"Are you sure that you want to go alone?" asks Lucas, suspicious of my choice. I sigh, half in annoyance and half in grief. He had been asking me this all morning and refused to leave me alone, I was beginning to wonder if he literally had nothing else to do or if he was really that concerned.
"Yes, Lucas, I'm positive. I'd rather go alone." I replied.
He lets out an exasperated sigh and gives in, "Fine, please be careful though. If there's someone else there to visit him, you could get into a shit ton of trouble."
"Yes, Dad. I know." I retorted, rolling my eyes. I lace up my shoes while I think, "Why would anyone else want to visit him anyway?" I ask rhetorically. A bitter look crossed my face as I remembered what had happened, but I shooed those thoughts away.
I looked up at the golden daffodil I had put in a glass vase only a week ago. Would he like it? I was afraid that a mere flower wouldn't be enough for Todd, but I couldn't think of anything else to give him.
Earlier this morning, I had decided to visit Todd's body in The Pile, which is a place where they toss the poor when they die. This, logically, isn't a bad idea. However, to me, it felt disrespectful. These people deserved so much more than to just be dumped into a pile of corpses just like them, but we had very few graveyards and too many people.
I learned of something similar to this in a history book a year or two ago, perusing the shop's artifact section. A very long time ago, in a country called France, which is no longer a country apparently, they had too many people dying and not enough space to put them. People were complaining of the smell and one day, a terrible storm turned all the ground to mud and sludge, causing the bodies to be moved along with it. This was why a series of catacombs were built under their main city to store old corpses and bones. These catacombs still exist, however, you can't go in anymore. There's actually a reason why France doesn't exist anymore, and that's because of severe radiation. Going anywhere near the catacombs would be a death wish.
I shudder silently at the thought.
"You should check on Emma. They said she's awake now," I mentioned, but clearly, he wasn't impressed by my sad excuse.
"I don't think that this is a good idea. Now that everyone knows you're from The Slums, you could be a target." he protested.
"Yeah, no shit Sherlock, that's why I have this," I say, holding up my gun in my right hand. Lucas is obviously less than amused, but he lets out a sigh of resignation.
"Fine."
I stand up and pluck the daffodil from its exquisitely decorated vase, admiring its delicate petals that, if you looked closely, were wilting slightly. My brows furrow at the flower as I remember the beautiful butterfly the merchant mentioned.
A symbol of despair and betrayal.
Could this be what he was talking about? The despair I could definitely feel, however, I couldn't bring myself to feel betrayed. I couldn't bring myself to hate him, not at all. It wouldn't be fair.
"Thank you for worrying anyway, Lucas. I appreciate it." I add. It wasn't a lie, but it was more of a sentence to distract him. He nodded, seeming to be satisfied with my answer. I turn to walk out the door, however, Lucas is quick to grab my shoulder.
"What is it now?" I sigh. Lucas looks down at the floor for a moment before answering as if debating on whether to say something.
"Just-...stay safe," he requested, straightening up, "I don't want to have to pick up your remains off the ground."
I rolled my eyes at his attempt to sound like he didn't care and scoffed, "Yeah, sure."
Walking out the door, I twirl the flower by its stem. Doubt starts to form like a cloud in my mind, but I push on.
The streets of Edoris were still littered with old confetti and streamers, but the symbolism was now bittersweet to me. Edoris was the biggest of all the seven cities, located in the remains of what was Canada. It consists of 27 districts, each used for a different purpose. The district I was in now was the founding district, District One, where all of the big events were hosted. The Slums were known as 'The 28th District' because nobody liked to acknowledge it as a district. 148 kilometers separate from The Slums and the main city of Edoris, which is why Edorian citizens don't really understand what it's like.
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I push my hood up to cover my eyes and tuck my ponytail behind my head to avoid people on the street recognizing me. My gun was safely disguised in a thigh strap under my skirt for easy access as I walked silently down the street, avoiding the eyes of passersby. The Pile was far away from the view of common folk, clearly not wanting to see a yard full of dead, decaying bodies with the consciousness that they had caused it. It took me about 30 minutes to get there on foot. The only way I could tell I was close was the rancid smell of rot that emitted from a nearby fence.
