Free At Last?

Not a single moment ticked by that could be considered quiet, the background noise of the city - the sanctuary, the little quarantine bubble that contained all there was in the world for anyone who happened to find themselves inside - was forever buzzing like a hive of angry bees, stealing away what little chances there could ever be for true silence. But, with all the declarations ("Let your insides show how you are inside!" "GENEco will let you live out your truth!" "Is there a GENternship in your future? Contact GENEco now and find out!") that filled the air from any one of the countless screens that were doing their hardest to block out the sky, the name 'Shilo Wallace' had slipped away to being old news, some delicious scandal or another snatching up the fleeting attention of the world fast enough to let the child and the disastrous Opera of which she played a major part in slip away into whatever part of their minds was reserved for past events of decent enough significance. The world simply had a way of moving on from one thing to whatever the next exciting thing was.
But what about those that are left behind in this?

It had not been a full month since Shilo Wallace, not yet an adult, lost everything as her world was shattered around her, and she had still not fully picked herself up out of the rubble.

Without her father, her only caretaker, around and with only the very bare minimum survival skills, poor Shilo needed to learn and learn fast. Using the books at hand and a whole lot of trial and error - more error than trial, admittedly - she managed to get by for a month.
The house, her tomb, seemed so much bigger when she was the only one there. She had thought that she was used to the isolation, the great big empty house, but she had always had her father but now he was dead and she was truly and genuinely all alone and that was all too much for her and she had no idea how to do anything and was struggling and she could not take it any longer because at any moment she was sure that she was going to absolutely lose her mind after everything she had been through and it was too much too much too much too much too much!
She dropped down to her knees, her breath catching horribly in her throat in a way that was almost reminiscent of the disease that her father had always claimed she had - lies! - but this time there was no medication - poison! - to help her anymore. Once more, the reality that she was all alone came crashing down upon her with the force and weight of a tonne of bricks. She coughed pitifully. Once. Twice. Finally thrice. As shaky as a newborn lamb, she hauled herself back up to her feet, staggering over to lean against the closest surface she could lean on, terribly aware that she might just topple right over again if she wasn't careful.

She needed to get out of there, and needed it right away.

There hadn't been any need for her to leave the house since she had arrived home, bloody and in a daze, and so had been free to mourn in all the ways that she found fit. Nathan had it organised that food would be delivered on a schedule and she had been left with more than enough money to maintain this without her ever having to face anyone at all. But in the best of times being cooped up inside was not good for anyone's mental well-being, and for a grieving teenage girl this was a recipe for absolute disaster. 

It was all well and good to say that she wanted to go out, but actually doing so was a different game altogether, and was not one she knew how to play. First of all, there was still a residual guilt about going outside, having been forbidden to for her whole life, making the fact she was able to open the door and just go feel wrong somehow. Secondly, she hadn't faced the world since the night of the Genetic Opera and she did not know if it would welcome her or try to chase her away.

Clack. Clack. Clack.

The heel of her boots clacked against the cobblestones, as if to remind her that she really was outside, that she really was out for a walk, and that she could handle it.
Oh, she hoped that she could handle it.