Talk About the Past

I stepped out of my car and exposed myself to the hot and unbearable weather. The sun was getting lower, but my body was beginning to sweat as I sat up on the dusty hood of the Camaro. Our car had finally ran out of gas after driving for hours on the long road. One of us were out in an abandoned gas station looking for cans while the other two were looking for food. As for me, I just sat upon my vehicle looking at the scenery before me.

Where we had stopped wasn't very pleasant and welcoming, but I didn't expect to find a place full of happiness either. Ever since the world went to ruins, all that was found were torn buildings, skeletons, and the Dracs that caused all of the damage. BLI had control over everything and all I had with me in my defense against this corporation was my ride, my gun, and the only family I may possibly have left.

I observed all the buildings that were on the verge of crumbling into a big heap of rubble and my eyes widened as I found the placement of the stores and houses familiar. I was in the middle of a town like any other that used to contain schools, grocery stores, recreational centers, banks, and restaurants that had all been destroyed. The horror that struck me was that this wasn't just another town that I had parked my car in. This was a town where I used to live.

Nine years had passed since I last came here when everything was normal. When everything was still in pieces, my family moved to this place when I was six. For ten years we lived here and when we moved again, I left on bad terms with some people. I just left the town without a sound. Where were all those faces now? Some of those faces could be dead. Some of them could be hiding. Others could be in Battery City, living among the "clones" and falling under the medication. One thing that was certain was that none of the faces will ever be the same again.

Footsteps approached me from behind and a voice spoke to break the nostalgic visions going through my head. "Torrent?"

I got off the hood and my instincts made me grip my ray gun as I turned around, despite already knowing who had called my name. My arm relaxed when I met the faces of Candy and Ghost holding bags of food. Rocket was walking toward us with a few gas cans he had found, a look of accomplishment in his expression. His satisfied look suddenly turned to concern and the other two looked at me the same.

"What?" I said and sat back on the hood.

Candy set her bag of food on the ground and sat next to me. "Are you okay? You kinda look like something's bothering you."

"Bothering me?" I faced her. This place gave me even more painful memories than the city did. "This town does much more than that."

She looked at me confused. "Wait, what do you mean? This is just some old place like all the other-"

Rocket put a hand on her shoulder and they stared at each other for a few minutes. Even though no words were said, I already knew what he told her with that look. She put a hand over her mouth and made a noise that sounded like she gasped. Her head turned to take a better look at the whole area I was staring at and she turned her direction to me again.

"This is the place, isn't it?" she said.

I nodded and wrapped my arms around me tightly. My eyes closed and I tried to make myself believe that I wasn't back here. We've been traveling around for a while and for us to end up in a thing of our past was the last thing on my mind.

They all tried their best to say the right things. I could tell Ghost was thinking over on what to tell me.

"We already have everything we need," he began. "If you want to leave..."

"No," I got up again. "I don't want to leave just yet."

"C'mon, Torrent," Rocket said. "We have no reason to be here, so we should get going."

"Go where?" I leaned against the car door. "We have no reason to go anywhere either. Since we kind of know this place, I think we should stay here for a little bit."

"There's no point," he said. "All that's here are bad memories."

I crossed my arms. "It's getting late and we've been driving all day. I think we should get some rest before hitting the road again. That's my point."

"She's right," Ghost nodded. "We need all the energy we can get otherwise Dracs could wipe us out easily."

Rocket also agreed with this. "You do have a point."

"And it's actually best if we're here," Candy spoke. "We all know this town and can find a safe place to sleep in for the night."

"Okay, let's get going," I took a gas can from the bag and poured it into the tank. We all got inside of the Camaro and I drove out of the abandoned parking lot. Not everything was completely broken and a few buildings and homes were left standing which made me wonder if some people were still here.

That was another reason why I wanted to stay here. I still had hope that somebody could still be around. I was looking for people that most likely won't show up, but I didn't want to let myself believe that everyone here was dead. There could still be someone looking for a chance like us and even though I didn't admit it out loud, it would be nice to at least see another familiar face.

I turned right into an apartment complex. This was the last place that my family was living in before moving and it surprisingly was one of the places that weren't a complete wreck. Some buildings were missing part of the top floor and I noticed that some of the broken parts were inside of the pool that was filled with dirt, clothes, and even a dead animal.

