Dents

[+] Let Me Out

"You don't even need to ask."

I stood up from the bed. My body was uncharacteristically tired. My mind whirled through a flurry of thoughts and possibilities.

It felt like I had waited an eternity for this moment. Now that it was finally here, I no longer knew what to do with it. Despite my disinclination to own up to it, the unfortunate reality was that I had grown comfortable with the normalcy of our lives at Wobble Street. Change seemed unnecessary at best, and terrifying at worst.

Yet, I wholeheartedly agreed without hesitation. 

Regardless of how tough I pretended to be years ago, I found myself to be far more capable than before. Noodle was right.

I was certain that wherever we went, as long as we were together, we'd be alright. The confidence 2D instilled in me knew no bounds. 

"Where are we going?"

"Someplace special," he smirked.

His tongue traced playfully over his teeth.

It was obvious that I wouldn't be getting any more of an answer than that. As if he knew that his response wasn't satisfactory, 2D continued.

"Pack everyfink."

"... Everything?"

"Mhm."

He lit the cigarette he'd been twirling in his fingers for the last five minutes.

I considered the conversation we had prior to the Now Now's release. I practically begged him to come along with me to a quiet place, somewhere far away. His response that afternoon rung clearly in my skull as if he had just spoken aloud.

"Why not foreva?"

Back then, I agreed. Forever seemed a whole lot longer than it had in the days gone by.

The despondent tone of my own voice confused me.

"Will we be coming back?"

2D eyed me curiously. His black voids searched for answers I didn't have. He answered my question with another.

"Saoirse," he sighed.

It was a hollow sound, although it was distinctly lacking the impatience or disappointment that one might expect. It was compassionate. It was as if he were explaining a complicated concept to a small child.

"If yew knew the ducks would come home no matta wha', would yew still be sad to see 'em go?"

It was the same question he raised at the pizza place a while back. I wasn't prepared to answer it at the time. In honesty, I had totally forgotten that I promised to revisit it later with everything that had been going on. I mulled it over again.

"No. No, I guess not."

"Le's go, then."

"Alright," I smiled.

The weight on my shoulders gradually diminished.

I quietly exited the room while 2D snagged a beaten flip phone from the nightstand to make a call.

I tiptoed toward the hall closet. There, I retrieved a couple of oversized duffle bags that had undoubtedly seen better days. I took them both to my room and began stuffing them with the contents of my dresser. I realized that I definitely wasn't going to need two bags for the limited possessions I had.

For most people, that might have been a sad thought. For me, it wasn't so bad. It was almost nostalgic, in a way.

I thought back to the tangerine sunset evening when I washed up on Plastic Beach. I had only a shoddy boat and a half empty knapsack to my name. If I had found my boat and run away that same night as I'd intended to, what would have become of me?