#yeeee snippet bout mel's past!!!! well part of mel's past

[aria0fgold]

Whumptober day 7 prompt: Alleyway | "Can you hear me?"

Characters: Marigold, Mel Ages: 28, 14

A young boy sat on the ground of what he can only guess as a narrow alleyway, leaning on the brick wall behind him, hunched over and barely breathing. He slipped in and out of consciousness, his stubbornness and determination the only things keeping him from fully succumbing to his injuries that he had grown numb to.

He doesn't know where he is now, he can hear cars passing by, can somewhat see some light at the corner of his one partially opened eye as the other remained close due to the blood that dripped down from his head. He doesn't know anything much anymore, brain too clouded, too foggy to think, there is only one thing that matters to the boy, to live.

He heard footsteps nearby him, at least, he hopes it was nearby, he wasn't sure about anything anymore now too, are the noises he hears truly there? Or is it just a hallucination? Is this how death feels? It's cold…

“Would you look at that…” A woman's voice, perhaps. “Can ya hear me, kid? You still alive there?”

He groaned, at least he hoped he did.

The woman whistled, “Barely hanging on. Want me to finish the job?”

The boy forced his hand to move, forced his head to look at the direction of the voice, forced out a louder groan, he isn't sure if any of his efforts bore fruit, he hoped it did. He doesn't want to die, not after all that he'd done… But what was it? He doesn't know and it didn't matter, he just wanted to live.

A chuckle, “Still got that fire in ya, huh? C'mere then, can't let that fire burn out after all, 'lil zombie.”

He felt someone put their arms under him, felt the ground disappear with nothing but air and the arms of a stranger underneath him. He heard the blaring sound of something familiar, along with more footsteps, and more voices.

“It's okay now, kid. You'll live, I guarantee it.”

That was the last thing the boy heard before his consciousness was swallowed by the darkness.