The back of the apartment complex was where my past residence was at and the top floor was still there. I don't know if it was instinctive or not, but I parked my car in the parking spot that my mom used to park her Suburban in. My grip on the steering wheel tightened and the memory of my mom almost brought me to tears. She was still alive somewhere. She had to be. Along with my dad, brother, and the rest of the family.

Candy got out of the passenger seat and looked at me worriedly. She walked around to my side and leaned down to talk to me through the window. "Are you gonna get out?"

I took a deep breath and nodded. "Um, yeah. Let's head inside."

Ghost and Rocket got out and we all walked up the steps and reached the door of my old apartment. My hand grabbed the doorknob and I turned it without thinking that it would be unlocked. I heard the others groan when it wouldn't budge.

"Oh, that's just great," Rocket leaned against the wall. "Where are we gonna go now?"

"Calm down," I let go of the doorknob. "We can get in."

"Get in?" Ghost repeated. "What do mean get in? I don't know if you get it or not, but the door is supposed to open and it's not open!"

"We should've stayed at that gas station," Candy mumbled.

Rocket and Ghost paced back and forth, cursing under their breath at our situation and that's when I opened my mouth again.

"Guys," I said sternly and stopped them from moving. "I said to calm the fuck down. We're gonna be able to get in."

"The door is locked, Torrent," Ghost rolled his eyes.

"You didn't let me finish," I said. "I have the key."

Everyone stopped their movements and looked at me. From underneath my shirt, I revealed a thin silver chain around my neck with a key attached.

"You still had it?" Candy continued to look at the key as I took it off. "After all these years?"

"Yeah," I held the necklace in my hand.

The guys weren't angry anymore, but quiet instead. With a low voice, Rocket said, "What made you keep it for so long?"

"I just kept it," I said. "For some reason, I thought I'd need it if I ever came here again. Looking back, I now realize it's the only thing I could get...since it was too late to get anything or anyone else."

Everything was silent and I noticed that they all lowered their heads and stared at the ground. I fiddled with the key, sensing the regret in myself for ever bringing up what went on that unforgetable night.

I cleared my throat. "Come on. We should get in."

The door unlocked and we all got inside, the whole place welcoming us with a musty smell. Furniture still occupied the space, but other memories from the people that lived here after my family had all gone. My guess was that they packed more personal belongings, hoping to start a new life somewhere else. Whatever home they had, it became our home for the night. It was messy from the small cracks and crumbling walls, but it was fine for us.

"It'll take a little while to get used to the smell," Candy sniffed. "But since we won't be here long, it doesn't matter."

"Too bad the stove doesn't work," Ghost said, nodding his head to the kitchen.

I shook my head. "Power's been out for years."

"We're eating the food that doesn't require cooking then."

"Whatever can fill us up tonight."

Our dinner time was quiet as we all swallowed our meal while sitting in a circle on the living room floor. After a few moments of just chewing and scraping with utensils, we crashed in for the night, using a few blankets from the car. Despite the weather going to extremely high temperatures during the day, the climate got cooler at night. Like every other night, it was hard to sleep in this weather.

Actually, it was hard to sleep at all these days. Night was when we were our most vulnerable. Dracs could attack us right when our eyes are closed, killing us without even having to put up a fight. I knew I locked the apartment door, but I was still unable to sleep like anyone else.

My thoughts of finding someone out there replaced my dreams and I just glued my eyes to the ceiling, filling my mind with nothing but "what ifs". What if my family came back here during the last few years? What if they were looking for me, too? What if my enemies also came back? Is it possible that they could have ran into my family?

What if my family was dead?

I turned to my side and hugged my legs. The thought of death happening to my parents and brother made me shudder. I was going to find them. I had to stop losing hope. I needed to keep my hope alive again.

Suddenly, a scream from outside echoed. I shot up and the others rubbed their eyes, pulling the blankets off themselves and looking at me in confusion.

"HELP!"

"Someone's out there," I took my gun from my belt and stood up. "They sound close. We gotta do something."

"Wait," Ghost had his gun in hand, but stopped me from taking a step forward. "You don't know what's out there. How do we know if it's a trap or not?"

