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THE EXCHANGE 1
The moonlight rained down, unperbuted in the cloud of darkness. I sighed, the historian's voice from the headphones once again going back to the background. I swerved my solar paneled car to the right, letting it rush down Meiling Street. The familiar surroundings of white washed houses sloping up a few stories high, covered by dark iron automated gates.
I tuned back to the historian again, my thoughts wandering back.
"Back in 2030, the second civil war had taken place leading to a colossal death rate. It is said that the war ended in 2038, more than half of the population were killed after which the Chinese finally took it upon themselves to turn the ruins of our country to their colonies. At that time, we were one of the few African countries to.."
I suddenly removed the headphones, lessening the pressure I put on the brakes. An alarm blared faintly in the distance, I turned to look forward, following the sound to find it was coming from the museum which was many streets away. The brown towers of the building stood above the other clan of white washed buildings that curved in the different directions. The mecury lights lighted the dark sky, red and blue hues mixing onto the dark overtone.
What in the world?
I pressed down on the pedal, the car harrumphed to life. I glanced at the rearview mirror, noting the amount of power I had left in the battery. 20. I dug through my pocket for my pod phone, pulling it out quickly. The message I had sent to Dana had not received any reply. The white notification taunted me, affirming my worst fears. I breathed slowly, still waiting to feel the slightest vibration in my pocket.
My joints ached of tension as I drove lazily, avoiding the road blocks and the hovering traffic lights continued their job above.
Dana would feel the same way it's all good.
I picked up speed, pressing down on the pedal more. The car swerved through a couple of turns, the roads tiled with cement blocks and towering solar paneled lights. The well fenced gutters brimmed with water, reminding of the torrential rain fall that happened earlier today. I tried to keep my mind of the message I sent earlier, still no vibration to alert me. I gripped the steering wheel tighter, my mind mulling with scenarios as I passed.
Maybe she's asleep. Yeah, that's it.
I sucked on my lip, trying to contain my jittery nerves. My stomach clenched, swarming with the familiar sensations I felt around her. I kept glancing at my pocket, the plush leather seat doing nothing to alleviate my anxiety. The rumble of thunder echoed through. I sighed, I still found it hard to believe that once before when the Southern and Northern Protectorates were still amalgamated there was another season apart from rainy season.
The rain drops slid down my window, I pulled down on a lever beside the steering wheel. The metal wipers scrubbed loudly, screeching against the translucent silver glass. I pulled onto my own street, Su Street. My pod phone vibrated. I jerked, taking it at break neck speed as my heart leapt to my throat. I took my eyes off the road, taking a look at the notification to see a text from Dan.
I groaned, then peeling my eyes off the phone. I saw a figure stagger out of the last street onto the intersection. Alarm seeped into my system, not noting them in time. I turned the steering harshly. The car turned in an arc, my heart racing as it did. Nausea washed over me as my stomach did all sorts of flips.The screeching tires threw my mind into a frenzy. The car hit against the rod of what I assumed was the street light, making me jerk forward in my seat belt. The air bags puffed out immediately, trudging out from different sides. The car glided down, turning like a rolling top as the air became suffocating.The translucent seat belt pressed into my ribcage, keeping the rough intake of air. My mind flashed thinking of how I wasn't even able to see Dana's reactions to my confession. Tears came to my eyes, my head dizzy as the world began to be backed up in a blur.
Bile crept up my throat. Suddenly, the car stopped turning after a loud clang. My heart raced, sweat pulling down my sides. The air bags deflated automatically, drawing back into their containments. The motion sensored door opened by itself, sliding outward with the faint sound of metal against metal. The rain had stopped, allowing me some relief. My stomach wobbled as I clambered out, my breathing rushing in ragged gasp. My limbs shook, my mind swamped in an array of dizziness.
This is why I hate driving out.
My stomach still clenched, I fought against the minute blare of alarms. I shook my head, keeping back the vomit that wanted to come out. After some minutes with my hands on my knees, panting, I took a good look at the car. I noticed that I had hit a small sign post. Deep dentations formed along the silver walls of the car, the panels at the top remained undisturbed, coming out uninjured by the crash. Focusing on my own body, I felt unharmed save for where the belt had dug a little too deeply into my stomach and chest.
Cracks accentuated the translucent silver of the glass.
Mother is going to be so angry.
