Koshi12

“Kid, instead of staying out here in this dump—why not come with me?
You can play all the tennis you want. Live in a better place without having to worry about not having enough food on the table or clothes on your back”
I looked up at him, eyes narrowing.
Disbelief.
Suspicion.
This wasn’t normal.
Nothing about this was normal.
A stranger in rich clothes shows up out of nowhere, offers me a golden ticket out of this dump, and expects me to just say yes?
Yeah, right.
Every instinct I had was screaming. My gut twisted with a familiar tension—one I knew better than to ignore.
So I did the only thing I know how to do when the world gets too close.
I ran.

Diamond in the Slums

Montvale- aka 'The City of the Dead'

A place that is exactly that… Dead.

People don't live here because they want to.

No one would ever live here willingly..

But, where else would they go, the real world won't accept people like them.

Once your life is ruined, you come here, and just wait for the day you die..

I've seen all kinds of people here… that woman would even invite some of them around. I would always find myself watching them, silently. That is something you learn quickly around here- When to watch, and when you stay far away.

And one of the main rules you need to know when living here is-

You NEVER butt in.

You keep your head down. Mind your own business. Walk past like you didn't hear or see a thing. The second you break that rule… you're done. Doesn't matter if you're right or wrong. Around here, that's how grown-ups disappear.

I didn't mess up. I was just born here .No one asked me what I wanted. Yet here I am, living a life that was forced onto me with no way out of this hellhole.

I had mostly accepted it too, at the age of 12 I accepted the fact that I would stay here forever, get old and one day just disappear.

I didn't even know it had a real name. It was just something I copied while watching those sketchy old play on the field whenever I ran away from home every now and then before that woman caught me.

It was different from what I would see in this dump, so I became interested in it. It was only interest at first.

I sighed, staring down at the glove in my hand as I sat on the floor next to the broken nightstand. My eyes wandered to the jar—the one where the saved money was.

'No..You don't get to leave.. You will stay in this hellhole away from me, you don't deserve to live nicely'

My fingers clenched tighter around the glove. My other hand moved slowly toward the jar.

The words kept spinning—over and over—louder and louder.

The jar shattered against the wall.

Coins scattered. Crumpled bills floated to the floor.

Except for me—breathing hard, chest tight, hands shaking.

I'm actually sitting here on the mound waiting for the same rich lunatic in silence while holding the worn out glove.

'The lunatic didn't even say what time he would be here'

I don't even know this man and I'm about to go to who knows where with him?

Go home Erin.. You still have time to go home and forget about all of it. Just go-

The sudden shout nearly made me jump out of my skin.

I turned my head fast- too fast- and there he was, walking towards me with that same bright, way-too eager smile on his face.

I stayed quiet, hugging the glove tighter to my chest. I didn't know what to say.

He didn't seem to care though, he just ran right over.

"I really wasn't sure you'd come" he said, hands in his pockets looking right at me. " I'm glad you did"

I looked away from him focusing on a crack in the dirt instead of his face. " I almost didnt" I mumbled.

"Thats fair" He said, softer this time. "But you did"