half his face as he grimaced in pain.

I turned towards the neon-lit bar we'd come from. Somebody there had to know something was wrong. Somebody had to do something. "Help!" I shouted. "Help somebody robbed us-"

I was cut off by Noah gripping my arm tightly. "Ow, what?!" I yanked myself out of his grasp. "We have to get somebody! We can't just let them run off..."

But Noah was just shaking his head, as he finally stood up. He reached out a hand and pulled me back to my feet, offering me his shoulder to use as a crutch.

"Why aren't you doing anything?" I asked, feeling more and more defeated as the seconds passed. But there was something in Noah's eyes. As I looked down the road, I noticed that the men were long gone.

Noah began to walk down the road, me limping at his side. He supported me, even though he looked like he was in a bit of pain. His entire left eye was swollen and I was sure it'd turn black and blue by tomorrow morning.

I felt my adrenaline slowly disappear as my body fell into a relaxed state. Noah remained utterly calm and seemingly unfazed. Had he been through this before?

He remained quiet as we limped down the street together. I couldn't even imagine what he'd just lost. Obviously, his wallet I assumed. But what else? I knew that my personal possessions had come to mean a lot to me. They were all I had left of a different age.

I guess when you had a lot more, like a full apartment, smaller things mattered less. But they still mattered.

We got back to Noah's apartment which was thankfully not too far away from the bar. I carefully laid back down on what I'd begun to call my couch as Noah went to the kitchen for a first aid kit. I knew I wanted to look at my leg to make sure it wasn't bleeding again. After all, I'd practically fallen over on it.

In silence, Noah knelt beside me to help me with my wound, but I stopped him. "You need to take care of yourself." I pointed at his swollen eye and cheek. "I can do this."

He sighed and nodded, before going to the kitchen once more, thankfully, to get an ice pack. I carefully unwrapped my bandages, and after ensuring nothing was bleeding, I pulled out more gauze to re-wrap.

Noah hovered by the kitchen table, not really paying attention to anything. He just seemed very sad.

I let out a frustrated sigh. "Do you mind explaining what just happened?" I asked, careful not to push him too much.

"We got robbed."

I wanted to roll my eyes, but it wouldn't help the situation. I also knew something else was going on with him. "I'm well aware," I responded.

He went quiet for another moment.

"Why?" I asked. Question of the year, really.

"Why?" Noah repeated, finally seeming a bit confused.

"Yeah, why? Why'd they rob us? Why didn't anyone do anything? Why didn't you do anything? Why aren't we calling the police right now and reporting it so we can get it back?!" I burst out, exploding with far too many questions.

Noah just scoffed. Now, it was clear that he wasn't just sad -- he was absolutely pissed. But he was also much better at hiding it than I'd ever be. "Because that's the way the goddamn world works, isn't it?"

His words were so bitter, I couldn't respond. 

He needed a minute to breathe and contain his frustration before continuing.

"It's the way it works. It's how it's always been. Even before... The justice system is fucked, okay? That's why you never should have bothered going to that court room."

I paused from wrapping my wound to stare up at him. His face was stony with rage. "Okay."

Realizing I was still listening, he went on. "The police here won't help us. Maybe you haven't noticed but society still isn't equal. Poor people still exist. They told us that it would be a utopia, but they lied. I only have such a nice place because of Chance. If he weren't at the border, giving us money...hell. And even Emma can't always make it by. It's because we're newer. We haven't had as much time. But it's also not like they've offered any opportunity to move up...to get better...to be up there with them. We've always had inequalities, they just lied about anything changing."

I continued to slowly wrap my wound, careful every time I had to lift my leg. I listened, and he continued.

"I thought living forever would mean we'd get past these issues, you know? I just thought...it wouldn't be worse, but it is. And the justice system, like I said, is screwed. They don't care if we get robbed. They only care if someone is breaking their precious rules. They don't care if we hurt each other because we can just get new bodies. Get new things. When you live forever, nothing really matters anymore."

I sighed, and finished pinning up my gauze, moving my leg a bit to make sure it wouldn't un-do itself. "I wish I could say I understand, but obviously...," I pointed to the back of my ear and the utter lack of a live-forever chip. "I'm sorry, though...I truly am." I wondered who I would have been if I'd been like Noah. If I'd gone through the border process like anyone else and had been thrown into this society, forced to assimilate and become an active member...forced to steal bodies...

"Thanks," Noah replied, with a tight smile. "It may sound stupid to complain. After all, it seems like the Equator's sole and glaring flaw."

I'd been putting away supplies, but froze completely when he said that. "What?"

He looked a bit confused that I was questioning him. "I was just saying that the Equator is relatively good otherwise, but it's still a flaw I can't get over...you know? Because it still affects a lot of people. But there is the old saying of beggars can't be choosers..."

I shook my head, closing my eyes. "Wait, I'm sorry...you think that's the only thing the Equator has ever done wrong?"

Noah just stared at me, utterly lost. "I don't understand."

"What about the people they kill to harvest bodies?" I asked, incredulously. He had to know. He had to.

But he just stared blankly at me. "What bodies?"

PSA: As you may have noticed, this chapter does talk a bit about justice systems. This was originally part of the plot, but it just so lines up with a lot that's happening in our world right now. If you're reading this, I highly recommend you go and sign petitions, donate to different charities, and even support protests in person (if you are able -- please still be very careful about the coronavirus, it's still a legitimate threat even though restrictions have lifted). You never know what your donation might do to help. Personally, I recommend donating to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and the BLM movement (both have websites if you look them up). You can also find plenty of other organizations that support protestors, help bail out those who get arrested, and that help pay for the movement to keep doing what it's doing. Every little bit counts. This fight isn't over, even if it seems like it's not getting as much coverage as it was a week ago. It's an ongoing thing. We can't just move on and forget about it. Please do your part and encourage others to do the same <3