A/N: I do not own The Tribe or any of its characters. Likewise I do not own the lyrics* used in this fiction. I have tried to use the song as a way to divide the fiction in smaller parts, each verse representing a new "scene".
Please read and review – I really appreciate any opinions you may have on my work. Feedback makes me a better writer!
* Song: Life is Like a boat, preformed by Rei Fu. (It is a part of the soundtrack from the animé Bleach.)
Enjoy!
Chapter one.
Nobody knows who I really am.
I never felt this empty before,
And if I ever need someone to come along,
Who is gonna comfort me and keep me strong?
He had never really understood the term "ghost town". Not until the virus had come anyway. This plague had swept his city, taken his parents away. The disease had swept the country, the world, and the result was devastating. All the adults were dead. The world was definitively changed forever.
The neighbourhood around the Mall was filled with old burned cars and the buildings were painted in colourful graffiti. He knew the rest of the city looked pretty much like this. Car wrecks, garbage spilled all over the streets, dogs and cats running around. In some ways it was a ghost town. All the big buildings seemed empty, windows smashed and stores robbed. It seemed like a lost city, and the thought made him slightly depressed. This city had such great potential, but they all seemed to choose to fight each other instead of trying to rebuild. The place seemed abandoned, but he knew better. You could never feel completely safe in this city. Anarchy was the rule of the day and almost every tribe wanted control.
He had grown up in this city. It was so weird watching the city now, walking the streets and remembering how his life had used to be. His life had been awfully normal, and he had liked it that way. He had gone to the public school and later high school. He had always been the quiet type, not making any fuss around himself. He had been invisible.
This sunny day, Patch had placed himself outside the mall on a bench. His thoughts were drifting towards the tribe that had become his new friends and somewhat of a family. He had been with them for a while now, but still he had the feeling of "being the new guy." He was trying to fit in very hard, but still it seemed like it wasn't enough. The Mallrats was generally nice and friendly towards him. So everything supposedly should be all right, but it wasn't the case. He kept having the feeling of being inadequate. In his thoughts he quite ruled the world, always saying the right things in the right moments. But in reality it was different. He had always been the nervous, stuttering person around others. That was the main reason why he had developed such a handy ability to become invisible in the worst situations. Sometimes he seriously wondered where he had been hiding the day they had handed out the ability to act socially normally around others.
It seemed like it was going to be a beautiful day though, and the pretty scenery before him represented the complete opposite of his own mind, that was filled with black clouds. The sun was bright and the birds sounded very happy. That was something that newer seized to amaze him. No matter how much damage the virus had done, Mother Nature never gave up. You could find flowers and small threes growing up from different crakes in the solid concrete and asphalt. These sights always made him smile
Patch liked his time in solitude. The mall was always full of noise and life; something he also liked, no doubt about that. But it could be too much. He had never really gotten used to the whole socialising thing. And that represented another of his many problems. He had a lot to think about, but most of all he felt confused.
As he sat there, especially one person kept popping up in his mind as flashes of memory of past conversations. All of which he kept stumbling on his own words, making a complete fool of himself. It was difficult being a teenager with the normal problems connected with that and at the same time trying to rebuild the city. But he guessed he wasn't alone on those thoughts.
He had a main problem though, a crush. And not just any crush, it was a major one.
And the subject was Dee… the ever formidable, awesome and fearless Dee. The girl who went out on patrols alone, the girl who never seemed afraid or anxious. Oh they were so very different, if even possible, more than black and white.
And he could never say or do the right things around her. Sometimes he felt so dumb. He was tired of the stupid repeating mistakes he kept making, tires of his uneasiness and nervousness. He was just a teen with a crush, and he couldn't even get himself to act on it. He didn't dare. Dee frightened him… but at the same time he was hopelessly in love. What a scrape he was in!
Another one of his problems was his serious lack of selfasteem. That only served to reinforce his nervousness and by that the inevitable clumsiness. All this was just the normal stuff on a daily basis.
But now he was set in charge of the new hospital. He was desperately nervous about the thought and he knew it only would be worse from now on. It was just so frustrating!
Patch felt a familiar feeling inside him - an urge to change it all, now! Why couldn't he just stop being so unsure and just make things work? Dare to speak up for himself, be more confident, tell Dee about his feelings.
The same moment that thought crossed his mind he felt a thigt grasp in his stomach that kept twisting his guts around. He took a deep breath... even the thought scared him like nothing else. That thought worked as a bucket of cold water in his face. The determinant urge that had grasped him briefly before was all gone. "Well... next time I´ll pull my self together" Patch thought, knowing very well that he probably wouldn´t keep that promise. That thought made him fell sick of himself.
In a bad, mood he left the bench and walked towards the mall. With each step he regained his usally happy face. But inside he was sad and bleak.