บท 5: CHAPTER 5
Aurora was dragged along by Jeonguk. Panting she asked, "Where are we going?"
Jeonguk didn't say a word. He observed his surroundings as they kept on running. They were moving further and further away from the train station they formerly came from. Aurora kept looking back, wondering if something or someone was chasing them. Everything looked normal from behind. So why was Jeonguk running? They eventually stopped at the curb, waiting for the light to change. Aurora looked up at the tall buildings that surrounded her. They had flashy ads, giant screens and very eye-catchy billboards that lined the streets and the shiny glass buildings.
Breaking out of her trance, Jeonguk hurried her along. As they arrived to the next block, Jeonguk J-walked to the other side of the street. "You're not moving fast enough." He lifts her into his arms, picking up his pace. Aurora yelped, feeling his body heating up. She wondered if he was overworking himself.
"Jeonguk, slow down if you're overworking yourself—" Loud screaming was heard from behind him. Aurora jumped in his arms. Peeking over his shoulder, there was an unexpected performance taking place. People were gathering on the sidewalk to see what was going on.
Aurora remained soundless, looking in the direction Jeonguk was taking her. Eventually, Jeonguk stopped once he reached the end of the block. Putting Aurora down calmly, Aurora looked up at him. "Why were you in such a hurry to leave?"
"We were on TV."
Aurora's eyes lit up.
"The waiter who greeted us was watching it the entire time. He knew we were in trouble but didn't say anything," He informed her. "If anyone else had seen that, and realized that we were in the restaurant with them, we would have been in big trouble." Ambling along with her following, he continued. "That girl named Cindy seemed all nice. But from examining her body language, she has a history of hating people who didn't own AIs, especially homeless people or fostered children. Although she is hiding it, if she had known that I didn't truly belong to you, and where you came from, she would have called the police immediately and have you arrested."
Aurora felt terribly hurt by that idea. "…the world has this much hatred for people like me."
Jeonguk glanced down at her. Aurora's eyes teared up. She tried to suck it up, but it just hurts. She wiped her eyes, sniffling.
Jeonguk stopped her, kneeling down to her. "Cindy also had a bad history with homeless people. They abused her, used her in many ways you could imagine and betrayed her. Once she was adopted, she devoted her life to make sure she wouldn't be like those people—raggedy, no manners, no dignity. She wanted to be different. And so, she decided to go along with the majority of the crowd—show deep animosity for her own kind." Jeonguk stood up straight. "It's not entirely her fault. She felt that rich people actually had more peace and love and security, which is sadly not the case."
"How can you know all that…?"
"I saw it in her eyes. She's hiding her true identity from the whole world just to be like them."
Aurora sniffled hard. Jeonguk wiped her eyes with his thumbs. "Enough crying. I made sure that she couldn't stop us, nor could that waiter." He began walking once again, Aurora following. "His eyes may seem welcoming, but deep down he has a treacherous heart. He'd do anything for money if given the chance."
"So, you can read their minds…?"
"Only their eyes."
Aurora was impressed. It made her wonder if Jeonguk examined her through her eyes already. Her curiosity reaching it's peak, she tugged his sleeve, earning a glance from him. "Did you…read my eyes already?"
"No."
"Oh," Aurora paused. "How come?"
"I could already tell you had a good heart. You just didn't know what to do with yourself because no one took out the time to help your heart grow."
Aurora blushed. He was truly right about her. Aurora always wanted to have a good heart for others, but because of how she was brought up, she was never given the chance. She was lied to, misled, betrayed and slandered many times. Aurora just wanted to get away from her past, but no matter where she went, it always followed her like a faithful slave, hoping that one day it's master wouldn't leave them behind. But she wanted to escape. She wanted her past to disappear.
As they neared a less busy area, Jeonguk finally found another subway that was nearby. "Look," He points to the sign above the subway. "We can catch a train back to The North Sea. Would it be okay to go back, now?"
"Not really," Aurora said. "They're most likely having a police investigation down there, so the trains may have been stopped for a while."
Jeonguk lowered his hand. "Interesting," He turned to Aurora. "Then, perhaps we should look for a new home?"
"What…?" Aurora gapes at him. "How can we possibly do that in a place like this?" She looks around speechless at the territory.
"Ask around for any available apartments."
"No, no, no." Aurora shook her head. "We definitely cannot possibly do something like that."
"Why not?"
"The police are after us, and we have absolutely no money whatsoever to even afford a place."
Jeonguk understood Aurora. "Alright. We'll find a different way out of here." Jeonguk began to ask people for directions back to The North Sea without taking the trains here.
Aurora stood back to move out of the way of pedestrians. Hugging herself, she silently watched Jeonguk put in so much effort, just to please her. Aurora's heart was beginning to feel more drawn towards Jeonguk. I love him… She assumed thoughtlessly. Grasping that that thought slipped into her mind, she grimaced. "What the hell am I thinking?!" She hissed at herself.
Jeonguk soon returned to her. "Surprising,"
"What is?"
"Many of the people I just questioned are not from this area. They're all tourists."