The voice yelled out again. "Please help!"

Whoever was outside wasn't a threat. The cry for help came from the voice of a little girl. "It's a girl. I'm going out."

Before I knew it, I pulled my bandana up to cover my mouth, headed out the door and ignored the group that was obviously against my actions. I still had common sense not to completely expose myself. I hid behind the wall and poked my head out to see if anyone was still around. When the coast was clear, I quickly went down the flight of stairs and put my back against another wall, slowly moving through the small hallway of the bottom floor. At the end of the hallway, a figure ran by and I noticed by the shape that it was the girl that was calling for help.

Another figure ran after her and by the flash of white, I knew it was a Draculoid. This one decided to terrorize a girl who was defenseless and young, meaning I had to save her. I went down the hallway and turned right to find her trapped in the corner. Her eyes full of fear as she stared up at the masked man all in white. I wasn't seen by him and aimed my gun. A shot was fired and I got a direct hit to the head. The Drac fell to the ground instantly and the girl put her hands over her face.

I finally showed myself and walked over to her. She still looked frightened, but I put a hand on her shoulder and bent down on one knee. "Are you okay?"

The girl nodded and her face relaxed. She lowered her arms and I lowered my bandana, giving her a friendly expression.

Footsteps approached near me and I backed away and pointed my gun at a dark figure in the hallway. The figure walked toward me and revealed himself to be a man with bright red hair wearing a yellow mask. His gun was pointed right at me also, but the girl didn't look scared.

Instead, she ran over to the man and wrapped her arms around him. He did the same with only one arm and still held his gun up.

He looked down at her. "Are you alright? What happened?"

"A Drac tried to get me," she answered and then pointed at me. "But she saved me."

The man lowered his gun when my "rescue" was mentioned and stepped closer. "Who are you?"

"I'm Electric Torrent," I lowered my gun and moved a few steps forward. "Who are you?"

He let go of the girl and put his gun in his belt. I watched as his hand reached up to remove the mask and reveal his face.

"I'm Party Poison."

Party Poison kept the girl behind him, but his body was less tense. By the looks of their appearances, I could tell they were Killjoys and I wasn't considered a threat anymore. At least not a threat to them.

The girl was hidden behind the man, but she looked at me and smiled. Her hair was curly and wild, a few locks of hair falling over her big round eyes. Dirt was on her tanned face and her clothes were also dusty. I returned a small grin, but also felt sad for her inside. She looked like she was nine or ten years old, one who grew up in such a broken world. The last time I remember always seeing my brother, he was around her age. He was all grown up, but got to live a normal life for the first twelve years that didn't have BLI in the picture. This girl wasn't able to live with that kind of life.

"Poison!" another voice yelled. Three more figures came out from the dark hallway and I found myself facing strange characters who covered their faces just like their comrade.

One man had on a red leather jacket and on his head was a helmet that was as yellow as his shirt with white letters across the attached black visor that said "Good Luck". The man by his side wore a spaceman helmet and had a lightning bolt on the side, most of his attire black. His sleeves were of leather material while I noticed that the torso was black denim. The third man had on a Halloween mask that resembled Frankenstein in the colors of purple and green. Unlike his mask, he was wearing a faded green army vest and a black shirt underneath with yellow sleeves.

They took out their guns and were about to point them at me, but Poison stopped them. I just stood there, not knowing what to say to these people. Killjoys or not, I still didn't know anything about them or what they could do to me.

"Don't shoot," Posion said. "She's on our side."

The one with the mask was the first to go up to me and show his face. He revealed himself to have dark hair and brown eyes that stared at me with curiosity.

He spoke, but his words weren't directed toward me. "Who is she?"

"Electric Torrent," I answered and he looked at me again. "And you are...?"

"Fun Ghoul," he responded. He extended his arm and held out his hand, indicating a handshake. Even though I still felt awkward, I shook his hand.

Seeing that I didn't bite, the other two took off their helmets. The man wearing red had hair that was dyed an unnatural blonde with brown underneath. The other man wearing black had long, dark curly hair.

"I'm Kobra Kid," the blonde one said.

The one with curly hair followed. "I'm Jet Star."

