Beyond The Soul

~Nico~ (Chapter2)

I cautiously look behind my shoulder, still expecting the men to be after me. The stench of their aftershave is still embedded into my mind, it reeked as if they were trying to soak in it. I touch my forehead and realize it's still bleeding from the previous beating. Their words still echo in my mind like the little devil on my shoulder.

"Where's the rest of it?"

"Only $350 this week?"

"The boss ain't gonna like it. You should'a known by now."

I shake my head and grumble a cuss or too before walking into my house. The old roof shackles can't stand against the rain, so I have buckets line each corner to catch the water. Mold has taken over the once beautiful colour of my house. What was once a vibrant blue is now a hideous reminder of what aging will do to you.

I walk inside and nervously tiptoe around the mess covering the living room floor. I cough as I choke on the smoke from my drunk mothers' cigarette. I sigh and try to silently reach my room without her noticing I'm home. "Nico!" My mothers slurred voice utters. She must have heard my cough."Mom, you're supposed to light up outside." I say with a lack of authority. I already know she doesn't care about her health or mine."I do not give a damn!" I have to duck to avoid an empty bottle hitting me. My mother; such a lovely lady.

I ice and clean my wounds before tidying my room for the final time today. After I finished, the sweet embrace of sleep takes me to a different world. A world where my father never died, my mother lived a happy life, and I never existed.

~The next week~

I wake up the next morning to the realization that I still owe the Minn Men a lot of money. I guess it's time to steal my way to freedom.

The clouds overhead poured the cold rain onto my face. Each ice cold raindrop drips from my forehead onto my cheek. The darkness of the clouds are, in a sense, comforting. They let me be sad with their stormy skies that mimic the same storm in my mind. The waves of up-and-down emotions that drown me with pain and guilt. It feels as if I can only focus on one thing at a time. I hear the zeppelins soar and people mumble through their lives. Its all a blur except for one individual; a red headed lady. Her black velvet coat flows against her as she struts through the streets, acting like she owns the place. Telling buy her clothing and attitude, she's rich enough to own if she pleased. While watching her from behind, I see that her wallet is sticking out a little. Its smooth black leather with sparkles from the raindrops landing on it. 

If I bumped her, it shouldn't be that hard to grab it. She has to have a load of money in there, right? 

I stand up from the wet park bench and follow her from a distance. I count her steps and watch her movements to find out the easiest way to grab that black leather wallet. I mimic her steps until I've finally gotten into her pattern. I fake a sloppy run towards her, tripping as I pass her. I manage to grab her wallet, push it up my sleeve, and stutter the words "S-sorry!". I hold my breath for a second, trying to figure out whether she noticed me. She rolls her eyes and turns to walk in the other direction. I release my held breath with relief. 'I'm glad I didn't mess up as usual.' I say to myself. I keep walking around, letting myself get attacked by the bitterness of the freezing rain. Today was another successful day in the stealing business.

I hear racing footsteps coming in my direction, and I look up in time to see a young brunette woman rushing at me. Who the hell is she? I'm shaken when she forcefully grabs me and pulls me into a nearby alleyway. I shiver and itch from the feeling of her skin against mine. What if she has something contagious? This random lady is someone I have never met and they are touching me; I'm not okay with it. Everything in my life is horrible, from the alcoholic mother to an impossible debt to pay. But now I'm getting dragged somewhere by a contagious brunette? 

My life keeps getting worse and worse.