Sighing, Aurora decided to go and ask those who were standing by stores where they should go. A couple of people gave her different directions, which made it more difficult to choose where to go. Going over to the next individual next door, the woman gave her shockingly different directions.
"Why don't you and your boyfriend walk the Kings Bridge?"
"O-Oh no!" Aurora waved her hands in disagreement. "He's not my boyfriend!"
"Oh? Well, I guess you do look a bit young for him."
Aurora glowered but tried to hide it with a smirk.
"But you would have to take the train because it's pretty far. You'd have to get off at Tunnel Street, which is about three to four stops away. But by foot, it's a long walk."
"The train…" Aurora sighed.
Jeonguk approached them, taking her shoulder. "Let's just take the train," He insisted. "If anything happens, I'll protect you."
Aurora complied, thanking the lady.
"You can take the A Train by Hay Street. Just ask around, people live here, y'know?"
"There are a lot of tourists, though." Jeonguk pointed out.
"True, but nonetheless, take care!" The lady waved.
On their way back to the subway, Aurora took Jeonguk's hand. Jeonguk didn't understand why she was holding his hand, so he questioned her motive.
"I'm…a little nervous." She admits.
"Why is that?"
"I shoved those officers…ate at a wealthy restaurant and stole food…we're being chased by them, and we can't even get back home…and so much more."
Jeonguk tilted his head at her.
"I'm just…scared." Her hand slightly tightened.
Holding her hand a bit tighter, Jeonguk reassured her that he wasn't going to let anything bad happen to her.
Going underground, Aurora and Jeonguk stepped in line to speak to a TTA official. Once it was their turn, Aurora humbly asked which trains can take them to Tunnel Street. The operator advised them to take either the Q, R, N or W Train. All of them would take her there either way.
Leaving the line, Aurora and Jeonguk paused. "The turnstiles…" Aurora whispered. She bit her lip. Jeonguk looked around.
"Look, people are going through the doors."
"No, we can't do that." Aurora deadpanned.
"Why not?"
"There might be officers watching."
Jeonguk approached the door, walking in.
"Jeonguk!" Aurora hissed. She glanced back to see if the operator behind the glass was watching. He was focused on talking to other people who needed assistance.
"It's clear," He says convinced. "Come."
Reluctantly, Aurora hurries through the door. Jeonguk shuts it tight, and begins walking along.
"We need to look for signs that tells us where the Q, R, N, and W Trains are." Aurora enlightens.
"They're up that way." Jeonguk points at the sign hanging from the ceiling.
Following Jeonguk, Aurora glanced at all the people just nonchalantly going by. It was really hard to tell who were the AI and who wasn't. Comparing Jeonguk from the back, she realized that he can move pretty stale. He really needs to loosen up and act more humanly… She thought.
Once they arrived at the staircase for the needed trains, they hurried downstairs. An N train pulled up just in time. "Are we on the right side?" Aurora then questions as she just remembered that there are two platforms for each train.
Jeonguk paused as the train was yielding into the station. Looking around, he tapped a man's shoulder, asking if this side would lead to Tunnel Street.
"The other platform is the right side you're looking for." As he said that, an N Train on the opposite side was now approaching.
Aurora stressed that they needed to hurry up. Thanking the man and bowing his head, Jeonguk grabbed Aurora's hand and raced to the other side. Getting inside the train, there were plenty of empty seats for them to sit in. They sat by the door, exhaling.
Aurora then wondered how many stops would the N Train take until Tunnel Street. She scrutinized her surroundings, seeing if there were any maps or signs that could assist her. On the ceiling, there was a trainline—similar to a timeline—stretched across. Squinting, Aurora stood up, trying to see the words clearly. She never knew how bad her eyesight was until now. "…three stops." The train made a sharp turn, causing her to lose her footing.
Jeonguk grabbed a hold of her. "Be careful."
Aurora quickly sat down. "…thanks." They were quiet throughout the train ride until their stop arrived. When they got off, their eyes lit up at how rundown the station was. "Yikes." Aurora looked behind her. "Can't they do some sort of touch up down here?"
As they walked down the platform, they saw many signs that would lead them to different streets. This caught them off guard. "Which exit…" Jeonguk mumbled holding his chin. People were passing them by, a few by few. Aurora ran over to the map posted on the wall. Disappointedly, it was another train map that showed different routes.
"I guess we're just going to have to take a guess." Aurora sighs.
"Let's walk to the end of the platform and get off there." Jeonguk proposes.
"Why?" Aurora stood next to Jeonguk and hovered her hand over her eyes to see the sign far down.
"Just a guess."
Aurora shrugged. Once they got to the exit, they walked upstairs, meeting another set of stairs, followed by another. The girl gagged at the annoying amount of flights she had to climb. As they reached the turnstiles, Aurora gasped as there were a few officers ambling down the platform towards them. "We…we need to run."
"I don't think they suspect us." Jeonguk tried to wave at them, but Aurora abruptly snatched his hand down.
"Don't be stupid!" She sneered. "Are you trying to get us caught?!"
Jeonguk didn't say a word.
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