"Nice to meet you guys," I said slowly. Sure, it wasn't exactly "nice" to meet them, but it was a relief that I wasn't being shot at.

"What are you doing out here alone?" Kobra asked.

I shook my head. "Oh, I'm not-"

"Stay away from her!" Rocket came running from the hallway, Candy and Ghost right behind him. They all came charging and were ready to fire when I held my arms out in front of them.

"Don't!" I yelled and all three of them froze. "They're Killjoys and aren't gonna blow our brains out, so don't blow theirs."

Rocket sighed and shook his head. "Torrent, what the hell just happened?"

"Like I said before leaving the room," I told him. "Somebody needed help and I helped her."

I gestured toward the girl who spoke to support me. "It's true. She did."

Candy looked past us and noticed the Drac's motionless body on the ground. "Yeah, I believe you."

"What about these guys?" Ghost looked at the four men, who had backed away from me after my group had come out.

"They're with her," I walked over to the men and began introducing them. "This is Party Poison, Kobra Kid, Fun Ghoul, and Jet Star."

"This is Ghost Bullet and Acid Candy," Rocket gestured to our two friends. "I'm Chemical Rocket."

"Well, now we know you're not alone," Ghoul said to me. "Lucky no one was hurt."

The girl and I exchanged glances again, giving each other smiles once more. I barely knew this girl, let alone her name, but I already liked her.

"What are you guys doing here?" I heard Candy

"Came across here to look for things we would need along the way," Kobra said.

Poison ruffled the little girl's hair. "This one here wandered off and we followed her voice to find her. Looks like we found you, too."

"So what brings you here?" Jet Star said.

I just shrugged. "Same as you guys. We were staying in a place to sleep in for the night, but I heard cries for help and came out here."

"Oh."

Nobody else knew what to say and it all became silent. It was already awkward enough to have the four of us quiet, but for nine people to just stand there with their mouths shut? Time to break it.

And the only person up to it was me. "Are you guys gonna leave?"

Ghoul raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I'm sorry," I apologized. "That came out wrong. I was just wondering if you guys are gonna head out soon or find a place to stay, too."

They all started looking at each other and by the looks of their faces, my guess was that they didn't think about that.

"Shit," Poison muttered. "We didn't expect to stay this late and it's already night."

He turned to his group. "We gotta find a place to stay."

Kobra scratched his head. "Um, exactly where?"

"I don't know," Poison sighed. "I guess outside."

"Wait," I cut into Poison's discussion. "I know we only met just a few minutes ago and trust is very hard to earn nowadays, but...do you guys wanna stay with us in the apartment?"

Everything I had said that day seemed to make everyone suddenly freeze and glare at me. This wasn't the exception and it made me even question myself. Earlier, I was saying to myself how they can still hurt me and then I just invite them to stay with us. Rocket and Ghost didn't seem too thrilled that I just asked five strangers to be our roommates for the night without even getting an approval.

"Torrent," Rocket hissed as he grabbed my arm. "Can we have a word with you?"

He pulled me to Ghost and Candy, all three of them huddling around me. Even Candy looked at me with a disapproving expression.

In fact, she was the first one to speak. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Just because you got on their good side once doesn't mean we all can sleep in the same room."

"They may be Killjoys," Ghost said. "But that doesn't automatically make them our friends."

"I didn't say they're our friends," I lowered my voice before it got too loud.

"Yeah, but you're still letting them stay with us," Rocket mumbled.

"They're not our friends, but they're our allies," I said sternly. "BLI's trying to get rid of all of us. These guys have the exact same goal as we do and that goal is survival. As you can see by that dead vampire-looking fucker on the ground, it's not a great idea to be out here in the dark. So if I just leave them here because of stupid trust issues and all of them—including that little girl—end up getting dusted, that blood will not only be on my hands, but yours, too."

I didn't want anybody on our side to die and I could tell they didn't either. We've already lost so many people. Rocket stepped back from our little circle and nodded to me. "They can stay."

Ghost left the circle and cleared his throat to speak to the others. "So, how about it? You staying or not?"

They all looked like they were having a discussion of their own and I knew it was obviously about the topic of trusting us, too. Our decision was clear, but what was theirs?

"We're staying," Poison nodded. "It's smarter to be inside."

