S2W36: “In It Together”

© 2022 Phylicia Joannis

I stepped into the subway car, then backed out. A shiver ran up my spine and my palms began to sweat. I thought I could do it. Had reassured Penny that a subway ride to Bordertown would be no problem. Marcos would meet me a few stops down, and we’d go together. Penny’s idea. She had to meet up with Simon, and even if she’d lent us her car, there was no guarantee it would make it back. Bordertown had a reputation.

But the sight of those hard, porcelain seats and the poles between them gave me heart palpitations. I’d been hoofing it or taking the bus for months. Now, I needed to face my fears.

I thought of that terrifying derailment, of feeling the train car upend and wondering if that moment would be my last. But Chase had been there with me, holding my hand. Part of me wished he was with me again.

A hand crept into mine, and for a crazy moment I thought I had wished Chase into existence. But then I remembered that I was alone and this was the city. My elbow connected with someone’s solar plexus, and a male voice groaned.

“Miracle, it’s just me!”

“Marcos?” I looked down and there he was, folded in half as he clutched his middle. “I thought you were meeting me at the Hilltop Ave stop.”

“My interview finished early, so I wanted to try and catch you. I would have called, but there’s no signal down here.”

I helped him up and we watched the train doors close. “That’s the third train I’ve missed.”

He gave me a knowing look and shrugged. “I got bit by a dog once when I was little. Now I’m terrified of anything with fur.”

Another train made its way into the station. Marcos put his hands in his pockets and whistled. The doors slid open.

“You got this, Miracle.” I spoke the words to myself, exhaled, and stepped inside. The train was nearly empty.

Marcos followed me in. “Wanna sit or stand?”

I hightailed it off the train and back onto the platform, legs trembling. What was wrong with me? Marcos hopped out of the train just as the doors closed and sauntered over to me.

“Maybe we should sit down? Talk for a bit?”

I nodded and we walked over to a bench. “I don’t know what happened. I thought I’d be fine, but . . .”

“Ah, no te preocupes, Miracle. Bordertown is no joke. There’s places even I don’t go. But don’t worry. I’ll keep you safe. I promise.”

“It’s not that.” I whispered the words with a tremble in my voice. I hated feeling so afraid. It wasn’t just Bordertown, or even the train. It was everything. Like a giant wave, all that I’d been through came crashing in all at once, threatening to drown me. Fear snatched at my chest, pulling my breath away. Why was I doing this? It wouldn’t change anything. If I survived, I’d still be alone. Unwanted.

“Miracle?” Marcos cleared his throat. He reached for my hand, but pulled back at the last second and put his hands in his own lap, instead. “I want you to know that I think you’re very brave.”

“What?”

“When I ran into you that day on the street, it changed my life. You climbed out of a scary, dark hole and saved all those people. People you didn’t even know. That was a really selfless thing to do.”

“No it wasn’t.” I shook my head.

“Mira, if it were me? I would have stayed put, let someone else put their life in danger. But your story inspired me. Got me to thinking, you know? Made me want to do better. That’s why I’m here. I wanna help you. And I know something good’s gonna come out of it. Because it’s you.”

“I’m nobody special, Marcos.”

Another train pulled up and Marcos smiled. “Sure you are.”

I stared at the doors. My legs still trembled, but I stood. I didn’t believe I was special, but Marcos’ words still lent me courage. I needed to get on that train.

I stepped off of the platform and into the car. I forced myself to sit and stared at the doors, willing them to close before I could change my mind. Marcos sat beside me, a huge grin on his face. The stand clear announcement rang out, and the doors began to slide shut.

Marcos suddenly yanked me from my seat, barreling towards the closing doors. He smacked the side of one and forced us out. I gave him a wide-eyed stare and he shrugged.

“Wrong train,” he said with a chuckle. I laughed, something I hadn’t done in a long time. When the right train came by, we hopped on together.

***

Sydney Allen pored over the autopsy report, making notes in the margins of her copy. Though she assumed someone as meticulous as Dr. Jengal would have multiple copies, she planned to return it to him in the near future. There were large discrepancies between Dr. Jengal’s report and the official autopsy report. Sydney had questions about those discrepancies. Ones only Dr. Jengal could answer.

She circled the name of the lab hired to test samples and tapped her pen against her chin. “BioTech Labs,” she spoke to herself. “Why does that name sound familiar?”

Her office phone buzzed and she answered. “Sydney Allen.”

“Ms. Allen? A Dr. Jengal from the coroner’s office is here to speak with you.” Sydney smiled and stared at the report on her desk. Perhaps she’d get those answers sooner than she thought.

“Send him in.”