Slow and Speedy Win the Fight

38. Xu's Store

Sheldon

I waited outside the school property for Haresa.

I couldn't believe I was accepting help from a hero but I needed a good grade. If I couldn't get this degree, I might as well not move forward with my goals.

"Ready to go?"

Haresa stared at me with a not so enthusiastic smile. Their under eyes were dark and I could tell they didn't get enough sleep. I gave a grunt in response and we began walking in silence.

They handed me what seemed to be a ticket and I stared at it.

"It's the fare for transit," they explained.

I turned the stiff slip of paper in my hands. It was blue and had a giant "S" marked on it with the words "student ticket" printed on the bottom.

We walked towards the underground entrance and we slowly descended down the stairs.

"Have you ever been in the subway before?" They asked.

"Yeah," I grunted. "Don't you remember fighting me in there when we were like seven?"

"Seven?" Haresa scrunched up their nose as they seemed to search for the memory. "I think I was eight then."

"Ah, right. It was around spring then."

"You were born after spring?"

"I was made in summer."

The correction made them tense up. "Right."

We arrived at the booth and Haresa deposited their ticket in the box before using the turnstile. I copied and got my bag stuck in it for a moment before catching up to Haresa. They seemed amused and I tried to think of something to divert their attention from my blunder.

"When's your... age day." I refused to meet their eyes.

"My birthday?" They responded in surprise and I shrugged. "It's in January."

"Neat."

We quietly descended new stairs to the subway platform. More people seemed to gather near the concrete benches and our footsteps echoed through the space. Haresa and I didn't talk much and I felt like there were eyes on as we travelled through the space. Did people recognize me or were they focused on Haresa?

After a few minutes of waiting, the train roared through the station and came to a screeching halt. The doors opened with a ping and Haresa walked in without any hesitation. I followed inside and eyed the interior. There were a lot more people than I remembered. At the same time, I forced people off the train as a kid when I had hijacked it.

"Why did you steal a train again?" Haresa asked which caught me off guard.

"Villain reasons."

I don't even remember the motivations behind it. I didn't do much without instructions back then.

The ride between us was silent. Haresa would try and bring up topics for the two of us to converse but I would shut it down quickly. We may be in the same class and talk to the same people but it didn't mean that we wouldn't have to face off in a fight at a moment's notice.

I clung onto the metal bars the whole time while Haresa stood there without any need to hold on. No matter the amount of movement the train made, they didn't stumble over to the side. In contrast, my feet had to be adjusted constantly to find stability. How the hell did I stand on this much less fight on it when we were younger?

"Hey, the next stop is where we're getting off," Haresa said.

"Okay."

When the train finally arrived at the stop, I exited the train and took a deep breath. My head felt like it was under pressure and I felt a sloshing sensation in my stomach.

"You look sick. Did you get motion sickness in there?" Haresa looked at me with concern.

"No," I lied. "Let's just go to the place."

"Alright, it's called Xu's. It's not too far from here."

We began to walk again and I took deep breaths.

I never want to go on the subway ever again.