Their decision was made. They decided to join us for the night.

I motioned for them to follow me and made sure the girl was up in front so we wouldn't lose her again. Everyone stayed close behind, their hands tightly gripping their guns and their eyes wandering around to keep a lookout for more Dracs. The girl held onto my hand on our way up the stairs and I dug through my pocket for the key. Once the door opened, I let everyone in first before also making my way indoors and made sure all of the locks were secure.

"There's two bedrooms," I opened the master bedroom for them. "There's this one right by the living room and the other one's down that small hallway near the front. We'll be in the living room in case we hear anything going on outside. If you hear sounds or voices, let us know."

"Gotcha," Kobra gave me a thumbs up and Jet also let me know he would warn us. The girl gave me a small hug and smiled, following the men into their room. It seemed she had gotten more comfortable around me ever since saving her and this made me feel better about the night.

Poison was the last to go in, but he turned around and put a hand on my shoulder. "Thank you. I can't tell you how grateful we are."

"No problem," I said. "Just something I thought I should do for you guys."

He looked at me, but I wasn't sure if he was giving me a grin or not. I simply muttered a "goodnight" and proceeded to close their door when a hand stopped it from shutting.

The hand opened the door again and I found myself meeting the face of Fun Ghoul. He was the only one who hadn't said anything since we got inside and I wondered what was on his mind at the moment.

"I have a question," he shoved his hands in his pockets. "What made you help us? We could've just been left outside."

My head cocked to side and I found my hand reaching for the knob again. "It just felt like the right thing to do."

"Really?" he looked puzzled. "Just like that? I'm still surprised that you didn't think we'd turn against you."

"There was a feeling inside of me that you wouldn't," I said.

"Wow," he gave me a slight smile. "It's just…we don't usually meet people like you and it's hard to still have morals in this world, you know?"

"Yeah, it's really hard," I agreed.

"I'm glad you gave us a bit of your trust tonight."

"I'm glad you did, too," I managed to smile as well. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

I watched him walk away and finally shut the door, grinning to myself. My back leaned against it and I looked at my group sitting on the carpet floor, looking tired. The time never came to my mind and it probably felt later than it really was. After all that just happened, it was time for a well deserved sleep.

There was an empty spot on the floor waiting for me and I fixed the blanket that I had left there before resting my head. Everyone else was already closing their eyes, giving in to sleep that they had been deprived of for the past few days.

My eyes weren't willing to close, but instead looked at the closed bedroom door. Four men and one small girl were in there. There was something about these strangers that I liked and I think it was because they were the first ones other than my family that didn't treat me like an enemy. Even before all this, I was always considered an enemy to people and it made it hard for me to get through a lot of things in my life.

I yawned and turned the other way, closing my eyes that were just about ready to shut themselves.

Hopefully, these people weren't my enemies. For all I know, they might even be my friends.

---

Everyone ran frantically throughout the streets, myself included. I pushed my way through the rushing crowds, panting and aching from running nonstop. Flames were almost everywhere, filling the air with smoke. My eyes watered as the smoke blinded my sight, running into a very tall figure and causing me to hit the ground. The palm of my hands scraped against the concrete and I winced as I felt many people kick my legs.

My hands were freshly covered in my own blood, marks left from my landing. They stung and were mixed with dirt, the blood still dripping through my fingertips. I tried to get up, but the ground began shaking and I lost my balance. There was another explosion and I watched in horror as cars flew and fires spread.

I heard my name being called, the distant voice of my cousin. She ran to me, her jacket tied around her waist and her clothes slightly torn.

"We have to get out of here!" she helped me up and yelled over all the commotion.

"But where's everyone else?" I wiped the blood on my jeans and pushed the hair out of my face.

She grabbed my arm and we ran the opposite direction. "They were last seen near your old neighborhood. Come on, we can't lose them!"

Our destination was a long way by foot and she continued to yank my arm down the road. Everything was in complete chaos and the only thing focused on my mind was to get my family out of the town before it was too late. People were crowding the streets, children holding onto their parents with tears in their eyes and parents holding as many belongings they could carry. The evacuation only made things worse as the process was slow and angered everybody that still valued their lives.

