Almost seven hours. Almost seven hours it took to get to Farmington by bus from Denver. By that time, Loona's back was cramping from sitting on the bus seat for such a long time. Sure, she may have to sit at her desk while doing her work as a receptionist, but at least she can get up now and then without continuously sitting for almost seven hours straight.
After the bus have stopped in Farmington of New Mexico, Loona exited the bus with her blue backpack. Loona has to put her large dark-red baggage under the bus along with other large bags. When she finally got past the travelers, she notices that her baggage is gone.
Loona was pissed off by that, so she asked the bus driver, a 50-something-year-old overweight woman, who was smoking: "Oi, do you know where's my baggage? It was large and dark red."
The female bus driver replied in a monotone: "Nope. I don't know. And I don't give a fuck."
At that, Loona stormed off. Fuck, she thought to herself. Can't fucking believe that I somehow lost my baggage. First I have sat for seven hours straight, and now this? Why did I agree to this? Now I wish that I just stay back at home, doing the usual. But, I guess that there's no turning back now. Let's just get this mission over and done with.
At least she still has the backpack. Inside her backpack were just a pack of cigarettes, a notebook, a black-ink pen, a $20 note, and her hell version of Airpods. Her extra clothes were in the baggage.
Feeling hungry, Loona decided to go to a McDonald's on W Main Street. She ordered and receive a $4.31 worth of Big Mac, $1.39 worth of small fries, and a $2 worth of Medium Coke. She then went to the front of Metro by T-Mobile store and sat in front of the store, consuming her meal.
Loona then went on her hellphone and saw a text message from Octavia under 'Via' in Loona's contracts. The text reads:
Octavia: Hi, I heard that you are on your first official fieldwork on Earth. How is it so far, Loona?
Loona smiled at that, feeling like there are people who care about her while alone on Earth, and she replied in her text:
Loona: So far, a bit meh. Had to sit through seven hours of continuous sitting on the bus. Someone stole my fucking baggage. And the McDonald's meal that I bought taste of crap, crapper than WackDonald's back on Hell. But can't really complain. Could be worse.
Loona then sent the text message back to Octavia. She then sat there, waiting for the text response. While she notices a 30-something-year-old opposite-sex couple standing in front of Durango Joes Coffee which is next to Metro by T-Mobile store, arguing.
"You wasted all the fucking money on buying Fortnite skins? We work hard to save up to move to Hawaii and you blew all." the woman shouted in anger at her boyfriend.
"Well, maybe if you have not been a bitch to me about wanting to have kids now, then maybe I would have not been like that."
As they argue, a memory resurfaces in Loona's mind.
"Oh, fuck you, Trevor, you —"
"— fucking slut!" a medium black and white hellhound shouted at his grey and white hellhound girlfriend.
Little Loona, probably barely 9 months old at that time, was just sitting there as the argument was occurring. She was near her other eight siblings whom, along with Loona, were born at the same time.
"Please ..., this doesn't mean that I don't love you. Just because I had ... doesn't mean that my love for you is fake." the female hellhound replied tearfully. "I still love —"
Just then, the male hellhound strikes her in her face, giving her a purple eye. "Shut your fucking mouth, you lying horny bitch!"
"Mommy, are you ok?" a dark brown hellhound asked his mother. The male hellhound then grabs his son by his hand.
"Come on ..., we are leaving." the male hellhound and the son walk past Loona, though the son was forced by his father.
"Wait, please, ..., don't leave. We can work it out. Please give —" the male hellhound interrupted her.
"Shut the fuck up. You have blown your chances by having ... behind my back. Our son doesn't need to grow like this. I would rather have him raised in a single-parent household than in this household. So, fuck you, and fuck these pups."
Loona was just stacking up some alphabetical blocks as the fight continues behind her. All she heard at that time was just shouting and screaming, up until —
"NOOOOOOOO!"
All of sudden, Loona was kicked into the air and hit the coffee table, causing her to whine in fear and pain, as she curves into a ball to try to protect herself. Her other eight siblings stare at what happened.
