Unclassified; Zero and Still Standing

It was already late in the afternoon. The sun had begun withdrawing reluctantly.

Inside the bus, Yesu kept her eyes glued to the window.

And as usual, she watched the city speed by.

The bus came to a stop. A few passengers began their descent.

Daryl glanced quizzically at Yesu.

"You’re not dropping?" He asked.

Yesu watched the descending passengers hurry on into the city.

"No." She said.

While staring at the transit map back at the bus stop, she had memorized how many stops it would take before reaching Ellsworth.

The next one would be it.

"Are you leaving the city?" Daryl asked. "The last stop is by the bridge."

Yesu faced him. "I’ll stop there."

Daryl nodded. "I see." He faced forward.

The last passenger descended. The doors closed and the bus continued on its journey.

Yesu looked around. There were only a handful of passengers left.

She turned to Daryl. "Are you leaving the city?"

He smiled. "Huh uh. I live on the other side."

Yesu sat straight. "How’s it like?"

Daryl paused for a moment.

"Well it’s..." his head rocked from side to side, trying to find a suitable word. "It’s different."

"Different?"

"Yeah."

Yesu didn’t probe further. She knew exactly what different meant.

She returned her attention to the window and watched as the splendor of the city gradually receded.

The buildings now looked a bit older, less glamours.

Realistic.

The air around seemed to move a bit more freely too.

Fresh. Almost cold.

She could tell they were getting closer to the bridge. Only a natural water body could bring about this particular kind of breeze.

Her mind drifted to her fast approaching rendezvous.

Number 29, Ellsworth, Central City.

Yesu wondered what it was that awaited her there. What exactly she would find.

She looked down at her hands. They were folded securely between her legs. Her nails were unkempt.

She gave a mental note to clip them when she got back home.

Home.

That was if she still had one after this blatant act of disobedience.

Although her Keeper didn’t quite strike her as the disciplinary type.

Strict?

Sure.

Capable of kicking her out as punishment?

Probably not.

Yesu hummed quietly. With Arrow, one could never tell.

She could hear Daryl shifting slightly in his seat.

She heard him unzip the duffel bag he had kept slung over his broad shoulders.

"Here."

A large pair of flip-flops appeared in front of her.

Yesu’s eyes trailed from the slippers to the hand stretching them, to Daryl’s smiling face.

"I’m guessing you’re heading towards Ellsworth." Daryl said. "It’s by the river. You can’t go around wearing just one shoe."

Yesu looked down at her feet.

Then quietly accepted the flip-flops, took off her remaining shoe and socks, and put them on.

They were oversized. Her feet floated helplessly in them.

But they would do just fine.

"Thank you." She said.

Daryl grinned.

"It’s nothing. I could help with your shoe if you want, seeing you have nowhere to put it. I could hand it over on Monday."

Yesu’s hands lingered on the shoe.

Of all the footwears Arrow had bought, this was her favorite. Not to mention it was among the first things anyone had gotten for her in a long time.

She handed it to Daryl. Knowing fully well she would never be able to find the lost pair.

The bus arrived at the last stop.

The remaining few passengers began piling out. Both of them alighted as well.

Not long after, the bus drove away.

Yesu stood under the shade at the bus stop.

The street felt strangely void despite the fact that there were a few vehicles driving through.

The air was noticeably chilly.

"That’s Ellsworth." Daryl supplied, nodding across the street.

He had crashed onto the bench immediately they got down. He looked a bit tired but perky nevertheless.

Yesu glanced at him.

"Were you training or something?"

"More of a workout."

"You just got back from Trials and you’re working out?"

Daryl laughed. "Habit."

Yesu scanned their environment, then frowned.

"How do you intend to get across the bridge?"

Daryl leaned fully on the bench.

"A bus comes around every three hours." He replied.

"Oh."

Yesu looked across the street.

It was time.

"See you around." She said to him and made a move forward.

"Hey, Kaelitha."

She glanced back.

Daryl’s smiled had vanished. He now had a serious expression.

"Are you sure you want to go there?"

She looked him over.

"What do you mean?"

He scratched the back of his head. "Well, this whole area is kind of a mess, if you know what I mean."

Yesu looked across the street again, as if searching for any sign of danger.

"It can’t be all that bad." She said then looked back at him. "I’ll be careful."

Daryl smiled. "if you say so."

Yesu smiled in return and crossed to the other side of the street.

***

Ellsworth looked nothing related to how it sounded.

The one way streets were old and cracked. The buildings lining both sides of the street were no better.

The concrete walls looked cold and damp. Mosses decorated the foundations as well as the sidewalks.

The buildings were all similar, same three storey structure, same door and window fitting.

The people looked ordinary enough.

A few children ran around playing in the streets.

One almost got hit by a motorcycle.

Fortunately, the rider swerved sharply a second away from collision. He cursed loudly as he rode away.

The child continued playing regardless.

There were a few small roadside stalls as well. Frying, roasting, steaming.

Yesu inhaled the inviting smells. The smoke from the stalls drew into her nostrils along with it.

That didn’t stop her.

The sky had turned the usual orange of the setting sun.

The wind was getting colder by the minute. Many people were on coats and sweaters.

Yesu remained unaffected by the cold. She kept her eyes on the doors of the buildings as she walked along.

Number 17...

20...

25...

Yesu stopped in front of a moss covered building. It certainly looked worse than the others around.

The paint had all been washed away. It was hard to tell if it had even been painted at the beginning.

Most of the windows were half broken. Cheerful music drifted from within.

A good number of men were trooping into the building in twos and threes. Talking and laughing heartily amongst themselves.

They brushed past Yesu, swung the door open and entered the light filled room.

The air smelt heavily of stale beer.

Yesu squinted at the door again just to be sure.

Number 29.

This was really it.

Her eyes caught a faded brown sign board just above the doorframe.

Ells’ Tavern.

"Really?" Yesu muttered.

Then let out a quick breath.

"Better get it done with." She said and walked to the entrance.

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