The night sky was filled with smoke and the path ahead of me was so dark since the streetlights went out. I was running out of strength from running for so long, but I didn't want to stop. The whole time we were hurrying over to the neighborhood, my vision blurred and I couldn't even think.

My chest was hurting by the time we got there and it was already bad enough that I couldn't find my family, but the neighborhood was just as crowded. People were being put into big white trucks by men in white suits and I started panicking at the sight of them. They were the men I had been running from all night and I was hoping my family wasn't among those that were trembling in the large vehicles.

More voices screamed out my name. It was my cousin's brothers, both of them holding the hands of their youngest sister. She looked relieved to see us and I couldn't help but feel the same way. We ran over to the three and I nearly threw my arms around all of them. "You're okay!"

I still hadn't seen my little brother and it was scary as hell that none of our parents were around.

"Where's my parents?" I asked. "Where's your parents?"

"They're the only ones we haven't found," my cousin tightened his fists. "I really hope BLI didn't fucking take them."

"Don't say that," his sister put her hands over her ears. "I don't want that in my head."

Her brother held her close. "We'll find them soon. I promise."

"Stop them!" a deep voice yelled. The five of us turned, seeing all the men in white suits and terrifying masks running straight toward us. Just when we tried to run away, we were surrounded. More men had approached us and the first one they grabbed was the youngest one.

"No!" she screamed. They picked her up and she struggled to break free. She was kicking her legs, scratching at the man's arms, but she still wasn't able to get away. Her brothers fought their way to get to her, but were immediately swarmed. Her sister was grabbed as well and I felt an arm grab my waist and a gloved hand cover my mouth. I moved my legs and arms around as much as I could to get out. I kicked at them and gasped for breath as the hand still clamped over my mouth.

Their little sister was taken away from us and brought over to a truck. Inside of the truck was our families, watching helplessly as we all struggled to reach them.

"Mom!" I shook around with all the strength I had when all of a sudden, I was thrown to the ground. I turned my head to find that whoever grabbed me ran off, but there was no time for questions anymore. I noticed something in the corner of my eye and found it to be an unusual looking gun that was all white. One of the men had dropped it and that was the chance I was looking for.

I crawled over to the gun and grabbed it. Within seconds, I was on my feet again to point the weapon and fight the people that got in my way. My mom was screaming for me while crying hysterically and I just had to get to her. I couldn't have them separate from me. Not tonight.

"Mom! Dad!"

---

I shot up and my eyes opened. My hands were clutching the blanket and my forehead was drenched in sweat. Everyone was around me and still sleeping peacefully, unaware that I had woken up. The bedroom was still closed, indicating that Party Poison and his group were still asleep as well. Through the blinds of the sliding door, there was little sunlight peeking through and I realized that the sun was just beginning to rise.

Nightmares never came to me anymore. I hardly got any sleep most nights, so that meant I hardly got any dreams. Good dreams or bad dreams. I never got them. So why did this one decide to enter my mind in the night? Not only was it a dream, but it was a nightmare that reminded me of the one failure that killed me every day. They were the most important ones in my life and I couldn't save them.

I put my pillow against my face, wanting to scream at the top of lungs so badly. "I hate this town."

There was no way I could go back to sleep. Fresh air was calling me because the musty smell that still filled the apartment was making me sick. I tossed the blanket and pillow aside and got up to open the sliding door that led to the small balcony. Placed on the balcony was a small green couch that was faded and covered in dust. Next to it was a dented wooden table with an ashtray on top.

I brushed off some of the dust with my hand and sat on the couch, hugging my knees again like the night before. The morning breeze felt good against my face as I watched the sun slowly rise in the horizon that was just behind all the broken buildings. To be honest, I actually found the sunrise very pretty. Mornings like this were part of the reason why I got up.

The glass door behind me slid open again, followed by the sounds of the blinds hitting against each other. I watched with a startled look as the blinds moved out of the way and out came Fun Ghoul. He was holding a pack of cigarettes and faced me.

"Knew I'd find you out here since I saw three people in the living room instead of four," he mumbled. "Mind if I join you?"

"Oh, I don't mind," I was about to scoot over, but he moved the table to sit next to me on my left.

He took out a cigarette from the pack and pulled out a lighter from his pocket. "You smoke?"