"I really wish I had brought my mask now..." I said, covering my nose and mouth with my hand. The smell was terrible. So bad, in fact, that my eyes were watering. Using my hands to cling onto the chain link fence, I scaled it with ease, dropping down on the other side with a small thud. What I saw was a pure massacre. I hardly want to describe it, but it looked like a scrap yard with multiple piles of people's remains. It wasn't as full as I had expected it to be, surprisingly. Though, I suppose it did make sense. Not many people were in poverty in the founding district, and only people who lacked money to be buried were tossed there. I gripped the daffodil in my hand, not daring to let go. I saw who I was looking for sooner than I was ready to.
There he was. Todd. He looked almost the same as the say that I left him, except they had the decency to clean him up. Everyone in the dump was wearing a white gown and had been cleaned up since they died, but the injuries were not sealed, and their guts remained out in the open. It made me sick to see him in such a state. I made my way up to him, but his face wasn't exactly recognizable. His face had been blown in, and I didn't dare to look at the right side of his head for fear of actually vomiting. He was leaned up against the fence in a slouched position, his legs extended in front of him, eyes closed. I crouched in front of him slowly, my heart hardly able to take the sight. Without looking at his face, I took his right hand, which was as cold as ice. I took the daffodil and placed it in his hand, wrapping his fingers around it gently. The dirt under his fingernails was a familiar sight, but his hands were now dry and cold, a bittersweet feeling whispered through the air.
"Thank you...and I'm sorry. I don't know if there is an afterlife that you are watching me from, but I just wanted to let you know that I love you like a father and that I'm sorry I screamed those awful things in the heat of the moment." I murmured softly. The smile he had on the day he died was still frozen in place on his face, and somehow, it made me smile too. But only faintly.
"Goodbye..."
I stood up with those final words and walked over to the fence, looking back over my shoulder to the sight that I left behind. Todd, daffodil in hand, lay motionless still. I nodded to myself and scaled the fence, tripping a little when I landed on the other side.
I got back to headquarters 45 minutes later, Lucas had been waiting for me in the main hall, pretending like he was on duty. I rolled my eyes.
"Anything to report? Any stolen lollipops?" I asked sarcastically.
"None so far..." he responded, focusing his gaze on me, a slight look of relief on his face, "Were you seen?"
"I'm fine." I said, sighing, "Just a bit of a headache."
He nodded, "You should take a shower. To get the smell off of you."
"I smell?"
"Yes."
I groaned and sighed at the same time, "Alright, alright.."
Making my way over to the elevator, I press a couple of buttons. Soon enough, it arrived to take me upstairs. Once I had gotten to my room, I immediately hopped into the shower, desperately trying to get the smell of rot off of me. Suddenly, I felt extremely dizzy. It wasn't too uncommon, especially since the shower was so hot, so I brushed it off and leaned into the wall for a moment, taking in a deep breath. About 25 minutes later, I had gotten out of the shower and put on a pair of clothes, even though it was 5 p.m. and I wasn't going anywhere anyway. But for some reason, I was still dizzy, almost kind of nauseous. I sat down on my bed to take a breather to steady myself.
A knock comes to my door.
"It's me," Lucas calls from the other side.
"Come in."
My door unlatches, and he steps inside, however he freezes when he sees me.
"Whoa."
I looked back up at him feeling woozy and nauseous, "I...don't feel good."
He flashes me a worried look, "Did you eat something bad?"
"I don't think so..." I murmur.
"I'll get you a glass of water, don't get up."
"Okay..."
Lucas stands up and walks into the little kitchenette, getting a glass out of the cabinet and pouring me some water from the fridge. He comes back moments later, gently placing the cup into my hands and making sure that I didn't accidentally spill. I took a sip, but somehow, that only made it worse. I gagged but forced the water down, tearing up slightly. Lucas is watching me carefully.
"Was it visiting him? Did that make this happen?" he asked, worriedly.
"No, I didn't feel this bad until I got out of the shower..." I responded, closing my eyes so that the world stopped spinning, even for only a moment.
"Can you try to stand?"
I nodded, bracing myself with my arms to stand back up, and did so successfully. But something was wrong. Really wrong. Lucas had a reaction before I did, his eyes widening with shock and disbelief. And then I felt it. Warm liquid dripped from my nose almost like tap water, except I knew what it was.
It was blood.
The room went completely silent, I swear even the birds stopped chirping. The realization hit me harder than a tidal wave. As the gears in my brain finally shifted into place, my blood fell to the floor in drops.
I had it.
I had the symptoms.