Why hullo there, friends! Happy New Year! 2015 already! Holy moly.. How was your Christmas break? Can you believe this? The teachers in my school assigned us HW over the break, like.. Seriously? Will you not let us have any fun during the holidays?
Anywhore! It's Chapter 2! Ohmergherd. Yes, I've used up time in my holidays just for you, readers, because 1) I love writing, and I write "to disappear".. -Cath, Fangirl 2) Because I love you guys for the love and support you guys give me to write ;)
I tried to, at least. Oh whale. My motivation is currently at an all-time low and I can't seem to be.. well, bothered to write. I'm gonna need to watch more TLOU related stuff to get writing again.
Chapter 2. YAY. Okay, let's get going!
And as always, enjoy! :D
I roll up the sleeves of my plain blue shirt and leave it unbuttoned to reveal my gray T-shirt underneath. Blue. I love that word. It is the shit.
I shut the door behind me as I follow Dad and Tess out of our quiet alley towards Boston's main gates. Area 5 is located at Boston's main port, where all the ships and tankers are. Imports from other countries are still being sent our way, but I don't know much about what's even being imported and exported.
The fact that we've based ourselves by Boston's official garbage area is somewhat depressing. Dad claims it's for privacy and so that the government won't try to sniff out what we're up to, but I guess it's working judging by the lack of inspections at our.. 'main office'.
Tess takes out a bundle of keys from her pocket and unlocks the safety gate while I eavesdrop on a conversation going on behind me. Something about Jane being sent out for outside work duty from what I can hear. Tess continues to lead us on even when we reach the open streets. I take the rear as Dad is sandwiched in between Tess and I, we all give each other a wide berth so that we don't end up walking into each other.
Looking around, I take in how much Boston's changed compared to when I first came with Anna and Logan. Various torn up patchy rags hang from the balconies above the closed up shops surrounding us. We have official "Distribution Centers" – fucking bullshit, if you ask me. Majority of the time, we end up with half-rations anyways, so we always know to expect that we'll be going to sleep on almost empty stomachs each night.
Old air conditioner units left stains on the buildings that they're on. Graffiti is definitely something that I appreciate around here, even though I'm not with the Fireflies anymore, it brings me satisfaction seeing that they're still fighting and that they won't surrender until the USA changes its branch of government.
Large imprints of the Firefly logo are spray painted in various areas, plastering a hint of a smirk on my face. An especially large white one is spray painted over the Curfew Hours signboard above the FEDRA banner on my left, causing me to let out a snort of satisfaction.
The monotone woman that's working for FEDRA on the announcement speakers around Boston starts talking, causing my head to droop a little bit, "Attention. Citizens are required to carry a-"
'-current ID at all times.' I cut in. 'Compliance with all city personnel is mandatory, yada yada, cut the bullshit already..' I think to myself.
"Damn.." I cuss aloud as I look at the Ration Station that Tess is standing by, empty and surrounded by yellow tape. "Look at that. Ration line hasn't opened yet, must be running low again.." Tess tells us dryly. Dad walks on as Tess stays behind for a second or two, clutching onto her left arm, a sudden shiver running down her arm.
Like I said plenty of times before, Marlene's pretty much a celebrity around here, so if anyone was to come across a poster with her face on it, there'd be at least 11 others just like it right next to each other. In fact, I think I saw Dad walking past a whole wall dedicated to JUST Marlene on his right a little while ago.
I pass by Amanda Harley talking to the soldier guarding the ration line; her voice is strained with hunger along with a hint of desperation clinging to it. "Hey, how much longer?"
"Lady, when the rations arrive, we'll open the door, alright?" I shake my head in disgust and make sure to glare at the soldier guarding it. They're treating us like we're fucking animals meant to be kept in a cage. I ball up my fists and keep walking to resist the urge of attacking the guard. I squeeze my eyes shut as I continue walking behind Dad, forcing myself to look down on the ground. I start counting the number of cracks there are in the sidewalk as well as how many blades of grass there are sticking out from behind a wall to my right.
As soon as I calm down, I continue to follow from behind Dad. He's caught up with Tess already, so he walks beside her instead of behind. Sure, for the standards of society before the world went to shit, the roads are considered empty, but it's pretty packed today..
