Status: Active and typing.
Freight Hopper
.04
Gerard
Gerard plops onto a bench, a heavy sigh amidst his worn voice. He is exhausted. This was a last ditch effort, hopeless really. Rhode-fucking-Island. He stands, and begins walking toward his car, wincing a little as his leg gives a familiar jolt of pain. He should know by now not to get his hopes up, but there’s always something makes him abandon logic, and suddenly he’ll be wishing and hoping, though he know somewhere inside there is no point. 1092 days. 1092 fucking days is far too long to be looking for one person, far too long to waste on one person.
Hours later, he’s pulling in Newark, into hell and heaven itself. One last stop and he’ll get to go home to his lovely, Tempur-pedic mattress, sleep for ten or hours, and, most likely, wake up to do something equally as pointless. He arrives to the news that a train actually has come in, for once. A little ways off from the tracks Gerard can see people meandering about. He starts to make his way there when his leg begins to really hurt, and he is forced to go get his cane from the car. Eventually, he limps his way towards the nearest man.
“Excuse me?” he says. The kid smiles, failing to notice the cane Gerard is leaning on.
“You looking for a ride?” he asks, before Gerard can reply the man says, “You’re gonna want to go on back home and pack a bag first. There may not be snow on the ground, but it’s still winter and about to get real cold. We’ll still be here tomorrow, but we can go talk to Rat now I suppose, he-”
“No!” Is all Gerard can seem to fit in, and he finally stops. “I, I just...I’m looking for someone.” he stutters.
“Oh.” The man stops, thinking, “Well, I’m JayB. Who’re you lookin’ for?”
“Someone named Frank.”
“Hm...Frank? Don’t think I know a Frank, but hell, half of the people here don’t go by real names, but Rat’ll know him.” JayB strides on ahead, Gerard doing his best to follow, still considerably slow. They come to a stop. They’re in the main train yards now, and there are people scattered about. JayB looks around, seeming puzzled.
“Anyone seen Rat?” he calls.
“Went off to find Kid,” announces a girl, and JayB looks sadly at Gerard.
“Sorry, man. You can wait here if ya’ like.”
Gerard huffs, murmuring something about needing to get home, and turns away from JayB, limping past the trees in which they came.
As he’s nearing the end of the trees, and young man with shaggy brown hair emerges from within them. He seems angry, and kicks the ground in frustration.
“Fucking A, Rat. You are such a prick,” he says hotly.
A scruffy looking older man appears behind him and grabs him by the neck, “Kid, you should know better. Apologize,” he growls.
“Sorry!” The boy spits, and averts his eyes to the ground. Gerard considers, then changes course and walks toward the pair. He stands aside, waiting until he’s noticed. The scruffy man looks finally, shoves the boy to the side, and tells him to wait there. The boy continues to glare at the ground, slamming his foot into the dirt once more.
The man turns, strides forward, takes a once over of Gerard and says, “Yur injured, can’t ride. Sorry.” He begins to turn away when Gerard bursts,
“I don’t want a ride! I’m looking for someone. I was hoping you would help me.”
“Lookin’? Fur Who?” He growls.
“Someone named Frank. He’d be around 20 now, brown hair...?”
“Frank?” The man says loudly, inquisitively.
“What?” The boy screams in exasperation from a distance.
Gerard’s eyes widen.
The man looks from Gerard to Frank, Frank to Gerard. The boy rolls his eyes at the lack of response from the scruffy man, looking instead, for the first time, at Gerard.
“Frank,” he whispers.
Frank’s eyes widen.
And he bolts.
It takes Gerard a few moments to realize he’s gone. The mere prospect of seeing him hadn’t had time yet to sink in. When he finally beings to move he calls,
“Frank! Frank! Frank, please!”
But the boy is out of sight. Gerard limps as fast as possible to his car. “Dammit!” he murmurs and throws himself in and drives.
Gerard plops onto a bench, a heavy sigh amidst his worn voice. He is exhausted. This was a last ditch effort, hopeless really. Rhode-fucking-Island. He stands, and begins walking toward his car, wincing a little as his leg gives a familiar jolt of pain. He should know by now not to get his hopes up, but there’s always something makes him abandon logic, and suddenly he’ll be wishing and hoping, though he know somewhere inside there is no point. 1092 days. 1092 fucking days is far too long to be looking for one person, far too long to waste on one person.
Hours later, he’s pulling in Newark, into hell and heaven itself. One last stop and he’ll get to go home to his lovely, Tempur-pedic mattress, sleep for ten or hours, and, most likely, wake up to do something equally as pointless. He arrives to the news that a train actually has come in, for once. A little ways off from the tracks Gerard can see people meandering about. He starts to make his way there when his leg begins to really hurt, and he is forced to go get his cane from the car. Eventually, he limps his way towards the nearest man.
“Excuse me?” he says. The kid smiles, failing to notice the cane Gerard is leaning on.
“You looking for a ride?” he asks, before Gerard can reply the man says, “You’re gonna want to go on back home and pack a bag first. There may not be snow on the ground, but it’s still winter and about to get real cold. We’ll still be here tomorrow, but we can go talk to Rat now I suppose, he-”
“No!” Is all Gerard can seem to fit in, and he finally stops. “I, I just...I’m looking for someone.” he stutters.
“Oh.” The man stops, thinking, “Well, I’m JayB. Who’re you lookin’ for?”
“Someone named Frank.”
“Hm...Frank? Don’t think I know a Frank, but hell, half of the people here don’t go by real names, but Rat’ll know him.” JayB strides on ahead, Gerard doing his best to follow, still considerably slow. They come to a stop. They’re in the main train yards now, and there are people scattered about. JayB looks around, seeming puzzled.
“Anyone seen Rat?” he calls.
“Went off to find Kid,” announces a girl, and JayB looks sadly at Gerard.
“Sorry, man. You can wait here if ya’ like.”
Gerard huffs, murmuring something about needing to get home, and turns away from JayB, limping past the trees in which they came.
As he’s nearing the end of the trees, and young man with shaggy brown hair emerges from within them. He seems angry, and kicks the ground in frustration.
“Fucking A, Rat. You are such a prick,” he says hotly.
A scruffy looking older man appears behind him and grabs him by the neck, “Kid, you should know better. Apologize,” he growls.
“Sorry!” The boy spits, and averts his eyes to the ground. Gerard considers, then changes course and walks toward the pair. He stands aside, waiting until he’s noticed. The scruffy man looks finally, shoves the boy to the side, and tells him to wait there. The boy continues to glare at the ground, slamming his foot into the dirt once more.
The man turns, strides forward, takes a once over of Gerard and says, “Yur injured, can’t ride. Sorry.” He begins to turn away when Gerard bursts,
“I don’t want a ride! I’m looking for someone. I was hoping you would help me.”
“Lookin’? Fur Who?” He growls.
“Someone named Frank. He’d be around 20 now, brown hair...?”
“Frank?” The man says loudly, inquisitively.
“What?” The boy screams in exasperation from a distance.
Gerard’s eyes widen.
The man looks from Gerard to Frank, Frank to Gerard. The boy rolls his eyes at the lack of response from the scruffy man, looking instead, for the first time, at Gerard.
“Frank,” he whispers.
Frank’s eyes widen.
And he bolts.
It takes Gerard a few moments to realize he’s gone. The mere prospect of seeing him hadn’t had time yet to sink in. When he finally beings to move he calls,
“Frank! Frank! Frank, please!”
But the boy is out of sight. Gerard limps as fast as possible to his car. “Dammit!” he murmurs and throws himself in and drives.
♠ ♠ ♠
I told you I wasn't dead. :)