i am intervening.

part three - the bae train

you spent the past week and a half walking up and down the city streets looking for a job, hesitantly peeking into storefronts and searching the posters in windows for a hiring opportunity. store clerks usually turned you away with a shallow smile and a sorry. it wasn't like you weren't trying - you gave your resume to anyone who would accept. you applied for a janitor job at a fish market, a dishwasher, a cashier at a gas station, anything. everyday your routine was the same: wake up, search for a job, go home, search for a job online, go to sleep.

you somehow found yourself in a low end bar that jutted out from an alleyway. music blares as the bartender looks over your resume. he nods, the paper wavering in his hands. you tap your fingers against the glossy wooden bar that separates the two of you. red lights hang down from the ceiling, straining your eyes. it wasn't the most appealing place - the paint on the walls was beginning to peel and there was a slight smell of wet, rotting wood. there were stains scattered along the floor, some looking like old blood splatters.

"so," he places the paper in front of him, "it might take a little while before we call you back cuz, y'know, we already have so many other applications." his smile showed a missing canine tooth.

"yeah, that's uh... fine. uhm, thanks." you nod at him and head out the door. 

it was colder out. the headlights from passing cars light you way as you walk down the cracked sidewalk, looking for a bus stop or train station to take you home. the light from your phone screen shone brightly as you typed your location into the search bar.

a familiar, boisterous laugh echoed through the streets. it was followed by chattering and giggling. you looked up and across the street. 

your friends, along with some people you didn't recognize, were making their way into a restaurant. a bell rang as they opened the door and piled into the dark eatery. you could still see their faces smiling as they talked to a hostess. you knew them since freshman year of high school, and your best friend since eighth grade. in the past few months they slowly stopped texting you back and inviting you places. 

you sighed and turned your attention back to your phone. there was a train station a block away. you could feel a tightness in your chest as you strolled towards it. you couldn't take your mind off them as you hopped the turnstile and got onto the train in the station. you didn't even check what line it was or if it was even headed in your direction.

you plopped onto the seat in the far corner of the train. put your feet up into the seat and rest your head on your knees, wrapping your arms around your legs. you pull your hood on as the doors close and the train begins to move. 

you didn't know what you did. maybe they just went down a different path in life than you? maybe you all just grew apart.

"y/n?" 

the voice snaps you out of your dazed state. you look over your shoulder. it's frank. he's still wearing that same bunny mask and the same dark suit. 

you wave at him gently.

"i thought it was you." he sits in the seat across from you. it had been a week and a half since you last saw him. you had kept an eye out for him when travelling between two different places. he never really left your mind.

"are you okay?" he sounded somewhat hesitant to ask you.

you turn your head away from him. who asks someone who is clearly not okay if they are? that's a guaranteed cry. you could feel your face heat up. you didn't want to cry in public, let alone in front of a person you barely knew.

"i just," you could feel tears coming on, "i had a hard day," you say through a cracking voice. you place your palms over your eyes and bite your lip.