Worry creased my system as I realized what she would say. My mind suddenly flashed back to the figure that stood at the side, I began to walk noting the artificial grasses that remained clipped and polished along the cement sidewalk which was fenced with glass. Nothing hurt there, lights from the sidewalk, caught onto the marks of the rubber against the light gravel stretched out onto the ground. Black circles crisscrossed each other. The traffic light at the bend of the intersection was bent in on itself, its lights still at function, trying to keep up a normal facade.
My stomach clenched, remembering different attempts of that word. To be normal. I shook out of my thoughts and looked towards the intersection, the figure was there. Clothed in dark fabric, the figure pressed a hand to their stomach as they breathed heavily. I tip toed softly, treading around loose stones to avoid any from skittering.
Something scratched my leg, I glanced and found a branch hovering up in the gutter. I gagged, reluctantly picking it up. The figure fell to their knees and I noticed the blood that flowed from the gashes all over their body. The figure raised their head and I felt my eyes widen.
"Dana?" Her eyes widened also, her green eyes shining underneath her mask. I could see patches of her fair skin where there had been different holes. She looked like she wanted to say something but began coughing. Blood spurted out of her mouth as my heart and mind ran into overdrive.
Why was she here?
Why was she wearing all this?
Why was she out this late in the night?
Is this why she hadn't replied to my texts?
The last question left me with a sense of relief. I frowned slightly.
She's hurt genius, how could you be relieved about something like that?
"What happened to you?"I dropped to my knee, raising her chin up. I grabbed onto her hand that was pressed down to her stomach. Something clattered onto the floor, my eyes widened. The rays of light from the rod like street lights caught onto the locket of Amusan, I drew in a sharp breath before jabbing a finger in her direction.
"Dana, why are you with that?" Immediately, I picked up the faint wail of sirens in the distance. She ripped off her mask, her albino skin was completely red. Her lips were busted, her eyes swollen.
"Please... don't hand me over to.. the police." The wail of sirens in the distance got louder, the street lights turning from white to a violent red. My heart raced, my throat clogged as I watched her continue to wince in pain. I turned back, judging from the sounds I knew they were a few minutes away. The small white speakers stationed at every street light began to whir to life, low voices grumbling out to join the mounting chaos. I looked towards the houses, running by my right, expecting people to be milling out few minutes from now.
"Why? I thought you were out of the gang." I couldn't keep the anger out of my voice knowing the tumult she had her put her parents, me and herself through. Tears ran down her face, blood and water making a sweet concoction. The wailing became louder, we only had less than two minutes left.
"Run as fast as you can." I said quickly, raising her up with both hands. She grunted, her green eyes taking a duller tone. She now clutched onto the locket tightly, fists shaking.
"Run!" I took the locket out of her hand, urging her forward with a smile. Dana limped away, going through the side walk. My heart thundered in my rib cage, feeling heat crawl up my spine. The gates from all the end of the street drew in on themselves, scraping as they did as the alarms rose. Pristine marble columns that stood at entrance, rolled back on the rollers, widening the foyers that stood at the entrance as the rest of the protocols of a break in put into place. The wails grew louder as people began to mile down from buildings, I avoided their gazes as I looked forward.
What was I doing?
When had I thrown my rationality away? This is madness!
Some part of myself screamed as the traffic lights shone bright red. My heart plummeted as some of my neighbors looked to where I stood, suprised flitted across their features as their eyes drew away from me to my dented car.
This was Dana's fight not mine.
The words resurfaced in my mind, trying to break down my resolve. One inch of it thawed, crumbling to dust. The wails grew louder from further down the street where my parent's house was. I had 20 seconds left. My blood roared in my ears as indecision clouded my reasoning.
I don't need to sacrifice yourself for her. It's her own doing not mine. She lied to me.
The words grated against me, harshly slicing at my chest. She had lied, my fists clenched. She must have done it for a good reason. I looked down at the locket, my mind racing. Owned by one of the people that rebelled against the Chinese colonization regime, that was one of his last possessions that had not been extinguished in the fire that had killed him and his family. 10 seconds.
The familiar green sirens bobbed up, streaked by white as they flared down the street. The white light streaked down as shadows of a fleet of cars neared me. Mummurs grew far from my side, I remained at ease but my heart galloped. I clutched the locket tightly, my breaths rushing out my throat.
5
My muscles constricted and my brain shouted orders, wanting to flee.
4
My heart leapt in my throat, my limbs trembling.
3
My head ached, my nerves coiling like springs.
2
Why are you doing this?