"No thanks," I shook my head. "I'm not in the mood for one right now."

"Okay then," he lit the cigarette, brought it to his lips, and took in a small breath. I didn't know what else to say to him since it's the first time in a while since I've been alone with someone I barely knew. I was hoping to have some alone time, but his company didn't bother me either. My lips opened to speak, but I instead put my thumb in my mouth and bit down on it. Conversation with Ghoul wasn't going so well and I even failed to look at him.

He seemed to notice me chewing on my own thumb and lack of social skills. "You're out here pretty early. Why is that?"

"Couldn't sleep," I said. "My mind's fucking with me and wouldn't give me a night of peace."

"Let me guess," he put his cigarette in the old ashtray. "You had a bad dream that bothered you so much, you couldn't bring yourself to close your eyes again and came out here instead."

His statement was way too accurate. "Yeah. Exactly what you said. What about you?"

"My mind decided to fuck with me, too," he leaned back on the couch. "I didn't just come out here for a smoke."

I sensed the emotion in his voice. His eyes looked sad as he stared at the rising sun ahead of him and I found myself looking at my own reflection. That was the same face that I had yesterday while the memories piled back up in my head. His face reminded me that I wasn't the only one who suffered from all this. Others were affected like me and his story could be much worse than mine.

"Sorry," I muttered. "Bad dreams suck."

He tried his best to smile lightly at me, but I knew how hard it was to be happy when you didn't really have anything to be happy about. Ghoul nodded and I gave him a look of sympathy. "You don't have to tell me about your dream if you don't want to-"

"I lost everyone in Battery City," he looked away. I didn't think he would actually say anything without hesitating. I know I didn't fully gain his trust and here he was telling me what went on in his mind. Something that was personal and painful to him.

"Everyone I loved. They're all gone. They're all dead."

I bit my thumb again. He was actually telling me things that weren't my business and I wouldn't be comfortable to do that if it was the other way around. Ghoul was opening up to me a little and I still didn't know if I wanted to do the same.

"I-I'm sorry," he cleared his throat and scoffed. "What am I doing? I'm telling secrets to someone I shouldn't."

He didn't offend me since that was what I was thinking the whole time. "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me. I doubt you believe that, but I'll tell you about my dream if it makes you feel better."

Before he said another word, I spoke again. "My family was taken away. This town is where I lost them."

"This town?" he didn't expect this and wanted to understand. "Are they dead?"

"I don't know," I said. "They were put into a truck and I don't know what happened to them afterwards."

"You're lucky," he sighed while picking up the cigarette again. "You still have the chance to find them alive. But me? That's not gonna happen. My family died in front of me and it's all because I wasn't able to do anything in time. It's all because of those Dracs!"

Ghoul threw the cigarette over the balcony, angry at himself while thinking back at his life. I gently put a hand on his shoulder and tried to calm him down.

"You did all you could to protect them and I'm sure they'd want you to keep fighting," I assured him. "There are still people willing to fight alongside you. You're not alone."

He listened to what I said and took a deep breath. "You're right, we're not alone. Thank you."

"For what?"

"For listening to me and saying the right thing. I think I needed that."

"You're welcome," I said with a small smile. "I'm glad we opened up a little this morning. Hopefully, we'll learn to trust each other more."

"Yeah, hopefully," he lightened up a little, no longer looking as sad as he did earlier.

He turned his head away and opened his mouth to say something, but his lips shut and he suddenly looked alarmed. His face was still looking to the left and he quickly got to his feet. Ghoul cursed under his breath and turned to grab my wrist. At first I thought he was going to attack me, so I almost freaked out and reached for my gun until he clamped a hand over my mouth.

"Dracs are coming," he whispered closely to my ear. "We gotta get inside fast."

I wasn't sure what to believe until I noticed two Draculoids walking in the distant road. They were still far away enough for us not to be spotted, but my guess was that they tracked down where the other one was. The one that I had killed the night before.

"Get inside," Ghoul said again. "We'll think of something."

My heart was beating fast and Ghoul took his hand off of my mouth. We opened the sliding door and got inside to close the blinds. Draculoids were coming close to us and most of us were asleep. The two of us had to think of something quickly before time ran out and before that apartment door opened, exposing us to the danger we could never escape.