"What the!?"
A few hours had passed, and the bus finally arrived at its destination. Violently too, as the driver slammed on the brakes to wake everyone up.
"Aight! Wake up, you fools!" Jefferson slammed his crowbar on the seat, making sure those who were not woken up by the sudden stop opened their eyes, "Line up and open your pouches so I can give you your share!"
"Ugh. Can't we just keep everything this time, Boss!? I really need to take my wife on a date!" One of the scavengers quickly complained as soon as he woke up, and Jefferson only laughed while he once again slammed his crowbar on the seat.
"If you tryna take ya wife on a date, then you ain't got no business workin' as no scavenger! Hand over them pouches, now!" He raised his voice even further. He was about to say something else, but he got distracted by Adam's bright green eyes suddenly being in front of him.
Jefferson did not say anything and just grabbed Adam's pouch, pouring out the contents onto the tray he was holding. Well, there wasn't that much to pour out.
"Ah, damn it," Jefferson cursed as he started parting the melted trinkets, "Knew I shoulda got us a permit over in West Lane instead. Damn! Aight, fine!"
Jefferson raised his voice. And instead of parting Adam's share, he returned everything into his pouch and gave it back to him in full.
"You get to keep your pouch this time, boys!" Jefferson hollered, "But you best bring back a whole lot tomorrow, or I swear I'ma shave yo' balls clean off! I ain't runnin' no damn charity!"
"You're the best, Boss!"
"Ah! Yes! Yes!"
And while the rest of the scavengers celebrated, Adam quietly slipped away.
"Thank you, Boss," he murmured to Jefferson before stepping off the bus.
Jefferson looked like he wanted to say something, but in the end, he just gave Adam a nod and let him go.
He knew the kind of people who ended up as scavengers. Most were either undocumented, illegal, or running from something. The others, Jefferson could read easily enough.
But Adam?
Adam had been with the team for five years, and not once had he spent time with them outside the scavenging runs.
"Okay!" Jefferson clapped, "Aight, the rest of y'all get the fuck on outta here! See y'all tomorrow!"
***
An hour later, Adam had just finished cashing out his loot from one of the many pawn shops next to the Scavenger office. He didn't have a bank account, so he had to exchange everything in cash—good, he preferred it that way anyway.
"Mom. Look at him."
"Baby, no! Don't go near him!"
As he waited for the crossing light to turn green, the people around him kept their distance, giving him space on the sidewalk as if he carried some kind of plague. Yet another perk of being a scavenger—everyone preferred to stay far away. Good, he also preferred it that way anyway.
Scavengers were not liked by society at all. After all, they were practically grave robbers, stealing from the dead.
It was better this way.
Better for who? You could be doing more, Adam. Much more. These people don't even know that they are in the presence of—
"Shut up. Shut up…" Adam clasped his head, shaking his thoughts off as the light went green and everyone crossed the road. And he was like a rock in a river, splitting the current with how people were keeping their distance from him. He sighed, gritting his teeth as he crossed the road.
Adam!
He clicked his tongue as his own voice echoed in his mind again. But as his eyes flickered toward the people passing by, he instinctively pulled up his hood, lowering his head even though his face was already covered in ash.
"Why am I even hiding?" he muttered to himself, his gaze landing on a group of doctors in uniform walking past. "It's not them. They don't care about me anymore. It's been so long. They've forgotten about me."
You don't know that, Adam. It's best that you're careful.
Adam continued with his head down for the rest of the commute until he reached his apartment. It was a rundown building with no security at all. Well, perhaps the people living in it had enough security, as most were criminals and bad people that the authorities didn't bother to catch.
Create trouble, and you'll risk catching the eye of everyone in the building.
Once again, a perfect place for Adam. Everyone kept to themselves.
The apartment was small, if it could even be called that. It had a bed and its own bathroom. No kitchen, but it didn't matter since he doesn't cook anyway.
Adam quickly dropped off his things, slipping the rolled-up cash into a metal box hidden within a vent in the wall. Without wasting another second, he rushed to the bathroom, stripping off his clothes as a cloud of dust and ash billowed into the air, remnants of the filth he hadn't managed to shake off on the way home.
The first shower was always just for washing away the grime—scrubbing every inch, making sure not a single speck of dirt clung to him. Only once he was completely clean did he allow himself to bathe, sinking into the warmth of the water.
This was what he looked forward to the most.
Just him, the quiet, and the heat wrapping around him like something close to comfort.
Away from the world that had become so desensitized and cold.
Stop lying, Adam.You want to be a part of it, of everything. You're just afraid… afraid that they will know who you are… and they'll be scared.
"Shut up…" Adam closed his eyes and submerged his head under the water.
You're a freak, Adam. Even before the world had gone to shit.
Bubbles violently escaped the corners of Adam's lips as he whispered under the water.
A second.
A minute.
He stayed like that for a long time before emerging from the water, renewed and reinvigorated. And as he looked at the mirror, his face which was once covered in ash and soot was no more—what was left was a face as smooth as porcelain, sharp, and perfect in all its definitions of it. His black hair that reached to his cheeks, emphasizing his alluring features even further.
But below his neck, the illusion of flawlessness shattered.
His shoulders alone were filled with scars, ranging from the size of a penny to completely covering his entire back. Burns marred his skin, patches of discolored flesh stretching across his torso. There wasn't a single inch of him untouched by old wounds.
Adam lightly sniffled as he stared at himself for a few seconds before sighing and stepping out of the bathroom.
And just like that, morning had arrived again. Time to go back to work.
This was his life. His routine. And it hadn't changed in years.
Wake up.
Scavenge the ashes of the dead.
Come home.
Rinse repeat, rinse repeat.
"H…hi?"
The new guy, Hans, hesitantly tried to start a conversation. But Adam barely acknowledged him, offering only the briefest of greetings before falling silent again.
This continued for days. Then a week. Until eventually, Hans stopped trying.
Why don't you just talk to him? He obviously wants to be your friend.
"No. No friends."
Adam shook his head, dispelling the unwelcome thoughts. He couldn't afford to stray from his routine. Not now.
Adam went home again without speaking to anyone. He bathed. Slept. Welcomed another day of silence. Nothing changed. It was monotonous. Boring.
But then, one morning, as he walked to work with his hood up, weaving through the bustling crowd, something snapped in him. He glanced up at the towering billboards, filled with the shining faces of Heroes, their perfect smiles beaming down at the world. He looked around at the people passing him by, lost in their own lives, unaware of his existence.
And for the first time, a thought crept into his mind.
None of these people care about me. I'm just another face in the crowd. Just another speck of dust.
He was like everyone else now. Unimportant. Unnoticed.
Then maybe… maybe it was time to let someone in.
Maybe I should start making friends?
Perhaps it was time to step outside his bubble.
Are you sure?
The voice in his head slithered back in, sharp and cold.
They will hurt you, Adam. People are bad. Their only goal is to break you. Remember what happened in the hospital? None of them are good people.
The thought stopped him in his tracks. But a deafening silence filled his mind, drowning everything else out.
Adam closed his eyes.
For the first time in years, he tilted his head toward the sky, letting the warmth of the sun soak into his skin. He took a deep breath.
And then, with quiet defiance, he lowered his hood.
And fate immediately punished him for it.
The moment he decided to be free, he heard it—A voice calling out a name he hadn't heard in over twenty years, a voice he never wanted to hear again.
"Zero?" The voice said.
And it was so stupid, so stupid, for him to turn around.
"Zero? Is that you?"