1
I raised my hands. I clutched onto the locket tightly, the embodiment of my exchanged fate. The exchange I had done with Dana.
I hope she sees my love through this.
© No works of mine should be published without my permission
I tuned back to the historian again, my thoughts wandering back.
"Back in 2030, the second civil war had taken place leading to a colossal death rate. It is said that the war ended in 2038, more than half of the population were killed after which the Chinese finally took it upon themselves to turn the ruins of our country to their colonies. At that time, we were one of the few African countries to.."
I suddenly removed the headphones, lessening the pressure I put on the brakes. An alarm blared faintly in the distance, I turned to look forward, following the sound to find it was coming from the museum which was many streets away. The brown towers of the building stood above the other clan of white washed buildings that curved in the different directions. The mecury lights lighted the dark sky, red and blue hues mixing onto the dark overtone.
What in the world?
I pressed down on the pedal, the car harrumphed to life. I glanced at the rearview mirror, noting the amount of power I had left in the battery. 20. I dug through my pocket for my pod phone, pulling it out quickly. The message I had sent to Dana had not received any reply. The white notification taunted me, affirming my worst fears. I breathed slowly, still waiting to feel the slightest vibration in my pocket.
My joints ached of tension as I drove lazily, avoiding the road blocks and the hovering traffic lights continued their job above.
Dana would feel the same way it's all good.
I picked up speed, pressing down on the pedal more. The car swerved through a couple of turns, the roads tiled with cement blocks and towering solar paneled lights. The well fenced gutters brimmed with water, reminding of the torrential rain fall that happened earlier today. I tried to keep my mind of the message I sent earlier, still no vibration to alert me. I gripped the steering wheel tighter, my mind mulling with scenarios as I passed.
Maybe she's asleep. Yeah, that's it.
I sucked on my lip, trying to contain my jittery nerves. My stomach clenched, swarming with the familiar sensations I felt around her. I kept glancing at my pocket, the plush leather seat doing nothing to alleviate my anxiety. The rumble of thunder echoed through. I sighed, I still found it hard to believe that once before when the Southern and Northern Protectorates were still amalgamated there was another season apart from rainy season.
The rain drops slid down my window, I pulled down on a lever beside the steering wheel. The metal wipers scrubbed loudly, screeching against the translucent silver glass. I pulled onto my own street, Su Street. My pod phone vibrated. I jerked, taking it at break neck speed as my heart leapt to my throat. I took my eyes off the road, taking a look at the notification to see a text from Dan.
I groaned, then peeling my eyes off the phone. I saw a figure stagger out of the last street onto the intersection. Alarm seeped into my system, not noting them in time. I turned the steering harshly. The car turned in an arc, my heart racing as it did. Nausea washed over me as my stomach did all sorts of flips.The screeching tires threw my mind into a frenzy. The car hit against the rod of what I assumed was the street light, making me jerk forward in my seat belt. The air bags puffed out immediately, trudging out from different sides. The car glided down, turning like a rolling top as the air became suffocating.The translucent seat belt pressed into my ribcage, keeping the rough intake of air. My mind flashed thinking of how I wasn't even able to see Dana's reactions to my confession. Tears came to my eyes, my head dizzy as the world began to be backed up in a blur.
Bile crept up my throat. Suddenly, the car stopped turning after a loud clang. My heart raced, sweat pulling down my sides. The air bags deflated automatically, drawing back into their containments. The motion sensored door opened by itself, sliding outward with the faint sound of metal against metal. The rain had stopped, allowing me some relief. My stomach wobbled as I clambered out, my breathing rushing in ragged gasp. My limbs shook, my mind swamped in an array of dizziness.
This is why I hate driving out.
My stomach still clenched, I fought against the minute blare of alarms. I shook my head, keeping back the vomit that wanted to come out. After some minutes with my hands on my knees, panting, I took a good look at the car. I noticed that I had hit a small sign post. Deep dentations formed along the silver walls of the car, the panels at the top remained undisturbed, coming out uninjured by the crash. Focusing on my own body, I felt unharmed save for where the belt had dug a little too deeply into my stomach and chest.
Cracks accentuated the translucent silver of the glass.
Mother is going to be so angry.
Worry creased my system as I realized what she would say. My mind suddenly flashed back to the figure that stood at the side, I began to walk noting the artificial grasses that remained clipped and polished along the cement sidewalk which was fenced with glass. Nothing hurt there, lights from the sidewalk, caught onto the marks of the rubber against the light gravel stretched out onto the ground. Black circles crisscrossed each other. The traffic light at the bend of the intersection was bent in on itself, its lights still at function, trying to keep up a normal facade.