"I hear it's another half ration week."
"Are you fucking kidding me? That's three weeks in a row now." See?
We walk past several roadblocks to our left; I stay behind to see what the fuss is about as Dad and Tess walk on. Two men biohazard uniforms are currently scanning four people in the center of the surrounding roadblocks, confirming whether they're clean or infected, at least 6 soldiers guarding it, not wanting anyone to see, good luck with that. A nearby army truck causes me to raise an eyebrow or two in curiosity, making me want to get closer and have a better look at the situation at hand.
One of them struggles and tries to run, but gets shot by one of the guards. I lean to the side a bit more to get a closer look when my left arm feels the impact of the butt of a gun. The soldier closest to me gives me a look of authority, trying to look more superior to me. "Hey. Nothing for you to see, this isn't the fucking cinema."
"Go fuck yourself." I hiss at him in reply, making sure that he didn't get to look at my face long enough for him to identify me. I jog away to catch up with Tess and Dad. "Seems like more people getting' infected." Tess says to us in a matter-of-fact tone.
Dad shakes his head at her before answering, "That just means more people are sneakin' out." Tess walks ahead when Dad grabs my right arm, and pulls me down, making me look around hastily, "What the hell do you think you're doing? They could arrest you for that!" Dad hisses at me.
I pull my arm away and glare at him, "I can take care of myself, thanks. I'm not a baby anymore." I snap at him in reply.
We continue walking until we get to an open street, the pungent odor from the sewers seeping into my lungs, earning a grimace from me. To top the smell off, the weather's shitty today, YAY. Cloudy, gray, stormy days are ahead of us. I wouldn't be surprised if it rains tonight, honestly.
Security's become a top priority for FEDRA because of the Fireflies, so the simple gate that Anna and I walked through is now a fully fortified fortress-like structure. A guard tower's raised up high smack dab in the middle of the fortress-like gates, an old but still in good condition USA flag swaying lazily in the wind. I can see at least 3 army trucks from where I'm standing, don't even get me started with the number of soldiers here. They're fucking everywhere, even the ones in biohazard suits.
Thing is, the walls surrounding the city make the gates look miniscule in comparison. Huge plates of steel at least 100 feet tall drilled together surrounding us, keeping out the dangers of the outside and locking us in. This would make one unnerved in normal circumstances, but they've become the norm for us, to be completely honest. Bright side is, we don't have to worry about the risk of the downtown buildings collapsing on us. Downside, the view just isn't the same anymore.
A conversation on my far left makes me jerk my head right around, making me eavesdrop. "She's feisty that one."
"How so?" I recognize this voice as Abdul's, a guy who's slightly younger than me from Sudan.
"That Miller girl likes causing trouble, that little- Can I help you? Mind your own fucking business. You have nothing to do with us." I naturally assume that he's talking to me, so I turn to face him immediately, seeing Dad squaring off with him instead. Abdul immediately stands in front of the other man, an apologetic smile on his face. "Sorry 'bout that, Joel. He's just a little cranky today is all." As soon as I see Dad walking towards me, I hear hasty whispers from their direction.
"Are you fucking crazy!? Don't talk to him like that!"
"It's not like I fucking care."
"Well, you should. You were just talking bad of his kid! And she's standing right there, you fucking idiot! You don't know what happens to the people who stand in his way, do you? He'll beat you to death next time you say shit like that near him!"
I ignore them and go along with Dad. All they see me as is "The Smuggler's Kid", meaning if anyone says or does anything to me, they'll have to answer to Dad. That's what I find the most embarrassing in this situation. I'm like, 34, and Dad still treats me like I'm a baby. Oh well.. It's better than nothing, I guess.
I'm really sorry for how short this chapter is and how slow the story's been progressing, but like the last sentence in this chapter says, it's better than nothing.
My motivation is only just returning now. I've grown a strong dislike towards The Last of Us in the time that I've been gone. With my Dad playing it thousands of times, it gets stuck in my head, and it's annoying. So please don't hate me if the next update is a long while from now.
In the meantime, I guess I'll try to swim in an endless ocean known as high school.
Bye guys. See you next chapter. Have a great day! :)