Loona's one eye look up, and she saw the male hellhound looking at her and other pups while holding his son's hand. "Fucking useless pups." The male hellhound coldly stated before walking out of the apartment, forcefully taking his son with him.
Loona continues to whine as her mother walked towards her, sitting down with her. She then proceeds to pick up Loona and start to pat her to calm her down.
"Shhhhhh," her mother, with tears in her eyes, whispered to Loona in a maternal tone. "Don't worry, mommy is still here. We will work out what we are going to do."
She then turns to her other eight pups and tearfully asks them: "Come here, my babies. I love you all."
The other pups then crawl over and snuggle next to their mother.
DING!
Loona snapped out of it and saw the text message sent by Blitz. It reads:
Blitz: Hi, Loony. Are you doing ok? Hope that you are ok and doing a great job. Don't forget to call me every day and give me kisses. Love you. Bye"
Loona cringed at the message, so she replied in her text message:
Loona: Gross.
Just then, she look up and saw a lesbian couple carrying their children to the entrance to Walmart Supercenter. That's when another memory resurfaces again:
It was a cold, wet, and windy day as the mother bought her almost one-year-old nonuplet pups inside the Adoption Center.
"Holy shit," the younger adoption center lady exclaimed in the presence of nine pups. "That's one fuck ton of pups that I ever saw in my whole life."
The lady then paused for a little while, then asked: "So, what do you want to do with them?"
The mother, facing the ground with tears in her eyes, quietly and sadly replied: "Give ... Give them up for adoption."
The adoption center lady could tell that she was grieving over what she was going to do, so she inquired: "Are you sure about it? I mean, there are other alternatives to this —"
"Just, please," the mother looked at her and interrupted in a frustrated yet grieving and tearful way. "It's either I can support my children with no aid or I give them up so that they have a chance at having a better life. I currently don't have contact with any biological relatives, foster care brings instability in their development, childcare institutionalizes sexual abuse of children, I am no longer able to look after them, and I will not abandon them in a place where they can die. All I want for my children is to have a chance to have a normal life, where they don't have to worry about money, where they can sleep at night knowing that no one will break in, where they can afford quality education, and where they will develop to have stable and healthy relationships. I made my decision, not based on my needs, but rather based on their needs. What happens to me is irrelevant. I am only concerned about their needs."
The lady sighed at the mother. "I didn't ask for a melodramatic speech but, if you are so insistent, then we will take those pups in."
Just then, the caretaker came in and saw the pups. "Sweet satan, that's one fuck ton of pup. Am I right, Gabby?" the caretaker commented feeling surprised.
"I know," she replied.
The mother took one last look at her pups. Her eyes were filled with tears, knowing that this will be the final time that she would ever see her pups. So she told them: "Be strong, my children. I ... I may be gone from your lives but ... but I will never forget you all. I ... I ..."
Then she maternally hugs them, ending with the words: "I love you so much."
After checking that the name tags have been correctly placed on each pup to ensure correct identification, she then hands the pups over to the employees of the adoption center. She then said to her pups, with tears in her eyes and a sense of guilt: "Goodbye."
The mother then turns around and walks towards the entrance of the building to exit. Her pups, including Loona, start to whine for their mother to come back.
But she didn't turn back. She left the building and has never returned to their lives to this very day.
"Uh, excuse me, young lady."
Loona snapped out of it, looked up, and saw a tanned-skin man with a small beard around his lips, dark brown leather shoes, black jeans with a leather belt around it, a button-up red-and-white funnel shirt, and a green hat shaped like a baseball cap. His accent sounds like a typical rural Arizonian.
"Are you ..." he paused to look at the paper and a photograph and then continued: "... Loona. As in, Loona Moon-Goatzo?"
Loona, feeling awkward, plainly replied: "Yes."
The tanned-skin man then points to his Pickup Truck that is parked in front of them and then instructed her: "Hop in. And, oh, do you have anything to keep you occupied? Cuz, this trip will take more than 5 hours."
Loona sighed at that and got into his pickup truck. Here we go again, Loona thought to herself. Another 5 hours of non-stop sitting.