My stomach clenched, remembering different attempts of that word. To be normal. I shook out of my thoughts and looked towards the intersection, the figure was there. Clothed in dark fabric, the figure pressed a hand to their stomach as they breathed heavily. I tip toed softly, treading around loose stones to avoid any from skittering.
Something scratched my leg, I glanced and found a branch hovering up in the gutter. I gagged, reluctantly picking it up. The figure fell to their knees and I noticed the blood that flowed from the gashes all over their body. The figure raised their head and I felt my eyes widen.
"Dana?" Her eyes widened also, her green eyes shining underneath her mask. I could see patches of her fair skin where there had been different holes. She looked like she wanted to say something but began coughing. Blood spurted out of her mouth as my heart and mind ran into overdrive.
Why was she here?
Why was she wearing all this?
Why was she out this late in the night?
Is this why she hadn't replied to my texts?
The last question left me with a sense of relief. I frowned slightly.
She's hurt genius, how could you be relieved about something like that?
"What happened to you?"I dropped to my knee, raising her chin up. I grabbed onto her hand that was pressed down to her stomach. Something clattered onto the floor, my eyes widened. The rays of light from the rod like street lights caught onto the locket of Amusan, I drew in a sharp breath before jabbing a finger in her direction.
"Dana, why are you with that?" Immediately, I picked up the faint wail of sirens in the distance. She ripped off her mask, her albino skin was completely red. Her lips were busted, her eyes swollen.
"Please... don't hand me over to.. the police." The wail of sirens in the distance got louder, the street lights turning from white to a violent red. My heart raced, my throat clogged as I watched her continue to wince in pain. I turned back, judging from the sounds I knew they were a few minutes away. The small white speakers stationed at every street light began to whir to life, low voices grumbling out to join the mounting chaos. I looked towards the houses, running by my right, expecting people to be milling out few minutes from now.
"Why? I thought you were out of the gang." I couldn't keep the anger out of my voice knowing the tumult she had her put her parents, me and herself through. Tears ran down her face, blood and water making a sweet concoction. The wailing became louder, we only had less than two minutes left.
"Run as fast as you can." I said quickly, raising her up with both hands. She grunted, her green eyes taking a duller tone. She now clutched onto the locket tightly, fists shaking.
"Run!" I took the locket out of her hand, urging her forward with a smile. Dana limped away, going through the side walk. My heart thundered in my rib cage, feeling heat crawl up my spine. The gates from all the end of the street drew in on themselves, scraping as they did as the alarms rose. Pristine marble columns that stood at entrance, rolled back on the rollers, widening the foyers that stood at the entrance as the rest of the protocols of a break in put into place. The wails grew louder as people began to mile down from buildings, I avoided their gazes as I looked forward.
What was I doing?
When had I thrown my rationality away? This is madness!
Some part of myself screamed as the traffic lights shone bright red. My heart plummeted as some of my neighbors looked to where I stood, suprised flitted across their features as their eyes drew away from me to my dented car.
This was Dana's fight not mine.
The words resurfaced in my mind, trying to break down my resolve. One inch of it thawed, crumbling to dust. The wails grew louder from further down the street where my parent's house was. I had 20 seconds left. My blood roared in my ears as indecision clouded my reasoning.
I don't need to sacrifice yourself for her. It's her own doing not mine. She lied to me.
The words grated against me, harshly slicing at my chest. She had lied, my fists clenched. She must have done it for a good reason. I looked down at the locket, my mind racing. Owned by one of the people that rebelled against the Chinese colonization regime, that was one of his last possessions that had not been extinguished in the fire that had killed him and his family. 10 seconds.
The familiar green sirens bobbed up, streaked by white as they flared down the street. The white light streaked down as shadows of a fleet of cars neared me. Mummurs grew far from my side, I remained at ease but my heart galloped. I clutched the locket tightly, my breaths rushing out my throat.
5
My muscles constricted and my brain shouted orders, wanting to flee.
4
My heart leapt in my throat, my limbs trembling.
3
My head ached, my nerves coiling like springs.
2
Why are you doing this?
1
I raised my hands. I clutched onto the locket tightly, the embodiment of my exchanged fate. The exchange I had done with Dana.
I hope she sees my love through this.
© No works of mine should be published without my permission
