The Little Speaker

The Alley

Well, there you are. Sitting in an alleyway with your legs tucked closely to your chest, having nothing to entertain you but the graffiti artworks painted along the brick wall. It was pretty dark now, but the street lights provided some light since it peered into the cracks of the alley, giving you some visuals in case you had to book it. 

You gave a deep sigh, wondering if your friends had realized that you've gone off by yourself, which is most likely gonna happen since those three always called you to see if your back home safe and sound, but the fact that you haven't answered since your phone was dead, would send them a panic signal. You mentally scolded yourself, resting your head on your knees. Your thoughts also drifted off to Carol, your supposed guardian who's oftentimes busy with her work, you had no idea what she did but she did earn a lot of money from it to support the two of you, but you wish that she'd spend some time home. Carol didn't own a cellphone, so having her check in on you was a little tricky, but if your home and she manages to call from a pay phone, well, that's good enough.

The deeper in thought you were, the more you wondered about your decision, could you have insisted on going with Keith and Sherrie to their thing even if it was boring or dangerous? Or maybe told Pico the truth? You wondered how Carol must be feeling right now, was she scared? Angry? Maybe both? She had no idea if your safe, and anything can happen after dark so it was completely understandable. 

A chilly breeze swept past your exposed legs, making your body shiver as your teeth began to chatter, thankfully, your hoodie was big enough to at least warm you up, and the backpack limp by your side was providing some heat. Snuggling your head deeper into the oversized hoodie, you wondered if you could just rest here for the night and find some help in the morning, that sounds like a plan, than again, someone could easily snatch you away so staying awake is your main priority. But it isn't as easy as it looks.

Your head began bobbing up and down, your body yearning for rest as you tried to keep your eyes open. "Just a quick nap." You told yourself, over and over again. You were just about to give out until you heard faint footsteps from the right, you only assumed that it was someone walking by, but, their direction turned in the alley, which carried the sound of footsteps throughout the walls, this was immediately a slap to the face to shake up. Not daring to look, you tried to make yourself as small as possible, hoping that whoever was passing by didn't notice you.

Heart beating out of your chest, you tried to steady your breathing, hoping to make as little noise as possible. As the footsteps grew closer, you heart grew louder within your ears, it was so loud that whoever was walking by could probably hear it. Eventually, it stopped, which confused you, but you soon realized that this stranger was standing above you. It was quiet for a whole solid minute, you were practically shaking, the only thing that broke the silence was the stranger before you. 

"What's a kid like you doing out here?" He asked, mainly to himself, you heard the shuffling of his clothes, assuming that he's crouched down since his voice seems a little clearer now than before. "Hey, kid," he called, but you didn't answer. He sighed, running his hands across his face, why did he bother? You weren't his problem, than again he wasn't that cold hearted, sure he can be a jerk to most people sometimes but leaving a little kid out here alone in the dark is something he doesn't do. 

Suggesting that your asleep, he shook your shoulders, which caused you to violently flinch as your head shot out from your hoodie. He retracted his hand away from you, "Woah, calm down, I'm not going to hurt you." He said, raising both his hands up. "U-um! Hi!" You squeaked, your not used to talking to strangers so this was a little odd and new to you. "What are you doing out here kid? You planning on freezing to death?" He asked, you shifted your gaze someplace else, "U-um, I got lost and decided to rest for a bit." You replied honestly, you didn't know if telling a stranger would help your current situation but it'd be worth the shot to get some help. 

He sighed once again, well, there goes his Friday night.